“This concludes the acceptance of Scarlet Evande as a member of our city.”
As I regained some composure from my overwhelming feelings, the situation unfolded smoothly behind me, culminating in the Principal publicly announcing the declaration.
Despite the ups and downs, I had been accepted as a member of this city.
Though the unease of the citizens had not entirely dissipated, I was to live under the condition of being monitored for some time.
For your information, this monitoring role was naturally taken over by the Astra family thanks to Sylvia’s strong assertion: “Where could be a better place to take responsibility for the Witch of Rage than Astra?”
Was it because they earned an official reason to be involved in my matters?
Sylvia addressed the crowd, saying,
“From now on, any issues regarding Scarlet will be our Astra’s responsibility. It would be best not to stir trouble claiming Scarlet is a witch; unless you wish to speak with Astra’s legal team.”
With such bravery, she effectively eliminated any residual hostility toward me that might linger. How reassuring it was.
Either way, perhaps due to Sylvia’s intimidation, the gathering dispersed rapidly without any further comments.
In the midst of this, a little incident occurred when a group of those who had received my assistance came to express their gratitude, triggering my tear ducts yet again.
“…Did everyone leave?”
“It seems so.”
Eventually, the crowd that had filled the Sparring Ground completely dispersed, marking the end of the event.
“You’ve worked hard, Evande.”
“Ah, Teacher! You all.”
Once everyone had left, Teacher Eve approached me with the other students in tow.
As I exchanged greetings full of warmth with the kids, Teacher Eve spoke up.
“I’m so relieved. I’m glad you made it back safely.”
“It’s all thanks to you and the kids. I truly appreciate it…”
“No, I just couldn’t sit back knowing I felt a sense of kinship with Evande.”
What did she mean by kinship?
“Huh? What do you mean by that?” I asked, confused by Teacher Eve’s words.
“Oh, Evande, you didn’t hear? I’m a witch too.”
“…Huh?”
In response to Teacher Eve’s revelation, I felt my mind momentarily blank.
Did she just say she was a witch…?
Looking at the students, they appeared to already know.
…Wait? A real witch? Teacher Eve too?
…What the?!
“W-Wait a second…! You were a witch too?! Teacher Eve?!”
“Haha, don’t be too shocked! Well, let me explain. So, the thing is—”
Teacher Eve laughed as she began to recount her story to me, easing my bewilderment.
After finishing the explanation, what Teacher Eve shared on our journey back to the city was utterly shocking.
Yoon Si-woo…Aegis Academy… and Teacher Eve had such a tangled backstory that I had no idea about.
There had been no mention of such matters in the original text at all.
I mean, sure, I always had a feeling Teacher Eve had a lot of secrets, but to think she was a witch.
Even when it came from her own mouth, it was hard to believe.
Was my incredulity showing on my face?
Perhaps it was reflected as Teacher Eve chuckled at me.
“It seems like you find it hard to believe, Evande. Is it because you don’t feel the aura of kinship from me?”
“Uh…? No, it’s just that…”
“It’s fine. It’s natural to feel that way. I was wearing a magical tool to avoid being detected by magic; you might have sensed it. Look here.”
Teacher Eve, perhaps thinking I doubted her, took off what appeared to be a ring and murmured.
Immediately, I felt a distinct change in sensation.
They say witches can recognize each other.
Now fully embracing my witch form, I could sense the change in the aura coming from Teacher Eve.
Earlier, if I didn’t assume she was a witch from the start, I wouldn’t have sensed anything out of the ordinary at all; but now, I felt it more distinctly than before.
I was now sure that Teacher Eve was a witch, but that wasn’t the issue.
The reason I couldn’t picture Teacher Eve as a witch was that she had met a tragic end in the original story.
In this version, she had almost died after being stabbed by a student controlled by a Lesser Demonic Beast.
Witches cannot be easily killed by mere stabbings.
So, I never could have imagined her as a witch.
But now that I sensed her aura directly, I finally understood how such a thing could occur.
I looked at Teacher Eve with a somewhat peculiar expression.
“…Teacher, you’re quite weakened, aren’t you?”
In response to my question about her state, Teacher Eve offered a faint smile as she murmured.
“…Looks like being a witch allows you to notice that, huh? Yes, I lost quite a bit of power during the battle against the Witch of Gluttony.”
Witches are not easily killed by stabbings.
That is, provided they are in a stable state.
The energy radiating from Teacher Eve felt frail.
It was far from what could be called “normal” levels.
Assuming I, like the Witch of Gluttony, lack regenerative abilities, it wouldn’t be surprising if someone could be instantly killed if attacked at their vitals.
So I asked her.
“…Why aren’t you recovering your strength?”
The method for a weakened witch to regain their strength was simple.
When I was weak, I could just absorb magical energy from somewhere like when I had lost my magic to the Barrier.
While it might be difficult to return to full strength, one should at least gain the benefits of emergency treatment.
Teacher Eve responded to my question.
“As you know, the inside of the Barrier is not a place where I can recover freely.”
“But outside there is a lot of magic just lying around. It feels like it would be quite uncomfortable for you in this state…”
I said to her, knowing well that her being in such a state was likely quite painful for a witch.
For witches, magic was as essential as energy for survival.
No matter how much they could produce a certain amount themselves, depleting it like this would cause them to feel hungry just like when a person goes without food.
However, Teacher Eve shook her head and replied.
“Evande, I’m fine.”
“But…”
“I truly am fine. I can live as a human in this state, which is enough for me. As a witch and a teacher at the Academy, this level of power is sufficient for me to perform my duties.”
With a smile, she stated that.
It must not be easy for her to endure such hardship while concealing her true identity; yet, she simply smiled.
She was a witch but wished to be human, and her sincere contentment in being able to live among others, no matter how hard it got, showed through her smile.
At that sight, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything more to her.
All I could feel was a sense of nostalgia hidden somewhere in her smile.
Teacher Eve briefly gazed toward where the Principal and I were walking side by side before murmuring in a voice barely audible.
“…Additionally, there is a reason I don’t want to recover my strength.”
As she murmured this, we passed in front of the Barrier protecting the city.
Faced with the incorporeal Barrier, which had once traumatized me, I couldn’t help but stop in my tracks.
…Returning to the city is great, but I had completely forgotten about this.
Knowing how terrible it feels to cross this, I couldn’t bring myself to do so rationally, and as I hesitated, Dwight stepped out from among the group.
Dwight approached Teacher Eve and asked her.
“Teacher, can I ask you something?”
“What is it, Dwight?”
“How have you managed to pass through this Barrier all this time despite being a witch? That shouldn’t be possible.”
This was the very question I had wanted to pose, so I quietly leaned in to listen to Teacher Eve’s answer.
It was also one of the reasons I hadn’t regarded her as a witch.
Witches shouldn’t casually wander through the Barrier while in their right minds.
Excluding the lazy witch, Beatrice, who seems indifferent to her circumstances.
To Dwight’s question, Teacher Eve brightened her eyes slightly and replied as if he had asked a good question.
“Good question, Dwight. Naturally, being a witch myself, crossing the Barrier would appear impossible, right? It’s widely believed that it blocks all magical energy.”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“However, that isn’t the case!”
With a tone that conveyed her excitement, Teacher Eve answered, causing Dwight to question in disbelief.
“No…? That can’t be right. According to the words left by the founder who made the Barrier—”
“Indeed! Your ancestor, the grand sorcerer, Viole Ninehart, crafted this Barrier. It should be natural that no one knows more about it than a member of the Ninehart family—”
To Dwight, who appeared skeptical, Teacher Eve smiled as she continued.
“But Dwight, you’ve never actually seen the face of Viole, have you? I was someone who frequently talked with her. At least, we were friends in that regard.”
Upon hearing Teacher Eve’s words, Dwight wore a look akin to being struck on the head.
Well, it would make sense for the always-composed Dwight to display such a reaction.
How would anyone feel hearing their teacher say, “Hey! I dined and conversed with your ancestor!”?
Anyway, our teacher—likely over 400 years old—began reminiscing with a somewhat wistful expression, akin to the elders saying, “Back in my day…”
“Viole was an ally of Aegis. She was completely obsessed with magic. It seems that besides magic, she had very little interest in anything else; even when I was a witch, she treated me without prejudice. Although she had a slight issue with her personality, her magical prowess truly lived up to her title as a grand sorceress.”
“Uh… I see.”
“But even as a grand sorceress, magic was almost an unknown power back then. To develop a magic that could completely block only that unknown energy in such a short time? Doesn’t that seem odd?”
It seemed Dwight instinctively understood.
In this instance, the only response was to agree.
Dwight, nodding his head in a trance, received further insights from Teacher Eve.
“That was possible because I was actually a test subject who enabled studies on magic! Think of who that subject was.”
“…It was you, wasn’t it?”
“Correct! Therefore, I have about a thirty percent stake in the creation of this Barrier! Just think of how much hair and blood I contributed.”
Teacher Eve, who seemed to enjoy telling this tale she had held back until now, paused for a moment before murmuring.
“However, while researching magic, Viole discovered something significant—that there are different kinds of magic.”
Teacher Eve faced toward me as she spoke.
“Evande, haven’t you ever wondered? When absorbing it through the body, it’s all the same magic, yet why do the Lesser Demonic Beasts that arise from it come in different types?”
“Isn’t that right?”
As Teacher Eve noted, I had absorbed magic from the corpse of a Demonic Beast of Greed.
When absorbed into the body, it becomes the same magic, yet despite the world being shrouded in it, Lesser Demonic Beasts like the Demonic Beast of Rage appear solely in the forests of the north. Why is that?
Textbooks would merely say that the distribution of Lesser Demonic Beasts varies depending on where witches primarily operate, but that alone didn’t explain the occurrence.
“Viole mentioned that the hearts of witches serve as a sort of converter. Regardless of what type it is, once it passes through the body, it transforms into the distinctive magical energy of that witch. The type of Lesser Demonic Beasts being different stems from that reason.”
Teacher Eve pointed to her chest.
“But the important part isn’t that. Different types of magic indicate that distinguishing between them is also possible—”
At that moment, Dwight supplemented her words.
“…Which means it’s also possible not to block only that particular type of magic.”
“Correct. I can freely pass through the Barrier due to Viole allowing my magic to pass through.”
After confirming this to Dwight, Teacher Eve turned to me.
“And now, Evande, I’ll allow you to pass through the Barrier as well. I never thought I’d end up actually using this in my lifetime, but here we are. Dwight, Mark, I’ll need your help for this, so could you come over here for a moment?”
Teacher Eve called Dwight and Mark to assist me in overcoming the obstacle that was preventing my entry into the city.
Teacher Eve let a bit of blood drop from the tips of their fingers and hers before the Barrier and said.
“Now, everyone, follow what I’m about to say.”
Standing side by side with their hands held, Teacher Eve led the trio in a chant.
“All three of these fools are gathered here.”
““All three of these fools are gathered here.””
“A stubborn one, a magic-obsessed fool, and a foolish witch. The three fools wish to invite a new friend into their home.”
““A stubborn one, a magic-obsessed fool, and a foolish witch. The three fools wish to invite a new friend into their home.””
As they recited this, the previously invisible Barrier emitted a faint light only in front of them.
Then a voice echoed from somewhere.
[What is the password?]
Teacher Eve replied to this voice.
“Nid yw pob gwrach yn elynion.”
““Nid yw pob gwrach yn elynion.””
Following Teacher Eve’s words, Dwight let out a small laugh as he murmured.
“Ha, not every witch is an enemy… I suppose.”
With those words, a white pillar of light erupted from the Barrier, illuminating the area beside them.
Following Teacher Eve’s gesture, I stepped into the beam of light falling beside them.
“Evande, your blood.”
At her words, I let a bit of blood drip from my finger, just as the others had done, before dropping it in front of the Barrier.
Then, I grasped their hands that were still held together.
Following Teacher Eve’s lead, we all took a step forward together.
[Welcome, new friend.]
In this manner, I stepped into the Barrier.
Feeling a bit dazed, I looked at Teacher Eve, who beamed at me.
“Congratulations, Evande! You are now the second witch permitted entry into this city.”
Those words made me unintentionally smile with joy.
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