Chapter 381: The Revival of the Witch of Greed!

Faced with the overexcited Witch of Greed, who seemed so thrilled that she might have even wet herself, Wood ignored her questionable expression and posed another question that had been on his mind.

"Who exactly is the Witch of Vainglory, Pandora? What's her origin, and what is her connection to the Witch of Envy?"

The excitement that had overwhelmed Echidna just moments earlier quickly dissipated. She seemed taken aback, clearly not expecting Wood to ask such a question.

"Regarding the Witch of Vainglory, Pandora, my understanding is also limited. While she is considered a witch, she doesn't belong to the group known as the 'Great Witches.'

Her actions are enigmatic, and it seems that she was born even before us—a mysterious witch whose existence is hidden from the historical records."

"However, according to the 'Book of Wisdom,' Pandora possesses the power to rewrite reality with her words. The 'Sloth' you encountered previously lost his sanity because of her. The death of the previous Sword Saint, Theresia, was not only due to the Sword God taking away the 'Blessing of the Sword Saint' from her; the White Whale she faced was also under Pandora's control.

Just like her name suggests, Pandora is a being who brings calamity to the world. At one point, the Seven Great Witches joined forces to drive her away, but we were never able to destroy her. Some of us even suspected that Pandora might have been involved in causing Satella's Witch Factor to go berserk, leading to her devouring half the world.

Of course, personally, I always disliked the Witch of Envy anyway."

Hearing the hidden truth from Echidna, Wood fell into a deep silence. The scope of this world was far larger than he had imagined. Every time he felt he was getting closer to understanding the truth, he realized he had only grasped a fraction of the whole picture.

Previously, he had thought that the "Great Witches" were the ultimate beings in this world, but from what Echidna revealed, he learned that opposing the Seven Great Witches were the "Seven Divine Maidens," who embodied virtues like Justice, Truth, Kindness, Tolerance, Courage, Tranquility, and Strength.

These Seven Divine Maidens were merely the subordinates of the Infinite Holy Dragon. Aside from the Infinite Holy Dragon, there were two other holy dragons: the "Golden Holy Dragon" and the "Space-Time Holy Dragon."

The Space-Time Holy Dragon, in particular, possessed dominion over countless timelines and universes, making it unfathomably powerful—a true power ceiling.

Of course, due to the constraints of the world, the Three Great Holy Dragons could not manifest here, leaving the Seven Divine Maidens and the Seven Great Witches as the strongest visible powers in this world.

Reinhard, with his inexplicable level of power, stood above the Great Witches, making him, without a doubt, the strongest force in the current world.

While there were many mysteries from thousands of years ago that still eluded Wood, he at least figured out that Pandora, the Witch of Vainglory, was the main villain. As for her ultimate goal, Wood couldn't say, but it seemed evident that if he could eliminate her, this world would essentially be conquered.

"Now it's my turn to ask you a question." Having learned the information about Pandora, Wood no longer had anything else he wanted to know.

He intended to leave after answering one of Echidna's questions in return.

"The information I provided about Pandora and the events from a thousand years ago is not something easily shared. Now, I have nothing else to ask you, so may I propose another request in exchange?"

Echidna's words made Wood pause, though he wasn't overly surprised. After all, he had revealed that he was a traveler between worlds. There really weren't any other secrets worth questioning that the wise witch didn't already know.

Considering the gravity of the information he had received, Wood knew he didn't have equivalent information to exchange. He nodded for Echidna to state her request.

However, agreeing outright was not an option. After all, Echidna was the Witch of Greed, and a particularly cunning one at that. Wood was wary of being trapped.

"I want to form a contract with you. This way, you can take my remnant soul with you when you leave. If we find a suitable vessel, I can be revived. Moreover, through our contract, I might even have the chance to see your so-called 'other worlds'!"

Seeing Wood's hesitance, Echidna decided to be frank about her true intentions.

Over four hundred years ago, Echidna had taken on the role of a savior, using her wisdom to help others. But after becoming a witch, she became the embodiment of greed, consumed by an endless thirst for knowledge.

She no longer cared about what had become of the outside world; now she was more interested in the "other worlds" that Wood spoke of and was filled with curiosity about the knowledge from these alternate realities!

"Echidna, you can't do that! If you contract with this boy, this dream world will vanish, and we might disappear along with it. If you truly wish to contract with him and leave, you must take us with you too."

As Wood was still contemplating whether to agree to Echidna's request, a few other figures suddenly appeared around him and Echidna.

These figures were all women, each distinctly different—loli, mature women, maidens, innocent types, tsundere, timid... The one thing they all had in common was their extraordinarily beautiful appearances.

Given their presence in Echidna's tea party and the way they addressed the Witch of Greed, Wood quickly realized that these must be the other "Great Witches."

It was rumored that the Great Witches had been consumed by the Witch of Envy, but apparently, thanks to Echidna's power, part of their souls had survived.

The one who had spoken was a small girl, her body restrained in bindings, even her eyes covered by a black, hardened blindfold. She wasn't dressed that way because of a particular fetish; she was the Witch of Gluttony, the creator of the Three Great Demon Beasts.

Without the restraints, she could easily fall into a "state of hunger." The Witch of Gluttony possessed a pair of magic eyes, one of which could induce endless hunger in its target, to the point where they would devour their own limbs without realizing it.

Within this space, Echidna evidently held the dominant position, with abilities that allowed her to summon the other witches. The Great Witches feared that if Echidna left, the space would collapse, leaving their souls with nowhere to linger—and they would truly cease to exist.

The Witch of Gluttony was implying that if Echidna wanted to escape, she needed to bring them along. They had been here for hundreds of years, and aside from the Witch of Sloth, who was too lazy even to breathe, most of them longed for resurrection.

"I'm sorry, but I refuse your request! Propose something else. There's no way I'm letting six women bind their souls to my body. Even if I agreed, it's doubtful you could follow me when I leave this world."

Wood wasn't about to accept such an outrageous proposal—after all, these were the fearsome Great Witches. He had no idea if they had ulterior motives, and he wasn't about to take the risk.

"Even if we can't leave this world, that's fine. Just form a contract with me. Besides, to make you feel secure, I won't try to enter your body—you just need to find a girl named Ryuzu Meyer for me.

If I want to use a vessel, it must be compatible, and now I only need a contractor to free me from my shackles."

Echidna's soul had been bound here by the Divine Dragon to suppress the power of the Witch of Envy. The other five Great Witches had their souls preserved by Echidna and resided in her mind space.

"If I were to form a contract with you, what limitations or negative effects would it have on me?"

Hearing Wood's question, Echidna appeared slightly offended.

Even as a Great Witch, seen from the perspective of humanity as a villain, there had always been countless people yearning to contract with them and receive their love and power. Yet here was Wood, clearly skeptical of her offer.

"The contract is equal, though in many ways advantageous for you. Just like a pact between humans and spirits, though seemingly balanced, it is the spirit who ultimately follows the contractor's command.

Moreover, if either of us were to die, it wouldn't affect the other. Upon forming the contract, I would escape this place, and you would gain an increase in magical power, as well as a portion of my Authority."

Ultimately, Wood agreed to make a contract with Echidna, the Witch of Greed, as it clearly benefited him as she described.

He then left her mental space and effortlessly captured Ryuzu Meyer, who had been fighting Ram.

Seeing Echidna's soul, Ryuzu was deeply shocked but, following the promise made over four hundred years ago, provided her body as a vessel for the witch.

With Wood's contract, Echidna escaped the bindings of her tomb and then took residence in Ryuzu's prepared vessel.

Thus, the Witch of Greed, Echidna, who should have perished four hundred years ago, was resurrected!

Sensing her return, Roswaal raced to her. Upon seeing the figure that had haunted his dreams for centuries, his whole body trembled with excitement.

"Roswaal, you've changed quite a bit. Over these past four centuries, you've become quite powerful. Without using my Authority, I might not be able to defeat you now."

Hearing that his teacher, whom he also adored, still remembered him, Roswaal displayed his fawning loyalty. He explained why he looked different—his current body belonged to a direct descendant several generations removed.

His clown-like attire was also a conscious decision meant to remind him of his hatred for the "Melancholy Mage," the one who had cornered Echidna and defeated him years ago.

However, Echidna seemed indifferent, brushing off his explanation with a simple "You've worked hard." It was clear that to Echidna, Roswaal was nothing more than a talented disciple.

Seeing how Roswaal, who trembled with excitement just from being acknowledged with those three words, made Wood realize how pitiable the man was—forsaking the loyal Oni girl for unrequited devotion.

And after waiting four centuries, doing all those things, he was rewarded with nothing more than Echidna's indifference. Wood had thought Subaru was bad with his devotion to Emilia, but Roswaal had taken it to another level. Subaru at least ended up with mutual feelings, while Roswaal got absolutely nothing for his four-hundred-year pursuit.

Now that Echidna was back, the five other Great Witches' souls were still within her mind space, and once they found suitable vessels, they too could be revived.

With Echidna's resurrection, Roswaal's ultimate goal had been achieved. Releasing the barrier around Sanctuary was also trivial for her—the trials didn't matter at all.

Yet there was one critical issue that everyone had overlooked. Echidna's soul had been bound here specifically to suppress the power of the Witch of Envy. Now that Echidna had escaped, Satella's power, which had previously been kept in check, was now being unleashed.

Normally, the barrier of Sanctuary would prevent Satella's power from causing significant trouble, but the key problem was that Emilia was inside Sanctuary.

And according to the Witch Cult, Emilia was the ideal vessel for the Witch of Envy's resurrection!