Free Web NovelChapter 107: Chapter 107: Gift_1
"It’s because there are too many people like you in the witch assembly that we have become scattered, relegated to being hunted by various nations," Vila argued with conviction in response to Habanis’s mockery. "If we could gather the strength of all the members of the witch assembly, would they still be so brazen?"
Aiden was beginning to understand, according to what Daili had said before, Presia advocated in the witch assembly for uniting the witches’ power, to jointly combat the nations’ organizations and institutions hunting witches, and to actively assassinate capable Heretic Inquisitors and Bounty Hunters.
From Vila’s remarks, it was evident that she was a supporter of this perspective.
According to the Dark Magic Management Convention signed by nearly three-quarters of the countries on the Southern Continent, the Heretic Inquisitorial institutions of the signatory nations had the right to issue warrants and arrest within their territories witches and magicians who engaged in black magic research without permission, and they could cooperate and extradite criminals.
Undoubtedly, the Heretic Inquisitorial institutions were the witches’ greatest natural enemies. Many witches had no choice but to move their operations outside of the signatory countries or even to retreat from society and live in seclusion.
In the witch assembly, there were actually quite a few powerful individuals. Being involved with black magic was illegal by nature, and the witches’ inherently unlawful nature meant they had little inhibition or restraint regarding the use of black magic and related techniques.
Among the witches present, Aiden had heard of some names and not others. Those he had heard of were all S-level wanted criminals; it was likely the others were similar.
Take Daili, for instance, as an S-level wanted criminal, her direct combat strength could be equated to a fully armed and well-trained soldier, possibly amounting to a couple of hundred men. Without the enemy’s thorough understanding of her magic, this ceiling could be raised even higher. She could easily exterminate a small town’s cavalry police and militia, or a medium-sized band of thieves, a pirate ship, or even a gang, without any trouble.
Whether faced with specialized witch-targeting Heretic Inquisitors or Bounty Hunters, confronting such a boss required forming groups to raid. Protagonists like the former Aiden, capable of taking on S-level wanted criminals one-on-one, weren’t just found anywhere.
If these witches were to unite and take command of several hundred other witches in the assembly, they could form a military force on par with a small duchy, which would be a major headache for any nation.
But the witches’ selfish and freedom-loving nature made it almost impossible for them to accept strict institutional management; at most, they could only form small groups of a few people, not the disciplined and influential large organizations.
Habanis, for example, was clearly a typical case.
"Isn’t it inevitable for useless refuse to be discarded? If you don’t want to be caught, then don’t be a witch. Damn it! If you have the ability to protect yourself, that’s enough. What’s the use of flocking with the weak? Waiting to be betrayed by them?" Habanis sneered, "As for Daili, being caught and thrown into prison just proves she doesn’t have the strength to sit here. It’s better to just expel such trash."
"Shortsighted! I definitely don’t agree!" Vila blurted out, then looked at Aiden again, "Presia!"
Seeing Vila looking to him for support again, Aiden had no choice but to speak up with apprehension: "I also disagree, does expelling Daili bring you any benefit? What’s your rush?"
Normally, Presia’s stance would align with Vila’s, and according to Daili, there was a certain level of rapport between her and Presia.
"Alright, no matter how much you argue, it’s not for you to decide," Lamia suddenly interjected, tossing the topic to the host sitting at the head of the long table, "Abigail, you make the decision."
"Let’s put it aside for now," Abigail replied nonchalantly, "Daili is a good kid and besides, there aren’t many left who are willing to pursue the origin. It’s been years since I’ve encountered a decent witch..." She paused for a moment, "No, perhaps that’s not the right thing to say."
"What do you mean, did you come across any interesting newcomers?" Lamia inquired.
Abigail did not answer her question, but instead slowly turned her face towards where Aiden was sitting. "An interesting little mouse has come, who exactly are you?" frёeωebɳovel.com
Aiden went stiff on the spot. frёewebnoѵēl.com
Had Abigail seen through his disguise from the very beginning?
Abigail was the master here; it was possible that she had some privileges that Aiden failed to see through. What surprised Aiden was that, after realizing he had sneaked in from the start, she had still stood by and watched him act for so long... What exactly was this woman after? Did she not care at all about the leakage of internal information?
Abigail’s words caused the temperature in the room to drop suddenly, several pairs of eyes focused on Aiden in unison, as if a pack of wolves were sizing up a husky that had infiltrated their midst.
"You’re not Presia!?" Vila seated to his right exclaimed in shock, "Bastard, how dare you deceive me?"
That should be considered your own wishful thinking, Aiden thought to himself.
"Heh, as if a credential could be casually lent to an outsider. Presia has already been caught too!" Habanis, sitting opposite, shouted in a taunting tone.
Aiden did not reply, as there was no need to. Speaking more would only expose his information. Telling lies was also pointless, for no one would believe them.
With his understanding of dark magic, he should not have really been summoned to this space; this was completely beyond the scope of an individual’s use of dark magic, and was truly the domain of gods.
This space was likely just a projection created using the talisman before him; the witches present couldn’t directly attack him, unless Abigail did something to him through controlling the talisman in his hand, but that was also highly unlikely.
If the talisman could achieve the effect of harming the wearer, it was hard to imagine that the witches chosen by Abigail would be willing to carry it with them.
Unlike the other witches, Abigail did not show any signs of hostility, but instead gazed at him calmly.
After a moment, Abigail spoke again, "To reach this place is also a kind of fate, let me give you a gift as a keepsake."
A gift? Aiden couldn’t help but feel full of doubt.
Abigail paused, then spoke again, uttering a series of eerie noises that no ordinary human could produce, making one feel uncomfortable, "█■■█■██■██████"
In an instant, Aiden felt as if a great bell had tolled inside his head, causing him such a severe headache that his brain went blank. Instinctively, he cried out and forcefully flung the talisman from his hand.
