Little Tyrant Doesn’t Want to Meet with a Bad End - Chapter 528-1

In the forest, Roel chatted with the ancient treant over wine while attempting to re-establish connection with the Witch Queen through his Crown Origin Attribute. Having found no other alternatives, he was determined to brute force his way through.

While it was unfortunate that he hadn’t been able to find a way to resolve the situation, he did learn one thing through his conversation with Kayde—he didn’t have to worry too much about the Witch Queen since it was impossible for her to die.

To be clear, the ancient gods were already dead a long time ago. They were only able to interfere in the present world due to their contract with Roel. The worst thing that could happen here was for Artasia to lose her connection to Roel and return to her previous dormant state.

Roel heaved a sigh of relief upon learning that.

While he had known Artasia for the shortest amount of time among his three ancient gods, the two of them were close to each other. More than the decline in his fighting prowess, what he had been the most worried about was the Witch Queen’s safety.

Unlike the reticent Grandar or the motherly Peytra, Artasia’s personality reflected the nature of a witch—free and unbridled. She often manifested on her own will to chat with Roel, sometimes even pitting her strength and wits against him. Her antics added joy to his life.

Furthermore, Artasia was the one who boasted the greatest knowledge amongst his three ancient gods. The witches had once served as Goddess Sia’s enforcers back in the ancient era, and the Witch Queen herself was well-versed about the Kingmaker Clan. Thus far, she had provided him with plenty of invaluable information that helped him overcome numerous crises.

Whether it was for practical or sentimental reasons, Roel wouldn’t turn a blind eye to the Witch Queen’s plight. As long as Artasia wasn’t in danger, he was confident that he would eventually find her even if she had temporarily lost her way.

With his worries allayed, Roel continued chatting with the treant with a lighter heart while attempting to re-establish a connection with Artasia. Much to his surprise, his desperate attempt showed some results.

An inexplicable sensation touched his heart, sending a shudder through his body. He widened his eyes in astonishment. Before he could grasp what the familiar sensation was, it had already dissipated without a trace.

“That was…!”

It took a few seconds before the agitated Roel comprehended what might have just happened, but everything had happened so fast that the only remaining trace of the earlier phenomenon was the echoes of his exclamation. He couldn’t be certain if the sensation he had felt earlier was real or a hallucination conjured from his hopes.

Kayde noticed Roel’s peculiar reaction and naturally enquired about the situation.

However, Roel didn’t answer its question right away. The frown on his forehead indicated that he was deep in thought. He instinctively inspected his Crown Origin Attribute, followed by his body, and his expression soon turned grave.

The sensation he had felt earlier was highly reminiscent of the Witch Queen’s mana, which meant that he had located Artasia even if it had been just for a split instant. However, when he inspected his Crown Origin Attribute, he discovered that there were signs of an energy clash.

As a contracted entity, Artasia’s own powers couldn’t have triggered the Crown Origin Attribute’s protective mechanism. The only plausible reason was that there were other foreign powers in the Witch Queen’s realm.

Upon coming to this deduction, Roel understood right away that Artasia had encountered trouble over on her side, which was why he hadn’t been able to get in touch with her.

He quickly turned to the treant to inform the latter of his new discovery, but the ancient treant, even with its vast knowledge accumulated over thousands of years, didn’t know much about the witches and couldn’t offer any help.

“The witches were a weird bunch. They were the only race that lived in complete isolation, even from their own brethren. There’s hardly any information about them at all. I’m afraid that it’ll be hard for me to deduce the circumstances surrounding your ancient god without context.”

“I see… If you don’t have a clue as to what’s going on, it’s unlikely that there’ll be anyone on the Sia Continent who can help me on this matter.”

“Possibly, but if the cause—erp!—is indeed the result of external interference, things might get troublesome.”

Kayde put the wine vat down on the ground and burped. Roel raised his eyebrows.

“Troublesome? What do you mean by that?”

“The realms where your ancient gods dwell aren’t ordinary places. You could think of it as their domains, places where they had spent a lot of time over their lifetime. Not dissimilar to how plants would lay claim to the land they thrive in and drive out invaders, the powers of your ancient gods are also much stronger in their own respective domains.”

“Home turf advantage, I get that. But this means that…”

“Indeed. If an enemy is able to externally interfere the Witch Queen in her own domain, you can be certain that they are a force to be reckoned with.”

“…”

Roel’s face clouded over.

It wasn’t just the strength of the enemy that he was concerned about here. More than that, he was unnerved by the fact that he didn’t even know who or what he was up against.

From the Saints Convocation to the Savior’s worshipers, most of the evil cults that had survived through the ages had a bone to pick with him. Considering their long history and strength, they definitely had the means to pull off something like this.

On the bright side, from the brief moment of connection he had with Artasia’s realm, he was certain that the latter was also doing everything she could to re-establish their window, and it looked like there was some progress on that front.

Roel’s Crown Origin Attribute was not to be trifled with, and the Witch Queen was strongest in her saintly white palace. Under their two-pronged attack, it should take no more than a week before they overpower the culprit interfering with their connection.

By then, he should be able to re-establish his connection with Artasia and get to the bottom of this matter.

His mind was put at ease now that he could see a way out of his quandary. He settled down on a nearby boulder before resuming the hearty drinking session with the swaying ancient treant.

After he downed half a wine vat, Alicia finally arrived with an apologetic look on her face.

“I’m sorry, Lord Brother. Some problems have cropped up with the surprise I have prepared for you,” she said with her head lowered in self-reproach.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Roel was curious to know what the gift was, but he decided to allow her to keep her surprise. Instead, he passed her a bottle of heated honey wine to warm her up.

Someone overflowing with life force couldn’t possibly be susceptible to the cold, but Alicia was nevertheless touched by the gesture. She nestled herself in Roel’s arms and sipped on the warm honey wine as a sweet smile blossomed on her face.

Meanwhile, Kayde respectfully offered its present to Alicia as usual.

Roel had once asked the ancient treant about its reverence for Alicia, and the latter replied that its instincts told it that Alicia was a great existence. That had been the case for Juliana of the Blood Tribe too, just that she had used the term ‘progenitor’.

It was a baffling turn of events as such a development hadn’t happened in Eyes of the Chronicler, but Roel deduced that the Silverash Child Bloodline might have granted Alicia high affinity with certain races.

Another thing that was worth mentioning was the subtle change in Alicia’s disposition following her breakthrough to Origin Level 3. She exuded an air of mystery under the silver moon, which seemed to compel an even more respectful attitude from the ancient treant.

By the time Kayde finished presenting a huge pile of invaluable demonic materials to Alicia, the eastern horizon was already starting to brighten up. With linked hands, Roel and Alicia bade farewell to the ancient treant before leaving the mountain forest under the escort of the heretics.

Having reinforced his ties with a key ally of the Ascart Fiefdom, Roel was finally done with his business. With only days leading up to New Year’s Day, he ordered the convoy to advance to Ascart City at full speed.