Dear Not Cunning Witch

Part 2

“Is that train the only thing we have to deal with?”

Hugo asked as he pointed at the distant train. Colonel Oxley gently corrected him.

“It’s not the train but the Revolutionary Army occupying it that we need to deal with.”

“Aren’t they the same thing?”

“How could they possibly be the same……? They’re clearly very different things.”

Colonel Oxley was about the raise his voice before he promptly gave up on the notion. Things that were common sense to him were not common sense to the wizard. He continued,

“The goal of this operation is to deal with the members of the Revolutionary Army who have occupied the train and evacuate the passengers safely. ‘Safely.’ The passengers’ safety is the most important part of this operation.”

“How cumbersome…….”

The colonel only just managed to hold back his surging anger. All wizards were like this. They were selfish people to their very bones who cared more about their personal safety than the wellbeing of hundreds of others.

“The passengers must not get hurt. Their safety is of the upmost importance, even if it takes time and effort to secure it. Besides, didn’t you say that Lady Hester’s younger sister is on the train too?”

It was only then that Hugo seemed to agree.

“Oh, right. Then, as soon as Lady Hester’s sister has safely evacuated the train—”

“Sir Hugo. We must secure the safety of every passenger on the train, including Lady Hester’s sister,”

Colonel Oxley said unyieldingly as he closed his eyes. Hugo looked like he was at a loss.

“That’s rather inconvenient. I need to make sure Bamber’s eaten.”

“You must stay here, Sir. I will send my aide to your residence instead.”

“I don’t let just anyone inside my home.”

Hester, who had been watching the train quietly, walked over to them just then. The colonel hesitated as he turned to her. He still found the strangely beautiful witch difficult to deal with.

“Would you know why they’ve occupied the train, Colonel?”

“No. The Revolutionary Army’s been silent ever since they announced they had occupied the train. But it’s quite obvious even if they don’t say anything. At most, they likely wanted to cause some chaos in Ingram.”

“But it will be difficult to carry out this operation if we don’t know exactly what their intentions are.”

Colonel Oxley guffawed.

“We have two wizards with us —what is there to fear? I am certain that the Revolutionary Army is regretting the fact that they chose Penzas of all places to stage their revolt —and they occupied the train on which your sister was boarded, no less.”

But the two wizards did not react despite his loud laughter. The colonel grew embarrassed and cleared his throat in vain as he straightened himself out.

“What exactly am I meant to do here?”

Hugo asked all of a sudden.

“Why, you’re supposed to rescue the passengers and arrest the Revolutionary Army, of course.”

“But how, exactly?”

“Obviously, Sir Hugo, with your magic. Why would you ask me that?”

Colonel Oxley was disconcerted as he fumbled with his words. Wrinkles furrowed in Hugo’s marble-smooth skin for the first time today.

“I cannot do anything like that.”

“Pardon?”

The colonel asked back. Calmly, Hugo replied,

“You must think that magic is all-powerful, Colonel. Indeed. Perhaps magic itself is all-powerful, but wizards are not. I cannot do what you are asking of me.”

“But aren’t you a renowned wizard? I’m sure I’ve heard that you brought winter to the White Hall in the middle of summer once. Wouldn’t this be much easier than what you did back then? There are only twenty or so members of the Revolutionary Army on the train at most……. And you said yourself that it would be easy to take care of this, Sir.”

“I did not know that I was to be responsible for the passengers’ safety too,”

Hugo replied dryly. He continued,

“I can summon winter even in the middle of summer. I could even summon a squall to tear the train to pieces if I so wished. You are correct in thinking that I am one of the very few wizards who can cast large-scale spells. But I cannot cast a spell that knows whom to attack and whom to defend, especially from a distance where it’s impossible to distinguish between who is with the Revolutionary Army and who is not. And it isn’t as if I can board the train personally either.”

Wizards were generally regarded as omnipotent beings, but the truth was completely different. The spells they cast were rather trivial, such as using magic to move objects around or creating enough friction on dry wood to start a fire even without any flint.

And only a very few wizards knew how to cast large-scale spells like Hugo Alpheus, who could summon winter. But he could not manipulate it in great detail because the margin of error grew larger with larger spells. Moreover, wizards were generally weaker than the average person because they dedicated their lives to researching at their desks, so they couldn’t exactly stand in the frontlines of battle either. This was exactly the reason why the wizards hadn’t been able to end their war against the Church of Santigma for over a millennium despite possessing such amazing talents that no ordinary person could even dream of.

The blood drained from Colonel Oxley’s face as he finally understood what Hugo was saying, and he turned to Hester instead. He earnestly hoped that ‘Hester the Wise’ would be able to do what Hugo could not.

“What about you, Lady Hester? Can you do it?”

Hester was silent. She looked to the train with worry in her eyes before she quietly said,

“Let us wait for the Revolutionary Army to contact us for now. They’ve surely seen us arrive, so they’ll probably tell us why they occupied the train soon.”

 

* * *

 

The sun had begun to set in no time at all. The crimson sun looked majestic as it hung over the farms, but Diana was endlessly unenthusiastic as she looked out the window.

The passenger car was in disarray. Perhaps a grave problem had cropped up, as the assailant was far more pressed to exchange news with the liaison than he was to continue monitoring the car. Diana was curious as to what the fuss was about, but it was said that one could find happiness in the troubles of their enemies. There was no reason for her to tremble anxiously alongside them.

Diana gently leaned toward the other side of her seat.

“Um, there’s something I’ve been curious about.”

Oliver gestured her to continue with his eyes. Diana kept her eyes on the assailant as she whispered,

“Why did you act like you knew me? You said that it’s already been two years since you broke up with my sister. Were you trying to accomplish something by deceiving me?”

“So you believe that I used to be Hester’s boyfriend now?”

“W-well, not entirely? Don’t get me wrong,”

Diana immediately refuted. Oliver laughed a little before he replied,

“I just felt like it. I’ve always wanted to meet you at least once. Hester’s told me a lot about you.”

“My sister did?”

Diana was tempted. The sisters loved each other dearly, but they had not actually been together for long. Diana was naturally curious to know what her sister thought of her.

“Are you curious?”

Oliver slyly tossed in some bait as he saw through Diana’s heart. Diana coyly nodded back. Oliver continued,

“She praised you quite often. You probably didn’t know, but Hester exchanged letters with your teacher, Barbara Jiles, regularly. Hester wanted to ask about everything that had to do with your everyday life, but Barbara Jiles only ever wrote to her about what kind of magic you’ve been learning.”

“It’s amazing that my teacher even told her that much, considering her personality.”

Witches were generally very egotistic. Being indifferent to one’s disciple wasn’t a trait exclusive to Barbara.

“But the letters were still quite nice. There usually went like, ‘I taught her this spell today, and Diana worked hard to learn it.’ Or something like that.”

“You didn’t read my teacher’s letters too, did you?”

“Technically, Hester showed them to me.”

Diana was taken aback. A faint smile crossed Oliver’s face as he continued,

“Hester always had the brightest smile on her face whenever your letters or your teacher’s letters came in the mail. And she always began praising you whenever I asked her about it. She’d tell me about what kinds of magic you’d succeeded in casting or what kind of praise your teacher had to say about you.”

The look on Diana’s face gradually grew nuanced. It was a different feeling than what she felt when her teacher praised her.

“Hester worried a lot too, of course. I think she was always worried about living apart from her younger sister. I heard that House Jiles is pretty unique.”

“That’s a nice way of putting it.”

“Is there a bad way of putting it?”

“It’s a house filled with personality disorders,”

Diana declared stiffly. She continued,

“But my teacher was one of the better examples of the lot. It was the others that were a problem.”

“Hester was always worried about that.”

Oliver stole a glance at Diana. He continued,

“She wondered if it was because you were living in someone else’s home that you’re so mature and quick-witted for your age. She worried that you might be having a hard time and just didn’t tell her about it. That you weren’t telling her because you didn’t trust her. That she might not be fully aware of how much you were suffering. She worried about you a lot.”

Diana grew sullen as Oliver continued. He reached out and pat her gently on the shoulder.

“Hester was always thinking about you. That’s why she took on every job she could get her hands on after passing her promotion exam before she even became an adult. I heard that your mother left you two a lot of debt. It was Hester’s goal to pay off the debt as quickly as she could so she could lay down the groundwork before you finished your apprenticeship. It was always her dream to be able to live with you.”

“…….”

“So you’re on the receiving end of a lot more love than you think you are, Miss.”

Diana’s shoulders were quivering. Oliver leisurely waited for her to settle down. But he grew a little anxious when she didn’t speak up again for a while and gingerly asked,

“Are you crying, Miss?”

Diana abruptly shook her head furiously. Her eyes were conspicuously red, but there were no trace of tears. She drew a deep breath and just barely managed keep quiet as she said,

“I’m not crying!”

“I see. You aren’t crying anymore.”

“I wasn’t crying earlier either!”

“Shh. Keep it down, Miss,”

Oliver said while laughing with his eyes. Diana forced her seething anger to quell. How was he so good at pissing people off? —her sentiment from earlier had already melted away like snow.

“But how did you remember all that?”

“All what?”

“Everything you just told me. You said you broke up with my sister two years ago, so it’s strange that you remember all that,”

Diana mumbled moodily. Oliver shrugged.

“I know a lot more about you than you thought, don’t I?”

“Seriously —you never answer any of my questions properly.”

“I know. I’ll stop teasing you. And as for the answer to your question…….”

Oliver fell deep into contemplation. Finally, he continued,

“Who can say? I remember everything Hester’s ever told me.”

 

* * *

 

Late at night.

A mysterious shadow fell over the desolate train tracks as the owls hooted from afar. Those who were accompanying the night were soldiers of Ingram. They were planning to subdue the Revolutionary Army in the dead of night because it was impossible to march toward the train during the day, where you could see just about everything clearly from the train’s perspective.

“It’s darker than I’d thought,”

muttered Hugo Alpheus from the command tent that had been set up a few hundred meters from the train.

“And the weather was clear today too……. It’s a good thing that the passenger cars are lit up so brightly,”

replied Hester calmly as she sat opposite of him.

“Today begins the Days of Heaven’s Inversion.”

“Is it already that time?”

“Muzetta has risen in the skies to the west.”

“I have a very bad affinity with the star Muzetta. We’ll be at a disadvantage if things drag out too long.”

Colonel Oxley, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, fretfully asked,

“Are we in danger?”

“We’re approaching the train at the moment. We haven’t been caught yet.”

Hugo Alpheus was observing the operation with his left eye. He had given his left eye to the mechanical bird he had used to deliver a letter to Hester with and had imbued it with more magic so that it could accompany the troops.

Colonel Oxley had actually passed out earlier when Hugo had taken out his left eye from its socket like it was no big deal. It was apparently an artificial eye, but the colonel could not help but pale when he heard that Hugo had ripped out his perfectly usable normal eye for research purposes. It was only natural that the colonel’s understanding of wizards had only grown a cut worse after hearing that.

“There are guards standing at the back of the train,”

Hugo said. Nervously, Colonel Oxley asked,

“How many are there?”

“Who could say? I can’t see very well because it’s dark. Oh, they just died.”

“Pardon?”

“A soldier with a mustache just shot them dead. Were gunshots always this quiet?”

Colonel Oxley grew deathly pale. Hugo continued,

“This makes things more difficult. I told them to send me a signal before they started shooting……. But it looks like the enemy’s heard the gunshots too. The others are rushing outside.”

“How many…….?”

“Looks like there’s four or five —and another one just came out.”

Colonel Oxley was so pale he could have been a corpse. Hester, who had been quietly observing the situation, suddenly asked,

“Could you please tell me the enemy’s coordinates, Sir Hugo?”

“I can’t give you exact coordinates because they keep moving.”

It took great skill in spatial magic to work magic somewhere where the eye couldn’t see while relying on coordinates alone. And it was rendered pointless if the coordinates weren’t accurate.

Hester quickly organized her thoughts and turned to the colonel next.

“Colonel Oxley. You said that the last car is a freight car, yes?”

“Pardon? Yes, but…….”

“Sir Hugo. What is the exact status of the situation right now?”

Hugo monotonously replied,

“It’s not very good. We’ve started a gunfight with the enemy. We have the advantages in numbers for now, but we’re also taking more damage because the enemy is using the luggage car as a shield. Goodness, one of our allies died just now. Even Canavern might be in danger at this rate.”

“Canavern?”

“The bird with my left eye.”

Hester, who had been deep in thought as Hugo and the colonel conversed, spoke up and said,

“Please move your bird far away from the last car, Sir Hugo. I am going to blow up the last freight car.”

She spread a map out on the table. There was a railroad that split the map vertically in two, and the colonel had already down the train over it.

“The last car’s coordinates are I16PZ892 : 3846, correct?”

“Lady Hester, you mustn’t.”

Hester slowly looked up when she heard the chilly warning. Hugo, who had been focusing on his distant left eye, had opened his right eye and was looking at her sternly. He continued,

“The heavens are inverted today. Muzetta does not have good affinity with Dulcinea. And yet you would blow up the freight car using coordinates alone? You will hurt yourself if your magic misfires, and it is highly likely that the coordinates might be wrong even if you succeed. You might even blow up our allies if things go very poorly.”

The Days of Heaven’s Inversion referred to the six consecutive days in a year that Muzetta, the Inverse Star, appeared in the skies.

As its name suggested, Muzetta was the star that opposed Dulcinea, the King of the Stars, and it was commonly regarded as bad luck. It wasn’t generally easy to see Muzetta, but it expanded its influence during the Days of Heaven’s Inversion and caused the other stars, such as Dulcinea, the King of the Stars, and every star under Dulcinea’s influence, to dim their light. It wasn’t the sixth day of the Days of Heaven’s Inversion, when Muzetta was at its strongest, just yet, but it was only natural that wizards grew weaker because their magic borrowed the stars’ powers.

Colonel Oxley was frightened when he heard that their allies might explode and quickly began persuading Hester to stop.

“We absolutely must not let that happen. Why don’t we withdraw for now? Next time —we can try another operation next time.”

“Is it possible to withdraw?”

Hester asked quietly. Hugo, who had closed his right eye again, looked doubtful.

“I couldn’t say. This is my first time participating in a battle like this, so I don’t have a strong sense for things.”

Neither Hester nor Hugo were familiar with warfare. They had spent their entire lives as academics working away at their desks, so there was no reason for them to be experts in battles between men. But Hester was still extremely anxious. Her special senses as a witch told her that she would suffer a much worse fate if she didn’t do anything right this instant.

Once she had made her decision, Hester said,

“Sir Hugo. Please confirm the last freight car’s coordinates for me. I16Pz892 : 3846 —is this correct?”

“Lady Hester!”

“Please calm yourself, Colonel Oxley. We can confirm that the enemy has gathered in one place, and we will not get this chance again. We can decrease our enemy’s numbers and buy time for our allies to evacuate in one go if I succeed.”

“But if you fail…!”

“I will succeed.”

Hester turned unyieldingly toward Hugo. Hugo eventually caved and nodded back.

“Rex stellas caeli…….”

The Abado tongue flowed out from Hester’s lips. She was chanting the incantation aloud to make up for any possible error in the coordinates as she could.

A strange aura began to circulate around the tent as her incantation continued. The once-even fires of the lamp flickered, casting an uneasy mood about the air, and the shadows inside the tent grew larger. Then, just as Hester’s half-closed eyes were filled with an instantaneous golden light.

Boom!

A large explosion resounded.

 

“What?! What was that?! Something exploded just now!”

The fires blazing from afar could be seen from even here. Colonel Oxley was bewildered as he began nagging at Hugo.

“W-wait……. I can’t secure my line of view because you’re making me dizzy by shaking me like that.”

It was only then that the colonel quickly released his hold on Hugo’s collar. Hugo was amazed as he refocused on the tracks several hundred meters away.

“The freight car has exploded. Incredible.”

“And the enemy?! What of the enemy?”

“It looks like they were all caught up in the blast. They must be rather alarmed themselves, judging by how they aren’t following up with any additional attacks. I’ve ordered an evacuation through Canavern for now, so I’m sure the troops will be back soon.”

It was only then that Colonel Oxley breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Can you confirm the casualties?”

“Of course I…….”

Hugo, who had been speaking readily, suddenly closed his mouth. His blue eye was tense with anxiety for the first time today.

“……The enemy is approaching.”

“What? But you said that there were no additional attacks just seconds ago?!”

“Please wait a moment. I haven’t finishing grasping the situation yet.”

Hugo furrowed his brows as he concentrated. The vision in his left eye was dark —had Canavern gotten stuck somewhere? His magical link to Canavern had suddenly grown weak, and he could not move the bird freely anymore. He had a bad feeling about this.

Then, his vision suddenly spun around. The dark night. Brutally mangled corpses and fresh blood littered the ground surrounded by raging flames. And standing in the middle of it all was a lone human figure.

Hugo assumed the figure was a man, judging by his large physique, but he couldn’t get a good look at the figure because he was wrapped tightly in black robes. All he could see was the faint red light reflecting on the figure’s mouth.

He was smiling.

 

I knew I felt something funny.

 

The figure began writing letters in the air with his finger. A frightening crimson light was etched into the air where his index finger pointed.

 

I sense Valdivia’s magic, so you must be the famous Hugo Alpheus.

I was so looking forward to meeting you in person, but to think that you’d send over this petty toy instead.

 

He stared contentedly at the letters he had drawn in air for a moment before he blew at them and scattered them away. Then, he began writing new crimson letters once the air had cleared.

 

But was it you who blew up the freight car just now?

That’s remarkable.

And here I’d thought that Hugo Alpheus was only close to winter.

 

Flames suddenly surrounded the figure and soared up. The man’s smile grew deeper as the embers, soaring into the night sky, fell upon him. His smile was dyed in madness.

 

I look forward to meeting you in person next time.

 

Hugo’s vision suddenly cut off as soon as the words filled the air. The sudden darkness made him dizzy. Colonel Oxley quickly helped him up when he staggered. His lone blue eye was quivering in his pallid visage.

“……We’ve been annihilated,”

Hugo said with great difficulty. He continued,

“The other side has a wizard too.”

 

* * *

 

The night was dreary.

Diana, who had been dozing off against the window, was startled awake by the thunderous roar. The other passengers, including Oliver, were staring out the windows in shock. Ominous fires were raging from behind them.

The car doors were thrown open just then. An unfamiliar man in black robes passed quickly through the corridor. An assailant wearing a black mask chased after him in a rage.

“What are you talking about?”

His voice was blood-curdling, like the sound of grating steel. Then, the he shouted again,

“Hey!”

“You’re very loud, aren’t you?”

The man in front abruptly stopped in his tracks. The assailant wheezed as he glared at the other man’s back.

“Why did you go outside? You promised you would stay put until the enemy’s main forces arrived!”

“But the bastards blew up the train.”

“That much damage was within our expectations. They have Hugo Alpheus with them. We were going to get the enemy to put their guards down, but now you’ve gone and ruined everything. What are you going to do about this?!”

“Did you want me to let the enemies simply run away? Hugo Alpheus would have stayed sitting in the rear lines at this rate. I know this because I’m a wizard myself — a wizard’s behind is heavier than stone.”

“Exactly —that was our original plan!”

The assailant bellowed, unable to hold back his wrath. But Diana didn’t care about him. Her astonished grey eyes were fixed solely on the other man.

Goodness —a wizard?

Her heart began thumping furiously upon hearing the sudden news.

“I know what you said, so I was planning to lose on purpose at first.”

The wizard wrapped in black robes scratched his head in irritation. He continued,

“Do you know just whom exactly you’re being arrogant with right now, Morgan?”

The atmosphere around the wizard suddenly changed. The assailant’s rage subsided somewhat as a taut tension lingered in the air. The wizard continued,

“Wasn’t your goal to wipe out the whole lot of them? I can take care of Ingram’s army and Hugo Alpheus just fine —don’t you worry. That’s what I promised you I’d do.”

“……I wanted to avoid as many casualties on our side as possible.”

“And that’s why I personally slaughtered the bastards who murdered your precious subordinates.”

It looked like the assailant had nothing more to say after that. The wizard dropped his combative mood and purposefully asked with great cheer,

“So where’s the guy from Banzè? You said he was in the first-class car?”

Diana swiftly turned to Oliver. The wizard just so happened to see her sudden movement and smirked. He continued,

“A fresh young wench and a man. You must be the guy from Banzè, judging by your appearance. Am I right?”

the wizard asked as he nodded at Oliver. The people of Banzè, a large country to the north, were generally tall and bulky. Oliver had dressed himself in Ingram’s style, but that didn’t mean that all of his foreign features had disappeared completely.

Oliver nodded slowly. The wizard was pleased and passed him a slip of paper.

“You remember your mother tongue, I trust?”

“Sie müssen die Aufgabe erfüllen, und für sich zurückkommen. Niemand kann Sie helfen. Ich habe Sie vor einer Gefahr wohl gewarnt.”

An unfamiliar foreign language flowed smoothly from his lips. The wizard shook the slip of paper in a hurry.

“So, what does it mean?”

But Oliver did not answer him obediently.

“Why are you asking me?”

“What nonsense is this? I’m asking you because you’re from Banzè.”

The wizard glared quietly down at Oliver. Oliver smiled leisurely and leaned against his seat.

“I don’t know who sent it, but it seemed pretty urgent. Don’t you need to hurry up and figure out what it’s about?”

A tight tension filled the air, as if they were all standing on thin ice. The wizard fell silent for a moment before he extended his hand toward the assailant behind him with his eyes glued on Oliver. The assailant looked between the wizard’s face and hand in turns before hesitantly handing over his pistol.

“I happen to like people with guts like you. I never get bored with people like you around. But you know, there’s a fine line between being bold and being reckless.”

The gun’s muzzle was pointed at Oliver. The wizard observed Oliver, who was just as calm as ever, and smirked. He continued,

“I know bastards like you pretty well. You probably think that I wouldn’t dare shoot you. After all, I wouldn’t be going through all this trouble with you if there was anyone else from Banzè on this train. It’s admirable when people realize their own value. And it’s more admirable still if they know how to use it effectively. It was a smart move to bet on the fact that you might be able to negotiate with me, but like I said —I know bastards like you pretty well.”

The wizard moved his arm. The muzzle, which had been aimed at Oliver, moved to the side. It was now pointing at Diana.

The wizard looked to Oliver, who had stiffened up, and continued,

“So what will you do now, oh clever gentleman who wants to negotiate?”

 

Diana fell into panic. She couldn’t tell if the muzzle floating in front of her eyes was real or just a dream. She had been safe under her teacher’s protection until now, and this was the first time in her life that she found her life in danger.

She trembled without realizing it in her abject terror. That tiny circle, and the black darkness inside it, felt like it was foretelling that she would soon meet her end in a bottomless abyss. She wondered if she was doomed to die in such an unseemly manner, only a day after she had passed her promotion exam and without even being able to see her sister again.

And a rope was slowly lowered down before her.

Should she call him, or should she not?

She wouldn’t have even spared it a second thought normally, since it was nothing but a rotten rope, but she didn’t have the time to care now that death was staring at her directly in the eyes. This was the only means she had available to her, as she had immediately realized that she stood no chance against the wizard before her. But she could not decide easily because she recalled the turmoil she would have to go through afterward. Diana clenched her hands, drenched in cold sweat, into fists as she barely managed to let out a shaky breath. Her insides churned as if she was about to hurl any minute now.

Then, a familiar voice suddenly called out from beside her.

“I’ll talk, so put the gun down.”

Diana swiftly turned toward Oliver. He was glaring at the wizard with a sharp light in his eyes. It was only then that the wizard grinned and raised both his hands.

“Does this work for you?”

“……It said to come back immediately after you finished your job. No one can help you. Whoever wrote it said that they warned you too, so you must not have listened.”

The puzzled wizard, who had been listening attentively, asked,

“I thought you said it was urgent?”

“Did I, now?”

Oliver shrugged. The wizard, who had been staring back at him absentmindedly, suddenly leaned his head back and laughed out loud. The assailant and the other passengers stared at him out of the corner of their eyes. But his laughter only lasted for a moment, and the wizard struck Oliver’s cheek with the pistol as soon as he had stopped laughing. Crimson blood splattered against the window.

The wizard was terrifyingly expressionless as he turned around. Then, he gave the gun back to the assailant and cautioned,

“Keep a close eye on that bastard.”

Only silence filled the air after the wizard had gone, like how nothing was left behind in the wake of a storm. The train had been dominated by confusion when the Armed Revolutionary Army had first taken over, but now it was ruled by fear. Not only was it already frightening enough that there was a wizard working with the Revolutionary Army, but his temperament was a violent as a savage beast’s too. Diana’s hope that they would be rescued soon was growing fainter by the minute.

Diana looked to Oliver on the verge of tears. She felt the assailant, who hadn’t cared about her until then, take notice of her, but that didn’t mean that she could just ignore Oliver as he was bleeding.

“Hey. Are you okay?”

Diana whispered carefully as she watched Oliver lean forward into himself. He looked up with a hand around the right side of his chin.

“I’m okay. It’s not that bad, so don’t worry about me,”

he said as he smiled clumsily. Diana was taken aback and rebuked,

“What do you mean it’s not that bad? —you’re bleeding.”

“The inside of my mouth just tore a bit.”

“As silver-tongued as ever, I see,”

Diana grumbled. She continued,

“Why did you do something like that? You almost got me k-killed too.”

“I’m really sorry about that. I didn’t think he’d threaten you too, Miss.”

“……You think saying sorry makes it any better?”

Diana mumbled angrily. Oliver smiled gently as he replied,

“But it wasn’t completely pointless. I gained a few things out of it too.”

“Did you learn something?”

“That wizard. He’s probably from Gwaltiello Velli.”

“That’s impossible.”

Gwaltiello Velli was an infamous prison located at the southernmost reaches of the continent. It was the worst penitentiary in the world, and most normal criminals would never even set foot in it. The only kinds of criminals that were transferred to Gwaltiello Velli were heretics who had committed sacrilege against religion or wizards who had broken their oath.

“Think about it. Most wizards are pretty stubborn about not doing any physical work. And they would have used magic to deal with the situation just earlier instead. But that wizard was pretty accustomed to getting physical. And as you should know, Miss, no one can use magic inside Gwaltiello Velli. It’s the only place where even the greatest wizards would be forced to get pretty used to getting physical.”

“But if that’s your only reason…….”

“And I caught a glimpse earlier too,”

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Oliver whispered as he pointed to his wrist. He continued,

“He had crosses tattooed on his wrist. I was wondering why he was wrapped up so tightly in this kind of weather.”

The thousand-year war between the world of magic and the Church of Santigma had concluded two centuries ago, but the two groups still harbored bad feelings about each other. This was why Oliver thought that the wizard’s cross tattoos must be the work of the Church of Santigma, which oversaw Gwaltiello Velli. Diana could not help but agree, since she had grown up in the world of magic and had never heard of any wizard crazy enough to willingly wear the Church’s symbols on his body.

But, Gwaltiello Velli of all things.

Diana shuddered as she thought about how the wizard was likely a heinous criminal. It was only then that she finally understood what Chesterty had meant when she had foretold that the trip would be long.