Chapter 62

The witch Tungkeschuni, realizing the situation had worsened, prepared to flee far from her hidden den.

“Ah, these hideouts? I can just make another one.”

Though it was a shame to leave behind all she’d gathered so far, could it compare to the value of her life?

Tungkeschuni prepared to flee far away. Just packing a little baggage, she’d vanish in an instant.

The cowardly witch leaves her home as always, fleeing far from the scary place.

“But this time, it was already too late.”

Even if it was much too late for what she’d built up till now to come back to haunt her, still, her actions caught up with her by the throat.

Dakota meticulously prepared so as not to lose her.

Layer upon layer.

It wasn’t about preparing without room for error but ensuring that even if mistakes happened, they could somehow be fixed.

If Tungkeschuni fled, as long as she was alive, there would be no time for rest.

She planned to surround the forest if Tungkeschuni went there, and if she went to the city, they’d check every person until there was nowhere left for her to hide.

Normally, when such an encirclement is set up, both the one running and the ones pursuing get exhausted, eventually creating gaps.

But this time, it wasn’t like that.

Because everyone participating in the witch hunt was smiling.

There were various reasons.

There was a priest of the Outsider Church burning with the mission to truly capture Tungkeschuni.

Some found joy simply in the festival of a witch hunt.

Others were happy because more people came, making their goods sell better.

And some liked that a saint of the Outsider Church had traveled from afar.

The only ones not smiling were those who had lost someone to Tungkeschuni.

Like Dakota, those who had survived by chance.

Dakota deliberately chose people who had grievances against Tungkeschuni, thinking they’d work straight when asked.

And her thoughts proved correct.

With Dakota coordinating from above, those below handled tasks bit by bit. The upper echelons’ will was unified, and the lower ranks found it enjoyable.

So, what happened?

The followers of the Outsider Church gradually tightened the noose on Tungkeschuni.

When the smirk on Tungkeschuni’s lips spread across her entire face, it took exactly three months.

At first, when Tungkeschuni realized the Outsider Church was chasing her, she immediately started thinking.

Tungkeschuni was originally very smart.

After learning magic from an ancient witch and developing it independently, she became one of the few witches surviving in modern times.

Of course, it was none other than Tungkeschuni herself who created the prejudice that witches were evil.

Once that stereotype formed, it takes immense effort to break it. But before it could be undone, most witches were killed for various reasons.

This is why Tungkeschuni, being a coward, managed to survive so long—but that’s not all.

A woman who twists human lives like toys also has skill.

But even that skill isn’t enough against overwhelming numbers.

So, she kept laughing and running whenever people came after her.

Shaking with fear at the thought of death, she fled.

Had she been able to kill many instantly, given her nature, she wouldn’t have run. Instead, she’d have mocked and toyed with them.

Anyway, upon confirming that the Outsider Church was after her, Tungkeschuni decided to head west.

To the north lay the Ahu Jungle.

To the south, the Skad Stone Desert.

Culturally, there are significant differences between the east and west based on this region.

Just as the Seongsin Church once dominated most of the eastern religions but couldn’t expand beyond these two regions to the west.

Tungkeschuni assumed the Outsider Church wouldn’t be able to reach the west either, so she decided to flee there.

Tungkeschuni began her escape from her hideout in spring.

Passing through newly thawed water edges, sometimes disguising herself as an animal, sometimes hiding in mud—this forest was practically her territory, allowing her to survive for three months.

But out of fear of being chased, she made a wrong choice.

For Tungkeschuni, who knew the Ahu Jungle inside out, it was both a source of food and materials for her magical spells.

But as people closed in, she had no choice but to flee further.

To places where her knowledge no longer applied.

Instinctively choosing the weakest spot to escape, though it turned out to be east instead of west, Tungkeschuni didn’t care as long as she could survive.

As long as she could survive, it would count as her victory, regardless.

But it was a trap.

Blessed individuals, even if uneducated their whole lives, surpass ordinary people in every way due to their blessings.

It means their intelligence improves too.

Imagine an old person who never received education suddenly gaining the ability to master completely different magic systems just by memorizing them after receiving a blessing.

Such people gathered together to prepare to kill one person.

It’s like how if top university graduates collaborate to create a game to steal gamers’ wallets, paying money becomes the polite thing to do.

Tungkeschuni wasn’t foolish; she was rather intelligent.

But she couldn’t overcome sheer numbers.

In every city, the witch-hunting festival was held.

The actual residents of the cities didn’t think they were capturing and killing Tungkeschuni. To them, it was just another festival happening again after the last one.

But from Tungkeschuni’s perspective, it looked like the entire city was working to catch her.

Had she had more time or been able to ask someone, she might’ve realized it wasn’t as dangerous as it seemed.

But so far, she’d relied solely on her own judgment. The continuous pursuit over three months had worn down her mind significantly.

Everyone appeared to be an enemy.

Wherever she looked, people seemed to blame her.

What would happen if someone saw a girl holding a grotesque skull staff?

“There’s a witch!”

Tungkeschuni reflexively killed them, turning her location into a beacon.

And once she killed, that was it.

The city immediately launched a thorough search for the real witch.

The trap worked perfectly.

Tungkeschuni ran with a smile plastered across her face.

Cackling, acting true to her nickname, the Witch of Ecstasy.

In reality, it was sheer terror, a trauma buried deep within her memory resurfacing.

But blaming that would be meaningless given the countless sins she’d committed over the years.

And debts must be repaid eventually.

Many don’t, but Tungkeschuni wasn’t one of them.

Ultimately, those who cursed her came before her.

Armed with spears, swords, bows, and staves, they attacked her.

Even an old witch like Tungkeschuni couldn’t fend off so many attackers.

Eventually, her left arm was severed from the elbow, and her right hand, gripping her staff, was crushed by a hammer up to the forearm.

Her legs were riddled with wounds, with nails connected to chains embedded in her left knee, right thigh, upper pelvic bone on the right side, and left shoulder.

This wasn’t an attack meant for humans.

It was akin to hunting a giant beast.

And the final moment arrived.

Just as a man filled with hope for vengeance plunged his sword toward her neck…

Dakota stopped him.

“Enough!”

The blade narrowly missed her throat, embedding itself in the sandy ground beside her.

Tungkeschuni lifted her head, her face full of laughter.

There stood a beautiful maiden with pale skin she recognized from having encountered her several times while fleeing.

She was Dakota, the saint of the Outsider Church.

Subtly noticing that Dakota was halting and withdrawing those attacking her, a genuine smile emerged amidst her fearful grin.

A path to survival appeared.

“Hehe, Saint-sama? I’m just a humble witch. Please, please show mercy. I haven’t done anything bad, really.”

So she pleaded. To survive somehow, Tungkeschuni endured the immense pain coursing through her body and spoke.

“I was just scared, you know. They suddenly said I was a witch and tried to kill me, so out of fear, I… yeah, just…”

She defended herself, claiming she hadn’t done anything wrong.

Dakota approached Tungkeschuni, whose body was bound with chains, crouching beside her head. Looking directly into Tungkeschuni’s face, she asked,

“Tungkeschuni, do you remember the day Outsider-sama died?”

“Yes! Yes! Of course! The filthy bastards from the Seongsin Church destroyed Outsider-sama! I remember everything clearly!”

It was one of the truly satisfying moments for Tungkeschuni.

Through Yasre’s mistake, an abomination that shouldn’t have existed appeared in this world.

Though Tungkeschuni didn’t understand what warmth meant to Outsider-sama, she could tell anyone deprived of it couldn’t possibly die properly.

Especially troubling was the ominous purple hair. Concerned about it, she tried her best to kill it. But ominous premonitions often become reality.

Outsider-sama returned to this world.

Terrified, Tungkeschuni submitted to Outsider-sama, begging for her life. She was forced to write down the method of summoning her.

So she wrote it down.

But after spending a few days together, she realized Outsider-sama was dumber than expected, closer to a strong brute. When she subtly twisted the magic written in the book and showed it, Outsider-sama failed to understand.

She could deceive her.

So she tampered with the summoning magic. If summoned, she altered the spell so it would seal her for centuries.

And things went well; Outsider-sama was expelled from this world. Initially, Tungkeschuni thought she was completely dead, but as more people contaminated by Outsider-sama appeared, she realized otherwise.

But even then, Outsider-sama didn’t return to this world. Despite the number of sacrifices far exceeding those required before, she didn’t come back.

Or perhaps, she couldn’t.

Tungkeschuni felt aggrieved. How could she be treated this way after defeating Outsider-sama?

But whatever.

She fervently cursed the Seongsin Church to survive. Hoping they’d see her as just a harmless witch and spare her life.

She desperately begged Dakota for mercy.

But then Dakota said something strange.

“Do you remember when someone died in a house with a terrace overlooking the plaza?”

“No! I don’t know anything about that! No! I have no idea! I’ve never killed anyone! Really! It’s just that recently, everyone’s suddenly trying to kill me!”

Tungkeschuni couldn’t see Dakota’s expression. The sun behind Dakota cast shadows over her face.

Dakota said,

“Bring the Witch of Ecstasy to the Outsider Church headquarters.”

Tungkeschuni thought she had survived.

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