Gremory was in a very bad mood that day. It was because she had a bad dream.
"What are the witches doing? Are you giving up looking for me and trying to sacrifice my mother?"
She didn't think so. Recently, witches disguised as black beasts have been roaming around the Grand Palace.
It was the same today. A low-level witch disguised as a black bird passed directly above the Grand Duke's residence. Gremory, who turned into a cat, snatched up the black seabird and dropped it into the deserted grass. The two witches plunged to the ground and instantly transformed into human form.
Gremory held the little dark-haired girl at her feet, baring her fangs.
"Hey, low-level witch. Why are you wandering around here? Who ordered the search here?"
"Instructions! I was just looking for a missing colleague in the area! By the way... Could it be Gremory?"
The little dark-haired girl trembled and shouted. Gremory looked down at the lesser witch with reddened pupils.
"What is the situation in the Demon Realm?"
"It's the same, what! The middle-to-high-level witches are grumbling and not moving, and only the low-level witches are searched! No, honestly, even if we search and find Gremory, how can we drag you to the Demon Realm? They will just be caught and killed like this."
The little dark-haired witch opened her eyes pitifully.
"Noisy. It's a pitiful situation, but I can't let you live. You knew I was here."
"I don't really want to buy it either. If I live, I will be a slave to the advanced witches for the rest of my life. I'd rather have my throat cut off at once. By the way, you were here, right? Isn't this the nest of Grand Duke Chession of Ethel?"
Chession's name was also famous in the Demon World. After he banned the witch hunt in earnest. The demon world took this as an opportunity and stopped all activities.
They stopped their activities for about 10 years and wanted to let people know that witches don't exist in the world. If they gradually resume their activities after that, people won't think it's the work of a witch even if something bad happens. They just think it's a coincidence or a natural disaster.
Despite the ongoing plans, only the low-level witches were still active. It was to bring human misfortune to the high-level witches. The high-level witches could survive by eating the energy of the demon world, but they enjoyed delicacies by treating the low-level witches like slaves.
In the past, Gremory was not Interested in the treatment of such low-level witches. She didn't feel any sympathy. Shr thought they were living that way because they were born that way.
But why now? The little bird's words made her feel repulsed. No, it was a reaction to the dog dream she had today. She didn't want to kill this witch.
She wanted to believe that she was different from the other witches, that she was different from her past self.
"Hurry up and get back to your contractor. I'll save you."
"What? Will you save me? Didn't I hear it wrong?"
"You heard it straight. I'll only erase the memory of seeing me, so don't go back and come here again."
The low-level witch stared at Gremory, then laughed.
"Wow, Gremory. What is this witchy sympathy? It's so strange that it's almost funny."
"Do I say that I will save you? It's not enough to bow down to thank you."
"I don't really appreciate it. I said it before. I don't really want to live, and I'd rather have my throat cut off. So don't do anything that doesn't suit you, and hurry up and kill me."
"What do you say you know about me?"
"I'm weak and have a lower rank, but I'm much older than you. So I can know from my experience. Are you killing your temper because you want to be seen among humans? Oh, I could have experienced a different emotion through a human."
Gremory's brow wrinkled. The low-level witch chuckled and poked Gremory's shoulder with her Index finger.
"I've seen a lot of witches like you. I've seen witches who fell in love with humans. Their endings were all disastrous. So stop doing things that don't suit you and live like a witch. You killed me and defiled your soul."
"Shut up. I don't have summons."
"What? Then, how on earth are we in the human world... Ugh!"
Gremory cast an amnesia spell on a low-level witch. The low-level witch, who had lost her memory, blinked her eyes, and then obediently turned into a seabird and flew away.
'...Why are you so anxious?'
Gremory smoothed his twitching chest. Perhaps because of the words of the low-level witch, her mother's words, which she had been ignoring, came up in her chest.
'You are a witch who feeds on human misery. You can't be happy with humans. The people in the mansion like you for a limited time.'
...In the end, her mother and the low-level witch were not wrong. Witches and humans cannot coexist. Moreover, she was being hunted. Even if only low-level witches come and go now, she doesn't know when a high-level witch will come and beat her up.
Knowing this, would the members of the Grand Duke's family treat her as usual? She was worried that it wouldn't be.
'It wouldn't be strange if they kicked me out right away.'
She thought it would be wise to leave for the sake of the Grand Duke's family, but at the same time, her greed grew. She wanted to stay in this house all the time. She was afraid that if she left this place, she would go back to her old life.
'I don't want to Imagine going back to my old life.'
Gremory felt that she wanted to hide the fact that he was a witch. For the first time.
She turned into a cat and headed to the perfect place to relieve her anxiety.
Even when the sky was split in half and the whole world was covered in fire, she was beside the man who promised not to let go of her.
***
Chession, who was working in his office, was embarrassed. A black cat opened the window and swerved up to his lap.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and stroke me."
"Huh? Uh."
Cession had unwittingly followed Gremory's orders. When he patted her head, she made a sound like a cat purring as if she was satisfied.
Chession's nerves kept turning toward Gremory. She was staring at him lazily, with ruby-like eyes. The two of them like that for quite a long time.
"...Do your job, that's it."
The cat jumped off Chession's lap. Then she headed to the couch where Chession's robe had been laid. The cat curled around in his jacket and took a nap.
Chession's quill stopped in the air. Before, He was just freaked out by Mori's behavior, but now he's curious.
'Why do you only ask me to pet you and stick to my clothes? Is there any other reason?'
She doesn't ask for this at all from Isolene or anyone else.
...Chession's face flushed faintly.
"Hey, Mori."
"Why?"
"Do you like me petting you?"
"Yes, I feel comfortable."
"Someone else stroking you?"
"I don't know because I haven't experienced that."
"If someone else says he'll pet you, will you?"
"Why? Do you bother to pet me?"
Gremory poked her head out of Chession's robe.
"I can pet you as much as I want! I was just asking. I think you especially like me petting you."
"Yes, good."
"...What?"
"It's especially good for you to pet me."
Chession's face was hot. He pretended to pick up papers that had fallen to the ground and hid under his desk to hide from the heat.
'She really doesn't care what she said..!'
Cough. Coughing to clear his mind and body, Chession climbed up to the desk as if he didn't care.
"I'll pet you anytime. If you like it, well."
"Really? Anytime?"
"Yes."
With that answer, Gremory wandered around in Chession's office all day. At first, Chession was just excited, but later he noticed that there was something wrong with Gremory's attitude.
She kept looking out the window. She also raised her fur as if she was wary of something.
In the end, Chession put down the quill. He approached the cat, who was sitting by the window and fluttering its tail.
"What are you looking at like that?"
"Intruder."
"There are no more intruders. The imperial family promised to do so. Oh, are you keeping the witch chase in check?"
"... Yes."
"It's okay. There hasn't been an intruder since the mage assassin. There were no suspicious outsiders in the estate. My territory is also quite thorough in Inspection, so rest assured."
Gremory chuckled. It would be nice if the witch chase team would kindly come past the checkpoint.
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