Perhaps the answer can be found after completing this game.

Linda snapped out of her thoughts and said to Lulu with a sympathetic look, "It seems your old captain is indeed a strange person! But don't worry, I'm different from your old captain, and I will cherish every member of the team."

[System Notification: Witch Lulu's trust level +11, current trust level -10, slight dislike]

Linda accepted this unexpected joy without making a sound.

The three headed towards White Dove City, with Lulu leading the way and Linda slightly behind.

To his left was a nervous Kaphni, her divine power constantly on edge, wary of Lulu's unusual movements.

"You guys go first."

Suddenly, Lulu frowned and touched the corner of her mouth.

After noticing a trace of dark blood on her finger, she paused for a moment, then lowered her head and spoke to Linda in a cold voice.

"What's wrong?" Linda asked.

"I have some things to take care of." Lulu said expressionlessly, "You guys go first, I'll catch up soon."

Linda found it a bit strange, but Kaphni grabbed his wrist and gave him a wink, wishing he could get as far away from the witch as possible.

...

Lulu waited in place for a while, making sure Linda and Kaphni were far away, before slowly kneeling on the ground.

A small face gradually turned deathly pale, and beads of cold sweat the size of soybeans dripped down its forehead. Its tail curled up in agony.

Black, sewage-like blood flowed from Lulu's mouth and nose.

The blood vessels under the skin become enlarged, resembling living earthworms, twisting and writhing, looking ferocious and terrifying!

Lulu's eyes were wide open, bloodshot. Her right hand was clutching her chest tightly, and her mouth was open, but the pain was too much for her to bear, so she couldn't make a sound.

A terrible thought flashed through her mind: the backlash from killing those paladins and overusing the witch's power!

But this backlash came on too quickly; Lulu had thought it would only manifest in the evening.

She was glad that Richard and Kaphni had been sent away beforehand; otherwise, it would have been dangerous if the two of them had discovered her weakness.

There was something very dangerous inside Kaphni. She couldn't say what it was, but the consequences of being hit by it would be terrible.

"I won't die easily until I meet 'Linda' from the Snow Goose Adventure Team."

Lulu relies entirely on a complex resentment as her will to live.

She crawled on the ground like a worm, using her hands, feet, and tail, until she hid behind a small hill.

According to past practice, this backlash usually lasts for about three minutes.

Strangely,

The pain this time was far greater than before, and the amount of black blood flowing from her mouth and nose was also much greater than before.

Lulu took a bunch of bottles and jars of liquid from the hanging pouch on her belt and poured them haphazardly into her mouth.

A highly effective medicine that can relieve symptoms.

However, the side effects are significant, and after a period of time, they can exacerbate the corrosive effects of impurities in the body.

But she had no other choice but to take it.

Lulu gritted her teeth, thinking that no matter what, she would not die until she met 'Linda' from White Dove City and confirmed that she was the captain who was like a magic machine!

Three years,

She found dozens of adventurers named Linda.

Without exception, none of them were the people she was looking for.

But this time, Lulu had a strong premonition.

It was as if fate was guiding them from the shadows.

It's very likely that Linda from White Dove City is the Linda she's looking for!

...

"You want to go back and see? Are you crazy?"

"Why do you care about that orc? Your XP is a bit weird!"

"So, you're hiding something from me, aren't you?"

Linda and Kaphni, who had just left the barren grassland, got into an argument.

The cause is very simple.

Linda suddenly suggested that she wanted to go back and see why the orc witch hadn't caught up yet.

Kaphni objected. It would be best to get rid of them and never see them again!

They can't handle witches of level 25 or higher!

Linda said, "She's already considered one of our teammates, we can't just abandon her."

"A teammate? She only joined the team to spy on us and kill us!" Kafni exclaimed angrily. "And she seems to know you? What's going on? How come I didn't know you were connected to the witch?"

Linda didn't answer. He wouldn't tell anyone about the game "Secret Realm Continent".

He planned to go back to find Lulu, not to increase trust or anything like that, but simply because he was worried about her.

When Linda saw Lulu talking about her days with the Original Adventure Team, her face filled with warmth and nostalgia, he couldn't help but feel a surge of emotions.

If Lulu were just a game character, a cold, artificially generated data set, players could do whatever they wanted without feeling any guilt. But when Linda entered the game world of "Secret Realm Continent," where all the characters and NPCs became real, the things he did to Lulu seemed rather cruel.

She even disappeared for three years and became a witch!

To become a witch in this world, one must be a 'girl with a strong desire who hears the whispers of the Demon King and is willing to pay a huge price to sign a contract with him'.

Linda didn't know exactly what Lulu desired, but it was very likely related to him.

He, as a player, rescued Lulu from slave traders, who was about to be sold to human nobles, and trained her to be an adventurer, giving the young girl hope.

However, the monsters after level 15 have such high attack power that Lulu, a fragile warrior, is useless. He stripped her of her equipment, sold it, and used the money to strengthen other characters. Lulu herself was also kicked out of the team.

Anyone else in that situation would probably question their existence and just give up.

Is it to get revenge on his ruthless captain, or to become a powerful 'five-star character' and gain his approval?

Both of them are related to Linda.

As the saying goes, the one who tied the knot must untie it.

Linda arrives in the game world to save the abandoned characters, believing that this is the responsibility of a player!

So Linda went back to check and invited Lulu to join the team again.

This wasn't a backstabbing invitation or a stopgap measure to avoid war. Instead, it was an invitation from an adventure team leader to make Lulu his team member and embark on a journey to the top of the World Tree together.

"Kafni, I have to go!"

Linda shook off Kaphni's hand.

The wind in the wilderness was very bleak.

Linda abandons the golden-haired bear spirit and heads to the barren grasslands to find the witch!

He truly is a model of courage.

Kaphni was so angry that her eyes were blazing with fury. She scratched her head awkwardly for a while before quickly following after him.

With a trace of her divine power, at least it can be guaranteed that the witch will not act rashly.

Linda was somewhat surprised that Kaphni had followed her: "Thanks?"

"Who told me to be a god? Helping heroes is a god's responsibility," Kaphni sighed.

The two returned by the same route and arrived at the barren grassland.

Looking around, they couldn't find Lulu anywhere.

Where are they?

Linda found it strange.