[Episode 87] - An Unexpected Guest (2)
Hair and eyelashes as white as a snowfield blanketed in freshly fallen snow. Beneath those eyelashes, pupils swirling with a blue gleam like a frozen river gazed steadily down at Einsel and Titania. Titania looked up at the woman and thought that if winter were to take human form, it would surely look like this.
As she stared blankly at the woman—
"Why is the Great Witch of the Coven here!!"
Einsel, huffing and puffing, pointed her finger at the Great Witch and interrogated her. Demanding to know why the Great Witch was here, what business she had coming to find the Princess.
The Great Witch listened to Einsel’s interrogation, stroking her chin as if in brief contemplation, then rolled her eyes slightly to look down at Titania and Einsel.
"It is I who should ask, Einsel. Why are you with that criminal?"
"Wh-what...? Me...?"
"What? What are you talking about...? The Princess is a criminal? Coming here out of nowhere, what kind of...?"
Suddenly singled out as a criminal, Titania didn’t know what to do and looked back and forth between Einsel and the Great Witch. Einsel couldn’t understand what the Great Witch was saying at all and merely moved her lips wordlessly.
A 'human' who normally wouldn’t take a single step out of the Fairy Paradise had suddenly appeared and called the Princess a criminal?
While groaning at the incomprehensible situation, something flashed through Einsel’s mind.
The Princess from another world who had disguised herself as Princess Fiona.
'Could it be that the Great Witch is confusing the Princess from another world with Princess Titania right now?'
The Great Witch was definitely confusing the 'Princess from another world' with 'Princess Titania.' Their faces looked exactly alike, after all.
The reason Einsel could be so certain was the expression on the Great Witch’s face.
Perhaps because she thought she had already solved this case, the corners of the Great Witch’s mouth were stretched up to her ears.
Despite holding the position of Great Witch of the Coven, she was actually a fool full of bluster.
She was surely lost in self-admiration right now, thinking inwardly, 'Hehehe, this great Great Witch has perfectly solved another case.'
And Einsel’s prediction was exactly on the mark.
'Hehehehe, hahahaha! This great Great Witch has solved another case!'
The corners of the Great Witch’s mouth shot up to the heavens.
She had reluctantly left the Fairy Paradise because those around her had nagged her so much to catch the culprit, but she never dreamed things would end this easily, and she let out chuckles.
Einsel sighed as she watched that foolish laughter.
For now, the situation was too chaotic.
No matter how much of a blusterer she was, the human before her was the Great Witch.
The Great Witch who had lived for thousands of years in the Fairy Paradise of Avalon.
Morgan le Fay.
The Witch of the Round Table, that Great Witch who was half-fairy herself, was someone who wouldn’t lift a finger unless she was convinced by her own standards.
Put nicely, she was a very cautious person; put badly, she was a good-for-nothing who wouldn’t move unless convinced because she found everything bothersome.
Because she hated doing the same work twice.
In other words, the fact that Morgan the Great Witch—the very embodiment of such laziness—had moved personally meant she was convinced that the culprit of the 'incident of turning humans into fairies' was the 'Princess from another world.'
Which meant...
'So my suspicion toward that Princess was true after all... Why on earth would the Princess from another world... her biological mother Aurora...? No, why is she going around turning other humans into fairies...?'
While Einsel made a sullen expression, Morgan waved her hands hurriedly, telling her to move aside.
As if that expression and gesture carried the attitude of wanting to finish this bothersome matter quickly, Einsel glared at Morgan with an aggrieved look.
"Einsel, move aside quickly. I must take the criminal to Avalon and judge her according to fairy law. Normally, I should interrogate you as well for being with the criminal, but—"
"Augh...! You’re mistaken right now!! The Princess isn’t the criminal you’re looking for!!"
"What?"
"As if I was involved in a crime...! I’ve been with the Princess for about 7 years! Frang and Vivian can testify to that! And what on earth makes you so sure the Princess is the criminal?!"
Startled by Einsel’s shouting, Morgan unknowingly took a step back.
"And!! Frang definitely said you started the investigation 7 years ago!! So why are you still looking for the criminal?! No!! What have you been doing all this time?!"
"The past time holds no meaning. What matters is that this one has begun to act."
"You... You just forgot, didn’t you?"
Stab.
Morgan’s shoulder flinched.
Why is she angry? Isn’t it fine if I moved now? And surely I checked properly? There couldn’t have been any mistakes?
The flustered Morgan hesitated briefly, then opened her eyes wide as if something had occurred to her, pulling out a crumpled parchment from her dress pocket.
"A-anyway! Do you think this Great Witch could be wrong? L-look! Would I falsely accuse that child without reason! There is evidence for all of it! Evidence!"
On the crumpled parchment was drawn a face similar to Titania’s.
Beside it were written the exact words: 'eyes red as blood drops' and 'hair black as ebony.'
"...This is evidence?"
"Hm!"
At Morgan’s expression, smiling proudly with the corners of her mouth raised, Einsel felt as if something had snapped in her head.
A paper with a criminal’s face drawn on it.
What Morgan held out was none other than a composite sketch.
"What do you think? She looks exactly like that child, doesn’t she? Frang drew this composite sketch based on witness testimony. Really well drawn, isn’t it? As expected of a young one, she’s good at drawing and learns very quickly. Ah, right. Frang came by last time and had tea with this one. The other witches are all so busy... they don’t even come to ask how this one is doing... after all this one has done for them..."
"You’re a Great Witch!! What have you done with your magic!!"
"Yikes!" Einsel jabbed her finger at Morgan and screamed. She couldn’t stand that a person who was supposed to be a Great Witch brought a composite sketch and presented it as evidence.
Morgan jumped in place, startled by Einsel’s roaring, then carefully folded the sketch and ahem, cleared her throat.
"Th-this isn’t all! Hear a person out to the end! At the place where the Mermaid Princess died, the magical power of a suspected witch remained faintly! If someone who looks exactly like the composite sketch is where that magic is felt, doesn’t that mean that witch is the criminal!"
"...You felt the criminal’s magic here?"
"Y-yes! It wafts strongly right here in this ballroom. Therefore, this one is convinced through clear evidence and deduction that this child is the criminal...!"
Ahem. In the middle of speaking—
Morgan looked down at Titania as if something was strange. Then she approached quietly, buried her nose in Titania’s nape, and sniffed. Titania’s hand reflexively rose at Morgan’s creepy perverted act, but she gritted her teeth and resisted the urge to strike her.
"The scent of magic is different...? How could that be...? My deduction was wrong...?"
"Einsel... is this person a pervert...?"
"Sigh. She’s not a pervert, but she’s close to one."
Einsel let out a deep sigh and looked at Morgan as if she were absurd.
Morgan made broken sounds like 'Eh? Ueh?' saying she couldn’t understand at all. Looking at Morgan clutching her head with both hands, question marks practically floating above her head, Einsel continued.
"As you can see now, the Princess isn’t the criminal you’re looking for. She can’t even use proper magic in the first place. You can tell that at a glance with your Great Witch eyes, can’t you?"
"U-um... I see. Now that I look, she has magical power and talent, but no traces of having learned magic... What a waste..."
"Anyway... I’ll bring Vivian for now. She’s nearby."
Morgan’s eyes widened roundly at the name Vivian, then soon took on a pitiful expression.
Titania couldn’t understand what that expression meant at all, and simply listened quietly to Einsel and Morgan’s conversation.
"Yes, has the child been well since then? This one heard the circumstances of what happened..."
"...I have nothing to say. See for yourself with your own two eyes."
"Yes, I shall do so."
"And, the Princess you accused of being a criminal is Vivian’s daughter right now."
"What??"
While Morgan was flustered, Einsel disappeared in a flash to call Vivian after saying only what she needed to say.
Once Einsel disappeared, an unbearable silence fell over the lounge.
Morgan, looking around shiftily, ahem, cleared her throat and bowed her head slightly to Titania.
"H-hm... This one is sorry for the misunderstanding. This one thought it was definitely certain..."
"Ah, it’s fine... I’m glad the misunderstanding was cleared up..."
Silence once again.
A heavy silence where one second felt like an hour made Titania and Morgan squirm uncomfortably.
Lost in thought about what on earth to say, Morgan surreptitiously raised her head and asked Titania.
"Vivian’s daughter... you said?"
"Yes. I’m her foster daughter, not related by blood... but Mother treats me like her real daughter."
"Yes... Vivian’s daughter... Actually, Vivian was like a daughter to this one as well. No, all witches are like daughters to this one."
"I-I see..."
"Therefore... if you are Vivian’s daughter, that means you are no different from this one’s granddaughter."
"What?"
Titania couldn’t hide her bewilderment at this sudden miraculous logic.
She felt she now understood exactly what Einsel had meant by 'not a pervert, but close to one.'
After all...
"Hehe... This one is glad the family has grown. Now, hurry and call me Grandmother."
"F-for a first meeting, that’s a bit..."
Being asked to call someone grandmother upon first meeting. To Titania, Morgan seemed like quite a crazy person.
Were all witches like this?
*
The moment I arrived back at the ballroom to get a drink to hand to Titania, I was instantly surrounded by young ladies and couldn’t move an inch.
Asking where the Princess had gone, what conversation I’d had with the Princess, I had become a hot potato among the young ladies and was busy being pulled around by them, unable to do anything.
In the moment I was wondering what on earth to do—
Someone caught the corner of my eye.
A young lady in ordinary costume.
An ordinary dress, an ordinary mask.
A completely ordinary young lady who seemed to have melted into the background had somehow entered my sight.
No, I couldn’t ignore that young lady.
Even if everyone else saw her as part of the background, I couldn’t help but notice her presence.
I slowly forced my way out of the crowd of young ladies and quietly approached that ordinary young lady.
The young lady piled her plate high with cakes and food, stuffing them into her mouth as if she didn’t care about others’ gazes.
I had never seen a young lady so serious about food at a ballroom. Everyone was too busy enjoying the ball to pay attention to food.
But the ordinary young lady was different. She ate so deliciously that my mouth watered just watching. As I strode boldly up to her, the young lady seemed to notice my presence and glanced up, glaring at me.
I couldn’t tell if she hadn’t noticed me until now, or if some special magic was cast around her preventing others from noticing her.
She simply stared straight at me, munching and smacking as she shoved food into her mouth. Anyone who saw would think she had starved for days.
When we reached a distance where only each other was reflected in our gazes, I quietly asked the young lady:
"Didn’t your Brownie make you food?"
"Kheuk, kehek! Cough! Cough!"
Startled by my words, the ordinary young lady began to choke and spit out food. No, while she looked like an ordinary young lady to others, she looked different to my eyes.
I patted the back of the choking young lady and handed her the drink in my hand. The young lady gulped it down immediately upon receiving it.
As she raised her head to drink, creating a gap in her mask, red eyes like blood drops and black hair like ebony were visible.
And a face exactly like Titania’s.
No... exactly the same, but a slightly sharper face.
"Wh-what. Who are you?"
The young lady with the same face as Titania asked me.
"You really don’t know?"
I grinned and surreptitiously removed my mask so only the young lady could see my face.
Her face, flushed red from choking, gradually turned pale as she looked at me.
I looked at that Snow White and smiled faintly.
"Nice to see you, Princess. Has it been three years?"