The Witch of Winter lowered her hands, dispelling whatever mana that she had gathered into them. She watched me with gray eyes, her seemingly youthful and lovely face creased in a scowl. I noticed the pointed ears, which indicated some sort of elvish ancestry. Not surprising, considering the level of magic she had just unleashed.
"The Warlock of Winter," she responded quietly, and then raised her hands in what looked like surrender. She bowed her head elegantly. "I wish to surrender."
"…huh?"
For a moment, I was caught off guard, not knowing what I had just heard. Pushing my glasses up, I stared hard at the half-elf in front of me. Her mana was diminishing, which was a sign that she had no intention of fighting.
That spell she cast earlier was merely defensive, a countermeasure against my own.
Taking a deep breath, I straightened up and watched her warily.
"Surrender?"
"Yes, but on one condition." She glanced behind her, and now I understood why she was alone. Through the enchanted lenses of my glasses, I could see a row of dark mages plunging into the snowy forest north of Viridian Village, taking cover in the trees and trying to escape. "Please allow my subordinates to leave this place alive and unhurt."
She bowed her head again, deeper this time.
"In exchange for allowing my subordinates safe passage back to imperial territory, I shall willingly hand myself over as a prisoner."
"That's…" my mind froze for a moment, completely blank. Honestly, this wasn't my decision to make. I had to inform Herman…
Then cold dread seized me. The Witch of Winter struck me as honorable, a dignified and noble lady willing to sacrifice herself for the safety of her comrades. In contrast, I sadly couldn't say the same for my companions. Herman aside, I could already imagine the excruciating torture interrogation process that Alan would inflict upon her for intelligence on the demonic army. And then there was Bradley, who despite being a peerless warrior, was also known for being a lecherous and misogynist man who couldn't keep his hands off every woman he saw.
He would undoubtedly "help" himself to the female prisoner, especially one as beautiful as the Witch of Winter. According to him, prisoners had no rights. Demons, less so.
The girls would be less extreme, but I knew that they wouldn't take too kindly to the presence of another beautiful woman in their midst. They would accuse the Witch of Winter of being a temptress and abuse her. Hell, I had on more than one occasion seen them do horrible things to other girls, such as disfiguring the prettiest girl in a village to ensure that Herman would never lay an eye on her again. With acid or poison, if I wasn't mistaken.
All in all, I would be subjecting the poor lady to an awful fate if I were to accept her surrender and bring her back to the party. Of course, securing such a high-ranking prisoner and the intelligence she could provide would be invaluable to the cause of our kingdom, but having seen the resolved expression on the Witch of Winter's face, I intuitively knew that she didn't plan on giving up her secrets.
She would come with us, and once her subordinates were safe, she would kill herself without exposing anything. And even if she didn't, she would be subjected to horrendous abuse at the hands of my comrades.
I didn't know what to do. Loyalty to my kingdom dictated that I just accept her surrender without question and happily hand her over to my leader, let Herman take responsibility for everything. But my conscience stayed my hand.
I had witnessed the stomach-churning and grisly work of Alan at torturing information out of prisoners. I had seen how Bradley raped and sexually harassed other women. And Herman turned a blind eye to their vile acts because he required their skills.
I had also heard how the girls possessively kept other women away from Herman through subterfuge, insults, humiliation and other forms of abuse. I didn't know how that would apply to the Witch of Winter, but I had no doubt the girls would lay their hands on her, probably scarring her face with acid (Irene had actually "accidentally" poured acid onto a village girl who "had the temerity" to touch Herman) or something like that.
Did this honorable lady in front of me deserve such hellish treatment?
To be fair, I didn't know much about the Witch of Winter, but there were plenty of rumors regarding her. She was famous for being one of the most powerful generals under the command of the Demonic Emperor. Under her, the demonic legions had conquered the northern Wallace of province, driving Archduke Willard and his armies off the frozen lands and turning the territory into a tributary state of the burgeoning Demonic Empire.
But rather than dread and hatred, most people spoke of her in awe and respect. Stories from soldiers in the northern garrison, and accounts from other Heroes' parties. They spoke highly of her, said that she was an honorable warrior who never resorted to schemes and tricks. They had firsthand seen her care for her subordinates, value them as a mother would treasure a child.
The fact that she was surrendering herself right now in exchange for her subordinates' safety was strong evidence that those stories were true.
I swallowed and made a decision. Taking a deep breath, I strode toward her. She tensed, but raised both of her hands, as if expecting me to tie them.
Instead, I took my cloak off and threw it on her, using the hood to conceal her head and features – especially her ears.
"Eh?" The Witch of Winter blinked, taken aback by my sudden gesture.
"You're just a refugee," I replied, folding my arms. "Running away from the demons. You probably planned on running to the forest to escape the battle. Who you guide and where you go from there, I have no idea and it's not my obligation to know."
"You…you…" Understanding dawned on the witch's face. Gosh, but she looked so young. "Thank you."
I scratched my head and sighed. "Don't make me regret this decision. Hurry up and go."
The Witch of Winter nodded and hurried away, but she suddenly stopped and turned back to me. She inclined her head.
"My name is Silvia Winters. May I have the honor of knowing your name?"
I hesitated for a moment, and then shrugged. Since I had already done this much, there was no reason for me to hide anything.
"Klein. Klein Pearson."
"Klein." She nodded slowly. "Perhaps, if the gods will it, we might meet again in future. Under less hostile circumstances."
"Maybe."
I watched her leave, and then returned to the central square of the village. By now, the battle had ended and Herman was placing a foot on top of the orc champion's broken skull.
"Ah, Klein, you're back!" he sounded awfully cheerful, despite the carnage all around him. "Is the north secured?"
"Yeah. There aren't any enemies there. Just refugees fleeing into the forest. Hopefully they will return once they hear the news that the demon legion here has been defeated."
"Good." Herman clapped his hands and turned to the rest of the party, who were gathering after the tough battle. I began to help drag the corpses of the fallen and mount them up in a growing pile, which was to be lit up as a funeral pyre later.
Leaving the bodies where they were would encourage diseases to spread.
"What are you doing?" Bradley scoffed when he saw me laboring. None of my party embers offered to help. They were lounging about, relaxing and drinking, or sitting. The remaining villagers were just emerging from their homes and attending to their requests (which involved food or liquor).
"Taking care of the corpses."
"Leave them. The villagers can take care of them."
"They're in bad shape," I observed. Throwing an orc's corpse into a heap, I then approached an elderly lady who was limping with a basket to serve Irene and the girls some bread. "Are you all right?"
"Yes. Thank you, young man. Here's some bread."
"Uh, I don't need it at the moment."
While stacking the corpses, I simultaneously checked on the villagers, making sure that the wounded received treatment. To my disgust, Irene couldn't be bothered to help.
"Why should I waste my mana healing mere villagers?" she asked spitefully. I could only shake my head and use bandages to bind the arm of an injured middle-aged man. Using my ice magic to wash some cloth, I used them as makeshift gauzes to stem the bleeding of a youth reckless enough to challenge the orcs in combat. Irene merely looked on in scorn, but didn't lift a finger to assist.
This was exactly why I had no intention of marrying her, no matter how beautiful she looked.
More and more, I was becoming increasingly vindicated by my decision to let Silvia Winters go instead of handing her over to the party I was unfortunate enough to end up in.
"You really don't have to do this, sir," one of the villagers told me while I continued to clear the corpses.
"That's correct!" a middle-aged lady agreed, nodding her head. "You have already done so much for us! You must be so tired after all that fighting! You should rest!"
"I'm good," I assured them. "I'm still full of energy."
By the time I finished everything, burning the bodies and causing a bright beacon in the middle of the village, night had already fallen. The rest of my party, true to character, had already retreated into an inn to dine and feast. Or sleep in the rooms. Bradley had picked out a couple of young girls, who looked a little apprehensive when they followed him into the village's only inn. As for the rest, they partook in the meal that the village chief had prepared in the inn.
A few of the men helped me with my laborious task, and we were finally done.
"Thanks," I told them.
"No, we should be the ones thanking you!"
"If it weren't for you Heroes…"
"You really should be leaving such menial work to us!"
"Don't worry about it," I told them with a laugh. "I just like watching these demonic corpses burn."
They accompanied me to the inn, but split up partway because they intended to return home after such a grueling day. But before they left, they thanked me once more.
"Thank you, kind sir."
"Like I said, it's no problem."
"You know," one of the younger men said. "You're very different from the other members in the Hero party."
"Eh? I don't know about that." I shrugged, though inwardly I agreed wholeheartedly.
"Yeah, you definitely are. How do I put it…you're more helpful and a lot humbler. Those other Heroes – I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but they are…distant? Aloof? Proud?"
"That warrior," one of the men growled. "Taking away Percy and Jackson's daughters like that. Who does he think he is?"
"My sister complained that the priestess, huntress and female mage were hostile toward her when she tried to serve the Hero."
"What's their deal?"
"Now, now…!" the oldest of the men quickly chimed in, waving their comments away. He turned to me. "I apologize. They mean no offense. It's been a long day, after all. Everyone's stressed after the invasion. So their tongues are looser. I hope we haven't…"
"You didn't do anything wrong," I assured him. I then lowered my voice. "As a matter of fact, I agree with you all, but keep that a secret from my companions, okay?"
We all burst out laughing. The men patted my shoulders, and then we went our separate ways. I went into the inn, and as expected, the feast was over.
"We made sure to leave some for you," the innkeeper said when he caught sight of me. He brought a massive plate that was larger than both of my hands put together, piled with heaps of food. He then lowered his voice. "Of all the members in the Hero party, we think you deserve the feast the most."
I felt touched. Bowing my head, I thanked him. He smiled.
"No, we should be the ones thanking you!'
Not one to waste food, I forced myself to finish the meal. It took me quite some time and effort because the innkeeper gave me too much. However, I didn't want to hurt their feelings, so I finished everything. When I finally ate the last dregs and returned my plate, I felt bloated.
"Ugh…"
Staggering up the stairs, I proceeded toward the room I was assigned toward. While I did so, I caught sight of Irene. She was sneaking along the corridor, moving to one of the rooms. Not wanting to disturb her, I paused and stayed out of sight. Then Irene knocked on the door and stepped inside.
"Irene." Herman's voice drifted out of the room. I wasn't surprised, and was about to continue passing by the room when the contents of their conversation ensnared my attention.
"Herman…I wanted to see you."
"Me too."
…huh. So much for losing to Yvonne or Miranda. As it turned out, Irene was still number one in Herman's heart after all.
I was so glad I rejected her stupid marriage proposal. However, it struck me as extremely odd that she would propose to me yesterday night on the grounds of not being able to win against the other two girls, only to sneak into Herman's room the next night.
Something wasn't right here.
"Irene, I love you."
"Yeah, me too. I love you, Herman! Hero…!"
Breathing heavily, the two of them groaned and moaned, and I could tell that they were getting intimate with each other. There was a rustling, which indicated that the two of them were taking off their clothing and letting the fabric sink to the floor.
Then their moans intensified, and I could hear bumps as they began moving, the bed creaking under their combined weight as Herman thrust deeply into Irene. Irene let out a cry of pleasure, and she whispered sweet things into Herman's ear. He groaned as he returned her declarations of love.
…yeah, I wasn't here to watch porn (or listen to it). I'm out of here.
Before I could take another few steps, their dialogue took a new turn.
"Hah…hah…Herman…my plan…failed." Panting from the pleasure, Irene tried to wheeze.
"What…plan?" Herman gasped in return before he thrust into her again. Irene locked her hands around his neck and whispered into his ear.
"I…I thought Klein would accept the proposal…I don't know why he rejected me. Maybe he's gay?"
"Who knows?"
"What…whatever the case, he…doesn't seem to be in love with me. That's…impossible."
"You naughty girl, talking about another man while making love to me." Herman rammed his shaft into Irene's womb, causing her to yelp.
"But…but!" she protested. "Our scheme will fail!"
Scheme? What scheme?
I was suddenly on guard regarding that. Herman, on the other hand, merely laughed.
"Who cares? You are my woman. What do you see in Klein anyway?"
"His knowledge. His magic power. Klein Pearson is a kind person. He never hesitates to help others. He's such a loser. But that…that makes him easy to take advantage of. I thought…if I could have him wrapped around my finger, he would willingly do whatever I tell him to."
Lady…I was not a simp. Shaking my head, I rolled my eyes and prepared to leave.
"Well, you have me." there was another gasp from the both of them. "I'll be more than happy to spend the rest of my life with you, my love."
"Same…"
The two of them continued to roll about on the bed, thrusting their entwined bodies against each other, and gasping as they come again and again. No further coherent dialogue would be coming out of them.
Having already heard of Irene's plan to seduce me so as to take advantage of me, there was nothing more for me to listen to, and I returned to my room to rest for the night.