Meeting Again

Placing the last potion into a gap in the stone wall, the black-cloaked Isa clapped her hands, her task complete.

She had been doing the same thing for the past few days since entering Laita City, and as of today, she had finally placed all the potions.

The alley she was in was not far from the judgment site chosen by the Church.

Just a few steps forward, and she could see the towering cross.

Over the past few days, the only piece of news Isa had heard that could be considered good was that this public trial would not directly result in the witch’s death sentence.

It was merely a propaganda event staged by the Holy Maiden to make the civilians of Laita City aware of the dangers of witches.

After the witch was judged, the Church personnel from the Holy City would all set off, escorting the witch back to the Holy City, where she would be executed.

In other words, the witch’s life was not under immediate threat.

“Have you heard? Tomorrow, the witch will be hung on this cross, and the Holy Maiden herself will appear to personally conduct the trial.”

“Of course I know. To be able to see the Holy Maiden in person is truly a blessing of three lifetimes. If she could glance at me, I would be even more satisfied.”

“Why do you like to daydream? With the way you look? You should be secretly laughing that she doesn’t find you disgusting, yet you want her to look at you?”

“If the Holy Maiden were to look at me with disgust, that seems pretty good too.”

Isa ignored the idly chatting mercenaries outside and, pulling on her cloak, turned to leave through the other exit of the alley.

As tomorrow was the public trial held by the Church, there were many more Church knights patrolling the streets at this time to maintain order.

Judging by their strict discipline and the aura of Sequence Two and above that they emitted, they should all be troops from the Holy City.

After all, the Church knights belonging to Laita City had all been killed by her.

To avoid the patrolling knights, Isa took several detours before returning to the inn where she was staying.

Just as Isa entered, she saw the maid at the front desk slumped over, her arms cradling her head as she slept soundly.

“Prepare a basin of hot water for me!”

Placing a silver coin on the front desk, Isa’s gentle voice instantly startled the maid awake.

Realizing her mistake, she immediately bowed and began to apologize, “My apologies, esteemed lady. I will go and prepare it for you right away. Please don’t tell my boss.”

Isa shook her head, indicating she didn’t mind.

Not long ago, she was much like this maid, even having to hide from others because she needed to conceal her witch identity.

Perhaps her situation was even worse, which gave Isa a natural patience and tolerance for these people.

In a short while, the maid brought a basin of hot water and entered Isa’s room, saying in a small voice, “My lady, there is another basin of hot water heating downstairs. I will bring it up for you.”

Seeing the maid’s actions, Isa knew this was her way of thanking her.

Nodding in thanks for her kindness, Isa waited until the maid had brought up both basins of hot water before taking off her clothes and stepping into the bathtub.

The steaming hot bathwater continuously relaxed Isa’s muscles, relieving the tension that had built up over the past few days.

In Laita City, she had already placed the smoke potions.

All it would take was an order from Her Highness Su Ran.

Thick smoke would immediately rise in Laita City, causing chaos among the civilians, and they could then take the opportunity to rescue the imprisoned witch.

Isa looked forward to tomorrow’s arrival.

The most important thing for her was that tomorrow, she could meet Her Highness Su Ran again.

The next morning, Isa was awakened by the lively atmosphere outside her window.

Looking down from her room, she saw street vendors setting up stalls and civilians who had come early to claim good spots to watch the trial.

From Isa’s room, she could see that the open area around the cross was already surrounded by a sea of people.

Only the central area was being maintained by ordinary soldiers, leaving a large open space to prevent the civilians from moving forward.

Suddenly, the crowd that had been tightly packed around the cross began to part like a tide, splitting to both sides from a distance.

Soldiers holding spears separated the crowd, standing guard at one-step intervals on both sides of the road.

Isa looked in the direction the soldiers had come from and found that the starting point was the Church’s location.

As time went on, a gasp came from the crowd.

Four pure-white steeds emerged from the Church.

For a Holy Maiden’s procession, the four horses at the front should have been tamed magical beasts, Pegasus.

However, this was Laita City, not the Holy City, so Yuffie did not make things too difficult for the head of the Church branch.

At this moment, Yuffie was sitting in a carriage with curtains made of white gauze, waving to the crowds on both sides.

At the same time, she looked around, mentally guessing where the witch’s accomplices would launch their attack from.

In recent days, the Church’s knights had basically all been dispatched to search, but they had found no trace of any witches.

This was very abnormal for Yuffie.

Normally, the rarity of witches would make them try every possible means to rescue their own.

Coupled with the high-sequence enemy hiding in the dark, all this kept Yuffie constantly on alert.

Following behind Yuffie’s carriage was a procession of knights in bright silver armor.

Under the sunlight, their armor glinted with a unique metallic luster as they walked, heads held high, behind the Holy Maiden’s carriage, receiving the fervent cheers of the Laita City civilians.

After the procession of knights passed, the people’s voices began to die down.

The surroundings became quiet, so much so that the sound of chains scraping against the ground could be heard clearly.

After so many days, the people of Laita City finally saw the true face of the witch.

Philly’s hands and feet were shackled with manacles made of Holy Stone.

She walked forward with heavy steps, each one seeming to drain the last of her strength, to the point that she ignored the looks of disgust people cast her way.

From her room, Isa watched the escorted witch emerge.

She packed all her things into her ring and went downstairs to inform the maid that she was checking out.

Now that she knew her target, it was time for her to set out to welcome the arrival of Her Highness Su Ran.

On the other side, Su Ran was loading the Witch Game.

He was ready to enter the game again.

He had already unlocked the right to use Sequence Six.

He only needed to rescue the witch to complete the mission and get his hands on the fourth potion.

The familiar feeling of virtualization appeared.

Su Ran knew he had arrived in the world where Isa was.

The feeling of being able to stand up again was still something he cherished.

Before him, the cloaked Isa was kneeling on one knee.

Seeing him appear, her eyes filled with reverence as she greeted him.

“Your Highness, we meet again.”