A Witch is Born

Chapter 6: A Witch is Born

The last thing Yuji saw was fire.

And then—darkness.

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When he opened his eyes again, he found himself lying down, his head resting on something soft.

Warm. Gentle. Comfortable.

He blinked a few times, adjusting to the light, and then realized—his head was on Lyra's lap.

He tried to sit up, but the moment he moved—pain.

His entire body ached like it was on fire. He groaned, his muscles screaming in protest.

"Yuji?"

Lyra's voice trembled with emotion. She looked down at him, her golden eyes filled with tears. Seeing him finally awake, she exhaled shakily before gently helping him sit up.

"Ahhh—!!" Yuji winced, pain jolting through him as his back straightened. He finally noticed his body—wrapped in bandages.

The fabric was torn from Lyra's own clothes, carefully wrapped around his wounds.

Lyra sniffled, trying to wipe her tears away.

Yuji forced a weak smile. "Hey… why are you crying now? I'm awake, aren't I?"

But instead of answering, Lyra suddenly hugged him tightly, burying her face into his chest.

"Don't ever do something so insane again!!" she cried.

Yuji's body tensed at the sudden embrace.

"You could've left me… but you insisted on saving me! What if you had died?!" she sobbed. "You've been unconscious for a whole week! I thought you were never going to wake up again…!"

Yuji slowly lifted his hand and petted her head.

"Lyra, calm down. I'm alright now."

She only tightened her grip, her body trembling.

"You're not alright at all!" she snapped.

Yuji gasped in pain. "Ahh—it hurts when you hug me that tight!"

Hearing that, she immediately loosened her grip, though she still refused to let go completely.

For a moment, the two just sat there, lost in an overwhelming mix of emotions.

Finally, Lyra took a deep breath and pulled away, wiping her tear-streaked face.

That's when Yuji finally noticed something different about her.

Lyra no longer looked like the girl he first met.

She was wearing a long, flowing red magic robe, embroidered with golden flames. In her hand was a finely crafted magic rod, pulsating with energy.

She looked… legendary.

"…You changed," Yuji muttered.

Lyra smiled softly. "Yeah. I have."

She turned to the side and grabbed a wooden skewer with cooked meat on it.

"It's from a rabbit monster I killed earlier," she said. "Here, eat."

Yuji tried to take it, but his arms had no strength.

Lyra sighed. "You're so weak right now."

Then, to his surprise, she picked up the skewer herself and brought it to his mouth.

"Come on, open up."

Yuji blinked. "Eh? That's too embarrassing."

Lyra chuckled. "Oh? Don't worry—there's no one here to see it."

He sighed, defeated, and took a bite.

As he chewed, he could already feel his strength slowly returning.

For a while, they ate in silence.

Then, finally, Yuji asked, "…What happened back then?"

Lyra's eyes darkened slightly as she put the skewer down.

"When you said you could change my occupation… my system actually changed."

Yuji nodded. That much he had expected.

"My new occupation is Witch of Fire," she continued. "I got two new magic skills instantly, and more skills unlocked, but I can only access them when I level up."

She took a breath. "Back then, when you changed my occupation… my body surged with power. My wounds healed instantly. And after that… I easily killed all the monsters."

Yuji listened quietly, nodding. "That's good. You finally became a high-rank system awakener, just like you wanted."

But as he spoke, his expression darkened slightly.

Lyra noticed. She knew what he was thinking.

She gently placed a hand over his.

"Yuji… thank you."

Her voice was soft, sincere.

"If it weren't for you, I'd be dead right now."

Yuji's eyes flickered toward her.

"Back then, I wanted to live… but I knew that you didn't have any combat ability. I thought if you interfered, you'd get killed. And also…" She hesitated. "…Leaving my family behind also hurt me. That's why I told you to run."

She bit her lip.

"But you… you didn't give up. Even at the very end, you tried to save me. I'm very, very grateful to you."

Yuji let out a small laugh. "Well, I also did it for myself. If you didn't kill that orc, I would've died too. So don't take it too seriously—I had my own reasons."

Lyra rolled her eyes. "Still doesn't change the fact that you saved me."

Yuji sighed. "…Yeah, I guess."

His eyes trailed down his own body, noticing how even his lower body was wrapped in bandages.

"…Lyra, did you wrap all of these bandages?"

She nodded. "Yeah. There wasn't anyone else, so I had to do it myself."

Yuji smirked. "So… you saw everything?"

Lyra blinked. "Huh?"

Then, realization hit her.

Her face turned completely red.

"W-W-WAIT, WHAT DO YOU MEAN EVERYTHING?! I-I DIDN'T LOOK!!" she stammered. "I HAD TO WRAP YOUR WOUNDS, OR YOU WOULD'VE DIED!!"

Yuji chuckled teasingly. "Pervert."

"Y-You're the pervert!!" she shot back. "When I was injured, you wrapped bandages around me too!!"

Yuji immediately froze, realizing the truth.

"…O-Oh. Yeah."

Now his face turned red.

"I-It was the same for me… if I hadn't, you would've died too…" he muttered.

For a moment, they just stared at each other.

Then—

They both burst into laughter.

Their voices echoed through the silent forest, a strange sense of warmth settling between them.

For the first time in a long while, Yuji felt at peace.