Home/The Reason I Was Reincarnated as a Witch in a Novel/ch 10

Chapter 010

The knock came exactly eight times. Vans opened the front page of his ledger and slid open the window. In a businesslike tone, he asked his usual question:

"Alias, item, price—buying or selling?"

"..."

"What? New here?"

When no answer came, Vans snapped back irritably. Dealing with rookies was part of the job—and they were the type of customer brokers hated most.

From having to explain everything step by step, to clueless brats poking around—it was all a pain. But Vans had to abide by the broker's absolute rules, so he reluctantly opened his mouth.

"Make up any alias. It's for record-keeping—just don't be stupid enough to use your real name. Are you here to buy or sell?"

"I want to meet the Witch."

"You don't know the market rules? Well, I suppose you didn't even know the basics..."

Vans looked at the clueless new customer with bewilderment. Knocking on the window with the octopus figurine eight times granted access to Deep Market services.

Many rookies found their way here after hearing the contact methods through word of mouth, and among them, more and more were seeking the Witch, just like the person beyond the window.

"Listen carefully. The market's fundamental rule is: no questions about identity. If you want to meet the Witch, your only option is to purchase an item she's listed."

"Is there anything listed?"

"No. For a new customer like you, trading with the Witch is like plucking a star from the sky."

"Why?"

"Because brokers are all scrambling to skim the Witch's goods off the books."

I could do it too—for a reasonable commission, that is.

Vans pressed his thumb and index finger together in a circle through the window. It was an unspoken practice for brokers to skim popular sellers' items—which would be snapped up the moment they were registered—and sell them under the table for a fee.

Without ever entering the goods in the market ledger, brokers like Vans could make a killing just by selling to regulars. And the Witch was a popular seller who frequented Vans's brokerage.

"How much?"

"The Witch? About this much?"

At the new customer's positive response, Vans smiled and wiggled three fingers in front of the window. In that instant, a scarred hand grabbed Vans's three fingers roughly.

"AAH! W-what are you doing?!"

"Cheap, for the price of your life."

The customer yanked Vans's fingers out through the window. Dragged out without being able to resist through an opening smaller than his forearm, Vans screamed. A large hole was torn in the window where a grown man had been forced through.

"Ghhk... Hah... M-my arm..."

Scratched and torn in multiple places by the shattered window, the worst pain came from his arm. The arm that the customer had grabbed was dislocated, dangling uselessly outside the window.

Vans wished—even if it meant getting caught for illegal trafficking—that someone passing by would report him to the guards. But a black market brokerage was never located on a main street.

In a pitch-black back alley with no one around, Vans endured the pain and pleaded.

"W-what do you want? Just spare my life, please! If you want to meet the Witch, I can make it happen!"

"How? Didn't you just say identities are secret?"

"Today's the day the Witch comes to register items! She'll be here any minute!"

"There are one hundred and fifty brokers in the capital alone. How can you be sure the Witch will come here?"

Crazy bastard!

Vans was stunned that the man knew the number of brokers even he didn't, while fumbling with his foot beneath the shelf inside the window.

If he pressed the button that summoned the Deep Market's 'Whales'—there for the brokers' protection—he might survive. So he'd stall. Buy time...

"Th-the Witch comes regularly to sell. She'll definitely come today too."

...He pressed it!

Smirking inwardly at the thought of the bastard being pummeled into a pulp by the 'Whales,' Vans forced his twitching lips still and tried to persuade the man.

"If the Witch sees me in this mess, she'll leave immediately. So let go of my arm first, and we can talk more."

"Makes sense."

The man released Vans's arm and leaned against the unbroken wall.

"Physical description?"

"She wears a black cloak, so I don't know her face. Her build is bigger than yours, and from her voice, she's definitely male."

"A witch who's male... If you're lying, that wouldn't be wise."

You son of a bitch! Maybe she's a man who wants to be a woman!

Despite the man's utter lack of respect for personal preferences, Vans swallowed his anger. Why aren't the Whales coming? Hurry up, damn it!

"Must be an unusual taste. She makes such good potions, and the fact she's distributing them on the market shows she's eccentric, right?"

"I didn't ask."

"H-ha...ha."

This prickly new customer was thoroughly unlikable. Come to think of it, was this bastard even trying to hide his identity? Why was he showing his face so openly?

Looking at the face revealed beneath his loosely worn cloak, it seemed he didn't really need to hide it anyway.

Vans glanced sideways down the alley behind the man. Still, not even an ant was in sight besides Vans and the customer.

Damn it! I pay half my commission in fees and they can't even protect me properly!

As time passed, Vans grew more anxious. His information about the Witch was running dry, and the Whales showed no sign of appearing. Finally, his information was exhausted, and Vans watched the man's mood.

The man, with his utterly ordinary features, finished his interrogation and spoke casually.

"Oh, the 'Whales' aren't coming. Hurry up and fix that window."

If the Witch senses something wrong and turns back, your body will return to the soil too.

At the man's added words, Vans's face went pale. The reason and method didn't matter. The new customer he had dismissed as a rookie was, in truth, a predator wearing the mask of a novice.

Breaking out in a cold sweat, Vans forced his dislocated arm back into place. Remembering his fox-like wife and rabbit-like child waiting at home, he somehow managed to move despite the pain.

He pulled out leftover materials, a hammer, and nails from inside the shop and patched them over the hole in the window.

The man watched Vans repairing the window while leaning against the wall, then leaped up onto the roof. As he ascended, he didn't forget to leave a warning.

"Don't try anything stupid."

In the dark alley, the sound of urgent hammering echoed.

---

Do they have Halloween here too?

After taking her potion and altering her appearance, Lindsay stepped into the dark alley—then stopped. Window No. 7, which she usually visited, had been remodeled.

The hastily wiped bloodstains and the wooden boards nailed over the shattered wall looked like part of an abandoned house. With cobwebs and a pumpkin lamp, it would have been the quintessential Halloween décor...

...As if!

In a fantasy world where dragons, witches, and magic existed, there was no such concept as Halloween. Something was definitely wrong.

Sensing something amiss, Lindsay turned to leave. She'd use Window No. 11 instead of No. 7 today.

"!"

"You're the witch dealing in illegal potions, aren't you?"

If not for the man blocking her path with a blade at her throat, her plan would have gone smoothly.

Lindsay pushed the cold steel blade away with her fingertips. Her magically protected hand wasn't cut or scratched. How long had it been since she met someone so rude on first sight?

"So you are a witch."

Even though Lindsay hadn't answered, the man's voice carried certainty. She sighed, noticing his gaze fixed on the hand pushing the blade away.

She thought she understood why the man was so sure. It was because of the one fatal flaw of the body-transforming potion.

The 'Enlargement Potion' had a critical weakness. The body swelled like a balloon, but the extremities didn't grow—they remained their original size. To hide her small hands and feet beneath her large frame, she always wore a cloak.

Lindsay lowered the blade with her pale, delicate hand. The man obediently lowered his sword and spoke.

"You'll have to come with me. Witch."

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