### Chapter 16

I opened my eyes to an endless void.

*Maaaaaah*

“You can scream louder,” A feminine voice said. “But I am afraid that no one will hear you.”

“Huh! Who are you!?”

Was this a dream? Did I die?

“No. You are not dead.”

“You can read my mind!?” I asked.

“Of course silly. THIS is your mind.”

I heard something snap. Then from total darkness, there was light. A young woman with beautiful long, blue hair, made her entrance. She wore a pointy black hat, and her mischievous eyes were a strong red.

The woman snapped her fingers and suddenly we found ourselves beneath bright starlight coming from the clear night sky. All around us, the grassy plains of the badlands seemed to extend without end.

With another snap, a white table and a set of matching garden chairs appeared. Then one more snap and the woman spawned a silver tea pot on her hands.

“Go ahead, grab some tea,” She said.

I ignored the woman for a second. The design of the garden furniture looked ancient. I was trying to figure how old it was.

“Hey! I have you known that this set of outdoor furniture was in style just a few decades ago,” The woman replied.

“Oh yeah, so….. Who are you?”

The woman smiled.

“Your kind knows me as The Witch of Misplaced Dreams. But you can call me… Helga”

“A witch?”

“Indeed. One of the finest witches that you’ll meet.”

“Why me?” I asked.

“Because you are special, but you already knew that, didn’t you sweetheart?

Helga the switch smiled. And just as she did, a thunderbolt struck the ground - Despite the fact that there was no clouds.

I did not know why she was being so polite. But it was nice meeting someone who was nice to me for once.

“Wait a second! How do I know you aren’t trying to scam me?” I asked.

I might have been a bit too trustful of others in the past. But I refuse to make the same mistake twice.

“Awww, Berry. Look at you. You are so adorable,”

As much as I tried, I couldn’t sense any hint of malice coming from the witch.

Helga pinched my cheeks with a sinful, yet motherly touch. I tried to act indifferent, but I blushed either way.

“Unlike your old world. This world still has some good people left. You just need to let them help you. Nice people like Jeanne and me.”

“Is that so?” I asked.

“Yes Berry, it is so, you can trust me.”

“Alright, then why do people call you a witch?

“Ahem Look!”

A status screen appeared. But unlike the ones that appeared on my field of vision. This status screen was physically present, like a hologram. The witch was kind enough to place it on the table.

[Berry - Level 3] [Wildling - 2] [Stargazer - 1]

[Strength: 7]

[Dexterity: 8]

[Constitution: 15] +1 Race Bonus = 16.

[Intelligence:6] -3 Modifier = 3.

[Wisdom: 1]

[Charisma: 10] +1 Race Bonus = 11.

“You can see my stats?”

The witch giggled.

“But of course, sweetie. To be a witch, you must first master the laws of the universe. Hmm, you have pretty good ability scores. Except… Your skills, they leave much to be desired.”

[Fighting - 3] [Untrained]

[Arcana - 2] [Untrained]

“However, you have potential.”

[Acrobatics - 15]

[Survival - 25]

“You can always, and I say always, become a witch. It comes with hundreds of perks. For instance, did you know that Joanne for the life of her, no matter what she tries, can’t keep herself from thinking about the word dick?”

I chuckled.

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, as soon as the word pops in her mind, she begins repeating ‘Forgive me holy mother, forgive me holy mother’ over and over again only for the word to pop back again.”

The witch laughed smugly.

I laughed too.

“Then, that elf girl, as rough as she looks, you’ll be surprised that she dreams about pretty dresses and dancing within a mansion’s hall.”

“Honestly, that I doubt,” I said.

“As for the demi-human that beat you up. She dreams of murder, mayhem, and marrying her human pet.”

I could see that. “How about Belfar, does he dream about being an honest man?”

The witch stood silent for a second.

“That man. I shall warn you. Do not trust Belfar, no matter what. A man without dreams… He is an enemy to the order of the world.”

“Thanks for the advice but I am not still so sure I want to become a witch.”

“Well, Berry. Since I like you, I’ll give you another chance. However, at the time being, you should consider doing your friend Helga a favor.”

“a favor?”

“Think more about it as a quest. Which of course, it will come with a reward.”

“And what type of quest would that be? I don’t know if you can see, but I am in a rather complicated predicament right now. If this is a dream. It means that I am still a prisoner. So I am unsure on how I can help you.”

“That will not be an issue. You’ll see when the time comes,” The witch responded. “Oh and btw, would you like some cookies?”

The witch snapped her fingers and a cookie jar appeared on the table.

“Don’t be shy, they are free,” She said.

I grabbed a couple of the cookies. It seems that even within a dream, it was possible to get hungry.

“Chocolate cookies? are they any good?” I asked.

“I have no idea. I took them from your memories. Let’s find out.”

The witch took a bite first.

“Hmmm, this is pretty good, you should try it.”

I gave one of the cookies a good bite. I expected an artificial sugary flavor. But instead, the chocolate and texture of the cookie was home-made. It reminded me deeply of the chocolate cookies that my mother would bake for me as a kid.

“You know what, Helga. You are truly nice. I don’t understand why others call you a witch.”

I drank some of the tea that the witch had prepared for me earlier. And surprisingly enough, it was still warm. I stuffed myself with cookies.

The witch smiled.

“Well, Berry, as for your question. The reason we are called witches is really simple.”

The witch smiled even further.

“The reason is because……. WE-EAT-YOUR-MOST-PRECIOUS-MEMORIES.”