Since becoming the Devouring Witch, she had encountered several other witches.
Some hid deep in the mountains and forests to avoid their curses harming others. Others, like her, had their minds twisted by the curse’s influence.
Paranoia, madness, slaughtering all living beings they saw.
That was what all witches should do.
Now, she was being told that a witch had once lived in this country in the guise of an ordinary person for a long time, had given birth to offspring, and that bloodline had continued to this day.
Furthermore, her descendants were unaffected by the curse, simply because she had hidden her power away.
This kind of normalcy should not exist for a witch.
The more ordinary it was, the more unattainable it was for witches.
As fellow witches, they should all suffer the same pain. How could such an anomaly exist among them?
Whenever encountered, other witches had an obligation to shatter that peace, to make it fall back into the suffering it was meant to endure.
No one could escape this suffering. Only then could other witches feel a sense of fairness.
It wasn’t just her alone enduring agony in this world.
Yes, that’s right. That’s how it should be. This point would not change with the passage of time.
Now, as the Devouring Witch, she would correct the Nightmare Witch’s mistake.
Seeing the black aura had already seeped into Yilu’s body, the figure ceased all attacks.
She was like a monarch bestowing poisoned wine, waiting for it to take effect.
“Even if you don’t possess the Nightmare Witch’s power within you, you ultimately carry her blood. Using my power, as a fellow witch, as a catalyst, I can still awaken the curse buried deep within your body.”
She couldn’t suppress the smile curling at the corner of her mouth.
The bloodline the Nightmare Witch sought to protect was ultimately destroyed by her. The curse would reawaken within her veins.
“Didn’t I just say you would regret interfering today?” the figure said. “Now I’ll repeat it. You will regret it. You will regret appearing here today, getting involved in this meeting.”
“What are you babbling about over there, like an annoying little bug?” Yilu forced herself up, swaying unsteadily. “I said, tell me, where is my brother!”
As she spoke, Yilu prepared to attack again.
But the figure snapped her fingers, and Yilu’s entire body froze in place, immobilized except for her eyes.
“Such feeble magic power. I don’t even need to use much of my own to suppress you.”
The figure slowly walked up to Yilu, moved her sword aside, and then trailed a finger down Yilu’s cheek.
“Thinking that this stubborn face of yours will soon become twisted and ferocious too… it fills me with excitement.”
It was like some people loved pure things, while others took pleasure in defiling that purity.
The figure leaned closer to Yilu, whispering in her ear, “Remember this. All the suffering you will endure in the future is because you helped this guy today. It’s all because of him.”
“He can suppress the curse himself. But what about you? It’s so unfair to you, isn’t it?”
She planted a bloody seed in Yilu’s heart.
Lyr might be able to suppress the curse again later. But what about Yilu?
She wanted to see if Yilu would come to hate Lyr because of this, and if Lyr would be consumed by guilt. Perhaps they would even turn on each other.
That was what she wanted to see most.
“And you,” the figure finally looked at Lyr. “That little crybaby back then killed his own sister under the curse’s influence. So, do you have a sister?”
“You…” Lyr endured the pain, glaring fiercely at her.
“Hahaha. You two, we’ll meet again soon. Especially you, descendant of the Nightmare Witch. I still hope you can help me find what I’m looking for.”
The figure strolled forward, as leisurely as taking a walk, and in the blink of an eye, melted into the night and vanished.
With her disappearance, Yilu could finally move again. She turned, searching, but couldn’t find the figure anywhere.
Yilu clenched her fists tightly, her inner rage having no outlet.
In the end, she could only suppress the anger and calm herself down.
***
After a while, she looked at Lyr, who was still lying on the ground. “Hey, are you dead or not?”
She was concerned about Lyr’s condition, but she couldn’t bring herself to say words of care. She had never said them to anyone.
“Could you not keep calling me ‘hey’? Otherwise, what was the point of asking for my name before?” Lyr truly couldn’t understand Yilu’s way of thinking. He didn’t know if she genuinely wished he’d died here or not.
Yilu held her injured arm, putting on an unfriendly expression. “Let me tell you, if you weren’t in this state right now, I’d really want to kick you. How dare you steal my things.”
Hesitating for a moment, Yilu still sheathed her sword at her waist and then helped Lyr up.
“Use some of your own strength too. You’re so heavy, I can barely hold you up,” Yilu complained.
“I’m trying,” Lyr said, feeling the pain in his chest. “Thank you.”
It was the first time anyone had said thank you to her. Yilu didn’t know how to respond. Feeling the body pressed closely against hers, she just pursed her lips. “If you had just died here, I wouldn’t have to go through this trouble.”
Lyr smiled bitterly. Should he say this girl had a sharp tongue, or that she was just not being honest?
“Who was that person just now?” Yilu’s expression turned serious. “She actually knows about my brother’s whereabouts.”
“She’s probably also a witch.”
“A witch?”
“I’m not really sure about that either.”
Regarding witches, Lyr truly didn’t know much. He only knew they were incredibly powerful beings, like that girl.
He felt he needed to ask Dean Lulong about this matter.
And so, both bearing significant injuries, they supported each other as they descended from the city wall.
Guards who had heard the earlier commotion arrived, only to see the two in a somewhat intimate posture of mutual support. They looked puzzled but didn’t feel it appropriate to say anything.
With the guards’ help, the two were escorted back to Lyr’s home.
Meanwhile, Tif, who had waited two consecutive nights without Lyr returning, was like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
Two nights was her limit.
“Young Miss, Young Master Lyr is back!”
Hearing this news, Tif didn’t look happy. Instead, her displeasure grew. She marched to the entrance with an imposing air. “You finally remember to come back?”
Just as she was about to continue her tirade, she saw Lyr and Yilu, both covered in wounds, supporting each other. This made her freeze.
“What happened?” Tif’s tone instantly dropped, becoming calm. “Were you attacked?”
“How should I explain this?” Lyr looked at Yilu.
Maintaining her posture of supporting Lyr, Yilu turned her head away. “Don’t look at me. I got dragged into this because of you.”
Staring at the two of them, Tif narrowed her eyes. Were these two really not involved in something?