Satella's eyes shimmered with sorrow as her lips pressed into a silent line.
She was the one who had drained the world of its wonders, the sovereign of the Shadow City, the most devastating calamity known—the Witch of Jealousy.
A scourge that brought ruin in the name of love turned sour.
To witness her was to vanish from the world.
She fed on terror.
She found joy in death.
Where monsters tread, only ruins remain.
Where the witch walks, nothing is left behind.
All that survives in living memory—
Is the ever-spreading wasteland she left behind.
And...
The undeniable truth that heroes of legend and dragons of old perished before her.
Bards still wander through the ruins of forgotten cities,
Piecing together her story from scattered remnants:
A silver-haired half-elf, cloaked in shadowed mist.
Her stray locks kissed by the flames of jealousy.
Words fail; thoughts cannot reach her.
Only endless hatred surges from her soul.
Beware her disciples—they lurk in every shadow.
Utter her name, and be pulled into eternal darkness.
Her body will never decay.
She will never age.
Her life has no end.
Not even the combined might of the Great Sage, the Divine Dragon, and the First Sword Saint could destroy her.
All they could do—was seal her away.
Satella, the Witch of Jealousy—was also the Witch of Calamity.
The one who annihilated the six witches who once tormented the world...
The one who erased half of the continent.
And now—she was nothing more than a shattered doll, deceived, wounded, and bound by another's will.
To control a witch, one must understand a witch.
And everything under his control—was his.
No longer of this world.
"It seems you've subdued the final witch. So, my master," Echidna said with a composed smile, "will you solve my riddle now?"
Even in this twisted play of power and submission, Echidna maintained a calm dignity. A toy among others—but with poise.
Nanashi nodded, satisfied.
"Fine. I'll indulge your curiosity."
"My name is Nanashi. I come from another world. Domination is one of my abilities. As for why I know you all… it's simple—I just know it."
"And regarding the aura of the Witch of Jealousy you mentioned…"
He reached into his pocket and drew forth a condensed orb of shadows.
The moment it appeared, several witches gasped.
"The power of Satella…?" Echidna asked, her eyes widening.
"Yes," Nanashi said casually. "I took it from the one who had stolen it."
Without another word, he tossed the orb to Satella.
"...This…"
Satella stood stunned.
Of course she recognized it—the stolen power of her past. But why return it to her?
Nanashi's voice remained flat. Detached.
"I have no use for it. From now on, you are my subordinates. My toys. If you're powerless, what use are you to me?"
"…"
Sekhmet's brows furrowed.
To allow Satella to regain her full strength—wasn't he afraid?
The Witch of Jealousy was arguably the strongest among the eight witches.
Satella looked at Nanashi with a complicated expression.
She closed her fingers around the orb.
Let it melt into her.
Her aura surged.
Her power returned in full.
Then—just as quickly—it was restrained.
There was no resistance.
"…"
Sekhmet was bewildered.
Had the Witch of Jealousy... surrendered?
No, she realized. This wasn't the Witch of Jealousy.
This was Satella.
The true Witch of Jealousy was already dead.
"So that man—was he really Natsuki Subaru?" Echidna murmured. "I never imagined he could strip Satella of her power. How… curious."
Though surprised by Nanashi's decision to return the stolen power, what truly startled her was the fact it could be taken at all.
Her dislike for the Witch of Jealousy was no secret. Hatred might have been more accurate.
But even she acknowledged Satella's terrifying strength.
"I only controlled Pandora because she appeared suddenly and tried to overwrite my consciousness," Nanashi said, almost offhandedly.
He brushed a hand gently across Pandora's cheek.
"This is your karma."
"And this is my punishment," Pandora said sweetly, smiling with a childlike innocence.
It was impossible to tell what went on inside her head.
Nanashi didn't bother trying.
He turned his attention back to Echidna.
"I wasn't looking for you specifically. But gathering all the witches—living and dead—in one place just made things easier."
"…"
The witches exchanged looks.
They had been rounded up in one fell swoop.
"One last thing…"
Nanashi turned to Pandora, his eyes narrowing in a mock smile as he lifted her chin.
"Shall we tell them we're lovers?"
"Yes~" Pandora giggled, and kissed him without hesitation.
And so, the lesson began—
An adult course in education for witches…
The witches each had their own reactions after watching this... eventful "lesson."
Typhon, the Arrogant Witch:
"Ah! Pandora, you're guilty and must be judged!"
Minerva, the Wrathful Witch:
"This… this is too much! How could something like this even happen?!"
Daphne, the Gluttonous Witch:
"I think I smell something delicious..."
Carmilla, the Witch of Lust:
"Wow! You're not going to do that to me too, are you? That looked painful!"
Sekhmet, the Slothful Witch:
"Tsk… What a waste of energy. I'd rather sleep. Laziness is still the best."
Echidna, the Greedy Witch:
"Can a powerful man and a witch from another world… create a child together?"
Satella, the Jealous Witch:
"I… don't know why, but I feel a little jealous..."
After thoroughly "educating" Pandora, Nanashi turned his attention to the eight witches.
Some were alive.
Some had died long ago.
Regardless, he used the Wings of Sin to transform each of them into his Sin Apostles.
What surprised him most—
Each witch embodied a distinct sin of this world, and by binding them, he gained access to that sin's full manifestation.
His power surged.
The Wings of Sin grew even stronger.
And the witches' status changed drastically.
Even Echidna and the other long-dead witches now had new bodies—perfectly lifelike and fully functional.
Nanashi gathered them all and brought them back to the Sin Realm of Chaos.
"This world… it's practically a whole new universe!" Echidna's eyes sparkled, lit with boundless curiosity.
Nanashi glanced at the witches.
Though they were his subordinates—his toys, even—some benefits were still warranted.
"Echidna, I'll grant you authority to reshape this realm however you wish. Work diligently, and if we travel to other worlds later… I might even let you explore them."
"Yes, my Lord," she replied, her voice trembling slightly with excitement.
There was nothing more thrilling to her than the unknown.
Then he turned to Sekhmet.
"No one will bother you here. You can sleep as much as you want. But when it's time to work, you still have to work."
Sekhmet lazily cracked open an eye.
"Work? You mean like what you just did to Pandora? If that's the case, it's fine… but don't expect me to move. I'll just lie there."
"…"
Her bluntness was almost impressive.
Still, since she didn't outright refuse, he couldn't complain.
She added, "And don't you dare touch Typhon. You can come to me instead, anytime."
Typhon was like a daughter to her. And she would protect her daughter's purity—no matter what.
"Eh? Sekhmet..." Little Typhon was visibly moved, her eyes misty.
That ordeal had lasted over three hours...
Even Pandora's eyes had rolled back.
"Typhon is too pure. I'm not that kind of person," Nanashi muttered. "There's no one here who needs judgment. Let her stay carefree."
Next, Nanashi turned to Minerva.
"At least this world is peaceful—no war, no chaos. Here, you don't need to get angry."
The Wrathful Witch's fury was always aimed at conflict and injustice. At heart, she was kind.
"Ahahaha..." Minerva laughed awkwardly, scratching her cheek, her face flushed. She avoided his eyes.
She still remembered—very clearly—what Nanashi and Pandora had done.
"Daphne," Nanashi continued, "your eyes… are they cursed with hunger?"
"Mm-hmm."
Daphne possessed Demon Eyes—they made her see hunger in all things.
That was why she created the three great monsters: to prevent famine.
The White Whale had massive amounts of meat—just one could feed thousands.
The Great Rabbit could multiply infinitely—an eternal source of food.
And the Black Serpent... well, even she wasn't entirely sure why she made that one.
"From here, you can access the Realm of Faith. There, you can create anything you want to eat—living or not. You'll never have to worry about hunger again."
"!!! A world without hunger?!"
Daphne lit up with excitement. She couldn't wait to go see it for herself.
Next came Carmilla.
Her ability—The Faceless Bride—was terrifying.
Anyone who laid eyes on her would immediately see the person they loved most. They'd become obsessed, unable to look away—even forgetting to breathe.
Even in the face of death, they wouldn't resist.
Some literally dropped dead from lack of breath or heartbeat.
Her beauty had caused nations to go to war.
Smoke. Blood. Fire.
All for a glimpse of her face.
Wherever she went, love turned into madness.
Her charm was a curse that burned down empires.
But in truth, she was just a timid, soft-spoken woman… afraid of being hurt.
"You don't have to worry anymore—no one here will fall under your charm. And if anyone dares to hurt you, come straight to me. I'll deal with them."
"Really?" Carmilla's eyes sparkled with hope.
"Really."
He nodded firmly.
Finally, his gaze turned to Pandora—now limp in his arms, barely able to stand.
"What do you want?"
He honestly had no idea what this woman ever wanted.
Pandora crossed her hands over her chest, her voice trembling with theatrical longing:
"My love… I want to experience more love. More beautiful, wonderful love."
Nanashi sighed.
"Are you just addicted to acting at this point?"
He couldn't tell if she was serious.
"…Fine. It's not like that's a difficult request anyway."
Finally, there was Satella.
This one… probably didn't want anything anymore, right?
After all, her love had long since turned to hatred.
But Nanashi hadn't expected her to speak up first.
"Master," Satella said softly, eyes gleaming with longing, "please love me too. I want… true love."
"…"
What was this? Stockholm syndrome?
How could she still love him after everything—after being beaten, after becoming his toy?
The other witches exchanged awkward glances.
Why was everyone suddenly talking about love?
But Nanashi never refused such requests.
"If that's what you need," he said, nonchalant.
This entire session with the witches had been a mix of the stick and the sweet date.
In the future, perhaps he'd need to add an extra round of "Big Stick Education"—in addition to Typhon's curriculum.
With the witches handled, Nanashi prepared to return home.
Before leaving, he turned to Echidna with a curious question that had been bugging him.
"Your hair, eyebrows, eyelashes—they're all white. So… is your entire body covered in white hair?"
Echidna didn't answer with words.
She understood exactly what Nanashi meant—so she showed him, lifting it up so he could see with his own eyes.
Unconfirmed? Confirmed.
It's white.
One more question nagged at him…
Why didn't witches wear underwear?
Pandora didn't. Echidna didn't either.
What a strange world.
"Is Nanashi still not back?" Saeko asked, concerned.
This was Emilia's castle.
The surrounding forests, once teeming with demonic beasts and Witch Cult remnants, had been nearly cleared out.
Only scattered stragglers remained. They posed no real threat.
Lemuel had also helped secure nearby villages.
Now, after a long half-day of work, they were finally taking a break.
Inside, Ram and Rem were preparing dinner.
Outside, Roswaal, the castle's original owner, still stood stiffly—exactly where he had been for hours.
Ram looked uneasy.
She didn't trust these people—they were too close to Lady Emilia and far too powerful for her to challenge.
All she could do was stand by and watch.
"Why are you the only one here?" Nanashi asked bluntly, ignoring Roswaal entirely and addressing Ram.
To him, Roswaal wasn't even worth acknowledging.
In fact, he was barely different from a non-human at this point.
Roswaal's existence depended entirely on possessing the bodies of his direct descendants.
No one even knew which unfortunate descendant's body he was currently using.