Chapter 273

In the end, Prince Antonio’s suspicions about Lara’s mother were quickly put to rest.

Right after she showed us to the lodgings where we would stay during our time in the Witch’s Forest, her reaction towards me didn’t resemble that of someone wary of strangers.

Grab.

“Huh?”

“…Please… take care of her.”

“What?”

“…Take care… of my daughter….”

At that moment, everyone’s eyes turned to the woman who had suddenly grabbed my hand and murmured under her breath.

Though her voice was barely louder than a whisper, it was clear and warm, showing that she viewed me favorably. And thanks to the sudden silence that had fallen over the group as they focused on Lara’s mother, I could hear her clearly.

The others probably understood as well, which meant the misunderstanding that Lara’s mother didn’t welcome us had likely been cleared up.

“Oh, don’t worry. You can leave her in our care.”

Nod.

After nodding as if she had said everything she needed to, Lara’s mother turned and walked away, trembling slightly with unease. Even without looking closely, it was obvious how anxious she felt.

By now, the others must have realized what kind of people lived in the Witch’s Forest.

“Hm. Do all the witches here have similar…”

“Why don’t we divide up the rooms, unpack, and meet up again afterward? Lara Medichilling’s mother gave us two rooms, so we can split into a men’s room and a women’s room. How does that sound?”

Before Prince Antonio could finish his awkward remark in front of Lara, I quickly interrupted and smoothed over the situation.

“Hm. Yes, let’s do that.”

“How about we gather in the men’s room in about thirty minutes? Since Prince Antonio and I can’t exactly enter the women’s room.”

“…Fine.”

“Sounds good.”@@novelbin@@

“Miss Lara, will that work for you? Will you be able to join us in thirty minutes?”

“Y-Yes… thirty minutes should be… barely enough time… probably…”

For Lara, ‘barely enough time’ meant she needed that time to mentally prepare. Meeting five strangers all at once was a significant challenge for her.

In the game, this was the kind of scene I would normally skip after the first time, but seeing it play out in person made her personality seem even more frustrating.

“Well then, see you all in thirty minutes.”

After watching Ethan and Prince Antonio head to the room at the end of the hall, Agnes, Sir Colt, and I entered the room next to it. I saw Lara dash into her room at the opposite end of the hallway.

Even though I had suggested we meet in thirty minutes, I had a feeling it would be hard to gather everyone on time.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

As expected, Lara didn’t show up at the appointed time.

It was highly likely she hadn’t even realized the time had passed. Maybe she was busy preparing a new ‘script’ to face all of us.

Though the star of the event hadn’t appeared yet, I wasn’t in a hurry to go fetch her. After all, there were things we needed to discuss without her present.

“Miss Agnes, you mentioned earlier that you’ve visited the Witch’s Forest before.”

“Yes. But don’t call me Miss Agnes. Call me Blaze.”

“I’m asking just to be sure, but was the atmosphere like this during your last visit as well?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, with Miss Lara and her mother… It feels like communicating with them is a bit challenging.”

“…It was similar, yeah.”

It was like a community made up entirely of people with extreme introversion. In such an environment, that personality trait was passed down through generations, and being raised among such people, it was inevitable that they developed the same tendencies.

The witches, having evolved this way over countless generations, now avoided speaking to anyone outside their circle. It was a small miracle they could communicate with each other at all, thanks to their shared identity as witches.

“When I was younger, it was like this. Whenever I tried to ask for directions, people would run away or whisper so quietly I could barely hear them. Even when I found Natia’s house, I had to visit three times before she finally let me in.”

“Hm. It seems most of the witches here are very shy.”

“That was over ten years ago. Back then, it was just me and one female guard from the Elizabeth family. I didn’t expect things to be exactly the same after a decade.”

“Witches tend to live longer than most people. The ones you met ten years ago are likely still living here.”

“Still, it doesn’t make sense. These witches are older than me, but they panic at the slightest conversation? And I was just a child back then.”

“….”

I almost let slip that, appearance-wise, she still looked like a child. I needed to be more careful.

To the witches living in this forest, the real dividing line wasn’t age but whether someone had grown up here. They were like the quiet kids at school who suddenly started talking when they found someone who shared their interests.

“I think I’m beginning to understand why Princess Sera was the only royal to visit this place. If it weren’t for her sociability, it would be impossible to have a conversation with these witches.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much, Prince Antonio. Our main reason for being here is to help Miss Lara with her Witch’s Trial. As we assist her, I’m sure the other witches will start to open up as well.”

“By the way, what exactly is this Witch’s Trial? Isn’t it typically a test to see if someone qualifies as a witch? Are we even allowed to help?”

“It should be fine. I believe we’ll be assisting with the process rather than the trial itself.”

“And how do you know that, Lilith? Did Lara tell you something?”

“…Just a feeling. If helping would cause any problems, they wouldn’t have asked for it in the first place. And Lara’s mother wouldn’t have welcomed us so easily.”

“…I suppose that makes sense.”

Although I already knew what the trial involved and what we needed to do, I pretended to be guessing. After all, I hadn’t revealed to Prince Antonio or Sir Colt that I was the Saintess, so I had to keep my knowledge of future events to myself.

After chatting for about ten minutes, we heard hurried footsteps coming down the hallway. The door to the men’s room suddenly swung open, and the last guest of our meeting finally appeared.

Bang!

“S-Sorry I’m late! I’m so, so sorry! I… I made you all wait… I’m so sorry…”

“It’s fine, Miss Lara Medichilling. We haven’t been waiting long, and we were just talking among ourselves anyway.”

“You… you were talking? Then I… I’ll just wait outside so you can finish…”

“…Don’t run off again. Just come in and explain what you need to. We don’t have time to waste.”

“Eek…! I-I’m sorry…! I didn’t mean to waste your time… A-Aah…”

“Miss Agnes.”

“…Fine. I’ll keep quiet.”

Agnes, who had unintentionally made Lara even more nervous, sighed and turned away, leaving me to approach Lara, who had collapsed to the floor in a deep bow.

“I-I’m so sorry… I-I was just so nervous about speaking in front of so many people… I needed time to prepare, so I ended up being late…”

“It’s fine, Miss Lara. None of us are upset.”

“B-But the red-haired lady seemed upset that I was late… I really need to apologize properly…”

“Miss Agnes wasn’t actually angry. She just has a naturally sharp tone. Isn’t that right, Miss Agnes?”

“…Yeah, that’s right.”

“Oh… That’s a relief…”

If this were during a playthrough of Luminor Academy, I would’ve been holding down the X button to skip the scene by now. But since I wanted to get through this event without issues, I swallowed my frustration and helped calm Lara down.

Thanks to Sir Gevmwagjoshekegrit’s trolling, we’d ended up in the Witch’s Forest. Still, as a dedicated player of Luminor Academy, I didn’t want to half-ass this event.

…If I remember correctly, this is how I helped Lara calm down in the game.

Gently.

“Wha-?!”

“I’ll hold your hand, Miss Lara. Take a deep breath and calm yourself.”

“C-Calm myself?”

“Yes. Follow my lead. Breathe in… and out. In… and out.”

“H-Haa… Huu… Haa… Huu…”

I never imagined that Snowball's misguided trouble with Mechart would lead to me spending my summer break taking care of a gloomy girl in the Witch’s Forest.

A gloomy character might seem cute in fiction, but when you actually have to deal with one in real life, you quickly realize just how exhausting they can be.