Chapter 247: The 'Witch' in the Forest and Bandit Attack
For some time, Aiden had been living beside the small town, recording some local customs and culture with scholarly dedication.
He would also enter the forest to gather herbs and treat diseases for the local residents with growing skill.
At some point, news of a witch living in the forest who could treat residents' illnesses began spreading from the town.
This reputation was then spread by travelling merchants across the countryside.
Gradually, the name of the witch living in the forest spread throughout Scotland.
"What witch! Didn't I tell you all that I'm male!"
Aiden clenched his fists and roared at Gorden, who was sitting across from him with obvious amusement.
"But the young men in town don't believe it, and you can't blame me for that," Gorden said with a casual shrug.
"I'm telling you, if they throw any more marriage proposal bouquets into my house, I'll turn them all into monkeys!" Aiden threatened with growing frustration.
"You won't!" Gorden said, narrowing his eyes with knowing confidence.
After getting familiar with Aiden, he discovered that Aiden was actually a very reasonable wizard.
Plus, the other residents of mediaeval Britain had rather poor manners in comparison.
So the two became friends with some common ground.
"Sigh, forget about them. What brings you here in the middle of the night?"
Aiden placed the iron kettle over the fire to heat, grabbed some herbs and threw them into a cup, poured hot water over them, and placed a simple hot tea in front of Gorden.
This tea was made from herbs Aiden had collected from the forest. Thanks again to Professor Sprout for not giving up on Aiden despite his terrible performance in Herbology.
"War is coming," Gorden said, lifting the tea and taking a sip. "Mmm, tastes pretty good. Could you spare me some?"
"Vikings?" Aiden murmured thoughtfully while placing a packet of herbs in front of Gorden.
"They've conquered Cheshire, Devon, and Cornwall. Soon it'll be Malmesbury's turn," Gorden said with a weary sigh.
"War... what about your lord? Won't he come to protect you?" Aiden asked, his tone equally downcast.
"Him! Ha, he only got his position by flattering the Unready."
Gorden's face showed genuine mockery. He cursed once and stood up to leave.
"The tea leaves are all ground up. Oh, and use just a small handful at a time, don't put in too much," Aiden instructed helpfully.
Gorden didn't seem to hear as he walked out into the night.
Three days later, a group of Vikings appeared at the end of the road with menacing intent.
They were tall and burly, wearing rough leather armour, with horned helmets on their heads.
In their hands they gripped battle axes, long swords, spears, and bows, these weapons gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
Their bodies were painted with various totems in pigments, displaying their martial prowess.
At the same time, facing them were the town's residents, whose weapons were just some stones and iron forks.
In this era when metal smelting was not so advanced, the only way to form an armed force on the scale of these Vikings was through large-scale pillaging. Unfortunately, Malmesbury was just a small town that couldn't form a corresponding military force.
It was foreseeable that if war broke out between the two sides, a massacre would be inevitable.
"Give us your wealth, or give us your heads," the Viking leader stepped forward and said in Ancient Norse.
"What are you saying? We just want to live peacefully, we don't want to be your enemies," Gorden stepped forward to reply in Anglo-Saxon.
The Vikings waited for a while, but seeing that these residents showed no movement, they lost patience.
"Kill them," the leading man ordered coldly.
"Woo~" A horn was blown, and the Vikings charged with bloodthirsty roars.
"Oh, could you wait just a moment?" A clear, spring-like voice rang in everyone's hearts.
In the sky, silver-white butterflies were gathering, and a figure intervened in the battlefield.
"Magic user?" the leading man asked with obvious suspicion.
"Yes, mighty Viking warrior. There are friends of mine in this town. Could you please withdraw?" Aiden asked with polite courtesy.
"I said before, give us wealth or heads, only then will we withdraw!"
The man gave Aiden a mocking expression while raising his weapon toward him.
"Then, as you wish," Aiden said, snapping his fingers with a slight smile.
The surrounding grass and trees floated up and transformed into large chunks of gleaming gold.
The Vikings around went red-eyed and frantically rushed forward to grab the gold.
Some residents of Malmesbury also widened their eyes, wanting to go forward, but were firmly held back by Gorden.
"More, I want more," the Viking leader said, pressing his axe against Aiden's neck.
"I'll satisfy you," the mind dragon said, his eyes curving like crescents, his beautiful face carved with a mocking expression.
With a wave of his staff, more gold scattered on the ground like fallen treasure.
The Vikings were immersed in collecting gold, completely unaware that invisible mental waves were spreading.
Slight mental storms impacted the Vikings' consciousness islands but didn't make them fall unconscious.
Instead, like gentle rain, they silently nourished the greed in their hearts.
Soon, all the gold was looted by them with desperate fervour.
One Viking had only grabbed a small portion, but seeing his companion's bag full of gold, evil thoughts arose.
He raised his axe and chopped off his companion's head, then frantically grabbed his gold.
With the first person taking the lead, the broken window effect began to take hold.
The Manipulator had carefully woven a great net for these Viking pirates, and now it was time to close it.
All the Vikings who had collected gold began attacking each other with savage brutality.
A bloody drama unfolded before the residents of Malmesbury.
They fought fiercely and killed each other until finally, the Viking leader became the sole victor.
The beautiful dragon thoughtfully presented him with the victor's gift.
The gold around him instantly turned to grass and dust, while under the soothing effect, his mind returned to calm.
"Ah! By the gods, what have I done?!" the awakened Viking leader screamed in horror.
"Now, do you still crave wealth, leader sir?" Aiden asked, putting his hands together and acting cute.
"Devil, you are a devil. You want to take my soul, but I won't let you succeed!"
With that, the Viking leader raised the axe in his hand and struck it toward his own head.
Thus, all the Viking pirates were wiped out completely.
The residents of Malmesbury watching this scene felt a chill rise from their hearts.
Though the beautiful boy before them hadn't directly harmed anyone, he had completely annihilated a well-equipped Viking pirate force.
"Gold, I remember now." "The Rhine Gold!"
Ancient legends were recalled by the residents with growing fear.
It could be expected that from now on, the name of the forest witch would become even more famous.
"Hey, don't call me a witch!" Cross marks appeared on the dragon's head.
"Ah!" The residents were frightened and scattered in all directions.
"Gorden, control them!" Aiden complained to Gorden, the only one who remained.
"I can't help with that," Gorden said with a shrug, leaning on his walking stick as he also went back.