WTBHI 38

Chapter 38

---

“That doesn’t sound very thorough.”

“They’ve tightened security recently. So don’t worry.”

Chesion stroked the cat’s spine. As always, his touch was warm and gentle. Gremory closed her eyes and enjoyed it—but deep down, she was making a painful decision.

‘Yes, I want to protect them. The people I care about—and this territory.’

The warmth of Chesion’s hands, the soft air inside the Grand Duke’s manor—it was all too precious. She wanted to protect it all from crumbling.

Which was exactly why she felt the urge to leave. Hiding her true identity and clinging to this place—it felt wrong. Better to cut ties quickly than lose everything out of selfish attachment.

‘How should I leave? I doubt they’ll let me go easily… Ah, maybe if I reveal what I am? Then they’ll be disgusted and kick me out.’

Yes. As painful as it was, that was probably the best way. Gremory spoke in a flat voice.

“Hey, Chesion.”

“Yeah?”

“The Witch Hunters—they chase real witches.”

“Mm. I see.”

Chesion cradled the black cat in his arms. She didn’t resist, just blinked calmly from the warmth of his hold.

‘Why is he reacting like this? Isn’t he supposed to be shocked?’

“I’m a witch. I feed on human misfortune. So hurry up and kick me out of this house.”

Chesion looked down at the tiny cat making such bold declarations and let out a small laugh.

“You’re just trying to run away, aren’t you? Worried about the witch hunters causing trouble and using that as an excuse?”

Gremory blinked in surprise. She raised her voice again.

“No, really—I’m a witch!”

“Sure, sure. You’re a witch.”

Chesion didn’t even bat an eye. He simply stroked her furry face like always.

“Ugh, why are you being so nice to me?”

“Because I like you. I care about you, I think about you, and I want you by my side.”

“……”

“You don’t have to carry everything alone, Mori. There are people here who will protect you. No matter who comes for you, I’ll stop them. And no matter what happens—it won’t be your fault.”

The cat just blinked again. It’s not my fault, no matter what happens? His kind words melted the will to leave right out of her heart. It was like hearing the answer she’d been secretly hoping for.

And being held back like this—if she was being honest—felt nice. So much that it brought tears to her eyes.

‘Alright. I’ll stay. I’ll trust Chesion.’

Chesion gently set the cat back down on his coat, then returned to his desk to finish his work.

By the time he looked back, the cat had transformed. Mori, now in her human form, had fallen fast asleep under his coat. Chesion chuckled softly, closed his work, and walked over to quietly watch her sleep.

Meanwhile, the ever-watchful Iris howled in dismay.

—Aaaagh! Why does it have to be a witch?! Why is my brother’s type a witch of all things?! Aaaagh!

Gremory, of course, simply muttered:

“Zzz…”

And slept wonderfully.

---

When Gremory finally woke from her nap, the sunset was flooding the office with golden light.

Chesion asked her for more details about the Witch Hunters. Until now, he’d only heard they existed. But seeing how anxious Mori became made him realize he needed to look into them more seriously.

“What? You’ve handled them alone before?”

“Yeah. So far it’s only been weak ones, so I could take care of them myself. But I don’t know when stronger ones might show up.”

“Don’t do that again. Handling it on your own, keeping secrets—what’s the point? That just makes things harder on you.”

“…It’s not a big deal.”

“Let’s promise not to keep secrets anymore. I’ll trust you, so trust me too, okay?”

“Trust you?”

Another unfamiliar word. Gremory tilted her head in confusion.

Chesion sat next to her and patted his shoulder.

“Here. Lean on me.”

“…Why?”

“Just try it.”

Gremory leaned into his shoulder. Her small, light body made contact, and Chesion’s lips twitched as he tried to suppress his reaction.

“Feels better than sitting alone, doesn’t it?”

“…Maybe.”

“That’s what trust is. Same with fighting enemies—don’t try to handle everything by yourself. Lean on me too, alright?”

“…Okay.”

Something stirred inside Gremory. It was like a whisper echoing in her heart.

It’s strange. When I’m with this human, I feel… tamer.

She’d noticed it before. That she often felt strange around this man. But today, it was stronger than usual. Maybe it was the dream of her mother, still lingering.

Truthfully, she’d fallen asleep beside Chesion because of that dream. Being near him was comforting. It felt like he’d watch over her even while she slept.

She rubbed her head against his shoulder like a cat. Chesion’s face flushed red. He turned to the window, trying to hide the color with the sunset glow.

“L-Look at that sunset. So red.”

“Your face is redder. What’s going on? Are you sick?”

“N-No, it’s just the sunset making it look that way.”

Chesion ruffled her hair and thought to himself: There’s no such thing as witches. If Mori were really a witch, she wouldn’t act like this. She’d be trying to suck me dry, not lean on me.

---

That evening, after dinner—

Chesion took Gremory to the outskirts of town. There, nestled in a quiet part of the city, was a modest inn. Not fancy, but not too shabby either. The first floor bustled with travelers and a strong smell of alcohol.

“Why are we here?” Gremory wrinkled her nose at the smell.

Chesion took her hand and led her down a staircase to the basement.

“We promised not to keep secrets, right? So I’ll show you mine.”

“What’s down here?”

“My secret intelligence guild. All those people upstairs? They’re my informants. Real professionals—even if they don’t look like it.”

Below was a wide space filled with people. As soon as they spotted Chesion, the entire room greeted him with respect.

“Welcome, sir. Is the lady beside you a new guild member?”

“Yeah. This is Mori—a battle mage from the northern snowfields.”

“Oh, of course! We’ve heard all about Miss Mori. Haha.”

Gremory, mildly alarmed at being “famous,” kept quiet. Chesion squeezed her hand and continued introductions.

“These people will help track down the Witch Hunters you mentioned. They’re the best at finding people—trust them.”

“…Alright,” she replied, without much expectation. After all, witches weren’t human.

Then he showed her the underground facilities. Most of it didn’t interest her—until they reached the forbidden archive.

Inside were books written by real witches and demons.

“Why are these here?”

Gremory asked out of genuine curiosity. Books like these were only found in the Demon Realm.

“They’re untranslatable grimoires. Dangerous stuff. Don’t touch them carelessly. Do you recognize any?”

“Yeah. We had one at my house. In the northern tower.”

Meaning—the tower in the north of the Demon Realm.

Chesion, misunderstanding, assumed she meant the snowfield’s northern tower.

What kind of people live in that snowy tower, anyway?

Magic, potions, even forbidden texts—everything about her background was a mystery.

Meanwhile, Gremory had her own questions. With all these books lying around, surely people here believed in witches. So why did the Grand Duke’s people insist witches didn’t exist?

Chesion pulled a translated book off the shelf at his eye level.

“This one’s been decoded. Want to read it?”

“Sure.”

The book was titled The Witch’s Lament.

Gremory had read it many times in the Demon Realm. Others found it boring, but she had once been obsessed with it. Back when she had no feelings, this book was the only thing that stirred something in her.

She flipped through the familiar pages slowly, savoring each line.