Chapter 98
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: Self-Invited Calamity
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"Caw."
I stared piercingly at Kiki and Cherry, tangled up in the net.
"Hehe…."
The two apprentice witches laughed awkwardly.
It was a relief there weren't any burly humans with weapons standing by, but the first question that popped into my head was why.
Why the hell are these two here?
"Caw?"
"Shh, quiet…!"
Kiki raised her hand and frantically tried to hush me.
How loud is my voice supposed to be?
Your 'shh' was way louder just now.
"They're going crazy trying to catch you, Mr. Crow!"
So, your voices are louder, you idiots?
"But who are we? I said I'd take responsibility and catch you myself. Thanks to that, we've got this whole area covered, so no need to worry."
Kiki spoke with a smug air of pride.
"Caw caw caw…."
I could roughly piece it together.
People were still out there searching for me right now, the crow wrongly accused of theft.
But since this spot was assigned to Kiki and Cherry, I didn't have to worry about getting caught here.
"Caw?"
So why'd you throw that net at me?
"…Well, something was moving, so we just…"
And weren't you calling it a boiled chicken or something?
You knew I was a bird, right?
"Ahem, let's gloss over the little details… Eek! D-don't peck us with your beak!"
Peck. Peck.
I pecked at Cherry and Kiki in punishment.
"Uweng…."
After scolding them a bit, I heard the full story.
Originally, most of the people here had planned to pull an all-nighter hunting me down.
Far more had missed me than actually crossed paths with me.
Despite that, they'd set up such a plan because of the treasure in this place.
They didn't care what happened to the crow merchant—they just wanted to snag whatever emerged with the treasure.
They should've been lying in wait like that, but now everything was sloppy and half-assed.
"The Executioner helped us out."
The Executioner.
She helped me.
She'd spun a tale about the Plague Witch and the Deep Sea Witch sneaking in here, then added that the two had made off with the ruins' treasure.
So, what would everyone focus on now?
They'd prioritize chasing witches with the Executioner over guarding ruins that had already been looted.
It was only natural.
Their original goal was this place's treasure: the Tin Woodman's crown.
Sure, fighting two witches might be daunting, but tagging along with the Executioner meant they figured they had a shot.
Plus, with everyone gathered here combined, it wasn't a small force.
So, most of the key fighters had left with the Executioner, leaving the rest to clean up.
Waiting in case the ruins' entrance reopened.
With numbers thinned out, they'd stuck two pathetic apprentice witches on guard duty.
"Hehe…."
Which meant these two were all there was here….
Well, then I can make as much noise as I want, right?
Peck.
"Kyaa!"
I pecked them a few more times.
My beak had gotten so sharp lately, so I went easy—just on their clothed parts.
"B-but, Mr. Crow, you've gotten huge. Were you always this big? Your color's a bit different too…."
"Caw."
Kiki and Cherry finally noticed my size and gawked in wonder.
Now they were at a level where I could snatch one with each talon.
I glanced at my claws, and the apprentice witches huddled together, trembling.
"W-we don't know what you're thinking, but it can't be good!"
I had to transport these two anyway.
Me and the apprentice witches had a contract, after all.
You have formed a contract with two apprentice witches.
The contract's condition is for them to faithfully carry out the missions you and the Sage assign during the exploration of the Tin Ruins.
In return, you and the Sage provide an introduction to the Day Witch and your shed feathers.
The contractors' loyalty is extremely high.
As long as you uphold the conditions, the chance of contract termination is very low.
If the apprentice witches level up, you receive special rewards.
If you level up, the apprentice witches' magic power increases.
Breaking the contract without mutual agreement permanently seals one trait of the breaker.
The contract's terms were that they'd become my limbs, fetching info and items, and in exchange, I'd introduce them to Gretel.
They'd completed their missions, so it was time to take them to her.
I was planning to drop by Gretel's anyway, so bringing them along made sense.
Kiki, who'd been shivering like she could read my mind, clapped once and spoke up.
"Oh, and this is something the Executioner asked us to pass on…."
The Executioner?
Why mention something that important now?
Told you—gotta peck 'em a few times to get their brains working.
Cherry rummaged in her bosom and pulled out white and black garments.
Garments?
What the heck were these all of a sudden?
Several of the same thing, too?
"She said she didn't know if you'd want the ones she was wearing or not, so she packed both… Honestly, I have no idea what's what…."
Kiki trailed off, avoiding my gaze.
"Caaaaaw!"
What the hell do you take me for?
"Caw caw!"
I need an image makeover.
Do you really think I like that kind of stuff?
"Caw…."
Fine, I'll take 'em since they're offering, but just to sell later.
I snatched them quick with my beak and handed them to Swungswung.
"Ooh…. As expected… Mr. Crow has that kind of taste…?"
"S-sis, don't say it like that! Eek! Look! His head's spinning…! I-if we strip now…!"
I gave the two blabbering apprentice witches a good thrashing.
"Caw."
Enough. Get ready to go.
With the Executioner gone, no reason to stick around here.
Leave a few markers, then fly straight to Gretel.
"Y-you're really gonna carry us in your talons…?"
"Caw? Caw, caw."
Come on, would I really?
I could carry one on my back, at least.
Two might be pushing it.
If I grew more from leveling, maybe, but right now it's iffy.
Still, no problem.
Swungswung had evolved too, so he could manage one person somehow.
"Swung?"
No guarantees on ride comfort, though.
I flapped my wings, and Kiki and Cherry hesitated.
Did they not get what I meant?
Makes sense—hard to perfectly read intent from just caws.
No worries, though.
I'm a crow who can mimic human speech, after all.
"Krrrrgh…. Duuuuueee…. Riiiide…."
"S-s-s-sorry!"
"Don't eat us, don't eat us…."
Sheesh.
One crow was leisurely flying through the sky when an incident broke out.
"…What the hell is this pattern?"
The crow thought it was nothing and brushed it off lightly, but that snagged his ankle.
No direct impact on him yet, but his infamy and fame—things he actually cared about—were sure to swing wildly because of this.
To sum up the incident that unfolded without the crow's knowledge: it was about feather-shaped tattoos appearing on female adventurers.
Such a mark had shown up on certain parts of women's bodies.
They tried dismissing it as one woman's eccentricity, but with so many cases, they had no choice but to investigate.
"Spit it out. Isn't this a contract mark? We might even think you're tied to the Night Witch."
Under the grilling, they had no choice but to reveal the embarrassing truth.
"W-well, you see… the thing is…."
Stories about the massive crow they'd met in the ruins.
About the crow they'd encountered on the brink of starvation, who generously shared food.
And in exchange, how they'd ended up with an indelible crow mark etched on their bodies.
They couldn't bring themselves to admit it'd been for luxuries on credit.
It was astonishing gossip.
Not only had Skarnass's giant crow moved to the Tin Ruins, it was doing business with humans.
And leaving its mark on women's bodies, no less.
No ordinary creature.
Not a spirit beast or a monster.
A yokai.
It fit the term yokai perfectly.
Rumors about the crow snowballed.
Skarnass's big crow loves branding its pattern on women.
And it especially fancies women's clothes.
Ridiculous nonsense spread that it particularly liked freshly worn stockings.
Something the crow would've grabbed them by the scruff for if he'd heard—but sadly, he wasn't around.
Unstopped, the rumors proliferated, boosting the crow's infamy inevitably.
Even now, the crow was tilting its head at a rising blue window.
Infamy up, and he hadn't done a thing.
One oddity: fame was ticking up too.
Some saw his actions as honorable.
And there was an unexpected side effect.
Clothing shop sales spiked.
Obviously, because female adventurers were buying more stockings.
Too many to chalk up to simple replacements for lost ones.
More adventurers started carrying multiples as spares.
They wore expectant looks but clammed up if asked.
These were the culprits boosting the crow's fame.
Up to here, it sounded good.
The crow's desired infamy and fame had risen, after all.
But good things don't always last.
There was one misfortune the crow didn't know about.
A disaster that overshadowed all the perks.
A few male adventurers had heard the rumors and started mimicking the others.
That's right.
The era had arrived where male adventurers wore stockings without a care.
Sure, stockings originated as men's wear, but it was a sight the crow couldn't stomach.
The self-invited calamity.
Oblivious, the crow cawed as it headed for Gretel's hut.