Great Witch’s Vessel

Silvana walks around the capital as she observes the scenery around her. This was one of the busiest places in the empire, but strangely, despite the huge amount of activity, there still seemed to be a sense of peace surrounding it. The citizens walk down the street with purpose, going about their daily business and living their own lives as usual.

Even though she felt tired from walking so far, it doesn't seem to bother her. She enjoys the beautiful scenery and its peaceful atmosphere.

But the real reason she's in the capital is to track down the two mystery men who showed up at their house the other day and claimed to be sent by her father to check on her. She check every inn, restaurant, and café to see if they had seen anyone matching the description given by her. None have, although she suspects that one of them might have seen those men, seeing how suspicious they appeared.

Plus, she can feel remnants of their magic energy somewhere nearby, meaning one of the two mysterious men was hiding nearby in the city. But she couldn't pinpoint exactly where either of them was, only that they were close.

It hasn't taken Silvana long enough to learn the basics of tracking spells and to learn the basic control for them. After practising every day with her father for years already, it came naturally to her.

The main problem she faced right now is that she still doesn't have a clue as to who exactly they were. She didn't catch the name of either of them or see much of them aside from the clothes they wore and a couple of details such as their height.

But the fact is that they are capable of using magic. They could be dangerous if they choose to be.

"I've heard you been tracking us down." A gruff voice suddenly says behind her.

Startled, Silvana jumps violently in surprise and whirls around quickly, her eyes widening at the sight of the cloaked figure standing in front of her.

"You are...!" She exclaims in shock. Her voice trails off as she tries to find the words to form coherent sentences, which only results in her stuttering.

"You may recognize me as one of the visitors you had a few days ago, right? I knew you were curious about our identity, but I'm afraid you weren't very observant enough." He explains, his face hidden behind the shadows of his hood.

"Hmm!" Silvana eyes widen as she feels an unpleasant shiver run down her spine.

She doesn't know what to say. She hadn't expected him to show up so soon. What would he gain out of revealing himself? Silvana didn't know what he wanted, but she knew it was something bad.

"Why didn't I notice him?" She mutters under her breath.

"Don't worry, I've put up a barrier around us so the others can't see us. Now, I suppose you have questions, yes?" He states.

"What do you want with me?" Silvana asks, keeping her eyes trained on him.

"Your death." He answers curtly.

Silvana immediately freezes at his response. She was expecting a threat from him but this is just unbelievable. She didn't expect him to be this cold and emotionless. Not only that, but he seemed quite pleased with the situation.

"If that is your goal, I will not comply," Silvana says firmly.

"I don't like violence, but, I won't hesitate if necessary." He retorts.

His words made a part of her feel scared. His tone seemed to suggest that he wouldn't stop until he killed her. She had never encountered someone like this before; someone so vicious towards others. This person seems like he is completely heartless. She had a feeling he wasn't going to be able to kill her easily either. Perhaps he wasn't going to give up after all.

Silvana took a step forward and narrowed her eyes, taking a deep breath to calm herself down before answering him.

"Then perhaps, we should end things here and now." She suggests as her body begins to glow faintly with a faint red light.

She raises her arms and brings them down swiftly to her sides as she chants a spell silently to teleport them both to a forest outside of the capital. The barrier disappears, leaving the two of them alone. Once she finished chanting, she closed her fists and concentrated her power, concentrating all of it with her hands as they began to glow brightly with flames.

"As expected from a powerful magic user like you." He smirks, watching as her powers flare up and her expression becomes serious.

Silvana grunts, her brow furrowing as she continues to stare at him. "You seem confident that you can beat me," Her voice sounds cold as ice.

"Perhaps." He replies in an almost lazy tone.

She takes a deep breath and charges at him, leaving trials of fire behind her.

"So bold." He comments as he dodges her attack effortlessly, but she keeps pressing on toward him, forcing him to back away to avoid getting burned.

The moment they break away from each other, he rushes back toward her again, trying to land a hit on her, but she manages to dodge it again. They exchange attacks back and forth, neither one making any significant progress against the other. However, the cloaked stranger's speed and agility are definitely above hers.

It is almost like he can predict the outcome of every single action she makes. He moves so gracefully and effortlessly, like a bird flying in the air. And, he is well trained. She has a hard time keeping up with his movements. He is very agile, especially compared to a human. He can stay perfectly balanced and flexible during all kinds of attacks.

"Well, well..." The man chuckles, "It appears I underestimated you. You are indeed a formidable opponent."

He stops abruptly and extends a hand in the air, daggers materializing in it instantly, "Now then. Let's try something different." Before she can react, he throws the weapons straight ahead, aiming at her legs and abdomen.

Silvana catches them without missing a heartbeat, throwing them back at him while also sending a barrage of fireballs at the same time in his direction.

Both their attacks collide with each other, creating intense sparks which create tiny explosions everywhere.

The sound of the collision and the sparks causes smoke to rise from where they collided and the ground to rumble violently as the fire spreads across the area. The smoke forms a wall between the two, preventing them from attacking each other directly.

When the smoke dissipates in the wind, it reveals a charred and burnt landscape. The grass around it looks scorched and charred due to the explosion. The trees lying on top of each other look damaged, having fallen and crashed into the forest below. All in all, a mess is left behind. The ground is littered with debris, which is scattered around the area as the fight had caused a lot of destruction.

The man laughs as he turns his gaze from the burning ruins towards her, "Interesting." He notes.

"Who sent you?" Silvana inquires as she slowly approaches him again.

"That remains to be discovered." He responds casually.

Silvana frowns, narrowing her eyes. "What do you mean that remains to be discovered?" She asks angrily.

"Do you truly believe that you are in a position to demand something from me?" He asks calmly, raising a brow as he stares at her.

Silvana grunts in frustration, knowing that there isn't any way she can get anything from him. So instead of arguing further, she decides to change the topic and thinks carefully about a way to make him talk.

"I am Silvana, princess of the kingdom of Orsenas. If you think you are going to intimidate me with your threats of killing me, you are very much mistaken." She declares.

This statement causes him to laugh, causing her frown to deepen. "Now you're talking! Although I must admit, even if I did threaten to kill you I doubt you would fall for such a weak attempt. I have yet to see a strong woman willing to die to protect her family." He states arrogantly.

"Is that a challenge?" Silvana challenges, narrowing her eyes slightly, preparing herself for another attack.

He shakes his head, "No, no, no. I merely meant that you are too naive to think you can defeat someone stronger than yourself."

"And how would you know if I don't consider myself stronger than you?" Silvana shoots back.

"Because my magic isn't strong enough to harm you. Even if I wished to hurt you, I would need to use all my powers to achieve it." He shrugs.

A smirk appeared on Silvana's lips. "You underestimate your abilities as well." She adds.

The corners of his lips curl upwards into a slight grin before he gives a slight chuckle. "Maybe so." He says quietly as his eyes roam her figure.

"And I noticed you cast a powerful magic armour spell around your abdomen. Is there a child inside you?" He asks curiously.

Silvana's eyebrows raise slightly in surprise. She had not expected him to notice that detail about her. As her eyes widen in surprise, he starts circling her as she prepares herself for an upcoming attack.

She clenches her fists tightly as he comes close, focusing her energy to summon a large fireball. The fireball rapidly expands into the shape of a dragon.

"I give up." He states calmly, "I cannot defeat you." He admits.

Silvana frowns in confusion. "I thought you wanted to kill me?" Silvana asks.

"Well, I don't care about killing you. I'm not the want who wants you dead, though. I've been ordered by my master to kill you, but, I'd rather not have to resort to that." He explains.

Silvana doesn't say anything for a few moments as she considers what he said. It doesn't make sense to her why someone would want her dead. She hadn't committed any crimes against anyone, nor had any reason to commit any. Why would they order him to kill her?

The cloaked man watches in amusement as he notices the confused look on her face.

"I don't like taking innocent lives; if I killed you, I'd also kill a child. I object to that." He states, as his smile fades away to reveal nothing more but a stern glare.

The mention of innocent life causes her to pause for a moment before nodding slightly.

"In any case," he sighs, "You may leave now." He commands.

"Leave now?" Silvana asks him.

The man nods in reply.

"I still think you haven't answered me." She states simply.

The cloaked man sighs impatiently before turning his gaze towards her, staring at her intensely for several long seconds. A strange look was beginning to appear in his eyes, one she couldn't quite understand. After a few moments of silence, she hears his voice.

"The Great Witch is dying." He reveals plainly.

Silvana blinks in surprise. "W... What?"

"The Great Witch is dying, and she needs a new vessel for her soul." He repeats slowly, speaking slowly and emphasizing the words 'new vessel'.

"She needs a new body to possess? What does that have to do with me?" She questions, feeling a little dumbfounded.

"It means your body will become a new vessel for her soul." He clarifies.

"What better vessel than the princess of the kingdom of Orsenas? The one with powerful magic and an enormous amount of mana?" He asks rhetorically.

Silvana raises a brow, slightly taken aback at his comment.

He continues, "However, it's obvious that you wouldn't agree to that." The cloaked man states.

"Yes, there's your answer. My decision has already been made. I'll never consent to be possessed by the Great Witch." Silvana states confidently.

"Hmm, very well." He nods.

Before she can ask him any other questions, he quickly disappears into thin air. Her eyes trail after him as he leaves until they disappear into the distance. A small frown takes over her face as her thoughts wander to the conversation she just witnessed.

"If the Great Witch is dying..." She mutters under her breath, "Then... This war, the one we have been fighting for years, might end sooner than I imagined."