Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest-Chapter 263 - 32: Witch

"Is there anyone still behind us?" Monica asked, as the setting sun dipped in the west, casting a dull, yellowish light ahead on a stretch of wild forest. "If not, let’s rest for a bit."

"No one for now, but there will be soon," the Witch Edith said.

"Damn it all! A bunch of bastards who value money over their lives!" another witch cursed. "I don’t want to run anymore, I can’t keep this up, I need to rest..."

She sat down on a rock as soon as she finished speaking.

"Gwen, Shasta insists we don’t stop," the young witch said.

"Don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t stop!" Gwen grouched. "Lusa, ever since we escaped from the Holy City last year, you’ve been on and on about this, my ears are calloused from hearing it. Can’t you come up with something new?"

After thinking for a moment, Lusa said, "Let’s hurry up."

"I’m not going!" Gwen immediately replied.

The other witches didn’t say much more and took the opportunity to regain their strength.

The little witch looked troubled; she was still able to travel, but her companions didn’t feel the same. Among them were witches in their forties and some only in their teens.

Monica said, "I’m hungry, and so are the other sisters. Margaret, go get us something to eat."

The witch who was covered in blood, disheveled, and exuding an odor of blood, stood up without a word.

Lusa was startled and afraid, "Margaret, you rest longer; I’ll go instead."

The elder Gwen grabbed her arm and chuckled strangely, "Little Lusa, Margaret is not tired at all, don’t worry about her."

"I’m not worried about her..." Lusa tried to explain.

"You’re not worried, that’s good enough," Gwen interrupted her. "Come and be my pillow, ah, my old bones can hardly take it anymore."

Without waiting for a reply, she lay her head on Lusa’s legs, completely relaxing and letting out a contented moan.

"Ah, this firm flesh and elasticity, sleeping with my head on little Lusa’s legs would be such a delight."

"This isn’t very proper," Lusa still felt worried.

"What’s improper about it? Just take care of yourself, that’s all that matters, little Lusa," Gwen said languidly.

Lusa was not as carefree and said with a sigh, "I wonder how the Prophet and Lady Mona are doing."

Edith replied weakly, "When you say that, it makes me want to go to Cangyue."

"Go where? We’re bait, fish bait! Do you understand? If we weren’t here to attract their fire, and everyone went to Cangyue Land, we’d all be wiped out in one fell swoop!" Gwen cursed.

"Compared to Gael, Alster is a saint. If we all gathered, Divine Mysterious and the Church Court would swoop down on Cangyue Land in full force. Pine, that bitch’s pet, won’t hold them back, then we’d have no chance of escaping."

"We’re about to be wiped out now!" Monica complained.

"We only have about a dozen here, half of whom are injured, and we still have to carry this one with us!" Monica elbowed the witch behind her.

The witch wearing a chain of beast teeth around her neck and a wolf skin on her head was in a deathlike slumber; even after a couple of nudges, she did not wake up.

"I said before, we shouldn’t have gone to Triangle Island in Rexia, Jorari is an unreliable bastard. It’s a joke that he’s Kalanse’s lover; he didn’t even flinch when the guards shot Kalanse dead with a crossbow. And that bastard had the nerve to bring Amber ahead of time, nearly tricking us all. Thankfully, I was alert, and not all of us fell for it, otherwise we’d all be dead as doornails."

"It’s thanks to my efforts!" Edith lay on the ground and immediately raised her leg in self-praise. She was filthy, and her tattered dress barely recognizable.

"Right! Credit to Edith!" the other witches shouted in chorus.

"No other choice, goddammit! Now it’s confirmed, the last stronghold in the Witch Forest is gone. From sea to land, from land to islands, then from islands to here. Before, those nobles and merchants groveled before us, but it turns out they’re all fair-weather friends!" Gwen cursed angrily.

"Heartless bastards, not one reliable person!"

The young witch Lusa listened with a heavy heart, and soon her nose turned sour too, as if on cue, the young little witches started to sob softly.

"What’re you crying for! We’re not dead yet!" Gwen scolded them.

"What are you raging about now, you crazy bitch! Always yelling your head off!" The witch with the wolf skin got up from the ground.

"Oh! Shalu, you’re awake? Is Shasta coming back soon?"

"Ouch! Why does my whole body hurt?" the Beast Witch, wearing a wolf’s head cover, complained, her discomfort clear to anyone who listened.

"Life on the run, it’s inevitable to have bumps and scrapes," Monica replied with a shrug.

"It had better be just that!" the Beast Witch retorted, then turned to say, "Gwen, you madwoman, are you bullying our little sister again?"

"I am not," Gwen denied.

"I’m saying, can’t we be a bit more tolerant to our sisters? If Shasta sees this, you won’t like what’s coming to you," Lusa said helplessly.

...

Not long after.

The cry of an eagle came from the sky.

Shasta dived down from midair while the giant eagle landed next to the wolf-headed witch, allowing her to groom its feathers.

The soul of the Beast Witch could reside within a demon beast’s body, nurtured from a young age, with a close bond.

"I’ve spotted bounty hunters and mercenary groups from the sky; they’re heading this way," Shasta prompted succinctly.

"If you’ve seen them, they’ve seen you, we should go! Those persistent curs deserve to die," the witches lamented.

Monica asked, "How’s Valia doing?"

"I sent her back to the Northern Land," Shasta said. "She couldn’t delay any longer. We could only keep her alive. Only her people might be able to bring her back to health—perhaps."

"What about her sword and shield?"

"They stayed with her."

"You’re quite generous."

"What use would they be to you?" Shasta replied coldly.

"Alright, fine, you’re in charge. After all, you’re Lord Thunder’s favorite student."

The witches, catching their breath, had no choice but to set sail once more.

Gwen said, "Hey, Shasta, I feel like we’re heading towards our end."

"The road is still long," she said.

"Where, then?"

"How about we go to my old home?" the Beast Witch suggested.

"That’s impossible, I’d rather join the pirates; many of our sisters have gone there anyway," a witch replied.

Shasta: "..."

Gwen chuckled, "Shasta, I have a question for you—have you ever tasted a man?"

The witches all pricked up their ears.

"...Why ask such a question?"

"No reason, just that you’re so handsome. Dying a virgin would be such a waste. Do you want me to help you?" The crazy old witch, spouting nonsense, said, "If not, I can catch you a wild man just for fun, how about that?"

Shasta responded icily, "If you dare say another word, you madwoman, I’ll cut out your tongue!"

"You’ve barely learned any of Lord Thunder’s spells, but you’ve perfected mimicking his style—always tight-faced, no fun to be had," Gwen commented, uninterested.

"What fun is there to be had now!" Shasta retorted.

"That’s exactly why we need to find some fun, or else we’re doomed."

Shasta snorted at this, took a few steps forward, then suddenly felt something was wrong. She quickly turned to the witches, "Where’s Margaret?"

Monica interjected, "She went to get us some food."

"You let her go... Damn it! I’ll settle this with you all later!"

She asked for the direction and hurried off. The witches looked at each other in confusion, and both Monica and Gwen shrugged indifferently.