Chapter 305: The Witches’ Tea Party
After the end of the new semester’s opening ceremony, the next few days saw the gradual commencement of new courses. Fortunately, some of the classes at the Fortress Academy and the Temple Academy were common subjects, so Lolan Hill didn’t have to shuttle between them frequently.
During these days, Keti had been sleeping continuously, as Chris had said; she was currently in a weak state and needed ample rest. One day, after Lolan Hill returned to her dormitory after school and was leaning against the headboard reading, a faint knocking sound came from the wardrobe in the room.
The young lady raised her head in slight surprise, but then seemed to remember something, got out of bed, put on slippers, and opened the pine wood door of the wardrobe. Sure enough, a blonde girl in a pink dress stood inside, her golden hair and blue-white hair clips reflecting a faint light in the dim wardrobe.
“Good evening, little Lolan~” The girl walked in and greeted her.
“Good evening, Chris,” Lolan replied, dressed in her nightgown.
Chris circled the small room once before standing in front of Keti’s bed, looking at the sleeping fire witch.
“Taking care of Keti shouldn’t be too troublesome, right?”
“This time, there was a minor issue, but everything turned out fine,” Lolan recalled the events of the previous days.
“I understand what happened, and it wasn’t your fault,” Chris said, turning around and taking out a stack of red-black clothes.
“These are Keti’s school uniforms, already made. You should change her into them from now on.”
“Alright.” Lolan took the clothes.
“How are you adjusting to life in the new academy?” Chris continued.
“It’s quite good. Compared to my cramped dorm room in the past, Emanas is much more spacious and comfortable,” the young lady thought to herself.
“That’s great. If you have any questions or need help, feel free to ask me.”
Chris looked around the room and didn’t find what she was looking for. Then she clapped her hands, and a mercury-colored dot rapidly spread across the floor, quickly transforming the area into a mirror-like surface. Then, a small round table and two elegant wooden chairs floated out of the mirror, and finally, the mercury color dissipated, returning the floor to its original state.
“Let’s sit down for a bit,” Chris said, similar to Tides, preferring not to stand while chatting, and gestured for Lolan to sit.
“How much do you know about Emanas?”
Lolan sat down in her nightgown and answered, “It’s roughly what the books say—a school founded by the wise ones from various races.”
“That’s correct. It’s indeed quite close to what’s publicly known, but the specific details might not be clear to you,” Chris began her explanation.
“The wise ones at Emanas are numerous, but most only hold honorary positions and are not based here. They are scattered across different countries, organizations, hometowns, or traveling.”
“Usually, five Sequence 9 individuals would stay at the school, but there’s currently a problem.”
“The Sequence 9 priest from the Temple Academy has returned to the Holy Land because the Pope of the Holy Land Kingdom has been ill for a long time and will likely be replaced soon. Additionally, the ideas spread by the Frost Rose within the Holy Land have caused some internal divisions and instability, so the Sequence 9 needs to return to manage the situation.”
“The Sequence 9 from the High Tower is Night Mistress. The one from the Fortress Academy is currently in a deep sleep at the bottom of the lake and rarely appears unless there’s a major event. The one in seclusion in the central dormitory is deeply engrossed in experiments and potions and hasn’t paid attention to external affairs for a long time. And the wise one from the Bridge Academy has left for the Endless Sea, reportedly to deal with issues with the chaotic vortex seal there.”
“In other words, the only active Sequence 9s now are Night Mistress and I. The rest of the wise ones are mostly at Sequence 8, though they’re not lacking in strength or character. But that mysterious opponent might also be a Sequence 9 witch.”
“You probably know that witches live very long lives, so they know each other’s methods very well. If she chooses to hide, Night Mistress and I would have a hard time detecting her.”
Chris recounted the current state of the Wise Ones’ Council and told Lolan that the other Sequence 9 wise ones, after handling their personal affairs, would take a year to come to Emanas, during which time the situation would be relatively dangerous.
“Perhaps you won’t believe this, but if anything happens to you, Tides will definitely lead people to attack, potentially causing half the world to go to war,” Chris said with a smile.
“Why would it involve half the world?” Lolan asked, puzzled.
“This has to do with the factions among the witches,” Chris said, taking out two cups and placing them on the table, then filling them with steaming black tea.
“The earliest witches, like Blood Moon Witch Julie, Sea Witch Fibi, and others, led humans to establish the Crimson Empire and set up the initial noble system—the leaders who brought victory to the people.”
“As you might know from your recent research, the outcome was not favorable. Most were defeated by the Sequence 9 Shamans and warriors of the Beastman Empire and captured, their blood spilt on altars to seal the chaotic vortex.”
“The next generation, including Hades Witch Hades, Purple Moon Witch Selene, Butterfly Witch Trinasha, established the Mercury Dynasty after enduring many trials.”
“The third generation includes Tides, Dragon Witch Su Qin, Fire Witch Keti, and Time Witch Dorothy, among others. We grew up during the height of the Mercury Dynasty, participating in many wars against the elf, beast, and ogre tribes. With our efforts, we reduced the over thirty Sequence 9 elves to less than five, and even burned down the World Tree.”
“Other tribes lost all their Sequence 9s.”
Hearing this, Lolan glanced at the sleeping Keti on the bed.
“You guessed correctly. Keti was the main force back then. She single-handedly defeated three Sequence 9 elves, destroyed the Ogres’ kingdom, and dispersed the World Tree with her flames.”
“Even today, you can still see vast deserts in the Falcon Kingdom—remnants of the Ogres’ former territory.”
“Maybe now you think these actions were too harsh, but it was truly a fight for survival back then. Many Sequence 9s and witches fell among humans, and I remember at least seven or eight witches perished in the prolonged war.”
“In the end, the continent was scorched, beastmen retreated to the grasslands, the metal-working silver elves went extinct, the ice elves’ royal family died out, and the entire clan moved to the cold Northern Continent. Forest elves sealed their forests and ceased venturing out.”
“The Mercury Dynasty became exhausted and riddled with internal problems, eventually choosing to make peace and stop fighting.”
“The dynasty crumbled due to various contradictions and conflicting ideologies. The Necromancer Sequence was purged, and at this point, human Sequence 9s began to grow stronger, outnumbering witches threefold.”
“Thus, witches gradually withdrew from the public eye and secluded themselves. One faction, led by Selene, mostly comprised the second generation of witches, focusing on the unknown Twilight Era, exploring ancient ruins hidden in the past.”
“Another faction, led by Tides and Dorothy, excavated ancient technology from ruins, establishing Oz Country, and the magic sequence flourished under their leadership.”
“The final faction, though small in number, consists of the last generation of witches, such as Book Witch Night Mistress and Gem Witch Servis, born after the fall of the Mercury Dynasty.”
“In the past, witches raised witches because they knew each other well and held top positions in human society. However, when Night Mistress’s generation came, human Sequence 9s rose, and with the retirement of earlier witches, humans started raising witches. Thus, Night Mistress tends to consider the interests of humanity as a whole.”
“As a result, conflicts arose between Night Mistress and Dorothy because the technology discovered in the ruins was related to chaos and illusions, posing significant dangers to the world.”
“So Night Mistress, myself, and several other witches opposed Oz Country’s dangerous research. This was part of the conflict during the rise of Cui Cui. At the time, many wise ones joined to support Cui Cui against Oz Country, otherwise, it would have been impossible to counter the powerful Oz Country.”
“The upside was that it succeeded, but the downside was that Cui Cui rose too quickly, making balance difficult later on.”
“After Dorothy’s death, the remaining supporters of Oz Country pledged to destroy those dangerous artifacts and not produce them again.”
“As a result, they mostly joined the Snow Flower Union, and Su Qin unified the Five Phoenix Kingdoms in the East, founding the House of Plantagenet.”
“Tides, representing this faction of witches, didn’t come to Emanas personally to deliver a message but asked you to bring it instead because she didn’t want to meet Night Mistress.”
“Back then, she and Night Mistress had a big fight, and the book Night Mistress gave her was torn apart. Although years have passed and their relationship has cooled, there’s still a rift.”
Listening to Chris recount these tumultuous events, Lolan found herself holding a cold cup of tea. Only when Chris stopped did she realize, picked up the cup, and drank it.
“So, you must take good care of yourself, little Lolan. Otherwise, Tides and Su Qin, along with the forces of the House of Plantagenet, would be too much for Night Mistress and me to handle,” Chris said with a smile.
(End of Chapter)
