Chapter 388 - 388: A Fierce Clash with the Old Witch

"Once upon a time, there was a wicked witch. Every day after supper she'd drink a glass of freshly-squeezed corpse juice..."

, Karl Hrimm, writer of children's fables

...

The fight hit like a hurricane.

The Wicked Witch was airborne, an enemy type Victor had never dealt with before. Riding her broom through the sky, she tipped her cauldron and poured down streams of scalding, foul-smelling golden liquid.

And that wasn't all. She had minions supporting her from the ground, two Archespores and a magical panther.

Fortunately, none of them posed much of a problem. Victor dealt with the two plants the same way as before, burning them with Igni, then cut down the panther with his silver sword. One blast of Aard knocked the Wicked Witch out of the sky, and with a smooth reverse grip, Victor drove his silver blade straight into her.

The Wicked Witch was pinned dead to the ground.

Her now-uncontrolled broom desperately battered at the witcher, but it accomplished absolutely nothing. Before long, it ran out of magical power and dropped lifelessly to the ground as well.

And just as quickly as it had blown in, the fight was over.

...

Victor sheathed his sword and looked toward the woman in black as she emerged from behind the oven.

Her face stirred a memory. In an instant, the witcher remembered seeing her a year ago at The Cockatrice Inn.

Her features were sharply defined, her deep blue eyes clear and striking. At first glance, she bore a noticeable resemblance to Anarietta.

Victor could say without the slightest doubt that the woman before him was Sylvia Anna.

And appearance aside, the elder and younger sister shared another rather striking similarity, a magnificently ample bust. Even without a corset gathering and lifting it, her chest still rose prominently beneath her clothes in a high, rounded curve.

Her plain top was patterned with subtle cloud-like designs and stitched with golden thread, outlining a lace collar and puffed sleeves. Over it she wore silver leather armor and a brown belt. Her tight trousers, meanwhile, had already left quite an impression thanks to the rounded curves they had displayed when her back was turned.

Syanna wore no feminine jewelry whatsoever. The only things hanging from her belt were a man's leather scabbard and an ornate steel sword.

Her medium-length black hair had been gathered into a princess bun at the back, while the front was parted and styled into soft, voluminous waves. A small beauty mark near her cheekbone added another touch of charm.

"Impressive fight... Congratulations, Viscount Corion. You've defeated the wicked monster and solved the princess's problem."

As she spoke, she walked over to the Wicked Witch, crouched beside the corpse, and immediately began searching it.

Victor made no effort to interfere. He merely dusted some dirt from his knee.

"Thank you for the compliment, Lady Syanna, but may I ask how you got that weapon?"

"It used to belong to Prince Charming, but he clearly doesn't need the sword anymore. Just as the Wicked Witch no longer needs her broom or cauldron."

After pulling a key from the old witch's remains, Syanna hurried toward the oven.

The iron door opened with a click, and a little boy whose skin had been baked bright red stumbled out, coughing violently.

"Cough, cough... Thank you, kind lady. She almost baked me into a cookie..."

The rescued boy wore a green cap decorated with a feather. Smoke had filled his eyes with tears, but after recovering slightly and seeing the woman crouching before him, he immediately blurted out,

"Syanna? Is that you?"

Victor already had a general idea of what was about to happen.

He walked straight over to the gingerbread house, reached up, pinched off some of the snowy white icing from the roof, and tasted it while listening to their conversation.

Syanna's voice sat in the low-to-mid range and was quite pleasant to hear.

"It is. It's been years, Jack."

"Are... are you here to play?" the boy stammered.

"No. You don't need to be nervous. I only want your beans. You know what I'm talking about, and you're going to tell me where they are, aren't you?"

"Syanna, I'm sorry, but I don't have the beans!"

"You dare lie to me, Jack? Perhaps you'd like to play some of our old games? 'This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home,' something like that?"

Syanna suddenly rose to her feet and advanced one step at a time, forcing the boy backward toward the oven.

Covered by the shadow of fear, the panicking Jack finally cracked under the pressure and shouted,

"I'm telling the truth! I swear! Anarietta... she ordered the beans buried all over the place so you couldn't escape!"

"Where were they buried?" Syanna demanded sharply.

"I... I don't know! But... Joss! Joss, the shepherd boy, should know. He loves sticking his nose into everyone else's business!"

"He'd better know. If he doesn't, I'll come back and we'll have a much longer talk. Now get lost!"

Having obtained the information she needed, Syanna watched Jack flee like a whipped dog.

Then she pursed her lips and turned toward the witcher, who was currently dismantling part of the house.

"Hey! You damned Viscount Corion, mind telling me what you're doing here?"

Victor turned around and removed the piece of icing-covered cake roof he had been biting.

He shrugged.

"Making up for a deprived childhood?"

"Do you take me for an idiot!?"

The princess's purple eye shadow made her glare particularly effective.

The perfume she wore carried a light, sweet fruit fragrance blending lemon and citrus.

Victor rubbed his nose.

"Your Highness, perhaps a brave knight has come to rescue you from this prison?"

Syanna practically spat at him.

"How very kind of you. But I don't believe a single word coming out of your mouth. Isn't it because of you that I was locked in here in the first place?

"Anarietta told me everything about what you did. You miserable bastard, after the way you hurt her, the only reason I haven't drawn my sword and cut you down is because I know I can't beat you."

"I did it for both of you. Better to make everything clear from the beginning than dance around each other until the truth comes out and sticks in your throats."

The witcher looked directly into the princess's eyes.

"At least now you know for certain that your sister truly loves you. Even after learning that you wanted to kill her, she still insisted on protecting you."

That struck directly at Syanna's heart.

She turned her head away, avoiding Victor's gaze.

"Ah! So it looks like you sisters made up. That's wonderful. Then why are you still trying to escape? Because this place isn't safe?"

Syanna remained silent for a while before answering softly.

"No... The fairy-tale world was created with my sister and me as its mistresses. As long as I don't provoke them, the fairy-tale characters won't attack me. You, however, should be much more careful.

"I have to leave because of Dettlaff. Did you see that threatening letter? You don't understand him the way I do. If I don't do what Dettlaff demanded... he really will destroy the entire city. With his power, he's absolutely capable of it!"

The answer caught Victor by surprise.

He folded his arms across his chest.

"So you're trying to leave because you intend to meet him?"

"Yes. I... do owe him an explanation."

Syanna shook her head with a bitter smile.

"Wait... Don't tell me you went through all this trouble to come in here because..."

The witcher nodded.

"Dettlaff. The three-day deadline has passed. He's gathered countless vampires, and they're attacking Beauclair right now."

"Oh... gods. Anarietta would never surrender to a threat, and she certainly wouldn't tell him I'm here."

Wrapping both arms around herself, Syanna stared at Victor.

"If you went to all this trouble to find me, things must be very bad...?"

The witcher did not deny it.

The forest of the Land of a Thousand Fables was filled with birdsong and flowers.

The gingerbread house was sweet and delicious.

Syanna closed her eyes for a long moment.

When she slowly opened them again, her voice had become calm and resolute.

"What a mess. Listen well, last year's champion knight, Viscount Corion. The eldest princess of this duchy is calling upon you... Take her out of this prison!"

Victor placed a hand over his chest and answered readily,

"At your service, Lady Syanna."

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