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Chapter 6 – The Girl’s Point of View
From then on, Clare’s daily training included collecting various materials and hunting in the forest.
The basic training of using magic in daily life remained the same as before. However, new training was added, with Rona giving her assignments once or twice a week.
The assignments involved collecting materials needed for potion compounding, alchemy, and cooking in the Great Sea of Trees, bringing them back, and using them to create specified items within a certain period of time.
Some of the necessary materials were monster materials. Inevitably, Clare ended up hunting the target monsters.
Clare spent her days training by compounding the materials she brought back and using them in cooking, but it was a word from Rona that brought a change to her daily life.
“Well, I think I’ll go out to the human village today.”
“Oh… is this finally my debut in the human village?”
The girl doll she was holding in her arms made an excited gesture as if she were clenching both fists.
“Debut?”
“I mean like a first appearance or a first performance.”
“Hmm. It’s a paraphrase of your previous life.”
“Yes, yes.”
As they exchange such conversations, the two of them proceed with preparations to go out. Once they have packed medicines and materials in their bags and secured food and water, they are ready.
“You know what you’re going to do when you go out to the village, right?”
“Yes. Sell the medicines I make and the materials I hunt, and connect me with a merchant Rona knows.”
“That’s right. By doing that, you will have accomplished the bare minimum of what is necessary to survive.”
The bare minimum of skills and knowledge, that is. Just the bare minimum. There are still many things that need to be learned and improved.
For example, more usable magic and medicines. Increase the variety of monsters you can hunt, and advance research and development of unique magic.
Also… considering that Clare was being chased, it would be better for her to be familiar with the current state of affairs. If she expands her thoughts on her origins, she will need to learn more about the appropriate knowledge and skills, such as etiquette and dancing, depending on the person and the situation.
The policy is the same as before, but the training will be developed to a more advanced level, and she will be prepared for the parts that may involve Clare’s own past.
(That being said, you know…)
She can be taught about the state of the world and etiquette to a certain extent, and she does touch on them in classroom lessons… but it’s not something Rona, who lives like a hermit in the Great Sea of Trees, is good at.
She is taught about the history that connects to the present. Teaching the history of countries and noble families will help her to guess the current state of the world.
However, even Rona is not very knowledgeable about current events, such as the personality and reputation of the current head of the family and his children, or the state of the economy in a certain place, although it may be possible if it was something from a while ago.
(Well, I’m going to the city anyway, so I might as well gather as much information as I can.)
Rona left the hermitage with Clare, thinking of friends and bookstores who might be knowledgeable about such matters.
“By the way, why are you living in the Great Sea of Trees, Rona?”
On the way out of the Great Sea of Trees, the girl doll Clare was holding tilted her head and asked as if she was wondering something. Even as she talked, she was still focusing on the hidden barrier and detection magic that were deployed around her. The results of her training were clearly showing, and it was clear that she had mastered how to walk in the Great Sea of Trees.
“…I guess that’s because I’ve lived that way. I don’t have to deal with troublesome people… and living in the Great Sea of Trees is good training for both witches and magicians, right?”
“Yes. I can do research without worrying about people seeing me.”
“That’s one advantage, isn’t it? Thanks to that, your research and development of unique magic has progressed a lot.”
“It’s also because it has properties that can be applied in various ways.”
Based on Clare’s ideas and knowledge, Rona instructed her on how to put together magic and developed it. Unique magic has that kind of thing, but Clare’s magic had a particularly notable property.
“Also, living in a place with a lot of magical power and living off the food obtained there also leads to increased magical power. In your case, it was also the amount of magical power you were born with.”
Rona, who is a little ahead of Clare, shrugs her shoulders. Rona doesn’t talk much about her past or herself, but after thinking for a moment, she continues.
“–Didn’t we talk about the ultimate goal of witches?”
“Ultimate goal?”
“Yes. It’s only about witches other than me. It’s a moldy teaching, and I’m not interested in it at all.”
Rona said. Witches live in the magical nature, where they get their daily food and train, and improve themselves by harmonizing with their surroundings.
“In the end, they become spirits that live in the land, or become one with old trees and become sacred trees.”
“Spirits…sacred trees…”
That way of life… Clare thought that it was somewhat like a druid, based on her knowledge from her previous life.
Druids have a history of being called witches on Earth and persecuted. Those called witches in this world are not particularly persecuted, though.
“I’m not sure what’s fun about living for that purpose. I rebelled against the witches’ teachings, so after I finished my training, I quickly left the village and went to the city. Witches are supposed to be independent once they’ve become fully grown, so I guess it was convenient in that sense.”
“Oh… When Rona was younger…”
“There, I made friends and comrades who got along well. They were, well, adventurers. I wasn’t thinking of doing that as my main job, but I lent them my strength a few times through that connection, and I used them to explore together… and we ended up taking on the Great Sea of Trees.”
Then, many things happened, and I ended up staying here, Rona continued, shrugging her shoulders.
“I thought I was living like a witch in the Great Sea of Trees, and now I’ve taken on an apprentice, you never know what the future holds.”
Rona looks over her shoulder and smiles.
“I appreciate that.”
“Heh, heh, well, he’s an interesting apprentice.”
After laughing at Clare tilting her head, Rona becomes a little serious.
“But you know, Clare. Just because you were raised by witches doesn’t mean you have to choose to live as a witch. Do what you want.”
“My… way.”
“That’s right. If there’s something you want to do, don’t be shy about it. I spent so much time and effort raising you, and it would be a waste to have you rot away in a hut unknown to anyone.”
Rona stops and turns around. The two of them look at each other for a while, then Clare looks into her eyes and nods.
“Yes, that’s right… I’ll think about it.”
If you consider the direction of training, it is certainly true. There is no point in training if you cannot live independently. Moreover, Rona’s permission to do as she pleases is also based on Rona’s way of thinking and life.
“That’s fine.”
After hearing Clare’s reply, Rona smiles, turns around, and continues walking.
“By the way, when do witches become independent?”
“About 14 or 15 years old. They find a partner and come back to the village.”
“Is that so? Apart from a partner, there are things I want to do. But even if I leave the hermitage, is it okay to come back to see my face occasionally?”
“…Well, do as you like. I’m also interested in the degree of my apprentice’s growth.”
“Yes. I’ll do as you like.”
The two of them exchange such conversations. Rona is moving forward, and they cannot see each other’s expressions.
The two of them continue on through the Great Sea of Trees. The trees and bushes in their path automatically avoid them, so they move quite fast. Even though they occasionally make detours or stop, they move in a straight line, taking the shortest distance possible, so it’s difficult to believe they’re traversing the Great Sea of Trees at such a speed.
Soon, they can see the “outside” of the Great Sea of Trees.
“Ohhh…”
Clare freezes, and the doll cries out. The dense trees seem to end, and suddenly the view widens, and they emerge into a bright place. There is a grassland. Mountains in the distance. A path continues between the grassland. The wind blows in the bright sunlight, and the flowers sway in the wind. It was a beautiful sight, except for the fact that they were so close to the Great Sea of Trees.
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