"...Sniff."
From that day on, Gremory curled up in her blanket and didn't think about coming out. She just ate the jerky Anna gave her, one piece at a time. Anna was extremely worried about their Miss Mori, who didn't wash or eat. In fact, witches don't need to wash and eat every day like humans.
"I'm sorry to hear that you had such a wound, Miss... No! I won't even mention the wound! So please, have one more!"
Isolene asked her family, the Count Sien family, to bring in high-quality bedding and soft cushions to the Grand Duke's residence as gifts for Gremory. Thanks to this, Gremory's bed became a cozy nest surrounded by bedding and cushions.
"Here, eat the apple too! It's the best apple my family sent me! I checked and it's not poisonous!"
And then she held out the apple she had just taken a bite of.
Gremory, who was just peeking out from under the blanket.
"It's annoying. Everyone, just go away."
She crawled under the blanket and couldn't even see with her eyes.
Seeing this, Chession felt a bit sorry for Mori. He had already suspected her of being a witch and suffered severe punishment, so he suspected her of being a witch too. Mori's cries from last night still lingered in his ears, making his heart flutter.
Word of Miss Mori's serious injury spread quickly. The nuns left behind things like incense that were said to be good for the mind and body, and the abbess showed off her writing skills by leaving a long letter of consolation. The knights also picked flowers themselves and made a bouquet of flowers.
Gremory saw it all.
"But why are you all treating me so well?"
With those words, she struck a fatal blow to the hearts of the Grand Duke's family.
Chession, who had come to present a quilt made of dragon skin, was flustered and flustered.
"What are you talking about! You are our family and our friend!"
"Family...?"
Gremory poked her head out of the blanket. What does family mean? She had a friend who had experienced Lenia, so she had a general idea, but she didn't know what family meant.
Chession began to explain about his family, the veins on her neck rising.
"Eat together! Live together! Cry together when something sad happens, worry together when something difficult happens, and be happy together when something good happens. That's what family is!"
"I wasn't particularly attached to you guys. You might leave me at any moment."
Then, the sound of wiping away tears could be heard here and there.
They had always thought that Miss Mori was somehow unique and indifferent, but it turned out that it was because she was afraid of getting close to someone.
"Why are we leaving you? We'll stay with you until we die! That's why we brought you to the Grand Duke's residence in the first place! We didn't bring you here lightly!"
"...I might leave yiu."
"Then, of course, you have to stop her! You have to cry and scream and grab onto her skirt and stop her!"
Gremory didn't understand Chession's cries. To her, family was.
'Baby, please die for me.'
Because she was the kind of person who would say things like that.
It's not that she doesn't understand the concept of 'family' among humans that Chession talks about. She's seen and heard about family in the human world, and she's also been educated in the demon world on how to play around with family history.
But it didn't hit her. Because she...
She was born to be a sacrifice.
She settled here to use them as a shield to hide from the demon world.
Because she doesn't deserve this kind of excessive affection.
Gremory slowly emerged from the warm blanket like a hermit crab. Chession did not miss this moment and hugged Gremory's body.
"You've had a hard time. At our mansion, put aside all your past and rest comfortably."
"..."
Chession gently stroked Gremory's hair.
Gremory's body, which had been stiff at first due to confusion, gradually began to melt away like melting cheese.
'It's warm.'
She even thought that it might be okay to rely on these people a little bit.
"Do you want to go eat now? I prepared some black goat meat."
"Is it your wish that I eat black goat meat?"
"Yes."
"...Then I'll go."
If you make a wish while offering a black goat, there's nothing you can do. Gremory got up hurriedly and headed to the dining room.
Chession thought as he watched Gremory heading to the dining room.
He had been conscious of this woman for some time, and he had been worried about her for some time, and now...
'I hope you don't get sick.'
He felt like he could caress it all day long.
***
"Ah, the weather is nice."
Gremory enjoyed tea time alone in the garden. There was no cake on the table, but there were things like raw chicken legs, but whatever.
Gremory raised his head and looked up at the blue sky. The sight of birds flying around was incredibly peaceful.
'That's a witch. Is she a pursuer? She must be a low-level witch because she can't find me.'
Gremory saw a black bird. She moved her fingertips slightly and slit its neck. The black bird fell and was picked up by a stray cat nearby.
'This is the first time I've seen a witch chasing me in the Grand Palace. Has the pursuit range narrowed down to this extent already?'
Gremory bit into a chicken leg, his mouth watering.
At that moment, the Mother Superior came running towards Gremory.
"Miss Morrie! Lenny accidentally lost the paper recipe. Could you please rewrite it for her?"
"Sorry. I forgot too."
"Yes? Really?"
"I'll have to slowly memorize it by making it myself. Let's go, Mother Superior."
"I think I told you thirty times to call me Louis."
So, Gremory once again created a potion that failed to mix. This time, the potion glowed a horrible purple color, but it was certain to have a wound-healing effect.
The days that followed were also extremely peaceful. People added that they could sleep soundly thanks to Miss Mori. How thankful they were that Miss Mori would take care of everything, whether it was a monster, an old dragon, a volcano erupting, or someone getting hurt.
However, a problem arose. News of the presence of a Saint in the Grand Duchy of Ethel had leaked out, and a letter arrived from the Archbishop.
"Oh, shit."
Chession, who received the letter, was in a very difficult position. According to imperial law, all Saints must go to the Great Temple and prove that they have holy powers, and then have their names registered in the Great Temple.
The process of proving that one had holy powers was simple: prick one's fingertip with a silver needle and let a few drops of blood fall onto the holy water.
But our Mori hates silver so much. He just managed to appease her, but now he has to hurt her with silver again.
In addition, the moment you prove that you have divine powers, your actions become incredibly restricted. In particular, the Saints are almost imprisoned for a year and must live according to suffocating rules. That is why the Saints hide their divine powers and live a wandering life. The great temple that values divine powers goes around capturing wandering saints.
'There's no way Mori would like something like a grand temple.'
Because she's a beauty... no, she'd probably have a fear of needles. And she wouldn't like complicated rules either.
At the end of the letter, there was a request to hold Mori tightly so that she wouldn't escape. It wasn't like she was a criminal. Chession bit his lip and crumpled his expression.
Chession began to write a reply. Mori was a victim of extreme witch-hunting and had such severe trauma to silver that she couldn't even prick her finger with a silver needle to draw blood. And because she had been tortured and imprisoned for years, she would feel suffocated by having to follow the rules in the Great Temple... As he was writing, the paper suddenly disappeared.
Gremory, who had entered the office without knowing when, was reading the reply that Chession had written.
"Oh, Mori. You don't have to worry about this. I'll take care of it myself."
"If we refuse this, isn't it dangerous for you and me?"
"What? How do you know that?"
She knew because his sister told her. If she refuses, there will be chaos in the main temple. Gremory swallowed these words and continued talking.
"I just need to prove that I'm not a Saint. As you know, I'm not a Saint. I'm just a warrior and magician from the northern snowfields with some talent."
"But won't it be too difficult for you..?"
"Come with me. Go and hold my hand. Then I think it'll be okay."
"...!"
Chession thought. It seemed like Mori sometimes threw out words that made people excited without even realizing it.
She shouldn't do this in front of other people.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah. I just have to endure the pain. It's best not to create any more pain."
"Are you mentally ill?"
"You just have to hug me. I thought about it, and while petting is good, hugging is definitely better."
"...You keep saying things like this. Are you doing it on purpose?"
"...? What are you talking about?"
"Oh, no. Nothing. Now go out."
Gremory left the office in a jaunty manner. Chession sighed heavily and touched his forehead.
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