CH 180

Chapter 180

When Peaceful Times Cease To Exist : Each Choice, Part 2 — Love Blooming In The Swamp

Translated by KaiesV

Edited by KaiesV

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After sending off Alfiris and the others, Fairtuse and Serpent returned to the swamp. Then, without either of them saying a word, they proceeded quickly to the place where Serpent had laid Alfiris to rest. It was a distance that took a day to travel with care in Alfiris, but this time Fairtuse was with him. Fairtuse used defensive magic to enter the mouth of Serpent, who returned to dragon form, and Serpent quickly returned to his original location, the way he moves when he swims through the ocean at high speed.

「Fuu, we’re swinging.」

「Are you dizzy?」

「It’s okay, you’re looking out for me, right?」

「Of course.」

With a nimbleness that belies her old age, Fairtuse leaped from Serpent’s mouth. What she saw below her at that moment was a jet-black fountain polluted by Alfiris’ curse.

「This is…」

「This is all that she had inside of her. It’s absolutely unbelievable.」

「But it’s true. She is a mystery in many ways. I wonder who she really is.」

「If Fair, the Chief Witch, doesn’t know, then who can know?」

「Even Serpent, a True Dragon, wouldn’t know, would anyone know?」

「I am too self-indulgent to be called a True Dragon. I’m not a great True Dragon like Gwen or Maia.」

Serpent states a little shyly. Fairtuse looks up at him.

「Even Gwendolf is not that great. I’d rather you change into a human form. It hurts my neck to look up at you.」

「Oh, sorry about that.」

Serpents was the first to take on the appearance of a person. By skillfully altering the body surface, it is possible to make it look like clothing. As a change, it’s a rather advanced magic, but it is not so difficult to create when you are a True Dragon as large as Serpent.

「Ahh, now my neck doesn’t hurt.」

「I don’t want to be the only one who changes. Why don’t you go back to your original form? It’s been a while.」

「Yeah, I guess so. It’s been 10 years since I took care of Lanna? I’m usually dressed like this to blind the swamp people. Alfiris apparently saw right through it, though.」

「She is more and more mysterious to see through the changes over you, Fair. But still, for us, ten years was just a blink of an eye.」

「But I feel like a lot has happened. This is the first time I have raised a human being. At first I wondered why I had to go through all this trouble, but now that Lanna is gone, I’m going to miss her. Surprisingly, it’s not so bad. I guess I’ll go back then.」

Fair takes off her robe and strips naked, sprinkles herself with some kind of powder from her robe, and enters the waters of the Serpent’s Fountain. Then, the old woman’s body was rejuvenated before his eyes. Her bent waist was squat, her skin regained its freshness, and her hair and lips trembled with luster. There stood a beautiful girl with white hair, white skin and gray eyes.

「You’re still beautiful, Fair.」

「Thank you. Well, Serpent fell in love with me and followed me to this remote place, leaving the ocean behind.」

Fairtuse’s gray eyes glinted mischievously. Serpent looked annoyed, but didn’t particularly deny it.

「You are indeed a Witch, to deceive a True Dragon.」

「You’re the one who got confused. I didn’t do anything.」

「That’s true.」

「But more importantly, where’s Rouge? I don’t see any signs of her.」

「She already went to the heavens.」

「Hoh. How did that happen?」

Serpent explained how it all happened.

「I see, Alfiris did… That also makes it more and more difficult to understand.」

「I don’t get it either. So I thought I’d ask Gwen about it.」

「Yes, that’d be a good idea. By the way, what’s the story?」

「Isn’t there’s something you talk about, Fair?」

「It’s fine, you go first.」

「Umu.」

Serpent was prompted, but he was mute. He tried to speak several times, but seemed to withdraw each time. But Fairtuse patiently waited for Serpent’s words.

「Yeah, I’ve thought of a lot of words. But when it comes down to it, they just don’t come out. Fairtuse, let me be frank with you. I love you.」

「Yeah, I know.」

Serpent’s words aren’t a surprise, and Fairtuse readily nods her head in agreement. But there’s no emotion or contempt in her eyes. Serpent seems somewhat amused by the reaction.

「Of course, if you followed me all the way to this place. If you don’t love me, you’re just a pervert, right? What I want to hear from you is what you have to say.」

「U–Umu. So… uhh, huh. I am a True Dragon with a long life span. You, on the other hand, was a Witch, but you are a human being. Although you have some time before your contract expires, your life expectancy will be very different… but I still want to live with you.」

「It’s like we’re still living in it, right?」

「Not that… that. Mating, or as we humans call it, husband and wife. Uhh, I would like to officially sign the contract as that married couple.」

When he finished, Serpent blushed. It must have been a big decision. And when she finished hearing his words, Fairtuse slowly walks over to the Serpent. His blue eyes, reminiscent of the ocean, intersect with her gray eyes.

「U–Uhh. Unless you don’t want to…」

「Here’s my response to that.」

Fairtuse grabs Serpent’s face and lays her lips on his. Serpent’s eyes widened at the unexpected action, but Fairtuse remained in Serpent’s arms.

「You finally said it, I’ve been waiting 200 years for those words. Good grief, True Dragons claims to control all wisdom, but you don’t understand a single thing about women’s hearts.」

「Wha–. T–That would mean…」

「I’ve been in love with you ever since I first saw you.」

Fairtuse looks up at Serpent feverishly.

「Otherwise, we wouldn’t have stayed together for such a long time. I have no apprentice, I was appointed as the Head Witch, but you neglected your role as well. I’ve been criticized by my fellow Witches for this for quite some time now.」

「What. Then from the beginning…」

「I guess we were in love with each other. But I think I really fell in love with you when I went to the swamp and you came after me. I was so happy… You left the ocean for me. But you didn’t say anything. Rouge is so worried that she can’t ascend to heaven.」

「…I’m really sorry.」

Serpent embraces Fairtuse. Fairtuse surrenders herself to the warmth of the Serpent’s embrace.

「It’s true. When I first saw you in the ocean, swimming around freely, I was so envious of you. I was trapped in being a Witch. At first I had a longing for the presence of a True Dragon, and I was honored to be by your side and talk with you a lot, but gradually it became hard for me to be with you. I wondered why I had so little freedom. Besides, it was a completely different kind of love. But now that you’ve come to me… I couldn’t ask for anything more. My life is too good to be true. My friends may call me selfish, but I have come to appreciate being a Witch.」

「But me too… I was born as a True Dragon, and while I was taught that our mission is to watch over this earth, I was always restless. I wasn’t swimming free in the ocean, I was just struggling. When I came to the swamp, I finally understood. My soul is only free when I am with you.」

The two look at each other. Then, after exchanging a long kiss, they slowly pulled apart.

「But I can’t live with you right now.」

「…Is it about Alfiris?」

「Including that, too. But I had no idea the world outside was moving so rapidly. It seems that Phalanx was defeated, the Seeker’s forest was burned, and Winthia was forced to leave their village of spirits. Even though the world is in a state of flux, something like this must not happen. As long as I am the Witch who protects the world order, I cannot overlook this situation.」

「I agree with you on that. Sounds like someone is trying to disrupt the world.」

「Well, what about that?」

「What do you mean?」

But Fairtuse didn’t answer that question.

「Anyway, I need to go around to the various Witches and see what I can find out. I’m sure they already have some information. Witches will no longer be irrelevant, and Witches were originally supposed to guide humans correctly. After that, I’m going to the Magic Association. We need to make our position clear to them.」

「I see.」

「It’s been a while since we’ve had a『Witch’s Reunion.』」

Witch’s Reunion—— It is a gathering of witches from all over the continent. A Witch is a female sorceress who makes a direct contract with a spirit and acts not out of self-interest, but only to preserve the natural order. By the way, their men counterpart are called Ushers.

In ancient times, Witches, for the convenience of having made a contract with spirits, often left their villages and lived in nature, which was thought to be the best way to maintain the order of the world. However, in a time when fiends abounded, these women who avoided human settlements were considered by the people to be working for the fiends and were therefore persecuted. In addition, the period coincided with the persecution of mages, and there were even areas where Witch Hunts were conducted.

Later, as sorcerers gradually regained their social status, Witches began to change their ways of thinking. That human beings are also part of nature and should be protected and guided together. Failure to do so has led to such persecution. Although this opinion was controversial among the Witches, many of them agreed with it and actively went down to the human village to teach and lead people various knowledge of nature, even though they were settled in nature. Although the number of witches per capita has decreased as people’s sphere of life has expanded, there are still areas in the world today that are closely associated with witches.

The Witch’s Reunion is where all such witches gather. There, they inform people about the situation in each region, the state of nature, and what is going on in each of them. This is also meant to prevent persecution of each of them. The Head Witch is supposed to rotate among the witches of different attributes, but since Fairtuse happened to take her turn when she had just become a Witch, she was too busy with her own work to do so. Furthermore, since she have been retreating into the swamps, no Witch Reunions have been held in the last 200 years. The Witches probably remain ignorant of each other’s situation in various parts of the continent. And there must be quite a bit of replacement happening. Fairtuse was a little concerned that it might be her fault that the world was in this situation.

And Fairtuse flips her robe. She was already ready to leave, it seems.

「Can you just wait… until everything is taken care of?」

「Yes, I made you wait 200 years. Besides, I have to clean up this place. I think I have finally found what I should do as a True Dragon. I’m glad I came to this swamp. So don’t worry about what I’m waiting for.」

「I’ll be back as soon as I can. And then, this time, I want to raise a daughter of our own.」

Fairtuse looks a little embarrassed. It must have taken a lot of courage even for her to say these words. But Serpent lovingly embraced such Fairtuse and released her as if to say goodbye.

「I’m waiting for you.」

「Yeah, me too.」

And so, Fairtuse traveled to the witches in different parts of the continent.