Release that Witch

No. 76 closed the door to cut off the noise in the tavern lobby and then walked back to sit opposite Agatha.

No. 76 knew it would be much easier to expose herself once she acted alone and left the witches of Wolfheart, but concealing her identity was no longer her priority now.

”I thought you’d take me somewhere out-of-the-way.” Agatha looked around the cubicle. ”I didn’t expect you to bring me here.”

”The tavern has always been a good place for exchanging information and keeping in contact, my Lady.” No. 76 poured Agatha a mug of ale. ”I hope you’ll forgive me for failing to provide a more elegant environment for our talk. After all, this is only my second day in Neverwinter.”

Now that No. 76 was no longer concerned about being exposed, talking in the tavern would actually make the other party less wary to some extent, for they would certainly feel safer in a place with so many people coming and going rather than in a dark alley. Neither of them feared the cold, but Agatha would not accept the request for a private talk in some desolate place from a complete stranger who appeared out of nowhere. Even No. 76 would not accept such a request.

Most importantly, since she had neither hostility toward Neverwinter nor the Witch Union, she need not consider herself as their enemy, her previous plan of hiding was only for the purpose of finding the Chosen One. Now that she had found a better way, there was no need for her to follow the original plan.

Common people and witches were now faced with a mutual enemy. The danger loomed ahead.

”How did you find me in only two days?”

”I tried to find out where you worked, the hours when you would return to the castle and the route you would take... I made the witches of Wolfheart ask Wendy about the first two things and I heard about your usual route from the residents.” No. 76 was brief and to the point. ”After I knew that you belonged to the Witch Union, I decided to take the initiative to contact you.”

”I see.” Agatha gazed at her keenly. ”So there are other witches of Taquila who survived?”

”You could say that, but we’re no longer witches.” No. 76 knew that the only reason Agatha was willing to talk to her was that she had news about Taquila, so she did not conceal anything regarding this. ”There was no way to preserve the body for hundreds of years and so we could only adopt another method to extend our life. For example, the body you’re looking at now belongs to a God’s Punishment Warrior of the church.”

”You mean... not only can you control the body but you also have the power to activate the domain of God’s Stone?”

”Indeed, this was also the ultimate goal that Lady Alice was fighting for, a God’s Punishment Warrior that was formed by combining a witch and a common person that could combat the demon. Even losing half of his blood would not kill the witch as long as the witch’s soul was transferred to another body to form another perfect transcendent warrior.”

”I knew her plan was not that simple.” Agatha remained silent for a long time before finishing her ale. ”But judging from your tone, it sounded like the other survivors didn’t agree with this method. And... Why did you come here?”

”Before I give you the answer, I’d like to ask you something very important,” No. 76 said in a low voice.

”Go ahead.”

”Have you already revealed the information about the demon, the Battle of Divine Will, and the Union to the Witch Union?”

Agatha nodded.

No. 76 suddenly showed a hint of excitement. ”How did they respond? Did they believe you?”

”Not only did they accept the information, they’ve also started preparing for the third Battle of Divine Will,” she replied, ”In fact, a short time ago, the Witch Union confronted the demons and killed a Magic Slayer along with two Fearsome Demons.”

No. 76 could not help but clench her fist. All the things had turned out as she had expected. Agatha had really revealed the information to the local witches. In that case, the Witch Union and Taquila have become natural allies, which meant that she no longer needed to hide her identity and could get straight to the point.

Although she was also curious about the victory of the battle between the witches of the Witch Union and the Senior Demons before the fall of Bloody Moon, there was something more urgent that she had to discuss.

Without hesitating, No. 76 told Agatha everything about the fight between Natalia and Alice as well as the plan of the Chosen One. ”I’ve found the witch who can start the instrument of Divine retribution and annihilate the demons lives in the Castle District, and I hope you could help me to identify her.”

Agatha was a little shocked. ”Is there anyone who can really do that?”

”Lady Pasha told me so.” No. 76 took off the ring and handed it over to Agatha. ”As long as anyone summons her power, I can see the orange light that symbolizes the ’Key’ through the colorful Magic Stone.”

Agatha puckered her lips before taking the ring. She observed it for a moment and said, ”I think you should talk to the Lord of Neverwinter.”

”Of course, I’ll tell Wendy everything... Wait!” No. 76 was surprised. ”The Lord of Neverwinter? You mean... The local leader that is a common person?”

”Yes, Roland Wimbledon, a common person who looks ordinary and is even a little rash.” Somehow, a faint smile appeared on Agatha’s lips. ”He’s the actual core of the Witch Union.”

No. 76 frowned and said, ”I don’t quite understand... what do you mean?”

”I was just like you at the very beginning.” Agatha handed back the ring. ”I realized later that without Roland, the Witch Union wouldn’t exist, Neverwinter wouldn’t be the way it is now, and Graycastle would never defeat the church. All of the achievements came from this common person. If you want to find and take the Chosen One with you, it’s Roland you need to speak to, not Wendy.”

”But...”

”Don’t worry, he knows much more than you could ever imagine.” Agatha chuckled. ”You know what he told me after I woke up in the Frozen Coffin, when I was shattered and bewildered by the fact that the Union had disappeared long ago? He said that common people could defeat demons.”

”This is too...”

”Arrogant, right?” She interrupted. ”And I thought so in the first place. But in fact, I saw hope in him. That hope was something the witches of Neverwinter would believe in wholeheartedly. Hence, you must earn Roland’s approval if Taquila wants to work with the Witch Union to fight against the demons.”

For a moment, No. 76 could not believe her ears. If it was a wild witch who identified with the rule of a common person, she would think it made sense. After all, more than 400 years had passed since that period when the Union ruled the mainland, and the witches were superior. But she could not understand why Agatha, an authentic Taquila witch, would have so much faith in a common person. Additionally, the faith was not merely about recruiting common people as assistants for her experiment.

Although she had been engaged in missions involving the secular regime before, she did not expect the mission to begin like this.

No. 76 put the ring away and remained silent for a moment before saying. ”Please let me think about it.”

After that, she rose to salute Agatha once again before leaving the tavern.