“Who would have thought there’d be no portal near the Forest?”
“Well, this area is under the influence of the Witch’s Forest, so the portal doesn’t work properly here… oooh.”
“I see. You’re quite clever, Elisa.”
“Hehe…”
Elisa shyly smiled at my compliment. A blissful smile devoid of any shadows. I felt a strange pride in seeing that smile.
After all, it was a smile I created. I think I deserve to feel proud of this much.
“Johann, can I sit a bit closer?”
“If you want, you can sit on my lap.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t want to because it’ll be bumpy in the carriage. But… you’ll let me do it somewhere else, right?”
“Of course.”
[Contractor, play with me too~]
“Stay still.”
Don’t tap my chest with your tentacles. I removed Rue’s tentacles that had climbed up to my chest with my fingers.
[I wanted to bring my body with me~]
“Your body has too many complications to carry around, so just give it up.”
Carrying a high elf body with a small group would be troublesome. Traveling alone could attract slave hunters too.
It wouldn’t matter if we were together, but the issue was Rue’s tendency to wander around.
[But still~ the feeling is completely different when I move with my real body and when I’m attached to this physique~]
“I get it, so stop whining.”
[You’re so mean, Contractor~]
At least she shuts up. Maybe she’s just distracted by the scenery around us. I shifted my gaze away from Rue and looked down at Elisa.
Elisa was swaying her head sleepily from the long carriage ride. I said to her.
“If you’re sleepy, sleep. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”
“Can I rest my head on your lap…?”
“Of course.”
Elisa stretched her body to the other side and closed her eyes with her head on my legs. When I playfully poked her cheek, a delightful sound of laughter echoed back.
“Johann, resting my head on your leg feels nice.”
Is my leg like a magical pillow? Why do I feel so relaxed?
Honestly, if I laid my head on Elisa’s lap, I might feel the same way.
“Sleep well.”
“Johann, you sleep well too…”
But I’m not sleeping.
Oh well.
I fiddled with Elisa’s hair while gazing out the window.
The forest was gradually regaining its green hue.
It wasn’t bad to admire the forest transitioning from winter to spring. It’s just that what I’m tasked with isn’t exactly healing.
“The Witch’s Forest…”
From what I found, it was said to be so vast and complex that once you entered, you couldn’t come out. In the original story, it was depicted as a type of dungeon, so I’m curious about how it really is.
Now, I could always just fly out if necessary, so I wasn’t that worried. What concerns me more are the witches in the Witch’s Forest and their heads.
Is Hecate really an enemy, or is she an ally?
Since she’s a goddess not present in the original work, it’s hard to determine based on just a few conversations. It wouldn’t be surprising if she were just acting.
Perhaps we are walking right into the enemy’s den.
“Well, I suppose it’ll be fine as long as it’s manageable…”
Well, somehow it’ll work out.
I decided to think optimistically.
——————-
“Is this the Witch’s Forest…? It feels strangely familiar…”
“Maybe it’s because of the witch’s blood flowing here.”
“W-Witch’s blood… I don’t like witch’s blood…”
When Elisa said that, her face darkened, enough to remind me of past times.
Did I inadvertently trigger her trauma? I immediately apologized to Elisa.
“I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s okay.”
“…If it’s really hard, I can go in alone.”
“I don’t want that. I’ll go with you.”
Then that settles it.
I looked at the forest, boasting lush leaves as if summer had arrived a few months early. What could be hiding deep within this forest?
According to the original story, witches would be lurking here, but… my situation is quite different from that of the original protagonist’s.
I’m not sure if my rumors have reached this far into the woods, but at least I won’t be treated like a ‘baby chick’ as the original protagonist was.
Speaking of which, I haven’t seen Lewis lately.
With knight classes and all, he’s been busy even during vacation… but he did go to the capital to learn from Sir Kalintz during the break.
Maybe being the protagonist means he really leads a busy life. He might as well relax a little.
“Well then, I guess it’s time to go in.”
“Yes!”
I took Elisa’s hand and stepped into the forest.
So far, aside from Elisa’s similar aura, nothing stood out as particularly unusual.
But from what I remember, there was… something that causes one to get lost around here.
“Elisa. Don’t let go of my hand, no matter what.”
“Yes!”
The real exploration of the Witch’s Forest began.
Elisa and I wandered the forest as if taking a stroll, hand in hand.
More accurately, we followed the path through the forest.
The path was a chaotic mess of twists and turns, but as expected, we had no reason to get lost.
“Y-Yohann! Look over there…!”
As expected.
If they’re guests and not intruders, they won’t get lost.
Before me lay a village of witches, and I recalled the memories of the original work; brick houses intertwined with vines.
How the smoke coming from the chimneys didn’t seem visible to humans was something only the witches would know.
Still, unlike the copy-paste objects from the original game, the witches’ brick houses were of various appearances.
The colors of the bricks were different, as were the flowers blooming on the vines.
It seems the witches have a hobby of expressing their individuality through flowers and bricks.
[Wow! Amazing!]
“It’s very different from what I imagined…”
“There’s not a hint of gloom at all.”
At a glance, it wouldn’t be strange to say it was a village of fairies rather than witches. The atmosphere was dreamy and fairy-tale-like.
“That’s just a prejudice against witches.”
“…And you are?”
“I’m Flora.”
…Flora, you say?
I gazed at a woman in her mid-twenties, adorned with various flowers all over her body. The flowers swayed and caught my gaze every time she moved.
[Flowers! But they look really fresh! Like just picked flowers!]
It wasn’t because she was a woman; it was due to the flowers all over her.
What on earth is this woman?
“Ah, don’t mind the flowers on my body. I can’t leave them alone…”
What can’t you leave alone?
Are you talking about the flowers on your body?
I hope those aren’t actually growing out of you instead of being decorations?
A gruesome thought suddenly popped into my mind, causing me to frown.
The rumors in town didn’t seem entirely off. I just hope she isn’t the craziest witch out there.
“Is that so? Are the other witches like this?”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
“…Never mind.”
Let’s not ask. No matter the answer, it feels like I’d get a headache.
“You seem like an interesting bunch. Please, follow me.”
We entered the witch’s village as she suggested.
The interior of the village did not look very large, just like in the original story. Probably because there weren’t that many witches.
[Contractor! I want to check out a house!]
“Johann, look over there.”
I turned my head in the direction Elisa pointed. At the tip of her finger was a brick house covered in carnivorous plants.
These carnivorous plants were no ordinary ones either.
They looked big enough to easily swallow someone like Elisa. If a witch kept such carnivorous plants, I’d have to look at them with a bit of tinted glasses.
“…What an unusual taste.”
“Even if her taste is unique, she’s a good person.”
Unique… huh.
For now, that’s not what’s important, so I’ll ignore it. I looked away from the house surrounded by carnivorous plants and asked Flora.
“The welcome mat means Hecate… must have told you I was coming, right?”
“Ah, indeed! Our goddess mentioned that a big young one and a young witch are coming! Ah, truly, Hecate is…”
Flora began to rave about Hecate in an excited tone, falling into her own world. I watched her for a moment, but if I kept listening, I felt my ears might bleed, so I quickly interrupted.
“Now that I understand how great Hecate is, can you tell me where she is? I don’t have that much time.”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I got too excited.”
Flora looked at me with a sincere face, placing a hand on her chest. Even her flowers seemed to wilt in embarrassment.
“Hecate is hiding in a sanctuary deep within the forest.”
A sanctuary, huh.
So she’s hiding deep in the forest, waiting. Well, to survive, one must hide as much as possible. If I were in Hecate’s position, I would definitely hide deep until the situation improved.
“I’d appreciate it if you could guide me. Is that possible?”
“Of course! Please, follow me.”
“Elisa, don’t let go of my hand.”
“Yes!”
“Rue, don’t leave my waist either.”
[Are we going to sightsee afterward?]
Do you think this is a tourist spot? I was about to scold Rue but then bit my tongue. I wanted to keep her presence a secret as much as possible.
Hecate might know, but the witches probably wouldn’t.
“The path is complicated, so don’t get distracted~”
We started walking, following Flora who had taken the lead.
