Chapter 237: Rewards and Punishments
The moment Ruger saw the situation, he understood what had happened. For this man to appear here, he could not possibly have been foolish enough to lose his way. That meant he had been enthusiastically invited by the old witch. Everything looked so perfect.
Just as he had understood that rabbit, Ruger once again easily understood another person's heart. It would have been hard not to—the intense emotions kept forcibly pouring through those sharp eyes.
Ruger could only answer with a smile.
The even more perceptive Layden smiled before he did.
The man's gaze turned colder still.
Ruger noticed that Mewtris, the Nightmare wizard apprentice from before, was not standing with him. She even seemed faintly evasive. Clearly, they knew each other—or at least one of them knew the other.
"How did you leave this place?"
The old woman suddenly stopped laughing and looked at Ruger and Layden.
Ruger deliberately spoke half a beat slower, leaving this precious opportunity to Brother Layden. This fellow, who often stared at a pile of firewood for half a day without speaking, could be quite clever sometimes. He was also calm and dependable. Ruger trusted his choice.
"My lady, neither leaving this place nor reaching that Land of Fissures was something we could control by our own will. Nor could we change anything through our own will. We merely passively accepted the surprise delivered by the Nightmare World," Layden said in a low voice.
The old woman's eyes widened, but then her expression relaxed and she nodded.
"Hm, indeed, it isn't something little apprentices like you could accomplish... Hahaha..." The old woman burst into laughter again. "But that wasn't a surprise bestowed by the Nightmare World. It was a gift from fate—a gift for me..."
Laughter continuously poured from