Chapter 166: Relief
When Subaru sat back into the chair and looked at the witch seated across from him, he noticed that the atmosphere no longer carried the same sense of dissonance it had at the start.
Her face showed no smile. Sitting there, she looked like an ice block that would never melt. Perhaps this kind of demeanor was what a witch was truly supposed to have.
Compared to a normal person's coldness, hers was real coldness.
Ordinary coldness came from personality, but at least it still carried a trace of human warmth. The witch's coldness, however, had no human warmth at all.
Facing such a witch, Subaru actually felt a little more at ease—because now, that sense of incongruity he couldn't ignore before was gone.
"Well then, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Echidna, the Witch of Greed."
"The Witch of Greed? One of the witches who was devoured by the Witch of Envy four hundred years ago?"
"Judging from your reaction, you don't seem very shocked."
"Well, I don't have many strengths worth boasting of, but if I do have one, it's probably that I'm quick to accept things."
Leaning back in his chair, Subaru looked at the witch before him and spoke slowly.
"Besides, it's not like this is my first time meeting a witch. And I already have plenty of knowledge about witches. Honestly, if you hadn't acted so overly friendly at the start, I might not have seen what was hidden beneath that smile of yours.
After all, compared to the incomprehensible, monstrous witches I've read about in books, I prefer witches who can at least still be described as human."
At this point Subaru paused, then looked seriously at Echidna.
"Let's skip the small talk. Please, Witch, tell me what your goal is."
"My goal? I've already said it. My goal is to know all the unknowns of this world. No matter what kind of unknown, I want to know it."
"Oh really. Well, that matches the unnatural curiosity you just showed. But you're already dead—just a spirit.
If you want to know the unknown, then surely having a body must be important to you. But I'm curious… if you want to know everything unknown in the world, why don't you go and savor the unknown of death?"
"I've already tasted the unknown of death. Otherwise, I wouldn't be in this form I am now."
"Is that so. So you don't deny you still need a body."
Echidna shrugged.
"You're not like I imagined. So trying to trick you with the idea that I don't need a body would clearly be wrong.
You're sharp, Natsuki Subaru. Since you entered this Witch's Tea Party, everything you've done has been different from what I expected—so sharp that you can even draw useful information from my actions and words.
I'm more and more curious about what your past was like."
Subaru didn't respond.
His mind was caught on those words: Witch's Tea Party. And ever since she had called herself the Witch of Greed, he felt like he was just one step away from connecting a number of things together.
"You want to know my past? Then what can you offer in return? My past is worth more to me than anything else in this world."
"Oh? So your past is that valuable? Well, I suppose it makes sense.
For some people, their past is more important than anything else. You're just one of them.
But something you think is precious doesn't necessarily mean it's precious to me. If you really want a proper discussion, don't try to attach your own sense of value to things that others might not think important."
At this, Echidna laughed. But it was not a false laugh, nor a kind one—it was a cruel, malicious smile.
Facing that smile, Subaru also laughed, and said slowly:
"Witch of Greed, Echidna—you're right. But you should also understand that this conversation is unequal. I don't need anything from you. It's you who wants something from me. It's not me asking you for something, it's you asking me."
"You really are such a humorless man, Natsuki Subaru."
"Maybe for you. But why should I bother trying to show off charm or humor before someone like you? What's the point of gaining your favor? What use would that even be?"
"Oh, you never know. You already understand how vast my curiosity is. Then imagine how deep my knowledge of this world runs. Perhaps the very answer you want is right here in my head."
"That sounds nice. But you claim to know this world so deeply? Then tell me—what lies beyond the sky?"
"Beyond the sky…"
"What lies deep beneath the earth of this world?"
"..."
"Why does the world have day and night? If you sail endlessly forward in one direction across the sea, what will you find? And in the unimaginably distant past, what was this world like?"
"I admit, I don't know those things. My knowledge of the world is indeed not so deep. But that's exactly why I want to know. And to do that, I need a body. You just happen to be the best candidate."
"Why me? Why choose me?"
"The reason? Because you are favored by that woman. I want to know what it is about you that makes Satella, the Witch of Envy, cherish you."
At those words Subaru froze, then shook his head helplessly.
"Echidna, if this continues, neither of us will get an answer we're satisfied with. Not that I ever had any intention of giving you my body in the first place."
Subaru slapped both hands on the table and stood up, leaning forward to close the distance between them. Looking straight into her eyes, he smiled.
"You have no attraction to me whatsoever. Your so-called knowledge holds no value for me.
Maybe you could give me plenty of useful information, but a person like you is someone I would never entrust with my trust. Our conversation has been nothing but lies from the start."
"Natsuki Subaru, do you realize how many things you'll miss out on by saying that?"
"I don't know how much I'll miss out on. But I do know this—right now, you're not someone I can trust."
"Why? You don't even understand me. Isn't what you're saying now contradicting what you said earlier?"
"I really wanted to call you human—I even said why. But through all this talk, you've never shown emotions or actions that a human should have.
All I've seen from you is your hunger for knowledge, and nothing else."
"Hah… Natsuki Subaru, being rejected by you is just another unknown to me.
Even if I tried to force you, you wouldn't yield. That means nothing I do would work, right?"
"At the very least, that lets me feel relieved, Echidna."
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