Chapter 44: First Meeting with the Poor Witch Lady  

After school.

Since the forbidden area was temporarily off-limits, Zunzun, Megumin, and Yunyun came to the village's wishing pool to—practice. Definitely to practice. Not to splash around and play in the water.

Having already mastered tree-walking and hanging upside down from ceilings, Zunzun was now attempting something more difficult:

Walking on water.

More precisely, walking on any surface with unstable fluctuations.

According to Zunzun's grand vision, this technique wouldn't stop at water. One day, he'd walk over magma, seas of fire, swamps, or even step on his own foot and spiral into the heavens.

But for now, even walking on water was proving harder than expected.

Clinging to ceilings was simple in comparison—you only had to circulate magic through your body in a fixed pattern. But water required constant attention to flow and turbulence. It demanded real-time magical adjustment, which left Zunzun drained.

Just standing on the water was difficult. Fighting as if on solid ground? Totally unrealistic for now.

"Z-Zunzun... This is too hard..." Yunyun sputtered after nearly drowning again.

Zunzun, who was successfully standing on the water's surface, helped pull her up. "Of course it's hard, Yunyun. You skipped all the preliminary stages. Without a foundation, this is nearly impossible."

Yunyun had refused to do ceiling training, yet insisted on water-walking. Unfortunately, without groundwork, it was like skipping algebra and trying calculus.

"Ugh... I hate it... My clothes are soaked."

She tugged at her wet school uniform, which clung tightly to her figure. She was the second-most physically developed girl among the new generation of Crimson Demons, which made the more "petite" little girl nearby grind her teeth in envy.

"Tsk."

The little girl—Megumin—clicked her tongue audibly and gave up even pretending to control her magic.

According to her, explosion magic must explode. If you tame it too much, it loses its soul!

Zunzun knew the truth. She couldn't control it. If he told her that better control would amplify her explosions, she'd probably start practicing instantly.

Glancing over, Zunzun noticed Megumin sitting perfectly upright by the pond, fishing rod in hand.

"...What are you doing?"

"Fishing for bananas," Megumin said calmly. "My sister said she wanted fruit, so I figured I'd catch some for her."

"No, no, no. That's not how this works!"

"Wait," Yunyun said, "how are you even fishing here?"

Yes! Good job, Yunyun. Call her out.

"If you're looking for bananas, you should go to the stream. The wishing pool is man-made—it's basically dead water. There's nothing living in it."

...Is that the problem!?

Even after living in this world for twelve years, Zunzun still had trouble accepting its ecology.

"Tsk."

Realizing her mistake, Megumin packed up her rod and dragged Yunyun off toward the stream to try again.

Zunzun didn't go with them.

He hadn't even mastered walking on still water yet—practicing on a flowing stream would just be a waste of time. So, he stayed behind to train alone.

He practiced until sunset.

Though he hadn't succeeded yet, he was close. Zunzun could feel it—soon, he'd be able to walk on water. And when he did… he'd look so cool fighting like that!

Just the thought made him tremble with excitement. Clearly, the Crimson Demon aesthetic was rubbing off on him.

On his way home, he heard hurried footsteps behind him, followed by a breathless shout.

"Miss! Um—miss!"

A hand slapped down on Zunzun's shoulder.

He turned around with a deadpan face and said, "Hi. I'm a boy."

"...A boy?"

The young woman blinked in surprise, then bowed repeatedly in apology.

"S-Sorry! So sorry!"

He finally got a good look at her.

She was around twenty, with long chestnut hair and a single cowlick curling upward. Her pale skin contrasted strikingly with her warm, expressive almond eyes and gentle cherry lips. She wore a black and purple robe with golden trim, cinched with several thick belts over an ahem well-endowed chest.

Despite her elegant appearance, a strange aura of meekness clung to her. She looked powerful, but... easily bullied?

Zunzun blinked.

"Big sis, you must be an outsider. What brings you to Crimson Demon Village?"

"Yes! Actually, I'm here to find someone. Um, do you know where Mr. Hyoizaburoo's house is? The master of magic items?"

...Nope. Too many red flags in one sentence.

Since when was Hyoizaburoo a master? And who are you, anyway?

As if sensing his skepticism, she quickly added, "I run a magic item shop in Axel. I happened to see one of Mr. Hyoizaburoo's creations, and I was deeply impressed. I came here hoping to buy some for resale at my store."

—!?

Zunzun suddenly realized who she was.

"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Wiz, and I'm the manager of the magic item shop."

It was her!

The pitiful, penniless witch lady!

Zunzun had thought she looked familiar—and now that she'd introduced herself, he remembered clearly. This woman had terrible business sense and an even worse eye for practical items… the perfect match for Hyoizaburoo's nonsense.

"Little brother? Um... little brother?" Wiz asked anxiously.

"Ah, sorry. Yes, Mr. Hyoizaburoo does live here."

"Really!? I was worried I got the wrong village. Um... it's getting late. Could you take me to his house?"

"Sure. Follow me."

"Thank you so much."

They walked together toward the small slope where Megumin's house stood.

When Wiz saw the crooked, barn-like structure that was supposedly Hyoizaburoo's house, she went quiet for a moment.

She knocked gently.

After some clattering and thudding inside, a tiny child opened the door.

"Komekko!"

"Sister Zunzun!"

"..."

Zunzun's eye twitched as he felt Wiz's gaze shift.

He sighed. "It's brother. I'm a boy."

"Sister!!"

"Brother."

"Sister!!!"

...I'm tired. Please, just let the world end already.

Not wanting to argue further, he asked, "Komekko, is Uncle Hyoizaburoo home?"

"Nope! He went to the market with Mom!" Komekko replied cheerfully.

Wiz visibly deflated.

Zunzun felt a little bad and said apologetically, "Uncle Hyoizaburoo goes to the market once a month to sell his magic items. He's just not home this week. If you want, you can leave your contact info, and he'll find you when he returns."

"I see... I guess that's all I can do."

Wiz nodded and handed over a letter filled with praise for Hyoizaburoo's work. She included her shop address and expressed her hope for future collaboration.

Honestly, Zunzun couldn't understand her obsession with Hyoizaburoo's junk—but everyone has their own tastes.

Wiz left shortly after.

Zunzun stayed to keep Komekko company until Megumin came home.

When she arrived and heard that someone had complimented her father's creations, her expression turned complicated.

Then Zunzun noticed something strange.

Megumin had returned with… a bunch of bananas on her fishing rod.

He stared.

"You actually caught some!?"

-End Chapter-

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