[V3C4] Aspiration for Normalcy

Frieda Blanquet thought her engagement seemed daunting after the initial meeting… but her treatment was much better than she had anticipated.

Honestly, Frieda had braced herself for roughing it out in the wilds and living off the land. Yet they prepared a proper room for her in the Albright mansion, and her closet was packed neatly with clean clothes.

During meal times, a servant guided her to the dining hall, and the meals served were all delicious.

Fluffy white bread, hearty soups, stuffed sausages, and baked sweets with extravagant amounts of sugar——these were feasts rarely seen more than a few times a year in Valmbelk.

(…This is quite different from what I imagined.)

Returning to her room after dinner, Frieda crossed her arms, murmuring to herself contemplatively.

Mages were rarely seen in Valmbelk, much less shamans. While Frieda knew very little about shamans, she could tell this mansion was different from the common image society had of them.

(There aren’t many people in this mansion, considering its size.)

Frieda had encountered that wicked-looking old lady, Adeline. But apart from her and a few servants, there was no sign of other residents, including her fiancé.

The only one seated at the dining table was Frieda herself.

(If there’s something bothering me, I should ask right away.)

Frieda immediately left her room and searched for a servant.

Glancing down the corridor, she spotted a man in his thirties carrying a water jug. Frieda approached him and said, “Excuse me.”

The male servant had hazel hair slicked back and a medium build. He was Mick Henning, the one who guided Frieda to her room and the dining hall.

“Henning-san, may I trouble you for a moment?”

“Yes, what is it?”

Mick answered without much emotion, and although he couldn’t be described as friendly, he seemed to treat everyone with the same attitude.

At the very least, he didn’t seem to be hostile or contemptuous toward Frieda. Perhaps he was just naturally unsociable.

Without hesitation, Frieda asked Mick her question.

“Who else resides in this mansion besides Adeline-sama?”

“Primarily, it’s just Adeline-sama. Other family members have mansions throughout the Ridill Kingdom, where they conduct various studies or take on curse-related jobs.”

“…Including the head of the household and their parents?”

Upon hearing Frieda’s question, Mick hesitated for a moment while maintaining his stoic expression. He continued speaking, albeit looking slightly uncomfortable now.

“His parents passed away when he was very young, due to an accident caused by curses going out of control.”

“…I see.”

“The head of our household, Ray-sama, works in a mansion located in a forest not far from the capital. He stays there for more than half of the year.”

Apparently, Frieda’s fiancé was currently staying at that other mansion.

Adeline had told Frieda to “do whatever you want.” In that case, she couldn’t complain if Frieda visits the separate residence where her fiancé is.

However…

(There’s really no reason for me to go see him.)

Frieda didn’t have much interest in her fiancé, and it’s likely he had no intention of meeting her either.

If he did, he would have returned to the main residence long ago.

In that case, Frieda reached the conclusion that there’s no need to force herself to meet him.

“Is there anything else you want to ask?”

In response to Mick’s words, Frieda pondered for a moment before asking, “From your perspective, what kind of people are shamans?”

Mick, looking slightly surprised at Frieda’s question, immediately answered in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Well, I must say they are surprisingly human. Also, the people in this house are very generous with payments. Good wages, and it’s great that there’s no overtime work.”

A very interesting opinion. Frieda expressed her gratitude to Mick and returned to her room.

Now that she had safely arrived at the mansion, she decided to write a letter to her brother.

Her brother was likely worried sick, so Frieda wanted to report on how normal the mansion turned out to be, as well as the delicious food.

＊　＊　＊

The Abyss Shaman Ray Albright, having left the main mansion, headed to his estate on the outskirts of the capital and locked himself in his room.

The modest brick-built house, covered with ivy everywhere on its walls, indeed had the atmosphere of a shaman’s residence.

Inside, there were hanging herbs and dried lizard specimens, tapestries woven with magic circles, and shelves lined with cursed items.

The sun had already fallen. The only illumination in the room came from the fireplace and the lamps.

Various curse tools were illuminated by the orange light, their shadows wavering with the flickering of the flames.

Seated at his work desk, Ray drew magic circles on parchment. Then, he took a small knife and cut off a lock of his purple hair.

The Abyss Shaman’s body was saturated with curses, from each strand of hair down to his flesh and bones. In other words, every part of his body became a medium for cursecraft. The hair of the Third Abyss Shaman could be considered an extremely powerful curse catalyst.

Ray carefully braided the lock of hair, wrapped it in the parchment from earlier, and placed it in a small cloth bag.

This was a “Curse Reversal” talisman, with the power of reflecting any received curses back to the caster. Ray put a lot of effort into making it, so it was capable of reflecting even his grandmother’s curses.

Ray unfolded a sheet of stationery, took a quill pen, and wrote a line of words while humming in contemplation.

“Please keep this with you at all times. It can deflect Grandmother’s curses.”

It was only after placing the stationery into an envelope, that Ray suddenly realized he didn’t know the recipient’s name.

“W-What should I do… How should I deliver this in the first place… I don’t want to go back home, but I have to find a way to hand it over…”

That wicked old lady was sure to torment Ray’s fiancé with curses like the ‘pig nose curse,’ the ‘athlete’s foot curse,’ or the ‘taste disorder curse.’ It’s almost certain.

“…I want to cry just thinking about it… That poor girl must hate it… being chosen as my fiancé… and being bullied by that evil granny… Ugh…”

Ray sniffled, absentmindedly gazing at the skull displayed on his desk.

This skull belonged to the First Abyss Shaman.

A shaman’s body served as a catalyst for curses. And when it came to the skull of the Abyss Shaman, who bore numerous curses on their body, it would be the strongest curse tool in existence, capable of enveloping an entire country in curses.

The skull of the First Abyss Shaman was inherited by Ray when he succeeded House Albright.

While other families had staffs, rings, crystal balls, and the like, Ray was dumbfounded by the fact that his family passed down a skull.

(When Grandmother dies, her skull will be lined up here… and when I die, my skull will too…)

At times like this, Ray always wondered. Why was his family not normal?

(…Normal sounds nice. I wish I were born into a normal family…)

Ray didn’t know any “normal family.”

He had been engraved with curses since the moment of his birth, living as a shaman for twenty-three years. A “normal family” was nothing more than a distant dream for him.

In fact, even the word “normal” was a convenient fantasy for Ray.

If he had a normal home and a normal family, surely he would have been loved normally.

No one would hate him or find him repulsive.

And…

——We shamans must never utter the words ‘× ×××× ×××’. Make sure to remember that, Ray.

“…I’ve always wanted to say it at least once…”

The forbidden words once spoken by his mother.

Ray mouthed those words without making a sound, but right at that moment…

“BOOM!”

A tremendously loud voice reverberated through the air, causing the entire mansion to shake.

Dust and spiderwebs scattered from the ceiling beams. The items on his desk rolled off and fell to the floor.

“Gyah!? W-What’s going on…!?”

The loud noise came from the direction of the entrance. Specifically, the sound of a door being blown off with an attack spell.

As Ray panicked and screamed, the door to his room was kicked down with a bang.

The man responsible for kicking down his door was Louis Miller the Barrier Mage, his long braids waving in the air.

And behind him, laughing heartily, was a big man with black hair and a black beard, Bradford Firestone, the Artillery Mage.

“Dahahaha! You were here after all, Abyss!”

“Oh dear, did you forget the rule that the Seven Sages must stay in the castle during the New Year’s ceremony, Abyss Shaman-dono?”

Ray gasped. The two had apparently come to take him back to the castle after he fled the ceremony.

Nevertheless, why these two?

Of all people, they were the two most aggressive members of the Seven Sages. Moreover, they seemed a bit tipsy.

“Oh come on, Abyss. I was enjoying myself drinking at the banquet, you know? But then, word got out that you ran, so here I am, dragged out like this.”

“It had to be these two drunk old guys who came to get me… This is the worst… It’s too much…”

Hearing Ray’s mutter, Louis raised a slender eyebrow.

“Excuse me? I’m still in my twenties, quite young.”

“Dahaha! Just barely though.”

“In which world can you find an ‘old guy’ as young and handsome as me?”

If only he could be as confident as them, his life would be so much easier.

While envying Louis, Ray mumbled an excuse in a feeble voice.

“J-Just leave me alone today… I’m heartbroken… A lively banquet in the castle… Being there would shatter my heart…”

To the desperately pleading Ray, Louis responded with a cheerful voice.

“Do you think such selfishness can be tolerated? …Even as a married man such as I is enduring tears to stay at the castle, you know?”

Louis was smiling beautifully, but his eyes showed absolutely no sign of laughter. He felt very intimidating.

As Ray trembled, Bradford approached with heavy steps, reaching out a large hand toward Ray.

“N-no, I don’t wanna…!”

In a moment of panic, Ray activated a curse. Specifically, it was a curse that made the targeted area extremely itchy.

“Ugh, what the heck is this!? S-So itchy…”

As Bradford started scratching at his palm, Ray attempted to escape.

However, Louis blocked the door in front of him.

Louis twirled the staff he held tightly in his hand. The image of that staff striking him down flashed through Ray’s mind.

(I-I’ll try this then…!)

Ray rushed to the window in a frenzy and tried to jump outside, but when he looked out the window, he was left speechless.

The surroundings of his mansion were covered densely with vines. There was no opening for him to escape.

Smiling and waving cheerfully in front of the wriggling vines was the Thorn Witch, Raul Roseberg.

“Hey, Raaay! It’s useless to run away!”

“…This is the worst.”

Louis hooked the tip of his staff around the back of the sobbing Ray’s neck, lifting him up.

“Now, let’s return to the castle, Abyss Shaman-dono.”

Meanwhile, Monica was having teatime with the Starseer Witch.

“Just leave those sorts of things to the boys.”

“O-Okay…”

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