Eternal Emerald Dragon

Chapter 1384 - 1383 - Witches

"I have no need for a forest. I will not be staying here as you must know. I am a curse unto others due to my existence alone." The disfigured face made it hard to read her reactions but her scent gave her away to him.

She was surprised and amused. Still, concern flared as the spirits thickened around her.

"That is–you could still claim a forest, could you not?" He noticed a flicker of black and gold in his Eyes. Karma, eh?

"Whatever those spirits want, they can tell me themselves. Using your curse as well is pretty low." The cloud of flickering lights stopped instantly but the demoness nearly fell over.

Her scant robes were distracting. Why did they make her wear those?!

Lind did not know much about the curse she was under specifically, only its name and ties to karma. It was entirely possible, however, she was being forced to expose herself as part of her punishment.

If not–he dreaded the alternative.

{You hear us?} A chorus of voices entered his mind and he nodded.

"I lived in the spirit world and rebuilt my body there. I lost some of my memories but I recall how to hear spirits when you are this close. Further, I can push my Talents as I am now to see you." The demoness flinched but her scent was full of fear more than surprise.

Why was she afraid?

{Take forest from her. She must move on.} His eyes narrowed and his Touch was energized by his harmony. He found what he was looking for and frowned deeply.

"I will not fall into such an obvious trap. Heaven and Earth are fine but leave fate out of my life. I walk my own path. Do not interfere again." His voice was tinged with his Authority but not a single drop of vitality was taken.

Confirmation was nice but it made him aware fate had not given up on binding him, it just had to use roundabout and inefficient methods now.

His harmony flared and the spirits were pushed out of his Forging area. He then activated his wards that would keep the spirits busy for a time.

The demoness finally collapsed and tears fell down the folds of her face. He did not like what was done to her but he did not know why she was cursed yet.

"So–so quiet. It has been almost 10 million years since I only heard my own voice in my head." The confident and assured demoness was gone. He summoned a pair of chairs to sit at his casting table.

"I won't ask what you did, but tell me about the curse and why the beasts all call you a witch." He had heard the whispers and it did not only refer to the demoness in front of him. That much he was sure of as he had heard at least a human called a witch was well.

She slowly sat down and he served her tea. It was a simple fragrant kind meant to relax a person.

She had difficulty sipping at it as her mouth was so disfigured like the rest of her face. He sighed as he found it irritating for such a simple pleasure to be denied.

[Restore for the duration of our conversation that which was taken.] His voice thundered and the Heavens rumbled. A massive chunk of life was taken but it was odd. He felt like it was floating just outside his reach rather than just gone.

The effect, however, was immediate. Emerald light shined on her scars, folds, and twisted face. It shifted until a demoness that put all other women to shame sat in front of him.

Her scant robes were bad enough on her hourglass figure but with her face restored, she became a lethal threat. Yet, the tears falling as she stared at her reflection in the tea showed she was as fragile as anyone.

"M–ac–!" Her words were slurred as her amethyst eyes darkened due to crying. He let her indulge for a time but he could feel the removed vitality slipping away. A timer, he was being told how long his Authority could restore her face.

The curse was strong!

"It is only temporary. Drink the tea and calm yourself. It will not be for long." She looked up at him but he felt even his own heart stir at the true gratitude in that narrow and lovely face. Her pale lavender skin shone like fresh dew.

Her hair had been too dark before but now it was a lustrous violet that complemented her very well. It curled just enough to make waves that gave the feeling it was alive.

An enchantress if he ever saw one.

Still, his emerald eyes did not waver as she collected herself.

"Ah, for this favor, Sovereign Frey, I will follow you for–" His aura flared. She was stronger than him but her emotional state and his Authority froze her solid.

"Answer my question. What are the specifics of your curse?" Her face paled before she slowly nodded.

"A Curse of Penance has many forms but in my case, it is the Penance of Selflessness. I was a vile creature that even Fiends did not go near. I used lives like toys until a sect of monks came. They nearly all died in the games I held on a daily basis." She spewed forth her story but the gist was the following.

A daughter of the monks learned of their fate and rather than mindlessly taking on an Immortal Demon, she offered herself to Heaven and Earth.

She had but one request. In return for all she was, the demoness would have to repay every sin she ever burned into her soul. The Heavens answered her call in part due to the massive karmic debt on the demoness' soul.

Invoking a curse that way was damn near impossible. The actions of the demoness set up the pins, as one would say, and the daughter was able to land a strike few others could.

"When the curse was placed on me, the method and what I must do was also imparted. My early days were–unpleasant." She had said it had been 10 million years. Relatively young for a Sovereign Tier but still a damned long time.

"I take it you now regret?" She nodded.

"Regret and repent but it is not enough. The curse will continue. I can feel it coming back." Lind checked and confirmed his chunk of vitality was nearly gone floating beyond him.

"Your face?" She smiled and felt her smile with her hands as more tears fell.

"I was vain as well so when the curse took root, my face was taken from me. Yet my body remained as a reminder of what I lost." He nodded. That left only one last topic.

"Why witches? I have heard there is a human as well." Again, she nodded. She sipped at the tea but faint scars were slowly spreading on her skin.

"While I am cursed, I also have new abilities. The spirits came later but I could resist almost any attack and trying to kill me by blade, Art, or other method fails. I am not allowed to die." Lind arched an eyebrow at that.

He used lightning and was shocked when it simply vanished! She did not even flinch! He also narrowed his eyes when he realized his vitality actually partially returned! He narrowed his eyes and tried a few more skills.

His claws, Storm Arts, and even his harmony had no effect at all so long as he attacked! He then tried to heal but it also failed!

No damage and no help either. She was kept in the state the curse demanded and nothing else.

Her flawless skin was now marred with more scars and wrinkles. Her once lustrous hair was getting darker as well.

Still, his vitality had actually recovered. Why? He narrowed his eyes and realized affirming her curse neutralized his Authority in some way. The cost was returned to him without reversing his request before time.

"Witches are cultivators with strange powers and always under a curse. The curses that kill do not count for obvious reasons." He nodded as he grasped the situation but a thought appeared in his head.

"A forest of witches?" She smiled and nodded again. Fate was trying to tie him to them?! Why?!

A flash of his life thus far made him nearly slap his own forehead.

People are not tools and while curses did not come from nowhere, Lind was far too merciful. Still, he was not that foolish. Heaven and Earth were fair. If the curse came from them and karma was involved, he had no need to act.

"I will not lay claim to any forest but I will put you to use if what you say is true. I need to disrupt the invasions that will happen no matter what Barbatos and the others achieve." She looked at him in confusion but her muscles were getting warped even as they sat there.

It was painful to watch but she did not even seem to notice.

"What would you have us do? Please know that few of us can actually fight. Just as I cannot be hurt, I cannot inflict pain either." A hellish existence if he ever heard of one.

It was almost like she was not alive at all!

"I assume everyone knows of your immunity but I doubt they understand what you can do. What would happen if you walked into the middle of a battle for instance?" She frowned, or maybe her mouth twisted but the result was the same.

"Actually I know the answer as I tried to die that way more than once. I hoped an attack not meant to hit me could end me." Her voice was cold but not from near death. It was from still being alive.

"What happened?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"It was like I was forced away. I could not control my body nor stop the movement until I was well past the battles." Lind sighed as that dashed a possible way to use the witches. Still, he kept some ideas for later.

"Very well, what do you want me to make then?" She looked at a ruby ring lined in gold. Space distorted and a broken artifact appeared. It was almost like a sextant with lenses and adjustable gears but he had no idea what it did.

The cracks in its gears and glass lenses meant it likely no longer functioned at all but he felt a trace of Qi from it.

"My curse prevents many things but I would like this to be repaired. I can then resume my search." He looked up at her in confusion but her next words made his blood run cold. "My daughter followed in my footsteps and I have to find her. I have to kill her myself for letting her loose on the worlds."

He looked again at the tool and realized it was a thrice damned scrying tool. It was possible to track someone no matter where they were with it!

He looked at her and let his displeasure known.

"Why should I let you do that?" The witch demoness lost her beauty once more but she seemed calm as she looked at him.

"She became fed people to the Fiends for eternal youth." The instant those words were spoken the wards shattered and the spirits returned. They clamored for information but space was ripped asunder as materials were summoned.

He got to work and planned to help the witch find her damned daughter as well. He would shatter the damned Fiends once more!