The Devil's Cursed Witch

The senior witches, Glinda and Maria, returned to their residence in the most secluded part outside of Honeyharbor.

Though they were yet to enter the cottage, they immediately confirmed that Thala had returned.

The Spirit Circle was not a simple dwelling for these three witches—not only was it hidden and isolated by the spell of the Head of Witches, it was also a manifestation of their remaining powers. It had long become the witches' familiar. As much as it was under their absolute control, it also deeply reflected their characters and moods.

At the moment, the Spirit Circle emitted a gray, dreary atmosphere, clearly mourning for loss.

The old witches looked at each other as they stood in front of the cottage. They could feel their other sister's sadness, and her current emotions were deeper than they had expected, causing their residence to be enveloped in sorrow.

"It has been so long," Glinda said with a sad sigh. "She always pretends to be harsh and unkind, but we know that among us three, she is the most warmhearted."

"It must not have been easy for her to play a part in this scheme," Maria said as she raised a hand, but it stopped before it reached the doorknob. "It has only been a hundred years since we lost people. I cannot believe we have lost another comrade so soon. My sister caused many casualties amongst our enemies, gaining her that heartless title of 'Witch of Destruction', but she had also contributed the most to protect people in that last war. She would rather lose a leg than lose a sister.

"Though this time, she acted to protect the King, it was made in exchange of sacrificing another life. How can we expect her to be fine after this? For my sister, she must feel guilty as if she herself killed Commander Morpheus."

"I wonder how we are going to console her?"

"Can she even be consoled?"

The pair of witches had complicated expressions on their faces.

Glinda shook her head. "Before that, we need to worry about her body. I heard from the latest investigation, Thala casted a powerful spell to stall His Majesty. Not to mention creating that divine weapon, she must have offered up her life force more than once. She only has several years left to live. If she overexerted herself, then…"

"Let's check on her first. I don't want anything to happen to her."

Glinda and Maria entered the cottage and found the drawing room empty.

"Sister must be in her room," Maria spoke quietly.

Glinda faced the witch with a missing arm before gesturing for her to go. "You should talk to her first while I make her a fresh pot of her favorite soothing tea."

With a nod, Maria went towards her sister's room, while the other headed for the kitchen.

Maria stood in front of Thala's door, but just as she wanted to enter, she hesitated.

'Should I give her more time to be on her own?'

There were times when solitude was better than companionship. She wanted to respect Thala's will if she truly wanted to be alone. However, she also knew that Thala would fall deeper into blaming and hating herself if left alone with her thoughts.

As she debated whether to intrude or not, Maria felt the spell blocking her connection to her sister disappear. This time, she could sense Thala inside the room.

'Seems like she has stopped blocking me, silently allowing me to go see her.'

The door then opened on its own as Maria used a magic spell to open it.

The room was dark. Though it was still daytime, the owner of the room had drawn the curtains close, not even letting a single ray of sunlight in, as if she was using the darkness to hide her emotions.

The plump witch with a missing leg was reclining on her  rocking chair with her eyes closed, her hands resting on the armrest with the chair  moving ever-so-slowly.

"Thala," Maria called for her. "Why are you sitting in the dark?"

As she stepped past the threshold, she waved a hand which lit up the candles inside the room. On a normal day, Maria would have nagged her to open the curtain, but she had sensed her sister's mood and didn't want to fight with her over something so small.

Thala didn't open her eyes and simply replied, "Don't you find it befitting? When one's heart is dark, then that person belongs to the darkness."

"Why are you saying this, Thala?" Maria went to her sister and put her only hand on hers.

With a face seemingly aged with exhaustion, Thala let out a heavy sigh. She then looked at her sister who was kneeling in front of her. Maria's gentle eyes were brimming with tears.

"Why shed tears? This sinner is unworthy of them."

"Thala…"

"Isn't it the truth? I have a dark heart. I, who doesn't hesitate to commit a sin and partake in killing a person?"

"No, Thala. Instead, you helped save this kingdom. You saved the King," Maria spoke as she gently squeezed her hand.

"...at the cost of sacrificing another person's life. I killed a comrade with my own hands."

"Oh, sister, why blame yourself like this? We both know it was the Commander who sought you out. Commander Morpheus willingly died to change His Majesty's destiny."

"Changing destiny made no difference as someone important to the kingdom still died in the end," Thala's voice was calm as she said all those. It was so eerily calm, so lifeless, it made the hearts of those who could hear her ache.

"Even if I were you, I would also—"

"The Great Mage would also agree? Do not lie, sister. If circumstances were different, if the Commander had chosen to seek Maria the Great Mage or Glinda the Meteor instead of me, then none of this would have happened," Thala spoke as finally a tear escaped her eyes. "I will always be the reason why we lost our commander."

The Witch of Destruction who had always acted tough and ill-tempered broke down into pitiful sobs.

How could one measure her guilt? Who had the right to judge?

Whether saving Draven's life was right or wrong did not matter—the fact that a good person died due to her actions filled her conscience with guilt. Although they managed to save an even more important person, she could not convince herself that she made the correct decision of agreeing to Morpheus' plan.

Glinda, who had quietly arrived with a tray of freshly-brewed tea in hand, put the tea  on the side. With the door open, she had heard their entire conversation.

"Thala, we can understand your pain. No one blames you for what happened. Though we have lost our commander and all of us are in grief, your actions are not wrong. What you did was to protect this kingdom.

"Think about it. If His Majesty died instead, can you imagine what would have happened to the people? Enemies everywhere, the clans would fight for their own interests. Someone needed to stand up before that happened, and you did. You should be proud for having saved more lives that would have been lost in the future had our kingdom lost its protector.

"The decision you made was not easy. I know it must have been hard on you but you did well. This kingdom cannot afford to lose its king and Commander Morpheus knew it well that is why he saved the King at the cost of his own life. Agartha will always be thankful towards you and the Commander."

"In the first place, there should have been no reason for anyone to be thankful towards us!" Thala pointed out in muted anger as tears rolled down her eyes.

"Thala…"

"Why does it always have to be like this? What balance of the world? What damned destiny? Why do our kind always need to sacrifice our lives? We are all so powerful, and so the price to pay is that we will always lose people so miserably?

"Destiny keeps asking for someone's blood! If the future had not been changed and flowed its original course, imagine how that child would have felt having killed the one she loved? This is how tragic the life of us supernatural beings are! So what if we are powerful? Why are none of those I know dying peacefully of old age? How come each of their deaths are filled with regrets and unwillingness?

"The more powerful we become, the more we know the truth of this world, the more I grow to hate it! I wish this life would end soon so there won't be any more pain to suffer through—"

Maria gripped her hand tightly. "Thala, please don't say that. Don't say about ending your life. I, we need you. You have lost a huge part of your life force already. Your body needs to recuperate."

"Let it be. I have no wish to prolong this life anyway," Thala replied with a snort.