CHAPTER 75…………………………………….
Despite Laseil’s reaction, Risena remained calm.
“I can’t take it on, can I?”
“No matter what…”
But Elrut was somewhat right.
At least Risena had the abilities she gained as a spirit mage.
She could protect herself in a dangerous situation.
“What exactly is it about?”
“I only heard it, so I don’t know all the details… but roughly like this.”
It was said that when she fell asleep, she could see the forest in her territory.
The forest before it was burned, densely packed with trees.
Within it, after several attempts at summoning, something finally revealed itself…
“She woke up then, right? The problem started after that.”
The issue was that she didn’t even realize it was a nightmare.
And that wasn’t the only problem.
She became obsessed with the idea that she had to summon a demon.
“She regained her senses just before drawing the summoning circle? Anyway, it’s dangerous.”
“……”
Just a slight slip, and she might have attempted to summon a demon.
Listening to it alone was chilling, but surprisingly, Elrut remained calm.
“Well, it’s fine because she didn’t.”
Sometimes, Laseil wondered what that nonchalant attitude was based on.
Had he lived in this territory too long?
“…Weren’t there also papers with precautions? Where are they?”
“Oh, they’re here.”
Elrut handed over three sheets of paper.
“One is from that jewel, one from the doll, and one from the comb.”
“Why are there so many?”
Laseil turned his gaze toward the doll and comb.
The comb looked expensive, but the doll…
“Even dolls come with instructions?”
“A little guest came by. Think of it like giving them pocket money.”
‘Was it really just a child?’
A child carrying items covered in warnings didn’t seem ordinary.
Laseil, still suspicious, began reading the precautions.
The warnings on the jewelry set were as expected:
[1. We regret that you have become the owner of this jewel.
- The jewel is deeply possessive of its owner.
Do not leave it unattended for more than three hours. - The jewel will always appear in your dreams.
Do not sleep while wearing it.]
More unusual were the warnings attached to the comb:
[1. Do not use this comb when brushing your hair.]
‘What?’
Do not use the comb while brushing your hair.
Clearly, whoever wrote this didn’t understand what a comb was for.
What came next was even more baffling:
[However, if your hair is black, it is safe to use.]
‘There are hardly any people with black hair.’
Among the empire’s people, hair colors varied, but black hair was extremely rare.
The only person Laseil knew with black hair was the maid-in-charge of the lord’s castle.
‘I’m not even sure if “person” is the right word… but anyway.’
It was clear there were many oddities.
Laseil frowned as he continued reading the rest:
[2. Always store the comb in the included case.
We are not responsible for any damage resulting from failure to do so.
- Limit combing time to one hour.
Exceeding this may cause headaches, vomiting, or coughing up blood. - The comb has no decorations.
If there are knot-shaped decorations, stop using it immediately.]
‘At this point, can we even call it a comb?’
From the precautions alone, it sounded more like a poison than a comb.
The warnings for the doll were somewhat more understandable:
[1. Do not leave the doll alone for more than two hours during the day.
It is surprisingly sensitive to loneliness.
- If you feel the doll’s gaze after sunset, ignore it.
A normal doll’s eyes do not move, and it does not smile unnaturally. - Do not sleep with the doll beside your pillow, especially if you have frequent nightmares.
- Do not tear the doll with scissors or inspect its insides.
Nothing good will come of it. - If the doll’s fabric is torn, sew it back instead of looking inside.
You don’t know what will happen if the tear spreads. - Do not sprinkle salt on the doll.
- Do not talk to the doll when alone, even if it seems to respond. Ignore it.
- You are entirely responsible for any consequences of ignoring these precautions.]
‘It is said that ghosts often inhabit dolls…’
Considering that, it was somewhat understandable.
Though making the customer responsible for everything seemed a bit unreasonable.
“Is that all the items that came in?”
Laseil asked again.
They were in odd condition, but nothing seemed too serious.
“Anything else happen?”
“You’ll see when you look.”
Elrut glanced out the window before continuing:
“It’s just starting. Look for yourself.”
Immediately after he said this, a sound came from outside.
A faint rattling grew louder until the pawnshop’s window began to shake.
A dark silhouette, roughly twice the size of a normal person, appeared near the window.
“Does this happen often?”
The music box’s spring whirred on its own, playing a melody.
The tune was slower and longer than the original, mixed with metallic noises.
A black shape reflected in the mirror, and suddenly, even outside the window went dark.
Though it was daytime, complete darkness fell.
Somewhere, a spring turned again on its own.
‘Is it over?’
The commotion ended about ten minutes later.
When light returned, the pawnshop’s interior was a complete mess.
Display cases were broken, and some pledged items were destroyed.
The continuously turning music box seemed completely broken.
“Is it okay?”
“It happens all the time. This is nothing.”
‘If this happens all the time, that’s a problem…’
“The items over there are completely destroyed.”
“They probably didn’t intend to take them back. They left them for us to deal with.”
“……”
These were items that originally caused paranormal phenomena.
Since there was no proper way to handle them, people entrusted them to Elrut with money.
At least they were dealt with, so that was something.
“So, how should I handle the necklace? The ones with warnings don’t break either.”
“…Better ask the maid-in-charge.”
After a brief hesitation, Laseil answered quickly.
It clearly seemed related to black magic.
“The comb?”
“That too.”
Laseil quickly left the pawnshop with the comb and jewelry set from Elrut.
He wondered if things would be more visible in the light.
‘It was too dark inside the pawnshop.’
But things didn’t go as expected.
The cloudy sky made the weather gloomy.
Eventually, Laseil gave up observing and was about to head toward the lord’s castle when he stopped.
“Wait, Laseil!”
Elrut suddenly opened the door and called him.
“Why?”
“Have you seen Risena? She hasn’t been around all day.”
“Well…”
He hadn’t seen her since arriving here.
She was probably taking a day off as usual.
Her medical office always ran like that.
‘It’s concerning, but…’
There was something more urgent at the moment.
As Laseil entered the lord’s castle, he called out urgently:
“Maid-in-charge! Do you have a moment?”
Since the day was gloomy, it shouldn’t be a problem to talk.
The moment Laseil’s voice reached her, the maid appeared.
“What’s the matter… where did you get that?”
She reacted unusually strongly.
It was only the second time she had shown such emotion.
‘The first time was when the black magician story came up.’
Perhaps this was the same.
Laseil carefully handed over the jewelry set and comb.
“There was something strange in the pawnshop. Do you know what this is?”
“……”
The maid’s eyes trembled.
