TWFLLYM Ch 49

No Secret Stays Hidden Forever

[Roserikta] "Thank you so much."

She expressed her deep gratitude, unable to hide her admiration.

[Roserikta] "I can't believe it. You finished so quickly."

[Crow] "A witch of Versaryl praising us makes me feel proud. Though these small friends did all the hard work."

The Great Crow spoke while calmly smoothing the tips of his wings. During their last meeting, he had promised to help her face the black witch. He had taught her a way to call him without using magic.

She only had to leave a black feather on the windowsill of the four-story tower. Since it was the middle of the night, Roserikta had doubted whether the signal would work in the dark. Yet, the Great Crow read the sign perfectly and arrived.

When she mentioned the carriage needed repairs, the Great Crow summoned a bat. The bat called the field rats, and the field rats brought the mice.

An army of mice swarmed the broken carriage wheel. Instead of using hammers and nails, they used their teeth to gnaw away the broken axle and replace it.

Their skill was breathtaking. They took the new axle from the Count's own carriage. Now, the Imperial carriage stood perfectly repaired, while the Count's carriage sat ruined in its place.

[Roserikta] "Now we can return to the capital whenever we want. This is a massive help."

She handed out bread and cheese she had gathered from the kitchen. The mice stared at the five large loaves of bread with wide eyes and began to dance with joy.

[Roserikta] "What should I give you? I heard crows love shiny things, but I don't have anything like that right now."

[Crow] "Don't worry about it. I didn't do this for a reward. However, crows do enjoy cheese."

[Roserikta] "Oh, that's a relief. Here, please take this. It's a token of my thanks. It isn't mine, actually—I took it from the Gibero kitchen."

[Crow] "I accept this on behalf of my small friends. It doesn't matter who owned it before. Food belongs to the one who eats it."

She gave a thumb-sized sausage to the bat. The bat opened its mouth wide and sang a song of joy, though the pitch stayed well above human hearing range.

Clobellina also received an unexpected gift. Roserikta had stuffed a thick sausage into the cat's mouth early on, fearing Clobell's instincts might drive her to harass the mice.

The forest creatures and the witch all shared a moment of warmth. This was a method a black witch could never use.

[Roserikta] "By the way, did you find anything about the black witch's past?"

[Crow] "We are still looking, but I learned one thing. The Countess married the Count three years ago."

[Roserikta] "Three years ago?"

She tilted her head.

[Roserikta] "Don't nobles usually marry young? Count Gibero looks well over fifty."

[Crow] "He isn't. The Count is only forty-one this year."

[Roserikta] "Is that so?"

She frowned. She recalled the faces of wealthy, well-fed nobles she had seen before.

[Roserikta] "He didn't look forty-one at all."

[Crow] "I agree. He is likely sacrificing his life force to black magic. There were also dark rumors surrounding his remarriage."

[Crow] "He married the current Countess after his first wife died three years ago. But it wasn't just his wife—his children all died too. If it were an accident, it might make sense, but they all died of 'illness.' Only the Count survived."

A chill ran down her spine.

[Roserikta] "Is this...... one of those typical stories you find in novels?"

The crow nodded.

[Crow] "There is no proof. But for a black witch, disguising a murder as a natural death is easy."

[Roserikta] "Phew......"

Clobellina, busy chewing her sausage, couldn't help but join in.

[Clobell] "That is so unoriginal. Even if you wrote a book about that, it wouldn't sell. There must be billions of stories like that already."

Roserikta gave the tip of Clobellina's tail a gentle tug.

[Roserikta] "Why does a black witch need to be original? Her cruelty only makes things harder for us."

[Clobell] "I'm just saying I feel bad for any writer who tries to use that plot. They should write something else."

[Roserikta] "No one here is writing a novel. The crow is talking, so be quiet."

[Clobell] "Are you seriously scolding me for insulting a black witch? Anyway, so she killed the whole family three years ago and became the Countess?"

The conversation returned to the main point.

[Crow] "That seems to be the case. Death always follows a black witch."

[Roserikta] "Right. Oh, did you hear anything about the servants? I haven't seen any of them. The castle is empty. Did they all leave?"

She asked because she hoped they were safe. The crow blinked.

[Crow] "No. I haven't heard anything about that."

[Roserikta] "Really? That's strange. If that many people left the castle at once, people would talk."

[Crow] "I agree. Is it true that all the workers vanished?"

[Roserikta] "Yes. I saw them outside, but never once inside the castle."

Clobellina nodded vigorously.

[Clobell] "My ears didn't hear any other humans either. Forget people. There were only boxes full of bones."

Suddenly, a mouse gnawing on bread looked up and squeaked urgently.

[Roserikta] "What? What did you say?"

She knelt before the mouse to listen.

[Roserikta] "Say that again. Is that true?"

[Mouse] "True, true."

[Roserikta] "That's...... impossible."

The mouse explained that no house was truly empty of mice. Since all mice in an area lived as one big family, they were the best sources for local news. One mouse knew a strange story about the family he lived with.

They were a very poor family. Their eldest daughter and youngest son both found work at the Gibero estate. It was a huge blessing for them.

For a while, the money the children sent home improved their lives. They had plenty of food and new clothes. The mice in that house were happy too.

But that happiness died quickly. Within a year, the money stopped. The letters stopped. The family had no idea where their children were. They fell back into poverty, now burdened with grief and anger.

[Roserikta] "There were more families like that? And they still don't know where their children are?"

[Mouse] "Yes, yes."

[Roserikta] "And this all happened after the new Countess arrived?"

[Mouse] "Yes, yes."

[Roserikta] "Did any families visit the estate? Nothing?"

[Mouse] "They did, they did. But there were no answers. No one knew anything."

It seemed the estate ignored them. For poor people with no status, even stepping foot on the grounds was nearly impossible.

[Clobell] "Wait. Then those bones in the boxes...... are they all the workers? Like the white cat?"

Her tail shivered.

[Roserikta] "Probably. She kept the bones for a reason. Perhaps she needs to show 'workers' whenever guests visit unexpectedly."

The crow shook his beak in disgust.

[Crow] "What a foul power. Making them unable to die, even in death. This magic is more wicked and terrifying than I thought."

The horror of black magic chilled the air. The bat began to cry loudly out of fear, though no one noticed the ultrasonic wails. The mice huddle together, trembling.

[Mice] "Scary, scary."

[Mice] "Evil, evil."

[Mice] "Run away, run away."

[Mouse] "Can't run, can't run. The forest is here, here."

[Roserikta] "You're right. We can't run away."

She stood up.

[Roserikta] "Running won't change anything. The black witch won't stop taking lives. She will keep moving to hide her identity. No, that isn't all. Now that she is a Countess, she's aiming for something even bigger."

[Crow] "What is it?"

[Roserikta] "Likely, the Kriyen Empire."

[Crow] "What?"

Silence followed. Everyone stared at Roserikta with their mouths open.

[Roserikta] "That's why she wants the Crown Prince. She caused the carriage accident on purpose to lure him to her home."

[Clobell] "That's not all. She even sent that white cat. She wanted to use that cat to make him do bad things. Ugh, I'm glad I noticed the truth early. Rosie is so slow; she didn't believe me even when I said the white cat was suspicious."

Unfortunately, the group was too shocked to notice Clobellina's bragging.

[Crow] "Is that really true? Even for a black witch, that sounds too dangerous. The Crown Prince has many guards. People would notice if someone used black magic on him."

[Roserikta] "Yes, they would. That's why she planned this for a long time."

[Crow] "A long time? Why do you say that?"

[Roserikta] "The Prince's eyes. It isn't a disease; it's a curse."

She calmly shared everything she had learned. She also shared the guesses she had made by connecting the facts.

[Roserikta] "So, the Prince said he has never felt any emotion for a living thing. Have you ever heard of a disease like that?"

[Crow] "No. Impossible."

[Roserikta] "Exactly. Something so deeply tied to emotions isn't a disease. It's a curse."

[Crow] "So the black witch cursed him so he could never love anyone. And the reason is......"

[Roserikta] "Right now, only the black witch looks beautiful to the Prince. Think about it. If someone who has seen the world as something hideous finally finds the one beautiful thing, what happens?"

The wise crow understood immediately.

[Crow] "He will accept her as his only light. In human terms, he will love her with a burning, desperate passion."

[Clobell] "Ack."

She flinched.

[Clobell] "Is that why he was so obsessed with me? I almost had a huge problem."

Roserikta explained the accident where Clobellina gave the Prince a love potion, and how she had to stay at the palace to make the cure.

[Crow] "I see. I wondered why a witch would care about a human Prince. Still, you are impressive for your age. Creating an antidote for a love potion? That is one of the most powerful and dangerous magics in the witch world."

[Roserikta] "It wasn't that impressive. I had the recipe my grandmother left behind. And regardless of how hard it was, I had to take responsibility."

[Crow] "And in the process, you discovered the curse on the Prince's eyes. It's too perfect to be a coincidence."

[Roserikta] "Yes."

She paused to catch her breath.

[Roserikta] "My grandmother told me in a dream. The Moon's destiny influences every witch. It isn't a mere coincidence that a witch with a love potion met a Prince with a curse that prevents love. So, I can't run away. I will break his curse. I will protect him from the black witch."

Clap, clap, clap, clap.

The mice stood in a line and hit their tiny palms together.

[Mice] "Good witch. Great witch."

[Mice] "So cool, so cool."

[Mice] "We must help, must help."

Embarrassed by the sudden applause, Roserikta nodded to the mice.

[Roserikta] "You are already a huge help. You fixed the carriage. Now we have no reason to stay here. We can return to the castle safely. Thank you so much."

[Mice] "Happy to help, happy to help."

[Mice] "We are cool too, cool too."

[Crow] "This time we were lucky, but as long as the black witch lives, the danger remains. What do you plan to do?"

[Roserikta] "After returning to the castle, I'll find a way to break the curse. I'll have to study black magic for that. My grandmother likely left books about it. Once the curse is gone, the witch won't be able to control him anymore. I'll deal with her after that."

[Crow] "I understand. You want to separate the human from the witch first. A black witch's power grows by feeding on humans."

[Roserikta] "Yes."

The Prince's safety came first. The immediate problem was solved. Once they returned to the capital, the real battle would begin.

Roserikta shook hands with each animal. Since the mice were so small, she touched her finger to their tiny paws instead.

[Roserikta] "I'll go now. Stay safe, everyone. If you find new information about the black witch, let me know."

[Crow] "Don't worry. We will keep an eye on her movements."

[Roserikta] "Thank you, genuinely."

[Crow] "No thanks needed. This affects all of us. Though you are the one in the most danger, little witch."

[Clobell] "He's right. Rosie and I are doing the hardest work."

[Roserikta] "I feel so much stronger because you are all with me."

They finished their farewells with warm words. Just as Roserikta picked up Clobellina to leave the carriage house......

[Roserikta] "I'll tell Sir Eaton we should leave as soon as he wakes up. The Prince will agree...... Clobell?"

Clobellina's ears perked up. The other animals reacted too. The bat fluttered its wings, and the crow let out a sharp caw.

[Clobell] "Oh no. I think we have a big problem."

[Roserikta] "What's wrong, everyone?"

Clobellina's whiskers stood stiff with tension.

[Clobell] "I smell a human. It's a smell I know well."

Roserikta's face turned pale. A heavy footstep echoed through the dark. A familiar face emerged from the shadows.

[Arad] "What...... did I just hear?"