Chapter 39 : It’s Already Settled

In the end, to stop Roseithe from harassing the receptionist any further, Lanafit had no choice but to give up on the idea of booking another room—for now.

The longer they stayed here, the more this woman would expose her true nature.

Even as she dragged Roseithe away, Lanafit happened to catch a flicker of reluctant longing on the blushing receptionist’s face.

“……”

Yep.

This one really is better off locked up in the sky.

At least the other witches could keep her under control there.

“I really don’t know what the First Witch was thinking, letting a disaster like you come down here. Isn’t she worried that people’s impression of us witches will get even worse?”

Grumbling as she dragged Roseithe upstairs, Lanafit couldn’t hide her dissatisfaction.

Roseithe, however, just stuck out her tongue playfully with a cheeky grin.

“Well, Big Sis has been super busy lately, so Sister Ander has been acting as her proxy. And even though Sister Ander is stricter with me, as long as I find a good enough excuse, she’ll open the gate for me~!”

That made Lanafit pause.

She turned her head to stare at Roseithe.

“What excuse did you give?”

Roseithe smiled mysteriously.

“I told Sister Ander that the new Dragon King down here was having marriage troubles with his wife—he cheated on her with a little dragon girl six hundred years younger. I said I’d been ordered to go mediate the situation.”

Dragons were, after all, the most powerful species in the lower world apart from the Demon King.

As absurd as that excuse sounded, it actually held some weight from the witches’ perspective.

Besides, every Hero in history had to form a contract with the reigning or future Dragon King.

It was a key part of how the world worked.

If conflict between the dragon couple prevented the birth of a new heir, the consequences could be serious.

Lanafit, however, didn’t know much about all that.

She just stared wide-eyed at Roseithe.

“That’s it? That’s all it took for her to let you down here?!”

She recalled how much trouble she’d had getting permission to travel to the lower world—both Anthera and Roseithe had made it sound like a monumental task.

But Roseithe just tossed out a few lies and got the green light?

Didn’t seem that hard.

But Roseithe pouted in protest at Lanafit’s confusion.

“Hey, it wasn’t as easy as you think, okay? I had to beg Sister Ander for days before she agreed! And I was risking punishment for falsely claiming an order from the God of Magic, too!”

Clearly, Sister Ander had seen through her lies long ago—probably just got tired of dealing with her and gave in.

Still, Roseithe’s last comment caught Lanafit’s attention.

“Is it that serious to fake a divine command?”

“…Well, not exactly,” Roseithe said after thinking a moment. “Since witches are branded after reincarnation with a mark that prevents us from betraying our master, there’s no actual punishment. But the psychological burden is no joke.”

Hearing that made Lanafit feel a little guilty.

Roseithe had taken on that pressure just to come for her.

Her heart softened.

But then Roseithe continued.

“Of course, I was careful when I talked to Sister Ander. I just said I’d received an ‘order,’ not whose order. So technically, no guilt to worry about~!”

“……”

“Lanafit? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Roseithe, proud of her clever scheming and clearly fishing for praise, looked disappointed by Lanafit’s blank silence.

But she wasn’t one to give up easily.

“Are you stunned by my genius? Don’t be shy—go ahead and shower me with all those hidden compliments you’re holding back~!”

“…If you say so.”

Lanafit really didn’t feel like entertaining her anymore.

Thankfully, they had arrived at the room.

The servant who’d just finished preparing the room had been waiting at the door.

He respectfully held the key out with both hands and offered it to Lanafit.

But the moment he laid eyes on Lanafit and Roseithe together, he froze.

Seeing Lanafit alone earlier had already filled his mind with wild fantasies.

But now there was another woman—one even more stunning, with a curvier figure.

Poor guy never stood a chance.

Only when Lanafit thanked him, accepted the key, and dragged Roseithe into the room did he snap out of it.

Inwardly, he offered fervent thanks to the Goddess of Love, Roseithe Elodé.

Surely it was her blessing that had allowed such a beautiful encounter to occur.

He’d been pursuing the hotel receptionist for a while and was close to success.

But now, he had a new, loftier goal: to find out the name of that gorgeous red-haired woman and invite her for tea.

And so, the two young lovers—followers of the very Goddess of Love herself—who were about to fall into romance… were personally torn apart by Roseithe Elodé, the “Love Goddess” in their prayers.

Of course, the goddess in question had no idea that just showing her face had already caused such chaos.

Compared to the cute hotel receptionist and the random guy she completely ignored at the entrance, Roseithe now had a far more tempting “prey” right in front of her.

So, the very next moment after Lanafit dragged Roseithe into the room, she sensed that gaze from behind—

And immediately regretted everything.

“Click!”

As if confirming her ominous premonition, the crisp sound of the door lock echoed through the room, making Lanafit shudder.

She quickly turned around and backed away a few steps.

But when she saw Roseithe’s face—one that all but screamed “my plan succeeded”—Lanafit understood.

This woman had deliberately flirted with the receptionist to pressure her into not lingering at the front desk.

Then, she’d piqued Lanafit’s curiosity with her made-up story, distracting her all the way upstairs so she wouldn’t realize just how dangerous it was to return to their room.

“You schemed against me!?”

Lanafit glared at the door, now completely sealed with ice.

A part of her couldn’t believe she was being trapped by one of her own tricks.

Another part raged at Roseithe for playing so dirty.

She immediately turned and bolted toward the window—the only possible way out.

But to her horror, the window was gone.

It had to be an illusion.

Roseithe must’ve used some kind of magic to block her sight or hide the exit entirely.

Lanafit had read through the entire magic tome in her mind by now, but when it came to using magic, she still couldn’t compete with Roseithe.

Worse, she had a weakness that other witches didn’t: she couldn’t use light-based magic.

Now, with no way to escape, two blooming ice roses began to form in Lanafit’s hands—she was ready to fight to the death.

But to her shock, the moment the roses finished forming, they shattered within seconds.

Panicked, Lanafit tried to conjure another spell—only to discover that she couldn’t summon even the slightest bit of magic.

What was happening?

Fear crept into her heart. Then it hit her.

Roseithe had been hiding in her shadow for a long time earlier…

Could she have tampered with her magic back then?

And she hadn’t noticed at all?