The Witch and the Doll Swear

——The process of the journey is very disturbing-

——I saw a beautiful sunrise on the airship+

——Scenery never seen+

- Dirty city -

——But the aristocratic district is very beautiful+

——Meet the Night Fairy+

——Reunited with Liliana and Alice+

——Afternoon tea with the noble ladies was very pleasant+

——Caught up in trouble—

- Saw the terrible undead -

——Miss Ente's elder brother always brought Miss Ente to thank you+

Swipe, swipe, swipe...

Tingna stopped writing something in her little notebook, she put down the quill, and looked at the items she listed one by one in a daze.

"……Ah."

It feels extraordinarily funny.

According to the "Travel Cat" magazine, as long as there are more plus signs than minus signs in the "travel log", no matter how you feel at the end, it can be regarded as a good trip.

In that article, it was explained in a serious manner: this is because people's sensibility to the situation before different times will change with time, so that it is impossible to evaluate a trip objectively. The most obvious example is because A trip is judged by the quality of a certain event that happens at the end of the trip.

— This is obviously unfair.

"Cheat your undead."

tear up.

The girl muttered, tore off the page from her notebook, crumpled it up and threw it into a trash can surrounded by a row of bushes.

—is it unfair?

——There is nothing fair about subjective feelings.

Yes, human subjective emotions are easily affected, especially, the first time feelings are always magnified and exaggerated.

Whether it's the first love, the first loss, the first gain, or the first loss.

Of course, it also includes the first trip, just like Tina now.

No matter whether it is pleasant or memorable, this trip to Maixing City to reunite with Liliana and Alice will remain in the most conspicuous corner of the bookcase in Tingna's memory.

unless……

Stow your notebook in the space storage ring. It was bought by Tingna with the money she was given when she was awarded the honorary surname. The black pearl inlaid on the platinum ring, although not as deep as the corner of the witch's pupil as deep as the night sky, was enough for her to listen to the waves and entrust a little missing.

It's just that now, it no longer needs it to play this role.

Because the person I miss is close at hand.

"...Lily."

Even if the little doll didn't blink with that little fox-like smile, the witch could still feel that the girl was holding her chin and staring at her with those sea-blue eyes.

Even so, Liliana, whose eyes were burning hot white due to the frequent use of magic, was not moved at all. She dipped a small brush in light blue ink and drew on Alice's body.

"...Well, Miss Liliana, what are you doing..." From 8 o'clock when Victory woke up to the clock slowly pointing to the 9 on the dial, I couldn't help breaking the silence in the silence, and it was still the same Tina as the questioner.

Just like in that small coastal town.

"...For Alice, prepare for a long journey."

"Prepare?"

Now that space storage props are widely used, travel preparations have also become simple and easy. It is rare to do such meticulous preparations before travel.

Just like Tingna, she only needs to tidy up a change of clothes and some scattered daily necessities, and throw them into the space storage ring, and she can embark on a journey with ease.

With such experience, the girl looked at the witch and the doll with confusion.

"Because Alice is a doll, Miss Tina, do you know a famous saying among doll collectors? [If you love a doll, don't let anyone know you own it]."

The fairy doll with pointed ears, white skin and blond hair was floating, explaining to the curious girl.

"This sentence means that after you have a doll you really like, put it in the best airtight box, in an environment with constant temperature and humidity, and then, most importantly— — never take her out for viewing."

The witch's brush strokes bypassed the raised arm of the doll, and slid across the armpit. The soft pen tip from Dongguo touched the ticklish place, making Alice giggle.

"Maybe Ms. Tingna will think that if the doll is not displayed, it is meaningless, but even for a doll like Alice, sunshine, wind, water, dust and sand are things that humans are accustomed to. Things are all poison that can harm the body."

No matter how human-like a doll is, it is just a doll.

The best way to protect a human figure is not to put it on display, just as the best way to protect a piece of clothing is to lock it forever in the appropriate wardrobe.

It's ironic, but that's it.

"For example, Alice's skin is made of [Arcane Rubber]. Miss Tina thinks that Alice is soft and warm, and this is the credit."

It is a material commonly used by high-level dolls. After magic and alchemy treatment, the color and softness can be easily adjusted. With a little treatment, it can completely achieve the same temperature and touch as human skin.

But the material's archenemy is sunlight.

——Alice squeezed her cheek slightly, and said so.

Under the sun, this kind of rubber will face irreversible deterioration, just like the delicate skin of a princess in a fairy tale, even if it is not so vicious, it will gradually darken, darken, lose its elasticity and become chapped.

"Besides, the eyes are too."

Although Alice has eyelashes, there is no barrier for humans to prevent foreign objects from entering the body, and the eyelids are not moist and have the function of cleaning the surface of the eyeball. In a relatively dry place, it only needs to be blown by the wind for an hour, and it is made of gemstones. Eyes that are shiny and watery will become gray, and dust will accumulate on the eyeballs and face.

"As for the hair, let alone."

The iridescent magic light slowly lit up, and the lines on Miss Doll's body shone in the magic circle before disappearing.

Then, Liliana picked up another slender brush, and drew a new magic circle on Alice's face with those emerald-like pupils.

"Hair... ah..."

Alice's smooth long hair is made of silk and monster hair. Although it won't be troubled by oil and dandruff, it will easily become dirty if it is not cleaned frequently.

"[Cleansing] can keep Alice's body clean, but it is constant on Alice, and the magic that is activated almost all the time will also cause magic and elements to erode Alice's body. The same is true for clothes, cleaning clothes during travel It will be a little troublesome, so Alice will change into a magic dress, and then in order to reduce the erosion of magic power, this will also be adjusted..."

The pointy ears drooped down, and Alice hugged Liliana's arm, rubbing it lightly.

"... Before and after each trip, the one who spends the most time is Alice."

Before departure, in order to ensure that the body needs care during the journey, a lot of magic is used to strengthen the body.

Even if everything is done and prepared, as Alice moves and fights, the parts that function as human bones will wear out.

Although it is wear and tear that can be recovered by spending a little time resting as a human being, as a doll, Alice cannot recover, and even replacing parts is more efficient than repairing.

Even so, it was a big project that took time and energy.

as now.

"...It's okay. That's it."

Sitting on the bed, Miss Witch put down the brush, and the lines of ink turned into bright shimmers on the doll's blond hair. After finishing these, Liliana hugged Alice in her arms with a blank expression, and then, A small hairpin was pinned into her shiny blond hair.

Immediately afterwards, a pure white dress wrapped the small body of the doll.

"...In this way, within two months, there is no need to worry about the deterioration of parts."

"Is this the magic dress..."

Tina saw it for the first time.

Magical clothes are woven with magic as thread and cloth, and woven with the mystery of alchemy.

It is said that it is as light as a ray of breeze when worn on the body, but it can bring the warmth of a fireplace in the middle of snowy winter. Even if it is dirty or torn, you only need to disperse the clothes and re-gather the magic power to make it look brand new.

In addition to the expensive cost, in every sense, this is indeed the most suitable clothing for travelers.

"But...wait a minute, Miss Liliana is going to...Baker, right?"

Ting Na felt that Miss Witch's current preparations were somewhat inconsistent.

— two months?

She turned back to the desk and picked up the map that was lying on it.

This tourist map, which marked trains, airships, and surrounding towns, was obtained from Feloya. Tina pointed her finger at a city in the west.

"Is this the city?"

The commercial city of Bike on the border of the grassland is the next destination of the Witch and the Doll.

According to the descriptions of Fei Luoya and Dan, it is at the other end of this vast Ellon grassland, a city completely different from Maixing City, which is thriving under the governance of the Church of the Holy Church, one of the most prosperous commercial city-states in this ordinary kingdom one.

"……Um."

Liliana nodded, and the small magic circle on her fingers floated around Alice, as if she was finely adjusting something.

……how to say? The sense of incongruity is getting heavier.

Considering that the Ellon Grassland is a piece of land that has not yet been developed by humans, as the territory of the human kingdom, the deepest city-state is just like Maixing City, scattered sporadically on the border of the grassland, connected by a train line.

"As for Mai Xingcheng's words...here..."

Tingna held up the map and followed the dwarf-built railway with her fingers to find the city closest to Maixing City with a train station.

That is also the city that Ting Na arrived from Yansha City by airship. It is a one-day carriage ride from Maixing City, and then...

"Well, that... If you go to that city, it takes 8 days by train. If you take the airship directly across the grassland, it only takes 2 days? Although it is not convenient to change clothes on the airship."

Tingna used her fingers to directly draw a straight line across the grassland between that city and Bike City.

"But if it only takes two days to arrive at Baker, why do Miss Liliana and Alice have to prepare for a two-month trip..."

Whether you want to have a leisurely bird's-eye view of the grassland, or you have something urgent to rush to Bike City, taking an airship is the most suitable choice... right?

"Hey...Miss Tina, that's not called traveling."

Staring at the map held up by the girl, Alice blinked, and then, as if realizing something, she shook her pointed ears towards Tina.

"Probably, Ms. Tingna thinks that after confirming the destination, taking transportation to get there, visiting, and leaving souvenirs—this is considered a trip."

"Eh?"

The girl thought nervously.

--Is not it?

Think about where you want to go, plan your itinerary, arrive, play... Isn't that what travel is like in the general sense?

Then he asked the two of them silently.

But both the little puppet and the silent witch shook their heads calmly.

"...the place of departure is the starting point."

Liliana raised the index finger of her left hand.

"And the destination is the end point. For Lily and Alice, the precise timetable and the planned journey are just a simple [schedule]. Miss Tina, since we are going to travel together from now on If so, it's better to get used to it as soon as possible, for Alice and Lily, the so-called travel is—"

And Alice raised her right hand, and the doll with the appearance of a fairy pointed at the gap between her and Liliana's fingers with its free fingers.

"...Occasionally galloping horses, sometimes soaring into the sky with the mystery of magic. Sometimes riding steel equipment, sometimes stopping, looking up at the moonlight and stars, sometimes setting off, bathing in showers and snow winds, until arriving."

In the soft chant of the witch.

The prayer, which was like an oath, but also like a sacred song, made the girl's expression bitter.

"...everything you experience in the places you go between the starting point and the end point, and the scenery you see, are the only [travel]. This is what I learned from my mentor, a great fairy educator. She She is also a great traveler, and the continental map drawn by her is the most accurate and detailed drawing since the age of mythology, and it was not gradually abandoned due to changes in terrain until an era later."

"That is to say..."

Ah... yes...

Tina covered her face with a snap.

Although she didn't know who the great educator and traveler was, she made another serious mistake.

The reason for "again" is because she has committed it before, because in her eighteen years of life, she has never met anyone who is not ordinary, so this kind of inertial thinking directly leads to

——She subconsciously regarded them as ordinary people again!

"...Well, we will pass through the Elrond Grassland, head westward without a predetermined route, and then arrive at Bike City before the first ten days of the Star Moon. The way, of course."

--walk.

"..."

The girl felt her eyes go dark.

——Neither Liliana nor Alice are ordinary people.

Ah, she knows, she knows very, very deeply.

How can ordinary people lightly wipe out half of the nobles in the city, and make other nobles bow their heads and bow their heads?

How could an ordinary person be able to crush the terrifying monster born from the dragon's carcass in the crater, dragging a burden that needed to protect her safety at all times?

Not to mention, it will stop time, like a galaxy tilting, and completely blast the lava dragon beast, like a ballet dancer.

Tingna felt that she already knew how outrageous the two lovely girls in front of her were.

But now she realized that she was still too naive.

Liliana's face was as expressionless as ever, while Alice looked at herself with a light smile, that smile was exactly the same as the arc of the corner of the mouth of the goblin in the hotel when she was trying to turn away her mother's trumpet class.

Now, there are still more than ten days until the next month, the moon of light snow in late autumn, but what Liliana said is that they will arrive in Bike City in the first ten days of the moon of star frost in the next month—they really want to use their hands The feet have traversed this uninhabited area for more than a month, and I don't know how big the prairie is!

"Well, don't worry, Miss Tingna, there are at least ten more days until the Moon of Maple Fruit, and this year's Moon of Light Snow has a full 40 days. If you do the math, there are 13 hours in a day, and one Hours and 130 minutes, counting the time for sleeping, even if you only walk for 3 or 4 hours a day, it is more than enough to pass through this grassland."

"No matter how you think about it, it's impossible."

Is this common for witches? !

"Hey, Miss Liliana, Alice, I think it is really necessary for me to ask you to understand what humans can and cannot do."

As the only girl present with common sense of human beings, Tingna felt that she had to remind them.

"...I'm not human."

"Neither is Alice."

"but!"

No, Tina is going to despair.

She was holding her head in a frenzy. Why couldn't the smart Miss Liliana realize such an easy-to-understand thing? Is it just like she hasn't seen any extraordinary people in eighteen years, so she often treats Liliana and Alice as ordinary people, does the witch also have such a mindset?

"I'm just an ordinary human..."

The girl was extremely powerless, and said this fact.

"Eh--"

"……ah."

"..."

Why do you act like you just discovered it now!

………………………………………………………………………………

In any case, I am just an ordinary human being, a part of the vast majority of ordinary people on this continent where heroes and brave men are born.

In her 18 years of life, the girl has been living a peaceful life with such an identity, and she is proud of it.

But from the early morning of this day, she really wanted to have some extraordinary abilities for herself.

For example, extraordinary speech skills, convincing charisma and so on.

It doesn't need to be too abnormal, you just need to be able to persuade yourself to the witch lady who is going through the check-out procedure at the counter and paying the accommodation fee.

However, her anomaly is at best only to the extent that a shadow can be lifted up, and Liliana Einstein is by far the biggest anomaly a girl has ever encountered. What is needed to overwhelm an anomaly is a bigger one. There is a limit to what an ordinary person, an ordinary self, and ordinary human beings can do.

So in the end, Tina failed to persuade Liliana to change her travel route.

What's more, during the last breakfast in this hotel, Fei Luoya and Dan even slapped the girl hard.

—Crossing the grasslands of Elrond? Well, if you ride a horse, from morning to dusk, it takes about three weeks, less than forty days to cross.

——Although there are no towns, there are many nomads who are regarded as barbarians living in the grasslands, and most of them are still very friendly to travelers.

It seems that a year ago, the mother and daughter of the night elves crossed the grassland of unknown size—now Tingna knew—and came to Maixing City.

And their introduction to several nomadic tribes became the last straw that crushed common sense.

——Enter the grassland from a small town half a day away from Maixing City, head west, arrive at Baike, and today, head towards that small town.

No matter how pitifully Tina looked at Liliana in the end, Miss Witch still decided on the route of the journey.

In the farewell sound of Feiloa and Dan, "May your journey be accompanied by night and moon", Tina, Liliana and Alice left from the [Maple Leaf Trumpet], and the maple trees in the courtyard swayed, as if It is the blessing that the elves of those trees do not give up.

"...Miss Tina, can you ride a horse?"

Compared with other seasons, the autumn sunshine really seems to have some magical power, or, because the evil necromancer was caught yesterday, the air on the street feels more lively.

On the way to the gate of Maixing City, Liliana rarely asked Tingna a question. .

"No, not at all."

Well, it seems that Liliana and Alice finally realized that they are different from them, just a weak, ordinary human girl, so they made some concessions on the way of travel.

It's just that this concession completely made Ting Na unhappy...

——Why does Miss Liliana think that she, who grew up by the sea and saw dogs and cats the most livestock, would master such an elegant sport as riding a horse?

The protective gear for learning equestrianism is very expensive, so she never had the slightest desire to choose this course in the academy.

"..."

Is that so - Miss Witch nodded slightly as she said so, and continued walking without saying a word.

During the process of leaving the city, they did not encounter any problems. The city guards guarding the city gate almost respectfully sent them outside the city gate, and even gave them many gifts.

"The young master of the Intel family entrusted me to give it to you, and the old gentleman of the Damas family specifically told me to deliver it to you personally, and this..."

They are all spices, silk, luxury goods such as fine wine, and many alchemy materials.

While looking at these things that can make ordinary journeys comfortable and enjoyable, "Ah, we don't need these." Tingna cried silently in her heart.

Regarding these, Liliana, who was holding the little doll, did not express any opinion, but just stretched out her hand, causing several inscriptions to be ignited on the gold ring without any complicated decorations, and took them all in.

"...Convey to them for me that I am very grateful for their gifts."

After speaking, he casually put a small bag of coins into the hands of the leader of the City Guard Army, and left the city with Tingna.

This vignette changed nothing. Seeing the tumbling golden wheat waves outside the city and the seemingly endless vast grassland at the end of the field, Tina felt cramps from the tip of her toes to the root of her thigh.

"Well, Miss Liliana, let's buy two horses. Although I don't know how to ride, you can tie me to the horse and let the horse take me away..."

"Miss Tina, horses are not so easy to ride. There are countless people who die and are seriously injured every year because of learning how to ride. If Miss Tina wants to learn from the beginning, she just needs to learn how to make peace with horses. Getting along is enough, and..."

Leaving the mainland in front of the city gate, Alice, who no longer had to pretend to be a doll, looked at the girl in the arms of the witch, and shook her head gently.

"And Miss Tina, are you going to go riding in a suit?"

"..."

Ting Na lowered her head silently, looked at the clothes she was wearing, and then slapped her forehead hard.

--Suit.

Thinking about it carefully, I haven't worn clothes other than suits and pajamas for nearly half a year. Although there are other casual clothes and trousers in the space storage ring as a change of clothes, but.

Every morning when I get up, I habitually put on my suit after taking a shower.

"...After entering the grassland, you can no longer wear such clothes."

"yes……"

Tina drooped her head.

Even with the most lenient standards, suits are definitely not suitable for sports, but she has two sets, and she is lucky enough not to wear high heels habitually.

Wearing a suit and riding a horse, even a witch who has no common sense like a witch, can feel something is wrong...

"So, do we have to walk until we get to that small town?"

—Ahhh, both legs are cramping.

The girl wanted to cry without tears and looked at the witch with a calm face, who took out the big magic book.

"At least for this part of the way, can you take a carriage?"

"...The carriage is too slow, and the monsters deep in the grassland can be easily destroyed."

The pages of the book were opened, and some shiny crystals and gravel were placed on the open book. The witch shook her head and rejected the girl's proposal.

It seems that even if you say that traveling is casual, you still care about speed and efficiency...

So, what are you doing now?

Silently prepared in the bottom of my heart that tomorrow I might not even be able to walk, in front of the girl who just wanted to ask this sentence.

"... came from the star realm and came to my side."

A bright magic circle emerged.

How would you describe this moment? The flying crystal debris scattered and melted in the sunlight, and the rainbow-colored magic power drew the totem of the seven-pointed star on the soil, raising firefly-like spots.

Even Tinna, who has only taken basic courses in magic theory, can recognize that it is a simplified form of [Magnus's Seven Wings], which is the emblem of the seven magic systems that still maintain a complete system today.

The hexagram on the periphery of the heptagram corresponds to the six elemental planes surrounding the world. There is only one magic circle that can be drawn in this way, and that is summoning.

The magic of summoning beings from somewhere on the Continent, or from somewhere beyond the world, is incomplete as a system, but not uncommon in itself.

Rare, it is a life called by Miss Witch.

The moment she saw the figure in the light clearly, Tina felt something in her chest that had cooled down was rekindled.

"unicorn!"

Her surprise cry startled both Liliana and Alice, and even their eyes glistened!

"Unicorn, it's actually a unicorn!"

What girl on this continent has not heard the fairy tale of the unicorn? How many girls have not stepped into the sacred and beautiful forest in their youthful dreams to meet the beautiful and elegant dream life? They are like vigorous horses, with snow-white bodies and long, crystal-clear unicorns on their heads. They live in the deep and dense forest, and only the purest girls can be approached by them.

Perhaps the dream will have a follow-up, a handsome goblin will get up from the edge of the spring, salute gracefully, invite the girl to ride the holy unicorn, and walk with him in the forest, there will be a long chirping of leaf flutes in the wind, golden silk Sparrows and nightingales will sing lovely serenades. The protagonist of the dream will vary from person to person, but the beautiful unicorn will definitely be in the dream.

Although this creature with a translucent body shining in the sun is obviously not the kind of beautiful creature that is widely known on the mainland, but it is far more beautiful than those, like a piece of crystal clear crystal, reflecting an intoxicating halo .

"Does Miss Tingna like it? This is a star unicorn. It should be regarded as the ancestor of unicorns on the mainland. It is a fantasy species that gallops in the starry sky and feeds on the light of the sun and stars. However, on the mainland, Because of the law of [Earth], they can't fly... Wow, they can't get close now!"

Alice quickly floated up from Liliana's arms, and grabbed the girl who muttered "Wow" and "God", and wanted to get close to that beautiful but dangerous creature.

"You can't go there now, it's very dangerous! Astral unicorns—no, unicorns are completely different from those in fairy tales. They are impatient carnivorous monsters. They are very dangerous when they are not tamed."

"...However, even so, they are still the best riding beasts, with superior endurance and speed..."

Liliana stretched out her hand towards the unicorn that was restlessly crushing the ground and singing like a bird.

"—"

The creature, which was as tall as two witch girls, fell silent, its crystal-like eyes fixed on the witch who was stroking the gem-like fur, and the restless steps gradually calmed down, finally.

"—"

It knelt down, as if expressing trust and submission, it rubbed its cheek against Liliana affectionately.

"Well...it's nothing to Lily. The unicorns who once wandered from the star world to the mainland were first tamed by witches, and then gradually tamed by fairies to become what everyone knows now. By the way It is worth mentioning that unicorns only let pure girls ride because fairies are used to them. The holy white cavalry of fairies lived with a unicorn since childhood, fought together, and finally became partners and spent their lives together. It is one of the most powerful cavalry in the mainland, and it is also the origin of the orcs with unicorn blood on the mainland."

Be good~ Be good~ Comforting the summoned star unicorn, the little puppet floated up from Miss Witch's arms and landed on the top of the unicorn's head, stroking the sharp and crystal The unicorn waved to Tina.

——As if... Knowing the knowledge that seems to be able to shatter fairy tales to pieces?

"Is it ready?"

However, this did not affect Ting Na's girlish heart.

"……Um."

After Miss Witch rode up and nodded towards her, she became a little excited, and then sat up sideways cautiously. The body temperature of the unicorn from two layers of fabric was as hot as the sun. The unpleasant shadow brought by it disappeared in an instant, and even the vast grassland ahead was no longer scary in Ting Na's eyes.

"It's going to be a really, really great trip!"

Touching the soft fur, the girl smiled happily.

"..."

Miss Witch was silent and tilted her head.

...Why did Tina feel better after seeing this astral unicorn?

...do you like unicorns so much?

"...Then, let's go, Miss Tina, please hug me, or I may fall."

"Uh-huh!"

...seems to be happier.

Blinking her dark eyes, the witch, who had no idea of ​​the reason for the girl's sudden change of mood in a short period of time, gently leaned her body into the girl's arms, and patted that slender and graceful neck.

"——"

Near the city gate, in the astonished eyes of the stunned crowd who had been shocked for a long time, they faced the autumn wind filled with the fragrance of wheat.

The unicorn started galloping.

………………………………………………………………………………

Postscript of a certain day:

Yours sincerely.

All the girls on the mainland who still believe in fairy tales.

Please allow me to advise you as someone who has experienced it.

Wake up from the dream of riding a unicorn and walking in the forest with fairies.

Break free from fantasies of riding this graceful creature, pacing the grasslands like a princess.

That is just the irresponsible conjecture of the fairy tale author.

If a unicorn really comes to you, please remember not to ride rashly.

You can't even get off a unicorn's back if you don't want to.

Tina von Thea's last pen.