10. The witch becomes the mirror of the others
My father was a hardworking man.
Lina was compelled to feel even more strongly about the fact that she should have already fully known, after taking over her father’s work.
Having lost his wife early on, managing a poor piece of land, and enduring the ever-increasing taxes. How difficult it must have been to raise children in such an environment without being able to hire proper help. At the very least, my current self doesn’t feel like having a child at all.
“Sigh…”
Lina’s sigh is heavy. There are three villages in the Orio domain under her management. The village is right in front of the mansion where she lives, and two other ones are a little further away. That’s all. Back when my father was a landlord, there were a few more inhabitants, but a series of misfortunes such as a sudden epidemic and several years of poor harvest drastically reduced the already small number of subjects.
The first sign of this was when an epidemic began to plague them. That was already about twenty years ago, and at that time, Lina must have just barely been old enough to understand things, but, strangely, she vividly burned her father’s grief into her memory. He was a father who was always thinking and worrying about his domain. It was no wonder that his heart was distressed by the fact that he had not been able to take a single measure to address the epidemic.
It wasn’t just natural misfortunes that cornered him. The country is also the same. Even though it was a relationship where they merely collected taxes unilaterally, Lina’s father held a faint hope at the time and sought assistance from the country. However, those expectations were easily betrayed, and he was on the verge of not only losing the infected villages but also almost having his and his daughter’s physical and mental freedom taken away. Even though the suspicion of infection was cleared because they did not fall ill after a few days under surveillance, some people in several villages were not so fortunate, and in the end, the country attempted to control the outbreak by completely removing the residents of those villages.
Locked them up and waited for them to die.
To sum up, it’s leaving someone to die.
The plague disappeared with the lives of the domain’s inhabitants and was quickly followed by a period of poor harvests causing them to suffer. My father, from that time, gradually weakened each year, and a few years ago finally passed away. Suddenly, he grabbed his chest and collapsed, and that was it. Lina looked again at her silent father who was lying on the bed; she could do nothing but weep at the sight of him looking so aged, despite the fact that he was still in his forties.
They say that my grandfather also died prematurely. Following in my father’s footsteps, I will probably end up the same way. The early twenties are just about to be the prime of one’s working life. But looking at her own arm that had already become like a withered tree, Lina thought that very objectively.
Over the past twenty years, as the population has decreased, additional taxes have no longer been imposed. Seasons of poor harvest is finally over, and we have somehow managed to sustain our livelihoods, but we’re still in a precarious situation as if we’re continuing to walk along the edge of a cliff. Here in the Orio domain, it is quite unusual, as it is not under the rule of nobles, and while it is fortunate that they do not intervene, which is often seen in other domains, there is nothing special to say about it. It is just being considered as having nothing of substance to extract.
Even under normal circumstances, the land is so poor that it matches the poor harvests of other regions, and neither crops nor animals can grow large. Even Lina, who is the landlord, cannot say that she can eat the necessary amount every day, so you can easily imagine the miserable condition of the villagers.
Lina lets out another sigh. Yet another day begins. Another day leading up to breaking down from mental strain. Having deliberately delayed my morning preparations, I finish up and leave the room. Every morning and evening I think about this domain that I have inherited from my ancestors, and I also think about myself. But I knew that no matter how much I thought about it, nothing would change. There is nowhere to go in the end. In this situation, it is impossible to find a spouse, moreover, we don’t even have the connections to start looking.
If I absolutely want to continue the family line, there is no choice but to forcefully take a partner from one of the three villages, much like a noble would. Thinking such things, Lina gave a self-mocking smile. It’s not something worth doing to the extent of taking away the valuable male workers of the village.
However, if there is no successor, what will happen to this domain after I am gone? That was her concern. That’s right, those left behind are not only the villagers but also the servants──
“Mistress Lina.”
“Alf… What happened?”
While going down to the first floor, I ran into a man who was coming up the stairs. Although he is elderly, he still maintains a straight posture and is in fact the veteran butler who has been serving this household since my grandfather’s generation. And now he is the only servant left. For Lina, he was like a second father.
Alf normally does not come up to the second floor in the morning under usual circumstances. Her bedroom is there, and she wakes up by herself without needing anyone to wake her—although it’s a bit late to call it morning—gets ready, and shows up downstairs. Knowing that he is trying not to disturb Lina’s time.
That rare event has happened. And seeing him, who had unusually come to call for her, Lina understood.
“A guest has arrived.”
“A guest? Coming to see me?”
“Yes, indeed they certainly said so. Mistress Lina.”
“…………”
Although there are not many, people from the village come regularly to file petitions. Every time she had to deal with it, Lina’s spirit was worn down, but from Alf’s way of speaking, it seemed that this time the guest was not a villager. If that is the case, he would inform her from the beginning.
So, just who could this guest be and where did they come from?
“Could it be that our request has finally been granted? A messenger from the country has come to rescue our domain?”
Alf nodded firmly in response to Lina, who made that joke with a touch of irony about herself.
“Yes, Mistress Lina. A woman and a girl. They certainly claimed to have come from the royal castle. They want to talk about this domain.”
“What──?”
She is confused for a few seconds. Or several tens of seconds. Expressing her gratitude to Alf, who had subtly hinted with a cough that keeping them waiting might be considered rude, Lina hurried towards the mansion’s entrance with him.
At this time, an indescribable premonition began to swirl in her mind.
◇◇◇
That dark circles under the eyes and sunken cheeks cannot be achieved overnight. The woman who introduced herself as Lina, whose appearance seemed to reflect the burdens of her daily worries, tightly clasped her thin hands in front of her chest as if to express her anxiety.
“Well… err… So, in other words, what you’re saying is…?”
“In short, the king has passed away. They were all slain, along with their relatives, by the insurgents who were plotting to take control of the country. The primordial witch, having detected the anomaly, rushed over and defeated the insurgents. Furthermore, deeply concerned about the situation where neither the current king nor any heir to the throne remains, she decided to become the new king of this country and lead the people.”
“W-well, the thing is──.”
“Yes. It is none other than Miss Edea herself who is here.”
Prompted, Lina directs her gaze towards me. She raised one hand and tried to respond in a casual manner, but she gulped seriously and then hurriedly bowed her head.
What is this feeling, I wonder? Since the first greeting, both before and after we were shown into this reception room, I have the feeling that she has been trying her best to avoid making eye contact with me. It’s probably also because I’m always making Celia talk, but that’s not the only reason… Having said that, since I have no recollection of being frightened or avoided by Lina, whom I met for the first time, I can only tilt my head in confusion.
Well, Celia’s explanation is straightforward. It’s true that if we were to put what happened into words, it would be just like that, but if someone were to hear it, they would likely struggle to understand it. While it’s understandable to hide things that don’t need to be disclosed, see. In fact, Lena is having trouble answering.
It’s no wonder. To think that she has not even heard of the noble purging incident that Morow caused in the royal capital about six months ago. Well, the political reforms haven’t even spread within the royal capital yet, so it doesn’t mean that Lina’s awareness is bad, it’s just that the amount of new information a landlord can get in such a remote area is bound to be limited.
“Um, in that case, will the tax system also change? If I’m not mistaken… Miss Celia said a little while ago that this country will become prosperous in the future. Does that include not only the royal capital and other towns but also remote areas like this land?
“That’s right.”
The one who she asked was Celia, but I was the one who answered. With a startled expression, Lina looked at me again.
“You will become prosperous. Definitely. I am not interested in luxury, and my subordinates are extremely competent. It seems that the previous king’s rule was quite foolish, but that won’t happen under my administration. I promise that.”
“──M-Miss Edea.”
Rather than calling my name, it was like a sigh of admiration leaked out. Hmm, by the looks of it, she seems to be somewhat convinced that I am the king… How is that possible? First of all, this is probably the first time she’s seen the king with her own eyes, but it’s me, you know. Apart from the fact that she is able to use magic, this squirt is nothing more than a little girl.
Even if such a person suddenly appeared claiming to be the king, no matter how convincingly a woman next to her might affirm the truth, it would be utterly unbelievable.
However, Lina’s attitude was not one that would be directed at a suspicious person, but rather it was one directed at someone clearly superior to herself.
“By the way, Lina. Do you also know about the Primordial Witch?”
“Yes, I am aware of it. ‘The witch becomes a mirror for the others and brings them appropriate blessings and calamities’ … isn’t it?”
“What’s that?”
“This is one of the oral traditions that sings of the Primordial Witch, Miss Edea. Regardless of whether it is considered a good omen or a bad omen, associating extraordinary events with the primordial witch is something akin to a tradition in this country. For example, if a person suddenly disappeared, it might be interpreted as ‘They were taken away by the primordial witch for evil.'”
……What on earth is that?
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