Witch Redemption

"That witch once mentioned that the Book of Judgment cannot change fate, but rather deceives it. In other words, this guy..."

This guy is lying. She is not the master of fate, and she probably doesn't have any good intentions in wanting me to observe the already changed fate.

Thanks to the "Courage" skill, Li Lan, free from all fear, was extremely calm. He immediately concluded that the unknown object that appeared behind him was probably the resentment of the sealed object that the Flame Witch had mentioned!

The resentment of a sealed object can be materialized to a certain extent, affecting the owner of the sealed object.

In other words, the guy behind me definitely doesn't have any good intentions!

Having made this judgment, Li Lan dared not be careless in the slightest, and asked, "Observing fate and changing fate requires paying a price, right?"

"Hehe, new master, you're quite cautious, aren't you?"

Those slender fingers caressed Li Lan's cheek, slowly moving upwards until they covered his eyes.

In an instant, everything in Li Lan's vision turned into endless pure white, and his consciousness seemed to cover everything in this pure white world.

“Observing and changing fate certainly comes at a price, my master, Karen Elf. Who is your closest friend? Lana Sivir? Lorina Euphemia? Or perhaps, Della Bertie?”

Li Lan felt a soft, feminine body cover his back, and then it felt as if a face quietly leaned over his shoulder and whispered in his ear.

He dared not respond, fearing that if he dared to respond to even one of them, it would have terrifying consequences.

"..."

An awkward silence ensued for several minutes. Li Lan remained silent the entire time, not uttering a word, letting the guy behind her put on his show.

"..."

This cold resentment finally burst forth, "Say something! Say something! Damn it, is the new master an even more useless mute than that Vesta guy? Boring! Damn it!"

The resentful spirit grumbled a series of strange complaints, then whispered seductively in Li Lan's ear, "New master, do you crave power? Just..."

"I'm sorry, I long for Naoko. Could you let me go back first, and we can talk again at another time?"

Li Lan suddenly felt that this resentment was a bit pitiful, but now was really not the time to respond to this guy, at least Li Lan was not ready to do so.

He knew that once the Book of Judgment was used, he would have to pay the price within the next hour, or all his efforts would be in vain.

This resentment clearly hadn't expected its new master to say such things, and showed no intention of using the "Book of Judgment." Puzzled, it continued to cover Li Lan's eyes with its slender hands, uttering dreamlike whispers. The initial complaints gradually changed, becoming as innocent as a child suddenly realizing something.

"I see. You refused to use me because you didn't know what kind of power fate was. I have to find a way to show you."

"That's right, we need to proceed gradually, making you unable to extricate yourself slowly, hehehe, that way you'll be determined to kill your best friend and free me. Yes, that's it! That's it!"

The resentment muttered to itself, like a woman in her boudoir lamenting her fate, and in the end, it became more and more cheerful.

"Damn useless master! I'll let it slide this time, but next time, you'll pay the price!"

"Now I'll show you what a true prophecy is!"

Caught off guard, Li Lan's consciousness exploded violently, her entire being transforming into a massive amount of shattered light that filled the entire pure white world.

...... ...... ......

All around were ruins and rubble. The witch with a single horn on her forehead walked cautiously and slowly near the shelter in the dilapidated street. Her hands gripped her signature Libra Cross Greatsword tightly, and her natal magic book was open in front of her.

"She's gone? Lanxi told me to be on guard against her, but now she's lost. What should I do?" She didn't know how long she had walked, but the sound of her abrupt footsteps echoed slightly in the narrow area, causing her to stop hesitantly.

"Who is following her?"

As if in a distant dream, the dazed Li Lan could only vaguely perceive that the witch walking was none other than Emma, ​​codenamed 081, and that he was now in the sight of a stalker, silently following her.

A few seconds after the one-horned witch stopped, Li Lan suddenly raised the Libra Cross Greatsword in his right hand and pierced her chest without hesitation. The irresistible power, bursting forth with his frenzied will, nearly crushed everything.

The girl's wails and the eruption of crimson blood plunged Li Lan into terror.

He had no idea what had happened; he only watched in horror as he once again trampled the murdered witch under his feet. Then, involuntarily, he raised his left hand, the palm of which had a hideous and eerie mouth, and impatiently pressed it onto the head of the witch who died with her eyes wide open.

"Click—"

The crisp sound of crushing bones was chilling, and the enormous maw devoured everything like a ferocious beast.

In less than a minute, Li Lan watched in horror as the slender, strange hand devoured what should have been a living witch...

Suddenly awakened, Li Lan was met with the thick darkness of night and the dim yellow light of the magic crystal lamp on the ground. She felt a dry mouth and her head was covered in cold sweat.

"A dream?"

Unable to distinguish between a dream and reality, Li Lan only knew that everything that happened in the dream was still deeply etched in her mind.

"Karen, why don't you sleep a little longer?"

Lana, who was on night watch, noticed that Li Lan looked rather unwell and frowned slightly, perhaps thinking that he had had a nightmare.

“It’s alright, you know, we haven’t had a good night’s sleep since we transmigrated here,” Li Lan replied helplessly, her wandering gaze sweeping over Della, who also looked worried, before finally settling on the three witches not far away. “Sorry, I need to talk to them.”

Lana responded, then beckoned to Della before continuing to peruse the magic book in front of her.

Witch Code Name 077 Lansie is mainly responsible for the second half of the night watch. While Olivia and Emma are fast asleep, she is idly keeping watch for any movement around her.

Her memories drifted back to the distant past. Long before she transmigrated to this world, the world she lived in was a somewhat retro era, roughly equivalent to the early 19th century on Earth.

In those days when even getting enough to eat was a struggle, Lanxi made many friends and attended a local high school. If nothing unexpected had happened, she and her friends would have, as fate would have it, either entered the workforce, became housewives, or continued their studies with excellent grades after graduation.

However, fate played a cruel joke. A sudden thunderstorm struck their school, obliterating everything she saw.

When she awoke again, she and her friends were reborn in this world, serving a new nation as witches.

Even though everyone's appearances have changed, Lanxi still believes in these former friends from the bottom of her heart, because in this world where she has no relatives, they are now one of her few family members.

However, Lanxi never dreamed that last month's torrent of fire would be the beginning of a nightmare...

As she recalled the dying captain's instructions and the many comrades who had died one after another, Lanxi's face gradually turned pained.

"Well, I hope everything goes well from now on."

Looking at Olivia and Emma's sleeping, beautiful faces, Lancy's expression darkened once more. She thought to herself, "I can't afford to lose you both. I will do everything I can to make sure we survive this mission!"

"Lanxi, there's something I need to talk to you about."

Just as Lanxi was lost in thought, a clear voice suddenly rang out beside her.

Chapter 109 Pre-planning

"Be careful of the other witches accompanying us?"

Witch Code Name 077 Lanxi was surprised and didn't understand why Li Lan would suddenly talk to her and make this rather strange suggestion.

"Yes, although I don't believe in precognitive dreams, I still hope that the three of you can be more careful in everything you do, especially Emma, ​​codename 081."

Li Lan simply recounted the ominous dream's contents and warned the three of them to be extra vigilant. He didn't have much evidence to prove whether his dream was real; in short, it sounded a bit far-fetched.

“I see. Emma is a bit timid, so she does need more care. Besides, we haven’t offended anyone, so we shouldn’t be targeted by them.”

Lanxi nodded, initially interpreting it as an expression of goodwill from Li Lan.

Not every transmigrator remains strong after arriving in this world; many are cowardly and timid. However, humans are capable of mutual support. As long as there is a pillar of support, weakness can be transformed into strong will.

Lanxi had always firmly believed this: the deceased captain had given her an inescapable responsibility and instilled in her the conviction that she could not break down in front of her teammates.

"Thank you, Karen."

Lanxi was truly moved at this moment. She was tired of the mutual exclusion among witches in the past, and she never thought that there would actually be strangers in this indifferent world who could care about them.

She couldn't help but recall how the Witch Cult had repeatedly and strictly forbidden all witches from contacting witches codenamed 001 and 002. Yesterday she was still agonizing over getting too close to them, but today she regretted getting involved too late, and even felt a vague sense of indignation for Li Lan and the others.

"By the way, we've now joined Peggy's team, Karen and you guys..."

Lanxi knew that Li Lan's conversation with the two team leaders yesterday was not pleasant. At that moment, she even considered whether the three of them should back out and side with Li Lan again if Li Lan and the others really did not join.

Unfortunately, Lanxi hesitated for a moment, worried about whether it would affect the harmony, and didn't know how to start the conversation.

“Well, we probably won’t be joining,” Li Lan paused for a moment, then spoke frankly. “As for you joining their team, it might be a great opportunity for you. Peggy is a very charismatic person. I suspect she was a social elite who was above the rest before she came here. As long as she treats her teammates sincerely, your future might only be brighter if you stay with her.”

There's a saying, "The face reflects the heart." Peggy, codenamed 040, this super-busty bull-headed witch, may appear expressionless on the surface, but her eyes are as cunning as an old fox. The reason Li Lan felt uncomfortable from the first glance was mainly because seeing him instinctively reminded her of her past life, of bowing and scraping to her superiors.

Based on Li Lan's observations last night, this guy is indeed a qualified and responsible team leader. Although he has vaguely revealed his "ambition," such ambition must be supported by his skills and genuinely care for his subordinates; otherwise, he wouldn't have so many accomplices who follow him wholeheartedly.

In short, this witch is indeed cunning, but cunning doesn't mean she can't be trusted. Even if we can't join her team now, it doesn't mean there's no room for further cooperation. The reason we can't cooperate deeply now is simply because a series of things are still unclear. Once the secret is revealed, this old fox will surely be able to lead the team to make the right choice.

Therefore, Li Lan was even quite satisfied with Peggy's performance and judged that she would be the first person he was most likely to win over in the future.

"..." Lanxi didn't understand why Li Lan had such a high opinion of this witch, but because of these words, she was able to strengthen her resolve.

It would be difficult for the three of them to go far on their own; they definitely need a team.

Just as Li Lan got up to leave, Lanxi, who had hesitated for a long time, finally couldn't help but call out to Li Lan, "Actually, I've always wanted to know, aren't you and Lana afraid?"

The fear of this world is perhaps the biggest difference between the three of them and Li Lan and the others, a difference they don't know how to bridge.

Li Lan was slightly taken aback, but his expression became calm. He then looked up at the endless, writhing darkness.

“We are afraid of death, afraid that once we fall asleep, we will never see the sun rise again. We are the same,” even so, Li Lan raised a gentle smile, just like the former number 47, “But, compared to death, we are more afraid of loss.”

Indeed, this is Li Lan's will, as well as Lana's and the others' will, and also the will of countless predecessors who paved the way for future witches with their lives.

Li Lan patted the slender shoulder of the raccoon-like orc witch to express her comfort, then turned back to Lana.

Lanxi seemed to be pondering Li Lan's words. She paused for a few seconds, then turned her gaze back to the sleeping Olivia and Emma. Her reddish-brown beast eyes finally revealed tenderness and strength.

Humans are such peculiar intelligent beings that, no matter how fearful or cowardly they may be, they can still maintain a strong will to do good for others.

This will is called "Guardianship".

"Thank you, Karen."

Lanxi whispered her thanks one last time, barely managing to hide her sobs as she nearly collapsed under the pressure of the past few days.

Perhaps, she has also found her own path.

...... ....... ......

It was around 3 a.m., and there was still a long time before dawn.

"Karen, what did you say to that witch just now?" Lana asked curiously, feeling that Li Lan seemed a little abnormal tonight.

"It's nothing, I was just reminding her to be careful."

Li Lan gave a perfunctory answer. He had already guessed that what appeared in the dream must be the resentment of the sealed artifact "Book of Fate's Judgment". Carrying the sealed artifact for a long time would cause the holder to be affected by the resentment. At best, it would cause emotional instability, and at worst, it would lead to madness. Right now, he could only hope that he wouldn't be so unlucky.

This sealed artifact must never be used until the very last moment, so Li Lan cannot mention it to anyone now, including her closest friends Lana and the other two.

“Sigh, they really aren’t in good shape,” Lana said, briefly recounting how disheveled they were when she rescued them, how they cried and screamed as they fled. “They were terrified—terrified of fighting, afraid of death, afraid of everything. Captain Lansie is a little better off, but the other two are too cowardly. If this continues…”

"Not every witch can be as reckless as you and me, there's no way around it."

Li Lan gave a bitter smile. Even Della, who had just gone through a breakdown, almost committed suicide, let alone the other witches.