Chapter 822 The Defecting Witch
After saying goodbye to the cute little fortune teller and the hunter Dominican Federation who he dared not provoke, Angel entered the mirror world again and came to the "Redhead Girl" next to the dock.
This three-masted sailing ship, painted entirely in bright red, is undergoing final preparations before setting sail. The sailors are busy sorting out supplies on the deck, checking the rigging and masts, and carrying the fresh water and wine that have just been loaded into the warehouse.
Angel observed for a while, entered the captain's room, and appeared directly in front of Elaine.
The captain seemed to have taken off the "Frenzy" ring due to its side effects, and his long red hair had returned to normal, along with his soft yet strong beauty and somewhat rough but healthy skin. He was currently writing and drawing on the spread-out nautical chart, and looked up when he heard the noise.
"Ms. Angelica," she greeted, standing quickly. "Your 'Redhead' is ready and at your disposal."
It sounds weird to me, letting me use it casually... Angel's eyes swept over Elaine's red hair and the tight shirt that showed off her figure, and he muttered something, then asked:
"Where's your boatswain, William? I didn't see him on board, and there are far fewer sailors than usual."
"Because this is a secret operation, I gave many sailors with official backgrounds leave and only brought along those I could trust." Elaine realized the ambiguity in her words, and her face flushed unnaturally. "William went to the commercial district. He said the climate in the Misty Sea is different from here, and the crew is more susceptible to illness. He planned to purchase some medicine before leaving."
Well, he's meticulous and responsible, and he's been on Vice Admiral Iceberg's ship before. If I want to expand my fleet, I can consider letting him lead a ship... Angel nodded with satisfaction.
She told Elaine that the "Red-haired Lady" was going to the Northern Continent with some fruits and meat, and then took out the tarot cards that Sherman had drawn the code names for that afternoon, handed them to her, and said:
"You also draw one from the list. This will be your code name from now on. Your colleague, the 'Witch' in Backlund, has already drawn the 'Queen of Pentacles,' so you can only choose from the other fifty-five."
"It turns out I have a colleague in Backlund."
Elaine smiled half embarrassedly and half disappointedly, took the stack of playing cards, and shuffled them skillfully in her hands.
It looked like she played cards with the other sailors quite often...and what was with that hurt expression?
Angel watched intently as Elaine shuffled and cut the cards, then held the deck of minor Arcana cards in her hand, picked up the top card, unfolded the card and handed it to her.
It was a picture of the "Queen of Scepters" sitting on a throne holding a scepter and golden sunflowers.
This card symbolizes a strong woman who is tolerant, cheerful, and enthusiastic. It surprisingly fits Elaine's personality very well. It seems that I am indeed a master of divination... Angel muttered, and said with satisfaction:
"That's it."
After putting away the tarot cards, Angel stayed in the captain's room, chatting with Elaine, learning about her work situation during this period. After learning that his investment had made a lot of profits, he gradually immersed himself in the glory of the gold pounds.
But until the sun, the same color as the gold pound, sank into the sea and the dock was shrouded in moonlight, William still had not returned to the "Red-haired Girl".
"The commercial district is not far from the port. He should have returned long ago."
Elaine's face turned serious and she looked out the window. Over there, the lights were gradually lighting up, showing the streets of the "City of Generosity" at night.
Angel also did a simple magic mirror divination and found that although William would return here, he would encounter many twists and turns on the way.
Of course, twists and turns mean possible accidents, so Angel immediately took Elaine with him and flew along the mirror passage towards the busy commercial district.
…
Although Bayam wasn't overcrowded with tourists in the summer, the city still seemed crowded and bustling. On the crowded streets, two figures, a man and a woman, were weaving through the streets, pushing past pedestrians one after another as they struggled forward.
The men were large and burly, wearing coats commonly seen at sea, and tricorn hats on their heads, their faces hidden in the shadows of the hats. The women, in contrast, looked petite, walked briskly, and moved nimbly.
When they reached a more crowded intersection, they looked around and immediately chose an alley with fewer pedestrians, entering without hesitation.
"Where's your safe house? We'll be there soon, change our clothes and leave. You should be able to do 'counter-divination', right? Remember to do it!"
The man in the tricorn hat spoke in a hoarse, rapid but coherent voice.
The woman he dragged into the alley was wearing a skirt that made it difficult to move around, and a hooded cloak that covered her hair and half of her face. She nodded at first, then shook her head.
"I can do a counter-divination, but I don't have a safe house."
As if surprised by the other party's answer, the man was stunned for a moment before continuing:
"Then flee this area first, head to the chaotic port or the southern district, and leave the city before dawn..."
Before he finished speaking, the roar of horses, the sound of wheels rolling over cobblestones, and the exclamations of passers-by could be heard from the alley.
"It's the Mandated Punishers. I didn't expect them to take out the Gnosis people so quickly..." The man complained in a low voice, then made up his mind, "Come with me to the dock."
He grabbed the woman's hand and strode forward. Luckily, he encountered a right-angle turn and avoided the sight of the three "Manufactured Punishers" who rushed into the alley.
There was another alley ahead. Once he entered it… a precise map of Bayam's city surfaced in his mind. He passed a small puddle and stepped heavily into it. However, he heard no splashing sound. Instead, he missed his step, lost his balance, and fell forward.
A woman's short scream was heard from behind.
It's over, it's a trap!
As the world spun, he twisted his body so that his shoulders, not his face, landed on the ground, then he jumped up and looked around.
In the small, gray space, only two women looked at him coldly. The surroundings were shrouded in mist, as if countless tiny lines connected different areas.
"Captain, and... Miss Angelica?"
William, who was wearing a black leather tricorn hat and had a face full of traces of vicissitudes, but was actually only in his twenties, glanced at the two of them and breathed a sigh of relief.
Bang, behind him, the careless woman fell to the ground and also came to the "mirror world".
…
"Tell me what happened. Elaine asked you to buy medicine, but she didn't ask you to mess with the official Beyonders, and you even brought back a 'witch'."
Angel asked with a cold expression while sitting on the comfortable armchair that belonged to Elaine in the captain's room. The original owner of the chair was on the deck directing the sailors to raise the anchor and set sail, preparing to leave the dock overnight to avoid subsequent searches.
Opposite her stood the red-haired boatswain, Lucky William, and the young woman he had helped escape from the Mandated Punisher. The latter had a face with a delicacy rarely seen at sea, with plump lips and a high nose bridge. She was not particularly beautiful, but the combination of her features was very attractive. Her curvy figure was hidden under her cloak, and her slender white calves were revealed under her skirt.
Of course, with the magic mirrors hidden in the other party's cloak, Angel could easily guess the other party's identity: an extraordinary person who took the "witch" potion.
Seeing that her identity was easily exposed, the woman slowly took two steps forward, closer to Angel, and then took off her hood, revealing her face and slightly curly brown hair. She looked at Angel with her dark gray eyes, and was about to say something when she suddenly froze.
Okay, I know your gender before you drank the potion... Looking at the witch who was almost unable to move and in a state of obsession under the influence of his appearance and a hint of "charm", Angel chuckled, restrained his seductive breath, and slightly turned his head to avoid the other's sight.
This allowed the witch to struggle to get rid of the awkward situation. She took a deep breath and continued:
"Good evening, respected 'Golden Queen,' it is indeed as you said. I am a 'witch.' Mr. Karl, in order to help me escape the pursuit of the 'Gnosis Society,' took the initiative to attract the attention of the 'Manufactured Punishers.' I narrowly escaped the battle between them, and then... I fell into your mirror trap."
It can be seen that it is a mirror trap. It seems that this "witch" knows a lot about the deeper extraordinary abilities of this path... Angel thought about it, turned to William, who had a somewhat unnatural expression, and said:
"Karl is your pseudonym?"
This question made William, who was a bit burly, shrink back, and he seemed to be as tall as Angel.
"Actually, William is my pseudonym. When I was serving on the Golden Dream, my name was Carl..." He hesitated and replied, "After leaving there, I was worried that my former colleagues would find out where I was, so I changed my name..."
I thought there was some important reason, but it turns out she's afraid of being laughed at by "Flame" Danitz and the others... Angel isn't shy about using pseudonyms. After all, she simply changes her name with each place she moves. From Tingen to Backlund, she already has four identities.
Moreover, she thought for a moment and did not remember that there was a pirate named "Carl" who had a bounty on his head, or the bounty was not very high, so it did not enter Angel's mind. So she just nodded, indicating that she had forgotten about it, looked at the witch, and said:
"Go on. What's your name? Why do you know me? And why is the Gnosis hunting you down?"
She already had a guess, but decided to hear what the person involved had to say first.
"Respected 'Golden Queen,' you may call me Tia. Your name has spread throughout the five seas and is known to everyone..." The brown-haired, gray-eyed witch lowered her head and replied, seemingly afraid to look directly at her, though she would occasionally glance at her stealthily. "You should be aware of the relationship between the 'Gnosis Society' and the 'Witch Cult.' In fact, it was the 'Witch Cult' who issued the order to hunt me down. I traveled from Lenburg to Feynaport, through the Disi Bay, and to the Rorsted Archipelago, but I still couldn't escape their pursuit."
As expected, the group that was hunting this witch was actually the Witch Cult, and the Gnosis Society was just their thugs, which was consistent with the information within the church... Angel nodded slightly as if in confirmation and asked:
"What's the reason for the witch cult's order? You're a 'male witch', so you shouldn't be hostile to them, right?"
As she spoke, she looked at William beside Tia—Angel decided to continue calling him that—and found that the latter looked normal, not surprised that Tia had been a man.
It seems that he already knows Tia's previous identity, maybe her name is Diya?
Not noticing Angel's actions, Tia replied with a melancholy tone:
"I'm certainly not a female witch who was subjected to hostility and oppression. Although I often disobeyed orders and made many mistakes within the church, they didn't hunt me down because of that. Instead, it was because... I rebelled against the witch sect and joined the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom.
"Also, I took away a lot of information, such as the size of the witch sect, some of their conspiracies, and... the true location of the 'Fountain of Youth' that they were trying to conceal.
"I think this should be of some value to you, a witch who also does not belong to a sect."
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