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Chapter 51 Part 2 – Erica flowers and …… the Witch of Doom.

In order to earn money for her father’s medication for his incurable illness and to support her young siblings, she went to work as a maid. Through an acquaintance, she was hired as a scullery maid of the lowest status in Countess Rosenthal’s mansion, where she slept shivering in a cold shared room with her hands covered with abrasions. Because of her good looks, she was specially promoted to the understaffed parlor maid position, causing her to become the target of jealousy and being picked on by both her former and new co-workers. Still, she gritted her teeth and persevered, thinking that the increased salary would help her family.

But it’s over now. Her life will end in the dark, with no one to take care of her and being miserably eaten away.
Like that baby who died soon after his birth, her life will end without receiving any help from anyone ……!!

In her final moments, she remembered her beloved family and for some reason she also recalled the face of the young man in black clothes.

「…… Erica!! Where are you!! Answer me!!」

Suddenly, a voice echoed from above and it was the voice of that very same young man.
The voice sounded extremely impatient. She knew that he was desperately searching for her.

He was coming to help me!!

Erica, who was about to give up on life, raised her face immediately. The hope that had almost been extinguished was reignited. She had no time to think about how the young man knew her name.

「Help!! I’m about to be eaten by a group of rats!」

「…… Are you in the basement!! The entrance is at ……!? No!! That building is in the way!! …… Disappear!!」

Erica’s desperate cries overlapped with his sharp shout.

A shockwave shook the entire basement, scaring the group of rats that had been trying to devour Erica.

With a thunderous sound, a section of the basement ceiling collapsed and a young man in black descended with a cloud of smoke and light. To Erica’s eyes that had gotten accustomed to the darkness, the faint moonlight seemed like a ray of salvation from heaven. The black robe of the young man seemed like the white robe of an angel. She had never seen such a moving sight. She had never seen such a moving sight.

「…… Scram!! You rats!! Do you not fear this Solomon!! Even a small brain should be able to understand the fear of death!!」

The young man in black, Solomon, gave off the presence of thunderclouds and roared toward the pile of rats. Surging with killing intent.

That was enough to send the group of rats that had been relentlessly clinging to Erica into a state of panic. They realized that an absolutely strong person had come. Squeaking and squealing regretfully, they scattered in all directions.

「U-Um …… Thank you ……」

Suddenly rescued by an unexpected person, Erica sat stunned on the floor and tried to thank him in a flustered voice.

「…… Excuse me.」

Solomon bowed lightly, approached Erica, put his hands around her waist and behind her thighs, and easily lifted her up.

「…… Hya ……」

Erica, who had never been carried romantically like a princess before, couldn’t wrap her head around the series of surprises and made a silly cry, then she quickly closed her mouth. But the real surprise was waiting for her.

「…… I’ll fly. If you don’t hold on tight, you’ll get a concussion.」

「Hyaa!?」

With Erica in his arms, Solomon leaped.
The sudden acceleration almost left her body behind, and Erica forgot her embarrassment and surprise and rushed to cling to Solomon’s neck. Solomon’s black clothes fluttered. The ascent never stopped, as if he was running up a transparent staircase. He leapt out of the basement through the hole that had collapsed, and then into the air.

The night wind whistled. The moon shone lonely in the skies. The tips of the treetops of the forest trees, which she always looked up at, were below her feet. The black forests and fields stretched out far into the distance. Village lights dotted the landscape. The moving lights were probably lanterns from horse-drawn carriages.

Erica gasped.

For Erica who bustled around the floor and stairs of the mansion while sweating, she had never seen anything like this before.
Only her own braids, swaying at the edge of her vision, were familiar.

Solomon, leaping higher than the steeple with one human in his arms, is definitely not human. The solid, detached building made from stone that should have been below them was blown apart as if it had exploded. Solomon destroyed it all in an instant. The building should have been so sturdy that even ten strong construction workers with the help of horses would not have been able to demolish even half of this building in a day’s work. It would have taken a demon to pull off such an impossible feat.

Under the unobstructed moonlight, Erica looked straight at Solomon’s eyes.

Unlike earlier, Solomon was currently not wearing pince-nez glasses. He had strange gray eyes that looked as if made up from multiple circles. It was truly an odd appearance. However, the silver hair and white skin from the side view of his face that she looked up at seemed very pleasing to Erica. There was a strange sense of déjà vu. For the first time in her life, Erica felt disappointed that she did not have the literary talent to put into words the feelings that welled up in her heart.

The nighttime walk in the air did not last long.
After a few more leaps, Solomon landed on top of a small hill just beyond the walls of Countess Rosenthal’s mansion and gently lowered Erica to the ground.

「…… This is not good, there are wounds on a maiden’s soft skin. It must not fester. Once you’ve calmed down, drink this medicine. It is completely safe to consume this medicine. I can assure you that your skin will be more radiant than before. There are some slight side effects, though.」

Taking a look at Erica’s tattered clothes and skin covered with wounds, Solomon laughed with amusement while hiding his face with his hands.

「This other bottle is the only specially created medicine for your father’s illness. Even those that can do witchcraft would not be able to cure your father’s illness. Do not fall for their sweet words. This medicine I have concocted is supreme!! The best!! Ahh, to think that two experimental subjects are conveniently showing up before me, this must be fate. The god of fate wants to witness a miracle created by my hands.」

The way he held out his hands and declared with his fingers spread out like claws was, no matter how you looked at it, a mass of deceit. It was as if to say that he had been holding back from posing because his hands were full from carrying Erica in his arms with a princess carry. It was as if he was a villain in a play.

But Erica believed that Solomon was not lying.
As proof of that, she took the medicine that was meant for her and gulped it down in front of him.

「Hou, you didn’t hesitate at all …… you’re not afraid of the side effects?」

「I heard that every medicine has a poisonous side. Solomon-sama said that the side effects are slight, so I am not afraid. Because I believe in you.」

「You are a smart girl. A patient’s trust is the battle cry that inspires a doctor’s heart. The side effect is that it will make you a little sleepy, so be careful not to fall asleep and catch a cold.」

「Thank you, but how did Solomon-sama know about my father’s illness?」

「Let me tell you, if one studies hard enough, one will come closer to omniscience and omnipotence. Nothing is impossible. But still, what a straightforward girl. That spirit of yours can occasionally surpass that of the brave warriors that have spent a long time in the military. I’m pleased with you. I certify you and your father as experimental subjects for my medicine.」

Solomon narrowed his eyes.

「Well then. Have the patient take one teaspoon of this medicine once a day before sleep. Even if the cough subsides, continue until you run out of medicine. And this is the travel expenses for you to reach your house. Both you and your father are my precious experimental subjects. I have a duty to ensure your convenience and safety.」

It was far too much money to be called travel expenses. It was enough to support Erica’s family for ten years. Even the medicine he just gave was probably eye-poppingly expensive.

「I can’t accept this, not this much!! …… Why are you treating me, a complete stranger, so well?」

Erica paled in surprise and tried to push the money back, but Solomon wrapped both of his hands around hers and made her grasp the money.

「…… Kukuku, it is natural for me to take care of you, especially since you are my experimental subject. After all, it is impossible to get accurate data if you are not in perfect physical condition. So just accept it. This one as well.」

Solomon took out a branch with numerous white bell-shaped flowers from his pocket and handed it to Erica. The flowers, which looked like the lily of the valley from a distance, were of the shrub type of flowers that Erica was familiar with.