The Witch of Wisdom
In response to my greeting, the boy hesitated and lowered his head. Why was that?
“Right. I don’t know either. Do you know, Lady Ruina?”
“I don’t know either.”
“…Clothes.”
“You mean ‘clothes’?”
“Put some clothes on!”
I turned around. There stood Chris, modestly covering herself with a piece of cloth. I asked,
“Why aren’t you wearing clothes, Lady Chris?”
“Because you didn’t dry them for me, Lady Ruina.”
“But you covered yourself with the cloth. Isn’t that enough?”
“Exactly, exactly.”
“Haa.”
The boy let out a long sigh. Fine. I dried Chris’s clothes and body with magic. I couldn’t understand why everyone was so embarrassed over a little nudity.
“So why were you peeping at us? This is a serious crime.”
“Lady Ruina, you’ve been acting like it’s nothing until now, but pulling out common sense only when it’s convenient to pressure someone—that’s cowardly, isn’t it?”
“The boy needs to learn about the world. Adults are cowards by nature.”
“I like that line. Chris, four points.”
“Is it out of five?”
“Out of ten?”
Chris wore an innocent expression. I turned away. That was fair enough.
“Ow! Lady Ruina! Why did you hit me all of a sudden!”
“I didn’t do it. Jeogyeng did.”
“You’re the master of the magic, Lady Ruina!”
Ruina knows nothing. It was all Jeogyeng’s doing. I bent down and met the boy’s eyes.
“I’m Ruina. What’s your name?”
“…Noa.”
“Do you live nearby, Noa?”
“Yeah.”
I glanced at Chris. She snapped her fingers and said,
“Looks like we’ve arrived at our destination?”
“We were camping right in front of the village. What should we do?”
“No need to camp anymore.”
We returned to the campsite and shared the news.
“There’s a village right nearby?”
“Yes.”
“Where is it?”
“Noa here will guide us. Noa?”
At my words, Noa—who had somehow been dragged along—cautiously raised his hand. I whispered to him, feeling sorry for the boy.
“You shouldn’t follow strangers, you know. Yet here you are.”
“Is that really something you should be saying, Lady Ruina?”
We packed up the campsite and followed Noa toward the village.
“So this is East Ellen Forest.”
I put my pipe in my mouth as I took in the tranquil village scenery. Chiiik. The tobacco caught fire. I stared at Jerry, who had skillfully lit it for me.
“Jerry.”
“Yes?”
“Your skills are improving day by day.”
“Thank you.”
I wasn’t sure if that was something to be thanked for. It had been a mystery for a while—why Jerry kept lighting my pipe. Who ordered him to do it? Was it you, Leon? I didn’t think you were the type to enforce discipline on newcomers. This won’t do. Both of you, follow me to the rooftop later.
Following Noa’s guidance, we headed to the inn and unpacked. Rural inns were all the same, but there was one thing that never changed.
“One honey mead, please!”
Long live the God of Alcohol. I leaned back in my chair, relaxing as I downed the cool honey mead. It had been a while since I’d had any, and it felt like I was coming back to life.
“If I ever had the chance to choose a religion, I’d believe in the God of Alcohol.”
“You look like you would.”
“The God of Alcohol is the best.”
God of Alcohol, I like you, I like you, I like you. I ordered another round of honey mead and spoke up.
“Order one for Noa too.”
“When can I go home?”
“You can go whenever you want. So, are you not going to take the free food?”
“I’ll have milk and smoked meat.”
“As expected, milk.”
I glanced at Leon and ordered smoked meat and milk for Noa. Two glasses of milk, to be precise. I placed the extra glass in front of Leon and activated a soundproofing spell. It was time to discuss important matters.
“Let’s talk about our objective now. Lady Chris?”
“The situation isn’t great.”
“Is that so? Specifically?”
“There’s not a single rumor about you in this village, Lady Ruina.”
Thud. Chris placed two small wooden figurines on the table—a wooden soldier and a wooden giant.
“No one’s going to buy these like this.”
“That’s strange.”
“Right? Strange, isn’t it? Me going bankrupt—this goes against the natural order of the world.”
“That’s not it. Our goal was clearly the Holy Grail, so it’s strange that you’re talking about business, Lady Chris.”
What was with her? Chris muttered in a sullen voice.
“Creating figurines as a byproduct of the magic you cast was actually perfect…”
“I was impressed by that. You know how to stimulate consumer desire.”
“We even put on a grand theatrical performance…”
“I was wondering what you were doing with two hundred gold coins, and it turns out you were funding a play.”
No wonder it seemed like too much just to make figurines. She had used it to produce and stage a play. I patted Chris on the shoulder.
“This kind of business is a long-term game. We have to wait for consumers to become familiar with the character ‘Ruina.’”
“I’ll do my best, Lady Ruina.”
“Fighting.”
Smiling faintly, I thought to myself, As expected, a paladin at heart. From the beginning, I had planned to help Leon with his Holy Grail quest to heal my full-body burns. Really. I hadn’t been distracted by side quests. Believe me.
“…The Holy Grail?”
Noa slowly moved his lips. Oh no, an outsider overheard. I changed my expression and spoke.
“Eavesdropping on our secret, are we? I can’t let you go easily.”
“Hiiiik!”
“Lady Ruina, it’s not really a secret anymore. Everyone knows the Holy Kingdom is searching for the Holy Grail.”
“Rumors travel slowly in rural villages like this.”
“Only you would think of tormenting people with information gaps, Lady Ruina.”
“There are plenty of others. For example, Lady Chris, or Jerry.”
“Me?”
I exhaled a long stream of smoke toward the ceiling. The Holy Grail, huh.
“So where does the Witch of Wisdom live?”
“…If it’s that woman, she lives on the hill.”
“Really?”
Fortunately, Noa seemed to know who the Witch of Wisdom was. Of course he did—she was famous even outside the village, and Noa was a local. I took the opportunity to ask more.
“We want to ask the Witch of Wisdom about the Holy Grail’s location. Would she tell us if we just showed up?”
“She loves to talk. She’d probably be happy about it.”
“You two seem closer than I thought.”
“…Not really.”
Noa denied it bluntly, but someone who wasn’t close wouldn’t know such personal details.
“Just like Lady Chris said. The Witch of Wisdom seems to enjoy helping others more than expected.”
“I told you. The chances are high.”
“Noa, is the Witch of Wisdom connected to the Holy Grail?”
“Probably not.”
“Really? Do you have a reason for thinking that?”
“……”
“You have one, but you don’t want to say. Understood.”
It was decided. We would focus on asking about the Holy Grail’s location first, while investigating the Witch of Wisdom just in case.
“Now that it’s decided, there’s only one thing left.”
“Right.”
I spoke quietly.
“Jerry?”
“Yes? Do I need to do something?”
“No.”
What would he do? It was late, so we should just sleep and visit tomorrow.
“Then why did you call me?”
“I was bored.”
*
The Witch of Wisdom lived in a brick house on a hill. Smoke rose from the chimney of that picturesque home. When smoke came from a witch’s house, it meant one of two things: she was burning someone, or making something bizarre.
“The Witch of Wisdom is a witch in name only. She’s not really that kind of mage, is she?”
“Lady Chris, how naive. If a mage is called a witch, there’s a reason for it.”
“Got it, Witch of Vengeance.”
Knock knock. I knocked on the door of the brick house. There was no response. I looked at Chris, Leon, and Muran in turn, then asked Jerry,
“Jerry, could you call for her?”
“Why me?”
“Just in case.”
Reluctantly, Jerry stood in front of the brick house and knocked.
“Is anyone—?”
“What are you lot doing?”
We all turned toward the voice behind us. There stood an elderly woman wearing a tall, pointed hat. I blurted out reflexively,
“A witch hat. She’s a witch.”
“That’s why people call me a witch.”
“So that’s why you wear it.”
The Witch of Wisdom chuckled and opened the door, stepping inside. We followed her into the house. Seated in a rocking chair by the fireplace, she looked us over one by one before slowly asking,
“So why have you come here?”
“I’m Ruina. I came because I have a question.”
“A question. I’m Elera. Go ahead.”
“Do you know the location of the Holy Grail?”
“Hmm.”
Elera rocked her chair back and forth at my words. Then she calmly spoke.
“I could tell you.”
“Is that true?”
“But what you’re trying to learn is far too significant to give away for free. I’ll need something in return.”
“I’ll pay any price I can.”
“Oh?”
Elera’s lips curled upward in satisfaction. She met my eyes.
“Hey, there’s actually one thing I’m curious about when it comes to you.”
“Please, ask.”
When I answered, wondering what could possibly interest her, Elera spoke in a casual tone.
“You’re the user of Balance, aren’t you?”