Chapter 73 – The Witch and the Dog
The Dortas imdiately began strategizing.
“We need to send more envoys to the northern forest.”
At one Dorta’s suggestion, Elder deia nodded in agreent.
The term "envoy" referred to capable individuals who maintained a friendly relationship with the Witch.
Lily and Keros.
With the core forces protecting the forest now absent, it was necessary to increase the number of personnel monitoring the north.
The northern part of Ordor Forest bordered the territory of Grand Duke Bersen Clarke.
A group of mages that constantly eyed the chance for a witch hunt.
If they realized the forest's defenses were weakened, they were bound to make their move.
Though the barrier would remain intact for about a year, ensuring safety for that duration, no one could predict how long Lily would remain away. Precaution was necessary.
“But why did Lily leave the forest? She hates acting on her own.”
“Does the truth of a witch ever need a reason?”
The Truth of a Witch.
It was an expression aning there was always a reason behind a witch’s actions.
“She’s eccentric and stubborn, but she treated us as her parents. A child who always listened to us wouldn’t suddenly leave without a reason.”
“Should we send other witches to follow her?”
“The sentinel who always guarded the forest went with her. Fate must have already marked its course with her at the center. It’s best for us to simply watch and feign ignorance.”
As the eldest and wisest among the witches, deia carried deep insight and experience. The Dortas decided to follow her advice.
“Then we’ll send skilled envoys to observe her from afar.”
The Dortas could not leave the forest themselves since mages might move against them at any ti. This forest was the final sanctuary of witches. Losing it was not an option.
When the conversation began to veer toward financial matters again, deia used her exhaustion as an excuse to dismiss the Dortas.
Once left alone, she sighed as she placed the now-empty jewel box down.
She had told Lily that the more gold she had, the better. But Lily had taken every last thing of value—her cherished gold rings, jewels, and anything that could fetch a price. deia felt like the wrinkles on her face had multiplied overnight.
It was infuriating, yet worriso at the sa ti.
“I hope nothing serious happens….”
As a child, Lily had experienced the "Witch Slaughter" and couldn’t sleep without the Dortas’ comforting presence.
A child who hid a sharp dagger within her cheerful and innocent heart.
This was the first ti Lily had left the forest unaccompanied.
Her stunning beauty and the treasure she carried were enough to stoke human greed, and deia feared that greed might lead to bloodshed.
Lily Base, the Witch of Ordor Forest.
While countless witches lived within the forest, the re ntion of Ordor Forest brought Lily Base to mind.
A witch with the greatest potential in history. Despite her youth and ongoing growth, her abilities rivaled those of the Dortas.
Why else would every Dorta consider themselves her parent?
She was the unparalleled Great Witch who inherited the legacy of all past witches.
And it was the reason the world feared her.
Abandoning her regret over the empty jewel box, deia walked to the window and looked up at the sky.
Her sharp foresight, which had always guided her, seed obscured by fog this ti. Yet she didn’t need to see the future to predict what would happen.
“Two young beasts have been released from the forest. Things are bound to get noisy.”
Especially the sentinel, Keros.
If that monster revealed its true form, the region would tremble from the shock.
Keros was the offspring of Kerberos, the three-headed hound that guarded the underworld.
***
“Doggy, is it tasty?”
“Woof!”
“Hm….”
Lily stared at Doggy as he chewed on a bone. His expression made it clear that he was thoroughly enjoying it.
Grrr―
Her stomach growled loudly. Lily grabbed the bone, bit into it like Doggy, and imdiately made a face.
“…It’s terrible.”
“Woof!”
“I know it’s valuable, but it’s still awful.”
When she threw the bone into the forest, Doggy gave her a betrayed look before scampering off into the woods.
Sitting down, Lily began drawing her favorite foods in the dirt.
It had been only half a day since she left the forest, yet she was already facing a significant crisis.
She hadn’t anticipated hunger.
In the forest, witches had always brought her als at the right ti, so she’d never had to consider such a situation.
The elder grandmother had often scolded her for living like a princess instead of a witch, and now Lily was beginning to think the old woman might have been right.
“Ugh, I’m so hungry.”
Being out here on her own made her realize just how comfortable her life in the forest had been.
Should she go back?
As she debated, sothing fell in front of her with a thud—a chunk of at, still dripping with blood. It seed Doggy had hunted it during that brief mont.
Panting with his tongue out, Doggy looked at her expectantly, seeking praise, but she couldn’t bring herself to smile.
“Doggy, eating raw at will make you sick.”
“Woof!”
“It might be fine for you, but not for .”
Before she could finish speaking, Doggy opened his mouth, and black flas spewed out. The at, along with the ground beneath it, was scorched black, sending up wisps of smoke.
“…….”
Lily picked up the cooked at and inspected it. The outside was charred, and though the inside wasn’t quite cooked, it oozed blood. She frowned again.
The elder had lied to her. The old woman had said that money could solve anything, but out here, money was useless.
There was no one around to take her gold.
From the treetops, she scanned the area. Though she was near the border of the Tobaron region, there wasn’t even a shadow of a fortress in sight.
She considered using a spell but held back, knowing that the Dortas might sense it and co looking for her.
She didn’t know how much longer it would take to reach the Elletor Fortress.
Resting her chin on her hand, she stared at the poorly cooked at before resolutely grabbing it.
She wasn’t accustod to hunger and found it unbearable.
As she sighed and tried to peel off the burnt outer layer, Doggy’s ears perked up, and he quickly turned his head.
“Doggy, what is it?”
“Woof.”
“People?”
A deep male voice soon echoed from the direction Doggy was staring at.
“A woman? And she’s got a dog too.”
“See? I told you. I saw smoke rising.”
“I hope it’s a big catch.”
n in hunting attire erged one by one from the dense foliage. There were about ten of them.
They were ard with various weapons, including bows, and their presence hinted at considerable skill.
Lily frowned and pinched her nose. The hunters reeked of blood.
Without warning, one of them strode up to her and yanked back her hood.
“……!”
Her flowing black hair and radiant, porcelain-like beauty were revealed. The hunters froze for a mont, but their expressions soon shifted to excitent.
“Is this our lucky day or what?”
“It’s not just a big catch; it’s a damn whale. Hahaha.”
As slave hunters, they’d never seen a woman this stunning before—not in their entire lives. They exchanged crude remarks while inspecting her face.
“She could make us rich beyond our wildest dreams.”
“If we sell her to a slaver, we’d get thousands—no, tens of thousands—in gold.”
“But look at her clothes… Is she a witch?”
“She’s probably just a girl pretending to be one. Nobles fleeing to the forest often dress as witches to increase their chances of survival.”
“Still, she’s impressive for finding a witch’s outfit.”
“Well, nobles can get their hands on anything when they’re desperate.”
The hunters had been tracking nobles from Blyer, specifically those opposing Lord Kal.
Forrly part of Lochter Felice’s faction, these nobles were being purged. Having been driven into a corner, so had fled beyond the Elletor Fortress into the forest.
Rather than dispatching an army, Kal had hired slave hunters to exterminate them.
“She’s obviously a noble. Is she so young lady from Blyer? With looks like these, we would’ve heard of her.”
“Does it matter? The extermination order’s been given. All we need is her head.”
“That Kal is a fool. A beauty like this, and he doesn’t keep her for himself? Why kill them all?”
“Well, his loss is our gain.”
Exchanging sly glances, the hunters sneered as they looked Lily up and down with lewd expressions.
Her beauty was captivating beyond reason, making it impossible for them to resist.
They’d already captured their prey. How they “cooked” it was entirely up to them.
“Ugh, you’re disgusting from the get-go.”
Lily was used to those kinds of stares.
She’d felt the sa revulsion countless tis during the Witch Slaughter ten years ago. Her expression hardened.
As the hunters surrounded her, Lily slowly rose to her feet.
“Do you have food?”
“You look starved. Need sothing to eat?”
“Yes. A lot of it.”
“We can give you as much food as you want. All you have to do is what we say.”
“What do I need to do?”
“Take off that baggy robe. We can’t see your figure under it.”
As the hunters jeered and laughed, Lily pressed her hat down firmly and spoke softly. There was no point in continuing the conversation.
“Keros.”
“Woof!”
“Don’t burn them. Burnt food isn’t tasty.”
At her command, the small dog leaped forward and charged toward the hunters.
Seeing the little dog running at them, the hunters burst into laughter. So drew their bows, while the leader grinned and began undoing his belt.
“This crazy wench just needs a bit of discipline.”
He threw off his pants, shalessly approaching Lily, completely unbothered by his nudity.
But then, the atmosphere changed.
The laughter abruptly stopped.
Noticing the sudden shift, the leader turned to see his companions backing away in terror, their faces pale.
“What’s going on?”
When he turned back, a massive shadow engulfed him. His gaze slowly rose, his eyes filling with horror.
“What… What is—?”
A black-furred monster?
That was his last thought.
Crunch!
A giant paw crushed him in an instant, leaving behind nothing but a mangled corpse. The massacre began.
“...A monster! Aaaagh!!!”
“Help! Soone, help!”
Screams echoed through the desolate forest like haunting cries.
Lily walked calmly toward the noise.
She ignored the first hunter’s body, focusing instead on gathering the scattered belongings nearby.
Neither the grotesque sight of mangled corpses nor the sounds of n dying fazed her in the slightest.
The weak perish.
The dead are robbed.
To avoid being robbed, one must beco stronger.
To grow stronger, one must kill and take.
This was the lesson Lily had learned during the Witch Slaughter—a witch’s survival thod in this world.
A kind witch or a foolish witch could be forgiven, but a weak witch could not. She had learned this harsh truth ten years ago.
To survive, she needed to grow familiar with death.
Just like now.
When the screams finally ceased, Lily straightened up.
Around her lay unrecognizable corpses, crushed and mangled. Massive paw prints marked the ground, evidence of the destruction.
There were no survivors.
“Doggy.”
At Lily’s call, the small dog erged from the forest, wagging his tail as he ran to her side. Doggy rubbed his face against her leg, and Lily gently stroked his head.
“Let’s hurry and leave. The elder might co looking for us.”
“Woof!”
“Right? Even you’re scared of her, aren’t you? Now, open your mouth.”
Lily shoved the bags she’d collected into Doggy’s mouth, then started running in the direction the hunters had co from.
A sweet cookie was clutched between her teeth, taken from one of the hunters’ bags. The taste improved her mood.
“Woof!”
“No, you have your bone. The cookie’s mine. …What? You’re sulking? Fine, I’ll buy you sothing tasty once we get to the city. Where are we going, you ask?”
Talking to Doggy as if he could understand, Lily glanced beyond the horizon. A massive fortress lood faintly in the distance.
It was the Elletor Fortress.
Pointing toward it, she shouted, “Blyer! We’re going to Blyer!”
Her reason for choosing Blyer was simple.
It was the only city she’d heard of, ntioned by the hunters earlier.
And so, the witch and her dog set foot in the Tobaron region.
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