[Episode 72] - The Full Moon Ritual
By the time we safely finished the hunting tournament and arrived at the royal castle, it was late at night, just before midnight. Holding Titania, who had fallen fast asleep from exhaustion after her first trip, I reached the bedroom, changed into my nightclothes, and sat with my back against the spot beside the bed where Titania lay.
They say the most beautiful sight in the world is a sleeping child. Seeing Titania sleeping so prettily brought a smile to my face for no reason. Sadly, when puberty comes to such an adorable, tender age...
When I thought about how she had thrown herself at Snow White to protect me, it didn’t seem like she hated me that much. I must have done something wrong to Titania, and that was why Titania was avoiding me. Otherwise, she was not the sort of child who would hate me.
Surely, it must be my fault.
I stroked the sleeping Titania’s face and closed my eyes for a moment.
‘...First, I need to sort things out.’
Was the reason the original events had been distorted up until now because of another “Snow White”? I recalled the “different events” I had experienced compared to the original story and sank into thought.
‘First, the incident where the First Queen Aurora became a “Leanan Sídhe.”’
The incident in which some “witch” had used the First Queen Aurora’s obsession to turn her into a “Leanan Sídhe.”
There was no doubt it was the greatest of all the incidents that had seriously twisted the original story itself. Because of that incident, the king, who had originally been in the “player’s role,” died, and I, the “stepmother,” took his place.
According to Fran, the investigation of that incident was supposed to be handled by the witches’ gathering, the “Coven.” They said the witches had begun investigating because the victims included not only Aurora but also the “Little Mermaid,” but...
After that, I had never heard anything about the progress of the case.
I had no way of knowing whether that witch had been caught or whether they were still turning humans into fairies. I had simply thought it was fine as long as they no longer caused me any harm, and hadn’t paid much attention, but...
‘Second was the visit of Princess Fiona and the delegation, rather than the prince’s visit.’
It was also the second event that made me feel the original story had gone wrong.
The incident where the prince who was originally supposed to come never visited, and Princess Fiona suddenly arrived instead. Of course, the Princess Fiona who visited was “Snow White” in disguise.
She had probably come to talk with Titania. After the two of them had some kind of conversation, there was an incident where Titania hid herself. And she even said strange things to me.
‘And... third is what happened at this hunting tournament.’
Because of what happened at this hunting tournament, I realized that everything I had planned had collapsed like a sandcastle. Introducing Titania to the dwarves, what would happen after Titania went to the academy—all of it had crumbled.
I had never expected every single thing I planned to fit neatly into place like turning gears, but in my own way, it was a plan I had worked hard to build, like a sandcastle. So when that plan collapsed completely, as if someone had kicked it, it wasn’t as though I felt no shock.
And the person who had kicked that sandcastle was...
“Another... princess, huh...”
I let out a deep sigh, took off the earring hanging from my ear, and tapped it lightly. Then the surface of the mirror rippled, and Ainsel, who looked exactly like me, appeared by poking her head out from the edge of the mirror.
“Ainsel, what do you think? You don’t know either, do you?”
-I don’t know either... I can hardly believe something like this happened. But... I have thought of a few hypotheses. They’re really only hypotheses, though.
Ainsel, who had put on a pair of glasses from who knew where with a decisive flourish, stroked her chin and began explaining her “hypotheses” about how Snow White had appeared.
-First, do you remember? The “ritual” Vivian performed.
The ritual Vivian performed...
Was it the ritual meant to steal Aurora’s body? The method had been so bizarre that I still remembered it. It was definitely a suicide ritual where she bound her own body and entered a lake reflecting the full moon.
“Yes, I remember.”
-That ritual was originally not a ritual used to enter another person’s body. It can allow one to enter another person’s body, but that is merely a secondary effect.
“...? Then what is the ritual originally used for?”
-Before I explain that, first... do you know this story?
Ainsel, who had been reflected in the earring, moved toward the “main body” hanging on the wall beside the bed. It felt like it had been quite a while since I had seen Ainsel enlarged after entering her main body. As I stared at her intently, Ainsel cleared her throat with an ahem and continued.
-The story that there is another world inside mirrors.
“...?”
It was a story I vaguely knew.
It was a setting that often appeared in fairy tales and novels. That the self reflected in the mirror was another self from another world, or that a world completely opposite to reality existed inside the mirror. It was a story that appeared in famous fairy tales too. Like Alice Through the Looking-Glass.
-It’s true. Mirrors are also doors connected to another world. And within the mirror of that mirror, and within the mirror of that mirror as well, other worlds exist. Inside mirrors, there are more worlds than you could possibly count.
When I looked at Ainsel as if I couldn’t believe it, she puffed out her cheeks and snorted, insisting it was true. “Do you think I’m called a mirror fairy for nothing?!” she shouted, then went back to explaining the “ritual.”
-That “ritual” uses the moon reflected in the lake as a “mirror” and changes the world one lives in into the world one desires. In truth, it overlaps the world inside the mirror with the world one lives in... In any case, the “world” where Vivian entered Aurora’s body also exists inside the mirror.
“If such a world exists, why did Vivian fail?”
-As I told you long ago, the premise was different. Through the ritual, Vivian wished to enter “Aurora’s body, which was empty because it had no soul,” but at that time, the king was inside Aurora’s body.
“...Right, that’s how it was.”
-The ritual was set to let Vivian enter Aurora’s empty body just as she wished, but because of the king’s soul, which had already entered Aurora’s body, there was no room for Vivian to go in. Because the premise of the ritual was wrong, the world did not change, and Vivian’s soul had nowhere to go, so she simply died.
Even thinking about it again now gave me chills. The image of the king, screaming in his rotting body and desperately searching for Aurora, still seemed to flicker before my eyes. I unconsciously frowned at the scene that still sometimes appeared in my dreams.
-Of course, Sylphy and I knew that, so we tried to stop Vivian. At that time, I had not yet been forcibly contracted to Aurora. Even so, Vivian didn’t believe us and ultimately carried out the ritual. And then, for some reason, you entered Vivian’s empty body.
“......I see. So that’s what happened.”
I had never been particularly interested in the fact that I had entered Vivian’s body. It had already happened, and I was in a body that couldn’t go back anyway. It felt more accurate to say I had simply given up in despair. So I didn’t particularly want to know why I had entered Vivian’s body.
And one of the reasons I didn’t want to hear this kind of story was because it made me think that if I used that ritual too, perhaps I could return to my original body.
I did not have any particular attachment to my original body. I no longer had a beloved family, either. It would be a lie to say I didn’t want to see my close friends, but...
I turned my head and looked down at Titania, who was sleeping softly beside me. Titania was asleep, her small fingers wriggling as she held mine in her sleep. The sight naturally made me smile.
As I thought, Titania is more important to me now than my old life.
-Anyway... What I want to say is that the princess...? may also have come here through the ritual. I don’t know why she came over in her “original body” rather than as a soul... To begin with, even I don’t know whether one can cross worlds through a mirror while possessing a physical body.
“I see... So that’s why you called it a hypothesis?”
-Yes, that’s right. It’s only a hypothesis. Perhaps the only person who knows more than this is the Coven’s “Grand Witch.” That old wom—no, that witch has lived a long time, so she’ll surely know.
Come to think of it, whenever Ainsel talked about the Coven, one of the names that always came up was the “Grand Witch.” Wondering just who that “Grand Witch” was for her to be mentioned so often, I tilted my head and asked Ainsel.
“Who exactly is this Grand Witch you keep talking about? Is there no way to meet her?”
-If you wish, you can meet her right away. But, hmm... How should I put it... The Grand Witch is, well... what kind of person is she... A meddlesome old grandmother? Worse than the Queen Dowager?
“So she’s not a bad person?”
-Hmm... I’m not sure? Among witches, there are some who avoid the Grand Witch. Once you get involved with her, she interferes far too much. Imagine the Queen Dowager coming to nag you every single time. And there is no malice in that nagging.
“...I might dislike that a little.”
Honestly, imagining the Queen Dowager chasing after me every day to nag me did not feel pleasant. On top of that, if it was nagging without any particular ill will, I remembered hearing more than enough of that in my previous life at work. In other words, the Grand Witch was...
“So you’re saying she’s an old-fashioned nag...”
-Hmm... In any case, the Grand Witch lives in the Fairy Realm. If I open a fairy bypath for you, you’ll be able to meet her immediately, but... unless it’s a truly important situation, don’t get involved with her. Her sense of time is like that of a fairy, so she’ll nag you until the day you die.
Thinking that I had to avoid getting involved with her as much as possible, I recalled the nagging of my old-fashioned superior from my past and made up my mind. It seemed the conversation about Snow White was more or less coming to a close, but—
-And... this is also only my hypothesis, but...
Ainsel fidgeted anxiously, as though wondering whether she should say this or not, before eventually letting out a sigh and continuing.
-Perhaps... the “witch” who turned Aurora into a fairy was also that princess... That’s what I think. At the time, everything was too chaotic for me to realize it, but... I told you back then that my main body had been kidnapped by “someone,” didn’t I? The person who kidnapped me then was...
“...That princess?”
-I-It’s only a hypothesis! I might be mistaken! B-But... probably...
Ainsel hesitated and couldn’t continue. As if she was certain, but didn’t want to believe it. She shook her head sharply, seeming to deny it with all her might.
I had also suspected that Snow White might be that “witch.” If the reason the witches couldn’t catch the culprit was because she was hiding and living in the cottage, then it made sense.
But...
‘Even if Snow White really did come from another world according to the hypothesis, Aurora is her birth mother. If she really is the culprit, why is she doing this? What is she thinking, turning people into fairies?’
This was something I couldn’t know unless I heard it directly from Snow White.
What she was thinking when she acted that way, whether there was some reason she was committing such wrongs. Thinking any further would only be my own delusion.
Feeling inexplicably stifled, I let out a deep sigh, pulled the sleeping Titania into my arms, and closed my eyes. At some point, Ainsel had entered Titania’s necklace, and she settled herself there, letting out a deep sigh just like me.
In a position that felt as if the three of us were lying together on the bed, I gave a small laugh and stroked the sleeping Titania’s hair. Perhaps the touch on her hair tickled, because Titania wrinkled her face in her sleep.
Even that sight was lovely, so I pressed a small kiss to Titania’s furrowed brow. Then I held her even tighter in my arms and felt Titania’s warmth.
Staying like this made the tightness in my chest feel as though it had settled a little. Only a very little. Unlike me, Titania seemed uncomfortable and tried to turn over, but...
I hugged her even tighter and did not let Titania go from my arms.
‘For now... let’s think only of Titania. Let’s think only about how this child will grow from now on. Now... there are only five years left until Titania enters the academy. When that time comes, I...’