Release that Witch

...

Roland walked out of the cabinet as the gunboat staggered to a stop. He was fascinated by what he saw.

The arch-typed mountain rocks, which extended out from both sides, wrapped around the entire town like two huge arms. The rays of sunlight slanted along the finger-wide crevice, forming a wall of golden shimmers.

Numberless vines, which looked like green hair, grew out of the bottom of the rocks. Some bulky ones even reached the ground, tempting people to climb up.

When the sun rays sifted through dense twigs and branches and splintered up into glints of the muttering brook, Roland felt like he was in a untraversed forest. However, the area was not completely uncultivated. Along Soundless River stood different types of buildings constructed by men. Townsmen passed through waist-high bushes back and forth. Streaks of smokes could be detected from the distance. Everything around this area was in perfect harmony with nature.

Due to a lack of sunshine, the temperature in this town was slightly lower than that in other places. The colors of plants, naturally, were in much deeper shades. No wonder the town was called Deepvalley Town.

Roland and the witches stepped on the dock covered with mosses and met the people who had been waiting there for a long time. The three at the front were obviously the general commander of the First Army, Iron Axes, the Duke of the Northern Region, Calvin, and his daughter, Edith.

”We’ve met again, Your Majesty.” Edith performed a curtsy. ”Congratulations on the victory of your first battle.”

”I’ve heard the news on my way here. You did a good job.” Roland gave an approving nod. ” Iron Axes told me you not only smoothed out the transportation of food and ammunition, but also successfully lured the enemies.”

”These are the obligations of Kant Family,” she replied with a faint smile. ”The tradesmen in the Northern Region are happy to be at your service.”

”But the owner of this town was still Timothy Wimbledon half a year ago,” Roland said within himself. The tradesmen in the three cities probably had never heard of the new king. They were willing to offer their services and carry out his plan was simply because of Edith’s advertisement and her tremendous personal influence over the Northern Region.

After giving a few words of encouragement, Roland turned to Iron Axes and asked, ”Have you obtained the casualties?”

”Yes, Your Majesty.” Iron Axe administered a military salute and continued, ”The detailed report has been sent to your office.”

”O-office?”

”I’ve discussed this matter with Earl Haier. We’ve decided that you should use his castle as your palace during your stay at Deepvalley Town.” Edith further explained. ”Also, I’ve had the study refurbished, making it look like the one in the Border Area. Miss Maggie told me that you like a bright room. So, I knocked down a wall with a sunny exposure and replaced it with a French window.

”Really?” Roland asked with interest. ”Then where will the earl stay?”

”In order not to disturb your work, he’ll live in his mansion in the suburb.” The Pearl of the Northern Region paused for a moment and then asked, ”You want me to summon him?”

”No, that’s fine. I bet he doesn’t like partake in politics.” Roland waved his hand. ”Let’s get into the castle first.”

”Alright. Please follow me.”

”Is this the wonder of power?” Roland thought while smacking his lips. ”It isn’t bad to have a taste of it from time to time.”

...

Roland thought he was back to City of Neverwinter upon his entry to the study. The large mahogany desk, along with the coffee table and the recliner at the corner was exactly the same as those in the Border Area. The only big difference was the sceneries outside the French window. Here, he could see the green dale through the window instead of the somber Impassable Mountain Range.

He wondered what the previous owner, Earl Haier, would think about the renovation after he left.

Roland sat back to the desk and started to read the report.

Although he had learned how the battle had progressed, he felt exhilarated when he caught sight of the church’s casualties.

This was definitely a victory worthy to be remembered.

His concern about God’s Punishment Army dissipated when he saw 156 deaths among the God’s Punishment Warriors. It appeared that these powerful, fearless killing machines were not at all unconquerable. After all, flesh and blood could not compete against bullets and fire. Roland believed there should not be many God’s Punishment Warriors left, as every conversion required a witch’s blood. Agatha estimated the army should consist of no more than 1,500 warriors, provided that the Bloody Moon did not arrive.

A casualty ratio of one to ten was already high enough for the church to lament their loss.

In addition to the God’s Punishment Warriors, there were over 300 members of the Judgement Army killed in action, more than 20 of them severely injured and four commanders captured. These numbers were trivial. Despite the fact that Judgement Warriors were mostly strong-willed and skillful combaters, Roland did not take them seriously, as they were essentially the same as knights.

What was really lucky was that they had not encountered any pure witches who were extremely difficult to deal with. If they unfortunately had, they probably would not have won that easily just with Sylvie and Iffy taking charge. In fact, Sylvie had instructed the machine gun team to specifically tackle permeating pure witches.

”What about the casualties in the First Army?” Roland folded the report.

”Two killed and 21 severely injured,” Iron Axe answered in a low tone. ”All resulted from a close-range spearing from the God’s Punishment Army. The wounded has now recovered and returned to service.”

After learning that the church had launched the attack, Lightning brought Nana to Deepvalley Town in no time. Nobody could provide a better treatment than Miss Angel.

Roland knocked on the desk and ordered. ”Arrange a boat to send the bodies of the killed soldiers to City of Neverwinter for a burial.”

”Yes, Your Majesty.” After a short pause, Iron Axe asked, ”What will you do with the unit leader of the fourth premium shooting unit, Danny, Your Majesty?”

”That old hunter who shot five members of the God’s Punishment Army?” Roland took up the teacup and sipped the tea that tasted exactly the same as the premium tea in the palace. ”What’s your opinion?”

During the rescue, Brian noticed that the injuries Danny and his protector sustained appeared to be inconsistent with their positions. The news soon reached Roland that very night via the Sigil of Listening. At that time, the war had just ended. Considering that the First Army was still absorbed in their celebration and that the protector was in a critical condition, Roland simply asked Iron Axe to first treat the wounded. Now, since they had arrived at Deepvalley Town, it was time to bring up this matter.

”I think although Danny disregarded the instruction and left his post without permission, he did make a big contribution to the victory. He shot five God’s Punishment Warriors down by himself. Such a remarkable performance would be more than enough to make him a celebrity in the Army. Therefore, I reckon his merits offset his demerits.” Iron Axes said slowly, ”In the Iron Sand City, a fighter like him will even be rewarded by his master, so...”

”But the First Army was not any old-school army that rewards their soldiers based on how many they’ve killed.” Roland interrupted. ”Do you remember what I taught you during the first training session?”

Iron Axe swallowed hard. ”You taught us disciplines, Your Majesty.”

”Only a well-disciplined army can become invincible.” Roland rose to his feet and paced to the French window. ”I hope you bear this in mind all the time. Now, tell me, how are you supposed to deal with him?”