The Wandering Witch VOL. 2 - The Witchfolk Genocide Arc

13.2| A Falcon Witch

The red-haired girl sped through the crowd, her footsteps nimble and quick despite the uncomfortable-looking clothes she had on. It almost seemed as if she was used to this kind of situation happening a lot. Judging from her words before, that was most likely to be the case.

Close behind, Noct and Chell followed warily, choosing to stay silent as they ran after her. The Snow Witch tried not to bump into anyone as she did her best to keep up, making sure that she would not touch anyone by accident. She reassured herself by checking to see that her bandages were wrapped tightly on her hands. Her heartbeat accelerated with every step she took. The dull throb at the back of her head intensified even further. Perhaps it was the strain from the running.

It's okay. You can't touch them.

They passed different buildings, the girl taking twists and turns here and there without hesitation. It was clear that she had familiarized the path from the way she led themselves with certainty. Dozens of tavern boards blurred by, their names soon forgotten once Chell looked away. The Snow Witch noticed that some of the citizens had looked at the three of them when they hastily passed through the crowds, a few of their gazes lingering on the red-haired. As Chell's eyes trailed around the unfamiliar sights that revealed the deeper parts of Gisnell, she realized that the scenery had been slowly shifting into the less lively parts of the kingdom. The path grew narrow and crooked. The number of people had lessened, and the establishments seemed to reduce in quality as they forged deeper and deeper into wherever the girl was taking them to. The same short and old-looking bricked buildings fanned out at either side of the new path, looking identical as the last one except for slight variations. Chell studied the people visible from the windows. One was smoking lazily. Another was drinking as he stared at the sky.

She focused back on the girl's figure. It had not been that long since they followed her, but already her rising suspicion was threatening to take over. Maybe they really were being led into some kind of trap.

"Hey... where are we going?" Noct suddenly spoke as he ran beside Chell, sounding like he couldn't take the silence anymore. "I mean, not to be impolite or anything, but do you really know the right way?"

The red-haired girl nodded without looking back to them. Then, she answered. "Of course I do. Jul always comes to this place whenever she causes trouble," she explained, turning right into a long alley. "We're heading for the Asha Square. Don't worry, we're close! We're taking a shortcut through here. It isn't that much farther. Again, I'm really, really sorry for the trouble she's causing."

The thief turned to Chell, his face looking slightly sour. His red scarf trailed behind him, fluttering in the wind. He mouthed, "Is she telling the truth?"

Chell didn't answer immediately. There was only one way to make sure.

She looked in front and imagined emptying her mind, focusing instead on listening to the familiar tug of the catalyst within her. It was more of a feeling rather than hearing, though. Chell called for the skull, and in turn, it called out for her. It was the special bond between a witch and a catalyst--a connection not easily severed just because of the distance. After a moment, Chell found where it was. She could sense its familiar aura, informing her of its location.

On instinct, she stopped running.

The moment she paused, the thief did the same, digging his feet into the ground to anchor himself. He looked at her with a confused expression.

"What's wrong, little miss?" he asked.

In place of an answer, Chell looked at him with an expressionless stare. Although it was not obvious, she was at a loss for words. Because, for some reason, she could feel the catalyst directly in front of her. It was close. So close. Yet, she could not see it anywhere.

"... little miss?" he asked once again.

Chell didn't answer him. She turned to look around. They seemed to be the only ones in the deserted alley aside from the stray cats and dogs that were sleeping lazily in the corners next to empty crates and barrels. An acrid smell emanated from the trash gathered and piled by their side. Her eyes flickered at the dirtied alley walls. In her chest, her heartbeat thudded loudly as a result from the running.

The red-haired girl had noticed that both Chell and Noct had stopped only after she was a couple of feet away from them. When she did, she paused, turning back to them with a frown. "What's the matter?"

Instead of answering, Chell shook her head silently in confusion. She could feel the catalyst. She was directly in front of it. But where?

Only then did the answer struck her when Chell and Noct's gaze were suddenly diverted to a single brown feather fluttering in front of them. Almost immediately, they both looked up, squinting their eyes through the sudden brightness. At the same time, the unmistakable figure of Jul Orben jumped from above the nearest rooftop.

The motion had been so sudden that no one was able to move. Overhead, the petite silhouette of the witch-thief fell without pause. For a split second, Chell saw her falcon behind her, its wings beating as it hovered from the roof. Then her attention went back to Jul, who she now just realized was falling from a fatal height. Immediately, the Snow Witch raised her hand, ready to summon a wall of ice to break her fall. However, Jul was faster. A few feet from the ground, the Falcon Witch summoned the same magic from before by uttering a single spell word. "Wind!"

A wall of air collected around her and acted as an invisible cushion, pushing her back so that she seemed to have bounced in midair. Then, she descended softly on the ground, reaching the floor with a silent tap of her shoes. Everyone looked at her with startled faces. The red-haired girl was the first to speak once the shock of her sudden appearance wore off.

"Jul!" she cried out. "How many times have I told you not to do tha--"

"Get back, Yoko!" The Falcon Witch interrupted, sounding alarmed. Chell and Noct froze by the sudden shift in her attitude compared to before. Jul turned to both of them, spreading an arm protectively as though to shield the red-haired girl.

"These people are different!" she hissed warily, figure posed in a menacing stance. She glared through her green eyes.

Noct unfroze at the last word. "'Different'?" He raised an eyebrow, scoffing. "In what wa--"

The last of his sentence was abruptly muffled when the Falcon Witch suddenly lifted something up in the air for all of them to see. Chell's eyes widened a fraction as she recognized the important and familiar object she held up. The skull.

Jul grasped it in her thin hand, its dark and hollow sockets looking eerie and intimidating as it always had. The permanent grin looked sinister when shown in the gravity of the situation. Everyone turned quiet before it, baffled by its appearance.

"I found this in her bag." Jul gestured towards Chell, speaking to the red-haired. "She's a witch, Yoko... and not just any kind."

Jul then turned towards Chell, the previous happiness and joyful expression she had now completely gone from her face. Her grip on the catalyst tightened.

"You're the Snow Witch, aren't you? You were the cause of the commotion in Uldard together with that guy... The murderer-witch," she said darkly, the look in her eyes wary and defensive. It was not a question. "White hair. Silver eyes. A skull catalyst. It's you..." Jul trailed off in a dim mutter, her voice laced with a hint of fear... and something else.

"The youngest Titled," she said. "You're Chell Necrovitte."

----> thank you for reading!

'Necrovitte' is pronounced neh-kro-vee-teh