Chapter 47 – 47. Friends

Lightning strikes down.

Intense flashes of light that are invisible to the naked eye illuminate the world. Her vision brightened in an instant, and Beatrice unconsciously stretched out her hand towards the flash.

“Uh, uh…….”

Just now, I felt as if I could hear him…….
Perhaps it is an illusion. She can’t hear human speech.
And vice versa. The only thing she could talk to was the doll.

‘What? That means…….’

The one that is being struck by lightning right now is the doll I made?
Just as Beatrice thought that and tilted her head, the lightning stopped. Beatrice thought that nothing would remain in it after a very long experience.

Even if it was a Holy Knight, it was a blow that could never be unharmed. Paladins who cut magic may be able to cut the puppets she made, but they can’t cut the blows made by puppets…….

“Ah, follow me.”

However, in the dust, the man appeared casually. And Beatrice realized that he was not mistaken in the fact that his words sounded very good to her.

So, after retrieving the fluttering archangel in the sky, he asked the man in front of him.

“Is this a doll?”
“What?”
“You, you-you-doll, are you a doll?”

What are you talking about——John looked at the young witch intently, as if he didn’t know why. As soon as I saw it, I immediately threw a thunderbolt, so it seemed like an enemy, but listening to what I was saying now, I didn’t feel hostility.

Somehow- like some of the witches and paladins he had met before, he wondered if he was the type that could kill people without any emotion, but Johann caught sight of Beatrice’s hands shaking.

That kind of people attack humans like that and don’t tremble. Because the only things that can kill people without emotional agitation are those who don’t see people as the same person.

“I am John. What is your name?”

“Be, Beatrice…… Yohan, are you really a doll?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but it’s a doll…… I am human.”

“I, really? I can see… ?”

Johan nodded and approached the witch, who was not sure what she was looking for. It would be foolish to approach a witch who might have some kind of magic, but John believed in his own magic.

I trusted my magic and intuition. I thought that this child would not be so dangerous.

The moment they got closer, the young witch grabbed Whiik Yohan’s grip. While looking at something, the girl started to cry while touching John’s arm.

“It’s warm…… It was really…….”

The little girl, who had been fiddling with her hands while wringing out tears, came closer little by little, and before she knew it, she almost hugged John in his arms and touched his body.

If it had been a grown woman, I would have pushed her away because I couldn’t touch a woman other than Master – but I couldn’t push away a little girl who was crying.

In the end, John hugged the girl tightly without saying anything. Beatrice finally burst into tears as the warmth soaked her whole body.

“Ahhhhh—!! Whoops-! Heheup! Whoa!”

* * *

Glancing at the girl who was crying while blowing her nose, Yohan took a handkerchief out of his arms.

The young witch pressed her face to John and whined as if to blow his nose, and John put a handkerchief to the witch’s nose.

Fuhaeeng—! After blowing her nose, the witch looked at John as if she had calmed down and said,

“John… Who is John?”

“Who are you?”

“Me, someone I can talk to…… I saw it for the first time in my life Neither mom nor dad, nor the paladins nor witches could talk to me…….”

Hearing those words, John realized that the curse she had was a curse of that kind. A kind of curse that cannot be connected to people.

A curse that is similar to Master’s, and thus makes you feel a little kinship.

Thanks to this, John could not leave the witch in front of him alone. In a way, it was a more serious category than Master’s.

Master could communicate with other people, and he would not be hated if he covered his face or skin.

“Beatrice.”
“Yes.”
“What kind of magic do you have?”
“Oh, do you want to know?”
“Yes. I’m curious.”
“…… Joe, I have a condition.”

Saying that, Beatrice secretly looked up at John.

“Oh, hug me.”
“Do you want a hug?”
“Yes…”

Hearing what a little girl would tell, or more precisely, what a girl who misses warmth would tell— John smiled bitterly.

Children deserve to be loved at no cost. Since it was taken away, how feasting must it be?

Carefully opening her arms, Beatrice shook her head as if that wasn’t the case and quietly sat down between Johan’s legs.

“Eh, eight-!”

Beatrice, who came into John’s arms, looked up at John as if worried that he might have caused a nuisance.

When I hugged her lightly as if she was worried about that, Beatrice rubbed her cheek against John’s forearm and began to feel its warmth.

“My, my magic…… It is the magic that turns dolls into people.”

“A doll?”

“Ugh- So when you make dolls, you have to make them with lots of love. The more love you put into it, the stronger it becomes…….”

“Put love into it.”

“I’ll give it to John…… Ah, nothing!”

Kyaaah- Looking at Beatrice who covered his face while screaming lightly, Johann remembered his cousin he had seen when he was young.

When they were young, they acted cute like this and were really cute. I had never seen him look like that when he got older.

Johann, who was so fond of Beatrice, realized that there was one thing on his mind.

‘…… You said it was made with love?’

She said it was her ability to turn dolls into humans. And John turned hundreds of elves back into puppets today.

No matter how much she was a witch, nothing was possible. Even witches had to learn to use something other than magic.

“There… Beatrice?”
“Yes?”
“All the dolls here…… Did you make it?”
“—Yes! I’ve made!”

Beatrice smiled broadly and pointed at the elven dolls lying everywhere. I made a lot of this myself, so it’s not something that can be done in a day or two.

So…… This young-looking witch must mean that she may be older than she thought.

“Beatrice.”
“Why? Yohan, can you make one too?”
“…… How old are you?”
“Age? I forgot about that……”

Hearing those words, Yohan realized a strange uneasiness. He said he might have been treating a witch several times his age as a child.

Beatrice, as if aware of John’s feelings, continued to rub her face against John’s arms like a playful cat.

* * *

Time passed, and I headed for Beatrice’s house.
As she said, her house was littered with dolls.
From the moment she entered the house, Beatrice lightly greeted her dolls.

“Hi Charles! Lumine! Kleenex! Voltria!”
Hello, master!

For a moment, I thought I must have heard it wrong. But I didn’t hear it wrong. The dolls were talking.

They said magic to turn dolls into people, but I never thought they were real people…….

As I went inside with that thought in mind, I realized something was strange.

“Hello hello! Kids, I made a friend!”

Hey, I envy you! Master!
Not a friend, not a lover!?

“Ehehe, that, it’s not like that!”

The voices of the puppets are all the same.
The places where the voices come out are all the same.
As if someone was performing ventriloquist, all the sounds flowed from Beatrice’s mouth.

‘…… Beatrice.’

It was only then that I realized that the dolls were not making the noise, but Beatrice herself was making the noise with her own mouth.

This poor girl was cursed to make friends. On that subject, the time spent interacting with dolls must have increased with my magic.

Soon after, the girl must have started treating her doll like a human being. And so, to the point where it is impossible to distinguish between humans and dolls…….

“Ah, John! Come on!”

Beatrice led me to my room. There were a lot of cute dolls in the hallway, but there were more dolls in her room than all the dolls in the hallway.

From dolls that look handmade and clunky, to neat dolls that show the craftsmanship of an expert.

I had no idea how much time it would take to make all of this.

“Hehe, John, Johaan….”

After laying me on the bed, Beatrice cut my arm and lay down next to me. She had a cute appearance that didn’t ruin her face even when she lay down, but there was someone who came to mind every time I saw her.

“Beatrice.”
“Yes why?”
“I will stop now.”
“…… Are you going? Where?”
“I have to go home. You can’t stay here forever.”

Hearing those words, Beatrice looked at me with her eyes shining. Looking at it for a long time without saying anything, it made me goosebumps even more.

When I carefully separated her head and tried to stand up, Beatrice grabbed my sleeve and spoke.

“No.”
“Can’t you?”
“…… Will John abandon me too?”

Seeing Beatrice looking up at me in tears and sorrow, I shook my head.

“I will come again. Don’t worry. Are we friends now?”

I remembered what she had said to my doll earlier and told it.

Then Beatrice shook his head and pulled me tight.

“…… Are you throwing it away?”
Throw it away! Master!
Hold on, hold on!

The dolls around her begin to giggle as if they agree with her words her. Just when the sight gave me goosebumps—Beatrice opened her mouth lightly.

“Now this is John’s house.”

I can’t go anywhere.

Beatrice said so and she used her own magic her.
The dolls in the room attacked Yohan.