19 Tea with Hallows

When the light ebbed, Aliester found himself in the middle of the woods. There was not much difference than the woods he had gone through after they entered the Forest of Silence.

It was filled with towering trees and shrubs, however, when he tried to explore, he felt as if he had bumped into something.

"What?!" he asked as he reached and touch an invisible surface.

"That proves that you are a non-caster." Holly mumbled. She then grabbed his arm and led him a few paces away. "Please wait. I have to open the area first, so that you would be able to enter the domain."

Aliester nodded and stepped back. Meanwhile, Holly held her hand and chanted in a foreign tongue.

A pentagram formed and the barrier glimmered. A small portion, which was akin to a door, opened.

Aliester could see a different place beyond the barrier. The first thing that grabbed his attention was the house which was two storeys. It was more like an opulent vacation house in the woods than an actual witch's hut. It was surrounded with white picket fence.

'This is not what I am imagining as a witch's house.' He thought to himself.

[Notice: This may look like an ordinary house but there are layers of protective spells cast in this place.] Zarame warned him.

When they entered the gate, Aliester's eyes feed around the entire estate. A garden filled with herbs and some unusual plants had greeted him.

"It is quite odd to see an apple tree with fruit that are gold and the leaves are glittering emeralds." He could not help but mutter.

"Well this is a caster's garden." Holly said as she led him to the porch. "You will be more surprised if the plants here are just ordinary herbs. I usually grew unusual things for my potions."

Holly unlocked the door and invited him in. "Make yourself comfortable." She said as she let him sit.

She disappeared towards a door and re-emerged a few minutes later with a tray filled with gingerbread cookies and a pot of tea.

Aliester eyed the gingerbread cookies with suspicion.

'cookies are usually laced with spells so that witches could do whatever they want with the victim.' He thought.

It did not help when he remembered a very famous fairy tale. Two children were captured by a witch when they ate her house made of sweets.

Probably guessing what he was thinking, Holly said. "Relax, they are not poisoned. Those cookies won't turn you into a toad or stone or any of those weird things."

To prove that she did not lace any poison in the food, Holly took a cookie and ate it.

'Zarame, could I trust this person?' he asked the system.

[Answer: compared to the two witches you have encountered, I could not sense any malice from this one.]

Aliester nodded. 'Guess, I have to trust your evaluation and my instincts.'

"Thank you very much for the food!" he said.

Although he was still a bit apprehensive, he took a cookie. The cookie crumbled as his teeth sunk into it. It tasted really good, not too sweet with just the right amount of spice.

For some odd reasons, he felt that his MP and SP had gradually increased.

"The fatigue that I have felt and the pain due to the fight earlier had somehow faded." He murmured as he sipped his tea.

"I am glad to hear that. I had enchanted the cookies and tea, so that you can get back the strength that you have lost." Holly said as she finished her cookie.

She slightly bowed her head and said. "I also have to apologize since you got caught up with Marlene."

"Why are you apologizing? It wasn't you who almost turned me into a stew." He said in bewilderment.

"Well, I was a bit late in figuring out where she was hiding. Those hags were slippery."

As if remembering something, she added. "I am grateful for that pillar of lightning you have summoned. It guided me to where they're hiding. I am also grateful since you managed to defeat them."

"Please, don't mention it. I just got lucky." He said while feeling a bit embarrassed. It was pure chance for him to defeat that witch. Without Caramel's dagger, he would have been done for.

"It wasn't just luck. As a witch, I do not believe in coincidence. Everything happens for a reason. It is how the threads of destiny work." Holly said with conviction.

Aliester was silent. 'She might be right. Caramel said something similar.' He thought for a while. 'I just hope she would also be merciful enough and helped me accomplish my mission… that is if it is fated.'

He sighed and looked at the witch. For some odd reasons, his thoughts flew to another direction.

Holly had taken off her pointed hat earlier and had placed her broom somewhere. She really looked like a young maiden, not a witch at all.

'She is pretty. Aside from that black robe that she is still wearing, she does not look like a witch.' He thought.

And somehow his tongue slipped. "Are all witches from this coven look young and beautiful?"

Holly giggled. "You think, we look young and beautiful?"

Aliester was flustered at having his thoughts revealed. But he nodded nonetheless.

"No, most of older generations had succumb to their age. It just so happened that you have seen the younger ones like me and Caramel." She answered with a megawatt smile.

"How old are you?" he could not help but ask.

"Young duke of Alcove…" she smiled but her smile no longer reached her eyes. As if in warning, she said. "It is rude to ask a maiden of her age…"

He apologized. But she still rumored him. "But to answer your question, I am only in my early twenties."

'no wonder she looks young.' He murmured.

"So, I did not think that you would visit my coven just to ask about how young looking and beautiful witches are, right? If I remember correctly, you had mentioned a mission from a guardian."

He nodded.

Holly then asked him "so, what was your mission, young lord?"

'I am not yet sure if she can be trusted. I am worried about how she will react if I had been sent to get the grimoire.'

[Notice: Master, like the fronyard, some spells have been cast inside this house. You have to be careful.]

'I got a feeling one of those spells can detect if someone is lying. I have to be honest. Thanks Zarame.'

Drawing a huge breath, he told the truth while hiding some details. "I need the spell from the grimoire. Specifically, the spell that can travel through realms."

Holly looked a bit dumbfounded. "That spell is a taboo. It violates certain laws. But if it what the guardian asked you to, then it meant that you must really need it."

"Then…" Aliester almost got his hopes up.

Unfortunately, Holly cut him off. "I can allow you to read the grimoire. But how could I know that I could trust you? You are from Verbena. You might be a spy sent by the queen."

'It seemed that we are both cautious of each other.' Aliester thought. 'she is also wary of me.'

"I am willing to prove to you that I am not a spy from the queen." He said. He anticipated that she would have given him some sort of trial.

"Blood holds memories. Will you give me a few drops?" she asked.

Although he was still a bit wary, he gave his consent.

Holly produced a knife and approached him. She took his hand and slit his palm. The wound was not that deep nor that big, just enough so that blood oozed out.

Holly then took some of his blood and dropped the fluid in a spare teacup.

"You are quite trusting, my lord. Blood of a nobleman like you is precious. You shouldn't have given me. I am a caster, you know." She said to him in nonchalance.

Aliester was a bit dumbfounded.

Holly gave him a smile as she put a few drops of concoction in the teacup. "But you passed the test of trust. But you have to bear in mind. People may betray you, so you should need to know who to give your faith into."

She then added. "So, you do not need to worry, I won't be using this for any sinister spell. I just need your blood to gather information."

She then mumbled a spell on the cup with Aliester's blood. She had been watching the cup and after a while before she sighed.

Holly bowed her head. "I really have to apologize for my rude behavior. One sent by the guardian."