"You cheated us!" one of the witches shouted, her heavy boots slamming into the ground as she stepped forward. Her muscles were strong, and her eyes glowed faintly with magic. "How the heck did the fabric rip with a single touch?!"
Behind her stood ten witches in total, all dressed in dark robes with sharp eyes and proud postures. Their dark presence filled the village square like a thick storm cloud and all of them looked furious.
But Leader Kerry didn’t flinch.
She stood calmly in front of them, her robe neat, her hands folded behind her back, and a very smug smirk curling on her lips.
"Oh?" she said sweetly. "But I don’t remember selling you anything."
The crowd of villagers behind her giggled softly.
The witches’ eyes twitched. The lead one stomped forward again, her voice louder.
"Hmph! You planted bad crops and dare to lie to our faces now?!"
Her voice cracked through the air like thunder.
"We came for flowers, and what did we get? Trash!"
Kerry tilted her head, still smiling. "Then maybe you shouldn’t steal things that don’t belong to you."
The crowd of villagers murmured now—some angry, some holding back laughter. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing.
They had stolen the flowers... and now they were acting like they were the victims?
Even Ruby and Julian, who had just came here after hearing the noise, stood frozen near the edge of the gathering.
Ruby blinked slowly. "Are they seriously doing this...?"
Julian rubbed the side of his neck. "This is... actually impressive. I didn’t think people could be this shameless."
One old ghost in the crowd whispered, "Did they really come here to yell at the people they stole from?"
The witches didn’t stop.
"You cursed us!" one of them shouted, pointing straight at Kerry. "You knew exactly what you were doing!"
Kerry crossed her arms now, still calm. "We knew someone would try to steal from us again. So we made flowers with paper. You’re the one who came at night like rats and took them."
"You’ll pay for this," the lead witch snarled.
"By exposing your own crimes to everyone?" Ruby finally stepped forward, her voice cutting clean through the crowd.
All heads turned to her.
She stood tall, one hand on her hip, her red robe shining faintly under the sunlight.
"I’d love to see that," she said. "Please. Make a report. I’d enjoy watching it go public how your powerful crew got fooled by Lightdew paper and dried flower scraps."
The witches stared at her.
Julian chuckled under his breath.
And the crowd burst out laughing.
"You!!! Who are you?!" the burly witch shouted, her voice echoing. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest, muscles bulging beneath her black robe. "Do you even know who you’re talking to?! We’re Lex’s people!"
The other witches nodded, their proud expressions returning until they saw Ruby didn’t even blink.
Ruby tilted her head slightly, her lips curling into a cold smile.
"Oh," she said flatly, "I’m so scared."
The villagers burst into laughter behind her. Even Leader Kerry chuckled quietly, covering her mouth with her sleeve.
But Ruby didn’t stop there.
In fact, she stepped forward.
"And actually," she added calmly, "you should be scared."
Ruby’s voice was clear and firm as she said, "Because we’ve already written an official letter to the government, reporting everything you and your precious boss Lex did. Theft, trespassing, damage, and fraud."
She smiled wider now.
"And the civil officers? They’re exactly two minutes away from arriving here."
The entire group of witches went silent.
One of them actually took a step back. Another’s eyes widened.
Because even if they could bribe or influence some officers... the moment the government got involved officially, things could spiral. Lex’s name might be powerful but the public shame, legal reports, and written evidence? That could ruin her trade line.
Ruby folded her arms and watched them.
She was enjoying their nervous expressions.
How the proud witches were now standing stiff and pale. How their breathing changed, eyes darting left and right.
Because Ruby had planned all of this in advance.
That government letter? She didn’t just write it—she made sure it reached the right people. After all, her name was registered in the system.
The Honour Certificate the government witches gave her long ago was actually very useful. That certificate proved her identity as a special contributor. It meant she had official records, connections, and protection. She had helped them for free once—fixing their computer system when no one else could.
And today, her good deeds returned like a shield.She smiled to herself.
Thank you, past me, she thought. You were a genius.
She stood calmly in front of the witches, her robe catching the breeze, her arms crossed with full confidence.
The moment she mentioned the civil officers arriving and the government letter, she watched their faces twist—from rage to worry... then to pure fear.
And she was enjoying it.
The proud "Lex people," who stormed into the village like they owned the ground, were now staring at her like their knees wanted to give out.
But deep down... Ruby herself was a little surprised things had moved this fast.
She had written the letter with all the details but she never expected the response to come within hours. She only did it because it felt like the right thing to do, and because these witches deserved to be reported.
She thought maybe they’d read it later.
She thought maybe someone would investigate next week.
But then she remembered something... something Angeline had told her a few weeks ago, when they were talking near the village stream.
"By the way," Angeline had said casually, "That honour certificate you got? You know how lucky you are, right?"
Ruby had blinked, confused. "What certificate?"
"The one the government witches gave you—the one you decorated on your wall ," Angeline said. "You helped them fix their computer system for free, remember?"
Ruby had nodded slowly. "Yeah, I just helped because they were struggling."
—To be continued...🪄