NOVEL NEXT Chapter 48
Witch of the West.
Long black hair and golden eyes, a thin body and a petite stature, juxtaposed with a contrasting tall figure.
—She resembled Skylar. And, at the same time, she resembled me.
Despite one of their comrades having lost his head, the Silver Badge adventurers swiftly shifted into battle formation.
The front lines, comprising shield bearers and those wielding swords and spears, stood protectively in front, sheltering the rear-line professions like mages, bards, alchemists, and archers.
The shield bearers were foremost, while those handling swords and spears stood behind them, ready to support.
Unbeknownst to us, enemies were lurking all around.
From the cracked ground, a hand, barely left with bones or muscle tissue, flailed in the air, trying to grab our ankles. In mere seconds, it was engulfed in flames.
Skylar ignited a scroll.
“…It’s dangerous.”
“Who is that person?”
“The Witch of the West, Osidens. This is at least a platinum-tier request. A mistake by the Adventurer’s Guild—”
“I’m not asking that!”
Did you really think I could be fooled that easily, even if I’m a bit dimwitted? Do I really look like that much of a sucker to you? Skylar, this is a matter of trust between us.
I gazed directly into Skylar’s eyes.
Magic gathered in my own. While I was asleep, a scroll spell that Skylar had secretly placed on me fell off. My pink eyes locked onto Skylar’s golden ones.
Skylar immediately reached into her bag and stuck a scroll onto my cloak.
“What is this…?”
“I’ll explain later. For now—”
My body stiffened.
Time felt as if it had stopped.
“Cute little sibling.”
Skylar’s words were cut off midway.
An unfamiliar voice suddenly echoed right in front of us.
‘…Sibling?’
There was no time to ponder the question.
Like a silent breeze, she approached us.
The one who had been watching us among the corpses was now standing right in front of us.
At this moment, there were 16 Silver Badge adventurers present, including me and Skylar—no, 15.
They had evaded the gaze of 30 eyes, swiftly making their way to the center of the formation.
Without making the slightest sound or movement.
‘…A monster.’
The overwhelming, unsettling feeling I experienced when Nisha, the platinum-tier adventurer, revealed herself was nothing compared to this. Yes, it felt as if we were confronting something not human.
She cautiously opened her mouth.
Her demeanor seemed to treat us as fragile, delicate glass art.
“Oh, I don’t know how long it’s been since we last met. If my subordinate thought I wouldn’t know about our information sharing, how foolish. How silly. My sibling became this stupid in just a moment of absence.”
“Osidens.”
“You’re getting a bit rude on your long-awaited meeting with your older sister. Won’t you try calling me ‘sister’?”
“……”
“If you refuse to call me ‘sister,’ I’ll make sure to kill the 13 less important humans here.”
Skylar was tightly pursing her lips.
If she could swallow her pride and call the Witch of the West ‘sister,’ then surely she could save the lives of others.
Yet, despite that, Skylar didn’t want to bend. Even with lives hanging in the balance, he was caught in his thoughts.
Only after a considerable time did Skylar finally speak up.
Just as Osidens began to draw her beautiful white fingers towards the adventurers’ necks, it happened.
“Technically, you should be calling me ‘brother.’”
“…But right now, you look younger than me.”
“That’s just an appearance.”
At the single remark from Skylar, the Witch of the West changed her tone of voice. The way she spoke now seemed completely different from just a moment ago.
My brain came to a halt.
I couldn’t grasp what kind of conversation was taking place.
I could hear and understand, but my thoughts couldn’t keep up.
“Skylar, what in the world is—”
“I haven’t granted you permission to speak.”
Her finger pointed at my neck. I found myself unable to make a sound.
I hadn’t lost my voice, nor was there a problem with my vocal cords. I had forgotten how to make a sound. I forgot. It was as if I had never known how to speak in the first place.
“The distractions have vanished, so what do you want with me?”
“I’m not looking for you. You’re the one looking for me.”
“Hmm, yes. That’s true. You didn’t want to see me. I must have put you in a difficult position again.”
“Something like that.”
“So, who is she?”
…Her gaze turned towards me. It was filled with jealousy, a humid look in her eyes. Suddenly, breathing felt suffocating, and my throat tightened.
“A friend.”
“A friend?”
“Yeah.”
“…Your eyes are pretty. Your hair is similar to mine. You’re about the same height, and your build is similar too. Hmm, I’ll forgive you.”
“Since we’ve met like this, I have a request.”
“Hmm?”
“Give me your left hand. I need a body to serve as a substitute for my heart right now.”
“…After such a long time, is that all you can say?”
The Witch slowly raised her left hand and pointed at one of the adventurers who was frozen in place, staring down a sword.
His head exploded.
Yet, there were no remnants left behind.
The body seemed to vanish as if it had evaporated.
The other adventurers, who were still able to move, began to reestablish their formation.
Since they were already surrounded by corpses, escaping alone was not an option. In that case… we needed to take down the one controlling those corpses.
It was an exceedingly rational choice, but it proved to be a deadly mistake.
The first one to burst open was the shield-bearing adventurer. Following him, two adventurers wielding spears and swords charged in excitement. I tightly shut my eyes.
When I opened them again, there was nothing left.
As if only 12 beings had originally existed here, including the witch, 5 presences had been cleanly erased from existence.
Normally, adventurers who lost comrades would either lose their sanity and rush towards the enemy or succumb to their anger and abandon their lives; however, these were not typical adventurers.
Most adventurers with experience in large-scale requests and hunts have already experienced losing comrades.
Moreover, they had seen countless times what happens when composure and calmness are lost at such moments.
Faced with an inexplicable being wielding overwhelming power, their options were severely limited.
Why was the young mage conversing so naturally with the Witch of the West? Why was that bard girl clutching her neck? There was no time to think.
The best choice was to negotiate.
“…Let us go.”
“Hmm?”
“I was just trying to deal with the corpses summoned by the guild’s request. Had I known you were personally involved, I wouldn’t have accepted.”
“You don’t want to oppose me, do you?”
“Correct.”
“Arrogant, aren’t you?”
The adventurer who mustered the courage to speak vanished in the blink of an eye.
The atmosphere had turned cold, and the light of hope faded from the adventurers’ eyes.
They judged there was no way to survive.
“She’s my companion. I don’t care about the others.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yeah. Return her voice.”
“Understood.”
Fuhah—
Finally, I could open my mouth.
I couldn’t understand what kind of scheme Skylar had to bring me here, but one thing was certain: Skylar was now a potential danger.
A factor threatening my survival.
‘…Let’s think of a way.’
Survive. By any means necessary, I must survive. In the end, the one who survives is the strong one. Keep thinking, do not stop.
Even if options are opened, I cannot succeed in making a choice.
‘For an opponent like that, I’d definitely need a dice value of 20. At the very least, 15 or higher.’
Persuade with eloquence? My charisma modifier isn’t that high.
Abandon everything and flee? I can’t run with my health, strength, and agility stats.
Explore negotiations or other methods using intelligence? My intelligence stat is far too low.
Even a strange choice would be fine. Please, give me a path to survive…!
–
1. [Provocation] (Charisma Bonus)
–
‘…Is there no other choice? I’m sorry.’
–
1. [Provocation] (Charisma Bonus)
2. [Mental Attack] (Charisma Bonus)
–
‘…Oh, please.’
The status screen remained still, as if it refused to offer me any other choices.
Honestly, if I were to die anyway, making the one who kills me feel bad wouldn’t be… such a bad thing. I don’t want to die, though.
–
You have seen a possibility.
Your eyes were originally made for such things.
Trust it.
–
Up until now, the nature of the status screen and options I’ve seen has been that of a being who is “playful and mischievous,” but “truly does not wish for my death in dire situations.”
—The conclusion is.
‘It’ll work out somehow!’
–
[Provocation – 5 or higher]
[15 + 5]
[Greater Success!]
–
“I have a question.”
“…Hmm?”
“What color are your eyes?”
“Of course, they’re beautiful golden—”
“It looks like the color of stale urine pooled on the bathroom floor. To be honest.”
The Witch of the West’s face twisted, and Skylar looked at me with shock. Both seemed to doubt whether they had properly heard what I just said.
It was a moment where it wouldn’t have been strange if lightning struck and turned my body to ash.
Yet my mouth continued to unleash vitriol as if it were an independent life form.
“Do your parents know you’re walking around looking this ridiculous? Oh, are they deceased? Especially your mother—she seems buried on Earth… Speaking of which, wasn’t Earth originally flat? Is it possible your mother was so fat that it bent the Earth?”
“Selina, wait a minute—”
“It’s hilarious to see you call Skylar ‘brother’. So funny for someone like you. Did you get desperate wanting to call him that? Do you still think you’re in your twenties?”
The words spilling from my mouth grew increasingly vile. They were barbs targeting the most painful spots, and I couldn’t stop them even if I wanted to.
I wanted to cry.
I was scared.
Please, save me.