Chapter 159

# Chapter 159: The Witch and the Magical Contract

“*Hoo.*”

On the second floor of the wagon, a lazy sigh escaped Dorothea’s lips.

She was soaking her body in a bathtub, with steam wafting up from the warm water.

The bathtub was quite small compared to the luxurious ones used by nobles, but it was sufficient for one person, and despite being in such an unstable position as the second floor of a wagon, there was almost no shaking. It was a comfortable blend of structure, materials, and magic designed to dampen shocks.

“*Dear customer, if you are living a life of constant travel without a specific base, I would like to recommend this wagon. Not only does it have all the basic functions of a wagon at top quality, but it also features facilities for simple cooking, sleeping, and bathing. This is a top-notch product only available to those closely associated with our Alchemist Association among the high ranks of various countries. Although the size may be somewhat small, I believe it is enough for four.*”

“*Are you saying it’s a waste of space? Please rest assured. The facilities such as the tub and cooking pot are all made from the alchemists’ versatile metal. It’s not possible to reshape them as the alchemists do, but switching between the two forms stored in memory during manufacture is possible. You just unfold them when in use and compress them to the wall when not, thus using space efficiently. Originally, power containers that can be purchased at our association’s branches or in workshops for magical automatons are needed for mana recharge, but since you’re a wizard, you won’t have to spend extra on that.*”

“*You seem to think it’s an excessive luxury. But think about how much time you usually spend moving. Days, sometimes even weeks, wasted just on the movement. What if you could utilize that time more comfortably? Ordinarily, you would have to stop by another town during your journey to relieve the fatigue of travel, but what if travel itself became a time for rest and preparation without such tedious processes? That is not at all luxury or waste; rather, you could say it’s an investment for those with long-term vision!*”

The sales pitch I heard when buying the wagon echoed vividly in my mind, as if etched into it.

It was an experience that made me truly feel why alchemists were referred to as a school that raked in money!

“… Right, at least I haven’t been scammed. It’s just about paying for its value.”

After muttering an excuse that could be directed at anyone, Dorothea submerged herself deeper into the tub.

Washing herself could be done instantly with magic, but since she had nothing in particular to do, she leisurely enjoyed her time.

The employee of the Alchemist Association may have emptied Dorothea’s wallet, but they hadn’t lied.

Thanks to being able to do various little tasks while traveling, her work efficiency had increased significantly, making both her daily life and catalyst production much easier.

With ‘Hyden’s Gloves’ allowing her to store materials, it was no longer a hassle to think about what to carry; she could just gather as many materials as possible and make them in bulk.

This applied to food and consumables as well; previously, she’d have to stop by towns for resupply, but now she rarely needed to do that.

After finishing her luxurious relaxation, she operated a switch in one corner of the second floor, causing the water inside to evaporate as steam and the one-person bathtub to fold neatly away, disappearing into the wall corner. After finishing her grooming, she headed down the stairs.

At the bottom, surprisingly, Adel was not running alongside the wagon but sitting facing the Tin Knight.

Initially, the Tin Knight trained Adel by emphasizing only physical strength and practical experience without teaching her about mana manipulation, but lately, he often instructed her in mana manipulation techniques like this.

As the Tin Knight moved mana with his palm facing upward, blue and gray mana swirled and changed into various shapes.

First, it became a triangle, then a triangular prism. After that, it resembled a cluster of spikes, recalling sea urchins or hedgehogs.

Golden mana also transformed into various shapes on Adel’s palm, mimicking the Tin Knight, but it was clear even at a glance that her precision and speed of change were lacking.

However, Adel herself showed no signs of discouragement, simply keeping pace with the training she was given.

Even throughout their travels, she did so without rest.

It was enough to make Dorothea feel exhausted just watching her level of stamina and focus.

Sophia was sitting by the horse stones, where handling golems required no particular knowledge or skills.

However, touching reins or whips was strictly prohibited.

Dorothea did not want to experience the wagon disassembling again.

She was busily scribbling away with just a pen and a pile of paper in a space devoid of a desk, working on rewriting some of the books she knew into a form the Tin Knight could read.

Not even comparing with the original books beside her, just writing from what was in her head took her over a minute to fill a single page.

To Dorothea, who had suffered over deciphering ancient documents thrown at her by her master, that seemed monstrous in its own right.

“*Hmm.*”

Feeling somewhat lonely as if she had suddenly become idle, Dorothea pouted her lips.

It was close to the feeling of someone who had always lived a busy life suddenly finding themselves at a loss with nothing to do.

While contemplating whether to learn the language Sophia had mentioned or practice mana manipulation like Adel, she suddenly sensed something strange.

She moved toward the horse stones and looked up at the sky.

Sure enough, she saw a bird flying toward the wagon from afar.

*Flap flap.*

The strangely blank-eyed bird landed abruptly on Dorothea’s outstretched arm.

The colleagues absorbed in their own tasks reacted to this as well.

[‘Tin Knight’ admires Dorothea’s ability to notice things faster than him or Adel!]

Dorothea frowned.

The reason she had noticed the bird wasn’t because her mana detection was better or more sensitive than the two martial artists.

If anything, it was a matter of expertise.

The bird emanated a strong aura of necromancy.

And notably, it was tied to Dorothea’s own mana.

Dorothea pointed to the heavy pouch tightly secured to the bird’s ankle.

“… This is the package that necromancer sent to my younger sister back then?”

Since it was a magic she often used for delivery, she knew well the functions of this corpse carrier.

And the reason the corpse carrier returned was usually one.

It was a failure to fulfill the assigned purpose.

In this case, it meant the necromancer failed to deliver the goods to her sister.

Originally, it would have returned to the necromancer who cast the magic, but since he no longer existed in this world, it seemed to have returned to Dorothea, who had shared mana with the necromancer when he used his magic.

Adelheid, who heard her explanation, gasped in surprise and asked,

“*Then, did something happen to your younger sister?*”

“*I’m not sure. He didn’t just send one. He divided them into several loads since there’s a weight limit on what the birds can carry. Judging by its condition, this one is the last of them.*”

[‘Tin Knight’ asks what she plans to do now!]

“*What does it matter? Just ignore it.*”

[‘Tin Knight’ points out that would be a breach of contract!]

“*What nonsense is that? The contract was to pay for magic, not to decide how to use the money, that was up to that necromancer!*”

Had the contract clearly stated, ‘to deliver money to my younger sister,’ it would have been different, but that wasn’t the actual content of the contract.

Therefore, whether Adel received the money or not was of no concern to Dorothea whatsoever.

Though she was merely speaking logically and sensibly, the Tin Knight seemed dissatisfied.

[‘Tin Knight’ remarks that it sounds like a different insurance agent when signing a contract and receiving payment!]

[‘Tin Knight’ urges her not to be stingy and to at least provide adequate after-service!]

“*What’s with insurance, and what’s AS? Speak in words I can understand, you tin can.*”

While grumbling this, Dorothea, like the Tin Knight’s comments usually delivered through a brooch, broadly understood the general context.

Furthermore, even Adelheid raised her hand in agreement with the Tin Knight.

“*Excuse me, Witch. But if it was their last wish in life, wouldn’t it be hard for them to rest peacefully if it doesn’t come true?*”

‘Considering that chaos had already erupted, that soul wouldn’t be lingering on the earth any longer, whether it went up to the heavens or sunk into the ground.’

Dorothea held back the words that almost slipped out.

Nonetheless, it was true that the necromancer facilitated their team’s situation by dealing with the lord.

Had Adelheid or the Tin Knight directly killed the lord, or if the lord had lived longer, leading to Sophia’s peculiarity being discovered, their leisurely journey wouldn’t have been possible at all.

Instead, she crossed her arms and looked toward Sophia.

“*So, what’s your opinion? Do you think we should meddle in matters regarding that face we don’t even recognize as your younger sister?*”

“*Well, I think it would be a significant waste to take a detour elsewhere. However, if the direction the bird was heading happens to coincide with our path, wouldn’t it be a little acceptable to make a brief stop?*”

Sophia spoke entirely naturally without emphasizing any particular words, as was her usual self.

However, Dorothea felt that the word ‘luxury’ that Sophia mentioned rang oddly in her ears.

“*Ha, right. As though something that aligned so perfectly would occur.*”

Denying it, Dorothea pulled out the animal compass.

Injecting mana into one of the eight letters on the compass made the letter swell in the air and transform into an animal.

It became a beautiful horse with a shining silver body.

Simultaneously, Dorothea filled the nearly depleted mana of the corpse carrier again, instructing it to execute the command she had previously given.

The lifeless bird soared high into the sky.

With a silver trail, it darted through the air.

The bird, now full of ambition, sliced through the sky.

Its trajectory, coincidentally, matched perfectly.

“… Tch, couldn’t be helped.”

Dorothea clicked her tongue.

She refrained from uttering that she had a feeling this would happen.

***

In a long-ago time, or rather, a relatively recent past.

There was a greedy woman.

The woman, who loved the handsome lord’s son, pondered day and night about how to win his affection.

One day, a mysterious wizard made a proposal to her.

– *I will grant you your wish. However, if you become the lord’s wife in the future, you must hand over your daughter to me.*

The woman readily accepted.

She thought that if she could achieve her love, she could easily hand over a daughter she hadn’t even seen yet.

With the effect of the potion the wizard handed her, the woman fell in love with the lord’s son.

Eventually, the lord’s son became the lord, and she became his wife.

One day, a child was born between the two.

Seeing her astonishingly lovely daughter, the woman regretted the promise she had made too late.

The wizard approached her and said,

– *I shall come for this child on her seventeenth birthday.*

The woman offered all sorts of treasures to the wizard, suggesting he take something else instead of her daughter, but the wizard wouldn’t listen.

Despairing, the woman eventually concocted a wicked scheme.

She took a young girl from the territory and made her her daughter.

On the day the girl turned seventeen, she presented her to the wizard.

– *You merely said you wanted my daughter, but did not specify which one.*

The wizard laughed heartily.

– *You are correct. And I never said one was enough either.*

Facing the pale and frightened woman, the wizard said:

– *I shall give thee three choices.*

– *One is to sacrifice your daughters to me every year. If I find one among them that pleases me, I shall end the contract.*

– *Another is to watch this territory descend into disaster without sacrificing your daughters. The lord will learn of the effects of the potion you used, and the townsfolk will condemn your wickedness.*

– *The last one is—*

The contract was established.

The curse was complete.

The admired woman still searches for a sacrifice to replace her daughter with a fire in her eyes.

“*Madam, please reconsider. That girl, Rapunzel, is a wicked necromancer! There’s someone who witnessed a bird made of corpses bringing her money!*”

“*It’s alright, step back. My mind is made up.*”

Fortunately, this time, it seemed like the sacrifice wouldn’t face any resistance.