The Witch and the Doll Swear

Every morning is a new beginning.

The sun of Saigon rises from the east and disperses Yubaibai with its brilliant brilliance. Everyone can forget the unhappiness, hard work and burden of yesterday, and welcome a new day with a refreshing mood.

One of the things Tina learned during the trip, and a very important one, is that your mood each morning is largely determined by the first thing you see when you wake up.

This is the profound experience of the girl herself.

Although the trip to Maixing City was only three days, she received a sunny morning and a rainy morning on the airship respectively. In the cabin of the cabin, she didn’t go to eat, and even went to the toilet with trepidation, for fear that the storm and the shower would capsize the airship that looked like a flat boat under the gloomy sky at some point. Sad words:

【Tina von Sia, and the heroic honorary adventurer Miss Liliana Einsteins rescued the girl in Salt Sand City. She gained money and glory, but died in the storm during her first trip】

That was almost the moment when the girl's uneasiness reached its peak, second only to standing in front of Liliana's door after arriving in this city.

As for the former, the endless sea of ​​clouds and the bright sunshine made her feel a little excited. That day, she was almost not anxious, and she was still on the deck, talking about her hometown and the distance with the strangers she met by chance.

And today.

"..."

From the comfortable, warm pillow, open your eyes from the sweet dreamland.

Ting Na looked at Liliana, who was breathing shallowly with her eyes closed, her brain was caught in an endless cycle of who am I, where am I, and how happy I am.

Fortunately, it didn't take that long to unravel this knot of thinking.

Soon, Tina von Sia, an ordinary girl who was lucky enough to have a glorious surname that could not be passed on to future generations, remembered.

... Doesn't Miss Tina live with us?

Last night, when I proposed to open another room in this [Maple Leaf Trumpet], Liliana tilted her head to express her confusion about this decision. Alice was also a bit surprised to ask this question. To this, Tingna's answer was that there was only one bed in Liliana's room. Although Miss Witch's petite body was more than enough to add herself, but...

"……Any questions?"

The Witch shattered all her excuses and evasions with a single sentence.

Question...what's the problem...sleeping with Miss Liliana and Alice...

...of course there is no problem.

Then, Tina woke up from Liliana's bed, still hugging the sleeping Miss Witch, their faces, if they got closer, they could rub against each other like a kitten or a bunny playing.

No, because Miss Liliana is the type who can't get out of bed, at a time like this...

Looking at those small, plain cherry-like lips, Ting Na pursed her lips.

Then dropped the idea.

It was autumn, and the sunshine of Maple Fruit Moon was still warm, but this small town on the border of the grassland was already covered with a thin layer of frost and fog in the early morning.

She huddled in her arms like a cat huddled in the bed to keep warm...or gently let go of the witch lady who was being held by her. The girl who grew up by the sea could not bear such coldness. After covering the witch with a quilt, she stood on the soft carpet and shivered slightly.

"Good morning, Miss Tina."

"Ah, good morning, Alice, haven't you slept all night?"

"No matter how much she has the same structure and appearance as a human, Alice is still a doll, not a human. Dolls don't sleep."

Sitting on the head of the bed, leaning symbolically on a pillow, and covering her body with a corner of the blanket, Alice smiled slightly at Tina.

Today, it also looks like a little doll in the image of a goblin, unable to move until its master wakes up to replenish her magic power, with its limbs hanging limply.

"Puppet... what..."

That's right.

Alice is a puppet.

Although it can talk, eat, fly around and kill dragon beasts, but.

——Alice is a doll,

After witnessing Liliana's [Dismantling Care], this impression became even stronger.

--No.

The girl shook her head, Alice is Alice, nothing else.

But in this state, Alice, who couldn't even turn her face, showed the characteristics of a doll very clearly.

"Can't you move at all?"

"Without magic power, Alice is just an ordinary doll. If there is no magic power at all, I can't even speak. Only people whose mental fluctuations are more in line with mine can faintly hear Alice's voice. Well, normally, it will take another hour or two for Lily to wake up, which means Alice can't move for another hour or two."

Alice replied without blinking her eyes—maybe, now she can't even blink those emerald pupils.

Thinking of this, the originally happy morning was also lightly washed away.

"Don't worry, don't worry, Alice has already gotten used to it."

The little puppet is calm about this situation, but...

Looking at the silent girl who didn't know what she was thinking.

In Alice's little mind, such an idea suddenly popped up.

"Or, how about Miss Tina coming to restore Alice's magic?"

"Eh?"

The girl who was taking off her pajamas and was about to take a bath was stunned.

"Add magic power? Me? But I'm not a magician..."

Not to mention a magician, not even a magic apprentice.

In this continent, magicians are the most admired and feared by people. If you don't have talent, you can't even touch the threshold of entry. It is a class that is famous for its extremely low success rate.

I have never felt magic power in eighteen years, and I, who can't even be an apprentice, don't think it's like someone who can do such high-end things as replenishing magic power.

"Everything on this continent has magic power, whether it's humans, orcs, dwarves, monsters or flowing water, mountains and rocks, it doesn't matter if you're not a magician, as long as you have magic power, it can be the source of Alice's magic power, Miss Tina knows that too Is it the most primitive, least efficient, but safest way of supplementing magic power with absolutely no adverse reactions.”

But the little puppet seemed to be excited, she looked at Ting Na with some expectation, and continued:

"Alice won't ask for too much. It takes about one-third of Miss Tina's magic power to make Alice's minimum activity until Lily wakes up. It won't make Miss Tina feel like yesterday. The aftermath of [Truth] has lost as much as time, these magic powers can be recovered naturally by Miss Tina in the evening, Miss Tina just needs to kiss Alice, Alice can do things by herself to absorb magic power."

"...if I could..."

The girl thought for a while, then nodded.

It's better to say that there is really nothing to think about. I have never felt magic power, and I don't even know any magic power. For me, magic power is almost non-existent. If it is useful to Alice, then just take it also can.

"Thank you, Miss Tina."

"It's nothing...but I'm going to wash up first."

Nodding, the girl took out a toothbrush and cup with drying magic from the space storage ring on her finger, as well as her favorite toothpaste, and walked towards the bathroom.

"...Is this the reason why I didn't kiss Lily just now?"

"That's right, I'm just an ordinary human being. I don't have a lot of magic like [Cleansing] and [Descaling] to keep my body hygienic like Miss Alice. If I don't clean myself well, I will touch Miss Liliana." Talking to Alice..."

Sure enough, they were all seen...

Embarrassed, she curled her blond hair hanging down her ears. Tina looked like the real, fairy-like Alice and the beautiful lady witch who was still sleeping soundly like a goddess.

"It feels like blasphemy..."

"...Miss Tingna, you are really interesting."

"……Eh?"

"It's nothing~ Miss Tina, please go wash up, Alice is looking forward to Miss Tina's kiss."

A gentle smile appeared on the doll's mouth.

Ting Na, who didn't know the meaning of what she said, was blushed by the last sentence, and hurriedly walked towards the bathroom.

As a result, the girl who came back from washing felt the longest kiss in her life so far.

But until the end of this long kiss, Liliana, who was curled up like a kitten on the big bed, didn't seem to plan to wake up yet.

But the hour hand in the room has already pointed to 8 o'clock in the morning.

"Miss Alice and Miss Liliana, do you have any appointments for today?"

In the past six months, Tina was forced to develop a good habit by Ai Lifu. In addition to brushing her teeth and taking a shower before going to bed every day, she also had a good life schedule. Today, Tina has adjusted her biological clock to vacation mode. In the end, he woke up just as the sun was rising.

Feeling that the time when she slept until the sun was high is gone, Tinna, who sat idly on the chair in the bedroom and looked at Liliana's sleeping face, turned her gaze to A desk opposite the bed.

There seems to be no Adventurer's Association in this small town, and there is no need to do the work as a liaison officer. After waking up early, Ting Na didn't know what to do.

"Huh? If you make a reservation..."

After the kiss with Alice was over, Tina didn't feel anything unusual, but the little doll could indeed move, and was writing something with a quill on the desk.

"For Alice, after Lily wakes up, we will complete the commission together."

"Entrust..."

Ting Na propped her face and looked at the little doll.

The reason why Liliana and Alice, who were supposed to leave this small town today, are still staying here comes from the request of the Wizards Association.

——I think His Excellency Einstein should also know that in this city without the Adventurer's Association, our Magician's Association is actually a substitute for it to a certain extent, exercising a similar function, right? Recently, the nobles in the city jointly issued a commission, and the magician who was originally scheduled to fulfill the commission, mistakenly confused the ice mist grass and the cold dew grass in yesterday's potion experiment, and is still being rescued... Then, Because of His Excellency Einstein, other magicians are now unable to spare their hands, so we have to be cheeky to ask Your Excellency, and hope that you can lend a helping hand.

Yesterday, at dinner, the man from the Association of Wizards said so.

Tina's bad impression of the capable man who was captured by Liliana's magical charm in an instant and whose face was full of flattery turned into admiration and gratitude until he finished speaking.

In addition to poetry and distant places, travel is more dangerous and tiring. Only those who have personally experienced the toil and pain of "travel" can understand what a blessing this is.

Tingna, who suffered from backache and backache after spending time in the airship and carriage, really needed a day's rest. The commission sent by the Magicians Association was like a timely gift to her. The last straw for a drowning person.

But it would be meaningless if Liliana refused, so at that time, she looked at Miss Witch who seemed to be in deep thought with an extremely pitiful expression.

—…Indeed, I am responsible for causing you to be unable to spare manpower.

The moment Miss Witch thought for a long time and then nodded.

The girl's favorability for this mysterious organization in the eyes of outsiders even surpassed the Virtue Church that she went to once a week in Salt Sand City.

"However, what kind of entrustment is it? The man just said that he hoped to go to the Magician Association to discuss it in detail today...but Miss Liliana hasn't woken up yet..."

The girl doesn't know the content of the entrustment, but if possible, she still wants to go with her. Well, it is a higher priority than visiting the city where she came to for the first time in her life.

——What kind of adventure will it be?

For this, Tina had some expectations.

"It's to lead some magicians to fight against the undead. Miss Tingna, do you want to come together?"

"Eh?... Undead?"

The girl whose chest was thumping with anticipation, the blood flow that was agitated instantly cooled down.

"Well, Miss Tingna came here yesterday, so you don't know? A few days ago, undead appeared in the underground cemetery of Maixing City. One of them crawled from the sewer to the ground, causing the deaths of more than a dozen people. The day before yesterday, the Magicians Association and the city The guards went in to sweep it, and then the nobles were worried about their family cemetery, so they entrusted the Magician Association to send someone to inspect it, how about it, is Miss Tingna coming?"

The little puppet handed over a scroll, which was the letter of entrustment left by the man last night. It should have clearly stated the reason and precautions for this entrustment.

"...Please go around me." Undead?

God is above, even if the brain is broken, no normal person would want to see the undead.

That is definitely the most unappreciative thing on the mainland, think about it, cold, dark, damp tomb, rotting flesh exudes a disgusting smell, covered with wriggling maggots, surrounded by flying flies.

Just thinking about it can whet your appetite for a whole day and give you two days of nightmares.

So Tina shook her head vigorously, shaking her head.

"If possible, I would like to visit the city instead of watching the dead in the cemetery."

The girl refused with righteous words.

——Although Miss Liliana must be part of the reason for accepting this commission, she really has no interest in undead!

With both physical and psychological disgust, she didn't even take the scroll.

"That's right, then..."

Not surprised by the girl's reaction, Alice took back the scroll, folded the written paper in half, and put it in the envelope on the table. A light blue light flashed across her fingertips.

"So, can you drop by the Magicians Association to deliver something?"

And, handed it to the girl.

"...Is this a very important document?"

"Not."

Alice held up the envelope and shook her head slightly.

"This is to inform the apprentices who are going to act with Lily tonight, the time and place to gather, and tell them what to bring... Originally, the Magicians Association also had the idea of ​​bringing children when they accepted the commission from the nobles. Maybe these magician apprentices are confronting the undead for the first time. In order not to let them become a burden, some instructions are necessary, so I will trouble Miss Tingna to bring them to the Magician Association, just hand it over to the person in charge. "

"Eh? Well... But, I don't know the way..."

"Dan will be happy to show Miss Tina the way, then."

The little puppet clasped its hands together and tilted its head cutely.

"Please, please, yes, oh?"

"...Well, leave it to me. After all, I am also Liliana-san and Alice's liaison!"

"Bon Voyage--"

After waiting for tens of minutes, walking out of the gate of the Magicians Association, Tinna finally recalled the smile from the little doll.

Although I didn't have the idea of ​​evading it from the beginning, but...

"...I'm really hopeless..."

The girl seemed to see herself in the future where Alice and Liliana would eat her to death.

No, this kind of future should have been foreseen when I decided to come here. Isn't it often said in various magazines and novels?

——The person who falls in love first is the loser.

If Liliana and Alice were the opponents, Tina would never have imagined that she might win.

"Miss Tina, why did you suddenly sigh?"

Hearing that Tina was going to the Wizards Association but didn’t know the way, she immediately volunteered to be a tour guide—by the way, the little goblin who turned off the trumpet course under Feloya’s helpless gaze shook her pointy ears and hugged her. Looking at the little squirrel who didn't know where it came from, it looked over here.

"Ah, no, it's nothing... just wondering, is the Magician's Association so short of manpower..."

"Some time ago, Ms. Liliana helped them solve a bottleneck that had troubled them for a long time."

He took out a small handful of nuts from his pocket and fed them one by one to the fluffy balls in his arms. If Dan remembered correctly, Liliana said so when chatting with her mother.

"Now they are advancing the progress day and night, hoping to produce some results as soon as possible."

As a reward, Miss Witch got a big black stone plate.

"I see..." Tina nodded.

Last night, that man seemed to have indeed said that because the magician who was scheduled to lead the team was poisoned by potion or something, as a result, the wizard tower could not spare other people.

The magician who had just received the letter written by Alice also had big dark circles under his eyes, and his expression was tired, but his eyes seemed to be shining brightly. Not packed.

That scene reminded Tingna that after applying for the pharmacist qualification certificate, she stayed up all night for the exam, studied, and recited it until the sky was dark.

Thinking about it this way, the girl felt a little more sympathy for those mages.

"Then, we're leaving. Although it's not a very attractive city, for Miss Tingna who left her hometown for the first time, the scenery is still very novel."

"Huh? Well, that's right, let's go."

Looking at Tina who was lost in thought, Dan waved his hand in front of her.

The girl who came back to her senses heard the goblin's evaluation of the city and didn't know how to respond, but Dan didn't care about the girl's awkward smile. She took Tingna's hand and introduced her to the city one by one. place.

Starting from the Mage Tower of the Wizards Association, the route planned by the goblin is said to pass through the most worth-seeing scenic spots in the city-the goblin used "relatively speaking" to describe it in the introduction.

And what is displayed in front of Tina is indeed, "relatively speaking", the scenery that can still be seen.

This city is quite lively and prosperous. The sharp roofs of the houses drop beautiful fold lines on the edge of the blue sky. The tenacious autumn grass on the dirt and stone streets has a dark green color, which has a special flavor. Nibbling, this is a scene she has never seen before, and the girl finds it very novel.

But at the same time, the streets are very narrow, the road surface is dusty, and there are even livestock manure, which is very dirty.

On the large square of Maixing City, which arrived first, not to mention statues and fountains, there are no benches for people to rest, and the flowers planted in flowerpots are all sick. Their only branches and leaves.

And the area of ​​that square is probably not even half the size of the sundae square in Yansha City, just like this city, not including the farmland and pastures outside the city, is at least one city smaller than Yansha City.

"There's no vitality..."

After that, I went to see the Maixing City Building Monument, Maixing City Grand Bazaar, Maixing City City Logo Fountain...

It took almost two hours, and I was led by Dan to see it all the way. Dirty and messy are the unchanging melody of this city. Pedestrians on the road are either carrying goods, driving livestock, or bargaining with merchants.

From the hustle and bustle of the market, Ting Na can't feel it at all. The biggest difference from Salt Sand City is vitality.

It is not the vitality of life, nor the vitality of trade. This city is not lacking in these things. Just looking at the surface, it can even be said that this is a quite prosperous city among cities of the same size.

But Tina can feel the sense of disobedience.

"Everyone looks very decadent..."

My hometown, Yansha City, is filled with the kind of vitality that overflows in the air, the kind of vitality that goes forward and strives hard.

Not at all seen in the people of the city.

"That's how it is? There is no academy, no adventurer's association, no church in Maixing City. Although there are one or two newspaper offices, there are not many literate people. The most lively places are pubs, brothels and farmland. Nobles and non- The ratio of noble residents is as high as 3 to 7, and these three tenth nobles live in the city's cleanest and most beautifully decorated districts, and they consume more than half of the city's output and foreign goods."

Dan shook his little head, taking all this for granted.

"But even so, the residents of the city are quite comfortable. Although there are occasional people who freeze to death in winter, the remaining half of the city's output is enough to feed most people, because of the lack of entertainment, pubs and brothels. Some of them may be quite rich. My mother said that these people did not have the idea of ​​pursuing spiritual satisfaction after having enough food and warmth, but worked hard to maintain a full and warm life. Maybe this is compared with this city The remote location has something to do with it. They have rooted and multiplied in this city for generations, and they are satisfied with this kind of life, forming a decadent atmosphere. People who are not satisfied with this kind of life have left, and some travelers with ideals and pursuits will not stay here, so The whole city is so sluggish, even the nobles are affected, they are stuck with the present and don't think about making progress."

"is that so……"

"That's right."

The goblin blinked her red pupils, calmly looking at the street scene she was quite familiar with.

Peaceful and secure.

Like stagnant water.

"A few years ago, there was a teacher who came to this city and was very saddened by the situation. He opened a free school to teach children knowledge and ideas-and indeed achieved some results. In those years, many young people Influenced by the vast world he described, he left the city for the outside world-but the city did not change. The townspeople thought their children would be lured away by him, forbade their children to go to school, and soon The school couldn’t continue because no one cared about it, and the young teacher disappeared afterwards.”

When talking about this, the little goblin's innocent smile inadvertently revealed a bit of banter and sarcasm.

"Well, let's not talk about this. Next year, my mother and I will leave here and go to other cities. I hope it will be a more interesting city. Does Miss Tingna want to see where else? In the noble district It will be more beautiful, but it is not easy to get in..."

"Eh? Have you seen all of them?"

"Well, like my mother said, this is a city with nothing."

However, that expression is fleeting.

Just when Tingna was aroused and wanted to ask more questions, the little goblin had a smile on her face again.

"Next, where does Miss Tingna want to go? If you want to see a more beautiful place, go to the noble district, but it is more troublesome, Miss Tingna?"

"Really... then don't bother, let's go back to the hotel, Miss Liliana... have you woken up already?"

Raising her head, the position of Saigon's Sun was gradually approaching the center of the sky. Thinking of the cute pair of witches who couldn't do anything about getting up, the girl involuntarily raised the corners of her mouth.

However.

When Tina and Dan returned to the hotel, Liliana and Alice had already left.

………………………………………………………………………………

"I thought I would go there at night, but it turned out to be in the morning..."

Felloya told Tina that around half past nine, five or six magicians in magic robes gathered in front of the hotel.

According to their message, the estimated time for the completion of the commission will be at dusk.

——There is no need to prepare lunch for us.

After saying this, Liliana and Alice took them away.

"Although there is no difference whether it is day or night in the underground tomb, sunlight can still inhibit the mobility of some undead, especially ghosts, so generally speaking, magicians will choose to deal with undead during the day."

Even Dan knew this kind of thing.

"That's what I said..."

The girl lay on the sofa, sighing because she was bored.

If you exclude Liliana, reunite with Alice, and meet two beautiful and lovely fairies, Felloa and Dan, the girl feels that her first trip in life is simply terrible.

In the lobby on the first floor, after having lunch with nothing to do, Ting Na, who seemed to have nothing to do, was in a daze while bathing in the autumn sunshine.

——There is nothing to do in this city.

As Fei Luoya and Dan complained, Maixing City is a city with nothing, not even a child or bard on the street.

Even if there may be some beautiful moments that can be found through careful observation, Tina can't arouse her interest at all now.

I heard from Dan and Ferroa that at night, the tavern street and the red light district will become lively, and people who have finished working all day will have fun. However, Ferroa uses "vulgar, nasty, and primitive" to describe it After that scene, Tina lost even the last bit of curiosity.

She also refused to go on an adventure with Liliana and Alice. Just staying for an afternoon, reading the newspaper, or taking a nap until dusk, maybe it’s not bad as a rest time during the journey.

Well, the trumpet lesson that Ferroa taught Dan was elegant and melodious. Unfortunately, Tina didn't appreciate music. After repeating the same etude several times, the girl couldn't listen to it at all.

She was sitting on the soft sofa, flicking through the newspapers Feloya wanted, shaking her head constantly.

They are full of funny pictures with no nourishment, at most there are some parents' gossip, jokes and the like, not even a novel, but considering the literacy rate of this city, it is not surprising that there are such newspapers.

There are only a few news stories, only a few days ago, it was published in the newspaper that the Association of Magicians broke through decades of difficulties with the help of a beautiful lady, and...

"..."

Tina opened the unclearly printed report "We Defeated the Evil Undead".

——Five days ago, the gravekeeper who guards the underground cemetery claimed to have seen a walking corpse in the cemetery.

——Two days ago, an undead climbed out of the manhole cover of the sewer, causing a riot, and four children and a dozen adults were killed. In order to protect Maixing City from the undead, that night, the heroes of the City Guard and the Magicians Association went deep underground, wiped out all the undead, dragged them out, and reduced them to ashes with holy fire and wine.

Although the name is weird, this report is completely different from other articles. Although the writing is not excellent, it is at least clear and organized. Such information is easy to obtain, and the reason why there are no children on the street is also known.

Obviously this is the handwriting of the nobles.

"Miss Feiluoya, is there a big cemetery underground in Maixing City?"

"Well, that was originally the church cemetery built by the Holy Church Church two hundred years ago, but they were soon driven out of the city by the nobles. Since the land around the city needs to be used for farmland and pastures, they expanded the underground cemetery It has become a cemetery, until now, interspersed with the sewer, probably as big as a small half of the city, right?"

The goblin who was correcting Dan's position holding the trumpet didn't even look back.

"Of course, the nobles will definitely not be buried with the commoners. There are their own family tombs under the aristocratic area of ​​the city. They built them themselves. However, even the cemetery once built by the Church of the Holy Church has undead. , I don’t think those people can sit still.”

In other words, Miss Liliana is there... huh?

——In order to celebrate the triumph of the heroes, on the afternoon of the 22nd of Maple Moon, a famous circus will be invited to perform in the fountain garden of the Noble District. At that time, the Noble District will be temporarily open to traffic. Citizens are welcome to come and watch ——

At the end of the report, there is such a paragraph.

...This month is the Moon of Maple Fruits...

Tina subconsciously looked up at the calendar on the counter.

On the calendar standing on the front desk of the hotel, there are patterns of maple leaves and apricot fruit on the paper. On it, two identical curly numbers are neatly arranged.

"Really, is it just today..."

--twenty two.

Look at the calendar and the writing on the newspaper.

The girl was lost in thought.