I don't want to conquer witches anymore.

Annie lunged at Duke, clinging to him like an octopus. In her excitement and force, she knocked the still-dazed Duke to the ground.

"Wha...what's going on?"

Duke stared blankly at Annie, who was now straddling him, seemingly acting rather recklessly. Duke was clearly still confused about the situation; his memories of the dream were hazy, and to be suddenly topped off by a well-built older woman was understandably bewildering.

"Duke, what brings you in?" At that moment, Joan, who had been watching from the side, greeted him and asked with some surprise, "Is everything alright outside?"

"Uh, is my name Duke?" Duke scratched his head. As soon as he said this, Joan and Annie understood the situation—Duke's memory seemed to have some problems after entering the dream. After realizing this, Joan's expression changed slightly, but Annie's eyes lit up immediately.

"I don't know what happened... Uh, this seems to be a perverted woman named Annie, please don't take off my clothes while riding on me, okay? Thank you."

Anne narrowed her eyes, clamped her firm thighs around Duke's waist without letting go, ripped off her coat, and said decisively, "No!"

The moment Annie saw Duke, she recalled her memories of the floating city. Duke was an important person to her, and upon seeing his face, all those memories related to Duke flooded back, making Annie realize... Damn, this is a great opportunity, even better than the opportunity during Truth or Dare.

Duke might have resisted then, but he has no power to resist now. As long as he makes it a fait accompli here, he can make Duke take responsibility when they return to the floating city, right?

Although she sees Cecil as her nemesis, Annie's figure is worlds apart from that of a certain steel-plate brilliance—Cecil is tall and slender, and his limbs and waist are well-trained due to his years of experience as a paladin, with every inch of muscle appearing just right, and there is no such thing as excess fat. Although the physiological characteristics of a woman are not obvious (steel plate), no one can deny that her body has an unrestrained wild beauty.

Guangbao's figure is considered top-notch among the floating city witches—after all, most of the other witches are spellcasters who prefer to stay at home, and their bodies are not as well-trained as Cecil's. Some witches even struggle with flabby flesh and weight every day.

But Annie doesn't need to worry.

She is a master of necromancy and an expert in human transmutation. If necessary, Anne is willing to use even her own body as a test subject—and making the human body more aesthetically pleasing is one of Anne's research topics.

Therefore, Anne's body displayed a different kind of beauty from Cecil's, a charm born to attract the attention of the opposite sex, which made her catch Duke's eye.

Duke could see every inch of her voluptuous body, a testament to her feminine charm. Her shapely, firm thighs were still wrapped around his waist, giving him a burning sensation. As he entangled with Annie, a captivating fragrance filled the air, making it slightly ambiguous.

This woman is a deadly trap, waiting for someone to fall into it and then devour them completely.

"Ahem!" At this moment, Joan coughed deliberately, then snapped her fingers at Duke and asked in an annoyed tone, "Is this the time to do this kind of thing?"

Upon hearing Joan's voice, Anne didn't react at all; in fact, she moved even faster, quickly removing her second-to-last garment until she was only wearing a thin shirt, revealing a large expanse of fair skin and soft, semi-circular breasts at the neckline. She leaned in, placing one hand on Duke's chest and the other cupping his cheek, wanting to kiss him.

However, upon hearing Joan's voice, Duke was jolted awake from his previous infatuation. In that brief moment, he felt as if he were in a dream—a dream that was false, but the scenes it depicted were all real. It was Duke's performance in the Cinderella game; he saw Cecil, Natasha, and Amber.

After a brief moment of confusion, with Joan's help, Duke regained his memory and realized who the woman riding on top of him and seducing him was—I, Chao Ni!

Duke immediately used a Tai Chi-like push to deflect Annie's hand and head, which were reaching for a kiss. Then, with a beautiful somersault followed by a triple somersault in the air, he flipped Annie off him, completely disregarding her still half-naked state, and righteously refused:

"climb."

"Waaaaah... Duke, what kind of man are you?" Annie lay on the ground, tears welling in her eyes, looking at Duke with resentment. "You're worse than an animal, Duke! Are you impotent, Duke!"

"Give up, I won't fall for your provocation." Duke's lips twitched slightly as he said irritably, but seeing Annie still lively and energetic, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly as he said to Annie, "I've come to save you, Annie."

Annie was slightly taken aback.

Despite being directly rejected by Duke (?), she remained unmoved. On the contrary, when Duke sincerely said those words, Annie was greatly shocked.

She had never been cared for like this before, nor had she ever been saved by anyone's actions.

"I...I, I think..." She lowered her head, muttering incoherently for a long time before finally mustering the courage to say earnestly, "Please help me, Duke."

Anne had never asked anyone for help so earnestly before.

"That's what I'm here to do."

Duke smiled and reached out his hand to Annie, helping her up from the ground. Then, somewhat troubled, he said, "However, I need to save myself first, or I'll be going now."

"what?"

"In short, we need to find the others first." Duke shook his head, and after thinking for a short while, he took out a spatial anchor from his inventory, placed it in front of him, and clapped his hands lightly. "Let's go."

Before the words were finished, a slightly distorted figure appeared in front of everyone, and after two or three seconds, they could see her face clearly.

It is amber.

Chapter 163 Why is Amber a God?

Why is amber considered divine?

Before discussing this issue, I'd like to first talk about where the other witches fall short compared to Amber.

First was Cecil, who committed the sin of arrogance.

Merely knowing Duke first, or even achieving a "more than friends, less than lovers" relationship beforehand, led to a lack of appreciation for the relationship. Such an arrogant witch was destined for a short life. And indeed, after forging a deep friendship with Duke through early acquaintance, she suffered a major setback, ultimately fading into obscurity in her relationship with him. In contrast, God was humble, acting as a tool in the witch game—a mercy God bestowed upon mortals. God wasn't incapable of thought; she simply didn't want to leave her opponents in despair through a perfect performance, so she deliberately avoided using her brain. It's laughable that some people fail to understand God's good intentions and even use such things to mock her. I advise you to think twice.

Then there's Natasha, who committed the sin of sloth.

Thinking she was doing well by maintaining a "friendly" relationship with Duke, Natasha announced her status as a female contact in the entire city and reduced her meetings with Duke. However, God's advice not only failed to change Natasha's ways, but she even dared to challenge God's authority head-on through the Kiss of Truth in the Cinderella Game. As a result, God punished her, and Natasha witnessed Duke's date with God in a restaurant. Her presence was stolen by Kagetsu, and she became the new target of everyone's persecution.

Then there's Anne, who committed the sin of jealousy.

Anne, repeatedly outmaneuvered by God, remained unfazed and secretly envious, even daring to publicly imitate God's actions (making their relationship a fait accompli) and attempting to surpass Him. Thus, on the battlefield of their second rendezvous, Anne was decisively defeated by God. However, considering Anne's wealth, God forgave her and converted her to His religion. Because Anne fulfilled God's will and saved the dying Duke, God granted Anne's wish, allowing Duke to come and rescue Anne from her entrapment in another dimension.

Ahem... I can't continue writing this. Perhaps when there are more characters, this revised bible can be updated again.

When Duke saw Amber, his mind was a jumbled mess, filled with strange thoughts like those mentioned above. But for some reason, the moment he saw Amber, he felt at ease.

"amber."

"Duke." Amber grinned and came closer, affectionately taking Duke's right hand in both, then resting her head against Duke's chest. "You came in too?"

"Ah."

Duke transformed into the best defensive player when facing Annie, pulling her around relentlessly and shutting down all of Annie's straight-ball attacks. However, when facing Amber, his attitude softened instantly. He didn't mind her coquettishness at all, and even raised his left hand to casually ruffle Amber's hair, his gaze becoming incredibly gentle and tender.

Anyone could see that she liked him very much, and he liked her very much too.

These two are undoubtedly a couple deeply in love, drawn together by mutual affection.

Annie's expression was complex as she watched this scene. She seemed to want to rush to Duke and say something, but ultimately remained silent, standing still. Duke and Amber, lost in their own world, didn't notice the subtle change in her expression, but Joan, standing nearby, did.

She raised an eyebrow and said with some regret, "Tsk tsk tsk, what a waste."

Joan and Joseph were also a couple who went their separate ways and eventually got married. She couldn't really empathize with Anne's feelings, but that didn't stop her from feeling very sorry for Anne.

But there's nothing we can do about it. Given the current atmosphere at Duke and Amber, it's too difficult to get involved.

"Stop being all lovey-dovey, you silly couple." After a moment, Annie finally couldn't take it anymore. She said coldly, suppressing her emotions, "Now is not the time for this kind of thing, Duke. What did you just say about me?"

"I am dead."

Duke, seemingly oblivious, pointed to his chest, where his heart, covered by the Soul Requiem, had been ripped out by Talia herself. In this dream, time passed slightly slower, but not at the same rate as in the alternate dimension or the floating city. If Duke's soul stayed here too long, there was probably no chance of him returning.

To Annie's surprise, Amber showed no surprise or tension upon hearing Duke's words, as if she had known about Duke's "near death" beforehand... No, her attitude was not merely one of knowing beforehand, but rather one of not taking it seriously.

Anne quickly realized this: "Did you plan all of this?"

“To obtain the sulfur fire, there’s no other way but to die once.” Duke shrugged, first saying something no one could understand, then explaining to her, “And only in this way will Talia lower her guard, giving me the opportunity to enter this dream.”

Duke's hunting plan against Talia naturally went beyond the initial attack. He had various contingency plans for every possible scenario that followed, all designed to counter Talia's every move. With the help of Carol and the prophetic witch she had brought in, he even analyzed nearly a hundred possible scenarios, all in order to ultimately and successfully eliminate Talia.

After Duke finished the contingency plan, he consulted with several partners. Although he did not explain all the details of the plan to them, he gave them a general overview.

His main partners include Amber, Joseph, and Lady Rose... People like Xingyin and Gret were involved by chance, while Lady Fei, a being of her caliber, does not need Duke as a partner, nor is she someone who wants to be bound by a partner.

Meanwhile, Amber found them through a pre-set code by Duke—the spatial anchor would cause space to be deliberately fixed, which was extremely noticeable to a spatial mage of Amber's level. At the same time, Amber had undergone high-intensity weight training to improve her abilities, and she was now completely different from what she was just a month ago.

The biggest difference is that she has a boyfriend... cough, actually, her spatial magic can now penetrate the spatial anchor's blockade.

Joseph and Rose were unsure of their location within the dream world, and Duke was finding it difficult to send signals they could sense, making it challenging for them to arrive quickly. However, Amber's arrival was enough for Duke.

After personally entering and maintaining this alternate dimension, Duke also made a judgment:

"I think it's very simple to beat this witch's game; all you have to do is destroy this dream."

written request for leave

I'll make up for today's update tomorrow.

Not enough words. ...

Chapter 164 If you swing the hoe well, no wall will fall.

This witch game is called "Sleeping Beauty" by the Sky City faction.

The reason for this name is probably not because of the fairy tale of the same name in Duke's previous life. Although the two have some similarities, the witches of the floating city are unaware of the fairy tale that is widely circulated in the other world. Rather, it is because of Sleeping Beauty Talia. Although she has the ability to put people to sleep and erase their existence, in the eyes of someone of Carol's level, Talia's existence is not a secret.

The files on the cadres and representatives of the various factions of the Mute are kept in the archives of the Floating City Lord's Mansion, where they are investigated and compiled by a witch specializing in intelligence, and Carol reviews them regularly. After all, for the leadership of the Floating City, not understanding their enemies is tantamount to suicide—the previous lord has already proven this with her irrefutable facts.

The most well-known character in the Sleeping Beauty game is Talia, so most people assume that the core of the Sleeping Beauty game is the two of them... But now it seems that this is probably a misjudgment. Talia is just one of the key figures in this alternate dimension, but not an indispensable one. Even if Duke kills her, it will not affect the situation in the alternate dimension.

Actually, if you think about it carefully, this makes a lot of sense. After all, what kind of witch game's core gameplay can just run off to another dimension and cause trouble everywhere?

These alternate dimensions connected to the floating city are not complete worlds. Normal worlds wouldn't have such bizarre rules, because bizarre rules mean the world is unstable. The core of the Witch Game is the most important part of these alternate dimensions, directly related to the rules. Therefore, to beat the Witch Game, you must find a way through the core of the game.

In most cases, destroying the core is enough to wipe out the entire alternate dimension in one fell swoop. Therefore, some intangible game cores are particularly troublesome because they leave players with no way to affect them.

The core of this witch's game is likely the dream that sustains the world, because this dream touches upon the thoughts of all humanity in the alternate dimension. It is precisely because of this magnificent dream that this world, on the verge of destruction, has managed to survive. However, even though slumbering in the dream greatly reduces the activity of human thought, the dream itself still provides a minimum level of intellectual support. Over time, this world is probably nearing its limit, which is why Talia, in her desire to save the world, has become so insane.

The altar that Duke and the others had passed earlier contained murals depicting the creation story of this world. He had taken a quick look at them and, based on his own imagination and the facts that had occurred, made a rough guess.

Although we don't know how she will save this world from destruction through her actions in the real world and in the many witch games, it seems that she is ready to implement her plan.

The first step in implementing this plan now appears to be taking down Duke, or rather... obtaining the Soul Requiem from his chest.

"How much of your memory have returned, Annie?"

Duke finished thinking and lowered his head to ask Anne a question out of curiosity. Led by Anne, the group went to the drawing room to wait for her "parents" to see her. In the meantime, he planned to ask Anne about what had happened after her disappearance.

Because of her unique magical abilities, Joan has a very clear memory, but it is precisely because she is the Witch of Dreams that Talia is very wary of her and prevents her from knowing too much about Joan. Talia even threatened, deceived, and tricked Joan, obtaining a lot of knowledge about dreams from her. This kidnapping can be said to have been very successful.

Anne is different. First, she is not easily fooled, unlike Joan who couldn't even keep track of her own underwear. Second, she doesn't have the ability to maintain her sense of self in a dream, so Talia might lower her guard against her.

“At least I’ve figured out the question of 'who I am.'” Annie reached out to pat Duke on the shoulder, but hesitated slightly after raising her right hand. She looked at her arm strangely, but said nothing, silently waving her left hand at Duke, and continued, “In short, my memory is stuck at the moment we met Talia during the Truth or Dare game.”

In other words, you don't remember saving me.

It seems that Talia not only did not lower her guard against her, but even became more vigilant, directly cutting off a segment of her memory?

Duke narrowed his eyes. He felt that there was some deeper meaning behind Annie's memory stopping there, but he didn't have enough information to guess it at the moment.

Incidentally, his memory was perfectly fine. He had prepared before entering, having the Witch of Wishes Eve bless him, Amber, Joseph, and Rose. Therefore, Talia's legendary destiny only had a temporary hypnotic effect on him and did not cause any problems with his memory.

This is also why they were able to outmaneuver Talia and remove the body of a complete legend with a single "soul" bullet.

"So, Duke, how do we destroy this dream?"

As Annie asked her question, she tried to get closer to Duke, but before she could even get within half a meter of him, Amber blocked her way like a possessive mother, glaring at her angrily.