He Was Here All Along!

The North Tower.

The ice on the river was already quite thick, and some children from the North were breaking through it to fish. They would take their catch home and roast it to eat; children this age are generally quite greedy. However, they dared not easily approach the vicinity of the tower; it was a forbidden area for others. From a young age, their parents had warned them not to disturb the mysterious Northern Witch. They would only occasionally glance there with envious and hopeful eyes, hoping that one day they too could become powerful Wizard.

Goria buried herself in a pile of notebooks and books, her eyes filled with dense text and symbols.

She had been in the Laboratory for three whole days, occasionally sleeping when she got tired, and checking on Vivian's condition from time to time. She was preparing to strive for the Legendary Tier of the Northern Witch, and during this time she had begun to explore the deeper Weave, while also researching high-level Spell of the ninth ring. If she successfully completed a Ninth-Circle Spell, she would be equivalent to entering the realm of Quasi-Legendary, and given a little more time, she could steadily advance to the level of Legendary Witch.

Suddenly!

Goria seemed to sense something, lifting her head from the towering stack of books, reaching out to remove her Crystal glasses, and frowning as she glanced outside. Her eyesight was actually quite good, but she wore exquisite silver-rimmed Crystal glasses when conducting Spell research; these were Transcendent Tier enchanted items that aided her in studying Spell Formula.

Goria seemed to have sensed something; she stood up excitedly and vanished in the blink of an eye.

"Vivian!"

She gazed at the little girl who had just opened her eyes with great surprise. Having slept for so long, the girl was still a little groggy. She rubbed her eyes with her small, white hands, and then said, half-asleep, "Elder Sister Goria? Did I sleep for a long time? Why do I feel a little dizzy?"

Goria hugged little Vivian tightly, leaned down and kissed her forehead before slowly saying, "You've been unconscious for almost half a month!"

"Brother!" The little girl seemed to remember something and exclaimed in alarm, "Where's my brother? Isn't he here?"

Goria fell silent. She raised a finger and gently stroked her long hair, where strands of silver hair clung. She murmured softly, "Soren got separated from us. But he should be alright. You don't need to worry too much."

Vivian fell silent.

Then, the little girl looked up at Goria, puzzled, and said, "Wait a minute! I just saw my brother!"

Um?

This answer puzzled Goria, who frowned and said, "You saw Soren? Here? Impossible! This entire tower is under my mental perception; if Soren were here, I couldn't possibly not know!"

It was as if he had thought of something.

Goria's face suddenly paled slightly, and a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes.

Is Soren really dead?

If it were Spiritual Body, it would indeed be possible for her not to notice it. Could it be that Soren's ghost appeared here for a fleeting moment due to his intense obsession?

Goria hugged Vivian tightly. Suddenly, she felt a lump in her throat and a strange sadness welled up inside her.

For some reason, she's been thinking about that man named Soren occasionally lately.

As a high-ranking Northern Witch, she rarely thought of anyone on her own initiative, even her mother was only thought of occasionally. But now, every few days, she would think of a man, worrying about whether he had survived. Goria was a little confused. This wasn't love in the eyes of ordinary people, but it didn't seem like simple friendship either, because she was actually thinking about that man as if he were a long-time family member.

"Was it a dream?" The little girl rubbed her head and muttered to herself, "I think I really had so many dreams!"

These words were like spring returning to the earth, Goria inexplicably became happier again. She tapped Vivian's head with her forehead, slightly annoyed, and then asked, "What did you dream about?"

The little girl closed her eyes and recalled for a moment, then murmured, "I dreamed of so many things, and a lot of scary things!"

"Fire and blood were everywhere! They were baring their fangs and claws around me. But I wasn't afraid of them. Because as long as I wasn't afraid, they seemed unable to get close to me... I also dreamed of a terrifying person!... He seemed to be my father!... No!... That's not right!... He wasn't my father, he was a very powerful and terrifying thing!... I don't know what it was!..."

"He always made me obey!... He wanted me to submit to him!... There seemed to be another voice!... I don't know who it was!... She said it was me, her name was Lillian!..."

"I will not yield to them!... I am Vivian!... I am my brother's Vivian!..."

"Elder brother!!!..."

"Oh, right!... I also dreamt about my brother!... He had so many injuries!... It broke my heart to see him like that!... I couldn't stop crying!... I called out to him desperately!... But it seemed like my brother didn't hear me at all!..."

The little girl's voice trembled slightly, which made Goria's heart clench, because she knew this might not just be a dream.

Vivian closed her eyes. A tear glistened in the corner of her eye as she murmured, "It seems like my brother has traveled a long way. It seems like he came from a very, very far place. His injuries were severe, and he looked extremely tired. I don't know how long he walked. Suddenly one day he passed by me, and I desperately called out to him, but it seemed like my brother didn't hear me at all."

"The ground he walked on was covered with ice and snow. I saw the ground beneath my brother's feet frozen into ice, and suddenly it became very cold!"

"I was shivering from the cold, and my tears were almost frozen."

"My brother was covered in ice and frost, the ground he walked on was frozen solid, and a heavy snow began to fall in the howling wind. The cold wind and snow extinguished the flames, and all the blood froze into ice. My brother looked very tired, but he never stopped, nor did he hear my voice. He just kept walking forward, getting closer and closer, until finally he reached those monsters and Demon!..."

"Brother drew his sword!... The monsters that approached him were frozen into Ice Golem!..."

"My brother killed those Demon!... He kept walking forward!... Then he came to that terrifying monster!... I heard the monster roar, and I was terrified!... But my brother kept walking forward!... He didn't stop!... He walked right up to the monster and then chopped off its head with one stroke!..."

"I felt the whole world shaking, so many things were swaying, and my brother seemed not to hear my cries, he just vanished!..."

"Then..." Vivian tilted her head and murmured, "Then I woke up."

"Elder Sister Goria?!..."

"Was it my brother who killed those Demon and rescued me?... I feel like my brother knew Vivian was trapped there!... So he traveled a very, very long way to rescue me!... Even though he couldn't hear my voice, I feel like my brother knew I was here!... Oh, right!... I think my brother glanced at me before he disappeared!..."

He smiled.

He seemed about to say something, but before he could speak, he disappeared!

Goria fell silent. She lowered her head and kissed Vivian, a sense of relief washing over her, and murmured, "Yes. It must have been Soren who came to rescue you."

"He should be alright, he's still alive. A man who would make me pay such a high price for a divination wouldn't just die quietly like this!..."

Goria's voice grew softer and softer until it was almost inaudible.

Vivian tilted her head back, gazing at Goria with her beautiful big eyes. Then she opened her little arms and hugged her, burying her head in her chest like a puppy, and murmured, "Elder Sister Goria!"

Sometimes I feel like you're a lot like my mom, even your taste is similar.

Pfft!

Goria couldn't help but laugh, her expression a mix of amusement and exasperation. She opened her mouth and gently bit Vivian's rosy cheek, muttering, "You little rascal!... I'm not that old!... You have to call me 'Elder Sister,' not 'mommy'!..."

"Hmm." Vivian shrank back, muttering, "Don't bite!... Brother said only puppies bite!..."

Outside the tower.

The cold wind is still howling, but the coldest time seems to have passed.

All we have to do now is wait for spring to arrive.

That is the hope of Hit Points! (To be continued~^~)