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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Uncivilized fantasy bastards. The words came out naturally.
“Please spare me!”
The man on the execution platform screamed with his hands and feet bound. He resisted, shrieking about his innocence.
Apparently annoyed by his resistance, the soldier escorting him to the platform struck him in the solar plexus. Unable to defend himself while bound, the man could only continue coughing.
“Please, I knew nothing about this…!”
“Hmph, nonsense. It’s clear you were in league with witches! …However, if you claim such innocence, I’ll give you a chance to prove it.”
“Yes? Yes, I am innocent! Please give me a chance!”
Hearing the man’s words, the holy knight grinned and stepped back slightly. Then he brought forward a soldier who had been standing quietly beside him.
“You there, are you a witch follower?”
“No sir!”
“Very well. May I test you?”
“Of course!”
No sooner had the soldier finished speaking than the holy knight drew his sword and swung it at the soldier’s head. The watching crowd gasped as they saw the sword that struck the soldier’s head bounce away.
Using his deflected sword as evidence, the holy knight declared the soldier’s innocence.
“You see? The holy knight’s sword cannot harm the innocent. However, if you truly are a witch follower, this blade will cut you without hesitation. Well, shall we test it?”
“O-of course! Strike me! I am not a witch follow─!”
Slash-.
Mid-sentence, the man’s head came off. At that moment, I realized all those movies where beheadings result in fountains of blood were just special effects.
“Ah, so he was a witch follower after all.”
The holy knight sheathed his bloodless sword and began ruthlessly executing the remaining prisoners, claiming the dead man was a witch follower and the others must be too.
Watching this, I frowned.
‘What bullshit…’
The people here couldn’t see it, but with my awakened mana, I could. The holy knight’s sword hadn’t bounced off the soldier’s head – he had simply acted like it had.
Likewise, the beheaded man was surely no witch follower. He was probably just unlucky enough to be targeted by the church, or died for some political reason I didn’t understand.
“Apprentice-kun, let’s go now.”
“…Yes, let’s.”
“─That’s unexpected.”
“What is?”
“No… I thought you’d want to save those people, or shout about how they can’t just kill people like this.”
“…Me?”
What am I, some light novel protagonist or righteously indignant manga character? Why would I need to do that?
Of course, with 21st century morality I knew these actions were wrong. That they were evil customs that needed to change, religious organizations committing atrocities…
But changing that wasn’t something I could do. Moreover, it wasn’t important to me.
“There’s no need for that.”
My life comes first.
Master too, if possible.
When I couldn’t protect even my own life or loved ones- thinking I could do anything else would be arrogant.
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After jumping through space back to the forest cabin, I paused seeing Master running out to meet us.
“Johaaaan-!”
Like greeting a pet she hadn’t seen for hours- she hugged me and started rubbing herself all over me.
Her soft skin and breasts pressed against my body. They say softness can overcome strength, and it certainly could make something hard.
“I’m back, Master.”
“Why were you gone so long!?”
“Ah, we were sightseeing the city…”
“Are you okay? You’re not hurt anywhere? Don’t go with strange people even if they offer you tasty food?”
“…I’m not a child.”
I’m not some three-year-old─ I said I was fine and went past her into the cabin.
The cabin was spotlessly clean with nothing changed. Given her habit of cleaning up messes immediately, she might have eaten and cleaned right away but…
“Master, you haven’t had dinner.”
“Eh, ehh? No! I ate!”
“The ingredients I brought today are still untouched.”
“…W-well. I got distracted doing something…”
“─Please wait a bit.”
Though Master protested it wasn’t necessary, how could I as her apprentice not cook when I knew she was hungry?
I was already feeling extremely guilty about going out to eat without her. I quickly started cutting ingredients and preparing food. Since she must be starving, I focused on dishes that could be made quickly…
“Johan.”
“Yes, Master?”
“Did you have fun?”
“Well…”
Was it fun? I had to tilt my head. Though the taste of civilization after so long wasn’t bad, it couldn’t give me the nostalgia of concrete skyscrapers.
But I did realize one thing.
“The church is full of bastards.”
“─Right!?”
“Yes, real bastards.”
It was quite disgusting to think about breathing the same air as such trash. Master seemed even happier than usual hearing her apprentice’s hatred for the church. Could my dislike of the church really make her that happy?
‘Well, she is a witch…’
Suddenly, I imagined what would happen if the church learned I was a witch’s apprentice. A witch’s apprentice who had awakened mana. And a male one at that. Being such a rare, even unique existence, I’d surely face all sorts of torture if caught.
Well, they had no way to find out- and even if they did, no way to catch me…
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A holy knight walked down the street, wearing thick clothes that showed no skin and armor that completely hid even their figure.
Called to the office, she gave a light salute to the captain waiting inside. The captain returned her salute and spoke:
“Welcome, Lady Elicis.”
“No sir. Captain, what brings…”
“Would you look at this?”
The captain said this while holding out a plastic bottle. An object with very realistic images and unidentifiable letters printed on it.
Receiving the bottle, Elicis tilted her head and asked what this object was.
“It’s light. Doesn’t seem to be glass…”
“It was found among a merchant’s possessions.”
“…Then was he really connected to witches?”
“Yes, undoubtedly.”
The captain rested his chin on his hands and spoke with gleaming eyes:
“We think the place shown in these images might be a witch’s hideout. We need to find it.”
“Understood. I’ll start searching right away.”
“No- I have a different task for you.”
When she questioned what it was, the captain pulled out a map and spread it before her.
Receiving the map, Elicis checked it and realized it showed somewhere in the forest not too far from here.
“This is the location of a village we learned of from the merchant. Go find out how they obtained this object, and if they’re in contact with witches.”
“…What if they are connected to witches?”
“Do you really need to ask that?”
Asked what to do if they were connected to witches- the captain spoke with an expressionless face:
“Kill them all.”
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I’m bound and kneeling before a crowd.
Beside me stands a large holy knight polishing their blade, while people mock, condemn, and slander me.
Laughter, pointing fingers, thrown filth. They humiliate me with every action they can. And as soon as their humiliation ends, the holy knight beside me strikes at my neck.
Was it true that everything slows down right before death? The blade cutting into my neck starts moving slower and slower.
I begin to feel in exquisite detail the sharp steel piercing flesh, severing nerves, cutting muscle, cleaving bone. Even as my neck is cut, sensation sends the pain throughout my body at light speed…
“Huurk-!”
Hooo-
An owl perched on a branch outside the window hooted.
That ominous cry brought me to my senses as I realized it had all been a dream.
‘Fuck…’
It had been an intensely realistic dream.
I rubbed my neck where it had been cut in the dream. Not just my neck, but my whole body was sticky with sweat from sleeping.
Thanks to that damned nightmare, any trace of sleepiness had completely fled. Even if I closed my eyes now, I’d be lucky just to avoid continuing that nightmare rather than getting any real rest…
Making a rational decision, I got up and left my room. Passing through the living room that was eerily quiet even for dawn, I headed to the kitchen.
I gulped down water I’d drawn earlier that morning, but still feeling unsettled, I grabbed clothes and a towel and headed to the bathroom.
‘Uncivilized fantasy bastards…’
To think they would openly do such things. The image of the beheaded man was still vivid.
Regretting not listening to Marguerite when she said not to go there, I carefully opened the bathroom door.
“…Oh?”
“…Johan?”
Opening the bathroom door, I found Master bathing inside. Seeing her naked form, I quickly turned away in shock.
“S-sorry! I didn’t know you were…”
“No, it’s alright… It’s my fault for bathing at this hour.”
I’d thought she didn’t bathe, but that wasn’t true. She just used the bath in the early dawn hours when everyone was asleep to avoid showing me her face…
Realizing this fact made me understand how much she had been considering me all this time. I truly couldn’t help but respect her.
“So, Johan. What’s wrong?”
“…I sweated a bit in the night. Came to wash up.”
“Really? That’s strange… I made sure it wasn’t too hot…”
As she said, the room hadn’t been hot. I’d just had something happen that made my body heat up. After thinking for a moment, she seemed to remember she was bathing and laughed awkwardly.
“Could you wait a bit? I’ll be out soon…”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll just go back to bed…”
“No! I’m done already!”
“Still, an apprentice shouldn’t take his master’s place. I’ll be going…”
“Johan!”
As I turned to leave the bathroom, her voice called out. Having urgently stopped me, she hesitated as if quite embarrassed to speak.
But after a moment, having made up her mind, she carefully opened her mouth:
“…If you’d like, want to join me?”
“…What?”
“Ah, no! If you don’t want to… only if you’re okay with it…”
Bath together?
I couldn’t help but laugh wryly.
She’s not even trying to hide it anymore- I thought.
“…Alright, Master.”
I threw off the clothes I was wearing.
And opened the bathroom door.
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Foreshadow….
Good on Johan for having the courage to hop into the bath. I honestly didn’t think for a moment that he would actually do that.