noveltune Chapter 121
Chapter 121
The pathway created by the witch.
It felt like I was crossing a river that divided the living from the dead as I stepped beyond it.
And the moment I passed through the path, a landscape resembling the underworld unfolded before me.
If death had a color, it would surely be black.
Then what should I call this place, where even the sky, the ground, and everything standing around me were all completely black, if not the underworld?
The sky was so hazy with fog-like magic that even the sun floating above was barely visible, while the ground was completely imbued with magic, giving it a lifeless appearance.
And there were trees towering high, densely packed all around.
No, those blackened and charred remnants that were once trees ominously hung their leafless branches over me, as if to declare that there was only death here.
It was a place where, for an ordinary person, stepping in would surely mean succumbing to magic poisoning and starting to fall apart, so I braced myself for the painful end that would soon come.
However, time passed, and the expected pain did not come.
Rather, what I felt was not pain, but...
“How’s your body feeling right now?”
As I wore a peculiar expression, I heard the voice of the witch behind me.
Through the shadows cast by her hood, she asked, her eyes glimmering.
“It doesn’t seem bad? Isn’t it refreshing? Doesn’t it feel like something stuffy has disappeared?”@@@@
“......”
I did not bother to answer her question.
To be honest, I was more inclined towards not being able to respond.
Because she was right.
Right now, I was puzzled by this inexplicable refreshing feeling.
I felt much more energetic than usual.
There was a buoyant sensation all over me, as if I could do something.
Of course, even so, I wasn’t in the mood to respond, so I shot her a glare in silence. The witch chuckled and murmured.
“Hehe, your expression shows that I hit the nail on the head. It is indeed refreshing, isn’t it? I just knew it. Being locked in a place like that would be stifling. I really don’t know how you endured that for so long. I suppose you were in a state where it wouldn’t be strange to collapse at any moment.”
The witch calmly said that and sat down in front of me, observing me with a smiling face.
She spoke as if she knew something about me.
...I thought she had just kidnapped me on a whim, but it seemed that was not the case.
“What exactly was your purpose in bringing me here? Were you not planning to kill me?”
When I asked that, the witch burst into laughter as though she had heard something amusing.
“What? Ha ha, kill you? Me? I found something so interesting after a long time, there’s no way I’m going to waste it on something like that. Since you’re asking about my purpose, you seem to think I brought you here without any thought, but you’re mistaken.”
The witch stretched out her finger and pointed at me.
“My purpose was, from the very beginning, just you.”
...She had been targeting me from the start?
But it was hard to understand her previous actions if I were truly her objective.
Earlier, she had mentioned to Jessie that she would kill me.
Besides, if she was trying to kidnap just me, wouldn’t it have been simpler to just take me without all this commotion?
At that moment, the witch opened her mouth.
“Oh, so that’s what you were worried about? Everything I did earlier was all an act. Well, since it seems you have some questions, I’ll answer them.”
And with an air of course, she replied.
“What I said about killing you was a lie. That human seemed like they’d stop if I said that, and it would keep him from interfering with our conversation. As I mentioned earlier, I had no intention of killing anyone myself. My preference is watching shows unfold on the scripts I write, and then I enjoy it when they die.”
As for the doubts I had?
“The reason for causing such a commotion was that I needed you to join me voluntarily for some reason. So, I planned a crisis situation and prepared demonic beasts. Ha ha, I never expected it would resolve so quickly. Truthfully, I was hoping to enjoy watching the fearful expressions of those humans before taking you away, but there were far more stronger humans than I anticipated, which made me rush things.”
It was as if she could read my thoughts.
“So, have your questions been somewhat clarified?”
The witch said with a broad smile.
I felt a chill.
Did this witch possess a power to read thoughts?
At that moment, the witch burst into laughter again.
“Ha ha, look at your expression. Don’t be scared. I don’t actually have a power to read thoughts. I just once worked in a theater, and I picked up some skills from observing humans then. Just by looking at their faces, I can roughly tell what kind of tendencies and thoughts they have. Even if I don’t understand why they think that way, it’s pretty obvious they’re simple beings.”
[The last remaining piece was there.]
Stop...
[Taking that and resurrecting.]
[This time for revenge.]
[To return the pain I have endured.]
[The witch, this world.]
[Everything, without exception, everything.]
[I will burn it all away.]
“Scarlet!!!!”
...I heard someone’s voice.
I felt like I had heard a voice desperately calling the name Scarlet somewhere.
...Ah, that was Yoon Si-woo’s voice.
...Who was Yoon Si-woo again?
Yoon Si-woo was a friend of Scarlet Evande.
My, precious friend.
...Ah, I see.
What a relief.
I was still Scarlet Evande.
“Eh, I didn’t expect an intruder to come this far... Huh, it looks like you’ve just barely stopped at the edge of danger. How unfortunate, if only you had had a little more time, you could have completely changed.”
[■■■■■■■■■■!!!!]
“...Oh no, I’ve dragged those nuisances along with me too. It can’t be helped. Stopping here may even give me some hopes for the future. Perhaps I’ll be going now.”
...The moment the witch’s presence vanished, I felt someone scoop me up.
“Scarlet! Are you okay? Are you hurt!?”
“Yoon Si-woo! If you’ve rescued me, run quickly! There’s no more time to delay!”
“What about Captain Martina?!”
“Cough, is that important right now? I’m fine, so just hurry and escape to where the city is!”
...My head was spinning.
As I slowly opened my eyes to the shouting voices around me, I saw a gigantic firebird unleashing a stream of blinding flames from its mouth.
In a scene so terrifying, Martina was somehow holding off the rampaging flames behind a barrier of magic.
Her mouth appeared to be full of traces of blood.
It was clear to anyone that she was about to die.
Could it be that she had come to save me?
Even knowing that she would be in danger.
Yoon Si-woo and Martina were truly good people.
They were people who should not die because of me.
“Quickly!!!!!”
“...Urgh, I’m sorry!”
As Yoon Si-woo turned his back and ran with a expression that looked like he was about to cry, a loud scream reverberated from behind us.
“Ugh, this guy is just ignoring me...! Yoon Si-woo, that way! Be careful!”
[■■■■■■■■■■!!!!]
With a loud scream, I felt the heat of the flames coming from behind me.
...It’s noisy, the one that needs to stop is you.
Pushing against Yoon Si-woo’s back, I braced myself against the incoming flames.
“?! Scarlet!!”
With Yoon Si-woo’s shout of astonishment, flames hit my body directly.
It was a little hot but bearable.
Among the flames, I glared at the firebird entwined within the flames.
“...Go away.”
The firebird stared at me for a moment before slowly soaring into the sky with a low shriek.
...With that memory, everything before me turned pitch black.