A fantastical journey across the heavens, beginning with the Witcher.

……

I got all the commission back, not a penny less.

When Principal Philip spoke, it meant that "Mayor's" plan had failed. He no longer cared about putting on an act of loving the people and turned away without saying a word.

Sal's second-in-command went to retrieve the bounty himself. When the heavy money bag was handed to Li De, he whispered his thanks: "The brothers told me they were almost in despair. You saved them. Thank you."

"I've received enough thank yous today. It's all part of our duty. I really admire you. Guards from other places would have run away long ago."

Li De was telling the truth. The only difference between a guard and a bandit is a mask. Although the guards of Niubao also had the habits of seasoned soldiers, their fearless attitude in the face of the Blood Demon was undeniable.

If a squad of soldiers can maintain their morale even after suffering 30% casualties, they are already considered elite. But the guards of Bull Fort, even with more than half of them lying down, can still muster the courage to fight monsters. Regardless of their combat strength, the stability of their morale alone is commendable.

After receiving the reward, Li De noticed Principal Philip's hesitant expression and knew that the other party had something to say. He followed him directly to his office, with Sal following closely behind.

Inside the office, an elderly man with a white beard rubbed his temples, his tone somewhat defeated: "I've only been in the principal's position for less than six months, and this has already happened. I've let down the trust placed in me by the previous principal."

The Witcher sat with his legs crossed on the sofa, sipping the expensive red tea specially provided by the principal, without saying a word.

The College of Oxburgh integrates disciplines such as law, literature, art, natural science, mysticism, and medicine, and has been sending top talents to the northern countries for many years, holding an extremely high status.

How could someone who sits on the principal's seat be a simple-minded person?

Philip's complaints were less about feeling guilty and more about paving the way for future topics and probing the underlying issues.

Sure enough, the office was quiet for only two seconds before he put down his hand that was rubbing his temples, sat up straight again, and spoke in a calm tone.

"Now that the last monster has been defeated, I wonder if you have found the mastermind behind it all?"

Li De slowly raised his eyelids, met the gaze of the kind-faced old man, and a smile suddenly appeared on his lips.

"Found it."

"Who are they?"

"He's just a rogue sorcerer who's trying to restore his kingdom by relying on monsters. If the principal is interested, here's his head; you can use it to give the teachers and students an explanation."

Sitting next to him, Thrall kept wondering to himself: Why wasn't Gillen mentioned? He had already locked him up with his men. Could it be that he was innocent? But the Witcher was quite certain that there was something wrong with him when he left.

After holding it in for a long time, he finally couldn't help but ask, "Gillen..."

Before he could finish speaking, Li De interrupted him: "Let's hand him over to the principal. Surely the principal wouldn't allow a fraudster with a fake identity to continue appearing in the school, right?"

Sal was stunned for a moment, then realized that Li De was deliberately concealing Gillen's existence and handing it over to the principal to deal with.

Although he was unwilling, he also understood how bad the impact of this matter was, so he swallowed the rest of his words.

Upon hearing this, Philip's tense emotions instantly relaxed, and a smile appeared on his face: "That's right."

He was glad the Witcher understood his subtext. Did he care about Gilen? Of course not, he cared about the reputation of the Academy.

Gillen must die. The reason could be that she was terrified by a monster attack and died of fright that night; or that something happened at home and she was killed by bandits on her way home. But it absolutely cannot be that she colluded with a sorcerer to create a monster and was tried in court.

At this moment, Li De suddenly remembered the werewolf who could freely transform and asked, "By the way, what about that werewolf girl? I have something I want to ask her."

"In jail..."

Sal replied, somewhat embarrassed.

"Um... she lost control and hurt someone?"

"no."

"Did she break some law?"

"No, not either." Sal clenched his fist, his tone helpless.

"Beefburg is a law-abiding place. As long as you don't break the law, even if you're passing by a prison, no one will invite you in as a guest."

Li De repeated what Sal had told him on their first meeting, then asked in return, "So what's she doing in jail? On leave? Or recovering from injuries?"

The office fell into a deathly silence; neither the city guard captain nor the principal uttered a word.

"What kind of sentence do you plan to give? Death penalty? And what is the charge? Is it because she saved her friend's life? Or... just because she's a werewolf, a 'monster' in your eyes?"

Li De spoke casually, but the cold light in his eyes was intense; the girl's fate reminded him of his own.

With each sentence he heard, Sal's expression grew more unpleasant.

"It was the mayor who ordered her to be locked up..."

"So he actually has some power. I thought he was just good at shifting blame and docking pay."

"Bang!"

Halfway through the conversation, the principal's office door was kicked open from the outside, and a menacing Elena stormed in, glaring at Sal with an unfriendly expression: "Release Lily."

Sal could do nothing but sigh. If he had known this would happen, he shouldn't have come to the office to join in the fun.

"I don't have that authority. If I could make that decision, why would I have locked her up in jail?"

"You're the commander of the city guards, so the prison is under your jurisdiction too."

"I know! I know! But it's true that she turned into a werewolf in front of so many people! It's just that... for safety reasons, the Beef Burger can't afford another monster attack."

Elena looked at her old friend in disbelief, suddenly feeling that the other person was somewhat unfamiliar.

"For safety? You treat her like a monster too? So many people can testify that Lily blocked the Blood Demon and saved them! She's a hero, not a monster!"

Sal scratched his head in frustration, his tone irritated and defeated.

"Proof? Who can prove it? Who's willing to testify for her? It was the students she saved who personally went to the mayor and denounced her! I originally wanted to hide her away quietly, but that fat pig didn't even give me a chance to speak, he sent people to arrest her, and said there would be a public trial tomorrow! What can I do? Break her out of jail?"

Elena was stunned. She had been busy rescuing people and had asked some students to take Lily back to her room. When she returned, she heard that a werewolf had been imprisoned. But she didn't expect that it was the students Lily had rescued who had reported Lily.

"How could this happen... Lily saved them..."

Her voice trailed off, her anger turning into helplessness and heartache. She suddenly looked up at Philip: "Grandpa, you can save her, right? The mayor will definitely listen to you."

However, Philip simply shook his head calmly.

Li De could see clearly that Sal and Philip might not want Lily to die, but they certainly didn't want her to stay at the academy any longer.

This has nothing to do with whether Lily can maintain her rationality in werewolf form, nor with whether she saved anyone; it's simply because she is a werewolf.

Seeing Elena standing there helplessly, Li De spoke up at the right moment: "Why don't we go to the prison? I happen to have some questions I want to ask her."

Philip remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded. The group got up together and headed towards the Bullburg dungeon.

……

As soon as she stepped through the prison gates, a stench mixed with musty, sweaty, bloody, and fecal smells hit her, choking her so much that she had to cover her mouth and nose, her eyes reddening.

The surrounding environment was dark and damp, without a ray of sunlight. The walls were covered with moss and black stains, the ground was muddy, and maggots could be seen crawling around from time to time. With each step, you could hear a sticky sound under your feet.

Lily was locked in the innermost cell, next to several other ragged prisoners.

They saw Lily huddled alone in a corner of the cell, their murky eyes flashing with greed and malice, their dirty arms reaching out from between the iron bars, desperately reaching towards Lily.

"Hey pretty girl, don't cower there! Come on over and play with us!"

"Look at that delicate skin! Even if it were a monster, it would still give us brothers a good laugh!"

"Come here right now, or I'll drag you over!"

The foul language was unbearable to hear, and Lily trembled with fear, hugging her knees tightly with both hands, burying her head in her arms, and shrinking into the corner of the cell.

She dared not look up, tears silently streaming down her face, soaking the short cloak that covered her body.

Elena was frantic. As soon as the guard opened the cell door, she rushed in, hugged Lily tightly, and yelled at the prisoner in the next cell.

"Get out of my way!"

Several prisoners recognized the newcomer and promptly stepped aside, pretending nothing had happened. Only the prisoner with the fiercest appearance and the most arrogant cursing continued to hurl profanities.

Li De sneered and, before the other party could react, stepped on one of his arms.

"Snap!"

The crisp sound of bones cracking was particularly jarring in the dark prison. The prisoner screamed in agony, but it did not elicit the slightest sympathy from the witcher. The witcher continued to press down hard on the prisoner's feet, grinding the prisoner's bones two more times before stopping.

The guards at the door didn't even lift their eyelids, as if they hadn't seen anything.

Sal raised his hand to summon his men and ordered in a low voice, "Gather these prisoners in the other cells, and bring a blanket while you're at it."

"Yes, Captain!"

The guards immediately responded, rushed forward, opened the cell doors, and roughly dragged the prisoners out, kicking and shoving them into other cells.

After the offending prisoners were all taken away, Lily's long-suppressed emotions finally erupted. She leaned on Elena's shoulder and burst into tears, her voice hoarse and filled with grievance.

"Teacher, I'm so scared... They're so scary... I'm not a monster, I've never hurt anyone."

"I know, I know."

Elena gently patted Lily's back, comforting her while wiping away her tears.

"I'm late, but I'll definitely find a way to get you out of here."

Lily cried for a long time before gradually calming down. She raised her tear-streaked face, her eyes filled with fear and confusion: "Really? Teacher, can I go out?"

"Yes, we can definitely get out of here." Elena said firmly, turning to Philip and pleading, "Grandpa, please, save Lily, she's innocent."

Philip stood at the cell door, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes—guilt, concern—but he remained silent, only shaking his head gently.