Release that Witch

…

Dinner was served by a servant.

Before the servant opened the covers, Annie had already smelled the mouthwatering aroma. In the iron box, there was a pile of thick bread which was baked golden. Just one glimpse, and she knew that the bread was made up of fine wheat flour that had been kneaded and fermented after being peeled. Besides, there was also a small packet of butter and a pot of meat broth, which was enough for five people to enjoy.

”The spoons and plates are all in the wooden cupboard. Tomorrow morning, breakfast will also be served, so you don’t need to keep leftovers,” the servant said, ”Before getting a Resident Identity Card (ID), you can’t leave the Foreign Affairs Building at your will. Additionally, you aren’t allowed to go to the basement. If you want to practice your abilities, the rooftop is available. There’s a service room on the first floor, where I sleep. If you need anything, you’re free to come to me. Unlike hotels, all services here are free.”

The five people were all in a daze and did not even regain their senses after the servant bowed and left.

”Is this the hospitality of the great nobles? It’s exactly the same as the play,” Amy was the first to sigh and said, ”except for some of the lines that needed to be changed.”

”Such as?” Broken Sword and Hero asked curiously.

”Like Your Honorable Excellency, it’s my pleasure to serve you... that’s how it usually starts.”

”We aren’t the noble, so of course he didn’t talk to us like that.” No.76 smiled gently. ”Anyway, let’s eat first. I’m starving.”

”You made a good point.” They all swallowed their saliva in agreement.

This was not good. Was the ruler of the Kingdom of Graycastle using delicious food to seduce them? Amy began to feel concerned. It looked like the king was trying to rope them in, but the leader of the Witch Union did not even ask them about their abilities. Their behaviors were so inconsistent that she could not figure out their real intention. Since she was not alone and there were four other people, she had to be more cautious and not commit mistakes that she had made before.

Undoubtedly, the safest way was to stay away from the Western Region. The church had been defeated, so their greatest enemy was gone. What they needed most was to find a village or a small town closer to bigger cities so that they could live there with hidden identities, just like what they had done in the Kingdom of Dawn.

However, this method would not work now.

She could not help but sigh when she saw No.76 stumbling beside the table. Anyway, Witch Union was capable of healing the wounded and the prospect they had described was inviting. Now that there was a ray of hope that Hero could stand up again, she could not simply take them away.

Well, I’d better eat.

When Annie put a piece of bread with butter into her mouth, her mouth was instantly filled with a glutinous soft sweetness which she had never tasted before. The bread was very delicate without any gravel and it melted in her mouth the minute she bit into it. She did not even need to chew and the bread flowed easily into her throat.

Damn it! They could easily be seduced by the delicious food.

Although she was thinking like this, she could not stop her hand from grabbing another piece of bread.

Almost each one in the room was busy eating the bread and no one was talking.

They let out a deep breath when only crumbs were left in the iron box.

”Will we still be able to eat such food in the future?” Broken Sword licked all her fingers reluctantly.

”I’m afraid... that’s unlikely.” Amy held the pot and poured the aromatic broth, dividing it equally into five bowls. There were some scallion and oil circles on the surface, which made it more delicious. ”Only the upper nobles can afford to eat such bread and even my father only used to eat coarse bread.”

”It’s good enough to eat coarse bread. I remember that we always stayed hungry when we first arrived in the Kingdom of Dawn.” Hero blew the hot steam and eagerly took a big sip, and then she exhaled the heat. When she murmured, there was a long-awaited satisfaction in her tone.

”Lady Wendy has said that we can enjoy many benefits after we join Witch Union... do these benefits include delicious food?”

”She had also said that she would show us around Neverwinter and Witch Union before she left. We can ask her then.”

”I hope that the food would be included in these benefits.”

Witnessing that the other four witches were discussing the treatment which might be given by Witch Union, Annie had a faint prediction that they would stay in the city for a very long time.

…

After a shower, they went to bed early—the apartment consisted of one living room and four bedrooms. After a short discussion, they decided how to allocate the four bedrooms. As the strongest witch among them, Annie would certainly choose to sleep together with Hero who could not stand up.

The bed was very soft and there was no mildew at all. It was obvious cleaning was often done here. There were only a few small flames in the fireplace and the shaking and dim light reflected the furniture on the white stone walls. The dark shadows were slightly shaking as if they were dancing to the chilling wind outside the window.

She put Hero under the bedding and blew out the candles.

Annie cast her ability to make the bed warm through her heated hands. Hero clung to her bosom and gently asked, ”It’s been almost a year since we left the Kingdom of Wolfheart?”

”Yeah... it’s been one year and two months if we count the days since we set foot on the border of the Kingdom of Dawn.” Annie nodded.

”How long has it been since we left our hometown?”

This question made her silent. In fact, Annie had forgotten the exact date when she left her hometown and she only remembered that it was a remote village to the northwest of the Kingdom of Wolfheart. Since her identity as a witch was exposed, she had to continuously escape toward the east and traveled almost half of the entire Kingdom of Wolfheart. She only settled down in the suburbs of the king’s city after Bloodfang Association betrayed her.

It was the same for Broken Sword and Hero.

They were forced to leave their homes and escape due to different reasons. They suffered a lot on the road and only when they met Annie in Wolfheart, did they all escape together as a group.

”It has been almost five years since I left my hometown,” Hero said in a lowered tone, ”In the five years, I’ve never settled down in order to avoid being captured by the church. I thought that I needn’t run away anymore in the king’s city but to my surprise, I still have to escape, even if I’ve lost my legs.”

Annie could not help hugging her even more tightly.

”Lady Wendy has said that this is the home of the witches. Can we really settle down here?” Hero’s voice was on and off, like the faint sound of winds outside the windows. It sounded like she was asking Annie, and yet it also sounded like she was murmuring. ”I don’t want to escape any longer.”

Annie’s eyes started to well up. ”Don’t worry. We’ll have a house of our own and you’ll regain the use of your legs. You can go anywhere you want to for leisure instead of running away.”

”Really?” Hero paused for a long time and asked, ”If only I were born in the Kingdom of Graycastle.” In the end, Annie could not even hear her voice.

When Annie opened her mouth and was about to say something, she heard even breathing sounds.

The girl in her bosom had fallen asleep.