“Long ti no see, Eva.”
A girl with violet hair suddenly appeared before , smiling faintly.
Among the many monsters I had encountered in this world, she certainly ranked among the top three most dangerous beings.
Startled like a cat, I jumped back, widening the distance as I raised my guard to the maximum and conjured flas in my hand, calling out to her.
“The Witch of Sloth…!”
“No need to be so scared. I didn’t co here to fight you, Eva.”
She stood there with her hands raised, palms facing , as if to show she had no ill intent.
Although she didn’t seem like she intended to fight, I couldn’t extinguish the flas I had summoned.
It wasn’t that she was a beneficial opponent, but I also couldn’t just take her words at face value.
Seeing my reaction, the girl pouted, as if feeling slighted.
“Well, that’s a bit disappointing.”
Was I really going to end up fighting her?
As I pondered this, on high alert to react at any mont, she continued to speak.
“Didn’t I tell you my na last ti? I’d prefer if you called by my na rather than the Witch of Sloth.”
…Her na?
Just as I was dazed by her unexpected request—I had thought a fight would break out—I recalled the na I had heard before.
“…Beatrice.”
As I spoke that na, she nodded and said,
“Yes, Beatrice. You can call Bea for short. Other than anyone else, it’s fine if you call that, Eva.”
The sight of her looking satisfied at being called by her na felt bewildering.
I couldn’t understand why she seed to have such familiarity with .
Could it be that she mistook for Evangeline?
Thinking that, I spoke towards her.
“…I think you’re mistaken; I’m not the Eva you’re thinking of.”
“Oh? You’re Scarlet Evande, right? We t the other day.”
However, Beatrice tilted her head, muttering like so.
“Did you think I was mistaken? There’s no way I’d confuse you with anyone else. If you weren’t the Eva I was talking about, you would have tried to incinerate the mont you saw .”
Her words, clearly delineating from Evangeline, only added to my confusion.
It was odd.
There were no significant connections between and Evangeline.
While I pondered whether there was sothing I didn’t know between us, Beatrice muttered.
“By the way, I honestly didn’t think it would co to this. I thought Eva would hate so much that she would never stop until she killed .”
Talking about Evangeline, she seed to be reflecting on sothing.
As I quietly observed her, I felt an emotion bubbling up in my chest.
Unknowingly, I found myself shouting at the being before .
“…Enough.”
“Hmm?”
“Stop calling with that silly nickna….”
My heart raced.
From the mont I sensed her presence, my heart had been pounding.
At first, I thought it was fear of her existence that was causing my heart to race, but now, I realized.
The emotion that made my heart beat that fast was nothing other than anger.
It was the remnants of the deep, deep rage that Evangeline bore towards Beatrice, the one who destroyed her life.
“Why are you acting all friendly and calling by that nickna? Of all people, you…!”
Having experienced the pain of Evangeline, I carried the mories of the agonizing tis she had endured within .
Maybe that’s why.
It felt utterly vile that Beatrice, the one who had thrown her life into a pit of suffering, would call Evangeline ‘Eva’ as a nickna.
“Evangeline suffered because of you…!!”
As I yelled, full of boiling emotion, Beatrice replied.
“Hmm, because of ?”
She gave a strange expression as she murmured.
After a mont of staring at , she posed a question.
“From what you’re saying, it sounds like you know what happened before. Do you think Evangeline turned out that way because of ?”
“Yes…! If your lesser demonic beasts hadn’t killed the children in the village, she wouldn’t have ended up like that!”
“Indeed, that was a catalyst.”
She nodded, as if in agreent.
“But you see, Evangeline becoming like that wasn’t solely my fault, right?”
“What do you an…! Evangeline turned out that way entirely because of you!”
“Hih, that’s not true. It’s different.”
When I shouted in outrage at her attempt to shift the bla, Beatrice muttered in a hushed voice.
“The demons killing the children was just a simple catalyst. It could have been an incident that could happen at any ti. Was that really the reason Evangeline beca like this?”
She shook her head.
“No. It was simply because people chose to bla and suspect her for being different, and no one ca to her defense. If the children hadn’t died, even if her being a witch were revealed, sothing similar would eventually have occurred. Whenever sothing bad happened, they would surely bla the witch.”
“That’s just an excuse!”
Even though it had never happened before, I shouted as if to argue against Beatrice’s presumptuous assertions.
Then she looked at with a strange smile.
“Can you really say that would never happen? Look at you, a witch, being chased out of the city right now.”
“Th-that’s…”
Given my situation, the answer was obvious.
Feeling tongue-tied by her probing words, I pondered.
I had indeed been ostracized and chased away simply for being a witch.
Beatrice looked at with an expression that seed to say ‘see?’
“I can’t say you’re wrong, can I?”
She continued speaking.
“There could have been soone who would support Eva, but no one did. We’ve been taught that witches are bad, so it’s easier to bla a witch. It’s more comfortable to just conform and live as we have been. No one chooses the difficult path over the easy one. There are only those kinds of silly folks in this world. That’s why Eva beca like this.”
With a hollow smile, she murmured those words.
“This world is just filled with painfully dull people.”
As I looked into her eyes, which were murmuring that it was all so boring, I found myself unable to speak.
Those eyes, though clearly aid at the world, seed devoid of any reflection.
They appeared as black as a bottomless abyss, with not a single ray of light penetrating.
No white, no black, no yellow, no red.
None of it existed.
To be disappointed, one must have sothing to hope for.
To feel anything, there must be sothing to desire.
The gaze of hers, which conveyed nothing, suggested she had long since ceased to expect or desire anything.
As I stared into her eyes, I gradually beca aware that I was holding my breath.
From the ominous energy radiating from her seemingly bored eyes.
What is this feeling?
Even if there’s a difference in strength, to feel such a substantial gap, even among witches, is terrifying.
A monster among monsters.
If I were to fight her now, there’s no way I would win.
Feeling this realization in my bones, Beatrice, now composed, smirked slightly and asked.
“Sorry about that. I didn’t an to. Anyway, so, you’re upset about calling Evangeline ‘Eva’, right?”
With the atmosphere weighing heavily on , I barely managed to collect my thoughts at her question and swallowed hard.
Damn it, she caught , didn’t she?
Nodding at her with all my might, she gave a strange look and said.
“Well then, I’ll call you Eva from now on, instead of Evangeline. But only if you call Bea in return.”
Unable to stop myself, I grimaced at her proposal and replied.
“…I don’t think we’re on such friendly terms that you can call that. Besides, why do you call Eva? I’m not the person you think I am!”
Though it was a bit frightening to talk back after realizing her strength, to be honest, I didn’t want to force myself to call soone I found disagreeable by that na.
More importantly, I couldn’t understand why she called Eva, and I didn’t like it, so I made a grimace and spoke. Beatrice smirked and said with a wide grin.
“No, to , you’re also Eva. Just like the other Evas. In terms of being betrayed by people, getting hurt, and ultimately being abandoned.”
Upon hearing her say I’d been abandoned, my expression hardened.
While I couldn’t deny that there were circumstances that made it sowhat true, it felt as if acknowledging it would make it a reality, so I bit my lip and shook my head in denial.
“…I’m not abandoned. I still have friends who believe in .”
And Beatrice burst into giggles, looking behind as she muttered.
“Honestly, I wonder if you can really still think that after seeing this.”
Just as she finished speaking, Beatrice seemingly lted away into the air.
I realized she rely concealed her presence, as I could still feel her aura nearby.
But why would she suddenly…
Feeling puzzled by her abrupt action, I turned to follow her line of sight.
“…Huh?”
And then I saw.
A group of people rushing towards , weapons in hand.
With ominous gazes trained upon .
With bows aid directly at my direction.
“Ready, aim, fire─!!”
Silver hair scattered in the wind.
A deluge of arrows fell upon .
In the midst of that scene, a voice rang out with laughter.
“Eva, Eva.
Though you’ve changed,
the world has not.”
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