In the damp forest, inside a witch's cottage.

Chubby Tommy and the thief Terry were violently vomiting in front of a short, fat witch. Her belly was protruding, her hands resembled bird claws, skinny and wrinkled with long black hairs. The old witch's appearance was extremely ugly, with one eye larger than the other, glowing green, a hooked nose, a large mouth with a few black teeth, and long, curly hair that was a mess like a bird's nest.

They had seen many ugly people, but never anyone as hideous as this old witch.

They had never seen a woman who could make them vomit at first sight. If they could choose, both would rather have a sow standing upright and talking to them.

"God, for the first time in my life, I feel confident and satisfied with my own appearance. This feeling is really good!" Tommy said, nearly fainting from vomiting.

"I feel the same," Terry agreed, nodding desperately as he continued to vomit.

"If you have any last words, just say them now while I haven't drained your life essence," the old witch cackled coldly. In her bird-claw-like hand, she held a staff entwined with a snake. The snake flickered its black tongue, and its eyes glowed eerily green. Tommy and Terry noticed a small, unknown red light circle flickering under the old witch's feet, spreading magical ripples outward.

"My heart's pounding with fear," Tommy suddenly laughed, "Powerful witch, if you could leave the cottage, why did you have to lure us in? If you could kill us, why intimidate us? If you could act, you could have taken us down, skinned and dismembered us, and then asked how we feel, right?"

"Although meeting you is unforgettable, we must bid farewell," Terry also said jokingly, "Apparently, we're not to your taste. Hopefully, a handsome guy will let you successfully lure him."

"Stop!" The old witch's face turned red and then pale with anger, yet she didn't leave the cottage to knock them down with a fireball.

"We'll miss you," Tommy said, then couldn't help but vomit again.

"If you take another step, I'll kill these two!" the old witch waved her hand, and the illusion in the cottage completely vanished. The roast goose and fruits on the table turned into rotten meat and wriggling poisonous insects. Elizabeth and Shira in the back turned into naked men – one of the Collin brothers and the fire mage Andrew.

"We don't know them," Terry flatly denied.

"Help me, Tommy, Terry, I'm Andrew," Andrew in the cottage collapsed on the ground, his face pale and weak, reaching out his hand pleadingly.

"You're an illusion," Tommy said with a smile, "If you were really Andrew, you'd affectionately call me a waste or a fat pig. So, I can tell you're an illusion."

"I'm not, Tommy, I was wrong before, please save me, save..." Andrew was cut off as the old witch knocked him down with a magic bolt. The old witch laughed coldly, "It's not the time for schoolmates to catch up. Don't forget, you've eaten my food and are now my slaves. You two still want to leave? I've already awakened all the magical beasts in the damp forest. Outside my cottage is the only safe place. The beasts are waiting for you to deliver their lunch meat. Where can you go?"

"Keep boasting, I love to hear it!" Terry laughed, "I love listening to people brag!"

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"You..." The old witch rushed to the door, snarling and clawing, but apparently, something was preventing her from leaving the cottage. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn't get out.

"We should go now. I remember my grandmother saying that at night, witches turn into owls and fly out of their houses to snatch children," Tommy laughed heartily, "Powerful witch, am I right? They say witches also create mazes around their houses, making it impossible for people to leave. Then, at night, they fly out to capture people. Haha, your face is changing, did I guess right again?"

"It's okay, I just remembered that my profession is a pathfinder thief," Terry nodded and laughed.

"One last question, forest witch, can you tell us which direction Elizabeth and Shira went?" Tommy asked with a smile.

"I will kill you two scumbags and those two bitches who ruined my beautiful appearance with their magic!" the old witch cursed furiously.

"Confirmed, Elizabeth and Shira really did come here and must have left not long ago, yay!" Terry and Tommy excitedly high-fived in celebration. The two put on a show of gentlemanliness, gave the old witch a noble salute, and then left, laughing heartily amidst her frenzied curses.

"I'll kill you! No matter where you run, I will find you and tear you to pieces..."

In the forest, the curses of the old witch echoed for a long time.

After bidding farewell to the forest Tree Shepherd Toka, Rody and Gill walked in silence for half a day. Gill looked at Rody curiously, occasionally stealing glances at his face from under her eyelids, her heart filled with doubts.

"I...ah, Rody, are you unhappy?" Gill asked softly.

"No," Rody turned around and said gently, "I'm not unhappy, just thinking about some things, so I didn't speak. What do you want to say?"

"Is it because the vine and the rabbit you control changed and their combat power has dropped a lot? Are you worried about our safety?" Gill saw that the dark man-eating vine summoned by Rody, which was originally nearly ten meters long, had turned into a transparent light green vine less than a meter long after Elder Toka's magic, and thought this might be the reason.

"The combat power hasn't decreased, on the contrary, the capabilities of the man-eating vine have improved a lot. Elder Toka unlocked its potential and dispelled the dark energy. Now we just wait for this 'Thorn Claw Tiger' to grow slowly," Rody shook his head, "I'm not thinking about other things, just that the responsibility of planting the next generation of Tree Shepherds is significant. I thought it was too simple at first. The life of a Tree Shepherd is very long, lasting thousands of years. If we plant them in the wrong place, they might end up living in solitude..."

"Then let's plant the Tree Shepherds as close together as possible! There will be a way. Elder Toka also said that we just need to feel it's the right place in our hearts," Gill softly comforted, "Rody, let's find the most suitable place to plant them! There's no hurry!"

The two walked in the direction indicated by Elder Toka for a day. While resting in the forest, they suddenly heard a tremendous roar ahead.

Initially, Rody thought it was just giant magical beasts fighting and was preparing to leave with Gill.

"Kill him!" From the slope below the hill ahead, a cold voice commanded, "If you can't capture him alive, then kill without mercy. These Fellick scum, regardless of gender, must be annihilated, not a single one spared."

Rody and Gill were shocked to hear this. How could they encounter enemies hunting Fellick people in this distant land of evil?

What exactly was going on?

At the bottom of the hill, the first to fly out was the cool, silver-haired Aaron. He moved like lightning, leaping through the air and stepping on treetops, catapulting towards the east. Following closely behind Aaron was a disheveled knight in silver armor, who seemed to be one of the Collin brothers. Before Rody and Gill could understand what was happening, a large net flew out from below the hill, skillfully enveloping the silver-armored knight and swiftly dragging him to the ground.

The silver-armored knight crashed into the bushes, emitting a painful groan.

Another person was rapidly approaching the forest where Rody and Gill were hiding. It was the eldest of the Collin brothers, covered in blood and in a sorry state.

Arrows whistled and burst forth below the hill.

The eldest Collin brother was hit by several arrows, the powerful arrows piercing his armor. He fell to the ground, his life or death uncertain.

As Gill was about to step forward to help, Rody quickly held her back, covering her mouth with his hand, signaling her to stay silent, or they would not be spared either. Then they saw five or six swordsmen following up, surrounding the eldest Collin brother lying in a pool of blood. A mage floated out from the woods and commanded, "Tie up both of them and interrogate them thoroughly. Captain Messi, take a squad and stay here, the rest follow me to chase the silver-haired boy!"

"At your command." The six swordsmen stood erect, saluting with their swords, displaying the military's iron discipline and momentum.

In the sky, cavalry riding flying griffins chased after the silver-haired Aaron, but he struck a rider's back with two thunderous bolts of lightning, causing the rider to fall off the griffin's back, even setting the griffin aflame.

The remaining three griffins, carrying their riders, scattered in fear, avoiding the thunderous might.

"Magic cast in quick succession? A Hexagram-level magic master? Hmph, interesting, I'll meet him!" Rody saw the mage's clothes adorned with the Big Dipper emblem and felt uneasy, as this Seventh-order Big Dipper mage wasn't the one giving orders earlier. Clearly, there were more powerful figures hidden within the woods on the hill, and it was unknown if they had already detected Rody and Gill.

Now, should they quietly retreat or continue hiding?

Strong opponents were extremely sensitive to any disturbances. Retreating posed a great risk, but staying put risked being discovered by soldiers, putting Rody and Gill in grave danger... Rody was caught in a dilemma. He had promised his beautiful tutor to protect Gill at all costs, not letting her fall into enemy hands.

So, should they stay or retreat?