"Thank you for giving me Open tea, Your Highness."
Gremory lowered her head, and Iberia smiled brightly
"The tea I gave you is not free. From what I heard, it seems that you are an excellent person in many ways. Someday, why don't you help me with your strength?"
"Of course. Please call me anytime."
"Huhoo, you shouldn't answer so easily without thinking about it. I know what to ask for."
Iberia smiled meaningfully. Gremory, who was reluctant to do so, tried to read the darkness of Iberia, but failed. It was because of the royal blood flowing from Iberia and the holy necklace that Iberia wore on her body.
"...If it's a hard job. I won't do it."
"Hmm. Then maybe I should make you owe me more. There is a possibility that you will be asked to do some pretty hard work."
"What's going on?"
"It's a secret."
Gremory's expression was honestly dented. Iberia smiled and sipped her share of tea.
"Severian may do something to you again, so leave the palace quickly. There was quite an unfortunate incident at the banquet hall yesterday, so even if you leave early, Severian will have nothing to say."
"Yes, Your Highness."
That's how Gremory left the secret tea time.
Left alone, Iberia thrust into the twa and let out a deep sigh.
'I believe you can make it right. A future distorted by the mistakes made by humans... Your ruined fate.'
***
That night, Severian returned to his original idiot appearance and trembled his hands in front of Oppensia.
"Well, by the way, he won't die, will he?"
"Why? You fed it. Are you scared when you come to your senses? It's vulgarly floating."
Every night, Oppensia returned her original feelings to Severian. And she enjoyed watching him float.
Severian was in pain every time his emotions returned; he was terrified by the thought of countless savages who had been cut down on the battlefield, and the hot feeling of blood that had been turned over came back and gave him goosebumps. Add to that the fact that he tried to kill someone today, and now he even sheds tears.
Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, Oppensia looked at Severian and grinned.
"It looks unbearable. Will I take the emotions of the night with me?"
"Oh, no. Then I think I'm going to be a monster. But why did I give Rilkena tea, and there was no response?"
"Gremory is not an ordinary witch."
"Gremory was the witch's name. But if she's not an ordinary witch, can she be a high-ranking witch?"
"Uh, she's the strongest witch in the demon world."
"Then you're weaker than Gremory, aren't you?"
"That's right. Damn, what if she tries to kill me? If I had known that the witch next to Grand Duke Ethel was Gremory in the first place, I wouldn't have done anything crazy about feeding Rilkena tea. She was wearing a human shell, so I couldn't recognize her properly. I'm a bit of a poor detector."
After trying to finish speaking shamelessly, Oppensia just looked at her nails as if she didn't know what would happen next. Severian was dumbfounded.
"What, you! Did you do it without knowing who the other person was? Then we could be in danger! What should we do now?"
"I have to make a wish and become stronger than Gremory. Make more effective wishes and dedicate more emotions to me. How's that? If you want to beat Gremory and Chession Ethel, you have to do that, right?
For a moment, Oppensia's eyes lit up eerily. Severian took a step back from his ominous intuition.
***
Chris, Chession's new lieutenant, has delivered strange news.
"Your Highness, it is said that people go missing frequently these days. It seems to be happening not only in the Grand Duke's but also in various parts of the empire."
"People are missing all over the empire, but the empire is so quiet?"
"I think that's because people are homeless or unrelated, so people's attention is relatively low, and it's difficult to find out about the disappearance. In any case, it seems that more than five people are missing in the Grand Duke's Command."
"Actually, it's a lot more than that."
Gremory seemed to know the cause. Oppensia. She must be taking her prey to replenish her strength.
'But how did I tell Chession about this?'
...No matter how much she thinks about it, there is no way to convey it. She didn't want to put Chession in dealing with high-ranking witches. Someone will definitely get hurt.
In that case, she has no choice but to move alone. Dealing with a high-level witch whose main specialty is only stealth is a bit tricky, but it's not a big deal.
When she turned around, determined to deal with it alone, Gremory's steps stopped for no reason. She remembered Chession's words to rely on him.
'I can't do it anyway. If you get caught in a fight between witches, no matter how much you do, you won't be safe.'
I hope everyone doesn't get hurt. Gremory thought so and headed to the back of the deserted mansion. Then, after confirming that no one was there, she turned into a crow and flew into the sky.
That's how she arrived at the Imperial Palace. Gremory sat in a tree and observed Severian.
Severian had a much darker atmosphere than before. It was safe to say that he was a different person all. He was taciturn, and his black clothes did not even have the slightest decoration.
And in the meeting she attended, Severian, who would normally have been swayed by the nobles like a child, struck Count Nilton's neck, who had always looked down on him.
This news also reached the ears of the Emperor. Severian, who was summoned by the Emperor, came up with a reason.
"I'm ashamed, but I've been humiliated by the Count of Nilton. In the past. I was unable to punish him due to my lack of courage and prestige, but now that the situation has changed, I was able to carry out summary executions."
The Crown Prince, who seemed arrogant, was executed summarily for blasphemy against the imperial family. This was a good thing for the Emperor. A tyrannical Prince is much better than a formidable Prince.
"Yes, I understand what you mean. Do you want to be a respected monarch in the future?"
"Yes."
"Then this time, go to the Terran Forest in the west and subdue the monsters. You know what the Teren Forest is like, right?"
"Yes, I know it is a werewolf living quarter. Chession Ethel, he was reducing the werewolf population every year."
"I'll hand over that role to you now."
"Thank you, Father."
There was no expression on Severian's face as he stood up after greeting him.
And on his back was a hidden Oppensia, constantly whispering curses.
Gremory slowly approached Oppensia.
'Seeing that you still haven't noticed my existence, it seems that your ability to sense and recognize is a bit low.'
In that case, it would be enough to raid and kill her. Just as she was thinking, Gremory and Oppensla's eyes met.
The flawed Oppensia stared at Gremory for about three seconds and then softly beckoned him to follow him.
After Oppensia put Severian in the tea room, she went out to a corner of the garden to meet Gremory. She bowed her head deeply.
"I'm sorry. I gave you Rilkena tea the other day. Now that we have apologized like this, let's not invade each other's territory. I will not use the Crown Prince to play with the human world anymore."
"Don't invade the territory. What does that mean? Aren't you a witch who came to the human world to chase me?"
"I have a personal grudge against a human being, so I came down to avenge it. I had nothing to do with the witches who were chasing you, and I was only trying to use the Crown Prince to take revenge on my own. The aristocratic man who said he loved me had an affair. I must take revenge on him."
Oppensia gritted her teeth and was furious. Gremory could tell through the darkness rising from Oppensia that her words were true.
"Nowadays, there are frequent cases of vagrants and unrelated people disappearing. Is it your doing?"
"The Crown Prince has come into my hands, so why am I playing with a tramp or an unrelated person? Don't catch the Aman witch, go somewhere else to find out."
It was then that Oppensia waved her hand and was about to find her way.
"Wait."
"Why?"
"I don't care if you do anything for revenge, but if it touches the Grand Duke of Ethel even a little, I won't let it go."
"Ha, really. Do you really want to protect it? Gremory, you have become so merciful in my absence. You don't really believe in humans, do you? The only such race among the many living in the human world that betrays?"
Oppensia chuckled.
"Oh, no way. Grand Duke Chession Ethel. You don't even love him, do you?"
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