The Witch and the Prince (4)
When Leo opened his eyes, he found himself staring at the girl's face. Déjà vu. It felt like he'd experienced something similar only moments ago. He'd tried to take her hand and offer his thanks, hadn't he?
He sat up from the sofa and retraced his final memories before blacking out. 'If a man and a woman hold hands, th-they'll get pregnant!!' Remembering how desperately the girl had yanked herself away from him, the claim didn't sound like a lie at all. It felt as if the common sense drilled into him at the royal court as a child was collapsing in on itself.
Still… getting pregnant from just holding hands? Did that mean witches could conceive from a mere touch? When he'd first seen the girl, she hadn't given him the same feeling he'd gotten from facing the witch.
His gaze drifted unconsciously to her hand. Despite the scars that marred what should have been porcelain skin, it was delicate and lovely. The butterfly resting atop the scars covering the back of her right hand seemed to sense his stare; it slipped away, vanishing between her sleeves.
"U-um… if you keep staring at my hand like that, it's…"
"S-sorry!" Leo apologized quickly, bowing his head. He had no desire to faint again like before. The way she hid her hand in her sleeve was rather cute, but the memory of the tree trunk he'd seen right before losing consciousness sent a cold sweat down his back.
Judging from how the witch treated the girl, she seemed far more dangerous than the witch herself. He wanted to live. But how?
A quick glance around confirmed the witch was nowhere in sight. If he was going to escape, it had to be now. He'd have to wait for the girl to look away.
"If you're royalty… are you a prince? Or should I call you Leo…?"
Prince. It had been a long time since he'd heard the title. Part of him felt glad, but unpleasant memories surfaced immediately. The word "prince" was almost always followed by "fool" or "incompetent."
"Leo is fine."
For now, he'd play along with the girl. An opportunity would come.
"My name is Joshua. Earlier I was so startled that I… I didn't mean to…"
"No, I should be the one thanking you for saving me."
The girl who had introduced herself as Joshua kept bowing her head in apology for what happened earlier, so Leo bowed his own in return. His gratitude was sincere, separate from any thoughts of escape. He didn't even want to imagine what might have become of him if Joshua hadn't saved his life.
"……"
"……"
An awkward silence settled between them. What was he supposed to say? This was a place where common sense didn't apply. The fear that a single wrong word or action might get him attacked like before made him hesitant to speak at all.
Joshua kept fidgeting with her hands and avoiding his eyes. She looked like she had something to say to him too, but her silence only made the tension worse. If they kept wasting time in this awkwardness, the witch would return.
He wanted to go home. Even if no family or friends were waiting to welcome him back with open arms. Even if he had failed to become a Heresy Inquisitor, he had obtained the Holy Eye. Surely they would welcome him now? As a prince and as a believer, he could finally present proof of his faith.
But then they wouldn't be welcoming me. They'd be welcoming the Holy Eye.
People like that might do exactly what the witch had said—pluck the eyes from his head. Tell him he wasn't worthy of the Holy Eye. That they would give it to a more suitable owner.
Leo found his own situation bitterly amusing. A fool of a prince who had proven nothing despite his birth. He'd recklessly sought out the Heresy Inquisitors but couldn't even gain entry. Captured by orcs and on the brink of death, only surviving thanks to a witch's help…
Was Leo Patrick Florencia truly a human being who didn't need to exist?
His head felt heavy. To think he'd declared he would become a Heresy Inquisitor, only to end up captured by a witch. He couldn't bear to face Lucia.
"This tea warms your heart when you drink it."
While he was sinking into dark thoughts, Joshua offered him a cup. The tea had a strange blue color and a pleasant aroma. Her shy smile and expectant look—clearly hoping for his opinion—made it impossible to refuse. He took a sip and savored it.
"How is it?"
"It's wonderful. The scent and flavor are both excellent. It really does feel like it's warming my heart, just as you said."
"Doesn't it? It's a secret from Mom, okay? She told me never to serve it to anyone else."
He wondered if this tea held some secret others weren't allowed to know, but decided it was safer not to ask. Learning more would probably only get him hurt.
"When you say mother…"
"She's the person who was with us earlier."
We don't look alike, do we? After my parents passed away and I was left alone, she took me in.
He immediately regretted asking. The water had already been spilled; there was no taking it back.
Both the witch and Joshua were beautiful, but they didn't resemble each other much to be called mother and daughter. Their auras, their hair colors… and, well… their chests.
"What about you, Leo? You're a prince, right? What about your family?"
"Haha…"
Family. He didn't want to think about it. There were only painful memories there.
"If it's difficult, you don't have to talk about it. Our mom is…" Joshua continued with a happy expression, listing how her mother was good at cooking, took care of her when she was sick, and always gave her tight hugs. Leo felt a pang of envy.
Wasn't it supposed to be the opposite? Witches rejected God and cursed people, so anyone living beside a witch should be miserable. Meanwhile, he was a prince of the Holy Kingdom, blessed by God. He should be the happy one.
Why did Joshua, who lived with a witch, look far happier than he did?
"Actually, when I said I wanted to save you, Mom was really against it."
"Is that so?"
If their positions were reversed, Leo knew he would have opposed anyone suggesting they save a witch. Even if he hadn't known at first, the moment he realized the truth, he would have handed her over to the Heresy Inquisitors. The answer came easily when he considered the opposite side. Witches and the Holy Kingdom had always been bitter enemies.
"We fought because of it… but we made up in the end. I think it's thanks to you, Leo."
"Thanks to me? No. It's because the two of you genuinely care for each other. Because there is love between you."
Love couldn't exist if only one side gave it. It only became true love when both hearts loved in return. The sermons he'd heard as a child about God's love simply came to mind.
"You're a very good person, Leo."
A good person… Even hearing the praise, he couldn't feel happy.
"Do you hate witches too, Leo?"
Witches defied providence and tempted lost lambs. The Holy Kingdom protected providence and made God's will into law. The two could never coexist. Since the Holy Kingdom's founding, countless people had been freed from witches' curses through witch hunts.
Did he hate witches? No one in the Holy Kingdom liked them. No matter how much of a scoundrel Leo had been, his view of witches was no different from everyone else's.
"Yes. I hate witches."
The Heresy Inquisitors who exterminated witches were his last hope and his definition of justice.
"How did the conversation go?"
After finishing the reinforcement of the barrier and returning home, I was greeted by Joshua with her face buried in the bed. Just from the sight of Leo tied to the tree trunk and unconscious along with Joshua's current state, I could roughly guess what had happened. It clearly hadn't gone the way Joshua wanted.
"I thought he was a good person…"
"You thought he was a good person?"
"…I don't know anymore."
I sat beside her, offering my lap as a pillow, and gently stroked her hair.
"Why do people hate witches so much?"
"Who knows. Didn't you hate me quite a bit when you were little, Joshua? Until fairly recently, in fact."
The memory of little Joshua shouting "I hate you! I don't like you!" every time I showed her affection made me smile without thinking. She'd even gone so far as to put poison in my tea once she got a little older. That said everything.
Perhaps remembering that embarrassing past, Joshua tried to lift her head, only to be stopped by my enormous chest. She quietly returned to her original position.
"That's… a little different from this."
"Wasn't the important thing whether he was connected to the Heresy Inquisitors from the start? Not how he felt about witches."
So what if he hates witches a little? If someone asked me about other witches, I'd probably say I dislike most of them. The number of witches I'm actually close to could be counted on one hand.
"What were you originally planning to ask him?"
"I didn't know how to bring it up…"
"Were you nervous because he's a prince?"
"Th-that's not it at all!"
Remembering how she used to love fairy tales about princes rescuing princesses, I felt a mischievous urge rise. I'd gone out of my way to give them space so he wouldn't just faint the moment I appeared, yet she couldn't even ask the important question.
I wondered if I'd spoiled my daughter—who was so bad at conversation—too much. But then I thought that this clumsy side of her was also one of Joshua's lovable points, and it didn't seem so bad after all.
"What do you want to do now?"
"What do you mean?"
"My thoughts haven't changed."
If he ever harmed Joshua, I had no intention of sending him off peacefully. Even if I didn't lift a finger, the curse planted in his heart and brain would activate. Whether he was a Heresy Inquisitor or royalty made no difference. There were countless ways to torment the dead. I would never let him reach God's side comfortably.
"Please give me a little more time."
"As you wish."
She must have been tense just from talking to someone else, because Joshua had already fallen asleep. I laid her down neatly and pulled the blanket over her.
I didn't know what Joshua was hoping for. But it didn't look like things would go smoothly.