The Stagnant Witch’s Survival Method

[Meanwhile, at the witch ascension ritual site.]

The witches were perplexed.
Something that shouldn’t have happened occurred.

“Elender, what is the meaning of this?”
“I thought it was an obedient sacrifice, I didn’t expect such a sudden action.”

Lender answered while licking her lips.
She had carelessly failed to properly secure the iron chains, but she didn’t expect this to happen.
Her bright crimson eyes slowly twisted direction.
Even she was bewildered.

“But it should be fine. After all, he’s a man, so he can’t become a witch.”

There shouldn’t be a big problem.
Witch is a faction that absolutely only women can join.
Even if he suddenly invaded the performer’s position, there are no variables.
In the worst case, it would just be a failed ritual, but the girl who just entered was just one of countless spares.

Understanding this, the witches stared intently at the black mist.
The mist did not dissipate.
The ritual continues.

**

-$%^%#^%%

The demon who had been uttering strange words seemed to realize I couldn’t understand, so it closed its mouth before stuttering and beginning to speak again.

-Young…. witch, if you contract with me…. I will grant you talent in magic.

Before engaging in dialogue with them, I began to recall knowledge from the game.
In truth, I should have thought about this before making the contract, but given the situation where I could have died as a sacrifice at any moment, I had no choice.
I need to think about it now at least.

A witch, that is, a being who contracts with demons and exchanges power with them.
Witches aren’t the only faction that contracts with demons, but witches can be seen as having a somewhat unique form.
It’s formed in a way that’s more dependent on demons, and more like slavery.

Witches are emotionally and rationally greatly influenced by demons.
If the demon prefers slaughtering people, so does the witch.
If the demon wants to eat human flesh, the witch also falls into bizarre appetites.
Witches become more and more like demons, eventually handing over their soul and flesh to the demon and meeting a tragic end.

It’s not necessarily best to contract with the strongest demon or the one offering the best rewards.
The top priority for a witch should be to contract with a demon of at least a somewhat normal form.
So witches know this and contract with suitable demons.
The girls participating in this ritual were probably educated about this as well.

But for me.

“I’m not sure how good the mental fortitude perk is.”

There’s clearly room to handle even a powerful, bizarre demon.
To face these monsters with a sound mind.
I walk straight ahead.

Step, step.

$@%!@#$#$
%$#$@@#!!

The demon’s strange voice envelops the surroundings.
I couldn’t understand what it was saying, but I sensed an intention to stop me from going further.
Or maybe it was mockery.
Mockery saying “You’re going that far? Your body and soul will be torn to shreds and you’ll die.”
But I didn’t stop walking.
I headed even deeper into this demon’s lair.

And I witnessed it.
Something coiled up deep inside.
A lingering resentment, having lost even the form of a demon, composed only of malice and obsession.
Wouldn’t I go mad and be corrupted just by touching it?
Even while thinking that, I felt my mind was remarkably clear as I faced it.

“As expected.”

I don’t remember well, but I must have used quite a good mental fortitude perk.
It’s probably a high-tier perk like [Indomitable] or [Unwavering Mind].
From what I can see, I should be able to withstand contracting with this demon.
Of course there would be some risks, but I needed to take those risks.

“Otherwise I won’t be able to survive.”

A situation completely trapped in the witches’ lair.
Without an extraordinary demon, there was no way to break through this.
I racked my brains to the point of nearly exploding, making plan after plan.
How to escape and survive as soon as the black mist lifts after the contract is completed.

-Grrrr.

As I reached out my hand, the mass of malice that was difficult to even call a demon showed a reaction.

I broke out in a cold sweat as I saw the disaster that had been sleeping down there stretch and rise up.
Is this really the right decision?
Before I could regret it, the demon immediately reacted, as if I had already crossed the river of no return.

It pours forth.
The monster in the form of evil poured into me.
As if things like what to give and take in the contract, or writing a contract, were completely meaningless, something finely shattered seeped into my body.

I felt my mind being split apart piece by piece.
Even with the mental fortitude perk, contracting with a being that seemed like it would corrupt you just by touching it was quite a crazy thing to do.
But even as my mental strength was being consumed, my consciousness remained clear.

A burning pain shot through the nerves in the back of my hand.
When I squeezed my eyes shut and looked at the back of my hand, a pattern was engraved there as proof that the contract had been established.

“Hup.”

At the same time, knowledge about witches began to be imprinted in my mind.
The privileges and abilities I could use as a witch.

I clearly organized the extremely metaphysical abilities that were close to divine powers.
If I were to intuitively translate my status like in a game, it would be:

▶ Faction: 9th Rank “Witch”
▶ Basic Powers: , ,
▶ Special Powers: None.
▶ Perks: [Relaxed Ascension Conditions], [Mental-related Perk], Others I don’t remember.

That’s about it.
Witches usually handle about three powers.
While other faction jobs start with one or two, witches have quite a lot.
Like 4 drones, witches were monsters at the entry level.
Of course, they get quickly overtaken later, or mental and physical instabilities eat away at all their advantages.

“Demon I contracted with…!”

As the mist began to dissipate, I immediately tried to summon the demon.
A thin, delicate voice rang out clearly.
Not feeling anything strange about it, I drew an ominous red light to the back of my hand.

This was also why I contracted with such a dangerous demon.
If I unleashed the demon here, the witches would be thrown into chaos, unable to deal with it.
If I took that opportunity to escape using , there was a possibility of surviving here.
Even if it was a very slim chance, it was worth trying.

When I was fully prepared to face gazes full of confusion and hostility like that.
As the mist completely lifted.

-Waaah!

“Congratulations!”

The witch closest to me shouted.
Voices of congratulations and cheers.
Everyone rejoiced at the birth of a new witch.
I was just bewildered.

“Huh…?”

I stopped my intention to summon the demon.
And I looked at the back of my hand.
A pattern that looked vicious and bizarre just by looking at it was engraved on the back of my hand.

And that hand was small.

When I raised both hands, I saw small and delicate hands.
What on earth? What is this?
White hair hanging down from my head.
And looking down, a body shape that was immediately recognizable.

“Huh, huuuh?”

I turned my gaze.
On the other side, four sacrifices lay dead.
And right next to them was a quite handsome man, dead with his breath stopped.

I clearly remembered that face.
How could I not recognize it when I had customized it myself?

Of course, my body couldn’t have remained intact.
It was just the remains after the demon had cleanly eaten the bones and flesh.
As proof, it gradually turned to dust and disappeared.

Even the mental fortitude from the perk couldn’t overcome this situation, and my consciousness gradually became hazy.

“Ah.”

Now I understood how the contract had been established.
I hadn’t become a witch in a man’s body.

I had stolen the body of the girl who had died unable to withstand performing the ritual!

There were some advantages.
Instead of being chased by witches, they sincerely congratulated my witch ascension without any wariness.
And the fact that I now belonged to a faction I could be part of in this harsh Arcane Fantasy world.

And there was no need to say much about the big problem.

Unable to accept this completely unexpected situation, my mind couldn’t process it and.

“Gak.”

Thud-!
I fainted.
And so my consciousness sank deep into the abyss with a splash.

**

“To succeed even when the ritual form was ruined, how lucky.”

A witch looking at the fallen silver-haired girl said.
Elder of the Witch Society, 6th Rank Grand Witch Elune, smiled seductively.
Though she had lived a long life to rise to the rank of elder, her appearance completely ignored the passage of time.
She stroked the head of the child who had just become a witch with her smooth hand.

And when she looked at the demon’s pattern, the mark of becoming a witch, she couldn’t help but furrow her brow.

“This is no ordinary demon, did she ignore the warnings?”
“I think it might be my fault.”
“Elender.”

Witch Elender, who had slowly approached, explained the reason.

“Due to the intruding sacrifice, there was probably a problem with the ritual, and that child couldn’t normally choose a demon.”
“That makes sense. We emphasized it dozens of times and even showed examples of wrong choices, yet these intelligent children we carefully selected wouldn’t be greedy.”
“The fact that she succeeded in contracting even in such a situation might mean she’s an extremely talented child.”

Elune chuckled and looked at Lender.

“If that’s the case, take good care of her. It would be a shame for such a rare talent that has just bloomed to crumble like this, wouldn’t it?”
“If the Elder entrusts her to me, I will gladly carry out the task.”

The Elder picked up the girl and handed her to Elender, asking:

“What’s this child’s name?”
“As far as I know, it’s Grace. Grace.”
“I see, a pretty name.”

Elune turned her gaze to look at the altar where the witch ritual was in full swing.
There, the joys and sorrows of new witch births and deaths continued.
But there was no proper sadness there.
Those who died without becoming witches were no different from sacrifices, less than insects.

Their camaraderie and emotions existed only for fellow witches.
Elender, carefully lifting Grace, slowly moved her.

Newly born witches receive education.
To become the fighting force of the Witch Society.
But sadly, there was no time to wait for the young witches to mature.
Currently, the Witch Society was in a precarious state.
The head of the Witch Society, the Witch of Condemnation, had left her seat, and the elders below were engaged in factional power struggles.
In addition, there were monsters lurking outside the Witch Society.

“All I can give you is a very brief reprieve…”

Elender muttered as she sat astride a broom.
Just as she was about to depart, she witnessed something strange.

Clear and bright blue eyes.
She briefly thought – How refreshingly clear, like the sky –

“Huh? How already?”
“…Is this.”

A flat voice unlike a girl who had just undergone the ritual and fainted.
Yet melancholic.
Grace opened her mouth with such a delicate voice.

“The Witch Society?”
“Yes, that’s right.”

Elender answered while thinking what a strange question it was.
Grace was a child born and raised in the Witch Society.
There was no reason for her to ask if this was the Witch Society.

‘Of course, it’s understandable since she’s disoriented.’

Elender recalled when she had just become a witch herself.
She had been bedridden in a daze for at least a day.
Compared to that, Grace waking up after not even a few hours had passed was impressive.

As she was admiring this, Grace struggled and said:

“Wait, wait, please put me down.”
“Hm? Shouldn’t you rest a bit more?”
“This is more uncomfortable…”
“Oh my, such a shy child.”

Elender put Grace down, and Grace, or rather he who had possessed the girl’s body, staggered as he reached the ground and muttered inwardly:

‘I can’t keep staying in the arms of a witch who was just slaughtering sacrifices.’

Grace rather got goosebumps from the affection she showed.
The temperature difference between when she was a witch and when she wasn’t was not just warm and cold, but an unbearable gap that made him shudder.