The Reincarnated Eldest Witch Sister Embraces Self-Sacrifice - Chapter 6: The Footsteps of Adversity

In my past life, various theories were proposed regarding the cause of witch hunts. The one that always alarmed me was the theory that people, in their anger against wars and natural disasters, turned against witches.

If a similar pattern were to repeat in this world, any disaster could be blamed on witches at the peak of public discontent. Droughts might be attributed to witches sealing the rain and epidemics to witches bringing misfortune.

Hence, I had one contingency in place to prepare for such a catastrophe: food storage.

I bought a large warehouse on the outskirts of Polis Commercial City and have been storing grains like wheat there for about five years. Fortunately, our earnings were sufficient to accumulate a substantial stockpile. I planned to release these grains to the market in case of war or crop failure leading to a food crisis.

I had no intention of profiting from this. My priority was to alleviate public discontent. Although I couldn’t do much about diseases, some things were beyond my control.

It’s still summer, and it’s uncertain whether a crop failure will occur, but there seems to be less rain this year. I had been on high alert.

…Then, one summer day, I heard a knock at the door while working at home. I opened the door to find a familiar face.

“Miss Ulgiar, I apologize for the sudden visit. Do you remember me?”

“Of course. What brings you here today?”

“It’s a bit difficult to discuss at the doorstep… May I come in?”

“Sure, you can.”

The visitor was Ephnol, the guard who helped us on the day of the tragedy ten years ago. He looked a bit older but still had a gentle demeanor.

I led him to the dining room, and he began to speak as we sat facing each other.

“A recent mass murder occurred in a house in this city. About twenty bodies were found, and strong magical traces suggest it was the work of a witch.”

“And you suspect us?”

“No, not at all. The issue is that the murder scene was a hideout of Theo’s Cult, the cult that attacked our village ten years ago. We believe all victims were cult members.”

The Theos Cult, the group responsible for our village’s destruction, was annihilated by a witch.

Ephnol clarified they didn’t suspect us but asked if I knew any witch who might bear a grudge against the cult. I honestly couldn’t think of any useful information; we had minimal connections with other witches and hadn’t interacted with the cult since that incident.

“Sorry, I can’t be of much help.”

“That’s alright. If you come across any relevant information, please inform the guards. Thank you for your cooperation.”

With a slightly disappointed look, Ephnol left our house. I sat there, pondering.

The cult’s destruction was, in a way, good news. However, massacring its members was excessive and could easily incite fear of witches among the populace.

Nothing had happened yet, but I couldn’t shake off a bad feeling. The conditions for discrimination against witches were slowly aligning.