Chapter 3: A magic world doesn"t need any explanations
Translator: trashy.pudding
First Published on Ainushi.
The prince very irresponsibly lugged the witch back to the marsh. In the damp gloomy swamp, a group of frogs quietly poked their heads out of the rotting mud, croak, croak, croak…
"Hurry, come and see this. The witch is being carried home by a man."
"He"s as handsome as a perfectly sculpted statue, and his clothes are n.o.ble and gorgeous. The longsword at his waist is stained with blood."
Can all of you just stop?! Please shut up!
Being carried over the shoulder like this was mortifyingly embarra.s.sing. It felt like her stomach would heave and spill open from the jolting. She forcefully lifted her flushed face and glared at the frogs in the marsh, but that chorus of abdominal b.a.s.t.a.r.ds only sang with even greater fervor.
"His eyes are dazzling like the stars, the most brilliant pearls of the sea, croak, croak croak…"
The youth gently placed the crumbling witch on the bed inside the quiet house.
The formerly rambunctious and rowdy furniture all chose to stay silent in fear, and even the the magic wand and the wine case on her back kept their mouths shut.
Honestly, pretending that they were all ordinary furniture was a very sensible choice, because this mysterious unknown man had a thick dangerous aura to him, which was a bit scary.
The witch"s first act once she regained her freedom was to scramble and crawl away from the man, but a large hand seized her ankle. Like a pitiful turtle that had been helplessly flipped onto its back, she was dragged back to the youth"s side.
The youth kindly helped tidy up her disheveled hair, and then hesitated for a moment before he finally grabbed her hand. His face was full of bashfulness. His eyes ostensibly appeared to be surveying the witch"s room, but in reality they were surrept.i.tiously stealing glances at her. His pupils were pitch-black yet brilliant, quite like a fragrant wine that had been curing for many years. If it weren"t for the ridiculous circ.u.mstances of this encounter and his blatantly perverted behavior, perhaps she"d otherwise even be enchanted by that bottomless, deep, and enigmatic gaze.
What was he hesitating about?
His eyes gradually became eccentric.
The blush on his face was especially striking in contrast with his silver-white hair, and it frightened the witch to the point that she immediately stiffened.
The guy is definitely thinking of something very strange—
He"s a prince?
She seriously doubted that!
How could this villain possibly be a prince?! He was more like a brainless molester pervert with a negative IQ!!!
Realizing that once again she had been dealt a cruel fate by this unfair world, she forced herself to sit up straight. She pointed at her delicate red lips and mouthed: "You! Undo the seal now!"
"Uh…" The youth pondered for a while, but then slowly shook his head in refusal. He responded as if he were uncomfortable looking straight at her.
"I-I kind of want to take off your clothes sooner."
Hey! Please don"t be so stupidly direct!
The witch horrifically opened her eyes and shook her head repeatedly!
"It"s not okay? Alas, I thought that you definitely wouldn"t agree to that."
He appeared very regretful as he tenderly patted her head: "I guess I can undo your seal, though I"m afraid you"ll curse me. You are, after all, a witch."
She shook her head and stuck out four fingers as she continued to silently mouth: "I promise I definitely won"t curse you!"
"Then why don"t we have a contract?"
The contract that the youth spoke of was an unbreakable vow between two parties. If one person violated its terms, they would suffer a terrible outcome.
The witch was a little startled, and she stared blankly.
Why did something feel fishy about this?
However, the youth did not give her the opportunity to respond. With his face blushing, he tightly grasped her hands, and the sign of a hexagram shined with golden radiance between their palms.
"Oh great G.o.d Nash, your most faithful servant requests that you bear witness the bond between me and… wait a minute, fair maiden, pardon me but could you tell me your beautiful name?"
The witch stared speechlessly. She wordlessly rolled her eyes, crudely extended out her hand, and began to lightly write her name with her finger on the bed sheets.
【Snow White】
"Snow White…"
She didn"t know why, but when he repeated her name, it seemed to have an extremely weird feeling to it. Perhaps it was because her name was too out of place in this setting, and thus he way he looked at her made it seem even stranger?
"Oh great G.o.d Nash, your most faithful servant requests that you listen to my plea. Bear witness to the ancient contract, Snow White and I will enter an unbreakable oath, and share the bonds of our hearts…"
Wait!
The witch finally realized what had been wrong.
This was straight up madness!
As he slowly recited the chant of the contract magic, her expression was slowly supplanted with terror. She desperately wanted to pull her hands away, but then she discovered she couldn"t pull them free—
This b.a.s.t.a.r.d was bullying her with such an old-fashioned strategy! This spell was exactly the same lines peopled used during the vows of a wedding ceremony!
What"s happening?
Wait! Hey.
What the heck is happening right now?! Stop chanting you wretch.
"…with Snow White, our souls now connected. Never shall we betray the other, and with our vows this contract is thus sworn."
The hexagram in between their hands shone even more brilliantly. Through the blinding rays of magic light, the witch could vaguely see the youth"s eyes glinting with a satisfied smile. She immediately felt an avalanche of profanities rush into her head.
The mark of the completed contract was engraved in the web of her hand between the thumb and forehand. It was a j.a.panese rose that symbolized love, and its presence stabbed her eyes like a sharp thorn.
The witch finally came to realize a profound truth about the world. Life was like a dream. You never knew when you might step on a pile of p.o.o.p next.
"You horrid b.a.s.t.a.r.d, I"m going to throttle you!" When her voice returned, the first thing she did was pounce and seize the blushing youth who had done bad things by the neck. His eyebrows arched abnormally as he allowed her to go berserk straddling on top of him.
She probably knew that that was impossible to really do anything to him now that the contract has been sealed.
The magic wand tried redeeming itself then as it stuck its head out of the youth"s pocket and cheered: "Witch, Witch! That"s right! Choke him to death! He"s too vile, the way he threatened us earlier."
【Yes! Beautiful choice! Use a little more strength to strangle his throat and don"t let go.】
Ever since this strange episode ended, all sorts of different voices popped up one after another. The furniture inside the house saw the witch desperately clutching the man"s throat like her life depended on it. Even though his face was almost purple from her chokehold, the strange part was that the youth didn"t even seem the slightest bit angry. In order to help stabilize her teetering figure, he even extended an arm and considerately wrapped it around her waist to prevent her from falling off the bed, as one of her legs had just stepped on empty air.
Broom: "What is the witch and that man doing on the bed?"
Kettle: "They look very lively."
Fruit Basket: "Heavens, this is the most shocking thing I"ve seen since I"ve ever been able to talk."
Table: "Can anybody tell me what that flash of light was earlier?"
Knowing that it was impossible to kill him, she dejectedly lowered her head. The strength at her fingertips gradually weakened, until finally they slowly released.
From what she understood, everything that had happened today was completely outrageous. It felt like some kind of incredulous bizarre dream.
No, rather it was more like ever since she transmigrated, she"s been living in a dream the entire time.
"Why…" The witch finally calmed down, and she looked at the man below her with an icy glare. "Why did you do a magic contract of devotion with me? You can"t have not known… that this is magic only married couples use?"
"I… I fell in love with you at first sight."
For instant, the youth"s eyes slipped and revealed his state of mind. From the depths of his pupils the feelings that could been seen were raging flames, maddening, yet uncontrollable pa.s.sion.
"Please forgive me for failing to conduct myself in a gentlemanly fashion. I had difficulty controlling myself after being absolutely engrossed by your beautiful appearance, and I was afraid some other guy would come steal you away. This was why I rashly entered a devotion contract with you."
"Don"t you fricking know that the first step of the contract of devotion is supposed to be [censored]?! To do have done it by force… perhaps we"ll even be rejected by the contract. It"s very likely we might even die when the time comes!"
She was so angry that she was trembling and unable to find her voice. In spitting anger, she climbed off of the youth, but he grabbed her by the wrist.
"My name is Ibis." The youth bashfully smiled towards her, and revealed dazzling white teeth. The corners of his eyes raised slightly, but he was still embarra.s.sed to death. He didn"t have the courage to look at the cute and lovely girl before him face to face for very long. However, the way that she slightly met his gaze, how intensely focused she was, it was as if she could see the very bottom of his soul.
Prince: 【(///▽///)】 M-My face is burning up. Aiya, I"m so emmmbara.s.sssed! Please don"t look at me so directly! I"ll die from embarra.s.sment!
Witch (shocked): Why does that pervert prince keep looking away every second like nothing"s happening? Oh s.h.i.t! He"s looking at me again, and his face looks hot. He"s wiping away his sweat and secretly licking his lips. f.u.c.k I have a really bad feeling about this.
【(T ^ T)】
With her heart beating and thumping, the witch wanted to pull her hand back, but the youth in front of her never gave her the opportunity. Her smooth and tender hand was clasped in his palm, and he couldn"t resist but extend to a thumb to caress its texture.
"Please allow me to introduce myself. I am the third prince of the Kingdom of Kelub, and I don"t normally have any strange hobbies."
"You"ll slowly discover my good points over time… I-I"m very patient, and I believe that you"ll love me by the end."
Witch: Aha, hehe, hahaha.
"But I rejected you already."
"No problem. If at first you fail, try, try again. I"ll keep trying until you feel my love for you."
"That said… how long are you going to keep your hand on my b.u.t.t?!"
Translator"s Notes:
Happy birthday Isalee! This a teaser that we"re releasing completely out of the blue since it"s our very special Super Mushroom"s birthday! Isalee is legit one of the best editors I’ve ever worked with, so here’s to pick off a party throwing around random teasers! o/
No more chapters are planned for this project for the time being (and anybody can pick it up), but we hope you enjoyed this teaser anyways!