In this continent where the Nine Great Kingdoms are constantly at odds, many sentient beings actually have differing stands rather than a strict distinction between good and evil.
For example, the Laine Empire harbors an extreme hatred for the Undead, but that doesn't mean an Undead like Amberser is truly unforgivable. Nor can one claim from Amberser's perspective that the Laine Empire is a heartless cult organization.
This is a matter of standpoint, not something that can simply be measured with good and evil.
Witches, however, are different; they are inherently evil creatures, from the day of their birth they are the most cruel and vicious existents.
Witches may look like ugly, twisted old women, but their hearts are as hideous as their appearances.
From the way they reproduce, one can see the extremity and distortion of these beings.
Witches cannot bear offspring on their own; they steal babies from cradles or even from the wombs of their mothers and then drain these poor babies dry. A week later, the witch gives birth to a baby girl that looks human
and grows up maintaining a human appearance. Until her thirteenth birthday, when she transforms into a witch that looks exactly like her mother.
Normally, witches send their offspring to the couple who have lost their child, and the child grows up as a normal one until reaching their teenage years.
Over a dozen years, they grow within a family to be considered truly one of its members.
But once the witch's soul matures, the child suddenly changes personality, becoming cruel and vicious, catching the foster parents off guard. No matter what the parents try, they cannot awaken the child's conscience, and are often killed by the very child they raised, after enduring countless betrayals and harms.
And as they die, they witness their child's transformation into the hideous form of a witch, realizing that the one they have nurtured for over a decade was a monster, one that grew by devouring their own flesh and blood.
This cruel torment leaves the souls of mortals riddled with wounds, while the witches derive immense pleasure from the humans' rage and despair.
That is the nature of witches, their very existence is to bring pain to other lives.
Upon reaching adulthood, witches rapidly master a vast array of evil magic and begin to become overconfident, some even believing they could trample deities underfoot one day, boasting the Deity is nothing special compared to themselves.
This extreme pride leads witches to enjoy toying with humans as one of the means to prove they are "also divine." Usually, witches engage in trade games with humans, such as poisoning someone then revealing themselves when that person is desperate, telling them they could live if they sacrificed their most beloved family member.
They indulge in such deception, making humans sacrifice their loved ones, and take pleasure in watching the expression of utter despair when the truth is unveiled.
For this, they are even willing to pay a price.
One could say witches are born of inherent evil, even more outrageous than the devils of Hell.
Amberser carefully explained to Naomi the information about this monstrous being called a witch. Naomi's mouth hung open, unable to close for a long while.
"By Sylvanas above, are there really such evil creatures in this world? Eating children and then planting a monster into the hands of the grieving parents to raise... That's truly malicious!"
Just hearing Amberser's description made Naomi shiver; her own people have encountered such a terrifying creature.
Amberser continued, "Most witches are adept at illusions, and casting widespread illusion realms is not difficult for them. Witches not only possess powerful spell casting abilities, their claws are enough to tear through steel, and a witch is never alone. They excel at deceiving humans into becoming their puppets.
"Even a fully prepared army could suffer heavy casualties facing a witch. What's worse is that most witches are adept at fleeing; if you can't kill her in one go, she will seek vengeance again and again until she kills you!
"I've heard a rumor that three witches joined forces to create a horrifying epidemic in the city of Elves, turning city after city into domains of death, with deaths in the thousands. Were it not for the intervention of Legendary High Elf heroes, the casualties would have been even greater."
These words turned Naomi's face pale. These creatures sounded terrifying, and her people seemed to be in great danger.
"Master Ultraman, what do we do now?" Naomi asked a bit frantically.
"It's tough," said Amberser. "Witches are not so easy to deal with; only someone of Legendary Rank can be fully confident in handling them. If you want to hire a professional adventurer team, it would cost at least several tens of thousands of Gold Coins for them to consider the commission. But that's the old price from a few years ago. With the recent price surge in Alchemy City, I'm afraid it would be double."
Naomi grew even more anxious after hearing what Amberser had said. Where would she get tens of thousands of Gold Coins to hire adventurers? Were her people truly beyond help?
"But well..." Amberser suddenly changed his tone.
Naomi hastily asked, "But what?"
Amberser said, "But it just so happens that I know an expert in dealing with witches, and with my recommendation, he could guarantee solving your witch problem for no more than ten thousand Gold Coins."
"Really?" Naomi asked suspiciously. She had a nagging feeling that something was wrong; these few lines sounded too much like a scam.
Amberser, thumping his chest, insisted, "Of course, if you don't believe me, I can swear in the name of the God of the Undead. The expert I know can definitely handle the witch, and for only ten thousand Gold Coins. If he can't do it, even if the witch escapes, he won't charge a single coin."
Naomi said helplessly, "But I don't have that much money either. I don't have anything of value on me."
Amberser replied with a smile, "That's easy to fix. You're going to rescue your tribesfolk, right? The value of the things they possess should certainly amount to ten thousand Gold Coins. Druid-made natural magic equipment has a good market in the Nine Great Kingdoms. You can pay afterward for the service."
Naomi still felt uneasy, but it seemed she had no other choice.
If she could save her people, then ten thousand Gold Coins would definitely be worth it. The tribe could pool their resources; they would surely have enough.
If she failed to save them, what would she have to lose anyway?
Thinking this, Naomi immediately agreed.
"So, shall we go find this expert you're talking about now? Where is he?" Naomi urged anxiously.
Amberser smiled faintly and said, "No need to rush, he's already here."
As he finished speaking, Amberser's body began to emit layer upon layer of ghostly light.
The effect of shapeshifting was dispelled, and the young man with black hair rapidly transformed into a ghastly white Skeleton. Clad in a black robe, Soul Fires burned in the sockets of his eyes, and he stood suspended, not touching the ground. In his hand, he held a long magic staff.
With such an appearance, Naomi didn't need Amberser to introduce himself; she exclaimed in shock, "A Lich? You're a Lich?!"
Among the Undead, there are many varieties. Naomi had initially guessed that Amberser might be a vampire or something of the sort, but she never expected he was actually a Lich.
Among the Undead, Liches are probably the most powerful Spellcasters, no wonder his spells were so formidable.
"Wait, the expert you mentioned, is that you?"
Naomi suddenly felt as if she'd been tricked.
"That's correct. I am very experienced in dealing with witches; rest assured," Amberser said with utmost confidence.
However, once he had resumed his Lich form, his voice turned into a magical vibration, sounding like a chilling breeze whistling through a graveyard, exceptionally creepy.
Naomi still felt something was amiss and continued to question, "But you just said that only a Legendary Rank could handle a witch by themselves."
Amberser lightly swept his staff, and the corpses of those mutated rats promptly burst open. Amongst the blur of flesh and blood, countless Skeleton parts click-clacked together, forming dozens of bizarre-looking Skeletons.
Standing before the Skeleton army, Amberser introduced himself to Naomi again: "Let me introduce myself once more; I am Diga Ultraman, the Legendary Lich!"