Chapter 74
Fay lifted another boulder with magic and hurled it. Then another. And another. With each throw, her mana drained visibly. The same was true for the other witches.
“It’s endless!”
“There are too many of them! I can’t keep going!”
Their strength was fading fast, yet no matter how fiercely they fought back, the enemy’s numbers barely seemed to shrink.
“Stop whining! Swing your wands like your life depends on it!”
Virelda shouted, pushing them forward. If they stopped, they died.
The witches forced themselves to raise their wands again, but their limits were clear.
This might be Aldehallow’s last day. They wanted to win through sheer willpower, but fear crept in anyway.
Fay trembled as she remembered her life in the Empire. How her mother had been executed for being a witch. In that place, witches were put to death in the public square the moment they were discovered.
Her mother’s bloodied face overlapped with her own in her mind.
Perhaps dying here in battle would be less humiliating than hanging in a square as a target for stones.
She decided she would fight until her last drop of mana was gone. And then die here.
“I’ll accept their religion and live!”
But not everyone shared Fay’s resolve. Overwhelmed by the enemy’s numbers, someone broke ranks.
“You’re going to beg the Emperor for your life?”
Virelda grabbed the fleeing Aldehallow soldier by the collar as he tried to sneak away.
Coward. Weakling. Traitor.
She hurled insults at him, shaking him violently.
“Go ahead. I’ll send you to meet Eraziel myself!”
“Virelda!”
Fay rushed to grab her arm. They were already barely holding on, internal conflict would be disastrous.
“You’re not even witches! Do you want to die like dogs in someone else’s war?”
The would-be deserter shouted desperately to those nearby. If enough people joined him, even the terrifying Virelda wouldn’t be able to stop them.
“Those who want to fight, fight! But there are people like me who want to live!”
“The only coward here is you!”
Virelda spat, but more people than she expected hesitated. Once one person dared to step forward, it became easier for the next.
“We’re not witches. Why should we die with them?”
“That’s true.”
“My family lived here long before the witches came! This is our home—they’re the ones who came later!”
Voices of resentment swelled. Soon, nearly twenty people clustered together.
Virelda stared in disbelief. They should have been united against the enemy, yet here they were, splintering.
“You think they’ll spare you just because you suddenly worship Eraziel?”
They weren’t listening anymore.
They threw down their weapons and stripped off grimy white garments, raising them as makeshift flags of surrender.
“After everything Lady Merga has done to protect you…!”
Virelda couldn’t let them walk away. If others saw them fleeing, despair would spread like a plague.
She raised her wand at the defectors.
Deserters deserved punishment—whether now or later. Punishing them immediately would serve as an example.
“I’ll turn you into pigs.”
If they thought betraying witches would leave them unharmed, they were gravely mistaken.
Poison burned in her eyes.
“Don’t do this, Virelda!”
“Let those who want to live live!”
The ones waving the white cloth screamed in fear. They knew she wasn’t bluffing.
“We’re not witches! The Emperor hates witches—not ordinary people like us!”
“We treated you without discrimination, and now you’re drawing that line?”
“Without discrimination? Please!”
Someone scoffed, and others rallied behind him.
“You didn’t openly persecute us, sure. But every important decision in this city follows the witches’ will.”
“Do you even know how hard it is for our opinions to be accepted?”
“Take that up in a council meeting! Is this really the time for us to be fighting each other?”
“Did you just call us stupid?”
“W-wait!”
Fay stepped between them, raising her hands.
“Everyone, calm down! The enemy is right there—this isn’t the time—!”
“Move!”
A furious man shoved her shoulder aside and stepped forward.
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