Chapter 174

Nothing happened to those in the capital.

There doesn’t seem to be any movement to suppress the Harvesting System itself.

It’s strange, considering Bern City—there could’ve been some action by now.

But in Bern City, the protestors’ anger is turning into despair. Even if a fight starts with anger, people get tired when it drags on.

Once emotions settle, you start seeing things you couldn’t before because of intense feelings.

That’s why, I guess, the protestors in Bern City are split into two factions: one that thinks they should surrender to the Twilight Association, and another that believes surrendering will just lead to their deaths anyway.

Divisions are never good signs.

Of course, no matter how things turn out, I’d be happy as long as I gain plenty of warmth in the process!

But more importantly, there’s something I need to mention: a witch named Maleficent attacked me. So when I meet with the king, I might subtly bring up how nobody protected me during this so-called attack.

If I tell the royal guards about being attacked, the king will surely find out too, right?

While thinking all this, I waited for Royal Academy to let out. It’s not really a good topic to discuss inside the academy, after all.

Meanwhile, nothing particularly noteworthy happened in the classroom…

Well, except one thing. Near the end of class, the teacher announced we should prepare for the midterm exams. Most students were pretty shaken up by it, but honestly, it’s none of my concern.

What *was* amusing was how Victoria’s face turned pale. After all, her workload is twice that of an average person, isn’t it?

I silently cheered her on from within while heading outside after the afternoon classes ended. Once at the main gate, I called out to Merryweather.

“Merryweather.”

“What is it? You called?”

“A witch attacked me.”

When I said that, Merryweather was utterly shocked. Was it because she didn’t notice anything despite being my guard?

“So what?”

Huh? “So what”? Oh. Does she think I can handle it myself since I have special abilities?

It wouldn’t be weird for her to assume that, but it’s better to let them solve it themselves if possible.

Being able to defeat a witch implies being stronger than the witch, after all.

Besides, there’s also the possibility I couldn’t handle her. If she never attacks me directly or refuses to engage fully, I can’t even reach her.

And taking away someone’s warmth doesn’t necessarily kill them either…

There’s also the risk that the witch might become a monstrous creature like me after losing her warmth. So I plan to approach this carefully.

Still, learning from the failure of the second world, I intend to act more boldly this time.

But every time I remember the beast who mocked me before killing itself in that other world, I hesitate to take away Maleficent’s warmth.

“Isn’t it your job as my guard to report this to the king?”

“To the king, huh… yeah…”

Merryweather gives me a suspicious look. She probably doubts my story about the witch attack.

She’s watching me cautiously, like I’m some terrifying monster.

Guess I should’ve healed the wound faster after getting hit on the head yesterday. Since I prioritized regenerating my body over healing superficial wounds, it must’ve looked pretty grotesque when I reviewed it later.

Ugh…

“Why don’t you tell me everything you know first?”

Good point. Just saying ‘a witch attacked Bell’ isn’t enough for a proper report.

“Yesterday, I was caught in a nightmare-like illusion.”

While passing through a dark space, I overheard two witches talking behind me. I didn’t catch everything, but they mentioned losing control somewhere along the way.

Taking away control of magic might sound trivial, but reflecting on what happened to me—it was actually quite powerful.

Powerful enough that from morning until afternoon, I couldn’t properly recognize I was trapped in an illusion.

It was an incredibly strong spell.

“Wasn’t it just a bad dream?”

Ah, right. They don’t know that even though my body sleeps, my consciousness remains awake. Should I tell them?

Though revealing too much about myself makes me uneasy, I need to explain why I was attacked if I want to convince the king. Still, I’ll twist the words slightly…

Not because I’m capable but choose not to act, but rather because I lack the ability altogether.

“I can’t sleep.”

“What? But you’ve slept fine until now, haven’t you?”

“My body sleeps, but my mind stays awake. From my perspective, there’s never been a moment where my awareness has been interrupted.”

And during that time, I observe other harvesters while waiting for time to pass.

“So you know everything that happens while you’re asleep?”

“No. Like I said, my body is asleep. Unless I see something directly with my own eyes, I can’t perceive it.”

I omitted details about sounds and smells.

“Alright. So, what do you think about the witch who attacked you? Aren’t you angry or anything?”

Weird question. Knowing I was going to be attacked, does it really matter how I feel about it?

“The witch is just a witch. Her name is Maleficent. Do you know her?”

My words made Merryweather’s expression shift strangely—angry yet filled with suspicion. What’s so odd about what I said? I explained everything clearly, didn’t I?

“I know her. Very well.”

“She doesn’t seem particularly famous among the harvesters. Not even Victoria, who comes from the middle class, or Kanna, who’s upper-class royalty, knew about her. And neither did Aurora.”

Merryweather’s mood visibly soured.

“So, once you report the witch’s attack, what will Bell do? Chase after the witch?”

Through gritted teeth, as if suppressing rising anger, Merryweather asks me.

True to form, she’s trying to dig deeper into my information, like someone from the royal intelligence division would. But I shook my head.

“Why would I chase her?”

With only my powerful regeneration ability and the power to create harvesters, capturing a witch would be tough.

Besides, unless she attacks me directly, there’s no way I can capture her.

It’s not entirely impossible, though. If I broke this world, I could likely regain warmth automatically. But that won’t happen, so let’s say it’s impossible.

“Alright, got it.”

With that, Merryweather bowed her head and turned around. The royal family probably realized I wouldn’t provide more bait than necessary.

Can the people in the royal palace even capture the witch?

As I watched Merryweather head toward the royal castle, I returned to my accommodation.

Now she’ll be busy not just monitoring me but also hunting the witch.

***

That evening…

Victoria was returning from the Clockwork Knight School to the dormitory at the Royal Academy when a group of people appeared in front of her.

They threatened her with spiked clubs and heavy tools, demanding blessings.

“Why should only others receive blessings? Why not us?” they shouted.

They exaggeratedly claimed they already knew blessings were free and insisted she bless them too.

Victoria loudly declared she wouldn’t give blessings to people like them. As if seeking help, her eyes quickly scanned the surroundings.

But everyone around her, including those holding weapons and standing nearby, glared at her with greed-filled eyes.

This wasn’t a spontaneous attack by a few impulsive individuals.

It was a meticulously planned ambush designed to prevent escape.

Then Victoria claimed she lacked such abilities and suggested they had mistaken her identity, urging them to find someone else.

But they already knew otherwise.

Laughing mockingly, they revealed their plan: knowing the real person who grants blessings rarely leaves their home, they intended to kidnap someone close to her instead.

“Hey, haven’t you been venturing out lately?”

Although she had gone out recently, she usually took less-traveled paths, so maybe they didn’t know.

Unfortunately, they chose Victoria.

Despite having no personal grudge against her, she became their target for kidnapping as a harvester candidate.

However, their weapons never reached her.

Transparent water spheres blocked their attacks, and when Victoria swung her hand, those rushing at her flew backward in the opposite direction.

People were flung around by streams of water summoned from all directions.

Some in the crowd tried using magic, shooting flames or lightning, but none could penetrate the water barrier surrounding Victoria.

The one who fired lightning even collapsed after being electrocuted by the water.

As I sat on my bed observing Victoria’s prowess through her eyes, someone knocked on my door.

When I went out, several armed soldiers stood there.

Apparently, Merryweather informed the royal palace, and reinforcements arrived.

One of the soldiers, presumably the commander, approached me and introduced himself as part of the royal guard. Then he asked:

“Bell-sama, wasn’t Merryweather Alquet your guard until now?”

Huh? I thought they’d ask me to serve as bait against the witch or protect me from her influence, but this is unexpected.

“Yes. Is something wrong with Merryweather?”

In response to my question, he said:

“Merryweather Alquet’s body was found.”

What?! In just these few hours? Looks like the witch was planning this all along. Cutting off reinforcements is basic strategy. It’s unfortunate—I could’ve turned her into a harvester if she’d survived.

“We’ve only recovered parts of the body, but the autopsy suggests she was killed approximately twenty days ago.”

Wait… The commander then shared an odd detail: Merryweather had been dead for three weeks.

“So, who was guarding me until now?”

“Someone impersonated her, deceiving everyone. And there’s only one suspect.”

The commander spoke through clenched teeth.

“The witch. Maleficent was hiding all this time.”

“Maleficent?”

“Yes, Bell-sama. You know the infamous name. The powerful witch who cursed Princess Aurora on her birthday without invitation.”

So the person I thought was part of the royal intelligence department was actually the witch this whole time?

Now that I think about it, the nickname “Merry” always felt a bit off. Some rhythm was disrupted, but I brushed it aside. Makes sense now if it’s Maleficent’s nickname.

Also, her reactions whenever we talked about witches make perfect sense now.

I was completely fooled.

Clearly, I’m not very smart. If I were smarter, I could’ve uncovered her true identity instantly.

“Well, what now—”

Before he could finish asking what we’d do next…

BOOM!

The sound of something collapsing echoed from all sides. The commander rushed to the window, and the accompanying soldiers followed suit.

Meanwhile, I used the harvester’s perspective to witness what was happening across the capital.

Black Thorn Trees wrapped around the city, growing outward from the royal castle like a tidal wave, tearing apart anything in their path.

After a prolonged earthquake-like tremor, the massive thorn trees stopped spreading.

Many harvesters died on the roads, torn apart, while survivors who were pierced by the thorns immediately fell into slumber.

The thick trunks halted, but the smaller branches continued creeping inward, invading buildings.

From what the harvesters collectively observed, these thorn trees encircled the entire capital.

Maleficent truly is an incredible witch.

---