Seventhundred and Thirty-Two The Beginning of an Ideal

The hall burst into an uproar when Phyllis announced the news.

"How can mortals contact gods?" Erle's voice was filled with shock and disbelief. "You must have seen it wrong!"

"Are you sure the beam of light really came from him? Have you checked all the witches in the Western Region of Graycastle?" Celine pointed directly to the crux of the matter.

These two questions were obviously what most people were thinking.

"I confirmed it with my own eyes, and his key is much more complex than Pasha's. The five-colored magic stone could no longer contain that orange light like a gable," Phyllis said slowly. "I couldn't believe it at first, but... that's indeed the case."

"Does he possess magic power?" Pasha asked with a last glimmer of hope.

"Unfortunately, he cannot activate the God's Punishment equipment."

Phyllis's answer dimmed the expressions of everyone. It was an unexpected surprise to find a Chosen One with a complex key so quickly, but this surprise was a little too much. No one could have predicted such a situation – that magic power would be separated from the key. This discovery simply overturned their previous ideas.

Without magic power, one cannot connect to the core, even with the help of witches to transfer it – the physique of mortals cannot withstand the damage caused by this extraordinary power. Even the strongest person can only last for an hour or two, and they cannot grasp the essentials of using magic power. This point has been fully verified in the era of Taqila.

Moreover, what worried Pasha even more was that she originally thought that high-level witches had a high probability of becoming Chosen Ones. If it were in the era when the Union ruled the Fertile Plains, it would be easy to find a dozen candidates who met the requirements. But the news brought back by Phyllis completely shattered this idea – in the small Neverwinter City, there were actually more than a dozen high-level advanced witches!

Such an astonishing number meant that the Witches Union was already as strong as some core organizations of the Union, such as the Mystery Seekers and the Holy Guard, which also had so many high-level existences. But even so, Phyllis failed to find another Chosen One.

The feeling of "eliminating demons was originally within reach, but the opportunity was missed only because the ruins were discovered too late" is completely different from "they never actually approached the target at all, and the Chosen One plan was a wishful thinking from beginning to end." If so many high-level witches cannot meet the requirements of the Chosen One, then is their decision to follow Lady Natalya and resolutely resist the Starfall Queen's God's Punishment Army really the right one?

The thought of this alone made Pasha shudder. She shook her head, suppressed the surging thoughts, and then asked, "You just said that the mortal king wants to cooperate with us?"

"He wants to understand us and is willing to unite to fight against demons," Phyllis said. "But the specific requirements will have to be discussed later."

"Do you think he has the ability to fight against demons?"

"I'm not sure... the weapons he showed are indeed incredibly powerful, but I still know too little," Phyllis hesitated for a moment. "However, Agatha has some confidence in this. She believes that if Neverwinter City is given another two or three years, it is not impossible to keep the demons west of the Impassable Mountain Range."

"What is her view of the relationship between us and Neverwinter City?" Erle asked in a deep voice.

"Agatha believes that she is a Taqila witch, but she will serve Roland Wimbledon – who is also that mortal king," Phyllis paused and explained the idea of the New Union. "She believes that the most urgent task at present is to defeat the demons, and all forces on the continent should unite to fight for the arrival of the Third Battle of Divine Will."

"Serve a mortal? Is she crazy?" Erle shouted loudly. "Has she forgotten how we lost to the demons in the First Battle of Divine Will?"

A noisy discussion also arose among the crowd. That period of history was something that almost all members of the Union had to learn. Mortals may have outstanding individuals, but as a whole, their performance was truly embarrassing.

For example, opening the city gates to surrender to demons, and then being slaughtered to the last person; or a witch army traveling thousands of miles to provide reinforcements, but being rejected by the lord and watching helplessly as the reinforcements were slowly wiped out by the demons... As for cowardice and desertion, such situations were even more numerous. Sometimes, a massive army of twenty or thirty thousand people was not as effective as a witch elite squad of about a hundred people. Some places even saw heinous incidents of mortals using God's Punishment Stones against witches, which exacerbated the breakdown of cooperation between the two sides.

If it were not for this, humans would not have retreated all the way from the vast Dawn Realm to the Fertile Plains.

With such a terrible performance, coupled with meager food and resources, it became a matter of course for the witches to completely replace the mortal regime.

Looking at Erle, who was waving her tentacles all over her body to express her dissatisfaction, Pasha felt the same worries in her heart. From Phyllis's description, King Roland Wimbledon of Graycastle may be an outstanding individual, but it is difficult for one person to change the entire mortal group. If other kingdoms make foolish and low-level mistakes, which side will he stand on then? If the war lasts for twenty or thirty years, will he still be as firm and energetic as he is when he is young?

Not everyone is willing to possess an empty shell and lose all senses in order to prolong their life. Even if he agrees, what about his descendants in forty or fifty years? Will they be willing to be heirs for the rest of their lives?

These are all issues that Pasha needs to consider.

In general, as long as the demons can be defeated, any price is permissible – whether it is Akalys or Natalya, they all firmly believe in one truth: if humanity does not perish, the witches will not cease, and one day, they will surely return to the peak. This is precisely determined by the essential difference between the divinely favored and mortals.

What she worries about is paying the price but still being completely defeated. After all, they don't have another chance to try again.

"Let's talk to Roland first," Celine pressed down on the indignant Erle with her main tentacle. "When I was in the Mystery Seekers, I had dealings with Agatha. Although she sympathizes with mortals, she will not act impulsively. Besides, we originally planned to communicate with secular kingdoms. Now that we have a mortal king who does not discriminate against witches and has made preparations to welcome the Battle of Divine Will in advance, isn't that an ideal start for us?"

"I agree. With just our few people, there is no way to stop the demons."

"By using the mortals' publicity, we can also expand our influence in the witch organizations."

"And he is also helping to recruit witches... This way, Phyllis will have a greater chance of finding a second Chosen One."

"I am very interested in those gunpowder weapons. If we had them in our hands, would killing demons be as easy as slaughtering evil beasts?"

The God's Punishment Witches spoke one after another.

Celine was right, Pasha sighed. Regardless of whether they accept the "New Union" concept or not, they must reconnect with mortals. An enlightened monarch like Roland is the most suitable negotiating partner. As for which direction to go in the future, it can only be decided after the negotiations – perhaps the other party is also holding the same idea?

Thinking of this, she nodded her tentacle towards Phyllis. "I understand. Please invite His Majesty Roland Wimbledon to come here for a meeting."