Gunmage-Chapter 226: The witch of Whispers

In a primordial ocean of sound, before words existed, two currents emerged: Aura, the Gentle Hum, and Cadence, the Resonant Roar.

Aura embodied soft truths—the rustle of leaves, the wind’s sigh. Cadence was the booming song of creation—shifting mountains, crashing waves, erupting volcanoes.

Ancient spirits, fearing their merger would unravel existence, guided Aura to flow through all living things (breaths, heartbeats) and Cadence into the earth’s deep places (tectonic plates, hidden rivers).

Those who could discern the world’s layered songs were touched by these currents’ legacy.

In a bustling market, a child was born with an extraordinary ear.

Amidst chaos, she heard only her heartbeat. As she grew, she discerned individual sounds: a distant electrical hum, a bird’s unique wing thrum, a voice’s subtle shift revealing hidden emotions.

This child, the Witch of Whispers, didn’t summon roars or silence cities. Instead, she wove sound.

With a whisper, she amplified a lost soul’s unheard plea, guiding them home.

With a quiet hum, she soothed restless spirits, harmonizing their discord. Focusing, she could find an object’s unique frequency, making it resonate powerfully or quiet its protests with a gentle touch of sound.

When she called, lesser echoes of Aura and Cadence responded—brief, localized shifts: a faint sound amplified, an intrusive one momentarily dampened.

Legend says that one day, she will truly comprehend Aura’s silent song and Cadence’s profound declaration, and then, with the softest of sounds, she will truly shape the world.

Zhou was familiar with this fable. Like her, it was created for an Awakened elf. One whose fame far eclipsed hers. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

She came with a request.

"Our bloodline is in decline. My family faces a huge crisis. We need your son to continue the Von Heim lineage."

Unwilling, the elf vehemently refused. Her child—one she had gotten after many painful trials—could not be given to anyone. He was hers and hers alone.

Despite the coaxing, the begging, the promises, she remained indifferent.

What she didn’t know was that the witch was never one to beg. She was someone who always made sure she got whatever it was she wanted.

Once she refused the pleas, she had already sealed her fate.

No sooner than six hours had passed when her home was forcibly raided by a gang of elves—and her beloved son was kidnapped.

She stormed the witch’s manor blazing with righteous fury, only to come back tattered and wounded. She tried again. And again. But always suffered injuries.

It took a long time before she could finally come to terms with the fact:

Her son was gone.

A few years later, she received an invitation.

She arrived back at the witch’s manor—not as an intruder, but as a guest. Seeing the witch’s extended belly left her bristling in fury.

A single, unfamiliar thought briefly flashed through her mind. One that made her hate herself. One that made her vow never to see her son or that accursed witch ever again.

’That should’ve been me.’

Now, centuries later, she once more found herself in the presence of that same witch. Her suppressed emotions ruptured like a searing volcano.

"Zhou! Are you being serious right now?!"

Selaphiel yelled, a rare trace of concern in her tone.

"Hahaha... haha!!"

Zhou laughed maniacally.

"Look at you squirm, Selaphiel! It’s so inelegant."

"Fine! If it’s come to this, then so be it!"

Selaphiel began to chant. The air trembled.

From the void behind Zhou, the creature had extended the full length of its long bony hand outward.

Its second arm was already peeking out of the hole, as if attempting to widen the unstable rift in space from which it invaded this dimension.

Selaphiel immediately gave up on attacking.

Even if she killed her opponent now, the summons wouldn’t stop. Once that thing landed here, the rest of the children would be in serious danger.

’What to do, what to do... damn it, Zhou!’

She attempted to think, but was coming up with nothing.

Her eyes flitted around to the partially collapsed figures of the others. Edrin, Sylvera, Lugh, and Jahira had pushed through the initial stages of dizziness, managing to conjure more barriers.

Those won’t hold, she internally noted, staring at the cracks which had begun to widen.

Fine, she thought to herself.

In such a situation, the best course of action was to cut her losses. The Cross family would pay gravely for this.

She spoke from where she slightly levitated, her short gown—stopping just below her knees—billowing despite the lack of wind in the indoor area. She spoke:

"Lugh, Jahira, cancel the barrier and conserve your mana. When I give the signal, you get the hell out of here. Understood?"

"Yes, ma’am," Jahira replied immediately.

Lugh was a bit more confused.

What the—had things reached that level?

The dreadful aura pervading the room hadn’t let up—it had only thickened. He flashed Lyra a worried look.

Just then, there was a loud fluctuation of mana.

The crack in reality finally gave in to the crushing pressure, crumbling and creating a larger, gaping hole.

"Oh no. Everyone, close your eyes!"

Selaphiel roared.

Everyone reacted immediately. Lugh was a bit late.

The grotesquely humanoid upper body of the figure had emerged. With extra pairs of eyes on its cheek and collarbone, it swiveled its deformed head in Lugh’s direction.

The young Von Heim jolted backward, his nose trickling heavy amounts of blood. A wave of terrifying fear crashed into him, rooting him to the spot.

Except... there was an issue.

It was not his fear.

What is happening?

Lugh watched in bewildered disbelief as the indescribable monster quickly twisted its body and fled the realm, repairing the cracks as it went—as if scared they would chase after it.

Zhou was the most shocked.

"What... just happened?"

But then, a voice drifted over, soft and clear.

"A lesser being will always cower in the face of the real thing."

Lugh recognized that voice.

He turned his head around, tracing the source of the sound.

And there she was—having appeared out of nowhere—the priestess.

Xhi.

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