43. Time to Say Goodbye (1)
43. Time to Say Goodbye (1)
[Chapter 43] - Time to Say Goodbye (1)
I snatched the Coven's Invitation from the princess's hand, almost as if I were robbing her. At that, the princess pouted and glared at me, complaining that I'd stolen the gift Fran had given her.
"S-sorry. Wait just a moment. Fran, why on earth are you giving something like this to Titania?"
"There is no grand reason for giving her the invitation. It is simply that the Princess appears to have quite enough talent as a 'witch,' and it was the most valuable item I could offer her at this moment."
At the mention of the princess having 'talent' as a witch, I couldn't help but frown.
I already knew the princess had 'talent' as a witch, given that she could command the Seven Dwarf Fairies and had a 'Witch Ending' in the game, but...
I looked at the 'Coven's Invitation' in my hand and made a wry face.
"...No, this won't do. If you're going to give her a gift, give her something else. Something not related to 'witches'."
"Why is that? I am not necessarily telling the Princess to become a witch. Besides, just getting to know the witches of the Coven might be of great help to the Princess later on."
"That... might be true, but..."
Fran calmly began to explain what the 'Coven' was.
A gathering of witches, a place where various 'witches' with talent gather to share their knowledge.
And, just like Fran is a doctor, they are all 'experts' in their respective fields.
I already knew most of this, but the princess, hearing about the Coven for the first time, perked up her ears and focused on Fran's words.
For a princess who had lived her whole life in the royal palace, stories about the outside world couldn't help but pique her curiosity.
Fran said that such people would surely help the princess when she was in trouble, and pulled a new 'Coven's Invitation' from her pocket to hand to the princess.
I snatched the letter as it was being passed from Fran's hand to the princess's again, and shook my head while looking at the princess.
At that, the princess, having had her gift taken away twice, puffed out her cheeks and held out her hand to me, demanding I return it immediately.
"No."
"Why...? Fran gave it to me... It's my birthday present..."
"...Regardless, it's a no."
Because I don't want you to become a 'witch'.
Fran was already entangled, so that couldn't be helped, but I didn't want the princess to get entangled with other 'witches' in the future.
I knew all too well how people viewed Vivian, who was rumored to be a 'witch' by everyone.
I could be careful not to get caught, but I couldn't help but worry because I knew what would happen if I did. I looked at the teary-eyed princess and shook my head firmly.
"No means no! Not all witches are good people like Fran! Some of them even eat people, so do you still want to go?!"
"There are no witches who eat people in the Coven, however."
I tried my best to ignore Fran's interjection and looked at the princess with a serious expression. As if to say she wasn't afraid of any man-eating witch, the princess opened her eyes wide! and glared at me, holding out her hand.
"Give it back!"
"No! Nothing good comes from getting involved with witches!"
"But Queen-jeonha is a witch too! You told me you were a good witch!"
"Th-that's...!"
With my past remark now coming back to bite me, I couldn't help but look at the princess with a wry expression.
The princess, seemingly having no intention of backing down, approached me and tried to snatch the letter instead.
When I held the letter high above my head, she started jumping up and down in front of me, demanding I give it back.
Just as I was wondering what on earth I should do, Fran pulled a bunch of invitations from her pocket and showed them to the princess.
"There are still plenty left."
"Wait...!"
The princess, seeing the invitations filling both of Fran's hands, opened her eyes wide, scurried over to take the letter, and hid it in her pocket. Seeing that, I couldn't help but press a hand to my forehead as my head throbbed.
'I really don't want her to get involved with witches...'
When I let out a deep sigh, the princess was busy glancing at me, trying to gauge my mood. Did she think I was angry? The princess kept peeking at me before eventually hiding behind Fran.
I let out another deep sigh, slumped into a chair, and looked at the princess who had hidden behind Fran. The princess made eye contact with me, then stayed behind Fran's back and stared at me intently.
Then, Ainsel, hanging around the princess's neck, made a suggestion.
-W-well, when the Princess goes to the Coven later, you can just go with her, right? I understand that you're worried about the Princess, but... you really don't have to worry. It's not that bad of a place.
"...Alright, if you put it that way, I understand."
When I nodded in agreement, the princess's face brightened up. She was so happy that I had given her permission that she even jumped up and down on the spot, holding Ainsel, who was hanging around her neck.
"...Are you that happy?"
"Yes!"
Looking at the princess with her ehehe smile, I felt a sense of guilt pricking at my heart.
Well... I had given her permission to go to the Coven, but I had no intention of actually going.
In the first place, even if one received a Coven's Invitation, it wasn't easy to go. Just like the reason I couldn't go to the Coven, the princess couldn't easily leave the royal castle because of her position as a 'princess' of the kingdom.
So, I had given permission just in words, thinking that as the princess grew older, she would realize her own situation and understand on her own.
As I was nodding, Fran also nodded and patted the princess's head. Then, she comforted the princess with words I hadn't expected at all.
"I am glad Vivian has given her permission. If you wish to go to the Coven, you may open the letter at any time. I will come to pick up the Princess and Vivian myself."
"Huh?"
When I looked at Fran with wide eyes, she showed me the invitation as if asking if I hadn't known. And when she opened the invitation, an alarm rang out with a ppiyong-ppiyong sound from the necklace around Fran's neck.
"As you can see, it is set to send an alarm to me when the letter is opened. And because I am an excellent witch, I can arrive here in an instant. Furthermore, I can escort you to the Coven's gathering place in an instant. To reiterate, because I am an excellent witch."
Fran put her hands on her hips, puffed out her chest confidently, and boasted of her competence.
'So... that means if the letter is opened, an alarm goes straight to Fran, and Fran can come here as if teleporting and take us away...? I thought it was just a simple invitation...'
I couldn't help but gulp, dry-swallowing at the invitation, which had so many functions that I wondered if I had given permission for no reason. For some reason, various uses came to mind, but I shook my head vigorously to clear my thoughts.
Whether she knew my feelings or not, the princess was just jumping up and down in front of Fran, delighted at how amazing it was. Thinking I should confiscate the invitation, I reached out my hand to the princess—
"Titania, let me hold onto the invitation for now. If you want to go later, make sure to tell me—"
"No! I'm going to keep it!"
The princess instantly dodged my hand, ran to the corner of the room, curled her body into a ball, and protected the invitation. She even growled at me not to come any closer.
It looked just like a child struggling not to have their New Year's money taken away by their parents. As if she no longer believed the words that I would return it when she grew up, the princess curled her body up tightly and struggled to protect the invitation.
-They say taking back what you gave is the worst thing to do...
"That is correct. Vivian, you do not understand the human heart."
On top of that, Ainsel and Fran were whispering, shaking their heads.
For some reason, it felt like I had become the bad guy, so I had no choice but to withdraw the hand I had reached out to the princess.
I crouched down on the floor as well to meet the gaze of the crouching princess.
Then, the princess, who had been hugging her knees and burying her head, curled into a ball, peeked up and made eye contact with me.
"...Alright, I won't try to take it away anymore. Instead, when you open the invitation, you must, really, really, really make sure to tell me first. Okay?"
"Ehehe! Yes! Okay!"
The princess, who had curled her body into a ball, stretched out wide! and jumped up to hug me. Yeah... how could I refuse when you ask me like this?
I hugged the princess who had embraced me and sat down on the chair. Looking at the princess, who was gazing at the invitation on my lap as if she were truly happy, I thought that it didn't matter anymore.
'Yeah... it's not particularly dangerous, and I can just think of it as a tool that sends an alarm to Fran when the invitation is opened, right?'
I thought that if something truly dangerous happened to the princess later, I could get help from Fran if I had this invitation. Not just Fran, but I could probably get help from other witches too.
'Yeah, let's just think of it as simple 'insurance'.'
I rubbed my cheek against the princess's face to soothe the anxiety that had somehow bloomed in my heart.
The princess shrank back, laughing kkyareureu and saying it tickled, but I just held her head in place and kept rubbing my cheek against her.
And so, our short party ended, and the next morning, Fran said goodbye to the princess, saying it was time to leave.
*
"Are you really going back...?"
"Yes, Ainsel, who was a patient, is better now, so it is time for me to return. There are many patients waiting for me where I was, so it cannot be helped."
Before leaving, Fran, having packed her meager belongings, crouched down to look at the princess and meet her gaze. The princess didn't try to meet Fran's eyes and turned her head to avoid Fran's gaze.
Then, the princess eventually ran to me with quick steps and hid behind my skirt. Fran, watching the princess shake her head as if she didn't even want to look at her, held out her hand to the princess.
"Princess, a final farewell."
"......"
The princess, with her lips pouted, looked at Fran and, as if she had no choice, held out her hand and grabbed Fran's hand. And as she tried to shake it up and down—
Pop!
Fran's wrist, which had been shaking hands, popped right off. The princess's eyes widened at the sudden Fran Joke, but as if she were used to it now, she wasn't surprised; instead, she got angry and threw the detached hand at Fran.
"Hehe, that is the final Fran Joke."
"I hate it so much!!!"