The White Witch
In this world, once a person turns 15, they receive the status of an adult and can get married or enlist in the army.
As someone who carries the memories of my previous life, I found myself questioning if this was too young. After all, this is an ancient era where, aside from the rare exceptions like myself, the expected lifespan barely reaches around 50. It made sense to secure a proper adult role as soon as possible.
Even for a young witch who was still just a disciple of a witch, there had been a coming-of-age ceremony. It was a ritual to demonstrate the magic they had practiced in front of countless witches and prove that they were now a full-fledged witch.
I, who turned 15 this year, had also undergone the coming-of-age ceremony without any particular tension. There was no need for worry. I was already at a level comparable to an active witch, and with no special practice required, simply casting a few usual spells would suffice to pass smoothly.
Without a single dissenting voice, it passed with unanimous agreement from disciple to full witch. Because of my hair color, I earned the title of the White Witch. That very night, I immediately went to seek Lethe out.
“Lady Lethe. I have been indebted to you for so long. If there is anything I can help with, I will return right away. Until then, farewell.”
The moment I faced her, I voiced my intention to leave. After all, she was the one who had taught me magic for three years, made me read books, and even promised to lend my strength if needed.
However, something about me suddenly showing up to leave the day I became an adult did not sit well with her. Lethe, who had been half-reclining in a large chair, narrowed her eyes and said to me.
“Wait a moment. It has only been a day since your coming-of-age ceremony ended. Is it not okay to rest here for a day or two?”
“I am sorry. I simply cannot stay still.”
“…Are you really planning to search for that boy? There has been no news at all, and since he has not returned, he might already be dead?”
“He must be alive. Besides… he might need help as well. Thank you for worrying about me, Lady Lethe.”
The reason I left as soon as I became an adult was to find Hesti, who had suddenly vanished from the Northern Region.
To me, Hesti was far more than a disposable acquaintance. She was the benefactor who first brought me a book when I desperately wished to read one. She was my teacher who taught me magic and showed me how to live in this world. She was a precious family member who shared unconditional love as deeply as my parents.
So, even if she had died, I wanted to find her traces and create a grave for her. If Lethe tried to hold me back, I planned to forcefully push her aside and leave.
Lethe, who had been silently staring at me for a long while as if urging me to think calmly, let out a sigh as if her will had broken.
“…Haa, the same stubborn disciple as her master. It is truly no different that she refuses to listen to reason.”
“Thank you for the praise.”
“I was not praising! Honestly, where did this brat pick up such cheek?”
Is it not praise that she is exactly like Hesti? When I tilted my head seriously, Lethe shook her head, saying she had a bump on her forehead.
Then, lightly snapping her fingers, she summoned a purely white outfit with magic and handed it to me.
“What is this…?”
“This is the divine artifact known as the Feather Robe. It is durable and possesses the ability not to become dirty. It was a gift from a past kingdom I helped save. If you are going to bring that person back, you may use it.”
“Is it okay for me to receive such a valuable item?”
“It does not matter. After all, you do not go out much anyway, and giving it to anyone is fine with me.”
Lethe had been persistently trying to get me to explore magic together without leaving her side, so I knew she would be angry if I suddenly left. I never imagined I would receive such a gift.
While I stood dumbfounded, clutching the Feather Robe, Lethe, apparently satisfied with my reaction, propped her chin on her hand and smiled faintly. I quickly regained my composure and bowed deeply in gratitude.
“I am grateful, Lady Lethe.”
“Well… yes. Try it on as a test. I will assess if it suits you.”
“Yes.”
“Wait, do not take it off yet! There is a room with no one beside you!”
“Is it not fine? It is not an age to feel embarrassed.”
“You have only just become an adult! Moreover, if anyone sees this, they will think I am a pervert who makes the newly adult witch take off her clothes! Go change in the other room and come back!”
I wondered what an elderly woman over a hundred years old had to feel embarrassed about. But, of course, establishing such an image was dangerous at this age.
Fully understanding, I changed into the Feather Robe I received from the other room and returned. Lethe smiled satisfiedly and created a mirror with magic, saying to confirm my appearance.
The first thing that caught my eye in the mirror was my silver-white hair. My original hair was jet black like obsidian. The star mana had dyed it into a color like a deep blue galaxy.
With a height of only 150 cm, skin as white and smooth as sticky rice cakes, and an unrealistically beautiful face that could be mistaken for a handmade doll, even in the darkness my blue eyes sparkled. My figure also lacked nothing.
Perhaps there was an effect where embracing mana made one beautiful. Even in my time as a rural idol, I was not this attractive. Now I looked like a fairy from a story.
‘With the Feather Robe on top, it looks like I am attending some grand ball. Is it okay to walk around like this?’
I suddenly felt like returning it. There were no trains or planes to the North here. I would have to walk on foot, and it would be too conspicuous. I did not want to do anything bothersome.
Noticing my concern, Lethe explained that there was magic in the Feather Robe to make its presence faint. With that, it would probably end up looking like an ordinary, cute outfit.
After testing the magic, it was not bad. It should be fine. After some thought, I decided to wear it as it was. The property of not becoming dirty made laundry and mending unnecessary, which was hard to pass up.
“When I return, I will bring one more person with me.”
“Yes. If you cannot find that person, bring a man instead.”
“There will be no need for that.”
After a final farewell to Lethe, I departed into the dark night. I had already said my goodbyes to other friendly witches. There was no lingering attachment.
My destination was the Northern Region of the continent that Hesti had last headed toward. Among the entire continent, it was the most infamous for its coldness and danger. I had no idea how many mountains I would have to cross along the way.
However, the journey was not difficult. I had prepared various useful magic spells for this day. Far from the witch’s territory, I gathered mana in a wide-open space without hindrance.
“Polaris.”
The unchanging North Star that always pointed north from the night sky. The spell for finding paths, woven from the star’s constancy.
As I clasped my hands together like praying and hurled the star mana into the sky, a star in the direction I needed to go brightened on the pitch-black night sky.
This way, I would never lose my way. Even on bright days or dark nights, I continued walking toward the Northern Region without stopping.
Of course, even a witch who did not age due to mana influence needed to eat and sleep. So I periodically visited nearby villages using magic to find them.
“Excuse me. Do you have anything that could serve as food? I have money…”
“Kill the men and rape the women!”
“Guhehe, killing defenseless children is so fun!”
“Burn, burn it! Drive people into a corner and torment them! Kkihihik!”
“Eh, there is trash by the roadside.”
But for some reason, I kept getting involved in accidents whenever I visited a village or city.
There was a tradition of encountering a bandit gang tormenting people exactly when I arrived, or a secretive custom targeting travelers. Or I had once been imprisoned right after entering a city because I was mistaken for a bad witch.
I usually tried to resolve issues through conversation, but if the other party had no intention of communicating, I sometimes showed them a lesson with magic.
“Meteorites.”
“What is that….”
“Ha, look at the sky! Look up!”
“A light… a divine judgment is falling from the sky!”
The simplest way to solve complicated problems was to break the opponent’s mind and will with overwhelming force. So, how could I display that overwhelming force? Simple. Drop a meteor from the sky.
Although it consumed a lot of mana and could not be used often, perhaps because of its strong visual effect, I often used this spell when things became bothersome. Everyone would lose their minds just from seeing the meteor.
Sometimes I ate mysterious-tasting and shaped foods, slept curled up in tree crevices when I became drowsy, and occasionally punished bad people to obtain books and travel for half a year. Finally, I reached the Northern Region.
“I have finally arrived…”
The Northern Region was a cold land where dry, cold winds blew. Breathing out would turn the air into frost, as it were.
Fortunately, the Feather Robe had the property of adapting to temperature changes. Even with the rough hair blowing in the wind, I did not feel very cold.
Was Hesti fighting monsters in a place like this? Looking down from a high place, I suddenly felt a sense of vastness.
Could I find one person in this vast land? More importantly, would she truly be safe? If there was an enemy I could not defeat in battle…
Over half a year, my confidence had gradually faded. I raised my head again and patted my cheeks to regain my senses.
“…Let’s go.”
I would search for Hesti, return together, and share the warm stew from that log house once more. With a deep breath, I pulled up my determination.
***
The winter in the North was harsh. The fiercely blowing wind was sharp as a blade, and white snow that flew in with it blocked visibility just a step ahead.
No matter how much I wrapped my whole body in fur clothes, it was a dangerous place where body heat was stolen bit by bit. This was my second winter here.
As I looked up at the sky where snow fell and turned the color of gray, I realized that it had already been one year and six months since I first stayed in the North.
Before I knew it, I had turned 17. The North was home to especially powerful monsters, so my skill in fighting as a witch was now unmatched.
Perhaps I had reached a level similar to Hesti’s from five years ago. Somehow, I felt happy to have shoulders to share with her.
The only complaint was that, despite managing her nutrition well, her height had not grown.
At 15 years old, when I became an adult, I was around 150 cm, but two years later it was only 156 cm.
I wished I had grown just 10 cm more. It was slightly annoying to be treated like a child in the villages often. In terms of my previous life, I was in my second year of high school. There might still be room for growth.
“…Still half of it. I seem to have visited every city worth visiting.”
Ignoring the pouring snow, I unfolded my map and sighed at the marks inscribed on it.
Looking at the countries and cities I had visited so far, this was almost half. Yet I had not obtained any definite clues about Hesti.
Hearing the voice of a green-haired woman would lead to a complete stranger, and confirming an oddly grown plant would mean a common plant-type monster.
Where exactly was Hesti? Deciding her next destination to be a nearby city in my mind, I put the precious map into my backpack.
In the city I visited last time, I had thoroughly beaten the market’s evil deeds and taken all the books as rewards. Later, when I found a place to stay, I would read just one.
Thinking this way, as I walked while stepping on the white snow, a loud, chaotic sound came from the distant landscape, and something like white fog appeared.
“…A blizzard?”
Having lived in the North for a long time, I noticed that a blizzard had occurred not far away.
At this distance, I might be swept away too. It would be better to prepare magic.
While I was considering the blizzard’s scale and countermeasures in my mind, a small shadow caught my eye as I looked along the mountain range.
I frowned, thinking maybe I was mistaken. It was indeed a group of humans fleeing from the blizzard.
“What is going on over there.”
Although it was too far to see their features clearly, if left as they were, they would surely be caught in the blizzard.
It was unpleasant to watch people die right in front of me, so I immediately burst mana at my feet and advanced quickly with propulsion.
Then, sliding to a natural stop at the center of the group, I raised one hand above my head and chanted the magic spell.
“Firmamentum.”
The spell to lift the sky. A spherical domain resembling the starry night sky pushed away the massive blizzard mixed with stones and trees.
With enough time to invest mana, it boasted the hardness to block even a dragon’s breath. The group, who belatedly noticed my presence, showed surprise.
“Eh, eh…? What is this…?”
“It is a defensive magic spell. Let us wait here as is until the blizzard calms. If anyone is injured…”
“Eh, aah!”
“Huh?”
While calming the panicked group and checking if there were any injured, at that moment one member of the group raised their voice toward me.
What, another victim who was entranced by my unrealistic appearance? I turned my head toward the place where I heard a voice that somehow felt familiar.
Surprisingly, it was a face I had never expected, welcoming me.
“Arthur…?”
“Liber! Is that Liber?!”
The little neighbor boy Arthur from the same village. The boy with shimmering golden hair showed his joy as he looked at me.
No, why are you here in the North? I blinked in confusion at the situation I truly could not understand.