Witch – Chapter 75 – The Two Witches (55)

Ｒｅａｄ​ ｏｎ ＫａｔＲｅａｄ​ｉ​ｎｇＣ​ａｆｅ

“My lower half feels weird…”

“Try to have some restraint next time…”

“It’s not my fault…. That foolish girl did it. Ah, there’s the spot. A little more… ugh. That feels good.”

I massaged Beryl’s waist area to help her regain her energy, as she seemed unable to get anything done.

As I carefully kneaded her slender waistline between her pelvis and shoulder blades with mana, Beryl let out a strange moan and sighed like an old man, making me sigh in exasperation.

“Ahem. Let me know when you’re done.”

Leo coughed awkwardly and averted his gaze, but Beryl didn’t seem to care who was around.

If you only heard the sounds, you’d think Beryl had done something inappropriate.

When I entered her subconscious, she had called Nicks “cutie,” and she had also helped Beryl with her love life. She knew about all that, so why didn’t she know about this? It was a little absurd.

“Weren’t you two sharing consciousness?”

“You idiot. Who do you think was blocking the curse before you came? I was tired and sleeping.”

Well, that made sense. Inside her subconscious, Beryl’s eyes were half-closed, and she had collapsed on the spot, not helping to block the curse.

If she had been sleeping, it was understandable that she couldn’t handle the aftermath, the lingering effects, and the backlash when she regained control.

She had shown quite a dramatic reaction, like someone who had been hit with a sudden shock after a hypnosis app was turned off.

Considering Nicks was still in his growth period… I couldn’t even imagine what would happen in a few years.

“That’s enough. Hah, you’re keeping the good stuff to yourself, huh?”

Beryl staggered to her feet and barely managed to sit down on a chair.

She scratched her head, grumbling as if she felt sorry for the other Beryl, and then glanced at Leo, whose Holy Eye was glowing.

“Oh? That’s the Holy Eye, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. I told the other you about it, but what happened was…”

“I heard about the situation. She keeps whining about it in my head.”

Having a split personality is so convenient. I was hesitant about asking open-eyed-Beryl to take a look at the Holy Eye again, but fortunately, it seemed like close-eyed-Beryl was talking to her in her head.

As Leo cautiously turned his head, the Demon Eye and the Holy Eye began to emit energy, as if glaring at each other.

“Well, well. What do we have here?”

You’d think seeing the Holy Eye would make her feel bad, but instead, she smiled playfully, and the Demon Eye shone even brighter.

As expected of Beryl… Excluding the primordial witches at the ends of the four storylines, she was at the top of the power balance among witches, so even seeing the Holy Eye didn’t seem to faze her.

“Estelle.”

“Uh, yes?!”

This Beryl rarely called me by my name.

When she did, it was usually because she was angry or displeased… For some reason, I missed being called “tits”.

Even if close-eyed-Beryl had been persuaded, open-eyed-Beryl was a different story, right?

Was she going to get angry? Or was she going to demand a proper explanation?

I swallowed dryly and focused on what Beryl was about to say next.

“I’m sleepy. Let’s start right away.”

“Oh, okay! Right away, yes! Sounds good!”

I-I got scared for no reason!

Before I could even finish speaking, the Demon Eye began to flicker, dyeing the world in green.

It was a sign that the Dream World was beginning to encroach Beryl’s shop.

“Wh-what is this…?!”

“Leo, calm down. It’s all for Josie’s sake.”

The world had turned entirely green, causing Leo to panic and stand up.

If he saw the Dream World through the Holy Eye, he might feel something similar to what us witches felt when we saw the Holy Eye.

But what could we do? For Josie’s sake, Leo, you’ll have to endure.

I grabbed Leo’s shoulders and gently sat him back down in the chair.

It was just the beginning, and if he was already panicking, it would be troublesome.

Leaving the Holy Eye defenseless seemed to imply that we were planning to do something equivalent to extracting it, even if we weren’t going that far.

“Hey, eyeball. If you don’t want to die, stay still. If you whine even a little bit, I’ll kill you.”

“Ugh…”

So she calls him “eyeball,” huh? Eyeball… Not bad.

The energy emanating from the Dream Eye quickly engulfed Leo’s Holy Eye.

He bit his lip, clearly in pain, trying to suppress his screams, but small sounds still escaped.

The Holy Eye’s self-defense instinct, independent of Leo’s will, emitted a golden energy, trying to push back the power of the Demon Eye.

But this was the Dream World.

A space where Beryl could exert her near-omnipotent power.

The Holy Eye’s defensive instincts were no match for Beryl’s Demon Eye.

The light of the Holy Eye visibly dimmed, gradually being dyed in Beryl’s colors.

This isn’t dangerous, right?

The small screams that had been escaping Leo’s lips were no longer audible. His head hung limply, as if he had lost all strength.

Even though Beryl could cancel the Dream World and make it as if nothing had happened, I locked eyes with Beryl, who looked quite satisfied as she watched Leo faint.

“Idiot, now it’s your turn.”

“Thanks for your help.”

A pink energy began to gather in my hand.

I didn’t think I’d be using Ulti two days in a row.

The chance to meet an angel was rare, so I thought about entering Leo’s subconscious this time, but…

If I went in and got rejected by the angel… Beryl probably wouldn’t do this for me again.

Just looking at Beryl, who was yawning and clearly wanted to rest, I knew I had to finish this in one go.

I placed my pink-tinged hand on Leo’s shoulder and activated Ulti.

Go and ask the angel.

Why they bestowed the Holy Eye upon you.

What the Holy Eye’s abilities are.

The green space turned pink in an instant, sending Leo into his subconscious.

 

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“Did it work?”

“Yes. He just entered his subconscious.”

As I laid the unconscious Leo down in a suitable spot, Beryl, with one eye covered, gently asked.

The Dream World was still intact, but since the delicate work was done, it seemed like close-eyed-Beryl had handed over control and gone to sleep.

“Just in case, I’ll keep the Dream World active until Leo wakes up. Is that okay?”

“Thank you, Beryl.”

The stronger the power of the Demon Eye that is used, the more stamina it consumed, but Beryl seemed unfazed.

Well, considering she had been doing until 9 AM… The Dream Eye was nothing to her.

“Hey, Estelle. Are you okay?”

“Huh?”

“It’s… nothing.”

Why are you making me curious all of a sudden?

Are you hiding something from me?

I tilted my head, puzzled, as Beryl suddenly asked if I was okay and then abruptly cut herself off.

“What is it? Do you have a secret you can’t tell me?”

“It’s not that… It’s just, I don’t feel the curse at all anymore.”

What’s with the sudden pause?

If you don’t feel the curse, that’s a good thing, right?

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“At first, I thought so too. Even if I couldn’t hear the voices of the curse, I could still feel its presence. But now… it’s like the curse never existed in the first place.”

Beryl’s trembling body stood up, and she approached me, clasping my hands.

“Why do I feel my curse… coming from you?”

“……”

Beryl’s pupils trembled, revealing a mix of emotions.

Worry, doubt, anxiety… It was as if she was begging me to tell her the truth she didn’t know. She held my hands tightly, and soon tears began to well up in her eyes.

I didn’t mean to make her worry…

I hadn’t expected Beryl to be able to sense the curse.

My Ulti breaks down the walls of the heart and shares secrets.

Memories, emotions, thoughts… It’s a miracle that allows you to understand what you couldn’t before.

In this space, no secrets can exist, as our hearts are connected.

Perhaps the reason Beryl and Nicks were able to find a happy ending was because they faced each other without hiding anything.

They shared their memories and emotions, forming a unique, heartfelt connection.

If I were to explain it romantically, that’s how it would be.

“Well… I ate your curse. Nom nom.”

“Don’t joke around.”

I tried to lighten the mood by acting cute, but… I was flatly rejected.

Half of it was a joke, but half of it was true.

The other side of my Ulti allowed for things opposite of pure love.

Manipulating someone’s memories and emotions, distorting their subconscious… Or even blocking the curse within their subconscious.

I had vowed not to manipulate others at will, as it was far from pure love, but this time, it was for the sake of love.

“It’s true. I ate it. Otherwise… how else would you feel it here?”

I guided Beryl’s hand to my chest, and she flinched, feeling the curse more closely.

If I could enter someone else’s subconscious, I could also bring them into mine.

I had simply moved Beryl’s curse into my subconscious and brainwashed it.

It’s not time to go berserk yet.

You need to sleep quietly and wait for the right time.

Just like when I first used my Ulti.

I prepared a resting place next to my curse, which was hibernating.

“Estelle… I’m sorry. It’s all because of me… Sob.”

Beryl hugged me tightly, tears streaming down her face.

“It’s okay, really? Don’t cry. Listen to me.”

“But… but…!”

I had put Beryl’s curse to sleep in her subconscious, but I didn’t know when it might go berserk again, so putting it in my subconscious might have been the right choice.

After all, I could solve it in 200 years. By then, I could also resolve Beryl’s curse.

Unlike me, who didn’t think much of it, Beryl cried even more bitterly, perhaps because of the memories of being consumed by the curse.

The curse going berserk would mean the witch’s destruction, so I understood her worry…!

But could you at least let me explain?

You’re hugging me so tightly that my chest is turning into a pancake… I’m starting to have trouble breathing!

“Sob. Don’t die, Estelle…!”

“I’m not dying! Calm down!”

“I… I…! I killed Estelle…!”

“Oh, come on!!!!! I’m really going to die if you don’t let go!!!”

Still, I didn’t dislike seeing Beryl cry for my sake.