10. The witch becomes a mirror for that person

His father was a hard worker.

Taking over his job made her daughter Lina even more keenly aware of this fact, which she should have already known.

She lost her wife early, managed a poor estate, and endured ever-heighting taxes. How hard would it have been to raise a child in such an environment without even being able to hire servants? At least I don't feel like having children at all.

"Haa..."

Her breath is heavy because of Lina. There are three villages in the Orio territory she manages. She has two villages, one in front of the mansion where she lives, and one a little further away. That's it. When my father was a landlord, there were a few more, but due to a succession of misfortunes such as sudden epidemics and poor harvests for several years, the already small population of the fief has decreased remarkably.

"Is the plague the beginning of the visible destruction?" It was about 20 years ago, and Lina must have been very young at that time. A father who always thought about the territory and was troubled. No wonder he was heartbroken that nothing had been done to deal with the epidemic.

It wasn't just natural misfortune that drove him into a corner. So is the country. Although the relationship was one-sided, Lina's father had a sliver of hope and asked the country for help. However, his expectations were easily betrayed, and he was in danger of losing not only the infected villages, but also himself and his daughter's freedom of mind and body. Although the suspicion of infection was cleared after several days passed under his supervision, the people of some villages were not so well, and the country eventually "disappeared" entirely. attempted to subside the disease.

"I locked him up and waited for him to die."

"In short, it's a let-down."

The plague disappeared along with the lives of the people of the territory, and without a moment's delay, they began to suffer from poor harvests. After that, my father became weaker year by year, and finally passed away a few years ago. He suddenly grabs his heart and collapses, and that's it. Looking closely at her silent father lying on her bed, Lina couldn't help but weep because she looked so old that she couldn't believe she was still in her forties.

Her grandfather also died early, she says. Her father will follow suit, and perhaps so will she. From now on, I will be in my early 20s when I am in the prime of my life. Staring at her arm, which was already like a dead tree, Lina thought so objectively.

"As the number of people has decreased in the last 20 years, no more taxes have been added." The period of poor harvest is over and somehow she is able to maintain her business, but she continues to be at the brink of walking along the edge of a cliff. This Orio territory is not ruled by aristocrats, which is rare, and although it is fortunate that there is no middleman by them, which is often seen in other territories, there is nothing wrong with it. It's just that it's considered to have nothing to pull out.

In normal times, crops and animals do not grow on the land that is so barren that it corresponds to the bad harvest of other territories. It's hard to say that even Lina, the landowner, was able to eat the amount she needed in a day, so the villagers' miserable situation should be guessed.

Lina spills her breath again. Another day begins today. A day until she collapses with anxiety. After finishing the morning preparations that I deliberately stretched out, I left the room. Every morning and every night, she thinks of this realm she inherited from her ancestors, and of herself. But no matter how much she thought about it, she knew it wouldn't help. She has nowhere to go. In such a situation, there is no way to find a bride and son-in-law, and in the first place there is no contact or connection to find it.

If she really wants to keep her family alive, she will have no choice but to forcibly take her opponent away from one of the three villages like a nobleman. Thinking about that, Lina smiled at herself. ──It's not about robbing the village men who are precious and valuable workers.

However, if there is no successor to her, what will happen to this territory after my death? That was her concern. That's right, not only the villagers but also the servants are left behind.

"Lina-sama"

"Alf... what's wrong?"

On her way downstairs, she ran into a man coming up the stairs. He's old, but he's a straight-laced butler, and he's the only butler who's been serving this house since his grandfather's generation. And he is now the only remaining servant. For Lina, he was like her second father.

Alf usually doesn't go upstairs in the mornings. There is Lina's bedroom, and she wakes up on her own without being woken up—although it's a little late in the morning—gets ready and shows her face downstairs. Knowing that, he also tries not to disturb Lina's girlfriend's time.

"That rare thing happened." Lina understood when she saw him that she seemed to have come to call her, which was unusual for her.

"We had a visitor."

"Customer? To see me?"

"Yes, I certainly said so. Lina-sama."

"......"

It's not that many, but people from the village come regularly to appeal their petitions. Lina's heart was worn out each time she responded, but from the way Alf said it, the next customer was not a villager. He will tell you that from the beginning.

"If that's the case, where did the guest come from?"

"No way, I wonder if your request has finally come true. Did a messenger from the country come to save our territory?"

Alf nodded in response to Lina, who joked with sarcasm about herself.

"Yes, Lina-sama. There is one woman and one girl.

"Huh?"

A few seconds of confusion. Or dozens of seconds. While thanking Alf for clearing his throat and subtly warning him, "Isn't it unwise to make him wait?", Lina led him to the mansion's entrance.

At this time, an indescribable premonition began to swirl in her chest.

◇◇◇

Dark circles under the eyes and sunken cheeks that cannot be done overnight. The woman who called herself Lina, who was pale in her liveliness and her face was full of usual worries, put her skinny hands tightly in front of her chest as if to express her anxiety. I was holding on to it.

"Um, um. In other words...?"

"In other words, the king has passed away. He and his relatives were killed by bandits who were plotting to rule the country. The Primordial Witch-sama, who sensed the incident and rushed to subjugate the bandits. Furthermore, the current king and the heir to the throne He was deeply concerned about the situation where there was no one left, and decided to become the new king of this country and lead the people."

"Th, that's that--"

"Yes. It's Idea-sama who is here."

Lina turned her gaze to me when prompted. She raised her hand to respond to Frank, but she purred her throat seriously and then hurriedly bowed her head.

"I wonder what it's like." From her first greeting to this, before and after being led into this parlor, I get the feeling that she's trying to avoid looking at me as much as possible. Maybe it's because she makes Celia talk all the time, but that's not the only reason. I have to twist.

"Seriously, Celia's explanation is straightforward." If you were to document the events that happened, that would be true, but hearing such things would only make it harder to understand. Although it can't be helped if you want to hide things you don't need to know, here you go. In fact, Lina is also at a loss for an answer.

"No wonder." Surprisingly, she hadn't even heard of the purge of nobles caused by Morrow in the royal capital about half a year ago. Well, if the political reforms haven't spread even within the royal capital yet, it's not that Lina's antenna is particularly bad, but I think that the amount and freshness of information that a single landlord in such a remote land can get is about that. It seems more correct.

"Well then, will the tax system change as well? If I'm not mistaken... Celia-sama said earlier that this country will become richer in the future. That's the capital and other cities. Are you referring to not only these areas but also frontier areas like this one?"

"Yes."

The one who asked was Celia, but she answered me. Lina looked at me again with a surprised look on her face.

"I'll be rich. I'm sure. I'm not interested in extravagance, and my subjects are also extremely talented. It seems that the former king's rule was quite stupid, but it won't be like that under my administration. I promise. "

"I ── Idea, Mr."

It was more like he let out a sigh of admiration rather than calling my name. Hmmm, judging from this state, it seems that I am convinced to some extent that I am the king. ... Is there such a thing? "This may be the first time she's actually seen the king, but it's me." In the shape of a little bitch like this, except for being able to use magic, it's just a kincho.

Even if such a person suddenly appeared as a king, even if there was a woman by his side who plausibly affirmed the truth, it would be unbelievable.

However, Lina's attitude was not towards her suspicious person, but towards a superior who was clearer than herself.

"Occasionally Lina. Are you also talking about the 'Witch of the Primordial'?"

"Well, I know. ``The witch becomes a mirror for that person, and brings the appropriate blessings and disasters.''...isn't it?"

"what is that"

"This is one of the oral traditions of the Primordial Witch, Idea-sama. It is a custom in this country to compare the Primordial Witch to extraordinary events, whether good or bad. For example, a person suddenly disappears. If you do, you can interpret it as ``I was kidnapped by the Primordial Witch for doing something bad'', and so on."

"...What's that?"