That's not how you use a witch!

Chapter 34 The Witch's Eye's Aid

As Ronan returned to Thornlands by carriage, in a private room of a high-class hotel in Frostlands, noble lords were indulging in sensual pleasures.

Their ranks ranged from viscount to marquis—in fact, the guests at today's banquet were much the same as those at last night's victory celebration, except that Henry and Ronan were absent.

As the lords enjoyed fine wine and food, while caressing the beautiful women serving them, they expressed their dissatisfaction with the "frustrating" banquet of the previous night:

The Duke of the West is strict and rigid, not an easy boss to get along with; the Baron of Thorns is an even more wicked fellow, who doesn't stay in his own territory but insists on making trouble and trying to gain favor. He not only tries to curry favor with the Duke and get rewards, but he also makes innocent people like them suffer because of it. He really doesn't understand the rules of conduct at all...

That is why the Marquis of Humphrey, who hosted the event today, received unanimous praise from the distinguished guests.

This is like the rich kid in the class taking the lead in creating a small group chat without an annoying homeroom teacher or irritating class officers, and then privately treating all the classmates in the group to a delicious meal.

"Everyone worked hard yesterday, so make sure you have a great time today! Everything's on me!"

"His Excellency Humphrey has spoken our minds!"

"To the esteemed Marquis!"

Humphrey raised his glass with a smile, feeling quite pleased with himself for his clever move.

The Duke's actions gave him the opportunity to win him over. At this moment, he was clearly the more prestigious figure among the people present. Given time, he might be able to replace him and become the true leader of the Western Territory!

"Count Victor, why do you look so worried? Is something on your mind?"

Humphrey noticed the Earl in the corner; knowing how to control people's hearts meant having an excellent ability to read between the lines.

"I've been thinking about the rebels... Actually, I think the Baron of Thornholde's warning wasn't entirely unreasonable."

"I'm not paying attention," Victor said absentmindedly.

After what happened last night, he behaved himself. Not only did he not cause any trouble at the banquet, but he also listened carefully to what the Duke and Ronan said.

Both reason and intuition told him that something terrible was about to happen.

However, when he expressed his concerns, he was only met with disdain from the other lords present.

"No way, you actually believe those alarmist lies?"

"I've sent people to check, and there are absolutely no signs of a battle in Fulong Valley!"

"That's right, the Duke just wanted to find some excuse to take our cake, and the Baron just happened to give him that pretext."

Humphrey joked, "Yeah, buddy, maybe you've been too tense lately. How about I arrange for some beauties to help you relax?"

"Thanks, but I don't want to for now."

Victor made up an excuse and left the room, the laughter and chatter continuing behind him.

Damn it, have all these people's brains been ruined by alcohol? It's one thing that Humphrey is as stupid as ever, but why are several lords who seem wise to be doing this not only failing to analyze the situation seriously, but also desperately agreeing with him? Is this what scholars call the herd mentality?

Victor shook his head and boarded the carriage at the hotel entrance.

Regardless of what his colleagues thought, he was determined to prepare seriously. Let them laugh if they want; being laughed at was better than losing his life!

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"Oh?"

Ronan's eyes lit up when he returned to Thornlands in the evening.

[Current Witch: Medallion]

[Status value: 80%]

[Cumulative purification amount: 1632/2000]

When the banquet ended, Madonna's stats were only 75%, but they rose to 80% when she returned... Could it be that riding in a carriage helps improve stats?

Looking at Madonna, whose eyes were slightly narrowed and who seemed to be in a good mood, Ronan was a little confused and couldn't connect that bumpy and terrible experience with her good state.

There must be something else that made them happy.

After a short rest, Ronan went to inspect the operation of the school and the militia.

It was evening, and children were leaving school while adults were going to school. Ronan observed half a children's math class and found the results to be surprisingly good.

Although these teachers did not have specific teaching experience before, they were quite able to teach numbers up to ten and simple calculations.

And thanks to the streamlined curriculum, they don't actually teach much in a day, so even the slowest student can learn it by listening to it repeatedly.

The curriculum for adult leaders is slightly more complex, including not only literacy and arithmetic, but also the recognition of certain instructions and signals.

Once the Thorn Territory enters a state of war, they must act according to designated signals, including passwords and flag signals, and cannot flee in panic.

All the citizens listened attentively because these things would be tested, and only by passing the test could they earn work points.

Meanwhile, at Ronan's behest, Grant also spoke to the people during recess about the necessity and importance of fighting the rebels.

This artistic young man was quite talented in public speaking. He started by talking about the new life that the people had finally obtained, combining the recent defeat of the soldiers with the aggressive rebel army. He described the viciousness of the rebel army and the beauty of Thorn Territory from the perspective of someone who had experienced it firsthand.

The language is colloquial and vivid, and the voice is melodious and highly infectious.

Finally, he returned to the classroom, stating that the classroom is also a battlefield, and studying hard is also contributing. He said that the Thorn Territory should unite as one to win this battle, which earned him unanimous applause from the people.

"Not bad, you've got the talent to be a political commissar!"

After class, Ronan ruffled Grant's curly hair, half-jokingly and half-appreciatively.

"Brother, you flatter me. Compared to the militia who shed blood and sweat, my little bit of verbal skill is nothing."

Grant waved his hand modestly, but his mouth was practically stretched to his ears with a grin, unable to hide his smugness.

Ronan was also quite satisfied with the militia's progress: only one day had passed, and the specially recruited new soldiers had already had "real combat" training.

During his banquet, a level-four evil beast, the Fallen Black Rhinoceros, broke into the defense zone of Thorn Territory and was knocked down by Lilith's ultrasonic waves while she was assisting in the defense.

This is a vicious beast known for its thick hide and tough flesh. Its body is larger than that of an Asian elephant in the present world. Even after being knocked down, it continued to struggle and let out eerie roars at the militiamen.

Payne suddenly had a brilliant idea, thinking that this was a rare opportunity for desensitization.

At his suggestion, Bart had all the new recruits line up with spears, and each of them stabbed the Fallen Black Rhino once.

After all the new recruits had been stabbed four or five times, their hands holding the spears stopped trembling, and some even started competing to see who could stab the hardest, the Fallen Black Rhino, riddled with holes like a honeycomb, finally breathed its last.

To commemorate its contribution to the militia, Bart cut off the head of the Fallen Black Rhino and placed it next to the Black Thorn Centipede.

"What a pitiful beast..."

Ronan was deeply sympathetic upon hearing this and instructed Bart to carefully salvage the remains and fetch a good price so that Mr. Evil Beast could rest in peace.

Compared to the original militia, these new recruits adapted much faster. This was because they were already experienced regular soldiers; they simply lacked faith and didn't know why they were fighting.

Their time in Thorn Territory profoundly reshaped them; everyone said they had never seen a territory like this before.

Now that they know they are fighting to defend their new life, their spirits are naturally renewed.

The next morning, Ronan received good news from Scarlett: the two witches from Witch's Eye had arrived.

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