Maydare Volume 1 Chapter 11 - The Descendant of the Worst Witch in the World (Part 3)

 The thrilling climax!

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I withdrew myself to the wall, and as I drank some more grape juice because I was thirsty, I wondered how I was going to get back to school.

Ever since earlier, the stares of the nobles who I didn’t know were painful, and I could hear them talking about me behind my back.

I was the villain for threatening the bond between Savior and Guardian, defying the prince, and casting aside a loyal and noble knight. If they transferred their bad-mouthing of Thor towards me, then that was perfectly fine.

My teammates from magic school found me like that. 

“Makia, are you alright!?”

”It looked like there was some kind of fight…”

Lapis and Nero were concerned about me. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Thank you, everyone.”

At times like these, I was grateful to have friends who had no animosity towards me. We were a new and fresh team, but I think I have gathered a good group of people.

“Who was that good-looking guy arguing with Brother, Leader? Your ex-boyfriend?”

Frey asked carefreely. Well, it was easier to tell them that way.

“He’s my former servant. A knight I picked up from the streets. But the Guardian’s crest appeared on him, so he’s no longer my servant. ...You know what I mean by that, right?”

“Aaah, so your knight was taken away by the cute girl from another world. That sucks.”

“Frey...that trait of yours where you talk without holding anything back is truly amazing.”

The person important to me was taken away by the Savior who suddenly appeared, by the fate of the world.

If I said it like that, I would probably be criticized all over.

But, this was probably how I really felt. Because I was so jealous.

“So that is the person Makia said she always wanted to see again.”

The perceptive Lapis rubbed my shoulders.

“Let’s go back now. I don’t like it here either. Makia...must be tired as well.”

“...Yes.”

“You endured all of what was said to you well. As expected.”

Nero complimented me, which was rare for him. A small smile escaped my face.

Somehow, that took off some of the weight on my chest.

Just as Thor had new comrades, I also had new school friends. 

It was very sad, but maybe this was how we were starting to go our separate ways. Yes, there was no choice but to accept it.

The ball was still in full swing, but we decided to go back to school.

Maybe I would never see Thor again.

I might never be able to find out for sure what I really felt for him.

But maybe it was better that way…

Feeling loneliness and misery, and with a small sense of loss, I walked through the large doors to leave the great hall.

...It was at that moment.

“Huh?”

A nobleman walked right past me.

Sitting small on the man’s shoulder was, to my amazement, the yellow dwarf hamster that was my spirit, Donsuke.

“In the middle of my mission, dechi.”

I stopped, turned around, at a loss for words.

Why? Why was my Donsuke there? And he talked? “Dechi”…??

But the man whose shoulder he was riding on didn’t seem to notice Donsuke.

I returned to the great hall again in order to chase after him.

“Ah, oi, Leader!”

“What is the matter, Makia?”

“Donsuke, Donsuke is…!”

I tried to explain it to my teammates with gestures, but the man with Donsuke on his shoulder was quickly moving inside, and I couldn’t lose sight of him. While thinking, Aaah jeez, I prioritized that and chased after them.

“Ah, he’s here!”

That man had the appearance of a middle-aged noble with long hair, and just now, he was cordially greeting Miss Airi, who was surrounded by many aristocratic supporters as the Savior.

“C-Come back to me now, Donsuke~~~. Chi chi chi~.” 

I called Donsuke from a little distance. It was a heavy blow that I didn’t have sunflower seeds or snacks with me.

Donsuke was looking over at me with a blank look on his face. Did he even remember that I was his master in the first place?

“Ah…”

That’s right. Professor Ulysses did tell me to think about why my spirit was there.

The timing of Donsuke’s disappearance. And, who that man was——

I widened my eyes slowly. I felt a sense of clarity, as though I have connected all the dots and lines.

My expression tightened, and I pushed my way through people to grab that man’s hand and tear off his glove.

“!?”

My actions were out of the ordinary and probably shocked the people around me.

Miss Airi, who was talking to the man, and Thor and Prince Gilbert, who were beside her, were astonished.

“How rude! What is this girl…”

The man whose glove had been ripped off was trying to shake my hand off.

...But, just as I thought.

“O’Drielle girl, what are you doing now?! This esteemed personnage is Margrave Greigs!”

“Your Highness, this is the man who kidnapped Lady Airi before!”

Because of my statement, all eyes were on Margrave Greigs.

At first, the margrave had a relaxed attitude, saying, “On what basis?”

“This fingertip has a distinctive burn on it. This is a burn from when you touched my skin on that deserted island. I am blessed by【Fire】, and I have a constitution for generating heat and fire.”

I glared at the man as I explained.

You touched my cheek and got burned that time, didn’t you, I told him with my malicious eyes.

“Well...you can suffer burns even in everyday life! This is a burn caused by accidentally touching a hot pot!”

“So why didn’t you heal this burn? This is a country filled with excellent magic potions.”

“That…”

“It’s not that you didn’t heal it, it’s that you can’t, yes? There are no potions that work on burns caused by touching my skin, and it’s difficult for them to heal on their own. Also, I would know the burns caused by touching me. I can smell the scent of my own magic coming from it.”

It’s something that can be proven if you investigate it in detail, but what do you want to do? I said.

Thor also stepped forward and added, “What Miss Makia is saying is true.”

“An accomplice! These people are trying to set me up! Don’t think a mere baron’s daughter can get away with this kind of insult to me with no consequences!” 

At that moment, Miss Airi put her hands together and exclaimed, “That’s it!”

“I didn’t recognize him because he was wearing a metal mask at the time, but he was definitely a man of about this height. He was the one who kidnapped me and threatened me so that I would give up my role as the Savior. He seemed to have been using magic to change his voice, but the way he talks didn’t change that much. Also, I have been thinking just now that he was shady and being way too assertive. Because there’s just ‘something’ about this kind of character.”

“!?”

The people around her were astir with her words, and soon everyone believed her.

This made it impossible for the margrave to make excuses for himself. 

“Tch…” 

He was sharply looking somewhere else.

This is bad, he might have his friends here…!

I followed his gaze, and the margrave used that chance to shake off my hand, and before I knew it, he was slashing at me with a knife he had in his hand. I narrowly avoided him, but as I stumbled and fell, the man now pulled a gun on me. At the same time, I heard the sound of the knife falling to the man’s feet.

What was that just now?

Bringing in weapons and magical tools was prohibited, and he did cross the large doors that detected those sorts of things, and yet, how did he bring out a knife and a gun one after the other…?

“Milady!”

“No one move. Unless you want to see a hole in this girl’s head.”

Thor faltered. The man held up his other hand, activated a familiar transference spell, and then a small gun appeared in that hand as well.

The nobles cried out and ran around trying to escape in confusion, but the margrave’s gun shot at the ceiling once.

“Let me ask you something. What is the Savior?”

The great hall fell completely silent.”

“The one who will save this world? What a barefaced lie…, they’re just invaders from another world, are they not? With that influence, they will instill the knowledge and ideologies of that other world to this land! If we don’t call them invaders, then what do we call them? It is deplorable that all the kings and citizens blindly believe in them and entrust the world to them!”

The margrave spoke grandly and boldly in this situation.

“What can this little girl from another world do!? Before believing the nonsense of a Savior, the king should listen to the voices of his people and vassals more! In the first place, we cannot let this little girl stop the sacred struggle for the dominance of this w—”

Just as he was seemingly about to finish his impassioned speech, a flurry of magic soldiers rushed into the great hall.

“Don’t move! I told you not to move! You don’t care what happens to this g—”

“Don’t mind her! Arrest that man!”

Prince Gilbert ordered. Even when Thor shouted, “Please stop, Your Highness!”, he didn’t listen, and the magic soldiers unleashed countless capturing spells. However, none of them reached the margrave, the capturing spells disappearing before him.

A strong protective wall spell? No, that wasn’t it. All the effects of the spells were being “transferred” somewhere else.

Prince Gilbert tried to get Miss Airi to safety.

“I’m staying here! I’m not going anywhere!”

Miss Airi rejected that. “But, Airi,” Prince Gilbert was having a hard time persuading her.

In the midst of all this, the margrave’s gaze was hurriedly directed here and there in the great hall.

“You have to get out of here! It’s not just him here, there are others!”

I shouted.

At almost the same time, countless gunshots were fired. Not by the margrave, but by his allies concealed in the great hall.

Thor quickly jumped out and created a wall of【Ice】around him while protecting Miss Airi. The wall protected them from all the bullets.

“As expected of Thor! I knew you’d protect me!”

Miss Airi was delighted, hugging Thor.

But...there was something strange.

The bullets stuck in the ice wall from all sides were tinged with a crackling green light, which connected to form a ring that became a magical cage that trapped Thor and the others inside.

An extremely high level binding spell with a complicated structure. It was probably magic from another country…

“Kyaaaa!”

I heard Miss Airi scream. The cracking lights were disturbing the magical power of those who were inside and tormenting them. Because of this, Thor could not use his magic well.

The binding spell spread out in a column shape, even catching hold of the giant chandelier directly above.

The enemy’s goal was…!

“Thor, above you! It’s going to fall!”

“!?”

This crackling light even disrupted the chandelier’s suspension magic formula, and now it was about to fall on the heads of Thor, Miss Airi, and incidentally, Prince Gilbert.

But, they couldn’t run away.

“Ahahahahaha! Be crushed, Savior!”

While the margrave was being gleeful at the sight in front of him, I took the opportunity to jump forward and pick up the knife that had fallen at his feet.

“You brat!”

The panicked margrave fired several shots. One of the bullets pierced my right foot, and I lost my balance and fell down.

“Ow…”

It hurt. But at this rate, Thor and the others will be crushed by the chandelier…

What should I do. I couldn’t move my foot. I couldn’t do anything with this tiny knife. I didn’t have my ring either.

I don’t know any spells for finding a way out of this situation…

“Maki rie lucia...”

However, I knew a certain incantation.

Someone lurking in the bottom of my heart put their finger to their mouth and whispered to me.

Chant it now.

Not knowing what I was doing, I seized my long hair and cut it off with the knife. And then——

“Maki rie luci ah——Crimson reason, doll of blood, turn, turn, red spinning wheel.”

Somewhere, I heard a sound like a lock opening somewhere.

A strong wind blew with me at the center. My hair, which I had cut off, danced and became thin, glowing red threads, connecting the floor, pillars, and ceilings in countless crosses.

Turn, turn——

Even the chandelier, which had been right above the Savior, was bound by the red threads in an instant and hung up to the ceiling. 

Several scattered glass flowers rained down on Thor, Miss Airi, and Prince Gilbert. Thor covered Miss Airi, who was covered in blood, protecting her.

Turn, turn, turn——

“You little...Are you getting in my way again!?”

The margrave readied his gun once more and shot it at my back.

However, the red threads that automatically converged protected me, twined around the bullet and repelled it, as though it was a living thing spewing it out of its mouth.

“Gyah!”

The rebounded bullet hit the margrave right in his shoulder. I slowly turned around.

“That bullet...search for anyone with them, and capture——every last one of them.”

For some reason, I knew how to handle these threads.

The blood flowing from my feet formed a magic circle that resembled a spinning wheel.

Round and round, round and round. Turn, red spinning wheel of fate——

“Ah...aaah…”

The red threads that were spun out instantly ran rampant in the great hall, and before I knew it, there were sculptures of sinners bound in the red threads all over the hall.

All of their evil intentions were captured by the red threads. No matter how much they struggled, the threads would not let them escape.

Of course the margrave, who was the ringleader, had his freedom snatched away by the threads as well, and he was suspended in the air.

“What...is this…?”

Brilliant and red. Sinister but beautiful. No one could even blink, staring closely at the scene before them.

The red threads automatically slithered around my leg, wrapping around my wound.

I stood up, and while dragging one foot slightly, I silently walked towards the margrave.

And then, I slowly reached out my hand to him, while scooping up crimson flames that were glittering so brightly that it was impossible in the natural world with both my hands.

“Stop, stop stop stop! Stay away…, hot, it’s hot!! You damned witch!”

The margrave was shouting, his face covered in sweat and fear.

I didn’t understand. Was I about to burn this man to death just now…?

“Don’t do it! Milady!”

Thor shouted. His voice switched off something within me.

At almost the same time, the magic circle right under me disappeared, and the flames I was holding up in my hands also extinguished.

My body was hot. While my consciousness was fuzzy, I stared at my hands, which were trembling slightly.

What was that magic just now…

The noisy footsteps of the magic soldiers. I could hear Prince Gilbert’s voice in the distance, shouting for them to bring down the captured enemies and take them to prison.

“...The command magic of the ‘Scarlet Witch.’”

Somewhere, someone muttered that.

When I lifted my head, I saw the King of Ruschia and Professor Ulysses, who had been protecting him, looking down at me from the second floor.

Even I knew. This must be the magic left behind by that witch.

“Milady, milady!”

I jumped. Before I knew it, Thor was shaking me.

“Are you okay!?”

Thor, covered in blood, had a worried look on his face.

The glass ornaments that had spilled from the chandelier had injured Thor. He had been protecting Miss Airi all this time.

The tension left my body all at once, and tears trickled down my face as I looked at Thor.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Thor.”

“...What?”

“I lied about not needing you. I came all this way just to see you. I would never not need you. When you were gone, I…”

I was terrified. Part of it was because I didn’t know what was going on, but there were many emotions and conflicts swirling within me.

“I couldn’t protect anything...I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Thor, aaaaah~~”

Even with all that magic, Thor ended up getting hurt a lot.

“I’m okay, I’m okay, milady. Please don’t worry about me. They’re only shallow wounds. Your wound is more serious, milady. Your foot was shot, and there’s blood...and your hair…”

“Thor, Thor! Uwaaaa~~”

“...Milady. Why…”

With his bloodied hands, Thor embraced me as I wailed without caring about the people around us.

“Please don’t cry, milady. You’re still the same crybaby as ever. Whenever you cry, my chest always, always, gets painfully tight…”

For the first time in a long, long time, I cried like a newborn baby.

I didn’t know why I was crying so hard. Something that had swollen now burst open, and I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

I would never not need you. The truth was, I wanted you to be by my side always.

I longed for you very much.

I think I cried a lot of hot tears as I continued to cry while clinging to Thor, as though I was venting my irrepressible emotions.

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