Save the Witch (4)
Thinking about it, Charlotte had plenty of suspicious traits. For a woman, her body was incredibly sturdy, and her recovery was lightning-fast. And as we'd just seen in that last fight, her knowledge of magitech was astonishingly deep. She'd even tried to hide from me whatever she'd witnessed in the Trial of Terror.
'But is that enough to call her truly suspicious?'
If there were people like me, born with frail constitutions, then by chance there could be someone like Charlotte, born tough as nails. Her magitech expertise made sense too—she was the type of maid who devoured every miscellaneous book in the house. And as for hiding what she'd seen in the Trial of Terror? I was guilty of the same.
'Why am I being targeted in the first place?'
According to Catarina, Charlotte was a "legacy" of the Drelin Kingdom, which had fallen five hundred years ago. But what did "legacy" even mean? And why was the Drelin Kingdom suddenly relevant here?
Do you know anything more detailed? Be specific.
Sorry, that's all I know. Masters don't usually explain the full reasons when ordering their tools around, right?
Master...?
One thing's certain. That half-demon calling himself the 'Last King of Drelin' lives for nothing else but rebuilding Drelin, no matter what.
A nation from five hundred years ago—why now...?
That's why they captured me too. He hates us resistance fighters most of all. Controlling a resistance mage like me? He figured that was revenge enough.
If Catarina was right, his deepest rage was aimed elsewhere. A guy claiming to be Drelin's last king would despise me above all—the one who'd slaughtered the royal family and lit the spark that burned it all down. Yustina's warning about "lots of enemies outside" finally clicked.
But his current target wasn't me. It was Charlotte.
'Still no clue why she's the key piece for rebuilding Drelin.'
Of course I was dying to know why she was marked. But not now. I could hash it out with Elfin and Yustina later. They had no idea I was reincarnated, so I wasn't in immediate danger.
Right now... it was time to face Catarina.
Dane, go for the life support device. The cloak and collar are pointless. The barrier won't vanish unless I die, and smashing the brainwashing collar just turns me into a vegetable anyway.
But...
Listen, Dane. Think of it as a favor from your coworker five hundred years back. I get how tough it is killing an old colleague, but let me be selfish here.
Got it.
I gave an affirmative through Cheongsimsul, but I had no real plan to target only the life support. Even if no path seemed clear, if you bided your time and watched, something always turned up. A hard-earned lesson from years of survival.
'Won't be easy.'
Even as I thought it, reality had me locked in combat—not with Catarina, but the "witch." This one hurling blizzards and every ice spell in the book wasn't some pushover like the serpent beast or Humpton's crew. I needed aura enhancement magic just to keep up. With Cheongsimsul feeding me previews of her attacks, it was manageable—but still hellishly tough.
'Targeting the life support might make it a tad easier.'
But some days, the hard road was the only one. I faced down the witch, fully enslaved by brainwashing and unleashing nearly all of Catarina's five-century mage arsenal. I scraped the magic core's dregs for golden sword aura, then wrapped myself in a final layer of stamina aura.
Prep was perfect. Now or never.
"Slaughter everyone but the target! Ehehehehehit! Quit getting in the way and freeze solid into ice treats, you little brat!"
"Not a brat—but you're five hundred, so I got nothing."
Why were all these older women crowding my life? Sighing, I gripped my sword two-handed and kicked off the ground.
The blizzard's gale bit like knives, ice motes scraping the air, but I ignored it. A streak of golden wind, I charged sword-first and thrust without pause.
Ice spear rising from below! Watch your feet!
Icicles weren't enough—now spears?
So smash the life support fast! She's pushing me out more and more! Full takeover means an ice age on this whole mountain!
I zeroed in on my feet and caught the ice spear's rise. Safety first? Dodge. But I didn't retreat from the spear at her marked spot—instead, I slashed the ground with my longsword, twisting midair. Then used the surging ice as a launchpad for another leap.
Taat! Foot nearly slipped, but my balance held true.
"Kekekekekeke! Th-then try this!"
The witch wielded Catarina's mana surge like a toy. Ice weapons spawned midair, stabbing my vitals over and over; crystals erupted everywhere. But I bashed ice spells with my blazing sword aura, melted others outright, and kept pressing her.
Core near empty, but sword aura mana lingered. Dodged the rest with shadow steps.
Above! Below! Right leg! Left arm! Side now!
Good!
Dodging and parrying? Piece of cake. The voice in my head called every shot. Deep inside the witch, Catarina knew the targets and fed me patterns like a coach. Felt weird at first, but mid-fight? Already adapted. Syncing with Cheongsimsul combat felt natural now.
Uh, hold up. This one's bad.
What is it?
Cold burst. Undodgeable. Blasts freezing cold from the caster, icing everything. Only way's full evasion outside the radius.
How big's the radius?
The radius Catarina marked was massive. Escape before cast? No chance, even aura-boosted. Stamina aura or not, too slow.
Couldn't run? Disrupt the cast and cancel it.
"Uwaaaaaah!"
My full-power slash hit an ice shield with a crackle. Beyond the translucent frost, the witch cackled in Catarina's face and voice, finishing her chant.
Bad. I'd flared sword aura to blunt the bone-freezing cold, but it was futile—I knew.
Then, a voice from nowhere.
"Young master! Are you alright?!"
Barrier still up—no outsiders. And who else called me "young master" at this school but Charlotte? She'd taken icicles earlier but looked unscathed, calling from way back. Witch had dropped the blizzard for other spells, visibility clear.
"Charlotte?!"
It was her, alright. Spotting her jogged memories of Catarina's Cheongsimsul bombshell—Drelin legacy, real target.
Which meant she couldn't be here. Cold blast would take her out too.
"Fall back! Cold's exploding—whole area's gonna..."
"I won't let it!"
But Charlotte was a full mage. Didn't know the spell, but sensed the mana vortex, witch's scheme. She'd scraped her barely refilled mana for a shield—barely enough for me.
"This is..."
"Don't die! Young master!"
Her thin barrier wrapped me warm as a mother's hug. Cold erupted as it sealed.
Whooooooosh!
"Guh, grrr!"
The witch's all-out cold blast was monstrous. Sword aura's heat and shield's warmth aside, skin and bones screamed freeze. No shield? Blood solid, body burst.
But I lived. Just freezing—still mobile.
Taat! White breath plumed from my mouth.
'Now.'
Post-big-spell mages needed recovery. Spamming giants nonstop? Dragon turf. Even brainwashed witch couldn't dodge human limits.
Translation: Mana-drained stagger left her wide open to my sword.
"Kya, kyaaaaaaaak?!"
Exhaustion hit. Limbs leaden, joints grinding. Stamina gone, but I pushed. No mana for aura. Shield shed, I barreled to her face and swung with newborn strength.
Target: neck. Clean cut past collar, freedom for Catarina.
That was why I fought.
Swoosh! Golden-aura arc.
Two outcomes: Miss collar, or sever and shatter magitech.
...Thanks, Dane.
Eyes bulged at Catarina's sudden voice. Then it hit.
"...Hey."
Everything I'd predicted? Wrong.
Golden aura never grazed the collar. No power issue, no weak aura—didn't even reach.
But no counterkill. Witch flopped like a marionette with snipped strings.
"You... what the..."
Trembling mutter, sword sheathed. Fight over. Done.
Witch... no, Catarina. Dead.
Dying.
――Life support, smashed by my blade.
"...Why?"
I mumbled, baffled. Witch—no, Catarina now—answered.
"Knew it. No way you'd do it."
Cheongsimsul Catarina was smooth; real Catarina? Ancient rasp, rusty iron.
Irrelevant. Question: Why'd the witch twist, shoving life support into my blade's path? I'd aimed collar endgame.
"...Held back some power."
"Power?"
"Figured you'd collar-stubborn to the end. Felt I needed to nudge. Thought about popping out at cold burst, but you cleared it—now I get to die."
"That was you? Deliberately?"
"Yeah. Told you—I wanted death."
Lids fluttered. I'd sought to free her via collar. But her freedom? Death only.
She craved it true. I delivered.
"Still... cough, died as me. Lucky."
"Why that? Could've lived fine, why..."
"Told you. Humans don't last five hundred years. I'm a centuries-dead ghost."
Breath ragged. Nature's call—back where she belonged.
Cruel irony: Nothing I could do.
Thanks, Dane. Can't talk much now.
That... really your wish?
Life support gone, she teetered on death's edge. Over-limit body crumbled: skin rotting, blood drying, heart melting to bone. Old comrade dying serene, I Cheongsimsul'd her to the end.
Yeah, sorry... but thanks. Really wanted to die.
Nothing else?! Last words or...?
Yeah. Good person'd pass revenge quest or burden clean... ahaha, guess I'm not that nice.
Finally, she named the true villain.
Make the 'Last King' pay, Dane. Show that fallen kingdom's ghost... resistance's spirit someday... for me...
...Yeah.
Aha, ahahaha. Finally over. It ends. This five-hundred-year hell... aa, aaaaa...
Her words slowed. Light fled her eyes. I watched till breath ceased, Cheongsimsul-tuned for final whispers.
...Coming to see you soon, Uncle Philbert.
Breath stopped. Cloak rags, life support wreckage. Collar? Pointless sans life.
Corpse chilled in my arms. I bit my lip.
"Make sure to give Uncle my regards too."
Barrier vanished with her death. Elfin and Yustina raced from afar. Closer, Charlotte—mana-drained, staggering—approached.
Why target Charlotte? What schemes the "Last King"?
Mountains of talk ahead, but lids stone-heavy.
"Guess I'll... nap first..."
Thud.
"Kyaaaa! Young master?! Oh no!"
"Deneb, you okay?! Qu-quick, healing..."
"Shut it—castle now! Why's it freezing here?! I'll carry as your professor, hurry...!"
"W-wait! Why scoop him up! Piggyback—piggyback!"
Warmth from rushing Charlotte's embrace, Elfin's, Yustina's lulled me under.