CHAPTER 239: CHAPTER 239 THE WITCHES’ REALM (15)

The room fell into a heavy silence. The fire in the far corner crackled.

The witch was still on her knees, her voice barely above a whisper. "She shattered my spells like it was nothing... If she learns how to control that power..."

"She will not," Seraphina cut in sharply before the witch could finish.

Gwen stood from her chair, her gaze shifting toward the dark edges of the room. "We need to alert the others. If she is truly fae, and if she is traveling with the Lycan King, then we are running out of time."

"But don’t you think it is weird? We all know how much the Lycan King hates the witches and the Fae. Why would he travel with one?" Seraphina folded her arms across her chest.

"Strange or not, we can’t wait. If they’ve joined forces again, we attack before midnight... the last time they did they wiped out more than half the population of witches," Seraphina added coldly.

Seraphina looked down at the table again. Her fingers brushed the edge of the map laid out before her, tracing one of the faded silver lines. There was an old drawing in the center that had nearly worn away.

"This confirms that she’s really a Chosen... but I thought the last of them was the naive princess who handed us her golden orb. Why another Chosen now, when the sacred tree is gone?"

Gwen turned quickly. "Do you think he knows what she is?"

"I think he suspects," Seraphina replied. "And that alone makes them dangerous."

There was a pause before she turned back to the witch on the floor. Her voice was calm but final.

"Follow them, and stay hidden. Do not engage again."

"Yes, Sister," the witch said, bowing her head lower.

"You are dismissed."

The witch slowly rose to her feet and limped out of the room without looking back.

Once the doors closed behind her, Gwen crossed her arms and stared into the flames of the hearth.

"We must kill them, no one in their group must survive," she said quietly.

Seraphina’s hand clenched, her throat tightened. Her thought went back to the man she had met in the woods. A werewolf who was her mate... a frown marred her face. She wonders if he would survive the attack.

What an ill fate! Why did they have to be on opposites? ’I’ll make sure to make his death quick, as a mercy.’ Her eyes remained fixed on the map, on the symbol nearly erased by time.

"I’ll inform the sisters," Seraphina said at last, she turned to leave but stopped midway. "Make sure the information doesn’t leak, else we will have the corrupted witches to fight with."

Gwen nodded her head. "Of course, I won’t let it leak." She smiled sheepishly.

Seraphina turned and walked away.

....

(Elsewhere in the witches’ realm.)

Hurried footsteps echoed through the woods, and a woman in a dirty black cloak panted, twigs snapping beneath her foot.

She kept on glancing behind her, fear and worry contorted her face. She alternated between walking and running.

Suddenly, she stopped. Her eyes narrowed at the fog covering the dense woods. Slow footsteps approached her.

She bowed her head. "I bring good news," the lady said.

The fog parted, and the lady swallowed. She wiped off the beads of sweat with the edge of her sleeve. She inhaled deeply, before walking farther along the path.

The fresh air turned murky and stenchy. She wriggled her nose, but she dared not make a disgusted expression.

"I’m looking for the Bone witch." Her voice became smaller.

She shut her eyes, and an enormous tree with no leaves stood right in front of her. The branches were dried, but the tree was black and full, blocking the rays of light.

Flies and insects buzzed around the body that was hung on the tree, like a meat hung to dry out.

The lady stepped back, but immediately stopped when an eerie voice brushed against her ears. "What good news did you bring?"

The lady’s heart hammered in her chest, she swallowed, her fingers digging into her palms. "I must see the Bone witch." she insisted.

An annoyed clicking sound brushed against her ears. "Just say it already, the bone witch isn’t here... but the derailed one is here." An eerie laughter echoed through the woods, it seemed to be coming from every direction.

The lady’s knees trembled. The derailed witch... her heart split into two in fear. She stared at the tree, it was the handiwork of the witch and her followers. Encountering the Derailed Witch is like encountering death itself.

"I brought you news," she began, her voice wavering. "There are werewolves and fae in our realm."

"Oh is that so? And how is that good news?" She purred.

"The werewolves are not ordinary," she quickly said. "I heard one of them is a Lycan King, and there is a Chosen too."

"Oh, the Lycan King and the Chosen." The voice muttered, then the temperature suddenly dropped. "They are back again, and this time they ventured into the Witches’ realm. Do they think they have all the powers in the world?" The voice became heavy with anger and evil intent.

"I also heard that inside the King’s heart remains the magic of the past Chosen, which means a part of the sacred tree remains in him." The lady’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

The voice hummed. "This must be the reason my sister, the bone witch, has been visiting the higher plain." The voice became low and sad. "She kept it away from me... doesn’t she find me worthy? How could she keep it a secret?!" the voice shrieked in fury.

The lady fell on her knees from the fear that gripped her heart.

"You must be from the Queen’s clan right?" At the witches’ question, the lady nodded her head. "Tell me... why betray the Queen who nursed you? Was her mercy too sweet for your taste?" Her voice was so cold that it could freeze a river.

The lady began to sweat profusely. "That is because I want you to win." Her eyes flicked around, unable to focus. Her body stiffened.

"You know what I hate the most... Lies and betrayal."

The lady felt long cold fingers caressing her cheeks down to her jaws, before gripping them firmly."Spare me, and I’ll bring you more information."