Book 3: Chapter 293: The Concept of Sorceress

After arriving at this vast forest sea, the group finally settled down. The lodgings arranged by the "Incantation Forest" were all treehouses nestled within the woodland, offering unique scenery that left many mages feeling fresh and curious.

On the other side, upon arriving here, Sylutia was also given an exclusive treehouse. It had three floors, all of wood construction, complete with round windows and potted plants indoors, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

After settling in, the group rested for five days first. During that time, they organized a few small gatherings and shared meals, slowly getting to know each other and exchanging conversations. The real celebratory banquet was held on the sixth day after their arrival.

At the banquet, the host first introduced the key representatives from both sides and conveyed the great historical significance of this cooperation. Then, the Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress and Sylutia took the stage one after another to deliver brief speeches. After that came the time to move freely.

....

"Finally, we can eat." Someone who had been waiting below for a long time complained.

"Yeah, these grandiose words, everyone understands them, but the formalities still have to be followed."

"Come on, come on, let me taste that yellow sparkling drink. Why does my tongue feel a bit numb?"

"No wait, this drink discharges electricity."

"This smoked meat is really good. It has a faint fruity aroma and isn't greasy at all."

"Black pine nut wine, not bad."

"That witch over there is really pretty."

"Careful you get bewitched. I've heard witches are all very good at that."

"If she couldn't bewitch me, what would I even like her for?"

"Sigh, do whatever you want. Just don't get devoured clean."

The banquet was lively and noisy. Although they had arrived at the Hidden Grove, the mages from the banquet and the wizards and witches of the Hidden Grove still kept clear boundaries. Not many people had started conversing, and everyone was still somewhat reserved and unfamiliar.

The environments they had grown up in were vastly different. Making these two groups become close and intimate was not something that could be accomplished in a short amount of time.

On the other side, at the very end of the long banquet table, Sylutia and the Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress, Jane Norridge, sat facing each other, conversing in soft voices.

"I've heard quite a lot about you before, but I never thought we'd actually meet in person until ten years later." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress speared a piece of meat with her fork and put it into her mouth. This seemingly unladylike gesture somehow felt perfectly natural on her.

"Yeah, so many things have happened over the years." Sylutia looked around. Among the wizards and witches here, she didn't recognize many, only a few she had met before.

"You've been away from the Hidden Grove for too long. Some of the elders were worried you wouldn't come back, and some people had already started regretting it." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress continued, then picked up a thick glass goblet, swirled it gently, and downed it in one gulp.

"During the negotiations before, the Mage Alliance wouldn't budge on the matter of your comings and goings. We had quite a few arguments internally over it as well. Fortunately, the contract was finally settled, and you were officially included on the list, which put an end to the quarreling."

"Um, did it really have that big of an impact?" Sylutia rubbed her cheek awkwardly.

"It really was that big. I haven't seen them that frustrated in a long time." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress leaned back against her chair, lightly shaking her hair, then propped her cheek up with her index finger and thumb, those blue eyes gazing at Sylutia.

"That's the good thing about being a Sorceress. You live for a very long time, long enough to witness quite a few interesting things."

"So what are your plans for this return? Having him handle the teaching of the mage system's knowledge is what was proposed, but that doesn't mean he has to do that forever. Actually, everyone still hopes he can return to the path of a gardener."

"Um... you really dislike the gardener path, but casually giving up on the mage profession isn't great either." Sylutia lightly bit her lip and shook her head.

"This really is quite troubling." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress closed her eyes slightly.

"But there's still plenty of time, so no need to rush. At least for the next five years, no major tasks will be assigned to him. He just needs to popularize the Mage Alliance's mechanical creations."

"Time is especially precious for mortals, but for Transcendents, it's not that important, especially for Sorceresses." As she said this, her eyes opened.

"Sometimes I feel like I've lived long enough to be bored of life. Yawn~" She lightly covered her cheek with her fingers, then leaned back against the chair, preparing to take a little nap.

Faced with this somewhat lazy and informal Sorceress, Sylutia felt a slight sense of helplessness and didn't quite know how to respond.

Seeing the other party dozing off, she looked at the delicacies spread across the table and decided to enjoy some good food first.

And so, she slowly savored and enjoyed the meal. After about twenty minutes passed, the Sorceress across from her finally stirred awake and sat up properly.

She stretched and looked around. "The banquet isn't over yet?"

"Yes, Lady Jane Norridge." Sylutia informed her softly.

"Heh, then I'll just keep you company and chat for a while." The other picked up the wine and poured herself another glass.

"Ti Ya, have you ever thought about becoming a Sorceress?" The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress said this very naturally, yet very suddenly.

"This..." Sylutia had no idea how the topic had jumped to this.

"I don't know much about Sorceresses." Her mother was indeed a Sorceress, but she had never told her how one became a Sorceress, or what the actual difference between a Sorceress and an ordinary person was.

"It's simple really. A Sorceress is just a bad woman who is very beautiful, very powerful, and never ages." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress quickly self-evaluated.

"Cough, cough, so that's how it is." Sylutia almost choked.

"Pretty much. I've never seen a rule-abiding Sorceress." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress thought about it carefully.

"Maybe Sorceresses on the 'Luminous Moon' Path have better personalities, but those on the 'Nightmare' or 'Mist Shadow' Paths would never be like that."

"The reasoning is simple. The characteristic of the 'Nightmare' and 'Mist Shadow' Paths is teaching you how to attack others' mental consciousness, how to confuse and toy with people. It would be strange if those personalities turned out well." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress picked up a small piece of bread, dipped it in the meat sauce while wiping it around the plate, then put it into her mouth to savor.

"That seems about right." Sylutia thought it over before answering.

"But if you were to become a Sorceress, you'd probably walk the 'Luminous Moon' Path. Your personality would indeed be much better." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress commented.

"So-called Sorceresses, for the most part, use ancient rituals to elevate and transform their very existence through the Moon Aspect."

"For normal people, the soul and consciousness are shadows of the physical body. That is to say, it's because of the physical body that consciousness and soul are born. Once the physical body perishes, the soul and consciousness are not far from dissipating either."

"But Sorceresses are different. We have already swapped this causality through the ritual. For a Sorceress, the physical body is merely a projection of the spirit. That is to say, as long as the consciousness and soul remain, the physical body is like a shadow that can be created at any time."

The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress's words plunged Sylutia into deep thought. Suddenly, she recalled a scene she had witnessed long ago, the time during the Trials assessment when she had fought against Iona.

The other party had used a special ritual, and then her body had transformed into something like a shadow, while her true appearance remained in the mirror.

Could that have been a severely degraded version of the Sorceress Ritual?

"The greatest benefit of becoming a Sorceress is the synchronization between the physical body and spiritual consciousness. As long as you believe you are young and beautiful, then your body and flesh will forever remain young and beautiful." The Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress lightly wagged her finger.

"So, isn't that amazing?"

"It is somewhat amazing." Sylutia touched her hair.

"Hee hee, let's leave it at that for today. If you ever become interested in the matters of Sorceresses in the future, just come ask me."

Truly worthy of being a Sorceress. They really know how to stir up people's desires and thoughts. If Sylutia were just a mage, she would probably find it hard to restrain her longing for youth and beauty.

Although Sylutia knew she wouldn't age, she still found herself somewhat intrigued by the concept of "Sorceress" that the Blue Eucalyptus Sorceress had mentioned.