CH 70

Witch.

Once upon a time, there were magicians in the world.

One woman, known as The Witch, had the power to make the impossible possible, despite being human.

She hated the world.

She despised it.

She couldn’t answer the question of why.

Because no one knew her true feelings.

But she certainly had a strong grudge against the world.

That’s why she tried to destroy it.

In the end, her goal was not accomplished, but much blood was shed to stop her.

Since then, female magicians have become despised and feared.

Even today, in a world where magic has declined and even her name has been forgotten.

An extremely frightening presence, to say the least.

When her name is mentioned, there can be no smile.

However, she spoke it.

Unbelievably, she introduced herself.

“The… Witch of the Mist…”

“That’s what I’m called. I don’t really like it.”

Is it just a matter of personal preference?

How much does she truly understand the meaning of calling herself a witch?

Questions and apprehension well up within me.

Although my body didn’t shake, it seemed as if I was screaming to leave here right away due to the feeling of fear, which showed through my expression.

Then she…

“…Yes. You make that face, too.”

She muttered in a very lonely voice.

I didn’t understand why.

Despite calling herself a witch, she didn’t seem to like being called that.

It seemed like she was chewing on loneliness, and she had given up on the current situation.

It was just like me in the past.

“You’re…The Witch, right?”

“Yes, that’s what I’m called.”

“The witch I heard of was a really bad person. But you are…”

“That’s my predecessor. The only thing we have in common is being female. We don’t share the same beliefs or ideologies.”

She spoke in a soft tone.

At this point, the fear that I had initially felt had disappeared.

What remained was only the anxiety towards Yuren-kun and the pure curiosity towards her.

“You’re not…a bad person, are you?”

“I think so. Didn’t I call you here because I have a request?”

“A request… does that mean you want me to do something?”

I wonder if she called me here for something related to Transmutation Arts.

Or is it something else that she wants?

I brace myself and wait for her answer.

“It’s not just you. I have the same request for the people who came with you… Please don’t go any further. I want you to go back.”

“Huh?”

It’s not the request I was expecting.

It’s not like she wants me to create something or give her something.

What she wanted was for us to leave this place.

“…Why?”

“Because it’s dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

“There’s a very scary monster living beyond here. That’s why it’s best not to approach.”

I heard the word “monster” from her.

It might be the monster that we are searching for.

Feeling excited at the thought, I forget her warning and ask her again.

“So there’s a monster deep in the forest? What kind of monster is it?”

“It has the appearance of a big cocoon. Its miasma causes other monsters to become violent. If you get too close, it can also affect humans.”

“Miasma…so that’s it.”

The cause of the spreading disease?

The monster that unleashes a miasma that affects humans and causes other monsters to become violent.

There is a sense of combining the hypothesis together, which was nothing but a mere idea.

“Could you tell me more about that monster?”

“Why?”

“We came to the forest to find that monster!”

“…That’s not a good idea.”

To calm my excitement, she denied it in a cold, low voice.

For a moment, I felt a chilling sensation.

“But we…”

“That monster is very terrifying. At the very least, it’s not an opponent that a mere human can defeat. You’re going to die, you know?”

“Death…?”

“Yes. So don’t go any further. I don’t want any unnecessary bloodshed.”

She speaks with a sad, pained voice.

Is she worried about us?

She looks at me with a concerned gaze.

“Death…”

As soon as I heard the word “death,” I imagined a terrible image of Yuren-kun’s gruesome death.

It’s not like I haven’t thought about it.

It was certain that the place we were aiming for was full of danger.

I think we all had the worst-case scenario in the back of our minds.

But nobody said it out loud in order to reign in the fear and move forward.

If you’re human, death is scary.

It’s foolish to willingly put yourself in danger when you might die.

But…

So many people are suffering.

They are facing death.

Living in fear without knowing if they will survive the day.

Living with the thought that someone they care about might die tomorrow.

We came here to help them.

“I’m sorry.”

I answer.

It makes me realize what we came here for.

“We came here for the sake of survival. So, I can’t fulfill that request.”