Just as she was unsure how to explain, the Witch Lady spoke first:
"Hehe, seeing you struggling, why don't I just do a 'divination' for you?"
...Divination?
"You're not trying to trick
again, are you?"
Yvonne gave her an extrely distrustful look.
"Ahaha... How could I~"
The Witch Lady waved her hand and laughed,
"The divination is free, of course. Consider it a return gift for the drink you bought
last ti."
"I never intended to treat you."
Yvonne was still bothered by having to pay for the drinks last ti.
To think an adult would make her pay, this person was really too lousy.
But at least she got the antidote, so they were even now. Yvonne didn't pursue the matter further.
"But how are you going to do the divination for ?"
This world didn't seem to have things like tarot cards, and the Witch Lady didn't appear to be holding any divination tools like crystal balls that Yvonne was familiar with.
Although she had learned so orthodox elental magic through her studies at the specialized magic school, this world had many more 'unconventional' arts.
For example, the thod this Witch Lady was using now was a divination technique completely unfamiliar to Yvonne:
"With this—bottom of the cup divination."
She placed the empty cup in front of Yvonne with a clang.
"Ugh, how casual."
Yvonne was quite disdainful. She had expected a more elegant and intellectual form of divination, not this.
"Don't speak, let
see the results... Hmm..."
Turning the cup's handle towards herself, the Witch Lady carefully observed the traces of liquid left at the bottom, her eyes moving slightly.
"The shape of confusion... It represents that you're being bound by sothing, so you dare not reveal your true heart. If you face your inner self and release your true feelings, you will receive the response you hope for."
Hmm... So she's using this trick?
Yvonne found it sowhat amusing.
In psychology, the Barnum effect shows that vague, general statents are more likely to be perceived as accurate. This applies to both divination and predictions.
When soone describes you using ambiguous, equivocal adjectives, as the subject, it's easy to accept these descriptions and see yourself in them, feeling that they accurately describe you. Horoscopes and various fortune-telling thods all utilize this principle.
However, unfortunately for her, Yvonne was a person from another world with modern knowledge—these little tricks wouldn't fool her.
"Hehe, do you think it's not detailed enough?"
She waved to the bartender, ordering another beer.
"Of course, the content of the divination is too vague,"
Yvonne said, raising an eyebrow slightly,
"Because... no matter who you are, as long as you live in this world, you're not completely free... and everyone has so secrets hidden in their hearts that they don't want to reveal, right?"
This level of divination wouldn't convince her.
"You're not wrong. Then let
be more specific."
Taking the refilled glass from the bartender, the Witch Lady took a small sip. The eyes under her hat brim no longer looked at Yvonne, but stared at so intangible point in front:
"You're currently being controlled by sothing, doing things you don't want to do, right?"
"...!!"
Yvonne's heart trembled upon hearing these words.
Could she be talking about the system?
But she quickly denied it in her heart.
No... no, no, no, it must be a coincidence. At most, it's just a lucky guess.
How could a character in the ga transcend the knowledge limitations of this world and know about the existence of sothing like a 'system'?
But the Witch Lady didn't seem to intend to stop, consecutively dropping words that surprised Yvonne greatly.
"Actually, it's not impossible to break free from that thing's control. As long as you can enter another route—you'll have a chance to change the current situation."
—'Route'
Hearing such a spine-chilling term from soone she thought was just a ga character.
For a mont, Yvonne even began to wonder if the fourth wall of this world had been broken down by soone.
This feeling of tension that made her whole body break out in goosebumps was a first since her reincarnation.
"...Who exactly are you?"
Yvonne was stunned for a long ti before slowly uttering this question.
"My, my? Weren't you uninterested in my na before? Why suddenly ask about my identity?"
With a raised corner of her mouth, the Witch Lady said with a smile, yet Yvonne still couldn't clearly see her face hidden in the shadows.
Who is she...
"Although I'd like to tell you directly, I can't be too specific... otherwise, even I would be punished."
—'Punished'
There it was again, words that made Yvonne incredibly uneasy kept coming out of the other person's mouth one after another.
"However, as a bonus, I can reveal a little bit to you —"
She leaned in close, lowering the mask-like collar near Yvonne's ear, and in a blind spot of vision, as if whispering a secret, she declared:
"—I am a 'witch,' you know."
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'If you're ready, co find .'
That's what the Witch Lady told her.
What does a witch do... and what does 'ready' refer to?
There were still many things she wanted to ask, but the Witch Lady didn't seem to want to give her the chance. As soon as ti was up, if Yvonne's gaze moved away from her even slightly, when she looked back, she would have vanished as if she had suddenly evaporated.
...A real witch indeed...
Forced to pay for drinks a second ti, Yvonne decided not to believe another word she said.
There were too many things said that she couldn't understand.
It was impossible to determine the other party's true identity and intentions based on just a few words.
Without knowing the other party's intentions, Yvonne decided not to think about this headache-inducing matter for now.
She would try to interact with her again when the opportunity arose.
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"Wah!!"
It was late at night when she returned to her room. Before she could turn on the lights, Yvonne was caught by Elsa, who had appeared behind her without a sound, and let out a scream.
"Don't scare
like that! Dorothy!!"
She nearly had a heart attack.
"...Hmph."
In the darkness, she unreasonably hugged Yvonne, the unexpected sensation making her heart skip a beat.
"Coming back so late... and with the sll of another woman on you."
Resentfully burying her head in Yvonne's chest and taking a deep breath, she looked up, her blinking eyes becoming slightly moist in the dim moonlight.
"This is cheating!"
Hearing these words, Yvonne found it both amusing and exasperating:
"To cheat, there needs to be a relationship first... What kind of cheating is this? Besides, I just had so business—"
"—Then let's 'start a relationship' first."
Before Yvonne could finish, Elsa interrupted her, seemingly unwilling to listen to her explanation.
Yvonne was still pondering what Elsa ant by 'start a relationship' when she ca to her senses and found herself already pushed down onto the bed.
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