After the man finished his song, Eiji applauded, showing appreciation and drawing attention to his presence.
*👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻*
Indeed, the man was surprised to see a teenager standing in front of his prison cell.
"Wait! Who are you? What? There shouldn't be anyone else in this town."
Ignoring the barrage of questions, Eiji provided a random excuse.
"I'm just a traveler passing by. Instead, is there something I can ask you? Why is this town empty without any inhabitants?"
The man didn't answer immediately. His expression turned serious, closing his eyes, tilting his head up, opening his eyes, and his tone sounded melancholic.
"Everyone left the town."
"Gear expansion... They say humans couldn't live like this after the Witchs were exterminated. The future of humanity... Hope and pride... They had grand illusions and moved away from this place. Doesn't this remind you of the early days of witch hunting? In this era, we follow whoever voices their desires first."
Eiji listened solemnly without interrupting the man's words.
(In other words, the town's residents migrated on a large scale to a more prosperous place for a better life, huh?)
After learning the answer to this question, he posed the most significant one.
"This might sound strange to you. What exactly are Witches?"
"Huh? Seriously, you don't know Witchs? Oi Oi Oi, even children know about this. No, there's no one who doesn't know about Witchs?!"
The man's reaction matched Eiji's expectations. His eyes widened in surprise and disbelief, as if he was looking at a strange person.
"Well, my dwelling has been isolated from the outside world for hundreds of years. Tired of it, I decided to quietly escape to explore the outside world."
As usual, Eiji lied without changing his expression.
Before knowing the limits of power in this world, he wouldn't easily reveal his true strength.
Better safe than sorry.
"I see. No wonder you don't know anything about Witchs. Turns out, you come from humans isolated from the outside world."
Seeing Eiji's expression always the same, the man didn't know whether the other party was lying or not. Even if it was a lie, he didn't care because it wasn't his concern.
"Okay. Let me tell you everything I know about Witchs."
"Thank you."
"Just relax, it's basic knowledge that everyone knows. No need to thank me."
Then, Eiji listened as the man discussed Witchs.
Initially, the gods created humanity, then created Witchs.
The gods shared powers with Witchs and gave them orders.
'In my stead, you must guide the weak humans.'
The Witchs agreed and pledged to devote themselves to helping humans based on friendship.
But now...
Witches are no longer respected or needed by humans. Instead, their existence only instills fear and hatred in humans.
Humans turned against Witchs, hunting and executing those captured.
"So that's it... In other words, not only do humans not appreciate all the help Witchs have provided them over the years, but they repay their kindness with cruelty."
After hearing the man's narration, Eiji wasn't surprised that humans could act like that.
"You say interesting things, young man. Usually, people would support Witch hunts."
The man's eyes sparkled after hearing Eiji's mutterings as if he had identified his kind.
"From my perspective, humans are the ones at fault. Witches have obeyed the gods' orders by helping humans since the creation of the world. It doesn't matter if humans are ungrateful or don't say thank you, but to do bad things to their benefactors, humans are worse than dogs. At least, a stray dog won't bite the person who feeds it."
"Do you think that too?! I also think humans are selfish creatures who fear Witchs because they can use magic, while they can't. Essentially, they envy Witchs!"
The man stood up and grabbed the prison cell enthusiastically.
Detecting an unpleasant smell, Eiji took a few steps back. He wondered how long the man hadn't bathed.
"The human heart is the most fickle and uncontrollable. There are two things in this world that cannot be seen directly. One is the sunlight, and the other is the human heart."
"The human heart, huh."
After calming down, the man echoed Eiji's words, making sense. Then, he glanced at the bed with a regretful look.
(To be able to stay in a prison cell in the abandoned town, most likely, that woman is his wife or someone precious to him.) Eiji thought to himself.
From the beginning, he had realized there were two people in the prison cell. Besides the unkempt man, there was also the body of a woman lying on the bed, covered with a blanket to prevent Eiji from seeing it.
To appreciate the other party's cooperative attitude, Eiji didn't inquire about the woman and pretended not to know.
"How strong are Witchs?"
That was a crucial question for Eiji.
"It depends on the magic they master. Each witch has their own specialized magic, so their power levels vary. Generally, not many Witchs can destroy a city with their magic."
Sitting back on the bed, the man took the guitar and plucked the strings while explaining.
"Makes sense. If they were powerful, how could they be hunted by humans?"
After hearing this, Eiji felt relieved and disappointed at the same time.
Relieved because most likely, there was nothing that could threaten his safety. On the other hand, he was disappointed because it meant magic wasn't worth studying.
Witches with magic had to hide like rats to avoid being hunted and captured.
Was magic of that level worth Eiji's study?
His Limitless Technique had the power to level a city. Compared to Witchs' magic, it was not even worth mentioning.
(Don't jump to conclusions too quickly. The magic in this world might not have the destructive power that's worthwhile, but that doesn't mean it's useless in other aspects, right? If not, how could Witchs help human life? Maybe the magic in this world is more focused on versatility)
Thinking about this, Eiji felt the need to meet Witchs and have a deep conversation with them.
He wanted to know more about magic, and only then would he decide whether it was worth studying.
"Is there anything else you want to ask, young man? If not, go away. I want to enjoy my solitude." The man said while tuning the guitar.
"Because humans in ancient times needed Witchs to help their lives, how did humans no longer need them and instead started hunting them?"
"Oh, that's all due to the scientific and technological advancements developed by the Kingdom of Lydia."
"Kingdom of Lydia?"
"You... Forget it, you don't even know Witchs, it's not strange you've never heard of the Kingdom of Lydia."
The man was no longer surprised that the teenager in front of him didn't know about the Kingdom of Lydia. He just treated him as a backwater person who was seeing the world for the first time.