Chapter 111: Men Are Just Another Commodity

"So it’s the real power of the Matriarch of Death’s eyes." Rowena murmured, unable to take her gaze off Magna. "Terrifying... Indeed terrifying."

Magna offered a silent nod of agreement. ’I wonder what bloodline traits the other Matriarchs hold.’

Even though it was just gossip and legend, he remembered Rowena saying there might be others with bloodline traits like that living and training in the Tower, so he was just curious how strong those could be.

In the end, as long as he had Gaia, he could one day get those traits as well.

Not able to hold back his curiosity, he just asked, since he had the chance to learn anyway. "What are the other Matriarchs’ traits?"

Hearing him ask the question, Celeste just stayed silent, while Rowena suddenly started to laugh, her body temperature beginning to rise at the same time.

’Is she angry?’ Magna took a step back, feeling he shouldn’t have asked the question at all.

Nevertheless, she still replied. "I can’t believe your greed. You already have the eyes of one Mother, and you ask for more? You really are a monster, aren’t you?"

She kept laughing, and her voice sounded like she was joking, but her still rising body temperature was saying otherwise.

"Grandmother." Renna had to warn her, as the heat was starting to become unbearable.

"Sorry..." Rowena, finally realizing she was losing control, pulled herself together before began speaking.

"I wasn’t even aware of the exact power of the Matriarch of Death’s eyes until you told me, so I have no idea what the other four are."

She tried to remember the legends she had heard, but they were all just hearsay. None of them really made sense, other than being fancy words fit only to be told to children as bedtime stories.

"Anyway, Celeste." She suddenly turned to look at her, who still looked shocked, and said very seriously. "I don’t know what you plan to do with this kid, but if you need my advice, just make sure to hide him well. Especially from the Tower."

If possible, even Rowena would give up her best farm in exchange for Magna, to buy him and make him Renna’s Shadow.

The thing was, her granddaughter was too stubborn about men, so it would be a dead investment for the Cinders.

She could still use him to steal other Witches’ spells as well, but that was too risky, since her family would become the enemy of the entire Witch society in an instant if she tried something like that.

"About that..." Celeste, finally collecting herself, let out a deep breath. "In a few days, someone will come to visit from the Tower."

"An executive?" Rowena’s brows drew together, and when she saw Celeste nod, her expression darkened further. "Why?"

"For Faye’s trial. After I reported the last incident, her going missing and her escape from the Faceless Witch’s hands, my mother tried to make the incident count as her trial. But now, to decide the matter, they’re sending someone."

Rowena wanted to call Seraphina stupid, but remembering she was both her superior and her elder, she just kept her words to herself.

Meanwhile, Magna, listening to the conversation, got curious again and asked. "What exactly is the Tower? And what’s an executive?"

He had already gotten a bad vibe from the two Witches about the terms.

"That’s where hell is located. The place where every criminal soul ends up." Rowena answered, leaning back on the couch.

Celeste, on the other hand, gave the correct answer. "The Tower is the main structure all Witches are affiliated with. You could call it the head of the hierarchy in our society. It’s the place where every Witch who has proven her intelligence, wit, and power holds a position of authority."

She took a deep breath as she added disappointedly. "My mother is also one of the low ranking executives there. Their job is usually to make sure other Witches follow the rules, to handle the Trials, and to keep records."

Just as Magna was about to ask what exactly made them so unpleasant, she cleared it up for him.

"They usually have unlimited decision making power in their hands. So when they see something as necessary, they have the authority to seize the resources, artifacts, and books of the Witch they go to inspect. This includes the male members of the family, even the Shadows."

’What the...’ Magna barely held himself back from cursing out loud.

Seizing property was something Magna had seen plenty of examples of on Earth, generally part of human nature. But seizing an actual person was a different matter.

Men were literally seen as property in this world.

So far, thankfully, he had never been treated badly in the Winterborne family, if you didn’t count Titus and that Azelith Witch, but apparently nothing in this world was all rosy.

"So what if they take me?" He was already planning a future where he’d continue living in the forest.

He had watched enough camping videos and played enough simulation games about wilderness life that he was almost sure he could live there for a while.

"I’m not sure, but they will surely give special care to someone like you." Celeste forced a smile, trying to soften her words.

Rowena, though, just said it blatantly. "They will train you to death. If you survive, you’ll probably become their best asset."

So far, Magna had thought the worst thing that had happened to him since coming to this world was his family abandoning him as a baby, then the death of the mother goblin who raised him.

But now he started to realize just what kind of shitty world he had actually been reincarnated into.

"Is there no way to escape that?" He was still thinking living in the forest wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

"Unfortunately, no." Celeste shook her head. "If they want something, there’s nowhere you can run that they can’t reach."

"But if they don’t know about me, they can’t want something they don’t know exists, right?"

A sudden silence fell over the room. Magna stared intently at her, trying to decipher her thoughts.

"Right?" he pressed, though the grim look she was giving him was enough answer to make him understand.