TALES OF A WITCHER - Season 4 Episode 52

“So… that’s what happened then!”

Mayne could not take his eyes off the illusionary scene, and his heart leapt like never before.

“The incarnation ceremony of the God’s Punishment Army turned out to be invented by witches in order to defeat the demons, and they willingly sacrificed their own kind… How many of the witches present would stand up and castigate her for her cruelty?”

The final result was beyond his expectation. After a few minutes, not a single person stood up. Even the witch who questioned the ceremony did not openly oppose Alice’s words, albeit gritting her teeth and smacked the table as she thought, “How ironic! Having killed so many witches with her own hands, she can still talk about it being for the continuation of witches! Is there anything more ridiculous than this?”

“But she isn’t wrong,” said an elderly witch. “We’re after all born of mortals, and thus if Mankind was wiped out, witches wouldn’t be able to persist either.”

“Conversely, no matter how many witches are sacrificed in the incarnation ceremony, there’ll always be new witches to replace them. The more mortals there are, the more witches there’ll be.” Elaine shrugged her shoulders.

“Is it certain that the God’s Punishment Army will defeat the demons?” Someone asked.

“I don’t know,” said Alice. “Before we try, nobody really knows. The defeats in the previous two Battles of Divine Will have already shown that the demons are way stronger than us, and the only way for us to restrict their actions is to use the Red Mist. This implies that even if we create a large number of God’s Punishment Warriors, it’s uncertain that we’ll secure the final victory.” She paused. “But you should be familiar with how I do things.”

Elaine smiled and said, “Even if there’s only a small chance, we must try our best.”

“I’m willing to follow you wherever.”

“For the continuation of witches.”

“I, too, don’t want to admit defeat.”

Everyone stood up and saluted the Queen of Witches.

The witch who raised questions was the last to stand up, but she declared, “Hopefully you’re right.”

“So it’s decided.” Alice nodded, seeming unsurprised by the result. “What we’ve to do now is to convince the other members of the Union.”

“They won’t necessarily listen to you,” said the elderly witch. “If we’re to carry out the incarnation without resistance, the witches cannot continue to act in a superior and privileged position. The Union must be disbanded, and the past must be completely buried.”

“I’ll do my best to convince them,” Alice said in a resolute voice. “If they aren’t able to accept it, Starfall City will carry out this plan alone, and a new order will be made.”

Shortly, the scene disappeared… Darkness consumed everything again. When light in the Secret Room was restored, Mayne realized that his back was soaked in cold sweat, and his head spun terribly.

“You look a little tired. Shall I carry you outside?” Zero walked over to him and asked.

“No need. Quickly open the door!” Mayne said, taking huge gasps of breath.

After the metal door was opened, Mayne stumbled out of the Illusion Room, and then covered his mouth as he rushed over to the Sanctuary, and knelt in front of O’Brien.

“After the Magic Stone was activated, the scene was automatically mapped into your mind, hence feeling discomfort is perfectly normal,” the Pope said softly. “The first time I came into contact with these, I had the same reaction as you. You will be fine after a short rest.”

“Why didn’t I have any problems?” Zero asked, embracing the Pope’s arms.

“Because you’re a witch, thus your body has long been used to the operation of magic power.” O’Brien smiled benignly. “Whether in terms of endurance or resistance, witches are universally far superior to mortals.”

It took a long time for Mayne to calm his breath down. “This is the Church’s… origin?”

“Yes. After this, Alice led the witches of Starfall City and two other cities into battle, eventually emerging victorious, and laid down a new set of rules. Witches were no longer the chosen ones, but instead became the evil ones who were lured into degeneration by demons. This war lasted for nearly a hundred years, and is known in the history books as the Battle of Faiths.”

“Did she live for that long?”

The Pope shook his head. “Not long after Alice established the Church, she perished along with another Transcendent. The second Pope inherited her will and continued to lead the Army into battle until they completely subdued two other factions. Unfortunately, this battle badly damaged the three cities, and they virtually lost control over the world. The mortals who were unwilling to participate in the battle began to settle down in this narrow strait, and led the indigenes to cultivate the land. Gradually, this became what is now the Four Kingdoms.”

Somehow, O’Brien became more energetic as he spoke, and even his voice became more coherent and no longer as feeble as it used to be.

“After that, the Church continued to eliminate its remaining enemies on many occasions, including mortals who didn’t belong to Starfall City. But the world order had already taken shape, and due to a lack of strength, the Church was never able to complete the unification of the continent. All of this is due to the early death of the Queen of Witches.”

“Natalia, whom she considered a friend, not only rejected her plan but also suddenly attacked her during a meeting. This was recorded in the unabridged Canon.” The Pope sighed. “If she was still alive, the Battle of Faiths would have ended fifty years earlier, and after the Church accepted all witches into its membership, it would have easily unified the continent. No one expected the Battle would continue until today.”

Mayne wiped the sweat on his forehead and said, “Your Highness, there’s something I’m unclear about. Why were the earlier Popes all witches, while after that, it became entirely normal people?”

“Zero, you should head back first.” O’Brien kept silent for a brief moment before saying.

“Yes.”

Only after the Pure Witch had departed, O’Brien slowly said, “Because of weakness and cowardice.”

“W… what?” Mayne was shocked, and for a moment, hesuspected that he had heard wrongly.

“No, child, you didn’t hear wrongly.” O’Brien seemed to have read his thoughts. The Pope’s eyes gleamed, and he looked as if he had returned to a younger age. “In order to restore the witches’ glory after defeating the demons, Alice had stipulated that the Pope’s position must be taken up by an Extraordinary. But Extraordinary Witches were very rare, and it wasn’t always possible to find the ideal candidate. Therefore, a few prominent ordinary witches served as the Pope – but weakness and cowardice were like poisonous snakes in the heart which could never be removed once they appeared. A mortal who served as the Archbishop was afraid of being oppressed by the witches someday and therefore usurped the Pope’s position.”

Mayne’s eyes opened wide. “And therefore, the later Popes were…”

“Yes, all of us are cowardly descendants who profiteered from the witches’ sacrifice.” The Pope let out a long and deep sigh. “No matter what happens, the Church has to bury this secret forever.” He paused. “The truth regarding the Battle of Divine Will is recorded in the Pivotal Secret Temple. It’s now for you to bear this responsibility and continue the line. Even giving up… may also be a wise choice.”

After saying these words, his whole body abruptly slackened, as if he had put down a heavy load, and he lay down and slumbered on top of the cart.

“Giving up? If he did so, who else was going to take over this position?” But before he had any time to ponder, Mayne realized that something was not right with O’Brien — his physical condition took a dramatic turn for the worse, and the spirited look of only a moment ago disappeared. His eyes’ muscles relaxed rapidly and the radiance from his eyes slowly faded.

“Your Highness, Your Highness O’Brien!” Mayne shook the Pope’s body anxiously, but O’Brien stared vacantly at the ceiling with his mouth twitching slightly, as if he was murmuring something.

At the last moment, Mayne felt him saying, “Child, I’m sorry.”