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C68: WITCHES’ ROUNDTABLE
“What do you think of this place?” asked Puffer, Witch of the Bitter Cold.
She was a woman that gave a wild impression with her long, blueish, and tousled hair.
“That’s difficult to answer. But I can at least tell that this is a strange place,” responded Lampeye, Witch of Hellfire.
As her nickname suggests, she has red hair as bright as flames and is tied into a ponytail.
She used to be an Imperial guard, which would explain her vigorous attitude.
“For me, it’s heaven! I want to work here for the rest of my life!” said Garra Rufa, Witch of the Plague.
For a mermaid, she has plain black and shiny hair that’s cut short to a bob, giving her a younger look.
“Both Platy and that demon that came to greet us said that this is a settlement. In other words, this place is neither a town nor a village. Maybe this land is where they are going to start developing it?”
“At the end of the day, we’re convicts in penal servitude. Isn’t this an appropriate place to serve our sentence?”
“You mean, our work here is to help in their cultivation?”
I caught sight of the three girls when I was passing by the back of Platy’s brewery.
They were joining foreheads together, like female delinquents who hang out behind the school gymnasium.
“But I’m fine with it. As long as I can work for the Princess, then it’s no different from the time when I was serving the Mermaid Palace as an Imperial guard.”
“Meh, I’m personally not happy with how things are. Giving in to the system is just too pathetic.”
“Despite falling head over heels for Prince Arowana, you sure are rebellious.”
“Wha-?!”
“It’s so obvious from an outsider’s point of view. You dig people like him, huh, Puffer?”
“No way! He’s the future king!!!”
“…”
“At least agree with me, you royal “suckerfish”!”
They’re so lively with their girl talk.
I thought they were having some confidential conversation, but it seems I was mistaken.
“Um…If we’re just going to talk about love stories, why don’t we go back?” said Garra Rufa timidly, but decisively.
“Didn’t Lady Platy permit us to be alone for a while under the pretext of gathering our thoughts? We’re just wasting our time idly chatting here! Come on, let’s go back. I want to hear more about bacteria from Lady Platy!!!”
“Calm down, science nerd!”
“She’s right. Well then, frankly, I’d like to discuss the one thing that worries me most,” said Lampeye, Witch of Hellfire, as she lowers her voice so as not to be heard by others.
“…Is this place within the demon race’s sphere of influence?” she said.
“What makes you think so?”
“The demon who welcomed us earlier… Miss Batemy, I believe? She looked like your typical demon. Furthermore, the orcs and goblins that work here are anthropomorphic monsters that the demon tribe fancy using.”
Ah, I see.
So that’s what she thinks.
“There’s a high possibility that even the head of this settlement—who seems to be called Lord Saint, is a demon. Which brings us back to Princess Platy’s marriage discussion.”
“Huh? Such a thing existed?”
“Don’t you know about it?”
“I’ve been in solitary confinement for more than a year, you know. I had no idea about the happenings of the world outside during my time there.”
“Well, I also had no idea about what’s been going on these past few months. But if Princess Platy agreed to marry a demon, then…”
“…Lady Platy being here connects all the dots?”
Lampeye reacted violently upon hearing Garra Rufa’s muttering.
“Oh, my poor, poor, Princess! You were made wife to the demons after being toyed by the government! Now, you’re living in this impoverished land!”
“If you’re going to talk about who’s pitiable, then aren’t we the same? We’re here living with them now.”
“We deserve this as our punishment, so it doesn’t really matter! On the other hand, Princess Platy did nothing wrong, and yet she gets this harsh treatment!!!”
“I wonder if that’s really the case.”
“Since Lady Platy is a princess, we can overlook several things. But we mustn’t forget that she’s also the “Crowned Witch.”
Platy, you’re being dissed.
But the more I leave them to their assumptions, the more they push their assumptions in a grave direction!
This is where I, who happened to be passing by and overheard their conversation, saw an opportunity to take the lead!
“Um… Excuse me?”
“Woah!!!”
I spoke out of turn that I surprised all of them.
“The hell’s wrong with you?! Could you not creep on us like that?!”
“A human?! But wait, the color of his hair is a little different…”
Since they’ve been under the assumption that this is within the demon race’s sphere of influence, a human like me appearing out of nowhere threw them into confusion.
“Nice to meet you. I’m one of the residents here. If you’d like, I can show you around.”
“Huh?”
The three weren’t able to hide their confusion from the proposed suggestion.
“By showing us around, does that mean Princess Platy has been waiting for us?”
“Yes. As much as I hate to state the obvious, workers would be in big trouble if they were found slacking off on day one.”
“Please wait a minute,” interrupted Garra Rufa.
“I think It’s a good idea if he shows us around.”
“Garra Rufa?!”
“Are you even sane?!”
Surprisingly enough the most docile person among the group gave the most drastic opinion, shocking everyone.
“We mustn’t be negligent in gathering information that will help us survive here. I believe we should know as much as we can about this place, especially before we come face to face with this Saint who seems to be the master of this settlement.”
“That actually sounds terrific! Just knowing who the master is will prove advantageous to us in the future!”
“Know your enemy before you fight them? Perfect! I just love that kind of mindset!”
Okay, okay.
“Mr. Human, we would love to take your offer of showing us around. Could you please tell us as much as you can about this place in detail?”
“However! You must keep this a secret from the Saint! I absolutely don’t want him to know that we’re snooping around like this!!!”
“Please!”
…All right.
I won’t tell the Saint about this.
Who is this “Saint”, anyway?
People call me “Saint”, but I refuse to be called that way, so I’m definitely not him.
No worries.
Time to show these girls around!