390 390 Compensation
It wasn’t long before the trucks that the Academy had sent arrived to pick up the materials from the defeated pack of Dire Wolves. While they weren’t elemental beasts whose parts could be used as reagents for Elemental spells, they were magical beasts with substantial power.
So, every part of them, even the fur, could be used as a focus to aid Nature Magic, most of which was Witch Magic. A bit of the magic-infused fur would be enough to help focus their spells when built into an amulet or wand, and that would allow them to cast both more quickly and more precisely.
For things like healing spells and plant growth charms, both of those effects were incredibly important. The Academy normally couldn’t supply something like a bit of fur from a Rank Two Dire Wolf, though. It wasn’t within their means to easily hunt, and there shouldn’t have been any here to hunt to begin with.
The whole point of turning back the Monster Tide was to keep beasts like that from entering the Coven territories, and they were a long way south from the front lines.
That was definitely a concerning matter, but the real question was, which direction had they come through from? A pack like that would have left destruction in its wake with nothing that it came across being strong enough to stop it.
It was possible that they had been somewhat stealthy, as they were much smarter than most beasts, but they would have still needed to hunt, and three dozen large carnivores travelling together needed a lot of prey.
Wolfe looked to the women they had rescued and then back to Ella.
“How about we leave these lovely ladies with the Headmistress, and we will walk our way back to the Forest? I think that there might be some issues to the north that this pack caused, and we will be able to verify the information that we gathered at the other villages.” He suggested.
ραndαsΝοvεl ƈοm “A long romantic walk in the woods? How sweet of you.” Ella joked.
A clanging of metal on metal drew Wolfe’s attention, and he saw Grok looking up at him with a forlorn expression.
“Oh, you want to keep travelling with us, do you? Well, ask your Witch. This is a chance for her to return to the Academy early, and she might want to take it instead of learning from our bunch of misfits out in the middle of the Frozen Wastes.” Wolfe reminded him.
Christa only hesitated for a second before she smiled down at the Goblin Paladin. “Don’t worry, Grok. We will be going with them. As much as I will miss being at the Academy, we owe them a debt that must be repaid.”
Ella smiled. “Well, that’s settled then. The bus will need a driver since Wofe and I were the ones operating it, but beyond that, all they will need is a counsellor and some time to recover.”
Headmistress Peach looked over the group of rescued Witches. “A lot of time to recover. Some of them are in terrible shape even after your healing spells. But we can take care of that with time and effort. Thank you for all that you have done to bring them back to us.”
She motioned to the guards who began helping everyone who was finished eating into the bus, but one young Witch came over toward Wolfe and his group with a determined look.
“Justine, it’s good to see you awake again. Are you ready to head back to the Academy for some well-earned rest and relaxation?” Wolfe asked the young witch.
Her aura was right on the verge of forming, thanks to Wolfe clearing her system, but the bracelet had absorbed the initial surge of mana needed to activate it. Given a day or possibly two at the most, she would be a full-fledged Witch and ready to begin her training.
“I’m coming with you. I know the Academy promises safety for us and time to recover, but you owe me for what you did in the Auction House, and I’m not letting you off so easily.” She demanded.
Ella raised an eyebrow at Wolfe, who shrugged and gave her an innocent look, while Justine glared at him while holding the hem of her short Auction House toga.
“What did he do this time? Just come out with it. I’m sure it’s nothing that I haven’t heard before.” Ella sighed.
Justine blushed bright red as she realized that she would have to explain herself if she wanted to get even with Wolfe today, then steeled her resolve and turned to face the tiny witch whose aura alone was enough to terrify her.
“First, he insulted me while I was on the auction block, then he lifted me with magic up over the crowd, letting everyone see up this sad excuse for a dress, and then finally, he told me to behave and took me over his knee. Me, a grown woman. On my eighteenth birthday, he bought me at auction, then used his magic to make me… never mind. But he definitely owes me for that.”
Ella burst into laughter as the girl nervously twisted the hem of her toga in her hands. She knew perfectly well what sort of effect Wolfe’s magic had on people, and if he was using it as a punishment to make her behave while he cleared the blockages from her system, it must have been far more intense than usual.
“Yes, he does owe you for that, and we will make sure that he compensates you properly. But we should find you some proper clothes if you’re coming with us. Despite how much I’m sure Wolfe appreciates the slave girl aesthetic, you don’t even have shoes. You’re bigger than I am, so my spare dresses won’t fit, but I suppose we could get you something from the camp.” Ella agreed.
Wolfe smirked. “Or, I could create something appropriate with an armour spell. It would be just as fashionable and much safer. I’ve even mastered it to the point where I can create it under loose-fitting clothes, so there is no need for any sort of public indecency here.”
“When did you master that?” Ella asked, confused by the comment.
“Well, I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m pretty sure it’ll work. The worst that will happen is that it forms over top, and there’s not much to that toga, so it shouldn’t be too uncomfortable under a dress.”