The cold voice was especially loud. Then came the crunch of pebbles and sand underfoot.

He must have dismounted. Fearing that even the sound of her breathing might give her away, Vienny covered her mouth with both hands and cautiously took another step inside.

It was a place where the dim light filtering through the gap in the door couldn’t reach. Vienny swallowed nervously and looked at the narrow gap she had left open.

The gap was so small that even she could barely squeeze through. Vines and leaves covered it too, and without light she wouldn’t be visible. As long as she wasn’t discovered, she would be fine.

“Strange…”

For some reason, McClart didn’t just walk past.

“Something is strange.”

Vienny watched the door and held her breath. She wanted to look out and understand what was happening, but even a single step closer would put her in the light, making it impossible to move.

The voice was so close that she feared any movement would make her footsteps audible outside. She kept telling herself that the darkness would keep her hidden.

But the heavy sound of boots approached relentlessly. How long would it be before McClart noticed the tiny gap and opened the door fully?

She couldn’t guess, but one thing was certain – McClart could break through that stone door faster than she could run deeper into the hiding place.

She was torn between turning and running now, or standing still and pretending she wasn’t there. Just as she was struggling with her decision, a soldier’s voice echoed like a lifeline.

The footsteps that had been approaching without hesitation suddenly stopped. It seemed that Gentian had run into McClart. Vienny let out the breath she had been holding in quietly.

“Get him.”

Vienny expected McClart to interfere directly, but he just gave the order and didn’t move. He just stood there.

She had to get away before he got any closer. Her mind screamed to move, but her body wouldn’t.

Or maybe it just didn’t want to move – she couldn’t tell. Vienny stared at the gap in the door, the faint light seeming even brighter in the darkness. For some reason, she had the feeling McClart had already noticed the door.

“En!”

As Gentian’s voice echoed in the distance, the footsteps that had stopped began to move again. A huge shadow fell across the vines.

Instinctively, Vienny stepped back, moving further away from the light. The vines and leaves obscured her view, making it difficult to see McClart clearly.

He stood in the light while she remained in the dark. There was only a small gap between them – just big enough for Vienny to squeeze through.

“…Ha.”

And yet, somehow, he was staring straight at her.

Vienny bit her lip hard, suddenly tasting blood. Then she realised – the lingering scent of her blood, left in droplets, had finally led him to her.

“When we meet again…”

With his back to the light, his face was deeply shadowed, partially obscured by leaves, making it impossible to read McClart’s expression.

“I’ve thought about killing you.”

His cold voice was strangely familiar, as if she had heard it only yesterday.

“But to say I missed you… we haven’t spent enough time together for that.”

Vienny was the one hiding in the darkness, but it felt like he was the one trapped in a black abyss. His flat, unemotional voice constricted her heart, suffocating her.

“You should have just died. That was the only way you could have really escaped.”

There was a hint of resentment in those words. Strangely, they sounded almost like a lament.

Vienny blinked slowly. She had expected McClart to break down the stone door, drag her out and throw her to the ground. But here he stood, frozen like a statue, right in front of her.

Could he not move, or would he not?

“En! Where are you?”

Gentian’s voice was closer than before. But McClart’s gaze remained fixed on Vienny, standing in the shadows.

The darkness could not hide her. Knowing that, she hesitated in vain.

Her heart was beating too fast. As she tried repeatedly to take deep breaths, her eyes burned slightly from the tears she fought to hold back.

She remained silent, her mouth pressed into a tight line, weighed down by some emotion she couldn’t identify. Finally McClart spoke, his tone quicker than usual.

“It’s too late now. You’ve already betrayed the witches, and now you’ve turned your back on the demons. There is no one left in this land you can rely on.”

Vienny swallowed dryly and took another step back. Her lips moved hesitantly several times before she finally spoke in her deep, strained voice.

“You know this means nothing to me.”

Though her voice was weak, her words seemed to reach McClart. The man who had seemed frozen forever shifted slightly. His large frame completely blocked the light streaming through the narrow crack.

“Do you know who the only person is that can truly fulfill your desires?”

His voice remained emotionless, but there was an underlying intensity. He grabbed the hanging vines roughly.

The thick, seemingly tough vines tore away with a sharp ripping sound. With the obstacle gone, their view cleared, but the dark shadow over McClart’s face remained.

“You know, don’t you?”

Of course, she knew very well.

“And I also know who could perfectly betray my wishes.”

McClart didn’t respond. But as the atmosphere around him grew more menacing, she could tell that he was deeply unsettled.

Just as his hand reached through the gap to grasp the stone door, she saw someone rushing in behind him. Instinctively, she knew it was Gentian. The moment she realized this, Vienny turned and ran without hesitation.

“What have you done to En?!”

The sound of the stone door shattering echoed behind her, but Vienny gritted her teeth and sprinted forward. Forcing her weakened right ankle down, she heard Gentian’s harsh voice screaming.

It wasn’t hard to see that McClart, who had seemed ready to grab her by the neck at any moment, had been caught by Gentian instead. Ignoring the pain coursing through her body, Vienny pushed herself deeper into the darkness.

The darkness welcomed her without hesitation.

She thought she would be walking in total darkness, but there were occasional openings that led to the surface. Every ray of light served as a vital guide.

Her skin was scraped and bruised from being thrown against the stone walls, but Vienny kept moving forward. Occasionally stopping to drink from the small pools of water, she stubbornly pushed on until she finally reached what could be called a hiding place.

With every breath she took, a faint white mist appeared in front of her. It was only after she had passed through the winding paths and found a place where a person could rest that the tension that had gripped her finally eased.

As the tension eased, Vienny’s senses, which had felt numb, suddenly sharpened. The first thing she noticed was the coolness of the air against her skin. Then the pain radiating from her ankle.

No matter how complicated the paths of this place were, she couldn’t stay here now that McClart knew about it. But she was in no condition to keep walking, so she urgently looked around the available areas.

She passed several areas that looked like rooms supported by man-made pillars, trying to find a place to hide, when she heard a noise from further inside.

Thinking it might be an animal, Vienny moved towards the sound, but stopped when she saw a light. When she had sent the crows to scout earlier, she had confirmed that this place was empty.

It shouldn’t be possible. But Vienny moved towards the light as if enchanted. The flickering light illuminated the stone walls and she saw a small shadow dancing across them.

It was a person. Hearing her footsteps, the figure peered out cautiously.

“Vienny?”

The first thing she saw was dark hair.

“Is that really Vienny?”

The figure wasn’t alone.

“The Great Witch?”

One by one, small figures emerged from around the campfire where they must have been huddled. There weren’t many, but there were about a dozen witches – enough that it wasn’t exactly a small group.

Vienny stood frozen, her expression stiff, taken aback by the unexpected encounter with the group of witches. They also stared at her, wide-eyed and equally shocked.

The first person to move was the middle-aged woman who had made eye contact with Vienny. She approached slowly, her eyes sweeping from Vienny’s head to her feet.

“It’s truly you, Vienny.”

Her low murmur was filled with a mix of emotions that were difficult to discern. Behind the middle-aged woman, who stared blankly at Vienny, the other witches slowly began to gather.

In an instant, Vienny was surrounded by the witches.

“The Great Witch.”

“The Great Witch has returned.”

She had never imagined that she would meet the witches again, and she didn’t know what expression to put on. The witches seemed both suspicious and welcoming.

Vienny had never imagined that the witches would welcome her, so she was completely taken aback.

“We survived!”

Someone shouted excitedly and grabbed Vienny’s hand. Reflexively, Vienny shook off the touch and took a step back.

The atmosphere among the witches, which had been filled with excitement and joy, suddenly cooled. Sensing the distance in Vienny’s demeanour, the witches fell silent, their expressions becoming uncomfortable.

The middle-aged witch, who had been watching Vienny with a puzzled expression, slowly stepped forward and spoke.

“Vienny, don’t you remember me?”

“Have you forgotten us?”

“Your duty is not yet done.”

The hurried, overlapping words left Vienny’s face pale and distorted. She clenched her jaw and spoke harshly to the middle-aged witch across from her.

“Do you even understand what I did before you spoke to me about the duties of the Great Witch?”

The witches fell silent again. But the middle-aged witch stood her ground and replied.

“There is a chance for you to redeem yourself with the surviving witches.”

“Redeem my sins?”

“Of course, everyone was angry at first… but we understand now that even that was part of the Great Witch’s destiny. We all understand.”

Something was wrong. The things they were saying didn’t make sense. Vienny, her expression filled with fear, took a step back.

She could not retreat, however, as witches on both sides grabbed her arms.

“You are our only Great Witch.”

“There is none other but you.”

What exactly did they want from her? Vienny looked around at the witches, her eyes filled with confusion, and shook off their hands, raising her voice.

“Don’t be ridiculous! Do you understand what you’re saying?”

“Of course we do.”

The middle-aged witch walked purposefully towards Vienny, grabbing both of her hands. Vienny tried to pull away immediately, but the witch’s grip was so tight that she couldn’t break free.

Up close, the middle-aged witch’s eyes were filled with hope, but also a familiar darkness.

“We have been desperately searching for you,” she said.

Vienny felt her breath catch in her throat. She remembered McClart’s voice, full of conviction.

“You’ve already betrayed the witches and now you’ve turned your back on the demons. There’s no one left in this land you can rely on.”

If there was one thing he had overlooked, it was that the selfishness of the witches was beyond imagination.