Chapter 5: Magic Power
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 5: Magic Power
A witch's day is quite monotonous.
After waking, the witch eats the breakfast her assistant prepares.
The ingredients are all things the witch gathered herself.
From the mountain, the vegetable patch, and the small chicken coop in the backyard.
It was no coincidence that she was holding a basket full of vegetables when I first met her. She picked her daily portion of vegetables herself.
This witch, whom I had expected to lead a magical existence, was living a thoroughly pastoral life. It was just that her methods were magical.
“Mmmph—! Alright, Yohan, I’m off to do some research. Good luck with your work.”
“Yes, Eva.”
Evangeline went up to her room as she said this. It was the witch’s room, a space she never let me, her assistant, even glimpse into.
I was curious, but I had no intention of entering a witch’s room where I had no idea what might be inside. Besides, I didn’t have the luxury.
Unlike the witch who knew magic, it would take me, a person who didn't know the first thing about it, a very long time just to secure today's food.
‘At least I’m glad I have this…’
I tapped the necklace around my neck. It was something she had made for me the day after I became her assistant so I could wander around outside.
And indeed, after I started wearing this necklace, the wolf attacks stopped. I still got pounced on, though…
‘I should get going.’
First, I had to fetch water. There was a river not too far from here. It was the only river with water safe enough for people to drink.
I grabbed the water buckets and headed for the riverbank. My steps were light now, but my shoulders already felt heavy just thinking about carrying the buckets back full of water.
Still, not fetching water wasn't an option. Most of it was for my own use, anyway. As I was waddling my way to the river, the bushes rustled.
“Grrrrrowl-!”
A moment later, a familiar floating sensation washed over me. A wolf had charged out of the bushes, knocked me over, and was now on top of me.
Its sharp canines glinted, and drool dripped onto my face. Its eyes were slightly bloodshot, as if it were starving.
The wolf began to approach, looking as if it would tear out my throat. It drew close to my face and opened its mouth…
“Pant, pant-!”
“That’s right, good boy.”
As I stroked the wolf licking my face, I realized it was very thin. It seemed it had failed to hunt again today.
I gently pushed it off and took a piece of beef jerky from my pocket. Smelling the meat, the wolf immediately started wagging its tail and lunging for it.
“Ah ah! No!”
“Whine- whim-per-!”
“Still no. You have to listen.”
When I hid the jerky behind my back, the wolf started whining. I know. You must be hungry. You want the jerky, right? But if that’s the case, you have to listen. Very carefully.
I held the jerky out to the wolf and commanded it.
“Sit.”
“Whine?”
“…Paw.”
“Grrrowl!”
“No, just do something… Never mind. What can I expect from you?”
I let out a deep sigh, looking at the wolf that still couldn't understand my words after we’d met so many times. Life must be hard when you’re this dumb. Then again, that’s probably why it was starving today.
Sighing, I gave up on training it and simply tossed it the jerky. The wolf snatched the jerky, opened and closed its mouth a few times as if savoring the taste, and then swallowed it whole.
With the jerky gone in an instant, it started whining again while looking at me. You can look at me all you want, but I don’t have any more.
“Alright, just be my companion for the road. So I don’t get bored.”
“Woof-!”
The creature that couldn’t understand any other command understood that one perfectly and began to walk ahead. Watching its wagging tail, I followed behind it.
Before long, we arrived at the riverbank. It was teeming with fish, a Class 1 river, meaning the water was safe for humans to drink. For some reason, animals didn't approach it, so there was no worry of contamination.
I tossed the water bucket into the river and watched the fish swimming right past me. If I knew how to fish, I could catch one and grill it. But I couldn't even make a fishing rod, let alone fish.
‘How do you even make a fishing rod?’
Feeling a newfound respect for my ancestors, I lifted the water bucket, now full. It wasn't easy to lift a bucket holding dozens of liters of water, but I managed it somehow.
Grunting, I tied the strap on the bucket and hoisted it onto my back. This would have been impossible for me back on Earth, and it was impossible even when I first fell into this world.
It only became possible after I came to the witch’s cabin. To be precise, it started when I began eating the food in her house.
“Nnngh-!”
However, just because it was possible to stand up with a water bucket weighing dozens of kilos didn't mean it was easy. Not at all.
I carried the bucket, sweating profusely. The wolf followed behind, giving my butt a light push. Whether it was actually effective was another matter, but it was a huge psychological help.
The moment I arrived at the cabin, struggling under the weight of the water, the wolf shamelessly lifted its head and nudged it against me. It wanted praise and a reward at the same time.
It was shameless, but I decided to indulge it. I stroked its head and took out another piece of jerky from my pocket to toss to it. The wolf caught it, ate it with relish, and then nudged the water bucket.
“Hey, you want water too?”
“Woof!”
“Yeah, yeah, you little gangster.”
Only after gulping down a bowl of water did the wolf finally disappear. I watched it vanish somewhere into the forest, then went inside the cabin to grab a basket.
There was a lot to do. So much that if I sat around, it would be lunchtime in a flash.
I moved quickly, like a proper slave. It was all menial work, but it felt more rewarding than when I was a slave to the villagers.
After all, wasn't I the slave of a beautiful woman who claimed to be cursed? There couldn't be many jobs more rewarding than this.
“That bitch…”
Evangeline, who was monitoring Yohan with her magic, ground her teeth as she watched the wolf clinging to him.
She felt like running out right now and kicking the wolf away. It was frustrating that she couldn't.
‘He’s mine. Don’t touch what’s mine…’
Most people wouldn't get so jealous just because a person was close to an animal. But she was a witch. A witch whose heart had rotted away after spending nearly a hundred years as a recluse.
If a witch and a human could be lovers, then so could a human and a beast.
Even if others didn't think so, she, the witch, did.
“Ah, he’ll be coming up soon…”
Grinding her teeth as she looked into the crystal ball, Evangeline saw Yohan enter the cabin and quickly straightened her clothes.
Soon after, Yohan came upstairs and knocked on her door. After clearing her throat with a few coughs, she answered in a soft voice.
—Eva?
“What is it?”
—I came to ask if there’s anything you’d like for lunch…
“Anything is fine.”
—Understood.
A moment later, Yohan went back downstairs. Evangeline immediately turned her gaze back to the crystal ball. It showed Yohan cooking in the kitchen.
It was a back she wanted to run to and embrace right this instant. Suppressing her surging desire, Evangeline took a light, deep breath.
I was lucky.
A fish had ended up inside the water bucket.
It was an unexpected stroke of luck. And unexpected things are always welcome.
‘…Wait a minute.’
But then I was faced with a serious problem.
I had no idea how to clean a fish.
‘How am I supposed to eat this?’
I had a rough idea from watching a few videos on how to prepare fish. Chop off the head, slice open the belly, pull out the guts… and then rinse the inside with water, right?
To do that, I needed a blade. No, more than that, rubber gloves, or maybe tongs…
‘You want me to grab that with my bare hands?’
I scowled, looking down at the fish flopping about, still alive. The slippery scales were daunting to even touch with my bare hands.
Unfortunately, there were no rubber gloves here. Nor was there anyone to clean the fish for me. As an assistant, could I really ask my master to clean a fish for me?
In the end, I approached the fish, recalling the knowledge I’d gleaned from YouTube. I pressed down hard on its thrashing body and brought the handle of a blade down on its head.
Thwack! Thwack-! I struck it so hard that the fish’s head was crushed against the cutting board. Before long, the fish stopped moving.
“Ugh—fucking hell…”
I squeezed my eyes shut and cut off the fish’s head. I’d messed up and crushed part of the body too, but it should still be edible…
I slit the belly and pulled out the guts. I rinsed the empty cavity under running water and scraped off the scales.
Cooking the prepared fish was a very simple matter.
‘Ah, screw it.’
Here, there was a magic seasoning the witch had created, and anything cooked with it was bound to become edible.
With that thought, I sliced the fish as if preparing sashimi, threw it straight into the stew, and started boiling it vigorously. It was my attempt at making a spicy fish stew…
“…What is this?”
“Ah, this is…”
A little later, the witch came down from her room and frowned at the spicy fish stew I had made. To be fair, in a place where fish was a rare sight, the stew did look like something that had just crawled out of hell.
I began to explain desperately.
“It’s a dish called spicy fish stew, something we eat often in my homeland! It might look like this, but it tastes great! Really!”
“Hmmm… so you eat things like this.”
“Yep! We can’t get enough of it!”
The witch stirred the stew a few times with her spoon, then took a small bite.
I watched her chewing mouth silently, waiting for her verdict. A criminal before a judge wouldn't be this nervous.
“Well… it does taste good.”
“R-Right!?”
Thankfully, the words “tastes good” came out of her mouth. I let out a sigh of relief and followed her lead, scooping a bowl of the stew for myself.
The plump flesh burst in my mouth, and a moment later—I felt something hot swirling in my stomach.
“…Um, Eva?”
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
“E-Excuse me, but may I use the restroom…?”
“…Go ahead.”
I clutched my burning stomach and ran to the restroom. Shit, it must have had parasites.
To make such a scene in front of the person who was practically my master, honestly, it was a little embarrassing.
I rushed to the restroom and sat down, only to realize that what came out of my stomach wasn't just shit.
“…What is this?”
A blue haze was shimmering from my palm.
Just like Neji from Naruto.