Chapter 159: The Witch and The Contract of Magic
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 159: The Witch and The Contract of Magic
“Haaaah.”
On the second floor of the carriage.
A languid sigh escaped Dorothea’s lips.
She was soaking in a bathtub, from which warm steam gently billowed.
The tub was quite small compared to the luxurious ones used by nobles, but it was more than enough for one person. Despite its precarious location on the second floor of a moving carriage, it barely shook. This comfort was a trinity achieved by a shock-absorbent structure, specialized materials, and magic.
“My dear customer. If you live a life of constant travel without a specific base, then I would like to recommend this carriage. Not only are all its basic functions as a carriage top-of-the-line, but it is also equipped for simple dining, cooking, sleeping, and even bathing. It is a premium product that only those of high standing in each nation, with connections to our Alchemists’ Association, can acquire. Although the carriage is a bit on the smaller side, I believe it will be sufficient for four people.”
“A waste of space, you ask? Please, rest assured. The facilities, such as the bathtub and cooking pot, are all made from the all-purpose metal produced by the Alchemists’ Association. While it’s impossible to freely reshape them as an alchemist would, they can switch between the two forms programmed into them at the time of creation. You can unfold them when in use and compress them into the wall when not, allowing for efficient use of space. Recharging the mana normally requires a mana tank, which can be purchased at our association’s branches or magic doll workshops, but since you are a mage, you will be able to use it without any additional expenditure.”
“You seem to think it’s an excessive luxury. But my dear customer, please consider the time you normally spend just moving. Days, sometimes even more than a week, spent doing nothing but traveling. What if you could use that time more comfortably? What if the journey itself became a time for rest and preparation, eliminating the cumbersome process of stopping in other towns to relieve travel fatigue? This is by no means a luxury or a waste. Rather, it is an investment for those with long-term vision!”
The sales pitch she’d heard when buying the carriage replayed in her mind, as vivid as if it had been branded there.
It was an experience that made her understand in her gut, not just in her head, why alchemists were known for raking in money.
“…Well, it’s not like I got scammed. As long as it’s worth the high price, it’s fine.”
Muttering an excuse to no one in particular, Dorothea sank deeper into the tub.
She could have washed herself in an instant with magic, but since there was nothing else to do even if she finished quickly, she decided to enjoy the leisurely moment.
The employee from the Alchemists’ Association had only emptied her wallet; he hadn’t lied.
Being able to handle all sorts of trivial tasks while on the move had greatly increased her work efficiency. Not only her daily life but also the creation of catalysts had become much more convenient.
The ability to store supplies with the `Gloves of Haider` was also a huge advantage. Unlike before, when she had to worry about what to carry, she could now mass-produce materials as soon as she gathered them.
The same went for food and consumables. Previously, she had to stop in any town she saw to restock, but now, that was rarely necessary.
After finishing her luxurious break, she operated a switch on one side of the second floor. The water inside turned to steam and vented outside the carriage, while the one-person bathtub folded neatly and disappeared into a corner of the wall. She finished getting ready and went down the stairs.
On the lower level, Adel was, for once, not running alongside the carriage but sitting face-to-face with the Tin Knight.
At first, the Tin Knight had only hammered physical training and practical combat experience into Adel without teaching her any mana manipulation, but recently, he had often been passing on his mana manipulation techniques like this.
As the Tin Knight moved his mana with his right palm facing up, a mixture of blue and gray mana transformed into various shapes.
First a triangle, then a triangular pyramid. After that, a mass of countless spikes reminiscent of a sea urchin or a hedgehog.
On Adel’s palm, golden mana was also creating various shapes, mimicking the Tin Knight, but a single glance was enough to see that the precision of the forms and the speed of transformation were dull in comparison.
Yet, Adel herself showed no signs of discouragement, simply and silently following the given training.
And she did so without rest for the entire journey.
Her stamina and concentration were enough to make even Dorothea, just watching, feel exhausted.
Sophia was sitting in the driver’s seat, which was possible because handling the golem horse required no special knowledge or skill.
However, touching the reins or the whip was forbidden.
Dorothea did not want the carriage to be blown to smithereens again.
Even without a desk, she was diligently writing something with a pen and a bundle of paper. It was the task of rewriting some of the books she knew into a script the Tin Knight could read.
She wasn’t even comparing it to the original book beside her; she was writing purely from the contents in her head, yet it didn’t even take her a full minute to fill a page.
From Dorothea’s perspective, having agonized over deciphering the ancient texts her master had thrown at her, this was a monstrous feat in its own right.
“Hmm.”
Feeling as if she were the only one with nothing to do, Dorothea’s lips twisted.
It was the feeling of a person who usually lived a hectic life suddenly being thrown into idleness.
She was contemplating whether to learn the script Sophia was studying or to practice mana manipulation like Adel.
Just then, something strange brushed against Dorothea’s senses.
She moved to the driver’s seat and looked up at the sky.
Sure enough, a single bird was flying toward the carriage from far away.
Flap, flap.
The bird, with its strangely lifeless eyes, landed neatly on Dorothea’s outstretched arm.
Her companions, who had been engrossed in their own tasks, reacted as well.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ expresses his admiration for Dorothea’s ability, having noticed it faster than him or Adel!]
Dorothea narrowed her eyes.
She had noticed the bird not because her mana detection was superior or more sensitive than the two martial artists.
If anything, it was a matter of specialty.
A thick aura of necromancy emanated from this bird.
And it was, of all things, Dorothea’s own mana.
Dorothea looked at the heavy pouch firmly tied to the bird’s ankle and spoke.
“…Isn’t this the thing that necromancer sent to his sister?”
Since it was a spell she herself often used for messaging, she was well aware of the functions of this corpse messenger.
And there was usually only one reason for a corpse messenger to return to its master.
Failure of its given objective.
In this case, it had failed to deliver the package from the necromancer to his sister.
Normally, it should have returned to the necromancer who cast the spell, but since he was no longer of this world, it seemed to have returned to Dorothea, who had shared her mana when he cast it.
After hearing the explanation, Adelaide asked in surprise.
“Does that mean something happened to his sister?”
“Who knows. Besides, he didn’t just send one. There’s a limit to how much a bird can carry, so he sent them in several batches. Judging by the state of the corpse, this one was the last of them.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks what you’re going to do!]
“What do you mean, what am I going to do? I can just ignore it.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ points out that this is a breach of contract!]
“What kind of nonsense is that? My contract was to be paid for the magic, that’s it. It was the necromancer who decided how to use that money, you know?”
It would have been a different story if the contract had been to ‘deliver the money to his sister’ from the start, but the actual terms were nothing of the sort.
Therefore, whether the sister actually received the money or not, Dorothea had no need to concern herself with it in the slightest.
By Dorothea’s standards, she was saying something perfectly logical and common-sensical, but the Tin Knight seemed dissatisfied.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ comments that you sound like an insurance agent who changes their tune after the contract is signed and the money is paid!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells you to stop being so stingy and provide some proper after-sales service!]
“What the hell is an insurance agent, and what’s after-sales service, you tin can? Use words I can understand.”
Though Dorothea grumbled, she had grasped the general nuance of the Tin Knight’s words transmitted through the brooch, as was usually the case.
To make matters worse, even Adelaide sided with the Tin Knight.
“Um, Miss Witch. It was his last wish. If it isn’t properly fulfilled, he won’t be able to rest in peace.”
With all that chaos, that man’s soul has either ascended to the heavens or plunged into the earth. Either way, it’s definitely not on the surface anymore.
Dorothea barely managed to swallow the words that had risen to the tip of her tongue.
After all, it was true that the necromancer taking care of the lord had made things easier for the party.
If Adel or the Tin Knight had been the ones to cut down the lord, or if the lord had survived a little longer and discovered Sophia’s unique nature, a leisurely journey like this would have been impossible.
Instead, she crossed her arms and looked at Sophia.
“So, what’s your opinion? Do you also think we should meddle in the affairs of some sister we’ve never even met?”
“I wonder. It would be too much of a waste to go out of our way to stop somewhere else. However, if the place that bird was heading and the direction we must travel happen to be similar… wouldn’t a small luxury like a brief detour be acceptable?”
Sophia spoke naturally, in her usual manner, without emphasizing any particular word.
But for some reason, Dorothea felt the word ‘luxury’ that Sophia had used stick in her ear.
“Ha, right. As if things would line up so perfectly.”
Denying it, Dorothea took out the Animal Compass.
As she infused mana into one of the eight emblems on the compass, the character swelled into the air and transformed into an animal.
It was a beautiful horse with a body that shone like silver.
At the same time, Dorothea replenished the mana of the corpse messenger, which was on the verge of dissipating with its residual mana nearly depleted, and ordered it to re-execute its previous command.
The lifeless bird soared high into the sky.
A silver trajectory streaked forward.
The bird, filled with ominous mana, cut through the air.
Coincidentally, their paths were identical.
“…Tsk, guess there’s no choice.”
Dorothea clicked her tongue.
She didn’t bother saying that she had a feeling it would turn out this way.
*
Once upon a time—well, not so long ago, but in a time relatively recent.
There was a greedy woman.
In love with the handsome lord’s son, the woman spent her days and nights wondering how she could win his love.
Then one day, a mysterious mage made the woman an offer.
—I will grant your wish. However, if you later become the lord’s wife, you must give me your daughter.
The woman readily agreed.
She thought that as long as her love was fulfilled, she could give away a daughter she had not even seen yet.
With the effect of the elixir the mage gave her, the woman and the lord’s son fell in love.
The lord’s son eventually became the lord, and the woman became his wife.
Then one day, a child was born to them.
Seeing her astonishingly lovely daughter, the woman belatedly regretted the promise she had made.
The mage came to the woman and said:
—On the day this child celebrates her seventeenth birthday, I will come for her.
The woman offered the mage all sorts of treasures, pleading with him to take something else instead of her daughter, but the mage paid her no mind.
In her despair, the woman came up with a wicked idea.
The woman adopted a young girl from the domain as her own daughter.
And on the day that child celebrated her seventeenth birthday, she presented her to the mage.
—You only said to give you my daughter, you never specified which daughter.
The mage laughed heartily.
—You are correct. And I never said that one would be enough.
To the woman, who had turned deathly pale, the mage spoke.
—You cunning and foolish woman. I shall give you three choices.
—One is to offer your daughters as a sacrifice every year. If I find one among them to my liking, I will end the contract.
—Another is to not offer a daughter and watch as disaster befalls this domain. The lord will learn of the elixir you used, and the people of the domain will condemn your wickedness.
—The last one is—
The contract was made.
The curse was complete.
The praised lady of the domain, even today, searches with fire in her eyes for a sacrifice to take her daughter’s place.
“My lady, I beg you, please reconsider. That woman, Rapunzel, is a wicked necromancer! There are witnesses who saw a bird made of a corpse bringing her money!”
“It’s fine. You may leave. My mind will not be changed.”
Fortunately, it seemed there would be no hesitation in offering this year’s sacrifice.