Chapter 223: The Tin Knight and The Tower of Greed (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 223: The Tin Knight and The Tower of Greed (3)
Dorothea’s plan—to have the Witch of the North herself acknowledge the incident as real—was a particularly troublesome and fatal move from the Tower of Control’s perspective.
If anyone else had claimed the incident was true, the Tower had more than enough power to silence them.
Even if it were the head of another magic tower, they could have raised their voices in opposition, dismissing the claims as slander and conspiracy.
The Witch of the North, however, was the sole exception.
Even if she had relinquished most of her political power, the fact remained that the Witch of the North was the greatest mage in the Magic State.
To ignore her testimony, one would have to argue either that the Witch of the North was lying, or that Dorothea’s group was so skilled at forgery that they had managed to deceive her. Neither claim was something the Magic State would readily accept.
But crisis and opportunity are two sides of the same coin.
If only they could bring the Witch of the North to their side.
If only the Witch of the North would testify that all the evidence Dorothea’s party submitted was fake.
Not only could they escape their current predicament, but they could even use the incident as leverage to pressure the other magic towers.
“—So, you betrayed your teacher and stabbed her in the back? What a truly vicious disciple you are.”
A sneer escaped the lips of the evil witch, Mombi.
Though her appearance was identical to Orin’s, her gestures and expressions held an indescribable, sinister quality.
The gray old man replied in a perfectly calm tone.
“Are you not my teacher as well, Master?”
Orin and Mombi. The two Witches of the North were not separate entities.
Perhaps they once were, but after sharing a single body for so long, the line dividing them had grown incredibly thin.
“I know that when Master Orin taught me, you were there within her. I know that you share the same memories as her. If that is the case, then my actions could also be seen as an effort to save my other teacher.”
“You have a silver tongue.”
Mombi dragged a nearby chair with a screech and plopped down on it violently.
“Did you think saying that would make me feel some sort of gratitude? The foolish and naive Orin might have been deceived by your eloquence, but I am different.”
A bitter sneer formed on the witch’s lips.
“In the first place, your plan is only meaningful if I cooperate with you completely. Why should I, having just regained my freedom, involve myself in such a trivial affair? Why should I do something that only benefits you, hmm?”
Without any warning, Mombi’s fingers transformed into long blades.
Crossing two fingers like a pair of scissors, Mombi held the blades to the gray old man’s neck and jeered.
Gratitude for releasing her from the seal? Such a thing didn’t exist.
The gray old man had only freed her for his own purposes, after all.
No, even if he had saved her out of pure goodwill, Mombi would not have felt the slightest bit of gratitude.
“Rather than being conveniently used to make you the king of this country, wouldn’t it be far better for me to become queen?”
“If that is what you wish, Master, then it shall surely come to pass.”
The gray old man did not deny it.
Nor did he panic.
He simply stated the facts calmly.
“However, would you be alright with that? It would be a hassle. The position of king.”
What one holds important differs from person to person.
It was not so rare for something of immense value to one person to be worth less than a scrap of paper to another.
The gray old man loved the throne, and even the various duties and responsibilities that came with the title of king were, to him, merely a means to confirm his power.
But for Mombi, he asserted, it would be different.
“Ha, hahaha! Right! That’s right! You know me well! The duties and responsibilities of a king are nothing but a bother. I’ve tried it a few times, but each day was so tedious I could barely stand it for a month.”
“In that case, what reason is there for us not to join hands? I shall sit on the throne, and you, Master, can live as you please under my reign.”
“Hoh, can you handle that?”
“This country is vast.”
He meant that even if Mombi destroyed a domain or two for her own amusement, there was plenty of land to spare.
Of course, that didn’t mean there would be no damage, but—
“—it is a treasure I could not obtain without your help anyway. In that case, shouldn’t I worry about such things after I have it in my hands?”
At the gray old man’s words, the evil witch burst into laughter.
Clutching her stomach with hands that had returned to their original form, Mombi cackled before finally nodding her head.
“Fine, very well. Then I suppose I must cooperate. So, what is it that you want?”
“The Head of the Tower of Protection is urging the other Tower Heads to respond, claiming that you have ‘acknowledged’ the evidence. A meeting of the Tower Heads will be held soon. There, you must state that the evidence is false. Tell them that the Head of the Tower of Protection, Gale Elilaz, and that band of witches conspired to deceive you, but you managed to see through their plot.”
“The tide will turn in an instant. The Tower of Protection will undoubtedly be in trouble.”
“Foresight is cautious but slow, and Annihilation is violent but easy to handle. Once we cut off Protection’s limbs, the rest will be easy to manage.”
It was just as the two were concocting their wicked scheme.
Suddenly, a magic tool placed in a corner of the mansion began to glow.
Mombi’s eyes narrowed.
“…It’s Gale and the Tower of Protection.”
“How strange. There were no other scheduled visits for today.”
The gray old man was a man who possessed both boldness and caution.
He had only come to visit the Witch of the North after confirming through a spy planted in the Tower of Protection that no one would be visiting the witch’s mansion.
In other words, something must have happened to cause a sudden change of plans.
The witch smiled leisurely at the now-wary gray old man.
“Hide for a moment.”
The witch’s hand lightly touched the gray old man’s body.
In the next instant, the old man’s body transformed into a small houseplant.
The Witch of the North had always enjoyed growing plants as a hobby. She changed the contents of an existing pot into a small sprout and placed the old man in the empty space, creating a scene so natural it looked as if he had always been there.
“…Ah, right. I should also prepare a countermeasure for the Chalice of Tuberose.”
As Mombi spread her palm, a hidden magic circle activated and floated into the air.
Mombi’s specialty was transformation magic.
Even if she shared the same body and memories, she couldn’t handle barrier techniques as skillfully as Orin, but using an existing barrier was well within her capabilities.
The complex, mandala-like magic circle shifted and interlocked, then settled back onto the ground with a soft click.
After confirming it was set, Mombi opened a part of the barrier. A short while later, Dorothea’s party, Gale, and a few mages from the Tower of Protection, who appeared to be serving as guards, entered the mansion.
“Welcome, Gale, Sig. And, uh, the rest of you.”
Mombi greeted the direct disciple and her knight warmly, but her tone was somewhat awkward toward the others, especially Adelaide.
Gone was the arrogant and sinister air from moments before, replaced by the expression and speech of the innocent and kind witch, Orin.
“But, um, what is it? Has… has another problem come up?”
“No, it’s not that. I was just a little worried about you, Teacher.”
“I see.”
Mombi smiled with what looked like profound bitterness.
“I wish I could declare that your worries are unfounded, but it saddens me that I cannot.”
She spoke as if she understood Gale’s concern.
“I want to see Lot right away. I want to hear him say there was some misunderstanding. But… I can’t, can I.”
At the sight of the witch casting her gaze down wistfully, the others showed complex, hard-to-describe emotions, but Gale, who was accustomed to conversations with her teacher, remained unfazed.
“Yes, well. The usual you might be fine, but the current you could be taken advantage of. No matter how hard they try, they can’t harm a single hair on your head, but there’s no harm in being careful.”
“You’re right. Your judgment is more accurate than mine, Gale.”
To anyone who knew the truth, it was a ridiculous charade that would have made them either laugh in disbelief or scowl.
In fact, Mombi was roaring with laughter on the inside.
Foolish Orin. If only you hadn’t been swayed by misplaced sympathy and had just called for your disciple or the others. No, if you had just waited quietly for a mere few dozen minutes until your disciple arrived, you wouldn’t have met this end.
Outwardly, she appeared to be focused on her conversation with Gale, but in truth, Mombi was paying close attention to everyone else around her.
She noticed Dorothea subtly scanning the room with the power of the Chalice of Tuberose.
And Adelaide, with her senses on high alert, trying to detect if anyone else was in or around the mansion.
She was aware of it all.
Mombi judged their actions as quite sharp, whether they were born of simple intuition or the logical deduction that now was the only time for the Tower of Control to turn the tables.
But that was all.
The Chalice of Tuberose would show nothing but a peaceful, ordinary scene, and no matter how sharp the little lion’s senses were, Mombi’s transformation magic was superior.
No matter how exceptional they were, it was impossible for them to win a battle of wits against a transcendent being like the Witch of the North.
And so.
Sssreung.
Without any context, the Tin Knight suddenly drew his sword, startling everyone present.
The mages from the Tower of Protection shouted in alarm.
“Wh-what are you doing! Put down your sword at once!”
Dorothea also scolded the Tin Knight.
“Hey, what are you doing now? Put it down, quick!”
Despite his master’s command, the Tin Knight didn’t budge. It was a scene that should have been impossible between a normal mage and a magic doll.
“What? No, does that even make sense—”
Dorothea stared at the Tin Knight, seemingly at a loss for words.
Judging by the changed expressions on the green-haired and golden-haired girls, it seemed they had some private means of communication.
…Is it that brooch?
Without showing any outward sign, Mombi clicked her tongue internally.
It was possible to decipher the magic on the brooch and eavesdrop on their conversation, but that would be an ‘un-Orin-like’ action. Gale, her direct disciple, would surely find such an act suspicious.
While Mombi was contemplating her response, Dorothea’s expression shifted through a variety of emotions.
But that, too, was brief.
Soon, she opened her mouth as if to say, ‘to hell with it.’
“—We’ve already noticed, so stop with the pathetic tricks.”
Her tone was less her own and more like she was relaying a message from someone else.
The mages from the Tower of Protection began to protest this blatant disrespect, but Gale gestured for them to stop, looking intrigued.
“If it were up to me, I’d cut you down right now, but I’ll give you a three-second chance.”
An extraordinary fighting spirit erupted from the Tin Knight’s body.
The pressure was so intense that even the great witch Mombi, who had seen it all, couldn’t help but let her face stiffen.
“Wait, why are you doing this? If you’re angry about something, please tell me with words. Okay?”
“Three.”
Even as Mombi tried to placate him with words, her opponent showed no sign of listening.
Mombi’s mind raced.
Was I found out? How? What is that magic doll? Is it part of Orin’s memory that I haven’t completely taken over yet?
“Two.”
The Tin Knight’s aura was honed to its absolute limit. While she believed that Orin’s defensive magic would prevent any harm to this body, the Tin Knight’s presence was so terrifying that it cast doubt on that certainty.
“One!”
“Tch.”
Clicking her tongue in annoyance, Mombi activated her transformation magic.
Her right arm twisted into a bizarre, demonic form and swung out, lunging at her enemies in an instant.
KWAAAAANG!
The mansion collapsed in an instant, and everyone inside was sent flying.
She had attacked with enough force to annihilate them, but disappointingly, there were only a few injuries and no fatalities.
Realizing the Tin Knight was more skilled than she had anticipated, she used her transformation magic to change her body back to its form before she had merged with Orin.
Mombi, having transformed from a young girl into a tall, beautiful woman, demanded.
“How on earth did you find out? What trick did you use?”
No answer came.
Those who were unaware of the situation were struggling just to process what was happening, while the Tin Knight’s party had no choice but to remain silent.
Because, well…
[The ‘Tin Knight’ insists that since everything is going a little too smoothly, you should just poke it and see what happens!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says that usually, if something feels like it’s going wrong, it’s fine, but if it feels like there’s no problem, then there is a problem!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ argues that if there really was no problem, you could just apologize afterward!]
They could hardly admit they’d hit the mark by guessing based on such an insane theory.