Chapter 173

#173 Alingd Goodwitch and the Tin Knight’s Conference

After the confrontation with Captain Bill’s pirate crew ended, Dorothea had to take it easy for the rest of the voyage.

Although her wounds were quickly healed thanks to Sophia, the blood that had left her body couldn’t be remade by divine power.

Lying in the cabin of the ship, Dorothea said, “That Captain Bill or whatever his name is, not to mention the ship and crew. This probably isn’t the end of it.”

[The ‘Tin Knight’ agrees with his own thoughts!]

Adelheid’s eyes widened.

“Even after being smashed to bits by the Knight?”

“Physical damage isn’t the issue. It’s that curse hanging over them that says, ‘you can’t die.’ Unless we do something about that, they’ll just resurrect and come at us again and again. The problem is…”

Dorothea closed her eyes for a moment, perhaps feeling dizzy, and took a breath, but soon continued, “…there currently isn’t a proper way to lift that curse. I’ve tried deciphering it a few times while watching them fight, but it’s way above my skill level. I don’t even know if it’s magic to begin with.”

She added that it resembled the power of the ‘Dwarf’ she had seen in the last tower.

Though she hadn’t received her graduation certification from the East Witch, Dorothea was still one of the top mages on the continent.

For Dorothea to throw her hands up about a curse, which was the realm of a necromancer, was quite a situation.

Adel asked, “So, there’s no way to deal with it?”

“Well, while minor injuries can be shrugged off, if you completely annihilate them like this time, it’s going to take a fair bit of time for them to resurrect. Alternatively, we could incapacitate them without killing them and seal them away somewhere.”

[The ‘Tin Knight’ suggests skewering them in a pokey place!]

“If those idiots come charging in from land, that could work,” Dorothea shrugged.

“Well, it was tough this time because the battlefield was the sea, but otherwise, it shouldn’t be that tricky. There are a few terrain types in the Magical Kingdom where they might charge in, but as long as we can avoid them, it’s manageable.”

“True enough,”

Adel nodded in agreement but glanced at the Tin Knight.

Normally, this would be the moment for him to chime in that avoiding battle was unacceptable.

‘Huh?’

But for some reason, he stayed quiet this time.

His gaze was fixed on Dorothea.

‘Ah, it’s because the Witch got hurt while fighting this time.’

Dorothea had certainly gotten hurt before, but this incident was a bit unique.

The Tin Knight hadn’t been able to handle the situation on his own, and this injury had occurred while assisting him.

Realizing right away why her master was silent, Adel couldn’t shake off a strange feeling.

Only, she couldn’t articulate what that feeling was, so the Little Lion just tilted her head.

Snap!

Just then, as if to change the subject, Sophia lightly clapped her hands.

“So what are we going to do about the pirates?”

“What do you mean ‘do’? I just said it, didn’t I?”

“No, not them, the ones who fought alongside us. They’re waiting outside right now.”

Ah, Dorothea opened her mouth as if she had just realized.

It was a reaction as if she had half-forgotten they even existed.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ suggests turning them all into experience points!]

“Knight, even so, they were on our side during the battle, so that’s a bit…”

[The ‘Tin Knight’ states it’s just that a land-adaptive humanoid monster has turned into a sea-adaptive one!]

“Hmm.”

Adel looked at Dorothea as if seeking help.

While she typically got sharper against thieves, she also had her softer sides when among good company.

Dorothea casually replied, “Well, they did do something to help tie down the enemy, so a little leniency won’t hurt. Once we land, we can just hand them over to the local guards, right?”

In that case, they were likely looking at imprisonment, and if unlucky, execution, but that was beyond the concerns of the group.

In truth, the undead crew’s fight had started because they panicked at the sight of them, leading to a comedic scene; factually speaking, these were the ones who had planned to raid their ship. Having them face trial after all that was a sizable mercy.

Adel, who hadn’t objected to wiping them out with a wave of the hand, still sympathized with the notion that they should pay for their sins, so she nodded along.

“What? Hand them over to the guards?”

“Captain! How could we betray our comrades that fought alongside us!”

“Damn, do you think we’ll just sit back and take this?!”

“Really? There were opinions about just slitting all their throats and others to use them for Rapunzel’s martial arts practice and even suggestions of tossing them into the sea to hope they might survive!”

“Well, please, just turn us over to the guards!!”

Despite some minor protests from the pirates, hearing the “options” listed by Sophia, they all promptly fell silent and agreed to go to the guards.

Additionally, Sophia’s suggestions were all things the Tin Knight had proposed.

And just like that, the situation was resolved.

***

In the eastern continent, in the Ionia Kingdom, there’s a strange rumor going around.

Surrounding the capital city, there’s a rumor of an ancient castle deep in a forest where people barely tread, a castle so old no one could say when it was built.

Of course, most people took the rumor with a grain of salt.

Those who seriously tried to confirm the rumor, once they found out where it originated, would back off in horror and quash their curiosity.

Because that forest was cursed.

From their grandfathers’ grandfathers’ grandfathers, they had been warned countless times to steer clear of that forest.

Building a house from trees in that forest would bring misfortune to its residents, eating the fruits from that forest would lead to illness, and breathing the air of that forest would bring calamity to their families.

Thanks to all the horrific tales, even renowned hunters and forest guardians avoided the place like the plague.

Only those who were completely unaware of the rumors or greedy thieves who forgot their fear would dare to approach.

“—What a clever little brat. You thought my people would stay far away from here, huh? The one who spread those rumors is already dead, and even their descendants seem to have forgotten the past, but the fear lives on.”

In that cursed forest, a shadow was walking.

There was no fear to lead a fool astray, nor was there any impatience to appear as someone seeking the treasures of the forgotten castle.

It was a woman of strange attire.

Her clothing was ill-fitting, with one shoulder dangling halfway down, clearly giving off the vibe of something hastily thrown on.

Her long hair was unkempt and flowed haphazardly, and an odd mask made of some animal bone hid her features.

Most bizarre was her shadow.

Human appearances tend to cast shadows or brighten based on the angle of light, but no matter how you looked at this woman, her shadow remained consistent. It was as if light itself malfunctioned wherever she stood.

The forest was eerily quiet.

There were no sounds of animals or even the rustling of insects’ wings or leaves in the wind.

The scene was as if the creatures were afraid of upsetting the woman’s mood or, alternatively, paying her the utmost respect.

As these oddities were brushed aside indifferently, the woman continued to walk.

She traversed through the woods, walked through the hall of the castle within it, and descended hidden stairs inside the castle.

Eventually, she arrived at a storage room.

Dust floating in the air. Crackling books. Rusty equipment.

And, the empty space previously occupied by someone.

Without a word, the woman cleared a spot that was slightly less dusty than the others with her hand.

Just from that, the woman could detect immense traces of magical power that had once moved through this space.

That was completely understandable.

No matter how much restoration power one might claim to have, reviving something that had been abandoned just before its ruin among a hundred pieces was no easy task.

Either they would have to squeeze the entire leyline of Ionia dry, or borrow the strength of one of the four great magical towers managing the northern continent, or, unless—

Unless the woman’s foolish apprentice didn’t step forward.

A deep breath was exhaled from the woman, yes, the East Witch.

It felt like both a sigh of exasperation and a breath of relief.

After staring at the spot the Tin Knight had occupied for a long while in silence, the woman turned and exited the castle.

Outside the empty castle door, there stood an unexpected guest.

A girl as white as snow, as if she’d stepped straight out of a fairy tale.

The girl, Alingd, greeted her.

“Nice to meet you. Oh, great East Witch. I’m Alingd Goodwitch. I’m under the instruction of the South Witch.”

“…….”

The East Witch did not respond.

She merely revealed a listless gaze from behind her mask.

As if anticipating that reaction, Alingd calmly continued.

“My master wishes to meet you. She mentioned there’s an important discussion that will shape the future of this continent. I hope you can let us know a time that works for you, and we’ll do our utmost to ensure your comfort.”

“Cut the games. If you don’t spill what you want quickly, I’ll leave.”

“Hmm.”

In a moment of difficulty, Alingd hesitated, but without changing her expression, shrugged and said.

“I— I know your apprentice recently faced those guys. You’ve heard the news too, haven’t you? So please, can you just wait patiently?”

Creak, the space groaned.

The East Witch’s surroundings drained of vitality, and the green leaves turned to dust as if they were autumn leaves, and the scent of a grave wafted from the empty air.

It wasn’t that she had cast any spells or wielded any tools.

It was simply that the East Witch was in a slightly bad mood.

And just that was enough for the surroundings to start wilting.

“Oh no.”

Watching part of her sleeve become mottled and fall away, Alingd blinked several times.

The East Witch spoke.

“Tell me the reason.”

“If you start tussling with those guys now, that’ll really be a whim of the heavens.”

“How ridiculous.”

With no warning, a large bruise bloomed on Alingd’s arm.

It looked as if some invisible giant hand had grabbed her.

“You’re an important force. As long as you’re in this land, both underground and above cannot be touched frivolously. Conversely, if you engage the forces below with full force, the heavens will benefit greatly from it. That’d be a ridiculous feat for just throwing a few toys on the surface.”

“Is that why they got rid of that idiot in the west?”

“Elphaba was dealing with the heavens. It’s only natural she’d take care of intruders, and to begin with, she’s someone who only cares if her world is safe, regardless of whether this land burns or not. There’s no reason to keep someone who offers no help and benefits the enemy.”

“Of course, if she had achieved it all on her own, I wouldn’t deny that, but your trick is quite pathetic.”

Alingd’s state was rapidly deteriorating.

As if someone was choking her, clear fingerprints had formed around her neck and shoulders.

Even so, her expression remained eerily blank, like a doll.

“I want to strike at the heavens, even if I have to borrow the power of the underground, and you can’t stand the sight of me rampaging below even if it benefits the heavens. But in the end, both of our conclusions remain the same.”

“What’s that?”

“—Neither side is of any help to this land, just a bunch of damn trash. In the end, both sides are just trying to clean up the mess, so pipe down and help.”

In stark contrast to Alingd’s usual graceful demeanor was this rough language.

Yet the East Witch seemed to enjoy it.

The oppressive curse and malice that had been weighing down vanished like a cleansing breeze.

“Very well. I’ll hold off for a while. To be honest, I wasn’t much keen on cleaning up after my grown-up apprentice anyway.”

“Well, if you had just started off nicely, it would have been easier.”

Alingd protested quietly, scratching her neck, which was still marked with bruises.

Understandably, the East Witch showed no sign of concern at all.

“If that’s what you dislike, next time keep the games to a minimum, Goodwitch.”

“I don’t quite understand what you mean, but I’ll relay it well to my master. I will send someone to visit again in the future, so please be kind to them. Not everyone can endure like I can.”

After saying that, as Alingd gestured into the air, a figure wearing a mask flew in from afar.

The figure revealed a murderous intent towards the East Witch upon seeing Alingd’s haggard state, but when Alingd intervened, it scooped her up as if it had no other option.

Just as Alingd was heading off, the East Witch asked,

“You mentioned getting rid of the west as a nuisance. What about that fellow in the north?”

Alingd simply replied.

“—Depends on what remains.”

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