Chapter 77.2

“Wait a second… I really don’t smell the presence of a spirit.”

“Who are you?! Answer me!”

The other witches nearby finally started to back away from her.

“My, my, such sharp eyes. As expected of the direct disciple of Grand Witch Haran. You’re on a completely different level from the fools here.”

The sharp-eyed woman curled her lips into a sinister smirk.

The moment she said that, people began pouring in from all sides.

The magic circle and barrier protecting the Witch Assembly building had apparently been broken long ago.

“I am Helena, Inquisitor of the Holy See.”

The cold-eyed woman threw off her hat and robe, revealing the uniform of a High Inquisitor — black with red sigils emblazoned on it.

“It’s over! The Holy See is here!”

“Th-That’s a High Inquisitor!”

The witches around me began to tremble in fear.

At that time, the Imperial Church had not yet separated from the Holy See. It wasn’t as bad as during the Age of Holiness or the Dark Age, but clergy still wielded tremendous authority.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

And now, the Holy See had sent not just clergy but inquisitors to lead them.

Step. Step. Step. Step.

And the clergy of the Holy See were only the beginning.

Soon, mages from the Mage Tower, as well as fellow witches who had betrayed us, cautiously emerged, taking cues from the Holy See.

“We’re… we’re finished….”

The 49 witches around me were on the verge of collapse, sobbing in despair.

Shudder… Shudder…

I, too, was frozen with fear, unable to speak.

“Shall we make a bet?”

It was then that Inquisitor Helena approached me with a twisted grin.

“A bell, you said?”

Her eyes, filled with arrogance and fanaticism, are something I still can’t forget.

“From now, you have 20 minutes. If the bell doesn’t ring in 20 minutes, all of you will die.”

Her voice was cold and merciless, laced with an eerie calm that sent shivers down my spine.

Her tone was that of a veteran inquisitor, well-versed in threats and terror.

“But if the bell rings within 20 minutes, I’ll give you a choice.”

At that moment, we were like mice caught in front of a snake, frozen with terror.

“If you open the barrier and let us in, I swear to God that I will spare you and all the witches here.”

“Spare us…?”

“Yes. My mission is to dismantle the Witch Assembly and take the life of Haran. You useless fools aren’t much of a threat, so I have no reason to kill you.”

“And if… if we don’t open it?”

“Then I swear to God, I will subject you to the most brutal torture imaginable. I will keep you alive for as long as possible, ensuring you experience the most extreme suffering this world has to offer. Even if you beg for death, it will not come.”

Her face was pure madness, the kind of fanatic zeal only someone who believed they were absolutely right could possess.

“Just so you know, it’s only a matter of time. That barrier will break eventually. If I, my fellow inquisitors, and the Holy See’s clergy combine our strength, we can dismantle it in less than an hour.”

“……!”

Surrounded on all sides, we witches had no options left.

Time crawled on, second by second, minute by minute.

Every moment was agony.

I regretted it.

Over and over again, I regretted it.

I shouldn’t have mentioned 100 witches.

I should have just run away with Master.

If not that, then I should have fled by myself.

If I had, maybe Master would have found another way.

Minutes passed.

7 minutes… 8 minutes… 9 minutes…

Ding-ling-ling.

“!!”

“It actually rang.”

The bell rang much earlier than the 20-minute deadline Helena had set.

For some, it was a sound of salvation.

For me, it was the sound of damnation.

At that moment, I was forced to choose.

Would I give my life to protect my master?

Or would I betray her to survive?

Ding-ling-ling. Ding-ling-ling. Ding-ling-ling.

The bell rang urgently, faster and faster.

“Make your choice. What will it be?”

I felt the cold steel of the inquisitor’s hatchet against my neck.

“Isabelle! Open it! Open it, please!”

“If it weren’t for Haran, none of this would have happened!”

The other witches around me, driven to desperation, begged me to betray her.

Shudder… Shudder… Shudder…

“…I’ll open it.”

“Good. I swear to God, you will all be spared.”

“Really…?”

“I swear it. My oath to God is sacred and unshakable. Unlike the shallow loyalty of you witches.”

“But you hate us… You hate us as much as you hate warlocks.”

“That’s exactly why I have to leave at least a few of you alive.”

“!!”

“Now, open it.”

In the end, I betrayed my master.

I opened the barrier that led to the center of the Witch Assembly.

“Attack!”

“Kill the wicked witch!”

“Take the spellbook! Get Haran’s spellbook first!”

“This is where the Grand Witch Haran is! There must be rare magical artifacts and materials here!”

Hundreds of clergy, mages, and witches driven by greed and bloodlust charged into where Master was.

Thud…

I collapsed, trembling uncontrollably.

“We’re alive! We’re alive! We survived!”

“Hah… Hah… Hah…”

“Heuuuh… I’m so sorry, Lady Haran. I’m so sorry…”

The surrounding witches laughed, wept, and gasped in relief.

Their cries were a dissonant symphony of joy, sorrow, and guilt.

Flash!

Screaaam!

Kyaaaaah!!

Crackle! Bang!

The sounds of destruction and screams echoed from the central chamber for a long time.

After some time passed…

“I! I, Inquisitor Helena! Have stabbed my sword into the heart of Grand Witch Haran! Hahaha!!”

Helena’s triumphant voice echoed through the air.

“!!”

It was over.

[So be it… We witches shall live in isolation forever.]

The end gave birth to a new beginning.

‘Master?!’

Together with the echo of the inquisitor’s crazed voice, we all heard Master’s cold, final words.

[This is Isabelle’s revenge.]

Master must have thought I had died.

She probably believed I had been killed by the enemies, and that they had broken the barrier by force.

[I shall burn my soul and cast a curse. From this day forward, witches shall never learn magic from anyone but their master. Nor shall any witch teach magic to anyone but her own disciple.]

Her final curse was a scream of anguish.

The curse of a witch who had been betrayed by those she believed in.

[Just as you lived isolated from the world, you shall continue to live that way. You will stagnate and fall behind. And when the era leaves you behind, you will die out in misery.]

None of the witches present could say a word. They merely listened to that wretched, unforgiving curse.

[If any of you violate this, my curse will devour your mana and your soul.]

Her hatred wasn’t just directed at me or the witches present that day.

It was a curse upon all the witches of the world.

[You will never be able to utter my name, nor the name of this curse.]

Her words became reality.

[I, Haran, curse you all. This curse will last until the day there are no witches left on this earth.]

This… was how the curse began.