The next day, Flèche and Thibault teleported over from the palace of Lèvres. I was the one who’d invited them. The former female knights, Char, and I watched as they appeared in the gazebo. My new handy-dandy magic device made it so that anyone who teleported to us would land there.
“Master, here I am,” Flèche said by way of greeting.
Today, he was wearing a rainbow jacket with prints of oversized durians scattered about the fabric. It was breathtaking.
“Oh! A durian pattern! Your fashion sense is getting better and better with each passing day,” I commented.
“Thibault told me of your love for durians, and I just so happened to have purchased a jacket with that exact pattern some time ago. I’ll send you some real durians soon, okay, master?”
“Oh my, thank you. I’m proud to have such a wonderful disciple.”
Flèche tilted his head down, and I gently petted his hair. That habit of his hadn’t changed since five hundred years ago; it was a little childish but utterly adorable.
But then, Thibault cleared his throat, bringing our fashion talk to an abrupt halt.
“Oh, right,” Flèche hurriedly said. “We did a little investigating in Hanche, and it seems the false accusations against Thibault have been completely cleared up.”
Thibault bowed his head to us. “Thank you very much for your help in Hanche. Things got out of hand, so I was a little worried about the future of the kingdom, but it looks like things are heading in the right direction.”
Despite his numerous warnings to avoid standing out, we couldn’t help but attract attention. Fortunately, we’d managed to resolve the problem safely, and I felt a little relieved.
“I’m glad to hear it,” I said.
After we left, Thibault wrote several more articles denouncing the Faith and the government and spread them throughout the entire kingdom. He met people who shared his intentions along the way, and they helped spread the news of the Faith’s dissolution. As for those who had attacked Thibault when he was falsely accused, they’d fallen silent.
“It looks like Lance did something too,” Flèche said. “The king and the ministers you teleported to the Faith’s former main church confessed to their crimes in front of the citizens of Hanche with tears streaming down their faces. He must have threatened them.”
“Is that so?”
“Yup. And then, Lance himself appeared during one of Thibault’s speeches through the magic item to confirm the dissolution of the Faith,” Flèche added, seemingly a little puzzled by his fellow disciple’s actions.
“Oh my, Lance did? I wonder if he caught wind of the situation in Hanche. Or perhaps he ran into the king at the main church?”
As we spoke, I had no idea where Lance was, but it seemed like he’d decided to take things into his own hands. I truly was blessed with three very smart disciples.
“Well, it’s only natural. I’m still not really sure how that happened, but he was the Holy Father, after all. It’s his job to clean up his subordinates’ messes,” Flèche said.
“I’m just moved to see him work for the sake of others. He never used to care about anything before.”
To Flèche, it might have seemed like nothing, but Lance had always struggled with communication. This must’ve been difficult for him. At least, I thought it was. He had never trusted anyone in five hundred years, so I was happy to see he’d grown a little.
“You’re too soft on him, master. He’s just doing the bare minimum. It’s because you keep acting like this that he’s grown so impudent,” Flèche grumbled.
He was just as harsh with Lance as Épée was with both of them.
But my third disciple’s testimony had given some more credibility to Thibault’s article, and more people in Hanche began to open their eyes to the truth. It might take some time, but they’d eventually all learn to accept it.
With that settled, I told my disciple about the other reason I’d called him over.
“Flèche, I need your help with something. These women would like to join the knights of Lèvres, so could you let them take the exam? Also, are there other positions available in the palace?”
“If you’re recommending them, I can hire them as knights, maids, or whatever else they desire,” he replied.
“Th-Thanks...”
I had been worried that it would be difficult to find jobs for all of them, but Flèche had immediately agreed.
“They’re all former knights from Hanche. These two are my friends; we joined the order at the same time. They’re nice girls, so treat them well, okay?” I said, handing my precious friends to my disciple.
“Yup, I will. I’m glad you made friends, master.”
“Me too. I’m happy I met them.”
The other two were visibly flustered, unsure of how to behave in front of the king of Lèvres. They were both staring at Flèche’s jacket.
Ah, women of taste, I see. They must also appreciate his incredible fashion sense.
I was a bit sad to be separated from them, but I wanted to support their new lives.
“Work hard, okay? And when you want to learn some magic, use the items I gave you to teleport here. You remember how to use them, right?” I asked.
“Yep!”
“You showed us countless times already.”
Flèche grumbled under his breath that he wished he could stay longer, but he was busy with work, so he immediately teleported away with the female knights. With many fewer people around, silence fell over the garden.
“The noisy ones are gone at last,” Char said, not bothering to hide his feelings.
“I’m glad that they were all able to secure new jobs.”
They would be working under Flèche, which should be a much better environment than the Royal Knights of Hanche.
I reflected on our journey. I actually learned quite a few things this time around, the biggest one being that I was still very immature as a person. Despite being the witch of legends, I still lacked in quite a few departments. I ought to strive to improve myself.
With that resolve in mind, I looked up at my husband. “Char?”
“What is it?”
“I have an idea. Would you like to come see more of the world with me?” I asked.
“What are you talking about all of a sudden? As usual, you’re much too abrupt.”
“I had a realization while we were at the knights. I’ve always been so obsessed with magic, even five hundred years ago, that I’ve never really formed any meaningful relationships other than with my teacher and my disciples.”
I understood that now. Despite living in the royal capital, I had led the same kind of life as the elfins—in my own little bubble. Of course, I hadn’t spent all my days completely shut away, but I hadn’t become friends with anyone save for those close to me. My interactions with others had all been shallow.
Thinking back on my childhood in the village where I’d been born as Aurora, I realized now that I’d never been all that good at communicating with others. I had always suspected that the adults there rejected my very nature, and I never got rid of those feelings even as I grew up. That was why, despite always striving to help others, I never expected anything in return. Back when I was Aurora, the only strangers I talked to were the customers who came to buy my potions and the clients who commissioned me. I could only interact with people when it came to magic-related matters.
That was part of the reason I had taken in my disciples. Of course, I had willingly saved all three of them from their old lives, but I’d been so intent on them living with me because I was lonely. They had also gotten in trouble because of their powers, so I knew that they wouldn’t repudiate me for mine. Yet, I had never realized my motivations until I was reincarnated into this life. How horrible of me.
“My world grew a little when I met Ahn and the others.”
After being reincarnated and meeting the Mercures, I had taken my first step into the outside world, and I wanted to see more of it.
Good thing I know a certain someone needs to broaden his horizons as well.
I fixed my gaze on Char. He had pretty much never left the Mercure estate either and had pushed others away his entire life.
Just like my disciples and me, he too was persecuted because of his magic.
The two of us hadn’t gotten along in the slightest on our first meeting. But after many twists and turns, we finally reached a point where we could trust each other.
“What’s wrong, Lam?” Char’s voice pulled me out of my reverie.
“Huh...?” I blinked and realized I had unconsciously grabbed his sleeve. “Uh, it’s nothing,” I said, quickly removing my hand.
What in the world had I been trying to do?
Who just goes and grabs someone’s sleeve without thinking?
I couldn’t just tell Char I just wanted to touch him. It was embarrassing and made me seem pathetic.
My husband stared in confusion at the spot on his sleeve I had been clinging to.
“If you want to hold hands, just tell me,” he said eventually.
That was the conclusion he’d come to based on my actions.
Does he know how I feel or not...? Well, I’ll just pretend that, yes, I wanted to hold hands.
Taking my husband on his offer, I slotted my palm into his. Our relationship wasn’t exactly that of a husband and a wife; I didn’t know precisely how to express it, but we were more like kindred spirits.
Besides, neither of us really knew what it meant to be a married couple. Regardless, being with Char made me feel both calm and flustered at the same time. It was evoking emotions within me that I had never experienced before. Strangely, I didn’t dislike it.
Clutching my husband’s warm hand, I slowly headed toward the mansion.