Meili guessed the whole way what kind of person the “Madam Freese” in the owl’s mouth was, and now seeing her in person, she immediately understood.
Just based on this appearance alone, Madam Freese and Madam Pegg must undoubtedly be sisters.
“Meili?” Madam Freese looked at her, stood up and walked toward her, her manner reserved and elegant, her tone carrying the gentle smile of an elder: “I have known you since the day you were born, but this is our first time meeting. You should have guessed my relationship with Pegg.”
“Indeed, it is obvious at a glance.” Meili replied neither humble nor arrogant.
Madam Freese then nodded in affirmation and said, “Yes, Pegg is my younger brother.”
Meili: “???” Wh-what younger brother? Hold on a second, that was not a guess I made.
Ignoring the confusion written across Meili’s face, Madam Freese examined her on her own, smiling as she raised a hand to brush a strand of her brown hair, “You don’t look like your mother.”
Meili was still in shock, and for a moment the only thing echoing in her mind was the philosophical question of “whether that was a mother or a father.”
She was very sure Madam Pegg was a woman, guaranteed.
So this “younger brother” was just messing with her?
“You might have some questions, but you must be tired from traveling so many days. Go rest first.” Madam Freese shifted her tone and made arrangements.
Meili felt like a viewer who had been spoiled halfway through a story, desperately wanting to keep listening and figure out what exactly they were up to. But the other party didn’t want to speak, and with a wave of her hand, two servants were summoned.
The two strong-armed maids, ignoring her resistance, escorted her to a certain room inside the manor castle.
And even locked the door from outside.
The crisp locking sound reminded her that she had not been invited as a guest. No matter how polite Madam Freese appeared, she must not take it seriously.
Almost dragged into the room, Meili walked to the only window and looked outside.
The walls below were smooth as polished stone, probably ten meters high. Even if she didn’t die from the jump, she would break a leg. If she wanted to escape from here, she would need to learn from the long-haired princess, using long hair to braid a rope to climb down.
Unfortunately, her hair was nowhere near long enough.
In the garden, Alex knelt on one knee before Freese, holding one of her hands. “Freese, the person you wanted has already been brought here. Aren’t you happy?”
“Of course I am happy.” Freese let out a small laugh, placing her hand before Alex.
Alex quickly removed the sapphire necklace wrapped around his wrist and handed it to her, then took out another emerald necklace from his chest and placed it in her hand as well.
This was what remained after Madam Pegg’s soul had been torn apart by the fairies. He had simply picked it up along the way.
Freese’s fair palm held up the two necklaces. “This magic necklace belonged to Pegg. I am the one who made it for him.”
Now the two necklaces lay side by side, and the emerald necklace looked dull and lightless in comparison.
“Freese, when do you plan to hold the ritual?” Alex asked.
“No hurry.” Freese took another sip of tea.
“But,” Alex sat beside her, leaning closer, his expression full of worried affection, “I can’t bear to see you suffer any longer. Every night, you can’t fall asleep.”
Freese maintained that dignified and elegant demeanor, glancing at him with a smile, “Do not be impatient, Alex. I want to see what kind of body my dear younger brother has transformed her into. Although it is a masterpiece he devoted his efforts to, it is ultimately something I will use in the future. I must personally examine it before I can be at ease.”
“Alright.” Alex instantly shed the slick tongue and flirtatious attitude he had on the road, becoming polite and obedient, pressing her hand against his face, “I will wait for the day you succeed, Freese. When the time comes, we will get married and hold a grand wedding right here!”
Freese patted his head and smiled without speaking.
The next morning, Meili saw Madam Freese again. She was waiting for her in a huge study room, like a queen receiving her subjects.
Meili sat on the sofa opposite her and saw a book spread open on her lap. The owl stood beside her, diligently holding a quill in its beak for her.
“How did you rest last night?” Madam Freese asked with elder-like concern.
Meili’s expression remained calm, “Not very well. Before death, people can’t help but think too much. You should understand how I feel, right?”
Madam Freese: “Oh? Is that so? Then let me teach you a sleep spell, you can rest a little better.”
Meili didn’t know if she should first thank her for anesthetizing the pig before slaughtering it, or first be surprised that she was willing to teach her magic.
Meili: “Teach me magic?”
Madam Freese: “Yes. Starting today, I will teach you some magic.”
Meili: “I thought you were going to kill me.”
Madam Freese smiled, “These two points are not in conflict at all.”
Meili decisively shut her mouth, “Alright, please teach me some powerful offensive magic.”
Madam Freese was amused into laughter, “You child, how could I teach you that kind of magic, letting you use it against me?”
The two sat together and talked like this; if one did not listen to the content, there really was a bit of motherly kindness and daughterly respect.
The windows of the study were wide open, and sitting inside one could see the forest stretching into the canyon outside.
After laughing, Madam Freese pointed toward that forest, “Pegg and I come from the Noita family, with the bloodline of forest witches. But down to our generation, only Pegg and I are left. The witch blood only flows in female descendants. When Pegg was born, he could not use magic.”
“However, as he grew up, he was unwilling to remain an ordinary person. After witnessing the mystery and wonders of magic, he became obsessed with it. At his request, I found a way to turn him into a woman. Only then did he get what he wished for, learning magic alongside me, becoming a forest witch.”
Madam Freese slowly let out a sigh, “However, I indulged him too much, letting him walk astray. In order for us forest witches to use magic, we must rely on the power of fairies. But he, in pursuit of stronger power, imprisoned and killed many fairies. Now, he has suffered backlash…”
Meili listened to these words with no reaction. Whether Madam Freese was telling the truth, she didn’t care. She wasn’t very concerned about what happened to Madam Pegg either. What she most wanted to know right now was—
“Madam Freese, you had someone bring me here for this body, right? Madam Pegg wanted this body because she is already dead and needs a shell to be reborn. And you? You’re also close to the end, aren’t you?”
Madam Freese sighed again, “Child, speaking so directly is not a good habit.”
Meili graciously accepted the lesson and changed her phrasing, “Alright, then may I ask if you have some incurable illness?”
Madam Freese was no longer able to maintain that tolerant elder expression toward her. Her beautiful brows furrowed, “It seems Pegg has not taught you manners well over the years.”
Meili: “That actually has nothing to do with him. As long as you don’t want to kill me anymore, I can immediately become a well-mannered good child.”
Neither of them spoke again. The atmosphere in the quiet study room suddenly became tense, and the only sound was the owl letting out frightened, meaningless noises like “hiss… uh… guu…”
The two parties sat firmly, while the onlooking owl’s feathers stood on end, pacing restlessly on the table.
“Forget it.” Madam Freese looked as though she had given up arguing with her. She hooked a finger and lifted the red-covered book on her lap, letting it float and land before Meili. “Let us learn magic instead.”
“Alright.” Meili held the book, becoming slightly more obedient.
Banter was banter, but learning magic was something she definitely had to learn. Maybe if she mastered it, she could find a way to escape. If not, she could at least broaden her horizons.
With the mindset of learning one more foreign language and acquiring one more skill, she looked at the book… and saw a bunch of drawings, completely without pattern, scribbled strokes… “characters.”
This? Could this be called writing?
“This is the language of fairies.” Madam Freese pointed to the words on the first page. “Try reading this sentence first.”
After speaking, she showed an expression of waiting to listen.
Meili stayed silent for a moment, then picked up the book and asked, “From where to where is a sentence? Is this dot a character or is this flower-like thing a character? How do you read it?”
Shocked by the ignorance of a failing student, the pure-blood forest witch Madam Freese’s smile disappeared.
It rained continuously for three days. From the day Meili was taken away by the knight, it had been raining here without pause.
That house, burned until only an empty shell and several walls remained, stood silently in the rain. For three days, no person or animal dared to approach, because this was a place where the evil witch and the monster appeared.
Even the fairies no longer came near.
The muddy swamp around the house had expanded greatly due to the rain, almost submerging the broom flowers and azaleas in the garden.
Suddenly, a bubble rose from the quiet swamp. Then, a hand stretched out of the mud, followed by a head, a hunched body, thin shoulders and back.
The gray, statue-like swamp monster crawled out of the swamp, looking somewhat dazed as he surveyed the ruined house around him. He stood still and turned his head, as if searching for something.
Of course, he could not find the person he wanted to find, so he dragged his heavy steps outside, walking once around the burned house.
On the ground outside, he picked up a lantern.
Holding the lantern, he walked through the entire house again, then slowly headed into the forest.
By the water’s edge in the forest, the small shack built against a tree had not been dismantled.
He went inside and looked around. It was empty, so he turned and left.
A clear lake lay nearby, a waterfowl resting on its surface, and many wildflowers blooming along the shore. As he passed, two fairies hiding beneath the flowers whispered quietly. Seeing him turn his head toward them, they hurriedly covered their mouths and hid again.
After a while, the swamp monster walked out of the forest and returned to the burned house.
Just like before, he peeked around the garden outside, but no one would run out of the house to meet him anymore.
He wandered for a long time before finally leaving again, heading toward another place.
“Last night, I think I heard something passing by my door. When I went out this morning, I found a lot of mud in front of the house!”
“I heard that creaking sound too, like a lantern swaying!”
“There’s even a new mud pit near my house. Do you think… could it be…”
“Shh, don’t say it! If it hears you, it’ll latch onto you!”
“Didn’t they say the witch is already dead? Why is this still happening…”
Recently, talk of the witch never stopped in the marketplace. People were already living in fear, and the sudden appearance of mud pits and muddy traces near many homes made them even more terrified. Some people were even preparing to move away.
Unaware of these people’s fear, the swamp monster that no one could see wandered around the market day and night, walking on streets he had never been to before, following the faint and almost disappearing trace of a scent, carrying a lantern, searching in vain and confusion.
