I waved as the three of them walked into the distance, then heard a strange moan from behind me. Oh, I forgot about the other guy.
When I turned around, Mr. Porky was rolling around awkwardly on the ground.
He doesn’t exactly inspire me to console him, so let’s just leave him there.
“Hey, big brother, what do you think about that pig?”
“Not enough muscles, hey—ah, hey, wait a minute. Our muscle mentor isn’t here.”
“You’re right. He’s not here, is he?”
“Don’t tell me that he left us here?”
“What do we do?”
“Ahhh!”
The two magician brothers had finally finished their workout discussion. They looked around in confusion at what had happened, and so I generously explained it to them. Blah, blah, yada yada.
“What?! In that case, our muscle mentor has already completed his journey.”
“What does that mean for us? This is a grave situation indeed.”
“Well, that’s how it is,” I said. “Miraculously enough, he achieved his ultimate goal.” I’m sure that those three will return to their hometown and live a muscle-bound life. But that’s none of my concern, is it? “Now that you’ve been released from Muscleman’s tutelage, are you two going to go back on tour as magicians?”
The two of them seemed confused by the suggestion.
“Magicians?”
“Magicians?”
Don’t tell me. “When I met you two, you were magicians, weren’t you? Have you forgotten all about how you used to scam people out of their money?”
“…Ah.”
“…Ah.”
“That’s right… We were magicians…”
“Gah… I’d forgotten because our lives have revolved around working out for so long…”
Muscles are a force to be reckoned with. Well, the two of them have been through a lot.
They remembered who they used to be, and the trio carried on as a troupe of traveling illusionists. And they all lived happily ever after.
……
That’s right. As you might have guessed, the third man was Mr. Porky.
“Hey you, why don’t you come with us?”
“Yeah, you’re on the same wavelength as us. You’ll definitely make a good magician.”
The two of them each put a hand on Mr. Porky’s slumped shoulders and made the suggestion very gently. For his part, Mr. Porky just groaned, covered in snot and without a clue as to what was going on. How unsightly.
But the two brothers seemed to understand.
“Ah, it’s all right. Don’t worry. We’ll teach you everything you need to know.”
“From the moment I saw you, I could tell you had a natural gift. Come with us.”
Finally, Mr. Porky nodded stiffly.
And thus, the magician trio started their journey. Calling themselves Brothers and the Barrel to avoid the problem of combining their names, these men would soon build a circus guild that would circle the globe.
Or maybe not. I don’t know what actually happened.
After all, that story wasn’t a part of mine.
CHAPTER 9
Apprentice Witch Elaina
My own story began with a conversation, and I think I remember how it went.
“Congratulations on passing the practical skills exam, Elaina.”
“You’ve become the youngest apprentice witch ever. That’s incredible! We’re so proud of you!” The two of them were visibly happy for me when I returned home with a bellflower corsage on my breast. But even now, I remember being in a strange state of mind at the time.
I probably sighed heavily and said something like, “But I don’t feel very accomplished.” I wasn’t hiding my embarrassment, I don’t think; I’m sure that was how I really felt. I didn’t feel like a winner—maybe it didn’t even feel real.
In short, I wasn’t all that happy.
“Did something happen?” my father asked.
“The others were too weak,” I answered. “So it was a bit of a letdown. Now becoming a witch is just a matter of time, I suppose.”
“……Oh.”
“My, my…”
They didn’t know what to say, I think.
I’m certain this conversation is where it started, and what happened afterward was at least partially the fault of my own boastfulness and pride. Those traits would lead me into some troubling situations.
But after all this time, those are all simply memories.
It happened about four years ago.
I was fourteen, and I wasn’t yet wearing the triangle hat and black robe like I am now. Back then, I usually wore a white blouse and black skirt.
After passing the practical magic exam on my first try, I had decided that I would immediately enter into an apprenticeship under a full-fledged witch. However, for various reasons, I couldn’t ask any of the witches who lived in my hometown in the Peaceful Country of Robetta. Well, to be specific, I asked, and they said no.
So I decided to use a secret trick… Well, all I did was listen to the gossip. And according to the rumors—
“I heard that there’s a mysterious woman called the Stardust Witch living in the forest near Robetta.”
As soon as I heard this, I took off on my broom. If she’s not from Robetta, then maybe she’ll accept me as her student, I thought.
According to the rumors, the Stardust Witch lived deep in the forest; she was a drifter who had settled down of her own accord in an abandoned house above the trees. I only half believed that she existed at all, which was why I was quite surprised when I spied a witch in the forest.
“Oh-ho-ho…ah-ha-ha…”
“……”
Her hair was as black as midnight, she wore a black robe and pointy hat to match, and on her breast was a star-shaped brooch. I could tell from her clothes that this woman living in her secluded forest treehouse was a witch, but not how old she was.
And she was playing with butterflies in the grass.
I gave some serious thought to turning back, but of all the witches I could ask, the strange person before me was the only one remaining. Finally, after some deliberation, I called out to her. “…Um, excuse me?”
She noticed me and tilted her head to the side, still smiling. “Oh-ho-ho… Huh? What’s that? Could you be…Elaina?”
I was surprised. We’d never met before; how could she know my name?
“Do you know about me?”
Considering who I was talking to, I had a sneaking suspicion as to the answer, and unfortunately, my hunch was correct.
“Yes, you’re rather famous. You’re the cheeky brat who completely overwhelmed the competition and passed the practical magic exam at only fourteen, aren’t you?”
“……”
“Of course, that’s not my opinion. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings.”
“…No, I’m used to it.”
Since the exam was so strict and only allowed one person to pass each time, as the youngest person ever to pass, I got a lot of attention—negative attention.
After making quick work of mages older than myself, I didn’t get along so well with the witches living in my hometown. After they had all turned down my apprenticeship requests, I was here, pinning my hopes on a mysterious witch who lived in the forest.
But if the gossip has made it this far, there’s no way she’ll accept me. I had already begun to give up.
“Well then, what do you want?”
“…Nothing.” I started to leave. I thought it was impossible for sure.
But she said to me, “Might you be here to request an apprenticeship? If so, then I don’t mind at all. I’ve got lots of free time.”
“Ah.” I was shocked—so much so that I didn’t immediately understand what she had said.
“Why are you surprised? Oh, did you come to ask for something else?”
“No, I definitely did want to ask about becoming your apprentice, but…”
&n
bsp; “Well, well. Then it’s settled. Starting today, you’re my apprentice.”
“Oh, but…um, huh?” My brain hadn’t quite caught up with this strange development. I had expected that if she knew about me, she would refuse me just like the witches in Robetta.
“You seem to have complicated feelings about this. I know what you’re thinking, but relax. I’m not like the weak witches in your hometown. I don’t care whether my apprentice is a cheeky brat or not,” she said decisively.
Even now, I remember how her words touched my heart. Ah, I’ve finally managed to find someone who recognizes me for my true abilities, I thought.
“Well? Will you become my apprentice? Or will you go grovel to the weak witches at home?”
I bowed to her. “……I won’t be returning home. Please make me your apprentice.”
And that’s how I met the Stardust Witch—my teacher, Miss Fran.
Several days had passed since I began my training.
Normal training for an apprentice witch involves learning spells from her teacher and strengthening her technical skills. Naturally, I also thought that was what I would be doing.
But my relationship with Miss Fran was a little unusual.
…No, it was very unusual. A typical day for me back then went something like this:
“Good morning, Elaina. I’m hungry, so please make something to eat.”
“…What would you like?” Making Miss Fran’s meals for her became my daily lesson.
“Let’s see… I feel like eating steak.”
“Isn’t that too heavy for first thing in the morning?”
“In that case, those weeds over there will be fine.”
“Don’t you think that’s too far in the other direction?”
Eventually, we would settle on eating bread we had baked the previous day. Then I would study magic on my own until lunchtime. As for my teacher, she would do some kind of strange research, or go out to collect edible wild plants, or just generally do as she pleased.
“I’d really like to learn some magic today…,” I would say.
“Oh, sorry, I can’t step away from this just yet, so could we do it later?” Even when I asked for her help, she usually avoided the issue. Not once did she teach me any spells.
In fact, she encouraged the opposite.
“Elaina, you’ll get tired if you study too much. How about enjoying yourself once in a while?”
The conditions that an apprentice witch must meet to become a witch are set by the individual teacher, but exactly what I had to do to earn Miss Fran’s approval was completely unclear. She never told me.
All I could do as her apprentice was try my very best. Try what, you ask? Everything, apparently.
I decided that she might not be teaching me magic as a way to foster my independence, and I stopped asking her questions even when there was something I didn’t understand. But Miss Fran’s demands kept getting more extreme.
“Elaina, we don’t have any food. Go buy some.”
“Elaina, go into the forest and catch five lizards. I need them for my research.”
“Elaina, is dinner ready yet?”
“Elaina, there’s a spider in the bathroom. Exterminate it. They scare me.”
“Elaina, massage my shoulders.”
I told myself that these things were also necessary to become a witch, and day after day I complied with Miss Fran’s ridiculous requests like a servant. Looking back on it now, I think I put up with the situation pretty well.
I sometimes doubted her, wondering whether she had just wanted to use me as a servant. But even if I had my doubts, it’s not like I could run away. I could try going home, but no one there would become my teacher.
Patience, patience.
I just threw myself into studying and practicing.
One night, before I went to bed, I asked Miss Fran a question.
“Why aren’t you teaching me any magic?”
Miss Fran yawned and then answered me nonchalantly, “Because there’s no need to teach you.”
I didn’t understand what she was saying to me at the time.
I endured day after day, and before I knew it, I had spent a month as Miss Fran’s apprentice.
It happened while I was going through my nonsensical daily lesson, using wind magic to fell timber and cut it up for firewood, then burning it with fire magic, and finally dousing the fire with water.
“My, my. You’re quite reckless, aren’t you?”
Miss Fran was standing right behind me. As I recall, this was the first and last time she was ever nearby when I was practicing magic. I stopped what I was doing and rushed over to her. I thought maybe she had finally decided to teach me something.
However, my fleeting hope was smashed in an instant.
“What do you want? I don’t really have anything to teach you, you know.”
In the end, she really had no intention of teaching me any magic, and she just stayed there behind me watching me practice.
There has to be some meaning to this, I told myself over and over, chanting the words in my heard like an incantation, and earnestly continued my nonsensical routine.
“Before long, it’ll be time…,” I thought I heard her mumble.
In the afternoon on the following day, she tapped me on the shoulder and said, “I’m going to test you now.”
I was taken aback by this sudden announcement and honestly wondered what she was even saying. But more than confused, I felt happy. I bet if I do well on this test, she’ll teach me some magic, I thought.
Miss Fran led me to a meadow. Lush green grass swayed in the breeze, as far as the eye could see. Standing across from me, she gripped her wand and smiled as she always did. “Starting now, you and I are going to battle.”
I was perplexed. Against someone like me, she would be invincible. I was sure of that.
“…Are you joking?”
“Now, now. Do you honestly think I would joke in such a serious situation?”
You haven’t taught me one bit of magic, and now suddenly we’re battling? This is absurd.
“But Miss Fran, no matter how you look at it, that’s…”
“Okay, let’s begin.”
My weak objections were promptly ignored.
She clapped her hands to give the starting signal and instantly closed the gap between us, where she unleashed a barrage of spells at point-blank range.
I was caught totally off guard and panicked.
The sudden test, the deliberate close-range attacks—thinking back on it now, Miss Fran must have done it on purpose to knock me out of my comfort zone.
It was an underhanded tactic.
“…Eek!” And the Elaina of those days was completely overwhelmed by underhanded tactics.
Spell after spell filled the air, each one a deadly hazard. Balls of magic. Streams of heat. Wind blades. Rock showers. Thunderbolts.
Naturally, I was at a disadvantage in the battle, and it was all I could do just to defend myself. Some of her spells sent me rolling across the grass, others flung me into the air, but all the while I just waited and watched for my chance to counterattack.
“What’s wrong? Is that the best you can do? I thought you overwhelmed the others in the practical exam. Not very impressive.” Fran spoke gently, smiling her usual smile, even as her relentless attack continued. It was very, very eerie.
It’s like she enjoys tormenting me, I thought. In the end, this woman and the witches back home are exactly the same… She let me become her apprentice just so she could crush me later, didn’t she? She didn’t teach me anything and neglected me, didn’t she?
During the previous month, I had held doubts in my heart the whole time, but I had deliberately ignored them. She’s different. I can believe in her, I had told myself so that I could persevere.
“……”
And then everything went black.
When I came to, I was standing still, in a daze. Miss Fran had stopped her attack and sneere
d at me. “My, my. Done already?”
That was the last straw. A mess of different emotions welled up inside me, and I couldn’t hold them in any longer: despair at her betrayal of my trust; frustration at my failure to land a single hit on a fellow witch; sadness at being shunned, avoided, and ignored despite all my work just because I was so young. I couldn’t stop them from pouring out of me and smothering my sense of reason. I couldn’t take any more of this.
“Urgh…uwaaaaaahhh…”
I cried. I slumped down right where I was standing and started sobbing. I wiped and wiped at my stinging eyes, but the large teardrops wouldn’t stop. I tried to bite my lip to keep from wailing and sounding even more pathetic, but I didn’t know how to make myself stop. I just sat in the middle of the meadow and cried. I’m sure I was hard to watch.
“Eh? Huh? Um…” Miss Fran looked at me as I cried, her eyes darting around in surprise and confusion. She approached me cautiously. “S-s-s-sorry! I wasn’t expecting you to cry…”
Both of her hands moved restlessly as she spoke.
“Waaaaaahhh…”
“Ahhhhhh…”
I didn’t want her to see me crying, so I hid my eyes with both hands. Of course, that didn’t stop the tears. I bit down extra hard on my lip this time, but I just trembled. Nothing I tried was working; I kept on crying despite my best efforts to stop.
And as for Miss Fran—who knows what she was thinking—she began to search here and there for some way to stem the flow of tears.
“O-okay! …Hey, look here, Elaina. I made one of those butterflies you love!” Fran conjured some ice, whittled it into the shape of a butterfly, and showed it to me. But I’m not even the one who likes butterflies.
I continued crying.
“Huh…? It didn’t work…? In that case, how about this? A crown made out of weeds!” In a single stroke, she had cut down the weeds growing around us using wind magic, rolled them up, and made them into a crown for me. She tried to put the crown on top of my pointy hat, and I did my best to avoid her.
“N-no good…? Well then, how about this? Look, a fireball!”
I had no idea what she thought that would accomplish.
Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina, Vol. 1 Page 11