Ch.286Chapter 286 – Chase the Witch (2)

A moment later, we entered the chapel.

“I needed a place that’s enclosed but spacious,” said Vanilla, who had positioned herself in the center of the chapel, with a smirk.

Originally, there had been long benches in place, but she had pushed them against the walls, claiming they would interfere with her magic.

Father George quietly asked as he observed Vanilla, “Elven mage, if you need, we can remove that statue as well…”

“It’s fine. At this distance, the statue won’t interfere.”

“If that’s what you wish…”

George, who believed Vanilla was an elf due to her magically disguised skin, quietly responded and stepped back.

Vanilla then began to mutter to herself.

“By the way, for a clergyman, that statue is so dusty… Well, I’ll ask about that later…”

Her monologue continued without pause, but her staff never stopped moving.

She was drawing something in the air, and soon I could feel the magical energy around her moving in an orderly fashion.

Before long, a magic circle began to appear on the ground where she stood, growing larger with each movement of her staff.

“Good, tracking preparation complete… so.”

“Can you find her with this?”

“Of course.”

When I asked while looking at the red magic circle spread across the floor, Vanilla nodded in response.

“What do you take me for? Despite appearances, I’m the most brilliant mage and scholar in the… no, in this entire region. There’s nothing to worry about.”

After confidently stating this, Vanilla added with a smirk, “If our target were a mage, they might try to evade this kind of tracking… but unfortunately for them, I know how to track magical energy itself.”

“…So even if they tried to evade tracking, they would have used magic, meaning you can find them no matter what they do?”

“Exactly.”

Vanilla smiled from atop the red magic circle.

“I’ll admit that this Beatrice mage might be more skilled and powerful than expected, but I’ll prove that I’m still the superior one.”

Vanilla seemed to have a competitive spirit toward Beatrice, likely due to their shared profession.

Though I’m not sure how finding someone proves superiority.

After manipulating the magic circle for a while, Vanilla looked at us and asked, “Ah, it’s not necessary, but let me ask. Do you have anything that belongs to that woman? Not something she gave you. It needs to be something she carried on her person, even for just a few days.”

“For that…”

Chris said this while pulling something out from inside her garment.

It was the cigarettes Beatrice always smoked.

“It seems my efforts to find and confiscate these whenever she tried to smoke in secret have paid off.”

Everyone’s expressions darkened slightly as they looked at Chris, who was smiling as if she’d accomplished something.

I tried to ignore Gigas muttering to himself, wondering if Beatrice had run away because the goddess had tormented her too much.

Regardless, Vanilla reached out her hand, and the cigarette pack Chris had produced flew into her palm.

Then Vanilla smiled and said, “Well, this is perfect. There’s a tiny trace of her magical energy left on it. This makes it as easy as eating cold porridge.”

Vanilla began to burn the cigarette. Soon, along with a calming scent, the cigarette turned to powder and began to dissolve into the magic circle.

The red magic circle started to pulsate as if it might explode.

A moment later, a pale green sphere was floating in the air.

“What? Did it fail?”

I said this while looking at the floating orb, not seeing any location information.

Vanilla looked at me with a smirk and replied, “My, what do you take me for, white dragon?”

She continued with a fierce smile, “The spell was perfect. This is the result.”

“…Can you read where the location is?”

“Of course.”

Vanilla lightly tapped the ground with her staff.

A map-like image began to expand in the air before her.

“I’ve got the direction. As for the location… given the time, it’s somewhere impossible to reach on foot, so she must have used a warp scroll midway.”

She seriously stated that we couldn’t have followed Beatrice otherwise.

Soon after, she extended her hand into the air, and the surrounding magic circle began to melt and gather in one place.

A moment later, something like a map appeared on what looked like a clean piece of paper.

“This is…”

“Well, it’s a map I created by combining various spells, including clairvoyance. Follow this map to find that Beatrice woman.”

Vanilla muttered that we might need to cast this spell again if Beatrice moved.

Nevertheless, thanks to her, we were able to determine Beatrice’s location.

“It would take days by carriage.”

However, it wasn’t an unreachable location.

I consoled myself that it would be better to head toward this location first and then consider our options.

“So, are you leaving right away?”

“Yes.”

Now that we knew our destination, there was no reason to stay.

Everyone, including Eve whose expression had darkened slightly, nodded once and was about to rise from their seats.

“May I have a moment?”

“What is it, Father?”

I responded to Father George’s question.

The quietly smiling priest reached into his garment and held something out to me.

It was a wooden boat that looked like a decorative item at first glance.

The object that had caused all this trouble.

“Take it with you. It’s yours now.”

I stared at the boat that Beatrice had exchanged herself for.

Father George smiled at me and said, “As this old man recalls, when returning goods at the market, you need to bring the product with you, so it would be best to take it.”

“I suppose I have no choice.”

I extended my hand and received the boat from the priest.

Father George smiled and said, “I pray that you will be reunited with your precious companion. And…”

“And?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Father George’s eyes lingered on Chris for a moment.

Then he smiled and put his palms together in prayer.

“I pray for your well-being.”

+

While Kay’s group was preparing to pursue Beatrice…

Beatrice had arrived at a certain location.

Using the warp scroll that the princess had possessed, she had instantly reached her destination and was now taking a brief rest while the princess went inside to deliver a message.

The scent of wood that she had smelled once before stung her nostrils.

‘Come to think of it, it was around this time of year.’

Near the end of the cold winter.

As spring approached and the snow began to melt.

It was probably around that time, Beatrice thought as she quietly closed her eyes.

[Run away, Beatrice. You must live…!]

[I can’t…!]

Two women were desperately shouting at each other.

Recalling the voices that she still couldn’t forget, Beatrice lit a cigarette.

She had to, or she felt she might lose her mind.

‘…Good thing I made the strong ones.’

The specially made cigarette, containing more calming herbs than usual, barely held together her crumbling mind.

As her thoughts cleared, she quietly recalled the events of that time.

‘Lina… Edna…’

Lina was a maid with distinctive red hair.

Edna was a slightly small and cute blonde maid.

They were among the few friends Beatrice had in the palace.

Both were subordinates of Domestica.

And both were no longer in this world.

It wasn’t just them.

The old butler she had confided in.

The knights who stood by her side with well-maintained weapons.

All of them were dead.

‘…The Emiris Order.’

She inhaled the cigarette smoke again.

It brought back her sanity that was once more on the verge of collapse.

The princesses’ evacuation plan, leaked due to the current king’s betrayal.

The Emiris Order, which used that plan to assassinate the princesses.

Except for the youngest, Gabriella, the holy knights of the Emiris Order mercilessly slaughtered the princesses’ escorts.

With bodies and weapons strengthened by divine blessings, they cut down the knights who tried to protect the princesses, the old servants, and the young but loyal friends.

Beatrice had fought with all her might, allowing the princess she was guarding and herself to briefly escape the encirclement.

Thus, they gained a temporary reprieve, and during that short time…

“Sigh.”

Beatrice sighed and lowered her head.

She sighed as she felt the memories of that day resurface—memories she hadn’t experienced recently and had hoped might have finally released their hold on her.

Even she didn’t want to remember that terrible day for the rest of her life.

Of course, the memories of that day were like scars on her life and couldn’t disappear.

But sometimes, she wished they would let her go.

“I wonder if this is what they call karma.”

Was she paying the price for surviving that day?

Beatrice thought about this and smiled bitterly.

She smoked another cigarette, quietly lost in thought at this feeling she hadn’t experienced in a while.

“…I hadn’t remembered for a while, so I thought I was finally okay.”

Of course, not remembering was a relatively recent development.

Before that, these memories had continued to surface and torment her.

‘I wonder what caused me to stop recalling these memories.’

Beatrice quietly pondered.

First, she considered the timing.

The moment she had escaped from these memories was…

“…When I started traveling with the helmet.”

The catalyst was somewhat absurd.

Originally, she had planned to use Kay to fight the Emiris Order and, by extension, her enemies.

Then, while fighting one of her enemies, a strange collar had bound her and him together, preventing them from separating.

And then…

“…I met good people.”

Beatrice muttered, covering her eyes with her hat.

The helmet, along with Sera and Christina, and later Eve…

She had met good children who gave her the same warm feeling as her old friends.

Perhaps because of that, she had found some peace of mind.

And at some point, the guilt that had become dulled came back to life.

It felt like she was briefly reclaiming her old self.

But now she had left them of her own accord.

“…Next time I really won’t be able to face them.”

Beatrice had briefly imagined rejoining the group in the future, but soon abandoned and erased the thought.

If it had been before coming here, perhaps, but now she couldn’t return to her companions’ side.

‘…When everything is over, I’ll apologize.’

As she made this resolution, the calming scent that had been steadying her mind faded.

Realizing she had finished her special cigarette, Beatrice felt a sense of emptiness and reached into her pocket again.

Then, she unconsciously paused.

For some reason, she felt as if Christina would come to scold her, saying cigarettes were bad for her health.

Of course, that was just an illusion, so Beatrice looked bitterly at the unlit cigarette.

It felt as if a white hand would reach out at any moment to confiscate this cigarette.

“…Ah, I really…”

Beatrice laughed dejectedly as she recalled her companion who had genuinely worried about her.

Just as a sense of loss was coursing through her body…

“It seems to be over, Princess.”

“Yes. Unfortunately.”

Gabriella spoke quietly, making no effort to hide her discomfort with Beatrice.

Looking at Gabriella, Beatrice hid her expression and said, “…I deeply regret what happened to the princesses.”

Gabriella said nothing.

Instead, she looked at Beatrice with eyes full of anger.

Then she struggled to open her mouth.

“…It’s fine. You’re not responsible for my sisters’ deaths.”

Gabriella probably wanted to shout, asking why Beatrice hadn’t died in their place as their guard.

But seeing her restraint, Beatrice smiled bitterly.

There was no reason to make things harder for someone who was already suffering by saying more.

“More importantly, please come in. The reception preparations are complete.”

“Very well.”

Beatrice said as she rose from the tree.

Soon, guided by Gabriella, she arrived at a spacious location.

In the center was a fairly large desk, and looking at those seated around it, Beatrice narrowed her eyes.

‘…There are some characters here who can’t be taken lightly.’

Those truly loyal to the royal family, those who were clearly ambitious, and those who looked at Gabriella with lecherous eyes.

They were people gathered for all sorts of desires.

If left unchecked, many of them seemed likely to cause trouble for Princess Gabriella in some form.

‘…It’s going to be busy here too.’

Beatrice thought quietly as she observed the faces of those looking at her.

And before her…

A familiar paper appeared.

“The signatory acknowledges [Gabriella di Firenzena] as their master…”

Reading the contents of the paper, Beatrice sighed in disbelief.

“I see, so to join the resistance, one must even mortgage their soul.”

“That’s not wrong, but we must be wary of traitors.”

Gabriella looked at Beatrice with complex eyes and said, “At least this much is necessary for everyone to trust you, Beatrice.”

“Is that so?”

Beatrice looked at the contract once more.

If she signed it, she would have to live as Gabriella’s subordinate.

‘I can feel the malice in this.’

Seeing the detailed punishments for betrayal and lying, Beatrice clicked her tongue.

They really didn’t want to leave any loopholes.

“If you don’t want to sign, you can decline?”

“Is that so.”

After looking at Gabriella who had spoken to her, Beatrice looked around again.

The resistance representatives were silently watching to see what Beatrice would do.

After carefully examining their faces, Beatrice nodded slightly.

“I suppose it’s a matter of trust, so it can’t be helped.”

Thinking that building trust with these people was the priority for now, Beatrice looked at the contract again.

‘Is this karma too?’

Beatrice smiled bitterly as she looked at the contract that would bind her soul.

And then.

She picked up the pen.

“Well then, I’ll sign.”

Soon, Beatrice signed with elegant handwriting.

Gabriella, who had been watching, immediately began to check the contract.

“…Really.”

“Yes, really. I’ve signed.”

Beatrice smiled and answered, seeing Gabriella’s surprise as if she hadn’t believed Beatrice would actually sign.

Briefly lost in reminiscence, noting that some of Gabriella’s old face remained, she soon quietly said, “You see. Now that this contract exists, I have no choice but to be loyal to the resistance.”

Beatrice pointed to the contract as if showing off.

Looking at the slightly surprised Gabriella, Beatrice soon asked the resistance executives, “So what will you do now?”

“…First, let’s—”

“Wait a moment. Hold on.”

One of the resistance representatives began to speak.

Then another person stopped him.

Soon a minor commotion began, and Gabriella looked at Beatrice and asked, “What are you thinking?”

“Nothing in particular. I just wanted to be of help to the princess.”

Gabriella immediately looked at Beatrice with suspicious eyes.

Perhaps Gabriella had been worried that Beatrice might abandon the princess and flee.

“Well, now that I’ve signed, that’s a settled matter.”

Given that it was a contract that held her soul as collateral, regardless of how easy or difficult it was to obtain, its effectiveness was terrifying.

Yet despite having her soul mortgaged, Beatrice remained calm.

And she quietly turned her eyes to observe the commotion around her.

“Now then. How shall I handle this?”

Looking at the resistance representatives causing a commotion…

The witch smiled lightly.