Volume 3 - CH 3

Chapter 3 – The Newspaper on One Particular Day

How do you do!? I’m Elaina! The Witch of Ashes, Elaina!

I’ve been going on one journey after another for the past few years, and I’ve been staying in this country for the past few days!

I’m a super-beautiful witch with my characteristic beautiful grey hair and azure eyes! I usually wear a black tricorne and a black robe. If you see me around town, don’t be afraid to say hello! Ufufu.

By the way, this country is really amazing! By all means, the food is delicious! I’ve never been to a country that has had such delicious food! The food from this country is undoubtedly the best in the world! It is simply wonderful! Everything gets a three-star rating! The restaurants that serve food, the cafes that sell coffee, and even the street stall vendors who sell bread, they can undoubtedly be proud of the fact that they are the best in the world.

What’s more, the scenery is also amazing! The sky is extremely clear, and at night you can see a sky full of stars.

From the viewing platform, you can see a range of mountains decorated with snow-capped peaks, and if you listen carefully, you can hear the gentle breeze.

It’s really just too wonderful!

The food and scenery alone already make this place unbelievably wonderful, but this country still has more to offer!

The streets of the city and the people who live here are so wonderful that everything else pales in comparison!

There are rows of buildings, each one with a long history, and every resident speaks to me with a smile. Should I get lost they come to help me right away, and the people in every store treat us customers as if we were gods.

When I tried to leave a tip after eating, I was told, “That’s not required, we only did what was natural.” This is the first time that that has happened! Amazing! Such wonderful customer service!

I am so impressed that I don’t even have the words to describe it!

Also, the men who live in this country are all handsome! No matter where you look, there are handsome men everywhere!

I have to be careful not to accidentally fall in love with them, so I’m really having a hard time! Ufufu.

In any case, I really enjoyed the few days I spent in that country.

It was really a great experience.

I will probably never come across such a wonderful country ever again!

○

“……”

Cafes usually have a newspaper stand near the reception, and I make it a point to read through all of them in order.

You can never have too much information, and it is interesting because depending on the newspaper, they may take different stances on the same issue, and sometimes you even see a completely opposite opinion. What’s more, they are a perfect way to pass the time until my coffee arrives.

Depending on the country, you might find newspapers from other nearby countries as well.

“……”

I just happened to be in one such country that day, and there was a newspaper from a nearby country—one I had visited only a few days ago.

Of course, I read it.

“……What the heck.”

I was completely dumbfounded.

Or, more accurately, it made my blood boil.

My anger reached the maximum level. I gripped the newspaper so hard that it crumpled. My expression must have become quite fierce as well. The waitress who bought my coffee said, “Thank you for waiting, here’s your coffee… Hiii!” and let out a scream.

“Aah, I’m sorry. Thank you.”

I put paper aside for now, and took a deep breath.

“Ah, that’s okay… is there something about the newspaper that upset you?”

The waitress put my coffee on the table while looking at the expression on my face.

“I’ve visited this country once before.”

“Oh, that country? Haha, I understand.”

The waitress looked like she was convinced of something as she held the platter with both hands and nodded.

“Were you also one of the people who took a survey when you were leaving that country?”

Hmm?

“What do you mean, one of the people?”

She’s right, I do remember filling out a survey.

Actually, we’re using the opinions of people from other countries as material for our newspaper articles—they even promoted the survey like that.

“I went on a trip to that country once before… A few days later, after I came back here, I saw a similar article in the newspaper filled with lies.”

“……”

I see, so that country publishes fictitious articles in their newspaper on a daily basis.

I can’t trust them at all. A newspaper that can’t be trusted is not worth reading. It would be far more useful to just dump it into the fireplace.

“Until very recently, that country didn’t allow foreigners inside. That’s why I was curious about it and went to see—it’s only natural to feel curious about how popular other places are. Although I wrote 『I didn’t see anything particularly novel』 in the survey, it was altered to read that I had said 『It was a wonderful country!』 instead.”

“Haah? You want to order? Write the order slip yourself! What, you have a problem with that? You pig!”

I heard someone shouting that from the other side of the restaurant.

After glancing in that direction, the girl in front of me slumped her shoulders and said,

“……Even if we took that kind of attitude, I’m sure it would be twisted around in that country to say something else.”

“……”

After looking at the expression on the face of the angry waitress on the other side of the restaurant, I pulled my tricorne lower to cover my face and asked,

“But what do they gain by modifying the opinions in that way?”

“Who knows? I don’t have the answer to that.”

“Fumu…”

“By the way, there’s something else I’ve heard about that place—”

The waitress spoke.

“I’ve heard that even though the gates of the country are now open, not a single citizen of that country has ever set foot outside.”

“Oh? Why not?”

“Maybe because they believe that their country is better than anywhere else?”

“………”

They don’t want to leave their country. They lack the courage to go outside.

In order to gloss over those feelings, perhaps the people of that country had taken to falsifying the articles in their newspapers to try and make their own country more attractive.

If they were already living in a wonderful country, there was no need to go outside—that’s probably what they thought.

“By the way, have there been any people who took up residence in that country?”

Hearing my question, the waitress laughed as if the answer was obvious.

“Of course not. At least, as far as I know.”