CHAPTER 346: WICKED SORCERY-II

The two guards who had been standing outside the white castle of the sorcerers gathered with a velvet wrapped box that one of the guards had bought as they came to change shifts. The other guards who had seen the box immediately brightens up at the sight.

"Is this from the Princess?"

"Sure is!" The other guard answered with excitement, "It seems that Princess Ariel missed the food she once cooked with her sister, it’s a kind of sweet that’s made from walnuts and they taste so delicious."

"Oh dear, oh dear! I have heard a lot about it and finally this day I can finally eat it! Thank you, Plosh!"

"Heh, just remember that the next time your wife cook another stew to send it to my house," answered the other guard as he sat down and ate the cookie.

One of the guards stared off into the distance, his grip tightening on his spear. He muttered, perhaps louder than he intended, "Since the curse took hold, more than three hundred years have passed... every day feels the same. We live the same life, in the same halls, seeing the same faces. No other civilization to visit, no change, no color, just the same grey days on repeat. It’s been... suffocating. But with the Princess here, for the first time, I feel a sliver of hope."

"True," another guard said quietly, glancing down at the walnut cookies in his palm. "My wife... she finally left her bed. She cooked stew again and smiled again. Her cheeks have color for the first time in decades, all because she heard of the Princess’s arrival. Even some of our comrades who had once chosen death... turned away from that path when they felt hope again."

"She’s our beacon of hope," the third guard said with a faint smile. "If the Second Princess comes... perhaps our curse will finally end."

The first guard let out a long breath. "I can’t even picture it. A day where these walls no longer bind us. A day where we can walk the world, taste its air, and see all that we’ve only dreamed of."

The three of them stared at the starry sky they had seen for so many hundreds of years being locked inside this castle, unallowed to leave lest they wish to die a painful death.

But tonight the sky looked brighter, much lovelier as if Heaven had allowed for some of the heavenly gleam to cast their night.

"Well, I will leave now," The second guard said, "You two, be careful alright?"

"Don’t worry, don’t worry, I can’t even remember seeing when was the last time a guest had arrived unannounced to the castle," the other guard shooed, "Tonight too, won’t be different."

"Don’t jinx it, anyway, go quickly so you can share the cookies with your wife."

"Alright! Thank you!"

Then they waved their hands as the third guard departed from the place, humming widely which infected the other two guards with wide brilliant smiles.

Not long after that, around half an hour mark the two guards who had yawned together caught glimpse of a figure dragging its feet toward the castle.

This immediately alerted them as they pushed themselves to stand, frowning so they could have a better look at the moving shadow.

"Who is there!" Demanded the first guard while the second narrowed his eyes.

"Isn’t that person moving weirdly? It’s as if it’s legs are broken," said the second guard who shivered from fear.

"What? But a human shouldn’t be able to come to the castle," said the first guard who then yelled again, "Stay there and don’t move!"

But then they saw the person walking and turned pale from fear of seeing the gruesome woman who had walked toward them, burned to a degree where her skin was bright red and brown, her entire body appearing charred as though she had been roasted on a coal.

The fleshy appearance alongside blood was enough to send them shivers.

It didn’t help that Alice’s eyes on the left had disappeared, leaving her socket hollow and gnarly.

"Isn’t that... the witch who visited the castle?"

"Our late Queen’s old friend, Witch Alice?"

"She looks wounded, let’s rush to help her!"

"Ah, alright!" The second guard rushed to help the first guard who had also rushed toward the wounded Alice.

They couldn’t tell what to do at first as the wounds seemed as though it was going to ache more painfully if they touched but then they heard the whispers coming from Alice, a soft mutter that sounded like a crackle.

"...hel.. help..."

"We will help you now, Lady Alice!" The first guard said in haste, "You should call Lord Morpheus... we need to find a way to heal her wounds fast!"

"Maybe a potion- don’t you have a healing potion?"

"I have it in my bag! Fetch it quickly!" The first guard was about to go when suddenly Alice’s hands shot out.

The two guards were stunned at once as Alice hadn’t only touched the man’s hand because of fear or pain, rather she had grabbed her hands to his head, holding so tightly until the man’s face turns red and blue.

"Wha- Please let go! Lady Alice it hurts!"

The sharp cry alerted the second guard who had immediately rushed to help the first guard but then in that instant, Alice’s green eyes grew bright as she whispered the ancient spell which the second guard have only heard once in his life, coming from Circe when she had destroyed a whole kingdom.

What did Sir Lastor told him again?

Didn’t he say that Lady Circe despise whispering this magic because it’s a deadly one?

That it’s forbidden?

In that instant before answers could reach his head, he saw his friend’s eyes rolled upward until his eyeballs were only left white. His mouth gape as it let out a gruesome cry and in that instant his lively skin lost all its color, turning ashy.

Then the following second his skin shriveled like an old man’s before it fell down, collapsing to the ground.

The second Guard’s lips trembled, his teeth knocking to let out a clatter as he realized his friend that had collapsed had died and Alice who had held his head slowly healed all her wounds.

But it wasn’t enough as her left eye was still missing and she cursed aloud, "SHIT. SHIT. SHIT. THAT WENCH! THAT FUCKING WOMAN!"

Then she reached out her hand to the second guard, her eyes crazed as she clicked her tongue, "This is your mistress’s fault. Now you’re paying for her mistake, blame her-"