Chapter 9 - The Witch

"How amusing."

Ilea's voice settled over the room, cold enough to send a chill down Raguel's spine.

He could not bring himself to speak, not with that expression on her face. He was blind, but it was easy enough to imagine. Her beautiful features must be horribly contorted.

"... A witch."

Ilea let the words trail off as she turned them over, bearing down on Raguel. That was how it felt to him, at least.

He was anxious. He wanted desperately to clear the air. His voice trembled as he spoke.

"S-sorry. It just slipped out..."

"No."

Her voice was the complete opposite of a moment ago.

"I'm not accepting your apology. You've already hurt my feelings."

It was youthful and bright. The chill in the air vanished in an instant.

"I-Ilea...?"

Raguel could not hide his bewilderment. He struggled to keep up with the sudden change in mood.

"So you do know my name. You called me a witch so fiercely that I thought you didn't."

Her words barely registered. Raguel was flustered, and something else was occupying his thoughts.

Ilea's sudden request. She wanted him to introduce his friend? It had come out of nowhere. They were hardly close enough for that sort of conversation, and Raguel had no friends to begin with.

He was the very definition of a loner. Everyone in the castle would agree. Ilea could not possibly be unaware of it.

"What has you so deep in thought?"

His train of thought snapped. She added softly,

"You don't seem frightened, even with a witch right in front of you."

The boy flinched at the word witch. His lips began to work.

"If there's something you're curious about, you may ask. I'll answer as best I can."

After some hesitation, Raguel steeled himself. He even sat up from his reclining position. He took a deep breath to steady himself, then spoke.

"Ilea, I don't mean to insult you. Not at all."

"That's quite an unsettling opening. Please, speak freely."

"R-really, I'm only asking on the off chance... Well..."

As he trailed off, Ilea gave a small sigh.

"Yes, that's right."

"W-what is...?"

"I'm a witch."

She added calmly,

"And you, young master, are a contractor."

Just then, footsteps sounded. Ilea looked back. A huge man in leather armor stood in the doorway.

"We meet again, mercenary."

It was Gaf. His eyes wavered as he looked at Ilea.

She slowly rose from her chair.

"You have a visitor, so I'll be going."

Raguel could offer no reply. He had simply frozen in shock. Ilea smiled gently at him.

"Let's finish our conversation another time. I enjoyed our little talk."

Then she turned away. As she passed Gaf, she stopped short. She had heard a baby's cry.

Alarm flickered across Gaf's face. Had this damned Demon lost its mind? He could not fathom why it was drawing attention to itself.

WAAH.

Ilea turned her head, her gaze fixed on Gaf's cloak. The mercenary reacted quickly, twisting around to face her and conceal it.

With an awkward smile, he said,

"Sometimes I return to my childhood."

WAAH.

"Your inner voice, I take it."

"I've been learning ventriloquism lately."

"You'll need a dummy, then."

"Haha, well..."

Ilea clapped her hands with exaggerated delight.

"Oh! Is that it?"

A baby was peeking out from between the folds of Gaf's cloak.

WAAH.

"How adorable."

Gaf stifled a groan.

"May I take a look?"

There was no way to bluff his way out now. Looking troubled, he said,

"Ilea, no. This child..."

Ilea's smile vanished.

"I must see."

Her face had hardened like wax. The expression was so unfamiliar that Gaf faltered for a moment. In that brief opening, Ilea approached the baby.

Only its little face was visible. It seemed to be secured against Gaf's lower back, bound there with straps or cord.

She put on an affectionate smile.

"Hello."

After greeting the baby, she whispered in its ear,

"I'm your big sister, whether you're a boy or a girl."

The baby merely looked at her without any particular reaction. Ilea poked its cheek with her index finger.

It was neither dry and coarse like a doll nor hard like a Demon. Just plump, with an ordinary baby's feel.

With a curious expression, she murmured,

"Such a sweet, pretty baby. So very ordinary."

Gaf took a step back.

"Haven't you seen enough?"

Ilea nodded.

"Quite enough."

Then she inclined her head slightly.

"It was an impertinent request. Thank you for indulging me."

Gaf looked down at his daughter with a conflicted expression. After a moment, he turned away and said,

"I should be going."

Ilea pointed toward Raguel's room.

"Weren't you heading this way?"

"I took a wrong turn. I still don't know my way around."

Gaf retraced his steps down the passage. He would not be leaving Yohan in Raguel's room today. Something about it left him uneasy.

Ilea watched him recede into the distance.

'A blind boy, a baby, and a mercenary. What a peculiar combination, Father.'

* * *

"The Holy Hero Kazan said to Geppetto, the specter of the duchy, 'I understand your thirst for revenge. I, too, was once consumed by hatred and spilled innocent blood. In the end, all I had left was regret. Do not follow my path. I beg you.' Geppetto cackled."

The Demon's reading echoed through the library.

"He brought his pitch-black blade toward Kazan..."

SNAP.

Yohan shut the book. Seated atop the round table, he looked down at Raguel.

"You're not paying attention at all."

Caught out, the boy sighed.

"I keep thinking about yesterday."

"Didn't I tell you? You needn't concern yourself with it."

"She's found out I'm a contractor. It's not that easy."

"It was bound to happen. You cannot deceive a witch's eyes."

Raguel hesitated before speaking.

"... Is she really a witch?"

"As I've told you several times, yes."

"I don't understand."

Witches were an extinct race. Fifty years had passed since the destruction of Rahel, known as the last witch.

They had been powerful, but the Empire's overwhelming violence had crushed them like ants. Thus fell the last minority race.

Only humans and Demons remained in this world now. They were its sole intelligent beings. And yet she was a witch? It was impossible to believe.

Yohan spoke.

"Even talking day and night wouldn't be enough to make you understand. Just remember one thing. Ilea is the last witch."

Raguel looked sulky.

"I'd still like to hear it."

"I don't want to explain. It's a nuisance."

A silent battle of wills followed. Raguel's shoulders slumped in apparent resignation.

"Yes, well. I suppose an all-knowing Demon wouldn't spare a thought for my curiosity."

Yohan smirked.

"Quite right. I don't care whether you're curious or not."

Just as Yohan was about to open the book again, Raguel spoke.

"Then just one question."

Yohan clicked his tongue.

"Make it quick."

"Ilea can use magic, then?"

"Obviously."

Raguel stammered, seemingly taken aback.

"Th-then she has a Demon bound to her service..."

Yohan was rather impressed.

"How do you know about that?"

"I read it in a book. Witches bind Demons to their service, then drain their demonic energy and convert it into mana."

"There must be some forbidden books mixed into this library, too. Say that elsewhere and you'll be dragged before the Inquisition."

Raguel gulped. Yohan added,

"In any case, you're right."

Ilea would have a slave at her command.

Raguel nodded in understanding.

"That explains how she noticed the contract, then."

"Her bound Demon must have told her. Or she saw through it herself."

In fact, it was both.

"Wait. Didn't you meet Ilea yesterday too, Yohan?"

"Outside your room, yes."

"Then she must have realized you're a half-demon."

That was uncertain. It was precisely why Yohan had deliberately drawn Ilea's attention while in his infant form.

Could she see through to his true nature? There was no way to know without testing it. None of the half-breeds in the original novel had been able to shift between human and Demon.

In short, he had no example to go by.

Yohan murmured,

"She didn't seem to know. For now."

"That's a relief."

"Why?"

"Well, witches are the natural enemies of Demons."

"In a sense, it's a symbiotic relationship."

Looking puzzled, Raguel asked,

"Yohan, do you perhaps want to be bound to Ilea's service?"

Thinking about it, that made sense. Yohan had shown little concern over Raguel being exposed as a contractor.

His attitude was that whatever happened, happened. The trail might lead from Raguel back to him, yet the Demon remained unruffled. That was how it looked to Raguel.

There could only be one reason. He wanted to be bound to her service.

Yohan gave a disbelieving laugh.

"To that little girl?"

Raguel spoke cautiously.

"... Aren't you just as small and young yourself?"

"You damned brat. This tiny body holds the knowledge of the ages. I'm not so shallow that some little girl can twist me around her finger."

Yohan paused, then continued.

"Besides, my days as an imp are over."

He looked down at the library floor.

An enormous spell array covered it. An Unhallowed Array formed from black blood, it was an altar for corrupting holy relics.

He had copied it from the demonic tome he had retrieved from the forbidden library. Since it required a Demon's blood, he had fainted several times from blood loss, but the result was satisfactory.

After countless rounds of trial and error, he had created a perfect Unhallowed Array.

Now he would be able to leave the whelp stage behind. The moment he defiled Kazan's ring, he would evolve.

Raguel stifled a groan.

"I don't know what it is, but it sounds as though you're planning something wicked again."

The blind boy could not see the Unhallowed Array.

"Only moderately wicked."

Raguel nearly asked how wickedness could come in degrees, but stopped himself. Nothing could be more foolish than debating morality with a Demon.

"In any case, I need the witch to finish this. I'll have to meet her sooner or later, so why bother hiding my identity?"

Activating the Unhallowed Array required mana. He would need to procure a mage or a witch.

Both were rare. Mages worshipped Demons and were classed as serious criminals in this world. They kept well hidden in the shadows, making it impossible for him to find one at present.

Witches were rarer still. Only one existed in the entire world. As it happened, she was close at hand. He would have to make use of her.

Raguel's expression darkened.

"I can't imagine what you're plotting that you even need a witch."

"That's not all."

"What?"

Corrupting a holy relic came with three requirements. The first, an Immobilization Array, and the second, mana, were more or less arranged. Only the third remained unmet.

After a moment's thought, Yohan spoke.

"Raguel, let me ask you something, too."

His voice was lower than before. It sounded ominous for no apparent reason. Though a little uneasy, Raguel nodded.

"... Yes, anything."

The Demon's red eyes flashed.

"Is there a human you want to kill, or one who needs to die?"

The third requirement was a human sacrifice.

"Choose someone in this castle."