The Warden of the Witches Chapter 191

 Chapter 191 - Action

    Approximately forty-five minutes passed, and Veronica spread out the map she had drawn from memory on the floor of the tent. Meanwhile, Dailey and Priscilla began reporting on their preliminary reconnaissance.


    “There’s a railway that runs through the village, directly reaching the abandoned mine. At this checkpoint, there are two nuns standing guard. Then, in these two areas of the village, there are five gray-robed nuns patrolling each, essentially covering all the entrances and exits,” Dailey marked on the map.


    “I went near the abandoned mine, and deeper inside the mine, I saw a whole lot of people…” Priscilla added.


    “A whole lot?” Aiden was puzzled by this description.


     “They weren’t wearing clothes, so I guess that's their breeding ground,” Priscilla explained.


    “Number?” Aiden asked.


    It sounded like an ideal place for men, but considering that these rapidly bred puppet-like nuns were all their enemies, it was rather disheartening.


    “I counted, there are thirty-two new ones in this batch. Afterward, two other nuns brought gray robes and weapons to distribute to them.”


    Aiden’s expression grew grave. This casual probe had already revealed nearly fifty people. Given that each of these nuns was a fearless warrior, attacking head-on would be quite challenging.


    “What about the hunters they hired?” Aiden asked again.


    "I didn’t see them," Dailey and Priscilla answered in unison.


    It seemed that the mercenaries the cult had hired were all sent into the Sabbath Forest. If all went as expected, they should all be dead at Abigail’s hands by now, which made Aiden breathe a sigh of relief.


    The cult's assault on the Sabbath Forest was still ongoing, so there was no need to rush. The nuns would likely be sent out sooner or later, and when that happened, the defenses at this stronghold would relax.


    “The priest and the nun Nawei, do you know where they are?” Aiden asked about the most crucial targets.


    “We're Still searching. If they’re indoors or underground, it’s hard for our familiars to find them,” Priscilla said, spreading her hands. “If they’re intentionally hiding, there’s nothing we can do.”


    “Then we’ll have to rely on Qimora to locate the main target,” Aiden thought.


    If the primary targets could only be precisely located through Qimora infiltration abilities, the witches’ gathering would hold the initiative in launching the attack against the cult.


    At this moment, Aiden suddenly felt a reaction from the pendant around his neck.


    Abigail was contacting him!


    “Give me a moment, Veronica. I Transferred the shackles' control to you, keep an eye on them,” Aiden quickly instructed as he sat down.


    “Understood.”


    As soon as Veronica responded, Aiden saw a swirl of gray mist appear before him. Moments later, he found himself at the scene of the witches' gathering. At the other end of the long table, he immediately spotted Abigail, Lamia, Vera, and Hasbinis.


    Everyone was present—this thought flashed through his mind, but he quickly noticed an empty seat beside Abigail.


    This felt very "unnatural," making him uncomfortable, like someone with OCD seeing an asymmetrical number of people on both sides of the table.


    “Aren’t we missing someone?” he blurted out.


    “I’m glad you’re thinking of me,” Qimora's voice suddenly rang out with a hint of amusement.


    Aiden tensed up, realizing that the missing person was indeed Qimora.


    Qimora had suddenly appeared on the empty seat to Abigail’s left, while holding a lit cigarette.


    It was clear that she had used her power of "void" to erase her presence from everyone’s consciousness.


    Still, Aiden was a bit surprised. Before Qimora revealed herself, he had felt an uncomfortable sense of incompleteness, like looking at a jigsaw puzzle with a missing piece, making him instinctively want to fill it.


    “qimora, you should be right in the enemy’s midst now, correct?” Abigail asked, clearly accustomed to Qimora powers and promptly starting the conversation as soon as she appeared.


    "Yes, I’ve already found Father Bales and Sister Nawei," Qimora replied calmly.


    "Where are they?" Aiden asked.


    "The priest is in the same room as me. He’s resting in a two-story house with a red roof next to the bell tower of this abandoned village," Qimora reported with a smile. "As for Sister Nawei, she’s in the bell tower, directing other nuns to organize weapons."


    "You’re in the same room as Father Bales?" Hasbinis asked with interest. "Can’t you just slit his throat while he’s asleep and be done with it?"


    "And then he would immediately activate his authority of inheritance and come back to kill me," Qimora added.


    "I’ve already cleaned up on my end. I’ve killed about two hundred people tonight," Abigail said slowly. "The priest is resting, likely because he’s exhausted his reproduction authority. Now is a good time to strike."


    "There are still at least thirty new nuns in the mine. Let’s wait until they leave the mining area before we make a move," Aiden suggested.


    "You mean I should hold off another wave of attacks?" Abigail looked over.


    Given that the witches' gathering had lost their annual gathering place, she naturally didn’t want the cult to penetrate further into the forest.


    "Since you chose to defend the base and protect the hatchling egg, it’s your responsibility to hold off their forces," Aiden smiled. "That way, our assault will go more smoothly."


    "Why don’t I take care of the minions in the mine? I’m right above the mining area now. Then I can deal with Sister Nawei, and you can focus on surrounding the priest?" Lamia suddenly proposed.


    "You’ve picked the safest option for yourself," Aiden commented.


    "I’ll be dealing with the most people," Lamia said slowly. "And if the plan goes well, the remains with divinity will likely fall into your hands first."


    "If the inheritor dies too early, the priest might have a chance to select a new inheritor. We must carefully control the timing of dealing with both of them," Abigail reminded. "However, the ‘inheritance’ ability mortals can use should have a limited range, so they won’t be too far apart."


    "That’s simple. I’ll just break the nun’s limbs and immobilize her," Lamia said with notable glee.


    It seemed the division of labor was settled. Aiden didn’t mind joining the larger assault group.


    "So, when do we act?" he asked. "It will take us about fifteen minutes to reach the railway entrance of the village."


    Everyone turned their attention to Qimora, as she was currently in control of the situation on the ground.


    Qimora thought for a moment and then said, "How about in half an hour?"