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Chapter 19

Chapter 19

In one corner of the royal castle, within the laboratory granted to the court magician, Ritter delivered an important report, while feeling a twinge of unease as he watched Nikolaus tugging on the leaves of a potted mandragora. Please don’t pull it out… he silently prayed.

「There are rumors spreading now of a village ruled by a witch. We’ve even received a request from the local lord to investigate—」

The other man never once took his eyes off the mandragora, not even glancing at Ritter. Unsure if he was even being listened to, Ritter finished his report, feeling it might have been a waste of breath. But apparently, the man had been listening, he replied.

「Oh, that so.」

「…You’re not interested?」

Nikolaus was the last surviving demon and the only remaining magic user. With unmatched magical power far beyond any other race, he had lived a long life, mastering countless spells. It was said that even among demons, no one else had wielded as many kinds of magic as he had.

Ritter had assumed that even he would show interest if a fellow demon, long thought extinct for the past five hundred years, had truly survived. But his attention remained fixed on the potted mandragora.

「Probably a fake, right? People claiming to be witches or magic users show up from time to time—they’ve all been frauds. No point in getting curious.」

「I… I see…」

「And now you’re telling me you’re taking time off to go investigate that fake? Sigh… Well, I guess I can’t stop you. That’s your real job anyway. Congrats on your pointless labor. Good luck.」

Ritter had grown somewhat used to this irritating way of speaking. But that didn’t mean it didn’t bother him. Still, Nikolaus was a magical genius who’d lived over five centuries, and was favored by generations of kings. Complaining was simply not an option.

「Oh, right—was it Bit Village? That’s near the new demon realm, right? If you spot that running mandragora you said you saw before, catch it for me, okay? Thanks.」

「…Understood…」

And so, the magic genius who defied common logic casually plucked petals from the mandragora, making the potted plant tremble violently. Ritter decided to escape the room before things got any worse.

「…So yeah, the mage isn’t interested in the witch.」

The ones assigned to investigate Bit Village were Ritter, Leonhart, and a hand-picked few of their subordinates. Since it was near the demon realm where Leonhart had nearly died, they’d assembled only elite members for this small unit.

Only ten people could be transported at once via Nikolaus’s teleportation magic circle, so the investigation team was capped at ten. If the witch was deemed a threat, capture or even execution was within the realm of possibility. It made sense for two squad leaders to go.

「I see. …Still, I hope the witch turns out to be real. That way, the mage wouldn’t be alone anymore. Might ease his loneliness.」

「Do you really think that mage feels lonely?」

「We don’t fully understand the minds of long-lived demons. But in the end, they’re still people.」

「I just can’t picture that guy ever feeling lonely. Honestly, I’m the one who’s lonely… Why don’t women like me…」

Ritter let out a heartfelt sigh, and Leonhart gave him a sympathetic smile. Ritter knew exactly why – he wasn’t as handsome, or as upstanding, or as considerate as Leonhart. That much was obvious.

He recalled how Leonhart was always surrounded by women whenever they went into town, and Ritter felt like crying a little.

After completing their preparations, they departed via Nikolaus’s teleportation circle, having endured more of his sarcasm along the way, and spent the next few days traveling to the remote Bit Village.

It was a place they’d stayed at just a few months earlier, during a mandragora-hunting mission. The change since then was… astonishing.

「…What the hell is this…? Chain roses?」

「Yeah. These are plants from the demon realm…」

Around the village, sharp, thorny plants grew in dense barriers, as if to ward off intruders. Some of the thorns were stained red with blood, and the white roses growing there had turned crimson in those spots, likely from absorbing the blood. The sight sent a chill down their spines.

「This doesn’t seem like something humans could’ve done.」

「No… it doesn’t. …Let’s talk to Village Chief Daon.」

「Yeah, Daon-senpai should be able to explain.」

A former Holy Knight had retired to this village. Though he was from an earlier generation than Leonhart, Ritter had been under his care directly. Ritter trusted him more than anyone, so he was confident Daon’s word could be relied on.

The thorny brambles hadn’t blocked off the entrances, so they cautiously stepped into the village. The thorns pointed outward only; inside the village, the plants were soft and lush, bursting with color. The contrast between the outside and inside was striking.

「Oh, it’s the knights! Hello!」

「Hello, young lady. …Is the village chief around?」

「Yep! Daaaon oji-saaaan!」

The cheerful girl they’d met on their last visit was still as bright and energetic as ever. But the village itself had changed drastically. Rare plants like those found in demon realms now grew all around. It truly did look like a village ruled by plants.

「…You guys, huh. What’s going on?」

「We were going to ask you, Daon-senpai. This place wasn’t like this before.」

「Yeah, well—it’s all thanks to the Flower Witch-sama. …She saved our village.」

As if picturing her in his mind, Daon began speaking with a gentle expression. How the village had faced a plague, how she appeared on the brink of death, saved everyone with full-recovery medicine, identified the source, and fixed it. How she protected them from monsters and beasts with thorny brambles. How she gave them nutrient-rich seeds so they’d never go hungry again. How even fertilizer was now easy to come by thanks to the plants she produced.

「No, c’mon, that can’t be real…」

「It is. …If you don’t believe me, go see her. You came in from the north gate, right? Head out the south gate and go to the watermill. That’s where Witch-sama lives.」

Ritter and Leonhart exchanged looks. Daon had clearly become a devoted follower of this 「witch」 speaking unbelievable things with complete conviction.

(I thought the merchant might’ve exaggerated things, but… no, this looks real. The villagers are completely taken with her, and the plants, these really are from the demon realm.)

A village filled with rare plants that normally wouldn’t survive in human territory… and villagers casually using them with smiles on their faces. It was a strange sight. No wonder traveling merchants had been spooked.

Ritter instructed their men to observe the village and intervene if any danger arose. Then he and Leonhart left the village, heading toward the watermill.

「Hard to believe Daon-senpai’s changed that much… Think it’s brainwashing?」

「Hard to say. …But the villagers did seem happier than before.」

「Even with a demon realm right next door, huh… weird.」

The gentle murmur of a stream and the creaking of a waterwheel reached their ears—and both men fell silent. Hiding their presence, they moved cautiously among the trees lining the river. First, they wanted to get a glimpse of this 「witch」 from a distance.

Soon, the watermill came into view. The area was a vibrant field of flowers. A beastkin child could be seen harvesting vegetables near the house, so the two men silently circled around toward the riverbank.

「…Ah.」

The moment they rounded the building, the sight before them stole their breath.

Porcelain-white skin, a voluptuous female form traced in elegant curves, sunlight gleaming off the water’s surface, and soft green hair slicked wet against her back. Her face turned toward them, so perfectly sculpted it could have been mistaken for a doll’s.

「I-I deeply apologize!」

Leonhart’s panicked voice was quickly followed by a hand reaching out to cover Ritter’s eyes—but it was far too late. What had been seen could not be unseen. A rush of heat surged through his body, followed by the warm trickle of something running from his nose.

—For a man who had never seen a woman’s body outside of his mother’s, the image of a stunning beauty bathing was too much to handle.

(That kind of body… I’ve only ever seen anything close in that running mandragora back in the demon realm…)