Miss Witch’s Devotion Has Gone… Twisted-Chapter 7: Before Departure

Loren swept his damp hair back and looked at himself in the mirror. He was wearing the same clothes; this body was nothing special except for his eyes, which were heterochromatic. Most people with heterochromia had one red eye and one blue eye, which looked very handsome. But his were one black and one red—one an ordinary, unremarkable black, the other an eerie crimson.
It wasn’t just the color that differed, the patterns in the irises and the expressions they carried were completely distinct. So Loren usually covered the ordinary black eye with his hair whenever he wanted to look cool.
Not bad, pretty handsome.
Just as Loren stepped out of the bathroom, Anna barreled straight into his arms. Witches had much higher physical stats than ordinary people, and that collision bent Loren over like a shrimp. Loren clutched his stomach and fell to the floor, yet Anna still didn’t let go of him.
“Waaah… You must come back alive…”
“Get lost…”
Hearing Loren’s weak voice, Anna realized she’d probably caused trouble. She obediently knelt before him and lowered her head.
With Naclis’s help, Loren struggled to his feet. Seeing Anna’s pitiful posture, he ultimately couldn’t bring himself to scold her.
Loren brushed dust off his black robe and pulled his hood up.
“I’m only going out to do a job, not to die.”
Loren moved to stand between Naclis and Anna, placing his hands on each of their faces. Naclis instinctively held his hand.
“While I’m gone, you two stay safe. Don’t go out, and if something does happen, don’t hesitate. I enchanted plenty of bullets and left them for you. Find a chance and run—protect yourselves. Everything else doesn’t matter, worst case I’ll take you with me and we’ll wander.
“Remember to listen to Mirrorheart until I return. She may act odd, but she’s reliable.”
In that moment Loren sounded like a nagging old father, but Naclis and Anna weren’t rebellious kids; they could tell right from wrong. They knew every word Loren said came from concern for them.
“Mm…”
After settling the two witches, Loren turned and left. This mission was dangerous, but Loren had a perfect plan.
“Master Mentor…”
As soon as Loren stepped outside, the church members bowed respectfully to greet him.
“Is everything I asked you to prepare ready?”
“All ready. The locations you marked have people watching from the shadows. Most of the church’s forces have already mobilized. This is the Valentina you specifically requested.”
Since he knew the plot and held a respectable position, Loren had slipped into the guise of a prophet long ago. No one suspected when he handed over coordinates of Pluto’s followers.
“Greetings, Master Mentor.”
A tall female knight next to the scarecrows saluted Loren, tracing the symbol of the God of Bountiful Harvest on her chest. She stood over two meters tall, forcing even Loren, who was one point eight meters, to look up.
Valentina was wrapped in straw like the scarecrows, which made her affiliation clear, but the face she revealed indicated she was no ordinary scarecrow.
No matter how polite her words were, Loren could sense dissatisfaction in her tone and eyes.
Her rank in the church was high, but even so, she had to come when Loren ordered it, and that bred resentment. In her view she had clawed her way to that position through repeated bloodshed; she only took that post after turning forty. Loren, by contrast, had gained such status with words alone, and that unfairness turned her gaze murderous. She was not a benevolent soul.
Valentina had killed her own people more than once for merit, and Loren was well aware of that.
“Impressive reputation, Knight Valentina.”
Loren returned the salute. He’d asked for her for two reasons: she was strong enough in combat, and the tarot card that could reverse the curse—the one he wanted—was on her person.
What Valentina didn’t know was that in Loren’s eyes she had already been sentenced to death.
After formal introductions, Loren took the map and began laying out the operation. He circled one of the marked locations.
“This is the main stronghold; most of our forces will be concentrated here. Take this first. Other outposts can be put on hold for now, so we don’t alert the enemy.”
Loren didn’t bother with redundant plans. He chose this place because it contained what he wanted. Since they were going after Pluto’s followers, he couldn’t resist taking something useful for himself.
“We’ll move there first. The sacrifices usually happen at night, when their defenses are weakest. We’ll strike then.”
It was already afternoon, and the launch time was approaching. Once Loren finished assigning roles, everyone set off.
…
The instant Loren left, Mirrorheart locked the door from the inside and swallowed the key.
“Listen, I know what you two are thinking. Don’t even try it. Even if you go, you’ll only become a liability to Master.”
Naclis opened her mouth but closed it again; Mirrorheart had already figured out what she intended.
“Whatever the Master goes to do, he’ll only do it when he’s one hundred percent certain. I know him far better than you do.”
Hearing that, Naclis felt a twinge of displeasure. In her eyes Mirrorheart was the latecomer, the one who suddenly appeared in their home one day—how dare she claim such knowledge?
Naclis looked at Mirrorheart. Mirrorheart wore a black-and-white maid outfit that revealed a sliver of pale thigh between skirt and black stockings. Though Mirrorheart wasn’t very tall, her proportions were several times larger than Naclis’s, and while Mirrorheart wasn’t a witch, she was no less attractive than one…
Recalling Mirrorheart’s behavior so far, Naclis couldn’t help but suspect that Mirrorheart was deliberately vying for Loren’s attention. A frightening possibility crossed her mind, and her cheeks flushed.
“You haven’t—no, impossible. Master Mentor is so steady…”
“You two are still children in Master’s eyes. I am different…”
Mirrorheart’s words were ambiguous, but Naclis’s mind raced uncontrollably.
She reviewed the past carefully. She and Loren had indeed been very close—father and daughter close, nothing more.
So for a newcomer to claim she knew Loren better than Naclis did was infuriating.
Naclis resolved to change this, starting with her own mindset.
“Don’t worry. Even if the world ends and the Outer Gods arrive, nothing will happen to Master. Rather than worrying about him, worry about yourselves.”
“Mm… true…”
Anna, whose mouth was full of food again, mumbled something indistinct. She trusted Loren.
Let the child eat, Loren had the mindset of an old man; a child who ate well was a blessing. Besides, witches didn’t gain weight from eating, so Loren didn’t bother policing Anna’s meals—only Mirrorheart, who cooked for them, felt the strain.