Home/The Reason I Was Reincarnated as a Witch in a Novel/ch 19

 Chapter 019

Upon arriving at the log cabin at the summit, Lindsay folded her umbrella and placed it in the stand. She checked the passage to see if Lionel was coming up properly.

In the darkness, Lionel's jade-green umbrella glowed brightly within the tunnel.

The tip of the umbrella emerged above the ground, with Lionel rising beneath it. Watching him, Lindsay was reminded of the protagonist from a certain anime—she looked like a certain angel girl named N.

Of course, what she held was an umbrella, not a balloon, and Lionel was a man, not a girl—yet it felt utterly natural. How did he manage to look good doing absolutely anything?

Lionel, now standing on the wooden floor, extended the hand that had been gripping the umbrella, his voice tinged with a hint of playfulness.

"Holding onto the umbrella was hard on my hands. Couldn't you allow me to use teleportation magic as well?"

Lindsay checked the palm Lionel extended and widened her eyes. Red, indented marks crossed his pale hand. How long did you hang on to make your palm that red? Are you really this fragile?

Was I like this when I was human?

Looking at his sore-looking palm, Lindsay compared her past self to Lionel. Humans truly were frail creatures. And she, among witches, was particularly strong, wasn't she?

Having reached that realization, she spoke with a serious expression.

"For today only, do it that way. I'll adjust the barrier later."

"Thank you, my Lady Witch."

"Don't mention it. Since this is the first time I've had a guest here, I hadn't even considered such inconveniences."

Thanks to this, Lindsay had discovered a serious flaw in the transport system she had modeled after elevators from her previous life. Lionel had somehow managed to hang on and come up, but there was no contingency for a user who dropped the umbrella.

A user who lost their umbrella would have to save themselves from a high-altitude fall with their own power. It was truly a bottomless elevator of death.

Lindsay pulled a healing potion from her subspace and poured it generously over Lionel's hand. The dark red imprints faded, restoring his palm to its original color.

Lionel flexed his hand and smiled brightly.

"Thank you. Thanks to you, it doesn't hurt at all."

"The barrier only reacts to detection and movement-type magic, so you're free to use the rest. If you feel like you're falling, use strength enhancement or levitation spells."

Lindsay gave her advice with unusual seriousness. The last thing she needed was a great mage falling to his death in her own home due to a lack of grip strength.

Lionel's expression brightened considerably at her concern.

"Of course. So then—shall we go have the dinner you prepared?"

"Follow me. I've set it up outside."

"Outside?"

"Yeah."

Lionel echoed her, and Lindsay nodded with a rare look of excitement. She walked briskly toward the entrance, eager to show off the dinner she had worked hard to prepare.

"Get ready to be impressed. This is a sight you can only see from the Molten Mountains."

She looked back at Lionel and turned the doorknob. The door opened, and the glow of sunset flooded in, dyeing the room in autumn hues.

Lindsay grinned at Lionel, who had parted his lips slightly in surprise.

He walked slowly toward the open door, like someone witnessing the birth of stars for the first time—then stopped. As if he could go no further.

"You like it that much?"

Lindsay, satisfied with Lionel's dazed admiration of the scene she had prepared, shifted her gaze to the crimson sky behind him. Truly, the sunset viewed from an open mountaintop never grew tiresome.

The sun hung low on the horizon, painting the sky red. Crimson and orange hues spread across the ridges of the undulating mountain range, and everything on the peaks sparkled in warm gold. As the world was bathed in warm colors, even the wind brushing against their faces felt gentle.

The two stood there as if time had stopped, watching the sunset grow deeper and richer in color.

As the sun disappeared entirely, a curtain of moon and stars was drawn across the sky. Night had fully fallen.

Once the sunset that had colored the heavens faded, Lindsay led the moved Lionel to the dining spot.

At the summit, the campfire she had lit earlier was still burning. Nearby stood a wooden table with neatly arranged food.

The table held meat that had been seared and vegetables ready for grilling, alongside a earthenware pot of steamed eggs and a bottle of liquor.

"What is all this?"

Lionel, who had sat down on the chair before the table involuntarily, came to his senses and asked. His face was still strangely flushed.

"What else? A barbecue party. You just sit back and eat."

Someone else will handle the grilling.

Lindsay had borrowed Nero's shadows in advance, and they began roasting the meat. She took her seat, picked up the liquor bottle, and tilted it over Lionel's glass.

A trickling sound filled the air as the liquor fell into the cup.

"It's low in alcohol, but if you can't handle it, don't drink. I can't carry you back home."

"Then you could just take me to your place, Lindsay."

"Why would I bring you to my house? Stop talking nonsense and have a drink."

Lindsay filled her own glass to the brim and raised it. Lionel only stared at his cup, so she showed him how to toast.

"You've never done this before, have you? When you raise your glass like this, it means let's toast."

"No one's ever proposed a toast to me, so I didn't know."

"That's a shame. You should treat your subordinates well—if you don't want to be cursed behind your back."

It's impossible to avoid being bad-mouthed as a boss, but still—be good to them. More importantly, the liquor tonight was wonderfully sweet.

Lindsay immediately poured herself another glass and downed it. She felt like a tyrannical senior manager grilling a subordinate at a company dinner, but she didn't care. She was old enough, and Lionel was still a young brat.

She pointed at the steamed egg dish, prepared to tide them over while the meat cooked.

"Eat that while the meat's grilling."

"Do I just scoop and eat it?"

"Shall I serve you some?"

It might be awkward to share from the same dish.

Lindsay reached for the extra plate set aside to portion out the steamed eggs. She respected his preference not to share the earthenware pot, since their relationship was purely transactional.

But Lionel blocked her hand as it reached for the plate.

"Sharing is no big deal, is it? I just asked because it's a food I've never seen before."

Anyone listening would think we were close.

Lindsay watched Lionel take a large spoonful of the steamed eggs with a sour expression.

Before she could voice that thought, the black hands placed freshly grilled meat on plates and set them on the table.

Taking a bite of the meat, Lindsay gave a thumbs-up to the shadows.

The black hands melted and wobbled for a moment, then started grilling more vigorously. The shadows—like their master—were weak to praise.

"The fragrance is incredible—is this Flower-Scented Pork? You should try some too. You worked hard today."

Lionel took a bite of the grilled meat and his eyes went wide.

"What makes Flower-Scented Pork taste like this?"

"It's a native breed raised by the Beastman Tribe in the southern part of the continent. Surprising, right? Its appearance is even more interesting."

Lindsay excitedly chattered about the Flower-Scented Pig—how she had seen pigs wearing pink flowers on their ears, and how the tribespeople adorned their pigs with flowers.

Lionel listened quietly, then whispered with a light smile.

"I think I'd enjoy traveling with my Lady Witch."

"What? You spoke so softly I didn't hear a word."

"I said the meat is delicious."

"Right? Nero loves it too—I asked him to join us, but he kept saying he had business to attend to."

"He had business?"

"That's what he said!"

The cat was currently circling Yuri Ohara, bringing misfortune her way. Of course, Lindsay would only learn about that later.

Lindsay interrogated Lionel, who wore a sly smile.

"Your expression says you know something."

"Me?"

"Yeah, you."

"How would I know anything about that cat?"

"That's true, but..."

As he said, she was the one who should know more about the cat's whereabouts. Unable to let go of her suspicion, Lindsay raised her glass instead.

The red liquor in her cup sloshed softly as it flowed into her mouth. With the alcohol warming her, she shifted the conversation from the cat to Lionel.

"How long do you plan to stay by my side?"

Lionel's face visibly stiffened.

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