The Witch (2)
The fight between Serael and Rosetta was somehow brought to an end when the Belcadia Empire’s Royal Guard Knights were urgently dispatched. Fortunately, there were no casualties in the surrounding area. Despite their lofty status as guild masters, the two were locked in temporary detention cells until the investigation into their riot in the heart of the imperial capital and the destruction of a guild headquarters was complete.
There had been suggestions to ignore procedure and separate them into solitary cells given the unprecedented nature of a brawl between guild masters, but the empire’s Chief Justice ultimately chose to follow protocol.
Crackle. Crackle.
“……”
“……”
Locked in the detention cell, Rosetta and Serael leaned against the wall and glared at each other in silence. Both of their wrists were bound with mana-suppressing cuffs. Yet everyone around them knew that if either woman truly exerted her power, those restraints would become useless in an instant.
The guards spent the entire day—from dawn until late at night—in a state of high anxiety, staying tense in case of another incident. Fortunately, the pair did nothing more than stare daggers at one another. No further clashes occurred.
And so, dawn arrived.
Once the area grew quiet and the tension had dulled, Rosetta let out a huge yawn.
“Haaaaaaaam.”
“……”
Serael glared at her even harder.
“How vulgar.”
“Hahaha. You think so?”
“Though perhaps the one who’s truly lacking in dignity… is me.”
Serael looked away and stared at the floor.
“My obsession with him grew so severe that I lost myself in delusions without realizing it. Yes. It was quite serious.”
“So you’ve finally come to your senses?”
“Hehe. But you know how women are. We naturally come to depend on the man we like, don’t we? Especially when that man rescues someone who had imprisoned herself for hundreds of years…”
Serael’s eyes grew distant, as if she were lost in old memories.
Rosetta understood that wistful look all too well. Seeing that the elf finally seemed willing to talk, she asked,
“Tell me about Kael’s last known movements.”
“…”
Serael fell into brief thought before looking at Rosetta and opening her mouth. Her voice carried a tender ache, as though she were swimming through cherished recollections.
“…As a master yourself, you must know this already, but the higher the rank of a request, the more thoroughly its information is verified. That’s why I was so shocked when that particular commission reached our side.”
“What was it?”
“The demon race has returned.”
“…”
Rosetta’s face hardened. She immediately understood the weight of Serael’s words.
“The credibility was absolute. An entire village of fewer than a thousand people was wiped out in a single moment. Every last one of them died in unspeakable agony, tormented before being brutally slaughtered. And the sole survivor who delivered the information… right in front of me…”
Serael’s expression twisted.
“…exploded. His body was packed full of parasitic worms from the demon realm, writhing like cockroaches. The moment he burst open, those parasites scattered in every direction as if they’d been waiting for it. We managed to catch them all, though.”
“…”
“So it was clearly sent to me on purpose. Like a little greeting, telling me that fun times were ahead.”
“A demon with intelligence, then.”
“Exactly. And there is only one demon who wields explosions and insects.”
In that instant, an old record flashed through Rosetta’s mind. One of the Four Great Apocalypses.
“Nergas Morbiterion.”
“Yes. While I was gathering information, debating how to handle it and whether to make it public, Kael came to see me. I still don’t know how he found out.”
“I see…”
Kael had always been like that. Just as he had once saved her, he always appeared at the exact moment he was needed.
“After speaking with him, it became clear that Kael had already been dealing with the demon race. He must have received information from the Saintess Mano and moved accordingly.”
“……”
Whenever Rosetta followed Kael’s trail, the name of the Saintess inevitably surfaced. She made a mental note to visit her later.
“And after that?”
Serael shrugged.
“I don’t have the details of the process, but I know the outcome. Kael defeated Nergas and sealed him away. I even received unofficial confirmation from the Holy See after sending someone to check. There have been no further demon sightings since. We re-verified the World Tree that we elves manage, the Demon King’s seal under human care, the Hero’s Sword embedded in the earth, and the gateway watched over by the dragon race. Everything had been restored to normal.”
“…”
“The World Tree and the Hero’s Sword were fine. It seems the gateway’s power had weakened slightly, allowing movement. By the time we realized what was happening, souls from the demon realm had already slipped through. The damage and cleanup fell entirely on us.”
Serael’s eyes widened. Then, in a self-mocking tone, she added,
“To think I just said ‘us’… Have I spent too much time working with humans? Elves and humans are clearly different beings.”
“That’s what people call assimilation.”
“Hmph.”
Serael scoffed at Rosetta’s words but offered no rebuttal.
“But those damn lizards caused this mess with their own mistake and did nothing about it?”
“They’re the race that believes itself the most noble after the gods themselves. Truly insufferable, aren’t they?”
“It’s funny hearing an elf say that.”
“…”
Serael decided then and there that she could never become friends with this human called Rosetta.
“When Kael left me, he asked me not to look for him even if he died. But I searched for any trace of him anyway. I found his broken sword and the path he had walked on his own.”
“…So that’s proof he’s still alive.”
“Correct. But I won’t search any further. Because when he asked me that favor, I felt it was truly the end. For someone like Kael, who hates standing out, it’s actually a fitting retirement.”
“……”
There were countless people in the world, but among them, the man named Kael whom Rosetta had been tracking was the most strikingly unique. Despite possessing overwhelming power and heroic accomplishments, he never put himself forward. Among humans—creatures whose short lives were usually filled with countless desires—he was the most deviant of all. In fact, he was more detached and pure than the humans who spent their entire lives serving the gods in ascetic pursuit.
Well, I suppose there isn’t a single woman who wouldn’t be drawn to a man with such an upright and pure heart!
It made sense that Serael, the most racist and haughty elf Rosetta had ever met, had once sparkled with excitement when speaking of him. Though she and Serael had little in common, when it came to their obsessive devotion toward him, they were surprisingly alike.
“I see. Understood.”
“Good. I’ve shown you goodwill by revealing every piece of information I possess. Now you will stop looking for Kael.”
Rosetta tilted her head.
“Why would I?”
“What?”
Serael’s face twitched violently.
“What exactly did you hear? Kael asked me not to look for him. That’s why I’ve been patiently suppressing these pure feelings of love, cherishing his promise and—”
“Ugh, shut up. That’s your problem, not mine.”
“…What?”
Serael’s face contorted.
“That was a request he made to you. He didn’t say anything to me, did he? You can keep savoring that promise while you pleasure yourself. I’m going to find him no matter what.”
“Y-you, y-you…! H-how dare you say something so vulgar!! And what did you just say? You’re saying Kael’s feelings don’t matter!?”
“Whether they matter or not, I’ve always lived exactly as I please. You’re the one who’s going to spend her whole life masturbating to him, right?”
“Th-that’s why I said—! D-don’t say such vulgar things!!”
Serael shouted, her face flushed crimson.
Watching a centuries-old elf act so innocently embarrassed, Rosetta clutched her stomach and burst into laughter.
“Puhahahahahaha! Have you been wasting all those years? Oh my god, my stomach! Look at you, too shy to even say the word ‘masturbate’ out loud!! Ahahahaha! To think such a pure maiden has been the Master of the Northern Continent Adventurer Guild all this time! Or maybe Big Sis should give you a little sex education before I go? Puhahaha!”
“Y-you… you rotten bitch!!”
Her face burning with humiliation and rage, Serael began drawing on her mana. An overwhelming, suffocating pressure surged through the air, vibrating with power. Her gaze locked solely on Rosetta. The cuffs she had been wearing had already been shattered and discarded long ago. A massive orb of darkness capable of annihilating anything it touched flew straight at Rosetta.
Rosetta barely dodged it once again.
Boom!
The moment the sphere of darkness struck the building, a deafening explosion rang out. The detention facility they were in began to shake violently.
“—I-it’s an earthquake!”
“No it’s not! Those crazy bitches are fighting again!”
“Run!”
“The building’s about to collapse!”
Just like the day before, Rosetta and Serael continued fighting until the entire building crumbled into dust. And once again, the empire’s Royal Guard Knights were urgently dispatched to somehow bring the chaos to an end.
If either Serael Bernakis or Rosetta once again poses a serious threat to the empire’s property and security at the heart of Belcadia, they shall both be regarded as major enemies of the empire.
— Chief Justice of Belcadia —
And furthermore, until the investigation concludes, procedure will be exceptionally disregarded this one time only. Serael Bernakis and Rosetta shall be held in solitary confinement in separate prisons rather than a shared detention cell.
The Chief Justice—who normally placed immense importance on proper procedure—finished the emergency hearing while staring at the two unruly women with a throbbing headache.