The Hearthstone Witch quickly regained her composure and pretended as if she hadn't said what she had moments earlier. Turning to Ivita, she said, "Your Majesty, how did you get here? A Sea Spirit Witch? Tide Witch?"
Inside the fountain, the Hearthstone Witch wore a look of deep thought. "I've never heard of them."
Ivita told her, "Because both of these witches are Witch Marquises and they pledge allegiance to the pirates of Cross Island, so I wanted to ask you."
A humorous expression crossed the Hearthstone Witch's face. "Witch Marquises pledging allegiance to pirates? Each witch of that rank, Your Majesty, is a lord in her own right. The Ice Lich is an outlier, she wants to establish a new kingdom with Marco Anson. But for you to imply that a Witch Marquis would serve a pirate—no matter what kind of pirate he is—it's quite strange."
"Strangest of all, if they were Witch Marquises, I wouldn't have not heard of them. Even the Ice Lich, I've heard snippets of her stories."
