Cathelaya's POV:
With only a dirty blanket over my body, I staggered down a cobblestone street. People passing by stared at me in disgust or annoyance as if I were some kind of rodent.
- What the hell is wrong with this world?
Before I knew it, my face was planted on the ground. My shaky, skinny legs wouldn't respond to my commands as I tried in vain to stand. Around me, I could see many other people in the same situation. The last major fire that happened a few days ago had left many people in a similar situation. My entire family and siblings had been burned to a crisp while I barely managed to escape. The sight of my family being burned alive drove me to the brink of insanity. After having to exchange even my clothes for a bit of food, I had nothing left. Despite that, my eyes still retained their sparkle. A burning desire to live still coursed through my heart as I struggled with my scrawny arms to keep moving forward.
"I see you're still clinging to life."
A strange voice echoed in my head. A sigh of resignation was all I could manage as I realized I had finally succumbed to madness.
"Don't be mistaken, miss. I am as real as the sky above our heads."
At the mention of the sky, I laboriously turn around to look up at the sky between the rooftops. The sight of the vast blue sky leaves me somewhat stunned. Its majesty makes me lose my breath for a few moments.
"Tell me, little one… Don't you wish you had the power to survive?"
With a voice sweeter than honey, a small cloud descended unnaturally from the sky.
..............................….
I gaze melancholically toward the horizon. The sight of the clear sky in front of me reminds me of old times.
- …Yes, that's how I got to meet Mia.
I lose myself in my thoughts again as I continue swimming through the masses of wind toward my destination.
....................................…
After filling my stomach with things I was able to steal from the market thanks to my newly acquired powers, I headed toward the place where I used to sleep. There, I found a small music box.
- Will this work?
"Of course, that's more than perfect. This will be your anchor to reality. Now follow me."
In front of the small cloud, a door formed out of thin air. I was deeply surprised by the mysterious door that had appeared before me.
"Come on, go inside so you can meet the rest."
Still with some doubts in my head, I followed the cloud with the music box in hand. When I tried to go through the door, an invisible force stopped me in place. The strange force had repelled me, throwing me to the cold ground. I stared at the door in surprise, not understanding what had happened.
"Ahh, it's true I forgot to mention, but you can't take your reality anchor into this dimension."
- …So… I can't take it with me?
"No, as its name suggests, this object you've designated as a reality anchor is the access point you'll have to the outside world. If that access point were to disappear from reality, you wouldn't be able to return to reality and would be trapped in the dimension forever."
Shocked by the information, I look down at the small music box helplessly.
- I really didn't expect to have to part with the music box…
I lovingly clutch the last memento I have of my Father before taking it and hiding it in a hole in the wall.
"Remember to be very careful where you keep your anchor. If it's destroyed and you were just inside your room, you'll be trapped there forever."
With an audible sound, I gulp as I stare, a little fearfully, at the object in my hand.
- I'll be careful…
I quickly hide it and go through the door. On the other side, a mysterious, seemingly endless hallway stretched out in front of me. Despite its seemingly endless nature, there were several doors floating in the air. The shock was such that I didn't realize the door I'd entered through had suddenly opened.
- Um? What do we have here? New faces?
With great curiosity, a huge woman appeared from the door I'd just entered. Her aura was so dominant that it was difficult for me to look at her without trembling in fear. The enormous woman stares down at me from above, while I can't help but lower my head, trembling.
"Come on, Mia, you don't have to scare the new girl!"
- Scare her? If that's enough to scare her, she's not cut out to be a witch.
A deep shock filled my mind as I looked up to find answers, only to meet her gaze and quickly look back down. With a shaky, somewhat agitated voice, I mustered up all my courage to ask.
- A-a witch? I-… I don't remember turning into anything so horrible.
Witches. Abominable beings who gain the power of a demon to destroy the world. During my childhood, I had heard so many stories about such beings that I didn't want to believe I had become one myself. The pressure of the enormous witch's gaze only grew stronger. Small tears welled up in the corner of my eyes as I tried to shrink as much as possible. A deep sigh was heard from above as the enormous woman walked past me.
- Ena, the next time you give your power to someone, at least properly explain what it means... It's because of things like this that they call you a demon.
"..."
The small cloud guiding me fell silent as the enormous witch continued toward one of the doors located in the hallway. A slight tremor shook the entire dimension when the witch knocked on the door. Moments later, the door swung open as a smaller witch emerged from it, clearly grimacing.
- What the hell are you supposed to be doing? Are you trying to break down my door, gorilla woman?
A rather small woman emerged from the room. She was small even for a normal person. The fact that she was shouting in that angry tone at the enormous witch was a strange contrast, making it seem like a squirrel trying to fight a bull.
- ...Huh? Who are you?
The squirrel woman, upon seeing the enormous witch, immediately took a step back and partially hid behind her door. She immediately turned to look at the small cloud with an annoyed expression.
- Ena! Why the hell did you bring a gorilla woman here? Are you crazy?
"Pfff...hahahahahahha. It seems your makeover doesn't suit you at all, Mia."
- ...Huh? Is that thing the shy little Mia?
- Small? Even in my normal form, I'm taller than your Ria.
- What did you say?
At that provocation, the squirrel woman named Ria launched herself at the enormous witch, trying to grab her ear without much success. Her hopping around the woman only made her look more like a squirrel. The enormous woman finally sighed and grabbed Ria by the collar of her yellow dress.
- Ria, I don't have time for this. I called you here not to fight you, but to have you take care of the newbie.
- Newbie?
Her gaze quickly scanned the entire room until our eyes met. Instinctively, I took a step back at the pressure emanating from Ria's gaze. She quickly broke free from the larger woman's grasp and launched herself in my direction. Before I could react, I was already in her arms.
- SO CUTE! You're so emaciated! What the hell did you have to go through to end up like this? But don't worry, Mama Ria is here to take good care of you.
Before I could react, Ria was already holding me like a baby and leading me into her room. For some reason, the older girl only looked at me with a certain sympathy as Ria pulled me into her room. This time... her gaze didn't scare me.
..................…
I involuntarily let out a sigh as I continued forward.
- Mama Ria was so cute. Despite being the smallest of the witches, she was the most motherly among them... And the scariest when she got upset...
A strange feeling of nostalgia hit me as I stared off into the distance. A sudden question popped into my head that I couldn't stop from leaving my lips.
- I'm not doing anything wrong... Am I, Mama Ria?
I felt a tear slowly seep into the corner of my eye, but before it could escape, I slapped my face with both hands to compose myself.
- We shouldn't remember those who passed away with tears in their eyes, right, Mia?
Before I could enter my memories again, something in front of me caught my attention. In front of the town I was about to raze next, there was a huge, glowing red pillar. At first, I thought it was fire, but I quickly dismissed that idea upon closer inspection.
- Lava?
In my memories, there was no one capable of wielding lava except for the now-deceased Earthquake Witch. The shock of seeing such a nostalgic attack made me fail to notice how the pillar was rapidly descending on me.
- Damn!