Dear Not Cunning Witch

Part 3

It’s so suspicious.

Diana thought as she walked in the shade. While it was generally the same for all wizards, the Cedric Jiles that Diana knew was not the type of person to do good deeds for others for no reason. Things had gone smoothly because Cedric had played along with her lie, but Diana could not help but feel uneasy.

‘Just what on earth made him change his mind?’

Diana grumbled hard. She could not figure out Cedric’s dark intentions at all —not that she’d ever been able to—, and it weighed heavily on her heart.

“Oh, Diana. I noticed this morning that we ran out of eggs. Shall we visit the store for a bit?”

Diana nodded back without much thought. Eggs were unquestionably a necessity for life. Neither sister knew how to cook, and eggs were the only simple dish they knew how to make. Hester continued,

“Then, let’s head over to the grocery store and—”

“Let’s go to the market instead, Sister,”

Diana suddenly said with sparkles in her eyes.

“The market?”

“I heard from the waiter at the café that the grocery store in town jacks up prices. Apparently, it’s much cheaper to buy things from the market.”

The café on the first story of their apartment building. Diana was glad that she had tried chatting with the waiter because she was reluctant to venture into a new café. The talkative waiter often passed her good tidbits of information like this.

And so, the two sisters made their way to the market. They got lost about twice along the way, but they managed to reach their destination before they grew exhausted from the heat. They were relieved as they finally stepped foot inside the bustling daytime market.

“Lovely ladies over there! How about some fish for dinner? —we’re selling fresh salmon!”

“Salmon? It’s tradition to have chicken in summer!”

“Goodness. These ladies here don’t really look like they know how to handle a knife —how would they prepare a chicken? Now, now, how about some fruit instead? Take a look at the color on this apple —it’s beautiful color suits the two of you very well.”

Diana had never imagined that the market would be so noisy.

“We only need to buy some eggs.”

“Just eggs? That’s not the only think you eat, now is it? Come now, how about some of this bacon too?”

“We have bacon.”

“Do you? But you should still buy some more. Our bacon’s a much better quality than the bacon you can get anywhere else.”

“No, it’s our apples that are of much better quality. How about some apples, ladies? Hmm?”

“No, like I was saying, we only…….”

The sisters had no immunity to solicitation, and they quickly became an easy target for the seasoned merchants. Diana was frightened when a merchant charged toward her like he was about to go to battle and hid behind Hester’s back. Hester’s eyes began spinning once she was left to deal with the merchants all alone.

The merchants had their way with them, and both sisters were carrying bags in both hands by the time they had finally managed to slip away. Naturally, it wasn’t just eggs that were inside those bags.

“……Let’s just go to the grocery store next time, Diana.”

“……You’re right.”

Diana sighed. Eggs, fruits, meat, vegetables —it had truly been a sight to see. They had been sweet-talked into spending so much money. Diana was so frugal with her money that Chesterty even called her a miser, and she was quite bitter about her unexpected expenditure today.

But what could she do about it? She’d already spent the money. Diana was about to resign herself to her fate when the look on her face changed in an instant. No, I can’t do that. Where did this money come from? My sister earned this money with her blood and sweat, so I can’t just spend it so frivolously like this. Then, what should I do? Should I go back and ask for a refund? But will those outrageous people really give me a refund if I ask?

Just then, she felt an unfamiliar touch on her head. Diana startled and looked up.

“Sister?”

Hester was smiling bashfully. Diana opened her eyes wide, wondering what she was doing, when Hester pointed at her hair. Diana placed her bags on the ground and touched her hair where Hester’s hand had just been.

“Huh?”

She felt a small piece of metal at her fingertips. She clumsily pulled it out and brought it before her eyes only to find something that she had never expected. Diana’s eyes grew as wide as the full moon. She continued,

“A hairpin?”

“It’s a gift.”

“A gift? For me?”

Diana asked, perplexed. As if it was no big deal, Hester responded,

“You swore your oath today. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime event, so I wanted to congratulate you.”

“But…….”

Diana was unfamiliar with all of this and lowered her head, unable to hide how bewildered she was. Hester studied her face with worry.

“Do you not like it? Should I get you something else instead?”

“……No. That’s not it. That’s not the issue.”

Diana quickly shook her head. She did not know what kind of face she was making. All she knew was that a confusing yet ticklish emotion was filling her heart. She continued,

“Thank you, Sister.”

Hester had only sent Diana gifts by mail until now. Sometimes, she had given Diana precious books, and sometimes, she had given Diana regional specialties from wherever she had been currently staying. But Diana cherished the small hairpin more than she had ever cherished any of Hester’s other gifts. After all, it was the first gift that Hester had given to her in person.

“Thank you……so much.”

A brilliant smile blossomed on Hester’s face when she heard Diana’s sincere gratitude. Her smile was so filled with pure joy that Diana could not help but see and smile too.

Diana thought. She wanted to be with her sister forever. There was nothing she couldn’t do to achieve that goal.

* * *

The next day.

Diana, who had woken up rather late and was wandering around her home like a ghost, just so happened to see a business card on the floor.

“What’s this?”

She wasn’t fully awake yet, and her brain was somewhat slow to recall what had happened the day before. She had gone to the market, had run into that damned snake, had signed a contract with the palace witch, had gotten lost, had met the wizard from House Alpheus…….

Oh, right. The glasses-wearing wizard from House Alpheus had been accompanied by a mysterious mechanical bird —she couldn’t quite figure out how it worked. The wizard had given her a business card when she expressed her interest in the mechanical bird. Diana had completely forgotten about it because she had been preoccupied after running into the snake and receiving a gift from her sister. She hadn’t even realized that she had dropped the business card.

Her heart was pounding as she read the business card. She had never thought about combining magic with machines before. It might even help her break past the limits of her magic.

“186B Harrington Street, East Tether, Wokingham……. Oliver Fenley? Huh?”

Diana opened her eyes wide when she read the absurdly familiar name. But the card still said ‘Oliver Fenley’ no matter how many times she re-read it. If he was truly the same Oliver Fenley who had given her his business card previously, then this was truly a curious coincidence. She had learned from their time together on the train that Oliver was weirdly familiar with the world of magic, but she knew for a fact that he absolutely was not a wizard himself. But then, how was someone who wasn’t a wizard conducting magical research?

Diana frowned as she stared at the business card. First, she would need to visit the address that was written there. She could always question him if he was truly the same Oliver Fenley that she knew, and it wasn’t exactly a problem if he was simply a stranger with the same name either.

The wizard from House Alpheus who had given her the business card hadn’t seemed like a liar. Diana had a rather sharp intuition, after all.

It was already noon and the sun was high in the sky by the time she had finished a quick meal consisting of a few pieces of bread and stepped outside. Diana had learned from her last excursion that she should not stand directly under the scorching Wokingham sun with nothing covering her eyes and had prepared a wide-brimmed hat to wear. It was still just as hot as ever, but at least she wouldn’t be blinded now.

The address on the business card was a bit too far away to simply walk over. But her purse was a tad too empty to take a carriage, so Diana opted to ride a tram for the first time in her life.

“We’re departing now! We’re departing!”

If you went out to the many interconnected alleyways and walked along the path, you could find a set of tracks that not even the scarily fast and disorderly carriages could approach. Diana had lived in large cities like Ogg, Bennevis, and Rumbledon when she was younger and knew that those tracks were tram tracks. However, knowing about them and actually experiencing them were two completely different things.

“Are you getting on, Miss? Hurry up if you are!”

The noisy bell and the crew member’s shouting pierced her eardrums in succession. Diana had been staring blankly at the jam-packed tram, and she startled when the crew member singled her out.

“Me?”

“Yes, you, Miss! Are you getting on?”

The tram slowly began moving even as the crew member was still shouting. Diana panicked and quickly climbed aboard. She paid the crew member and peered inside, but it was so crowded that all she could do was stick close to the entrance —there was no way she would be able to find a seat.

Rattle rattle. The tram began shaking fiercely as it picked up speed. The scenery whizzing by and the wind rushing past her ear made Diana’s sensitive stomach churn. She managed to avoid falling off the tram by clinging tightly to a pole, but it was impossible for her to do anything about the restlessness in her stomach.

Diana was so pallid by the time she had arrived at her destination that it almost looked like she had seen a ghost. Finally getting off the tram and stepping foot on solid ground again made her as delighted as she had been back when she had finally understood the Allegro Theorem after studying it for three days straight.

It made absolutely no sense to her that something as fast as a tram had no proper safety features. Diana shuddered as she pulled out the business card.

186B Harrington Street, East Tether. She was in East Tether now, so now her next priority was to find Harrington Street. A shadow fell over her face as she surveyed her surroundings.

Everything looked grey under the scorching sun.

The buildings, the people, the roads —everything.

There was a distant look in her eyes as she stared at the grey city. Construction workers were carrying heavy rebar over their shoulders, and their superintendent was yelling something at them. Diana could hear machines humming in the distance, and she could smell their smoky exhaust. The sun grew dim as the clear skies were covered by the grey stacks of smoke rising up from the chimneys.

This was an industrial district.

“Are you looking for someone?”

a sudden unfamiliar voice said to her. Diana grew wary out of instinct and slowly turned her head. She found a man with a shaggy black beard standing not too far from her. He continued,

“No need to be so nervous. I only asked because I saw a young lady standing in the middle of the street.”

“……I’m looking for Harrington Street,”

Diana replied hesitantly.

“Harrington Street? It’s just two blocks down that way. What business do you have there?”

“I just……. It’s not dangerous there, is it?”

“Not at all. I only asked because there are a lot of foreign factory owners there. You don’t look very similar to them, Miss.”

The man turned around and walked away before Diana could thank him. She dithered in place for a brief moment before she began walking.

Just as the man had said, she found Harrington Street two blocks down the road. Despite what the man had said about foreign factory owners and whatnot, the street did not look any different from any of the other streets around. It was a boisterous and smokey grey cityscape, just like everywhere else.

Diana found the address on the business card by asking people on the street for help. She eventually found herself standing before a large factory that looked just as overbearing as the rest of them. Diana ogled at the numerous machines, which she could make neither heads nor tails of, and at the people inside before she pulled aside a worker who was nearby and asked,

“Um… I’m looking for Mr. Oliver Fenley.”

“The CEO?”

The worker did not seem to doubt her at all and quickly brought her inside the factory. Diana pulled down at her hat in vain. She could vividly feel that people were staring at her as they began whispering amongst themselves.

She was led to an office inside the factory. A desk and a few chairs were arranged neatly inside the office, and it was a stark contrast to the dizzying factory outside.

“She’s here to see the CEO.”

A woman wearing large glasses clacked her heels as she walked up to them. Diana took off her hat and bowed her head.

“Do you have an appointment?”

“No. I’m here because someone else referred him to me,”

Diana said as she showed the woman the business card. But the woman didn’t even look at it properly before she asked,

“Who referred you?”

“Well…….”

Diana’s voice trailed off. She didn’t know the wizard’s name. She had only assumed that he had been from House Alpheus due to his physical characteristics.

“You don’t have an appointment, and you don’t know the name of the person who referred you here. In that case, you won’t be able to meet the CEO anytime soon.”

“H-hold on a moment please!”

Diana shouted in a hurry as she began rummaging through her purse. Oliver had visited her once two months ago while she was admitted to the hospital. She recalled that he had given her his business card at the time. If the same Oliver Fenley that she knew was indeed the CEO here, then it would be her best chance at to meet him.

She found the crumpled business card soon enough.

“Mr. Fenley gave me this in person……. He’s the CEO here, right?”

The woman squinted as she studied the business card, and she looked surprised when she turned back to Diana.

“You were his friend? You should have said that to begin with.”

“Right…….”

Diana smiled awkwardly. To be honest, she doubted if she and Oliver could actually be called friends. They had faced a life-or-death situation together in the train, but he was also her sister’s ex-boyfriend. They hadn’t even seen each other in over a month, so it would make sense if any sense of friendship between them had faded in the meanwhile.

The woman’s attitude changed completely, and she brought Diana a cup of coffee.

“I’m sorry, but the CEO is absent at the moment. If you can tell me why you came to see him, then I’ll let him know when he gets back.”

“Well, actually, I’m a witch.”

Diana twisted her fingers together for no real reason. Most ordinary people were generally frightened by witches, but the woman before her was extraordinarily calm.

Almost as if she had met many witches before.

“Oh, then you must be here for that,”

the woman mumbled something that Diana couldn’t comprehend as she turned around. She then called out,

“Mr. Felton! Do you know if he’s back in the country yet?”

“Sorry? Who?”

A man who had been buried in the mountain of papers on his desk whisked his head up.

“Mr. Paul Liberman.”

“Oh, him. He came back last week, I think?”

Then, the woman wrote something down on a notepad. Diana accepted the memo from her in the heat of the moment and found that it was an address.

“It’s about thirty minutes away by tram. Please go there.”

“What?”

She had already spent so much effort just getting here, and now she had to find her way to yet another unfamiliar part of the city. The woman quickly continued while Diana was bewildered.

“I’m just an ordinary person. I can’t answer your questions even if you ask me. But Mr. Paul Liberman, who lives at that address, can explain things to you in detail, so please pay him a visit at your earliest opportunity. He’ll open the door if you ring the bell about ten times or so.”

Ding dong. Ding dong.

“Hello? Is anyone home?!”

Diana was sulking as she glared at the door. She had been ringing the doorbell until her finger felt like it might break off, and she had been calling for so long that her throat was hoarse, but it had all been to no avail.

What? He’ll open the door if I ring the bell about ten times or so? Diana hadn’t been counting, but she was certain she must have rung the bell at least thirty times by now. But the door was still just as unmoving as ever, and she was beginning to resent this Mr. Paul Liberman whom she hadn’t even met yet.

Diana leaned listlessly against the wall. She would have already assumed that no one was home and left long ago had the woman not advised her to ring the bell multiple times. She had been standing in front of the door for over twenty minutes because she had heeded the woman’s advice, and at this point, she had taken so much effort just to come here that she did not want to return emptyhanded.

‘I even took the tram to get here!’

She had ended up riding the tram just forty minutes after she had promised herself that she would never ride one again. Once again, she had been forced to cling to a pole for half an hour while riding the accursed tram. She was painfully aware of the fact that she would have to ride the tram yet again when she headed back home.

Which was why she was determined to finish her business today. She wanted to get everything done and over with in one go since she was already outside. She firmly resolved herself to never ride the tram again after today.

Wild rage filled Diana’s eyes as she glared at the door. She could simply wait if no one was inside, but if there was someone inside, she would drag them out.

How? Naturally, she would be so noisy that they’d have no choice but to come out.

The door swung wide open when she began pressing the doorbell furiously in rapid succession.

“Who the hell is making so much noise this early in the morning?!”

Diana, who had only just managed to evade the door, quickly looked up. He had tangled brown hair and a jagged beard. Diana’s eyes narrowed when she realized, by his scruffy appearance, that he must have only woken up just now.

“……Mr. Paul Liberman?”

“That’s me. Who’s asking?”

“Mr. Oliver Fenley referred me to you.”

It was only then that Paul turned to Diana and scrutinized her up and down as if she was a peddler. His open staring soured Diana’s mood even further, and she scolded him, saying,

“And it’s not morning right now, you know?”

“It’s morning if the sun’s up —it’s not night, is it?”

“There’s more to a day than just morning and night, isn’t there? And besides, why are you being so casual with me?”

Diana quipped back as she followed Paul inside his house. Paul didn’t seem to mind.

“You can be casual with me too, Miss.”

Diana pouted. She was awkward with people whom she didn’t know well. It was much easier to be thorny with strangers than it was to be comfortable with them.

“Ugh, it smells.”

Paul Liberman’s house was very dirty. It was so bad that Diana had to wonder if he had cleaned it even once ever since he had returned.

“Stay here and drink this for now. I’ll bring out the goods,”

Paul said as he pushed a cup her way. Diana accepted it in the heat of the moment, but she did not plan on putting it anywhere near her mouth. It looked clean, but she was wary of drinking out of something that had surely been rolling around in this dirty and smelly house.

Diana surveyed her surroundings while Paul was away. The house was dark because all the curtains had been drawn, and it was filled with strange machines that she could comprehend. They varied in both size and shape. They only similarity between them was that they were all caked in a thick layer of dust.

Diana brushed her finger over a machine that was nearby, and she scowled as she blew off the dust that had stuck to her. She felt like she would die of tuberculosis if she stayed here too long.

“The machines are expensive, so don’t touch them without my permission.”

Paul eventually came back from his storage room. Diana grumbled as she walked over to him.

“You should’ve said that sooner.”

“Did you touch something?”

“No.”

“Good.”

Paul then placed several mechanical devices on the table and began sorting them out.

“Which ones do you need?”

“……What can you give me?”

Paul, who had been about to explain about the machines one by one, paused and looked back at her.

“Do you have money?”

“Money…….”

Diana’s eyes began swimming. She continued,

“How much do I need?”

“Well, that depends on which one you want, Miss.”

“……How much is the cheapest one?”

“120 galleons.”

“W-what? 120 galleons?”

Diana yelped in astonishment. 120 galleons was about a month’s worth of rent. She continued,

“Why are they so expensive?”

“They’re expensive since you can’t get them anywhere else in the world. So anyway, do you have money?”

“……I have money at home. I’ll just stick with the explanations today.”

Paul looked doubtful as he studied Diana. Diana reflected his gaze by making a face and urged him to hurry up and start explaining. Paul still looked doubtful even as he began.

“……This one here’s a machine for controlling magic. I’m sure you know that magic becomes unstable when you cast large spells. It’s used to help keep your magic under control while you cast large spells, but you’ll need to be careful because it’ll break if you rely on it too heavily. Next, is a magic preserver. It’s a machine that keeps your magic circle stable so your magic circulates inside it without breaking it apart when you release a lot of magic at once. This one over here’s a machine that’s designed to look like an animal, and it’ll move if you power it with magic. It can be useful if you don’t want to raise a pet or use the post office…….”

His timid explanations continued for some time. Diana had been listening attentively when she hesitantly asked,

“Um, is there nothing else? Do you have a machine that can increase how much magic you have?”

Paul’s voice, which had been monotonous, suddenly cut off. A brief but uncomfortable silence fell between them.

“……Look here, Miss,”

Paul said quietly before long. He continued,

“I have two cups here. I’m going to pour some water in them.”

Paul pushed his machines off to the side and brought back two cups of different sizes. He quickly filled both cups to the brim. Then, he asked,

“Which cup has more water?”

“This one, obviously,”

Diana said as she pointed to the larger cup.

“Wizards are the same.”

“What?”

“You can’t hold a lot of water if your cup is small to begin with. Your only choice is to break your cup and make it again. You should already know that this is true of every wizard, Miss.”

Diana stared at the cups in silence. Paul let out a gentle sigh as he gestured to her. He continued,

“A wizard’s body is like a bowl. They’re bowls that are blessed by a star and born with that star’s magic. The total amount of magic they can carry is fixed at birth, much like these cups here. Even the wisest wizards and the best human technology can’t change your innate limits.”

“It can’t be changed?”

“No.”

“No matter what?”

“No.”

Diana bit at her lips as she whispered,

“Then, this is the best I can do no matter how hard I try?”

There was a dark light in Paul’s eyes as he looked to Diana. He pushed the larger cup, still filled with water, toward her as he brought the smaller cup to his lips.

“There are some things you just can’t change even if you die trying.”

His voice was bitter, as if he was mocking himself. Silence ensured, and Paul suddenly began scratching the back of his head. He continued,

“Hey, Miss. Didn’t you already know this? I’m not a god —what were you expecting when you came here? And there’s no reason why Oliver would’ve told you something unfounded.”

Diana didn’t budge even still. She was facing down, but Paul could guess what kind of expression she was making even without having to see it. Which was why he couldn’t ignore her like he did earlier.

“But what else can you do? You have to live with the hand you were dealt. It’s easier to just give up on the things that you can’t change no matter how hard you try.”

“…….”

“Ugh, jeez. Why did that bastard Oliver send over a kid like you to me?”

Paul muttered while looking anxious. He clicked his tongue quietly, and Diana stood up and bowed to him.

“I’m sorry. I’ll be on my way now.”

“Wait, Miss!”

Paul quickly grabbed hold of Diana as she tried to run away. He continued,

“I’ll feel terrible if I let you leave like that.”

“You don’t need to mind.”

“How could I possibly not……? Sit down for now. Why are you so depressed? —I’m sure you knew all of this already. Stop frowning so much, okay? I don’t say things like this to others if I can help it, but you’re still a witch, right? You should consider yourself blessed just for the fact that you were born a witch. You’re still young, Miss, but I’m sure you’ll find yourself a job that suits you when you’re a little older. So what if you don’t have a lot of magic? It’s not like how much magic you have determines how successful your spells are or any—”

“Don’t say things like that when you don’t know anything about me!”

Diana bellowed. Paul flinched and shut his mouth. Diana’s feeble voice seeped out from behind her disheveled crimson hair. She continued,

“What could you possibly even know……?”

Her shoulders had begun quivering at some point. Paul moved his lips with a blank look on his face. He hesitated for a while before he began talking again in a bitter tone.

“I’m sorry. I spoke out of turn. I just……. Damn, I haven’t talked this much in so long that it feels weird.”

Awkwardly, he continued,

“My father’s a wizard.”

Diana looked up again when she heard that.

“But you’re…”

“Oh, so you can tell. You must be sensitive to magic.”

Paul smiled gently. He continued,

“You’re right. I’m not a wizard. In Banzè, they call people like me half-breeds as a kind of slur, but I don’t know what they call us here in Ingram.”

The talent of magic was generally passed down by blood. This was why exceptional wizards tended to be born in renowned magical households. The talents sleeping inside an outstanding bloodline were usually passed down from parents to children.

But there were occasionally unfortunately children who were not born under the stars’ blessing even if their parents were a witch and wizard. It was the opposite of how wizards were sometimes born from ordinary parents.

“I was the result of a one-night fling. My mother abandoned me in front of my father’s house when I was just a newborn. My father only raised me because he was sure that I would be a wizard too. He wasn’t as sensitive to magic as you are, you see. He only realized that he had raised a half-breed when I couldn’t use magic even after I’d grown older.”

Paul pulled out a cigar from his pocket and placed it in his mouth. He lit a match, and it illuminated the room for a brief moment before going out.

“He’s not someone I can really call my father. He stopped caring about me altogether after he found out that I was a half-breed. He treated me more like a servant than a son, but it’s not like I resent him for that after all this time. Still, I studied a lot about magic while I was living under his roof. That’s why I know the gist of things. I know what kind of people wizards are. I know what kind of place the world of magic is. And I know how you’re feeling right now, Miss. I was really discouraged too, back when I first found out that I wasn’t a wizard.”

Paul breathed out a breath of smoke like a sigh, and the smoke began to spread. He waved away the smoke that was about to reach Diana.

“I was clumsy when I tried to console you before. But I hope you can understand where I was coming from. I may not be a wizard, but I was raised like one. I never got the chance to console others too often. But I mean it when I say that I wanted to console you, Miss. There were times when I wanted someone to console me too, and there were even times when I wanted that someone to be my father, but life was cruel and I never got even the clumsiest of consolations.”

Diana stared blankly back at him. Paul grinned sheepishly back at her.

“I won’t tell you to be grateful for being born a witch. That would be too cruel to you. But don’t choke yourself with things that you can’t change. What else can you do if all the effort in the world won’t change anything? Are you going to complain to your parents for the fact that they gave birth to you or curse the star that only blessed you a little? Let the people who have it all live their own amazing lives, and find your own path in life, Miss. Even I’m living just fine off the knowledge I picked up, and I’m a half-breed —who’s to say that you don’t have at least one thing you’re good at?”

Paul pressed his cigar against his ashtray as he pat Diana on the shoulder.

“You can be depressed for a day or two, of course. But don’t drown yourself in your sorrows. You won’t be able to get over it if you do.”

Diana was in a daze as she walked down the street. People were busily running away around her because the rainclouds were closing in fast, but Diana could not do the same.

She was ruminating over her conversation with Paul.

“Let the people who have it all live their own amazing lives, and find your own path in life, Miss.”

Diana knew it was the right answer. She knew that the amount of magic someone could handle was determined at birth, that it was a providence that could only be changed through death, and that it was simply a difference in talent. Her small hope that human technology might be able to raise her limits, even if only just a little, had crumbled down in but an instant. She should be ashamed of herself for letting herself think that something as trivial as human technology could actually change anything. It was only now that Diana realized how much hope she had placed in this excursion.

She had thought she had given up on this long ago.

Diana smiled bitterly. She realized just how foolish she was anew.

“Must be nice to be them.”

Her sister, Cedric, Chesterty…

They had all been born with amazing talent. They could all dream amazing dreams.

Diana had always been surrounded by outstanding witches and wizards as she grew up. Cedric was a genius who could cast magic instinctively even without having been taught, and Chesterty could see the future in her dreams. Which was nothing to say of the fact that her one and only sister was the powerful witch who had inherited all of Griselda Sol’s talent.

Diana hadn’t even realized that this was her true problem. Everyone else was so amazing, and yet she alone was such a fool.

Drip. Drip.

Raindrops began falling over the darkened streets. Diana slowly looked up. Rain fell on her face as she looked up at the sky. The raindrops, which had grown heavier at some point, seemed to wash her pointless thoughts clean away.

Diana stood there in the middle of the street under the rain for a long time. So that she could give up on her vain hopes. So that she only had to be depressed for one day today.