"Huh? The windows are locked. Catherine, open this up."
Marvas knocked on the window, felt a tingling sensation, and withdrew his hand. Upon closer Inspection, he found a holy relic necklace hanging from the window lock.
"Catherine? Are you sleeping? Please open this one."
There was no answer from within. Marvas clung to the window and scanned the inside with his dark eyes.
Then he found Catherine squatting in the corner, shaking and shaking.
"Hey, Catherine. You're my patient. You wished to get rid of Mori and Isolene and win the love of Chession Ethel. I'm trying so hard to make that wish come true, so why are you rejecting me?"
Marvas laughed horribly and slammed his fist on the window. Then, the relic on the lock glowed and burned Marvas' skin against the window.
"Catherine. I'm in trouble if I do this. How kind I treat you, why are you always like this to me?"
Again, Marvas punched the window.
"Uh-huh, if you don't open it, will I really be angry? I could just go kill your brother!"
"Oh, no, hey, I'll open it for you...!"
Catherine hurriedly ran to the window and removed the relic necklace with trembling hands. Then, when the window was opened, Marvas came into the bedroom with a kind smile.
"It was a joke. Don't be too scared, I won't touch your brother."
Marvas naturally lay down on Catherine's bed. Catherine looked at Marvas, who was good at selling, and trembled.
"That's my bed."
"Oh. I'm sorry. I used some strength today, but I was tired. I'll only write one day today. Yws?"
"..."
Unable to resist at all, Catherine lay down on the sofa and curled up. On the table in front of the sofa, the cursed grimoire was humming with a black glow.
Catherine closed her eyes tightly and prayed earnestly in her head.
'I'm sorry, Isolene. I'm so sorry for cursing at you. I won't do that again, so please save me. I'm so scared.'
... She prayed hard for a few days and tried everything else, but things had already been irreversibly twisted.
Soon after, a major earthquake occurred in the county of Sien. With a strange disaster in which rivers and agricultural land dry up.
***
Upon hearing the news, Isolene was greatly disappointed.
The members of Grand Duke Ethel were busy sending support supplies to the Count of Sien.
Gremory looked at Isolene.
"I'm sorry. Obviously, there was nothing when I went on patrol yesterday... I should have looked at it more carefully."
"I know it's not your fault. You don't have to apologize like that."
Until then, Isolene had maintained her reason. Didn't the lazy Mori go on patrol for days without sleeping? Mori did the best she could.
However, when she took a carriage to the Count of Shien and escaped from the sacred relic's defenses, Isolene suddenly felt a surge of unbearable anger.
As Isolene's expression deteriorated sharply, Gremory, who was riding in the carriage with her, asked.
"Where does it hurt? Can I fix it?"
"Don't worry, you don't know."
"What, why are you so serious all of a sudden?"
"...Sorry. I've been getting nervous lately."
"I can fix that too."
"Yes. I think I'll get better if I take a break."
Isolene pretended to be asleep, closed her eyes, and tried to calm her mind. Obviously, until she left the Grand Duke, she thought that everything was not Gremory's fault. But for some reason, her reason was getting more and more blurred.
'Is it better to ask Mori? What's wrong with me... No, it is not. No problem with me. It's natural to be angry. Because of her, my mother got hurt, and my territory was ruined.'
Even if she didn't come to the Grand Duke's residence. Even if she weren't the only one.
A bottomless and endless hatred surged up from the depths of Isolene's heart. She can't help it.
For a while, the carriage stopped on the plain. It was for a quick lunch.
Isolene slammed open the carriage door and jumped down nervously. Gremory felt somewhat suspicious and followed her.
"Hey, Isolene."
"Don't follow me."
"Let's take a closer look at your eyes. I think I just saw something strange."
"Are you going to say that my face is strange again? I'm not in the mood to take your prank right now, so I'm going to go away."
"Or take off the relic ring on your hand. There's something I need to check, but I can't see it because of it."
"Go away."
"...Yes."
Gremory went back sullen. She understands that Isolene is annoying.
"If I had found Etna in time, there would have been no disturbance in the Count of Sein."
The fact that a disaster had occurred shortly after the patrol made Gremory feel guilty. If she had stayed in the county for another 10 minutes, she would have been able to prevent the disaster.
Isolene had not even had lunch and was far away, and only approached when the carriage was about to leave again. And instead of the carriage that Gremory rode in, she got into the carriage that Alice and Seara were riding.
"I'm going separately. I don't feel like going face-to-face with you."
"..."
Gremory looked at Isolene with a look that seemed to have a lot to say. On the other hand, it was understandable, but it was because she was a little resentful.
Isolene got into the carriage without even looking at Gremory. Chession, who was watching the situation, comforted Gremory.
"Don't be too hurt, Isolene doesn't mean it either."
"I think it's serious."
"It's just that she's become a little sensitive. Isolene does that when something serious happens. She's going to apologize to you soon."
Gremory agreed with Chession's words, regardless of her sullenness. It was because of Isolene's necklace. She was still wearing a necklace made of jewels that Gremory had given her.
'If she really didn't like it, she would have taken that necklace out of it.'
Chession grabbed Gremory's hand.
"Come on, let's ride with me."
"Do you have to ride with your adjutant because of work?"
"It's okay. I'm done with all my work."
"Really? Then let's ride together."
Gremory and Chession boarded the carriage alone. Isolene watched from the window, her expression hardening.
***
The Count of Sein welcomed the Grand Duke of Ethel with open arms.
"Oh dear, thank you for coming! Daughter, are you here? You had a hard time coming."
Isolene jumped out of the carriage and ran to her father.
"Father, mother? I heard that the chandelier fell off due to the earthquake, and she was seriously injured. Is she okay?"
"It's okay. I just fell and got a big bruise on my knee. Don't worry. She's stabilizing now."
"...I should go to my mother."
Isolene glared at Gremory and entered the Count's house.
Count Sein looked at his daughter, who exuded a gloomy atmosphere, and coughed heavily and smiled.
"I think Isolene must have been very surprised. Anyway, Grand Duke Ethel and Mori. Thank you so much for coming to help."
The Count of Sein looked at Gremory as if he were looking at a rare treasure. This was because he had heard that a maid named Mori had wonderfully helped restore the Duke of Ortega. The Count of Sein also hoped that they would be restored quickly with Mori's help.
Gremory looked around the messy area. Count Sein was fine thanks to the protective magic, but the shape of the garden was not a word.
"Where is the most urgent need for recovery?"
"There are so many that it's hard to pick one place."
"Then let's go to the nearest place first."
Count Sein rode his horse and galloped around the estate.
Gremory used the Black Demon Stone to reflow water into the dried river and revive the dry farmland. The collapsed bridges and buildings were also restored according to her hand.
At the same time, on the other hand, she thought about last night's patrol. As she kept thinking about it, something strange arose.
'Etna caused a disaster ten minutes after I left the county of Sein.'
If Etna had been close enough to come in 10 minutes, she would have sensed the signs at least slightly. Being very far away and flying very quickly to the Count of Sein in ten minutes, Etna's flight speed was slow among the witches.
'Maybe she was hiding in the Count's territory? What if she hid while patrolling, and then saw that she had left and caused disaster?'
But how did Etna go into hiding? The orb of the race was also shattered, and the weak magic power contained in the orb fragment must have evaporated a long time ago
'Have you ever found an amazing way to hide beyond my senses? It won't be easy.'
Gremory sat down on a bench in the neighborhood and began to agonize. Then something suddenly came to mind.
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