A thin layer of clouds covered the afternoon sun, and in a corner of the
training grounds, Tinasha and Suzuto were sparring.
Suzuto's speed and strength weren't poor for a soldier, but to a seasoned
warrior, he lacked a certain element of surprise. As a result, Tinasha could
predict and parry Suzuto's thrusts with ease.
He grew impatient with the witch as she fended off his cuts by merely
adjusting her stance, then throwing his whole body into a downward thrust.
His opponent did not even meet the attack with her sword.
Tinasha crouched into a low lunge, holding firm against him as she just
barely dodged his blade. Then, with a dancer's elegance and the sure speed
of a fighter, she brought her sword within a hairbreadth of his neck and held
it there.
"All right, this is as far as we go," Tinasha declared.
"I—I lost again…," Suzuto lamented.
"You need to either learn how to read further ahead or get faster," the
witch offered.
Suzuto looked crestfallen as Tinasha sheathed her sword. The witch's
blade was her own, not a borrowed one. It had been crafted to be thinner
than a standard blade. In battle, Tinasha often carried a magic-infused
sword, but this was an ordinary one meant for practice.
Tinasha touched her hair, making sure it was all still bound up in a braid.
She felt someone place a hand on her head and looked over her shoulder to
see Oscar standing there.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
"I wanna get a workout every now and then. Can we spar?"
"No. From the very bottom of my heart, no." Tinasha glanced behind
him and saw the lady-in-waiting girl pop up; she must have come along to
wait on him. The witch waved expressionlessly at the girl, whose name was
apparently Miralys. Evidently embarrassed, Miralys turned red and bowed
her head. Tinasha smiled at the reaction.
"Even if you want to work out, you can't spar against anyone because of
the protective barrier."
"Oh, I guess that's true. Can you lift it temporarily?" Oscar asked,
making the powerful magic sound like it was nothing too troublesome.
"It would require a lot of effort, so I'd prefer not to. But there is a
shortcut built in," Tinasha explained.
"You thought of everything, huh?"
Tinasha showed Oscar her right palm. After concentrating only a little, a
small cut appeared on her pointer finger.
Oscar looked at the blood oozing out and frowned. "What are you
doing? You're bleeding."
"I am," answered the witch. Tinasha floated up and rubbed her finger
along the back of his ear. She murmured to him, "While my blood is on
your body, the barrier will relax. That said, it will still repel strong magic…
Think of it like a net. This a dangerous bit of info, so don't tell others about
it."
"Got it," Oscar agreed. Tinasha was still floating in midair, and he
hugged one arm around her waist.
Als came over to the two and bowed to the lord. "Your Highness, are
you here for practice?"
"I haven't sparred in a while. Would you be my partner?" Oscar
inquired.
"Gladly," Als replied.
Oscar set the witch down and took a sword from Als. Released, Tinasha
stood next to Miralys to observe.
It was hardly a surprise to Tinasha at this point, but Oscar was
fascinatingly strong. So much so that, while she had looked on sourly at
first, a cold laugh bubbled up within her partway through the duel.
Normally, Als was the one putting countless soldiers through their paces
during practice and winning against all of them, but now it was Oscar
gunning for that position. Members of the Farsasian army watched
respectfully as their future king defeated General Als and Officer Meredina
rather easily. Tinasha, who was usually no match for Als, watched the
spectacle with her arms crossed.
"Anyone else wanna go?" Tapping the flat of his blade against his
shoulder, Oscar made an appeal to his many spectators. None stepped
forward in response to the challenge, however. Likely because they knew
they stood no chance.
Oscar's eyes were dancing when Tinasha met his gaze, and the witch
was suddenly struck by a very bad feeling. She gathered magic, preparing
to teleport away, but before she could, Oscar beckoned to her.
"Tinasha, come forward," he requested.
"I refuse!"
"Wow, instant rejection," Oscar quipped.
"Because I'll get nothing good out of it," Tinasha retorted.
"It'll be good training," he wheedled.
The witch simply stuck out her tongue, turning him down. Oscar eyed
her with amusement for a moment before seemingly hitting upon
something. The prince set his sword down.
"How about I let you use magic?" he suggested.
"Do you want to be burned to a crisp?"
"Most of it will still get repelled, right?"
It was true. The barrier would repel strong offensive magic capable of
striking a mortal wound in one blow, even if it came from her. Even so,
there were still all kinds of other spells that could knock people out fairly
easily.
Tinasha wondered if Oscar knew how mages without a vanguard fought
on the battlefield.
She looked into the prince's eyes and saw they were brimming with a
dauntless confidence. Suddenly, a heady mix of hope, curiosity, and
resignation washed over her. Until now, there had never been anyone who
could hope to kill any of the witches, let alone Tinasha, the most skilled in
warfare.
This man standing before her had a chance, however. He could very well
kill her.
Tinasha made up her mind and answered Oscar's assured look with one
of her own. "Fine. But I have a condition."
"What is it?" Oscar asked, eager.
"Use Akashia."
Silence fell across the training yard.
The royal sword, with its total magical resistance, was the enemy of all
mages. With a single stroke, it had once cut down a mad mage endowed
with enough power to bring a country to ruin. This match was sure to be
something explosive. Whispers abounded through the crowd.
Oscar, however, seemed unfazed by the condition. "I don't mind, but it's
not blunted."
"I'd be surprised if it were… In exchange, allow me to bring out my
own personal weapons," Tinasha said.
"Sure," Oscar agreed, grinning with anticipation. He ordered Miralys to
go fetch him Akashia.
About ten minutes later, both the prince and his witch were ready. Their
match was to be held in an area slightly larger than the grounds normally
used for practice fights.
Akashia in hand, Oscar faced off against Tinasha, who held a short
sword in one hand and a dagger in the other. When she'd come down from
the tower, she'd asked her familiars to bring these weapons along just in
case.
Oscar eyed her choices with surprise. "Two-weapon fighting?"
"Essentially, yes. Normally, I'd keep one hand free, but it'll be pointless
to use magical obstacles against that sword of yours."
"I see."
Both of Tinasha's weapons had been imbued with magic, but that
wouldn't have much effect against Akashia. She'd chosen them simply
because she was used to wielding them, though she hadn't done so in a long
time. She adjusted her grip on the weapons' hilts.
"Anytime you're ready," Oscar provoked.
Afraid of getting caught up in any magic, the soldiers had given the two
a wide berth. Even so, everyone present at the training grounds awaited the
start of the fight with great anticipation.
Tinasha slowed her breath and gathered her thoughts. Oscar's blue eyes
were staring her down.
"Then I'll take you at your word… Give me everything you've got,"
Tinasha declared, and on her final word, she launched seven balls of light
into the air. Oscar's eyes narrowed a fraction. On an exhale, the witch
murmured "Go," and the spheres assailed Oscar at varying speeds.
Two came for him from the front and the right, but Akashia readily
dispelled them. The third changed its path before he could slice through it,
arcing its way behind the prince.
Without a hint of hesitation, Oscar advanced, cutting down two more
orbs that flew in from the left. Instantly, the witch's sword thrust in from the
right. The blow was aimed at Oscar's neck, but he parried it away with
Akashia's hilt.
Unfortunately, the prince felt a pain in his left ankle at the same time.
The sphere that had been chasing him from behind had collided with his leg
while he'd been fending off Tinasha's attack.
Doing his best to push the pain from his mind, Oscar dodged a lunging
dagger attack. Tinasha's attacks were equal parts relentless and elegant.
Oscar blocked the thrust with a burst of force and put some distance
between himself and his opponent. He then cut down another ball of light
headed his way. The last slipped through Oscar's guard, however, colliding
with his right shoulder. Pain and numbness traveled down his arm.
"Wind," Tinasha cried, giving the prince no chance to catch his breath.
Conjured blades of air sped toward Oscar from all directions.
Putting his injured ankle through more abuse, Oscar jumped to the left.
Using Akashia to offset the blades that aimed for fatal spots, he slipped
through the rest with only a few cuts on his skin to show for it.
It was a succession of attacks like nothing he'd experienced before, and
Oscar began to feel an elation take hold of his body.
His mind felt sharp and aware. Somehow, the prince could tell that air
filled with magic was slightly different. Normally, Oscar couldn't sense
magic at all, but his vision had suddenly been honed, and now he could
sense where the energy was amassing and what path it might take once it
appeared.
* * *
The blades of wind had been a decoy for an invisible rope that attempted
to go for Oscar's back, but Akashia cut through the transparent thing easily
enough.
Tinasha smiled as she watched her spell get scattered. Oscar certainly
had some natural aptitude. His intuition wasn't bad, either. In fact, he
seemed to be growing stronger by the second.
Cutting through the air with the sword in her right hand, Tinasha loosed
a blast of scorching wind from the spot she had seemingly torn. The heated
blast raced in Oscar's direction, with Tinasha only a hair behind her own
attack. Oscar cut through the eddy of hot wind, and the witch leaped to his
left-hand side, hurling her dagger at him.
An ordinary person wouldn't have been able to respond to such an attack
pattern; Tinasha had known that when she'd thrown her dagger. That was
why she was dumbfounded to watch Oscar catch the weapon by its hilt so
easily.
"Return," Tinasha commanded gently, and the dagger soared back from
Oscar's hand to its owner's.
"What's this?" Oscar asked, surprised.
"That's just the kind of weapon I have," Tinasha answered.
Oscar looked astonished but recovered quickly, moving in closer.
Tinasha guarded a downward stroke of Akashia's with two blows from
the sword in her right hand. With Oscar loosing such swift attacks, faster
than even those of General Als, the witch had her hands full deflecting them
with no room to spare for concentrating on magic. She leaped back to get
some distance, but Oscar closed the gap just as quickly. Frustrated and
annoyed, Tinasha fended off Akashia.
That's when the flat of Oscar's sword grazed her elbow.
Tinasha felt a cold sensation as the magic in her body began draining
from the spot where the blade made contact. Quelling her ramping fear,
Tinasha thrust her dagger toward Oscar's chest.
Before the tip could reach his body, Oscar lifted his sword and deflected
the strike. Tinasha's blade collided with Akashia and shattered like glass
against stone.
"What?!" Tinasha exclaimed. She kicked off the ground, teleporting
beyond the reach of the Mage Killer.
After reappearing, she raised both her hands. "C-can we end it there?"
Glancing at her left hand, the witch saw that her dagger's blade had been
reduced to splinters and was now utterly useless.
"You're not hurt, are you?" Oscar asked.
"Not really," Tinasha answered as she used magic to heal the little cuts
that dotted Oscar's body. Despite the two combatants now sitting in the
shade, the soldiers had apparently gotten rather fired up. They had gone
back to their training drills with renewed enthusiasm.
"That's good. I don't really want to hurt you," Oscar said gently.
"You'll get yourself into trouble saying things like that," Tinasha
retorted, dodging Oscar's hand as he tried to place it on top of her head.
Finishing the healing, Tinasha sat back down next to Oscar. She gazed at
the hilt of the dagger lying in the grass.
Unfortunately, the damage to the blade was irreversible. Many plain
weapons could be used as a medium for spell casting, but this dagger had
been rather unique in that magic had been embedded in its structure. That
was exactly why Akashia had shattered it. Tinasha tucked the hilt into the
front of her outfit.
"Were you going easy on me?" Oscar asked.
"Not particularly. Incantations and concentration are both required for
more complicated magic. To be honest, I don't want to fight you at close
range ever again," Tinasha answered, remembering the sensation of
Akashia touching her skin.
She'd thought of it as just a simple sword unaffected by magic, but she
hadn't expected it to steal her own magic energy from her at just a touch.
That meant that she couldn't cast spells.
Most likely, Oscar didn't know about that. If he did, he'd probably use a
different fighting style. Shattering the dagger had been an alarming
consequence, but Tinasha still didn't have any desire to tell Oscar just how
strong an effect the sword had on her.
Remembering something important, Tinasha reached out to wipe away
the bit of her blood that was lightly smeared behind Oscar's ear.
While they sat side by side, mulling over things they couldn't share with
each other, Oscar watched the witch's every move. Her profile looked
somber beneath the shade of the tree.
"I really don't want to kill you," he said.
"You're naive," Tinasha replied, her dark eyes emotionless. She offered
Oscar a tiny smile, however.
Oscar ran his fingers through her silky black hair, carding them slowly
through the strands. He felt that something about the dark color of the
witch's locks seemed to embody the loneliness she felt.
"Do you want to die?" Oscar asked.
Tinasha tilted her head, confused. She stared at Oscar with a cool, clear
expression. Something about the gaze very nearly betrayed her desires, but
whatever it had been disappeared after a single blink, and she smiled
broadly. "No. I still have lots of things to do… Like breaking your curse."
"You could just marry me."
"I refuse! Think about our age difference!"
"You'll be a spirit sorcerer your whole life with that attitude," Oscar
said, standing up and offering Tinasha a hand. She took it.
When he helped Tinasha to her feet, Oscar was overcome with a desire
to pull her in close, to rip her away from that distant place in which she had
resided for so long.
The first time they met was truly anticlimactic.
True, she was breathtakingly beautiful, but because she looked like a
girl, the way she laughed and got angry seemed very innocent.
He found that funny and enjoyed that about her. Of course, she also
provided invaluable help with his curse, but he felt like he'd never be bored
with a companion like her.
That was why he wanted to make sure no harm would ever come to the
fragile-looking slip of a thing.
It didn't take him very long to realize that wasn't what she was,
however.
She drilled it into him over and over; she was a witch—she was
fundamentally different.
No matter how close by she was or how calmly she smiled at him, no
matter how much kindness she showed others, she could never devote
herself to the humans around her. She always stood alone in a place distant
from all others.
After realizing that, he wanted to know the truth of everything about her.
Her smile, her angry face, her cruelty, her pride, her kindness, her
loneliness.
He sought the truth that dwelled within all of them.
Perhaps if he could touch the inner truth of this witch…he'd long to
cherish her.
"I mean, to be honest, I was pretty damn shocked. Miss Tinasha was
incredible, but so was His Highness. Is he even human?"
Als and Meredina were sitting at a table in the castle courtyard during
their lunch break. Als stuffed a piece of bread into his mouth as they
discussed the mock battle from the other day.
"I'm glad I saw it…," Als continued, "but at the same time, I feel like
I've lost my confidence… I don't think I could ever win."
"Against who?" Meredina asked.
"Either of them."
Meredina's childhood friend was acting unusually insecure, but she
smiled and took a sip of tea. "Don't go doubting yourself now. It'll be bad
for the soldiers' morale to hear you say things like that."
"I guess," Als replied.
"That's what happens if you use magic in melee combat. And she was
going easy on him, wasn't she?"
"I don't know about that, but it looked like she was only using quick,
flexible spells. Hmm, I guess a regular mage wouldn't do that, so that
makes me feel a bit better, at least," Als reasoned.
"You think so?" Meredina asked.
Als poured tea into his cup. Meredina took a bite of one of the cookies
she'd brought.
"I've never seen one of our mages using a sword," Als said. "Normally,
mages let swordsmen handle the front lines, while they launch large magic
attacks from behind. The enemy uses mages to defend against that. I don't
think there are many mages like Miss Tinasha, attacking and defending with
a sword to compensate for not putting up a barrier."
"At the magical lake, she used an ordinary wave of huge magic to burn
everything around us to ash," Meredina pointed out.
"That just means she knows how to fight the more traditional way, too. I
guess a lifetime of centuries provides a different perspective."
Meredina smiled at Als's words. Before, she'd had a bit of an inferiority
complex about the witch, but as she'd gotten to know Tinasha as a person,
those feelings had faded. Perhaps Meredina's change had been because
she'd caught sight of the witch, who seemed to have everything, casting a
long, lonely shadow. Seeing the witch like that had made Meredina feel like
Tinasha shouldn't have to look so sad—at least while she was in the castle.
With a bittersweet smile, Meredina took up her cup. "She was testing
His Highness…or maybe teaching him? That's how I interpreted it."
"You think?" Als asked.
"Yes. She wanted to show him what type of moves a mage like herself
would use in a real fight," Meredina explained.
Glimpses of a terrible, heartrending sorrow sometimes flashed in the
eyes of that woman who had lived for many lifetimes. Her eyes seemed to
convey that, while she balked at getting involved with humans, she wanted
to leave something behind. Perhaps what Tinasha wanted to entrust was
something she could give to Oscar.
Als evidently hadn't seen what Meredina had in the battle. With his chin
resting on his hands, he looked up at the sky. "She said before that she
didn't really want to give away her hand, though."
"Couldn't she have changed her mind? I mean, she started smiling
halfway through." Meredina drained her cup with a bitter smile.
The weather was excellent. The castle walls encircled the sky, and
clouds drifted slowly across the enclosure.
In a rare occurrence, Oscar's father, the king, asked Oscar to meet him in
the royal family's salon that adjoined the audience chamber.
Told it was an emergency, Oscar came over in the middle of his work
wearing a quizzical look. His father handed him a letter.
"What's this?" the prince asked.
"An envoy has come from Cuscull, a minor country to the north. He's
asking to meet the Witch of the Azure Moon."
Two things struck Oscar about that, and he decided to inquire about the
less important of the pair first. "I've never heard of that country."
"It appears to have gained independence from Tayiri a year ago. It's a
small nation, but it's investing heavily in magic research."
"Magic…"
Tayiri was the northernmost major nation in the mainland, and it shared
no border with Farsas. Such distance meant that state visits only occurred
between the two sovereignties around three times a year.
The most pervasive characteristic of Tayiri was its belief in
independence. It was also well-known as a land that frowned heavily upon
magic. Children born with an aptitude for spells were banished as soon as
their talent emerged. It was also not unheard of for them to be killed,
depending on the region.
An internal faction within Tayiri declaring independence and founding a
nation dedicated to magic reflected poorly on the power of the ruling state,
which was likely why any news of the event had been quashed. It would've
been far more surprising if Farsas had known of Cuscull's founding.
Oscar nodded in understanding, then asked about the more pressing
doubt he had. "So how do you think they know Tinasha is in Farsas?"
Most of the witches weren't open about their whereabouts, with Tinasha
being the sole exception.
That said, the only widely known fact was that she lived in the tower. It
wasn't as though she'd left a note on the door saying where she was
whenever she went out. Though it had been officially revealed to those
within the castle that Tinasha was a witch, it was still a tightly kept secret
beyond the walls. The rest of Farsas was unaware of the truth. How could a
distant, newly founded country have learned of Tinasha's true identity?
King Kevin shook his head in response to his son's question. "I don't
know. It just says they want to meet her."
Oscar fell into thought for a bit. Tinasha was probably in his study at the
moment.
"Got it. I'll meet with them first," Oscar declared.
The king gave a little nod, like he'd anticipated that reply.
The envoy from Cuscull was a short, somewhat unpleasant man. He
wasn't ugly, but his eyes were narrow slits, not unlike a reptile's. A vicious
aura also seemed to emanate from every pore of his body at all times.
Though unsettled by the visitor's smile, Oscar made sure not to let it
show on his face.
The man introduced himself as Kagar. "Please forgive my sudden
intrusion. If you would be so kind as to introduce me to the esteemed witch,
I will promptly take my leave."
Oscar responded to Kagar's polite greeting with a bit of audacity. "A
witch? Sorry, but we don't have anyone like that here. I'd like to know who
told you that."
"Please dispense with the jokes. I don't wish to occupy your valuable
time, Your Highness," Kagar said with a grandiose flourish of his hands and
a sly smirk. "A little while ago, a pack of fools from Druzan attempted to
revive the demonic beast. If they'd succeeded, it would've meant serious
trouble for every nation on the mainland. Fortunately, the witch's heroic
actions appear to have prevented this. However, if word were to get out that
someone with the power to kill a demonic beast had allied with a single
country… Well, it could quickly become a very real problem." Kagar's
haughty attitude made no secret of the threat he was making, and Oscar
narrowed his eyes.
The envoy knew of the demonic beast incident, even though it had been
kept confidential, and he was trying to exploit Tinasha as Farsas's
weakness. It was a bold move to be sure.
Oscar's problem quickly became how to dispose of this ambassador
from a newly founded nation. He'd never wanted Kagar to meet Tinasha,
and meeting the man had done little to change that attitude.
What Kagar said next quickly changed the prince's mind, however.
"She's here in the castle, isn't she? Lady Aeti. Oh, I believe she's going by
Lady Tinasha now, correct?" Kagar glanced over at Oscar with both
triumph and conceit in his eyes.
Shortly before Oscar met with the envoy, Tinasha had come to the study,
discovering it absent of the crown prince. Miralys was there instead. The
lady-in-waiting sounded utterly flustered as she stammered out an
explanation. "Um, His Highness was just summoned out of the room.
Would you like to wait here for him?"
"Oh. No, that's all right. I didn't really have a reason to come by
anyway," the witch answered crisply.
Miralys leaped to her feet, looking panicked. "But, um, you should still
wait here…"
"It's fine; I know my place. I'm his protector and nothing more than
that…and I'm aware of your place, too," Tinasha said smoothly.
Miralys paled. "Um…wh-who told you that…?"
"No one. I can tell by looking at you. I'd wager that Oscar is the only
one who doesn't know."
Such a thing happened often in court and wasn't a matter of particular
concern. The witch smiled reassuringly, but Miralys cowered in fear.
Tinasha felt a little sorry for the girl, but she had another job requiring her
attention.
She returned to her quarters and resumed her analysis of Oscar's curse.
A complicated spell pattern of several interlocking rings floated up from the
scrying bowl Tinasha kept in the center of the room after she'd waved her
hand over the basin's surface.
To that, the witch added a carefully pronounced incantation. Little by
little, the spell began changing shape in response to the whispered magic
words.
The labor seemed endless, but Tinasha had continued working on it in
bits and pieces since her arrival at the castle. Rounds of trial and error and
research, and she was almost in reach of the Witch of Silence.
Tinasha concentrated on her curse-breaking work, only idly waving a
hand when someone called her name, even though no one else was present
in the room. She waited for a good stopping point, then put the analysis
spell on hold.
"Act a little more surprised," came the pouting voice of a woman
standing by the window. Her light-brown ringlets shone gold in the
daylight. Surprisingly, a magical or perhaps ornamental dagger was
fastened around her waist.
"Yeah, yeah. So why are you here, Lucrezia?"
"I found a book that might be useful to you, so I brought it!"
Tinasha took the book her friend handed her. It appeared to be a rather
old volume. Flipping through a few pages, Tinasha saw it was a detailed
treatise on spells and words.
"…Thank you."
"You're welcome."
While her friend could be capricious at times, Tinasha was grateful for
the help. She put the book on her desk and started to brew some tea for her
guest. Lucrezia sat down in a chair and watched her.
"So you had a mock battle or something with that contract holder of
yours?"
"…How do you know about that?"
"Some soldiers in the courtyard were talking about it."
"Ah, you were eavesdropping."
Lucrezia rested her chin in her hands and her elbows on the table. She
made no attempt to hide her appalled expression as she stared at Tinasha.
"What were you thinking, exposing your skills to him like that? Do you
have a death wish?"
"He said something similar," Tinasha replied.
"Even without any further training, that guy is incredibly strong. If he
gets any stronger, it'll be a problem for me, too," Lucrezia scolded.
"I'm sorry."
Indeed, as Lucrezia was also a witch, she didn't want the wielder of
Akashia to grow any more powerful. No one knew what the future held for
the witches. With the lifetimes of experience between these two women,
that much was obvious.
Tinasha took a seat as well and let out a deep sigh. "For some reason,
I'm so tired lately…"
"Rest more."
"I know, but that's not it…"
Observing the emotion wavering in her friend's dark eyes, Lucrezia gave
a resigned look. "If it's too much of a burden to stay neutral, just give up or
something."
Tinasha had no answer to such a suggestion. Choosing silence, she
stared at her own palms. Even she herself didn't quite understand why she'd
felt like fighting Oscar.
It was just that she did feel, if only a little bit, like it wouldn't be so bad
to have someone capable of killing her, should the need arise. If Oscar was
to be that person, she was all right with it.
Perhaps she was just feeling fickle, or maybe she really was getting
tired. She kept waiting for news that never came. Tinasha still refused to
give in, however. Such a concession would mean all her time as a witch
would be for naught.
Lucrezia stared at Tinasha. For a short while, there was a silence
between them. When the Witch of the Forbidden Forest opened her mouth
to say something, there came a knock at the door.
"Miss Tinasha, is now a good time?"
Lazar entered at Tinasha's approval, looking flustered. He recognized
Lucrezia and froze in shock. She took gleeful notice of his reaction and
waved at him teasingly.
"Did something happen?" asked Tinasha.
"W-well…a visitor has come demanding to meet with the Witch of the
Azure Moon."
"With me?" Tinasha pointed to herself.
Lucrezia let out a low whistle. "Ooh, sounds sketchy."
"It certainly does, but I'll go and take a look. What about you?"
"I think I'll wait here for it to blow over and give the castle a nice little
show."
"Don't pull any pranks," Tinasha warned.
"Of course," Lucrezia replied with a beautiful and calculating smile.
"Aeti."
Tinasha was stupefied to hear Oscar suddenly address her by that name
when she arrived at the antechamber. After a span of several seconds, she
answered, "Yes?"
Oscar scowled at the reply, having heard all he'd needed to. "So that
really is your name?"
"…It's my childhood name. Did the visitor use it?"
"Yeah."
This unexpected development threw Tinasha for a loop, and she shook
her head.
Only once since becoming a witch had she ever called herself by that
name. It had been shortly after she'd just transitioned, before she'd holed
herself up in her tower. Few relished speaking the names of witches, and
none alive recalled the one she'd been given in Farsas seventy years ago.
What could it mean that someone who knew her old name had come to see
her?
Tinasha pondered a number of possible explanations, but none of them
sounded particularly appealing.
"If you don't want to see him, I'll send him away." Oscar patted her
head, clearly troubled himself.
Shaking her head, Tinasha replied, "No, I'll see him."
She reached for the door leading to the audience chamber.
Kagar let out sigh of admiration upon catching sight of Tinasha. He fell
to his knees and bowed as low as he could. Tinasha surveyed him haughtily.
"It is an honor to meet you, Lady Aeti."
"Stop calling me that," snapped the witch.
"I apologize. May I address you as Lady Tinasha, then?"
"You may," she said.
Kagar got to his feet and opened his arms wide before her, as if really
trying to play up his part. "With the foundation of Cuscull, we have restored
the rights of the mages who suffered oppression in Tayiri. We have made it
our foremost mission to set magic at the foundation of their citizenship—
working to utilize and develop their skills. Lady Tinasha, I have heard that
you are the only person who commands myriad, powerful old magics that
have otherwise fallen into disuse. Would you please come to our country
and lend your support to our further development?"
Hearing that, Oscar's face clouded over. He didn't try to hide his
displeasure. Although he'd previously professed not to care about Farsas
having a witch, it was clear Farsas wanted Tinasha's power, too.
The witch calmly listened to the emissary's request. "You said you have
heard that about me. From whom did you hear it?"
"You'll know once you come to Cuscull."
"Is it the same person who told you my name?"
Kagar merely laughed at that, not giving an answer.
"How did you learn I was here?" Tinasha probed.
"Well, we have talented mages in our country as well…"
"I see," the witch replied, sighing. A cruel smile flickered across her
face. Such an overpowering grin was enough to enchant all who beheld it.
Kagar shrank back slightly at the sight.
Tinasha's lips parted, and an icy voice spilled from between them. "I am
here as this man's protector. No more and no less. It is only because of that
agreement that you have been able to meet me. Why do you think I would
just listen to the word of a mortal who hasn't even climbed my tower, much
less be obliged to provide any sort of assistance? Do you think witches
possess the sort of mercy that compels them to do something for those with
neither readiness nor strength of their own?"
Kagar's lips trembled with rage. Until now, he had believed himself to
be superior. Like a cornered mouse, he moved to strike, preparing to lash
out with his words, but Tinasha never gave him the chance.
"Begone." She turned on her heel, a declarative action that she would
suffer no further audience, and came to stand next to Oscar. Stroking her
hair, Oscar threw Kagar a sharp glare.
Kagar turned an imploring, frustrated gaze on them but ultimately said,
"I understand. I will leave for today. But you will become a citizen of
Cuscull someday; I can assure you of that. I look forward to the next time
we meet."
The witch left the room without granting the envoy a response.
Kagar left the audience chamber and gnashed his teeth violently. He'd been
so confident that he could bring the witch back. That was why he'd been so
audacious in using a long-forgotten name. He thought that once she heard it,
the drive to know who Kagar had learned it from would lure her to Cuscull
for sure.
He recalled what his lord had said to him before he left the country.
"We're not in a rush, so don't worry about it. Do not mention me."
Judging by those words, Kagar would likely go unpunished for returning
without the witch. Even so, he hated the idea of going back and having to
honestly admit that he'd been incapable.
At the very least, Kagar wanted to separate the witch from that impudent
contract holder of hers.
Kagar glanced out the window and spied the courtyard. There, in the
shade, a woman in officer's attire was dozing. A vicious smile spread on
Kagar's face at the scene.
From the audience chamber, Oscar followed a few steps behind the witch as
they made their way back to his study. Both of them wore extremely sour
expressions. Each and every nasty thing Kagar had said clung to them like a
stubborn stain.
As he attempted to swallow his lingering irritation, Oscar suddenly
heard a woman coo "Is it over?"
A witch appeared next to Tinasha, who glanced at her friend and
answered bluntly, "It's over. That was awful."
Lucrezia shrugged while Oscar's eyes widened considerably over the
surprise of seeing her. "You were here?"
"It's only been a few days since I saw you. How have you been?"
Lucrezia asked, giving him a wave without even the tiniest trace of guilt.
Oscar gave her only a wan smile in response. "Thanks for half killing
me."
"Whaaat? Didn't you have a good time? Should I have let you keep your
memories?" Lucrezia purred.
"Are you looking for trouble?" demanded Tinasha, her voice tight.
Despite the apparent threat, Lucrezia seemed to be enjoying herself. Visible
sparks of magic flickered and collided between the two witches.
Oscar frowned, shaking his head. "You'll destroy the castle. Stop."
No one had ever heard of a fight between witches before. If something
like that happened, no building would be left standing. Tinasha tutted at
Oscar's warning and cut off her magic.
Lucrezia listened to the story of the envoy with rapt fascination. She
tapped a red fingernail against her forehead. "Cuscull, huh? I've never
heard of it, either."
"It was originally just some small territory, apparently. But one day,
mages started pouring in, and it declared independence," Oscar explained.
"Something's fishy," said Tinasha.
"…I agree. Come to think of it, haven't you sensed ripples of strange
magic coming from the north every so often lately?" Lucrezia asked
Tinasha, her pointer finger in the air.
Tinasha was silent, then shook her head.
"Really? Maybe it's because I live farther north than you do. The eddies
are weak, but I do feel them occasionally. They're fluctuations of magic,
like the ripples from a magical lake."
"A magical lake…," Tinasha repeated, biting her lip as she sank into
thought. For a moment, Lucrezia gave her an incredibly pitying look. From
behind the two women, Oscar caught sight of it, but Tinasha was too lost in
contemplation to notice.
Oscar was about to say something when the three rounded a corner in
the hallway and saw Als standing there. Meredina was right behind him.
Als stared at Tinasha and the unfamiliar beauty standing next to her, then
noticed Oscar behind them and attempted to bow.
That's when something none had seen coming occurred.
Silent and swift, Meredina drew her sword and stabbed at Tinasha.
"Wha—?!" Als froze in shock for a second.
Oscar moved to help but couldn't reach her in time.
Before Lucrezia could erect a protective wall, the tip of Meredina's
sword reached Tinasha.
Just as everyone had thought it too late, Tinasha casually, yet quickly,
drew Lucrezia's waist dagger and used it to deflect the sword coming right
for her. Meredina's sword fell to the floor, and she was left defenseless as
Tinasha slid the blade of the dagger toward the other woman's throat.
Meredina was helpless to defend, but a counterattack came from Als,
who drew his own sword reflexively to intercept. He batted away Tinasha's
dagger and pushed Meredina behind him. The tip of his weapon nearly
leveled itself at Tinasha before Als stopped himself.
Als had suddenly found Akashia thrust before his neck.
"What do you think you're doing?" An anger-laden voice lashed out at
Als. He froze up, realizing he'd made an unintentional mistake.
Just when he was about to sink to his knees, his childhood friend let out
a bloodcurdling shriek from behind him. "Foul hag, deceiving people's
hearts! You should leave this country for good!"
"Meredina!" Both Oscar and Als rebuked her at once. It was obvious
who she was referring to.
Tinasha looked down at Meredina from behind her long eyelashes.
Although Tinasha was wearing her witch face, there was no trace of a
smile anywhere. Her doll-like, perfectly crafted features were devoid of
expression. Her eyes, the color of darkness, were alive like the water's
edge.
"…I have been accused of that many, many times… But I have never
once warped anyone's heart to my whim. Perhaps you're merely frustrated
with yourself?" Tinasha said. Unlike her expression, which betrayed
nothing, the witch's voice was charged with feeling.
Such a mix of emotion was carried by her words that those listening
were unsure whether it was sadness, anger, or something entirely different
coming through.
Tinasha bit her lip. In a quiet voice, she managed to say, "I've never
wanted…anyone's heart."
Her voice was trembling, but it was a clear denial. For a moment, a flash
of pain lit up Tinasha's dark eyes, and Oscar caught it.
Stowing Akashia, Oscar reached to pull Tinasha into his arms. He gave
her slender back some light pats.
She said nothing.
Lucrezia was concerned about her friend, but when she saw Oscar
embrace Tinasha, she turned her attention to Als and Meredina. She glared
at them with hatred in her narrowed eyes. "That woman is being controlled.
Her mind has been tampered with, apparently by someone with a fair
amount of skill."
Lucrezia waved a hand casually, and Meredina collapsed. Als managed
to catch her before she hit the floor.
With his back to her, Oscar asked Lucrezia, "Can you heal her?"
"Why should I?" she retorted acidly.
"Please," he pleaded.
Lucrezia was extremely reluctant, but after dragging her heels, she made
an obvious sound of displeasure and said, "It's going to cost you."
"Please do it," Tinasha urged, and Lucrezia let out a huge sigh.
Lucrezia, Meredina, and Als left for the treatment, while Tinasha and
Oscar remained in the hallway. Oscar placed his hands on either side of the
witch's face, tilting it upward. She blinked once, then smiled. She seemed
happy, but Oscar knew it wasn't real. The smile was a mask, a guise she
wore to appear as mortals did.
Oscar refused to pity her, however. He didn't think it was right to ever
feel that way toward her.
"When was the last time you cried?" he asked.
His face was reflected back in her dark eyes. "I don't remember," she
answered, still smiling