Chapter 05 …

The deep lethargy and exhaustion caused by never being able to sleep.

Those things had turned him—someone already quiet and blunt by nature—into a man completely indifferent to the world itself.

To the point that even attending the birthday banquet of one of his only two friends, Leia Everett, felt bothersome.

There wasn’t any particular reason he wanted to return home.

He had only recently come back after ending the war against the demonic beasts, and his body felt unbearably heavy.

On top of that, throughout the entire war, he hadn’t been able to sleep properly even once.

A mere thirty minutes.

If someone survived for over six months on nothing more than short naps where they barely closed and opened their eyes, anyone would understand.

At least, that was what he thought.

Because he could never fall into a deep sleep, living in a constant haze of dizziness and mental fog had become normal for him.

To the Blake I miss dearly.

Blake, have you been doing well? How is it there? I heard you’ll be returning soon, but shouldn’t you finally get some rest too? At this rate, you’ll collapse.

…(omitted)…

Ah, I’m planning to hold a birthday banquet, and since it’s been so long since we last saw each other, I really hope you’ll come. I know you must be tired, but if you have time after returning, would you attend?

I miss the way we used to be.

-Your eternal partner, Leia Everett.

If it hadn’t been for the desperate letter sent by his close friend Leia, he probably wouldn’t have even bothered leaving the estate.

To be honest, even then, he had only planned to briefly show his face and return immediately.

If not for his aide insisting that preparing a gift was the bare minimum required to avoid disgracing a ducal family, he wouldn’t have bothered with that either.

And then, as he was leaving the estate, the teddy bear recommended so enthusiastically by an old peddler woman had seemed like a fairly decent choice.

“Young man! Don’t you need this teddy bear?”

“…I don’t.”

“What a prickly young man. You definitely need it! This teddy bear could change your world.”

“You’ve got no conscience, old lady. Just look at the condition of this thing.”

“Cough, ahaha. W-well, yes! But this teddy bear isn’t ordinary. Sometimes you have to look beyond appearances and see what’s inside. The heart is what matters.”

“…The heart?”

And just like that, he had impulsively bought the teddy bear.

Of course, he had hesitated a little.

Even he knew it was far from a normal gift.

But under the blazing spring afternoon sunlight,

between the efficient calculation that he wouldn’t need to waste any more time on gifts and the overwhelming fatigue washing over him, he handed over the money without thinking further.

“I’ll take this.”

And that was how he ended up bringing the teddy bear there, only to get dragged onto the terrace by Rain while trying to hand it over.

All he wanted was to deliver the teddy bear without issue and quickly escape this mentally exhausting banquet hall.

But—

“Hello, my savior!”

The teddy bear hopping around brightly while waving its hand…

What exactly was that thing?

He couldn’t believe the situation unfolding before his eyes.

Was it some object created by the insane magicians of the Kasdonia Empire?

Or maybe one of those moving dolls that toy stores had supposedly started selling recently?

Had that junk dealer old woman sold him a magical artifact?

Or perhaps…

‘A demonic beast?’

The sword he reflexively drew gleamed coldly beneath the moonlight.

“What are you?”

“Vivian. My name is Vivian Holloway!”

The teddy bear introducing itself as Vivian looked incredibly excited.

Was it just his imagination, or were its cheeks slightly flushed pink?

But no matter how cute it looked, he couldn’t lower his guard.

“Is it some wicked object created by magicians? Or a demonic beast?”

At Blake’s mention of demonic beasts, focus returned to the green eyes of Rain, who had been frozen like ice the entire time.

Rain immediately drew his sword as well, giving off an aura like he was about to slice the teddy bear apart at any second.

“I’ll cut off its head immediately, Commander.”

“I’m not a demonic beast! I already don’t have any magic power left, and now you’re accusing me of that too? That’s harsh.”

The teddy bear, indignantly insisting it absolutely wasn’t a demonic beast, suddenly raised its round hand.

“Wait a second.”

Then it started fidgeting around busily, scribbling something on the ground, pressing a hand against its forehead, and moving about restlessly.

“Will this make them believe me? No… but with the amount of magic I currently have charged up, that’s impossible. Haaah, what should I show them?”

Its tiny bean-like feet shuffled around anxiously as it thought.

“…What is it doing?”

“No idea.”

Blake stared at the teddy bear in genuine confusion.

“…It doesn’t seem like a demonic beast, does it?”

“Right. Demonic beasts don’t possess intelligence. That thing clearly has intelligence.”

“Then what exactly is that teddy bear?”

At that moment, as though it had finally made a decision, the teddy bear’s round eyes curved into crescents.

“Okay, I’ve decided! I’ll introduce myself properly. I am Vivian Holloway, the Great Witch of the West from the world of witches!”

The moment it finished speaking, the teddy bear raised its short, chubby arms high into the air.

“Fireworks!”

Pop! Pop-pop!

With tiny explosions, a pitifully small firework burst from the teddy bear’s little hand in colorful sparks.

Of course, the light was so tiny it was embarrassing to even call it fireworks.

“…….”

“Wow.”

“Hehe.”

Perhaps pleased by Rain’s small gasp of admiration, the teddy bear crossed its arms proudly and nodded.

“Now you can believe me, right? I told you I’m a witch! I just lost most of my power right now, so I’m stuck inside this teddy bear.”

“I used up almost all my remaining strength just to make those fireworks. Please believe me.”

The teddy bear drooped its eyes pitifully as it spoke.

Rain had already begun staring at the teddy bear with fascinated eyes.

But Blake was different.

Even now, he still didn’t lower the sword pointed toward the teddy bear, his gaze full of suspicion.

“A witch? Ridiculous. Witches disappeared hundreds of years ago. Are you some insane magician?”

“Magician? Those people who borrow and use mana? They’re completely different from me! I draw magic power out myself!”

Shaking its head, the teddy bear paused to think before once again raising its palm.

“Wait. Just wait a second.”

“Why should I wait?”

“Blessings come to those who wait.”

At the shameless answer, Blake blinked slowly in disbelief.

He desperately wanted to return home immediately and sleep.

And yet, somehow, at that brazen little gesture, he found himself waiting for the teddy bear.

The teddy bear rolled its eyes around while tightly pursing its lips, clearly thinking hard about what to do next.

Then suddenly, it slammed its fist into its palm.

“Ah! Right. I can make you sleep. Can magicians do that?”

“…What did you say you can do?”

The shadows beneath Blake’s eyes darkened even further.

“U-uh, that’s basically a forbidden phrase.”

Muttering quietly from the side, Rain stomped his feet nervously as though disaster had struck.

‘Make me sleep.’

It was certainly something magicians could never do.

They created magical artifacts through incomprehensible formulas and calculations, manipulated fire and water, and cast defensive spells—

but they could never make him sleep.

No magic.

No medicine.

Nothing had ever been capable of putting him to sleep.

And now what?

Amused by the absurdity, Blake curled one corner of his lips upward before finally lowering his sword slowly.

“And how exactly are you going to make me sleep? By patting me and hugging me? Or are you planning to sing me a lullaby?”

“Hm, is that what you want? But the reason you can’t sleep isn’t because nobody’s there to hold you.”

The mocking look in his eyes—which had clearly been ridiculing the idea that she could truly make him sleep—turned razor-sharp in an instant, like he might cut her throat at any moment.

“You know about my curse?”

The teddy bear flinched, its shoulders trembling briefly, but it deliberately looked away and answered calmly.

“Witches know everything. Besides, I’m Vivian, the Great Witch of the West. I can help you.”

“…….”

“But you have to help me too. I need you. If we stay together, we’ll be unbeatable.”

A scammer.

Or perhaps a trap sent by someone targeting him.

That was Blake’s overall conclusion after observing Vivian so far.

First, she distracted people with sudden fireworks.

Then she used her harmless and adorable appearance to gain favor.

And finally, she offered an irresistible proposal.

A suspicious teddy bear that introduced itself as a witch while setting off fireworks from its hands and claiming it could break his curse.

“Commander, no matter how I look at it, that doll is incredibly suspicious. Wouldn’t it be best to dispose of it right here immediately?”

Yes.

No matter how anyone looked at it, the entire situation was bizarre and suspicious.

But strangely enough, the old junk dealer woman’s words kept echoing in Blake’s ears.

“This teddy bear could change your world. Sometimes you need to look beyond appearances and see what’s inside. The heart is what matters.”

“And if someone else comes onto the terrace, things could get even bigger. I’ll cut it down right n—”

Rain, who had been whispering quietly into Blake’s ear, couldn’t finish his sentence.

“Fine.”

“An excellent decision, Commander. Then I’ll immediately dispose of that strange teddy bear—”

“No. I said fine. I’ll take it with me.”

“…Pardon?”

“Eh?”

“Why are you surprised? I said I’d do what you wanted.”

The round pea-like eyes blinked slowly.