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Chapter 24.6 – Leonhart – Part 2

Chapter 24.6 – Leonhart – Part 2

The witch looked surprised as she slowly lowered the hand covering her mouth. Blinking a few times as if conflicted, she gave a small nod in reply.

(So it’s true after all… I’d heard she’s lived for 500 years near the demon forest, but this might be one of the reasons why.)

Her voice carries a curse that instills hatred in others. Whether she was born with it or acquired it during the battle against the dragon remains unclear. If she had others of her kind, perhaps she might have found someone who understood her. But now, the only other demon left is Nikolaus.

Back then, Nikolaus had still been an infant. Before the war with the dragon, he was sent to safety, and when the rest of their kin perished, he was raised among humans, never knowing the full truth. …Raising a child without being able to speak would have been incredibly difficult. The witch likely chose to remain in the mountains instead of retrieving him, staying behind to mourn her fallen brethren.

(And while she lived there, she discovered a Mandragora that had undergone an unusual mutation in the thick miasma… Immune to its voice, she began to study it. From there, her research expanded to all kinds of plants. That’s how she likely developed her current magic.)

Mandragoras carry a curse in their voice. If her own curse was similar, it would make sense for her to study them in hopes of understanding her own affliction. Through that connection, she would have researched various plants and integrated them into a magical system. Five hundred years spent honing a magic steeped in flora.

And just like Leonhart, she’s unaffected by other curses. That would make Mandragoras, dangerous though they are, ideal research subjects, relatively safe and manageable.

(But over time, the mountain changed… It became a demon forest. …Her peaceful life was broken.)

Demon realms don’t slowly fill with monsters, they erupt with them, all at once. The place she lived must have been suddenly overrun.

――And if, at that time, she had several independently mobile Mandragoras she was using for research, and they fled during the attack…

(The escaped Mandragoras would have used their screams to defend themselves, killing monsters. The bodies left behind would have risen as undead.)

Realizing that her Mandragoras might be affecting the ecosystem downstream, she probably came down the mountain to investigate. Seeing Bit Village, she must’ve felt responsible, guilty even, and began working herself to the bone for the villagers, extending the purification flowers along the river to mitigate the impact.

…She could have simply disappeared without saying a word, and no one would’ve known. But unlike Leonhart, she’s far too kind for that.

(She may bear some responsibility… but this goes far beyond what she owes.)

Had she deemed Mandragoras dangerous and disposed of them, the current demon forest might never have formed. But seeing her still cradle them now, perhaps these creatures, after the loss of her kin, were her emotional anchor during centuries of solitude. How could she bring herself to destroy them?

(Being utterly alone, I understand that pain well. She’s lived five hundred years, in a place with no one else. Her loneliness far outweighs my own.)

Besides, Mandragora screams can’t kill many monsters. Their range isn’t very wide. And they don’t run around constantly, they’re plant monsters. They’re calmer underground. If left alone, they naturally burrow and rest.

But undead monsters infect what they kill. Sometimes they evolve into more dangerous variants that manipulate curses. That explains the sudden surge of undead goblins. From there, more cursed creatures and even poison-resistant monsters emerged. The forest became a nest of undead, curse-wielding, and toxic monsters.

(This all began with just a few running Mandragoras… Truth really is stranger than fiction.)

The origin may have been the Mandragoras she studied, but the chain of events wasn’t solely her fault. The monsters that attacked and were killed became the real problem. Nature took its course. Nikolaus had also planted Mandragoras, and wild ones might have existed too.

Goblins were already present in the region. Plenty of them would’ve pulled up Mandragoras and died, becoming undead themselves. …Which means the transformation into a cursed forest might’ve happened regardless. She can’t be the only one to blame.

Had things gone worse, even a corpse dragon could’ve arisen, a true catastrophe. But as far as Leonhart had seen, the dragon’s remains were long decayed, returned to the soil. No signs of such danger now. Still, in a place with an environment as unique as this one, anything could’ve happened.

(Even so, she continues to serve the villagers without ever explaining herself. That’s likely her way of atoning… For someone as gentle as her, that must be unbearably painful. Maybe she hadn’t started retrieving the Mandragoras before… because the magic to control them wasn’t finished yet?)

Until now, maybe she lacked the spell to subdue the Mandragoras. While living among the villagers, she completed it, then began rounding up the escapees to fulfill her duty. That’s the most likely explanation.

They’re monsters, after all, not just plants. You can’t control them easily. None of the village’s plants are actual plant-based monsters. Even with her powers, handling monsters is a different matter. Still, she must be regretting not finishing the spell sooner.

He remembered the tears she shed when she saved him. They probably weren’t out of pity, but guilt. …Even so, he didn’t mind. It didn’t change the fact that she was a kind person.

「Our curses don’t work on each other. It’s safe for you to speak to me, Witch-sama.」

Carrying that secret, burdened with that guilt, how exhausting it must be. If she could confide in Leonhart, share even a little of that weight, it would help. That’s why he made the offer. But the witch only gave a fragile smile in return.

「…Thank you…」

Her softly trembling voice was so delicate, so frail—it stirred a deep protective instinct in him. …She must still be afraid of speaking to others. He understood. Even Leonhart found it strange that he could now look someone in the eye without his eyepatch.

(This investigation was to determine whether she’s truly a witch or just a fraud… There’s no doubt about it now, she’s the real thing.)

They’d come to learn whether she was a fraud using strange powers to manipulate people, or a true surviving witch. Not to investigate the forest’s chain of events. Even if that was a stretch, that’s how he chose to interpret it.

(She might be the only person in the world who can accept me as I am. …I won’t let anyone take her from me.)

He was grateful for this encounter. This bond, he wouldn’t let anyone sever it. If the truth ever became a crime, he’d hide it with everything he had.

It might not be the right path for a Holy Knight. But the righteous knight Leonhart portrayed to others, that wasn’t his true self. The real him was more selfish. For his own personal reasons, he decided: he would protect this witch.

(And to show her I mean it… Yes, I’ll make a vow.)

With that thought, Leonhart made a knight’s oath, swearing upon his sword. And the witch, hearing that vow, smiled with genuine warmth. …Surely, she believed him now.

「I’ll head back to the village. What about you, Witch-sama?」

「…I’ll stay a bit longer.」

「Understood. …Then, until next time.」

She must be going to search for more Mandragoras. In that case, Leonhart’s role was to return first and think up a plausible reason for her absence. …Speaking of which, did she manage to fool the knight standing watch? If so, Leonhart would help cover for her.

(…These weren’t growing when I arrived. This grass, herbivores favor it.)

Most likely, the witch had planted it to restore the damaged ecosystem caused by the river’s pollution. Leonhart stopped in his tracks and turned to look back. She was already gone, but her image remained clearly burned into his eyes.

The white flowers by the riverside, the witch blooming under the moonlight, an unobstructed, wide-open view. It was beautiful. It felt peaceful.

(If we’re alone again… maybe we can talk more next time.)

Looking forward to that day, Leonhart walked back to the village with a light step.

There, he woke the knight dozing outside the witch’s house and offered to take over his watch so the man could return to the inn. Judging by the sweet floral scent lingering in the air, the knight had been lulled to sleep by it. Leonhart moved to the upwind side to avoid breathing in more and waited for the witch’s return.

(This flower’s no longer necessary. I should let her know…)

If she ever wanted to go out at night again, he’d stand watch for her. He intended to bring that up. And then, just before dawn, the witch returned—bringing five Mandragoras with her.

(…So that’s the Mandragora Ritter saw…)

Since they were under her control, they were all clothed. One of them stood out in particular—its movements oddly emphasized its bodily curves, drawing unnecessary attention.

「Welcome back, Witch-sama. …Um, that’s… quite a distinctive Mandragora.」

The image of her only remaining kin back at the castle flashed through his mind. If he saw this, he’d probably fly over here in an instant. Leonhart felt a twinge of unease, but the witch, unaware of such things, simply smiled.