Miss Witch Doesn't Want to be a Diva

In order to quickly distance themselves from the pursuing insect swarm, those fleeing from Shilin Mountain Castle chose the flattest route with the fewest obstacles, which led directly toward the desolate southern plains.

More than thirty horse-drawn carriages dashed along the road, with several spellcasting Transcendents standing on the rear carriages, occasionally casting explosive fireballs to deter the insect swarm that flew like a black fog in the sky.

At high speed, many of the horses pulling the carriage foamed at the mouth, their necks chafed into bloody wounds, yet even so, the drivers dared not stop them, only whipping them incessantly, glancing around anxiously and nervously.

During high-speed travel, one carriage wheel was caught by a stone; ordinarily, this would at most cause a bump, but at such high speed, the carriage was lifted slightly by the stone, then tilted sideways forward. The consequence was the whole carriage lost balance in mid-air, tilted to the ground, colliding and dragging across the earth, disintegrating, the horse rearing back and flipping, and all manner of items and passengers strewn over the ground.

The carriages behind had no choice but to swerve urgently, yet several still crashed into the fallen carriage, wooden carriages breaking apart, a driver even being thrown, rolling from the air, hitting the ground dizzy and fractured.

Screams spread across the wilderness, but the insect swarm in the sky showed no sign of stopping; soon, these struggling people and horses on the ground were overtaken by the swarm, and heart-wrenching howls echoed under the night sky, quickly fading away, leaving behind a mangled mess of blood and bone remains, like the scarcest butcher's dismembered skeleton.

Inside the leading carriages, several Grey Feather elder species clung to the carriage body upon hearing the screams, unable to help but close their eyes, trying not to think about what happened, yet after a few seconds, one of them opened his eyes during this frantic and tense moment to inquire.

"How many people are left, is there any sign of the swarm weakening?"

A Grey Feather Transcendent riding along turned over and exited the compartment, one hand supporting the relentlessly bumpy and speeding carriage as he gazed into the distance at the still expanding swarm.

"About twenty-five carriages are left, and the swarm has thinned by about one-third compared to before."

"One-third..." The people inside the carriage felt a flicker of hope yet struggled to accept this result.

Having fled this far, the remaining two-thirds of these insects' persistence was truly terrifying.

"If we keep going, the horses may not hold out; after another stretch, if there's no turn in events, we'll have no choice but to stop and face them."

"Tell the spellcasters behind us to conserve their energy; don't exhaust themselves completely."

"Understood."

The chase across the wilderness continued, inside one of the carriages, Ores, clad in a light brown robe, sat kneeling, her gaze curiously looking out the window at the moment; this carriage, with its steel chassis, was quite sturdy, and the interior was rather luxurious and comfortable, prepared by Sigismund for her use.

When escaping the city, Sigismund specifically went to Hexia's residence to take Ores away, knowing of Hexia's close relationship with this girl, and before Hexia left, she had asked him to look after this friend who lived alone.

But at first, Ores refused to leave no matter what, because Hexia had told her to stay home and not wander before she left.

"Tilan said, Ores, listen." This was how she answered Sigismund.

To this, Sigismund kept persuading her with kind words, telling her the situation was urgent, and right then, the insect swarm struck Ores' residence in the courtyard.

Seeing her two ponies bitten by the insects, Ores finally grew anxious, instinctively using the spellcasting ability Tilan had taught her.

Frost spread beneath her feet, countless ice flecks formed in the air, then swept through the house and yard like a snowstorm, driving away those black insects.

In this way, not only were the two ponies saved, Sigismund also survived the swarm's assault.

Witnessing this, Sigismund was pleasantly surprised, originally thinking she was a burden, yet not expecting such a strong Transcendent; afterward, under his persuasion and guidance, Ores agreed to take the two ponies and leave, for Tilan had said earlier the ponies were companions, and asked Ores to feed them.

With the situation dire now, if not escaping, the ponies might die under the swarm's attack; with this reasoning, Ores finally agreed to move together. As for why Tilan hadn't received signals from Ores' necklace pendant, it was because Ores herself felt no danger, thinking she could still take care of herself.

"Cannot let Tilan worry." She had her own pride, albeit less arrogant than before.

Under the night sky, the carriages sped forward, the lanterns hanging at the front constantly swaying, the iron chains clashing with the carriage body, making clanging sounds.

After hours of sprinting, the horses pulling the carriages finally began to falter, many dying on the way exhausted, seeing the situation reaching its limit, the Grey Feather species leading had no choice but order everyone to stop and defend in place.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

"Circle the carriages, everyone move inside." The armored guards shouted loudly, urging those still alive to gather as much as possible.

As the swarm from behind neared, several Grey Feather elder species at the forefront joined in casting a spell, a hemispherical shield gradually expanding to cover the entire temporary campsite.

This deep grey shield not only blocked vision but also cut off scent and magic power fluctuations, eventually even gradually concealing the people and objects inside the camp. From an aerial view, the ground appeared empty and barren, save for the traces left by the wheels behind, making it impossible to guess their hiding place.