I Picked Up a Witch from a Novel

Episode 2-b. For Freedom and Adventure.

Days in the duchy just seem to flow by.

Whenever I had time, I wandered around searching for Ain’s traces and also used magic to sift through the illusions of the past.

I preferred to roam the city’s streets during the early hours of the morning or late at night rather than when many people were around in the afternoon.

Well, I wasn’t an ordinary person who could just wander freely.

To avoid being discovered, I had to move very cautiously.

Thus, I always had Eileen scout ahead to check if there was anyone strong enough to recognize my identity.

It became our daily routine to peek out cautiously, give a discreet thumbs-up behind my back, and only then move forward.

In a way, I could find traces of him much more easily than I expected.

Naturally, most of the scenes I encountered weren’t exactly cheerful.

His struggles were engraved everywhere, forming the main theme of the places I explored.

I could see the clumsy figure of Ain, who first received a request and awkwardly teamed up with strangers.

I saw Ain, nervously smiling with a tense expression, approaching someone who appeared to be the leader.

I witnessed Ain bowing his head in apology to a woman who seemed to be scolding him for some mistake.

There was Ain, who went to a street vendor to save money and had a simple, cheap meal while walking.

There was Ain, who was laughed at by burly adventurers, and Ain, who was rejected from a party for not being particularly helpful.

And yet.

I also saw Ain stopping by a tavern to enjoy a refreshing beer, brushing off his troubles, and getting back to his feet.

There was Ain, who, despite being rejected, kept his head down and completed requests with others.

At some point, the mockery and bullying diminished, and Ain began to walk with a smile.

His figure, no longer ashamed of the label of the incapable Ain, continued to push forward with effort.

He saved money for food, yet had the heart to buy warm meals for the children abandoned in alleys.

He was definitely changing.

The illusion created by magic was slowly transforming his image and surroundings into something better with the passage of time.

At one moment, two twin children appeared beside him; at another moment, a skinny man in a white robe stood next to him.

I could see his smile.

The awkwardness that had been uncomfortable and stiff began to fade, and a natural smile started to grace his lips.

And.

I stored all of these moments deep in my heart so that I would never forget them.

The figures of him that I did not know were incredibly precious, for if they were erased more faintly than this, they would become scenes I could no longer see.

I, too, was gazing at him with a smile.

Of course.

“It’s romantic…! Is this… the blue meadow and emerald beach I yearned for…?”

“Shut up, Eileen.”

“Yes, Romantic Wizard Asha.”

“….”

Those were things we always viewed together, as Eileen gazed at me with sparkling eyes.

It was a bit greedy on my part.

I thought I wanted to retrace Ain’s footsteps.

Isn’t it okay to enjoy at least a little of what he experienced, what he ate and drank?

In the illusions of the past, Ain was always receiving adventurer requests, joining parties, and running around diligently, and after a day’s work, he would buy a beer at the tavern, drink it in one gulp, then head to a shabby lodging to sleep.

So.

Yes.

I also wanted to experience that at least once before moving on.

For just one day, I wanted to complete an adventurer request like Ain, and then visit the tavern late at night and sit in the same spot where he always sat, enjoying a beer to end the day.

“Is that okay?”

“I don’t think it would be a problem.”

“Well, I don’t think there would be any issues… although, if there were, it might be the flies that get stuck on Asha’s appearance….”

“That’s not my concern, so it’s fine.”

“In that case! Actually, I’ve wanted to try being an adventurer! Though I’m not one myself…”

Eileen nodded with a cute smile and seemed to bounce with excitement.

So we decided to stop by the Adventurers’ Guild first to pick up a suitable low-level quest.

As always, Eileen peeked in first, scouting before giving me a thumbs-up, and we entered.

“Oh my, a pretty wizard and a young noble lady?”

“Hello. We’d like to try a simple quest.”

The receptionist, who had handled my adventurer registration last time, welcomed us.

“Aha~ If that’s the case, could you take a look at the board over there? That’s where requests and party recruitments for novice adventurers are posted.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, wizards are rare and popular, so you should be able to choose a good request~”

She pointed to a wooden bulletin board in the corner, and I nodded before heading towards the throng of inexperienced adventurers clustered around it.

It was still morning, so there were quite a few people in the guild.

Many adventurers were gathered in front of the bulletin board or elsewhere, so I tightened my robe and approached the board.

There were many kinds of requests.

Though they were quite trivial, given that they were for novice adventurers, the variety was substantial and tightly packed.

Cleaning the sewers in the city, searching for lost cats, hunting and collecting blood from Imps, or dealing with wild beasts that were ruining farms, and Cobolds that dug near the city and nested, amongst others.

All sorts of miscellaneous requests were posted, and the novice adventurers were diligently tearing off the request papers, raising them high and shouting.

“I’m looking for adventurers to join me in hunting Cobolds…!”

“Is there anyone who thinks combat is still scary!! I’m looking for partners to clean the sewers and take a nice warm bath!!”

“Is there anyone who can help me with collecting Imp blood…?”

Honestly speaking, all these requests seemed like things I could handle alone in a day, but the clumsy novice adventurers were earnestly looking for companions.

And the one excited by that scene was not me, but Eileen.

“Asha, what do you want to try? Personally, I don’t want to go for Imps. Cleaning the sewers sounds troublesome if it gets on my clothes…”

“Then let’s go for Imps.”

“Ahhhh…!”

She kept murmuring her preferences while watching the adventurers waving their request papers.

“I’m just kidding. Among those, defeating Cobolds seems the most reasonable.”

“Phew… I’ve never seen a Cobold before! Cobolds! I like Cobolds!”

Seeing her looking up at me with those sparkling eyes made me want to tease her for no reason.

“I suddenly changed my mind.”

“Shall I just keep my mouth shut?”

“That’s correct, Eileen. Keep quiet and just follow me.”

After teasing her several times, I allowed myself to smile and decided to select the Cobold hunting request that Eileen was eagerly anticipating.

To be honest, I didn’t know much about Cobolds since I had never seen one.

“I would like to take the request to hunt Cobolds.”

“Oh, okay! Are you two going to join? That means we only need one more person…!”

“No, it’s just me. This person isn’t an adventurer yet.”

Eileen tugged at my clothing in anticipation of the single word “Cobold.”

“Ah, what a shame. Then I’ll quickly find two more people! But do you have any specialties…?”

“Magic.”

“Wow, magic…! Then it should be easy to find the remaining members! Two people to join us in hunting Cobolds…! We have a wizard in our party!”

The adventurer, who looked a bit pitiful with shabby leather armor, a wooden shield, and a chipped sword, only nodded in response.

And as she said, two temporary companions soon gathered, and Eileen and I followed the three other adventurers as we left the guild.

It was a bit pitiful to watch the leader of our party trying hard to haggle for a carriage that could fit five people, but…

“Romance…! Adventurer’s requests! Romance!! There’s romance, right, Asha? Adventurer requests are romantic!”

“Ah, yes.”

Soon, Eileen’s excitement was more intense than anyone else’s, causing me to nod in agreement.

To be honest.

I didn’t quite understand why Eileen, who wasn’t even an adventurer, was so excited.

She wouldn’t know my thoughts, so even as our party leader successfully haggled the carriage fare down and we all climbed aboard to set off, she kept beaming brightly.

“Romance~ Adventurer~ request~”

“Haha, your party member seems quite energetic….”

“…. ”

It’s embarrassing.

I feel very embarrassed to be part of her party.

So.

Eileen.

Please, don’t try to do anything.

Just keep quiet and stay by my side.

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