30 Witch Cooperation Association 2

When Nightingale was released, she instantly entered her fog and appeared next to Roland.

"*Why did you come here?! You wouldn't stand a chance against all of them if they really decided that you are a threat!*" Nightingale whispered, clearly angered by Roland's actions.

"*I wouldn't be able to leave without you unless I would know that you don't want to come back with me.*" Roland replied in a whisper before focusing on the witches in front of him. He was certainly at disadvantage before but now that Nightingale was here, they could just disappear and run away if needed.

"Actually, the 4th prince's words do make sense...Now that I think about it, all the witches that experienced the strongest demonic torture either rarely used their powers or were told to keep some reserves for fighting. The supporting witches that kept using their abilities almost on the daily basis experienced the weakest demonic torture of all." The mature-looking witch named Scroll said with a thoughtful expression.

"The demonic torture is god's test, obviously the weak witches will have it easier than stronger ones."

"I don't th-" Scroll wanted to refute Cara's words but Roland interrupted her.

"Then treat it as god's test but don't impose it on the others! You can think all you want but don't force innocent women not to try different methods! Do you know who do you resemble with your insanity and talks of god? CHURCH." Roland shouted at her as his hands were trembling, clearly irritated by this woman.

"Church?! That's just a bunch of mortals borrowing god's name!"

"Cara...even you are borrowing god's name. Do you truly think god would care about worthless creatures like me or you? Or do you perhaps believe that he cares about you because of your powers? When those powers can be countered by God's Stone of Retaliation? Do you hear that God in its name? At most the god is just mocking you." Roland said in a mocking tone and with a mocking smile hanging on his face.

"And just between two of us...I might be just a mortal but I am confident in ending you with my bare hands while you have your powers." Roland added with narrowed eyes.

Hearing his confident words, Nightingale who was standing next to him shook her head with a faint smile. She never saw Roland get so emotional therefore his behavior now was quite new to her but she also felt warmth in her heart.

"You-!" Cara was shaking in anger while others were just watching two of them argue, at least, this time it was without violence.

"You don't even want to give your fellow sisters a choice how they want to live! You are the same fanatic as the church who are hunting innocent women. The reason why I came here was to give an offer to Nightingale's sisters, to give them the same fair choice she had."

"Offer them to work for you as slaves?" Cara asked mockingly, causing whispers around.

"You-!" Nightingale had enough of Cara's words but Roland stopped her before she could do anything harsh.

"They will be working like any other person. They will be paid appropriately and I won't force them to do anything they don't want. They don't even have to work for me, they can just come to Border Town to live there and make living in a different way than using their powers. Right at the moment, the town is undergoing big changes and within a month or two, witches will be completely regarded as regular citizens by locals. The witches that choose to work for me will be provided a warm place to stay and meals for free, obviously, that includes snacks, fruits, and other stuff. Also the most importantly, they can always just resign and leave the town if they feel like it!" Roland said with a faint smile while looking around at the witches who were looking at him with dumbfounded expressions.

"What types of witches do you wish to hire, combat witches?" Someone asked and everyone's eyes were focused on Roland who seemed a bit caught off guard.

"Eh? I mean, I will hire any witch, it doesn't matter what kind of power you have. The usefulness of power can be only realized by those who know how to put it to use. Your power might seem worthless in other's eyes yet in another, it might be a treasure. Plus even combat witches can contribute to the town's development without fighting. " Roland replied while looking at the witch that asked this question with an encouraging smile.

"Then what about the power to imitate any kind of sound?"

"I can already think of several uses without even putting my mind to it. It's a great ability if you can truly imitate any kind of sound." Roland shrugged his shoulders with a smile.

"What about commanding insects?" Another witch asked just out of curiosity.

"Once more...an amazing ability, you can use honey bees to make honey! And I am not even talking about the other uses of other insect species. There are endless possibilities how to make use of your power."

"Ehm, why would you be so kind to us and risk becoming the church's enemy? What's in it for you, prince? Wendy asked on the behalf of all witches.

"Eh...I mean, am I really kind?" Roland asked her back which slightly shocked her.

"W-what?"

"Does hiring someone who can help you develop the town into a prospering place where everyone can live together in peace, qualify as kind. The only thing I require of witches is to behave and don't break the law, no killing unless their own life is endangered...that's pretty much it. I am not exactly sure how this can qualify to be kind. Please don't misunderstand, I am not some sort of god of kindness, every single human has some motives and I also have them but I really promise you that I won't force any witch into doing something they don't want."

Wendy was actually glad how blatantly Roland revealed that even he is doing this with some sort of motive, this prompted her to believe that he was at least honest with them.

"However...if you want a better reason why to trust me-" Roland continued, putting his arm around Nightingale's neck, bringing her closer to him.

"Eh?!" Nightingale immediately blushed by Roland's action since all of her sisters were watching.

"I made friends with Nightingale, Anna, and Nana, also you are the ones she cares for, of course, I am going to offer you help. It's still a relatively new feeling for me but I wouldn't let anyone harm my friends, therefore, when I became their friend, their enemy became my enemy." Roland said, trying to ease the mood from the earlier fight. It took him quite a bit of courage to say such embarrassing words with a straight face but he managed to do it.

"Friends? But...aren't you a prince?" Scroll asked with an expression that clearly said she doesn't understand Roland's way of thinking.

"So that means I can't have friends? Does that mean I have to make fake friends with nobles? Yes, we need to maintain professionalism in the public but who is to order me who to befriend. Never again will I take orders from others and be someone's puppet." Roland frowned and asked Scroll who opened and closed her mouth several times but she never said anything to refute his words. Everyone thought that the "others" meant the king, his father, and the "puppet" was meant in political marriage or something along the lines, however, only a few witches realized what he meant by his words which caused them to look towards Nightingale, finally understanding why she believed in him so much.

"Then what is your goal? To become the king so no one can order you around?" Wendy asked with a raised eyebrow, still slightly suspicious of Roland.

"Do I need to become king to be free? No, my goal is to develop Border Town, what you see in my hand can be made with the help of you, witches. Even an ordinary farmer can learn how to use it, I don't care about the throne since if needed, I will make Border Town an independent town, capable of defending against any threat, even if all of the kingdoms were to decide to attack the town. A town where everyone will feel safe and will be able to focus on their career, be it a farmer, a teacher, or a government official, it doesn't matter. As long as the person is determined to work hard, even a person of the lowest social status will be able to work at a very high position, possibly even outranking nobles." Roland's words caused an uproar among the witches.

"That does sound nice however it also sounds more like a dream...Even if you have means, it would take decades to accomplish that." Scroll's words poured cold water over the other witches' heads.

"Decades? No...a few years at most. I don't need you to believe me, I know how crazy it sounds myself therefore I won't be trying to convince you, however that's my goal. Cara...I hope you can let anyone who would like to come with us and take a look at Border Town leave your group." Roland turned to Cara who was quiet for some time but the fierce look in her eyes didn't subdue. He even thought of showing off his magic but that could possibly cause some problems so he decided to let know only those he trusts.