Witch – Chapter 71 – The Two Witches (51)

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The evening after Venetia, which had been consumed by the dream world, returned to normal.

Amid the festive atmosphere where everyone should have been joyous, only one person knelt on the ground, trembling with their hands raised.

“Do you know what you did wrong?”

When I returned to Josie’s room, I found Leo kneeling in self-imposed punishment, looking so pitiful that I couldn’t even get angry.

It’s not like I’m going to eat you.

Why are you so scared?

“I know very well…. I failed to protect Josie. You trusted me with her, but…”

“Right. You know. But let’s be clear. Me? Trusting you?”

Ha! Unbelievable.

You should only trust those who are trustworthy.

Still, judging by Leo’s appearance, it seemed he had struggled to protect Josie while I was away.

That woman, Lucia. Leo was no match for her.

Leo’s clothes were torn, and his sword—or what was left of it—was so damaged it was hard to tell if it was a sword or a stick. Thanks to the Holy Eye, he had no visible injuries, but that only made me more annoyed.

“So, why were you fighting the Heresy Inquisitor?”

“Umm…”

This is important.

If something like this happens again while I’m away, I need to know how to handle it.

“I saw an angel heading east in my dream. Something felt off… so as soon as I woke up, I went east…”

“And the Heresy Inquisitor was there?”

“Yes.”

Should I believe this? Should I not?

I was speechless at Leo’s audacity to use an angel as an excuse. I couldn’t exactly summon the angel to confirm his story.

“Then why was Josie there?”

“I’m not sure either. While I was stopping Lucia from entering Venetia, Josie showed up.”

Of course. Josie must have been looking for Leo since he was nowhere to be found in the morning. She probably followed him all the way to the eastern gate. Lately, Josie had become increasingly obsessed with Leo.

Once I pieced together what had happened, I let out a sigh of relief.

If the Heresy Inquisitor had entered Venetia, they would have started a massacre, labeling everyone as heretics.

That would have ruined the festival Josie had been looking forward to, and I couldn’t exactly turn the city into a battlefield to deal with them. So, in a way, it was fortunate that Leo had held them off at the eastern gate…

“I protected Josie from danger twice.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“I-it’s true!”

“And yet, you were in that state when I arrived?”

Leo flinched at my sigh and tried to defend himself.

If you’re going to protect her, do it properly. If I had been even a second late, I could have lost Josie.

“There’s one thing I’m curious about.”

“What?”

“What do you think of me, Lady Estelle?”

What do I think of you…? Are we defining our relationship before dating?

Did he hit his head while fighting the Heresy Inquisitor?

I was dumbfounded by Leo’s absurd question.

“I don’t like you. If it weren’t for Josie, you’d already be out. You know what you’ve done. No, just die.”

When I thought about what Leo had done, the fact that we were even having this conversation felt like a miracle. If it weren’t for Josie, his heart would have exploded long ago.

Thinking about that made me remember the Heresy Inquisitor I had let slip away, and my irritation almost got the best of me.

I should’ve just killed her. Playing around only left a bitter aftertaste.

“I see…. Thank you for being honest. But I can’t die yet. Someone told me to live.”

Leo’s gaze turned toward the bed.

He looked at Josie, who was sound asleep, with a determined expression that I found incredibly annoying.

“Lady Estelle… I have a request.”

“No. Nope. Not happening. Don’t say it.”

The atmosphere made it clear what he was about to say.

Leo’s expression, his eyes, were hinting at a scene I had wanted to see 200 years later, and it was about to burst out of him.

If I heard those words… no matter how much I refused, I could only see a future where I’d end up helping Leo.

“I want to become stronger. I need the power to protect Josie.”

“I said don’t say it!”

I felt embarrassed for him as the words spilled out without giving me a chance to stop him.

Even if Josie was asleep, shouldn’t this kind of conversation happen when she’s not around?

What if Josie was pretending to be asleep…!

“Fighting Lucia made me realize how utterly weak I am…. So I want to become stronger. I need the power to protect Josie…!”

“…….”

Thud! Leo’s forehead hit the floor. He pressed it down so hard that blood began to seep from the impact.

The romantic in me wanted to say, “How can I not help him after this?”

But the mother in me screamed, “How can I entrust my daughter to the guy who tried to murder her?”

“Josie is not someone you can just claim. Understand?”

No matter how impressive Leo’s lineage, or how powerful his Holy Eye… he had no right to Josie.

Josie is my only daughter. As her mother, I want her to meet a wonderful man who would never hurt her.

“I understand. I just want to protect her. That’s all I need. I’ll do anything.”

Leo, who couldn’t possibly misunderstand my words, thudded his forehead against the floor again to express his resolve.

Anything. Anything…

Words are easy.

I wanted to test just how serious Leo was.

“Give me your Holy Eye. Then I’ll grant your request.”

Without the Holy Eye, Leo is just a strong servant.

If he had to choose between Josie and the Holy Eye, would he hesitate? Even if I didn’t grant his request after he gave it up?

Leo, is Josie that special to you?

If he truly wanted to protect Josie enough to give up everything, I wanted to see that resolve.

“I’ll give it to you.”

Leo immediately stood up and activated his Holy Eye. The golden eye, always unsettling to look at, stared back at me as Leo’s hand moved without hesitation to pluck it out.

The trembling eye, seemingly aware of what was coming, emitted divine energy in self-defense.

But Leo’s fingers gripped the eye, ignoring the divine energy.

If he pulled it out, the Holy Eye would be gone.

He didn’t even know what it meant to be blind, yet he was willing to give up his Holy Eye just to protect Josie.

Should I call it admirable or reckless…?

“I don’t need it.”

“Huh…?”

I grabbed Leo’s hand, stopping him before he could pull out the eye.

Looking at Leo’s dumbfounded expression, I sighed.

Leo didn’t realize how valuable the Holy Eye was. The Holy Kingdom had gone to great lengths to even mimic its power… It was almost pitiful how little he valued the real thing.

“In situations like this… you’re supposed to say you can’t give up the Holy Eye because you need it to protect Josie. Got it?”

I even gave him the typical cliché answer because his audacity was so infuriating.

Why’s he trying to make me the villain here?

If Josie woke up and saw Leo blind… just the thought gave me chills.

“You asked for the Holy Eye…”

“It’s just a figure of speech, you idiot…! If you ever say you’ll do anything for someone again, you’re dead. Got it?”

“Understood…”

He looks decent on the outside, but when it comes to Josie, he turns into a suicidal fool…

Are there no normal men around me?

Leo, whose forehead had already healed, bowed his head in gratitude.

“Lady Estelle, thank you.”

“What are you talking about? I haven’t done anything yet. I’ll ask Beryl about the Holy Eye tomorrow. Now go get some sleep.”

I waved my hand dismissively, shooing him away.

I wanted to go find Beryl right away, but she and Nicks might be having a good time.

The way they looked at each other before I left was so intense and…

My face felt hot just thinking about it, and I was trying to figure out how to leave when Josie’s butterfly sent a distress signal, making my heart sink.

Experiencing heaven and hell in an instant… I never want to go through that again.

I slowly approached the bed and gently stroked Josie’s head as she slept soundly.

The Heresy Inquisitor.

Josie’s village had been ravaged by the Heresy Inquisitor, leaving her crying by the graves.

The image of a young Josie, trembling in the cold with a branch in her hand, came to mind, and my heart grew heavy.

I worried that encountering the Heresy Inquisitor this time might have triggered her trauma and left her with new scars.

I wanted to give Josie only happy memories in Venetia.

It saddened me that nothing seemed to go as planned.

I hadn’t been paying enough attention to Josie lately, either.

Josie calls me her mother, but I wondered if I was really doing a good job as one.

I carefully climbed into bed, holding Josie so as not to wake her. The bed was big enough for two, but I clung to her, feeling her warmth.

Maybe it was because I had used my ultimate ability for the first time in a while, or maybe Josie’s warmth was soothing my tense body.

So much had happened today.

I fought Beryl after a long time, used my ultimate ability… and beat up the Heresy Inquisitor.

Come to think of it, Carté was there too.

I didn’t want to think about the complicated stuff like the original story anymore.

Right now, I just wanted to feel Josie’s warmth, listen to the sound of our heartbeats and breaths, and fall asleep.

“Sleep well, Josie.”

I flicked my finger, and the lights in the room went out.

I kissed Josie’s forehead lightly and slowly closed my eyes.