After finishing their lunch and farewelling the teacher-knight duo, l and Lila left the restaurant to explore more of the capital.
The rest of their date went well without interruption, as they walked hand-in-hand, chatting idly, occasionally stopping by stores and stalls that interested them.
l once offered to buy clothes, with a not-so-pure intent to dress up Lila however she liked. Unfortunately, rely a disgusted look from Lila dissuaded her.
It would seem ’maid-Lila’ would have to wait till later. But l was not afraid. She will fulfill her Lila-Dress-Up Fantasy one day!
As the sun set, casting a warm glow over both figures, l figured it was ti.
She smiled at her childhood friend, her lover, her Witch. "Lila. I want to take you sowhere now."
Lila’s erald eyes glimred with interest. "Hm. Lead ahead, l." She sensed a solemnness in l’s voice, but she judged she would have her answer later.
A few corners here and there, and they arrived at a vast, public park. The lush greens from the leaves glittered with a sunset orange, while the stone path beneath their feet curved gracefully.
Lila gasped at the serene beauty as l guided her forward, their hands interwined like a bridge between two worlds.
An unusual sentint swelled up within l. Funny, considering the place she was about to lead Lila to.
Their steps clattered together, heartbeats syncing before they arrived upon a wall.
Titania’s stone wall, on the Southern Edge of the capital, stood tall and firm, promising no intrusions of Pride’s minions.
That is aside from one tiny hole, the size that could allow a child to slip through.
[ Host, no Knights or pedestrians within 20 tres! ]
Thank you.
Sincerely thanking her ’System’ in her heart, l let go of Lila’s hand.
She leaned onto the wall, the rough texture cool against her back through the thin fabric of her pink dress.
"Lila."
Her golden eyes, now stripped of their usual playfulness, locked onto Lila’s with a steady, serious gaze.
Lila’s erald eyes fluttered with a mix of worry and tenderness, and lt felt the urge to surrender, losing herself in the comfort within the depths of the vibrant green ocean.
"I want to tell you a story. About a girl who first awakened and found herself in a strange yet familiar world."
There was a slight sense of insecurity, even though she knew how Lila would react in the end, without a doubt.
Her honest confession, however, felt cathartic to l, as if a new door was opened for their relationship.
Lila gulped, yet said nothing. She knew this was it.
This is l’s untold story, the story of her origin, perhaps as a Witch, or perhaps as sothing more than she could imagine.
l chuckled at Lila’s nervousness. She would have teased, but alas, bad timing.
"That girl, when she opened her eyes and sat up in a sea of flowers, was first dazed by nature’s beauty before her."
Only pure admiration swelled in her heart as l found herself in a Fantasy World.
Like a transmigrator experiencing every new phenonon, the moon that shone at her that day was particularly gentle, graceful, even divine.
She felt free. Refreshed. Relieved. Her old life as an unloved orphan was left behind, and she embraced herself anew.
"Yet, she quickly realised that this World was not for her adventure. That this familiar World would soon turn into a wasteland. That she now held the power to change that future, and many more tragic fates that ca before."
The ’System’ introduced itself back then, as her kidnapper, as her dutiful partner.
l was excited at first about the privilege-like cheat before it ca crashing down upon revelations brought by the System.
That she was now in the World of the ’Witchhunter’s Howl’, 15 years before the Future.
That she was now the Witch of Lust, one of seven calamities the Church would have hunted down.
She panicked, her mind hazy from all the revelations shoved to her suddenly.
"Then, the girl was told by soone. Should she desire, she could return to where she ca from."
However, the System wasn’t the cruel mastermind she imagined it to be.
’She’ offered her a choice, a way out, a ’leave-behind-it-all’ exit, even claiming it could erase her mory if desired.
Now that she thought about it, the latter part must be a lie. After figuring out ’her’ identity, she now wondered if ’she’ ever had that capability in the first place.
[ ... ]
l’s eyes flickered to the panel, smiling.
"But the girl hesitated. She told that person she needed more ti before deciding."
The ’System’ was very persistent with ’her’ offer.
The Witches were not worth it, it claid.
This World’s matter could not be weighed by her own, it comforted.
That being a Witch ant more than what l could imagine, it warned.
As the Young l trudged through the forest, she stopped before the stone wall, the very wall she now stood on.
"Then she arrived at the last barrier of her choice."
She glanced down. One tiny entrance guided by the very System that wished for her well-being above the fate of the World.
The System pleaded one last ti at this very last wall, at the small entrance that promised a journey of hardship.
[ Please. This World was not worth your rcy. ]
[ Please. The Witches were not worth your rcy. ]
[ Please. We were not worth your rcy. ]
[ ...please. I promise I can save this World alone, without your interference. ]
In the past, l found the last excuse quote ironic, considering it was ’she’ who brought her here.
In the original tiline, ’she’ has truly shouldered it all: the destruction, the responsibilities, the guilt.
She wished none of that onto her now.
She prayed that all of the Witches would have a happy ending.
She imagined a living World filled with the romance and fantasy she once looked up to, all those days ago.
"At the end, that girl refused the voice’s offer, choosing instead to crawl through the dirt for the point of no return."
Even when uncertain if she would save the World, she didn’t like the feeling of leaving behind this World.
This World, the one that had accompanied her through countless days long past.
This World, tainted by a grim ending that she now held the power to change, with her own hands.
This World, filled with countless mories, each she cherished as if they were her very life.
"Then, that voice never offered her the way out, ever again."
[ ... ]
l’s golden eyes t Lila’s again.
"Well. Quite a vague, boring tale, don’t you think?"
Ultimately, it was not a satisfying tale of a powerful witch, nor a sob story of a tragic figure.
rely a girl who chose to struggle, for an absurd cause of seducing the Witches to achieve a better ending, no less.
l felt awkwardness bubbling up in her chest. She was not used to emotional scenes like this.
"Um..." She scratched her chin. "If you’re uncomfortable, please... just say so. I won’t bla-"
"l."
Lila stepped forward.
"You know full well I won’t bla you for sothing like this."
She stopped, before staring up, her hairlock fluttering down to reveal-
The Witch of Lust’s lips opened before smiling softly. Her hand stretched to cup Lila’s cheek, thumb gently wiping off the tear that stread down.
"Yeah," l uttered, hearing the subdued whimpers. "Hehe. Don’t cry at sothing like this. It makes embarrassed, even regret telling you now."
"Idiot," Lila whispered, gripping the hand resting against her face. "Don’t think it so simply."
Then, Lila slowly lowered the hand from her cheek.
The tears ceased, leaving her cheeks with a faint blush.
"I would have never cried easily." She breathed out. "I had to be strong. Strong enough to take care of my sick sister. Strong enough... to protect you."
And in l’s shocked gaze, Lila pulled the hand forward.
"Lila?"
"So I am willing to give all of myself to you, just as you are willing to give yourself to , even just for a mont."
Then, l’s palm pressed against Lila’s chest.
Beneath her hand, Lila’s heartbeat drumd rapidly, each pulse echoing just as loudly as l’s own heartbeat.
"Do you feel it?"
Lila smiled.
"All of how I feel?"
"..."
l couldn’t speak. For the first ti since she resolved herself to seduce her Witches, she felt an unbearable heat creeping up her face.
[ Envy felt imnse gratitude, sadness, and happiness at your confession. ]
And carrying the desire that peeked out from the corner of her heart, she flipped Lila against the wall.
[ Envy favourability: 89.5 -> 101 ]
"Lila."
Her forehead tapped against Lila’s, their hot breaths mingling together, the proximity setting both their senses ablaze.
"The Kiss." l held Lila’s face, examining her lover’s reddened cheeks.
Lila’s erald eyes were slightly closed, not escaping her gaze, as if to savour every bit of this mont.
It was cute.
It was worth all her sweat, efforts, and ti in this World.
She was never a selfless hero asking for no rewards.
She was the Witch of Lust, soone who would cast aside everything for a beauty’s smile.
"Let’s do it here."
And without more words, l leaned forward.
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