The Witch and Her Companion: I'm Just a Normal High School Student, but I Became the Familiar of the Highest-Ranked Witch. Also, It Seems I'm the Only Guy in the Witch Organization I Joined - Chapter 59: Shorts and the Azure Flame Witch

Chapter 59: Shorts and the Azure Flame Witch

[Tatsumori Haruto]

“──U-Um, is it true that you’ll let me out of here?”

“Oh hell yeah! I ain’t one to go back on my word! …Though, there’s a condition!!”

The loud voice echoing through the underground prison was clearly suspicious and gave off a dangerous vibe, but I had no one else to rely on.

“And what would that condition be?”

“When you get outta there, use the key by the entrance and open my cell! That’s all you gotta do!”

…Yeah, definitely shady. I have no idea who this guy is, but the fact that he’s locked up in this underground prison means he’s got to be dangerous. I mean, I’m just an ordinary guy, y’know?

“…I have a condition as well.”

“Oh? Let’s hear it!”

“You have to promise not to harm me in any way.”

“Fine by me! Long as ya don’t pull any funny business, I swear I won’t lay a finger on ya!”

At this point, I had no other choice but to follow what this voice was saying. A verbal agreement might be worthless, but at least it gave me something to cling to.

“Alright, then it’s a deal. But how exactly am I supposed to get out of here?”

“There’s a black chest in that cell of yours! Open the bottom drawer, second from the right!”

I did as I was told and opened the black chest against the wall.

“…W-What the hell!?”

Before my eyes lay neatly folded women’s underwear, all lined up elegantly.

“Oi! You open it!?”

“Uh, y-yeah, I did!?”

“There’s a pair of black shorts in there! Take ’em out!! And don’t touch anything else, or I’ll turn ya to ash!!”

…So I hadn’t opened the wrong drawer, after all.

Feeling like the world’s biggest pervert, I hesitantly pulled out the black shorts.

“I-I took them out!”

“There’s a key hidden in there! Use it to unlock your cell, then open mine too!”

As I unfurled the shorts, something clattered to the ground— a key.

I had no idea why the prison key was hidden inside a pair of women’s underwear, but if it meant I could get out of here, I wasn’t about to question it… Though, man, these shorts are seriously see-through.

──Using the key, I unlocked my cell and stepped out into a dimly lit chamber. As I scanned the room, my eyes landed on a set of keys hanging on the wall near a staircase leading to the surface.

“I found the keys! Which one do I use!?”

“The newest one! Hurry up and open it!!”

His voice was deafening in the open chamber. If he shouted any closer, my eardrums might actually burst.

“Uh, this one?”

I picked the cleanest-looking key from the bunch and inserted it into the lock.

──With a satisfying click, the lock turned, and in that instant…

“GAH-HAHAHA!! Well done, newbie!!”

“…UWAH—!?”

The door suddenly swung open with an unbelievable force, sending me flying across the chamber, rolling until I finally came to a stop.

“The hell you doin’, newbie!! Lyin’ around like that’s gonna get yer clothes dirty!!”

“…T-This person is insane!!”

I screamed into the ground, too terrified to lift my head. If I did, I felt like my brain would spill out—because holy hell, my forehead hurt like it had split open. It wasn’t actually broken, right…?

“You alright? Hoh… ya got a surprisingly good face on ya!!”

“…Wha!?”

Before I knew it, I was yanked up onto my feet as if gravity itself had betrayed me.

And standing before me was… not the terrifying figure I had imagined.

But a cute woman.

“The hell you starin’ at? Something on my face!?”

Yes, actually. On that well-proportioned face of yours—those big, striking eyes, that perfectly pointed nose, and those soft, plump lips.

I had been expecting some kind of Neanderthal with horns, but instead, a ridiculously beautiful woman had appeared.

…No, actually, I was half right. She did have horns.

“A-Ah, um… there’s something growing out of your head…”

“Hmm? Ohhh, so that’s what had ya freakin’ out! These, newbie, are horns!”

“That’s… exactly what they look like.”

So she admits it, huh? Two curved, demonic-looking horns protruded from either side of her head.

“GAH-HAHA! Ain’t no reason to be scared of some horns! Hell, I even got a tail, too!”

At her words, I glanced at her waist—sure enough, she had a long, thick tail swaying behind her. So that’s how I was lifted earlier…

“W-What the hell…?”

“Anyway, much appreciated, newbie! Name’s Ys! The Azure Flame Witch, Ys Baccarat-sama!”

“N-Nice to meet you, Baccarat-san…”

This woman—who called herself Ys Baccarat—had strikingly blue hair, ominous horns, and a tail as massive as a serpent’s.

They call her the “Azure Flame Witch,” so I guess she really is a witch, but… is it normal for witches to have horns and tails?

“Oi, don’t be so cold! We broke outta jail together, didn’t we!? Just call me Ys, newbie!!”

Ys threw an arm around my shoulder and pulled me in. Hmm, it seems her booming voice isn’t the only thing that’s oversized. She’s got an impressive—no, an excessively impressive chest. Fuu was quite the busty one herself, but this is on a whole other level. Absolute bombshell territory.

“I-Ies, we haven’t actually broken out yet. We just stepped out of the cell.”

“Doesn’t matter! I just needed to get into your cell for something! C’mon, you’re coming with me!”

Guided by Ys, we returned to the cell I had been locked up in just moments ago. She crawled under the bed and started rummaging around in a rather suspicious manner.

After a while of watching, she finally emerged, holding something in her hand.

“…Ys, what’s that?”

“Hah? Don’t tell me ya ain’t ever seen booze before, newbie!?”

In her hand was a bottle of liquor. Of course, I could tell that just by looking, but what I wanted to know was why she had hidden a bottle of alcohol in a prison cell.

“And what exactly are you planning to do with that?”

“You really are a weird one, newbie. What else do ya do with booze? You drink it.”

For the first time, she replied without yelling—she sounded genuinely puzzled. Huh, so she can talk in a cute voice when she wants to.

“…Ys, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“Why are you in a cell?”

“Oh, that? Pfft, I got caught sneaking into the food storage the other day and downed all the booze! Got busted for it, and here I am!”

“…Wait, so that means you’re part of this group?”

“The hell kinda dumb question is that?”

Crap, I’m completely lost.

I’ve been confused about a lot of things since yesterday, but this is really throwing me for a loop.

“I mean… I was locked up here by your own people, you know.”

“Yeah, I heard about it. Word is, once Abyss gets back, you’re dead meat, right?”

“…Apparently. That’s why I was trying to escape. But why did you help me?”

“‘Cause if we team up, I can get my booze back, duh?”

—Yeah, okay, this person’s nuts. And not just that, she’s a hopeless alcoholic.

“C’mon, c’mon, let’s have a drink! I’ll share my special stash with ya!”

“Wait—stop! I’m still underage!”

“Pfft, that’s why you should drink! Dying without ever tasting booze would be a damn waste!”

Damn it, why does she keep bringing up my death like it’s already decided!? I’m trying not to die here!

“Ys, I’ve got a favor to ask.”

“Yeah, what is it, newbie?”

“Can you… help me escape from here?”

Going solo isn’t an option. I don’t even know where I am. If I want to boost my survival chances, my only shot is roping Ys in somehow.

“Like hell I can! You stupid or somethin’!?”

“…Yeah, figured.”

Well, of course, that’s how it’d go. She only teamed up with me just now because she wanted to get to her hidden booze.

Once she gets her drink, she’ll probably leave me and waltz back into her own cell.

She’s sure I won’t be able to fully escape anyway.

“Hey, Ys… do you have more booze hidden somewhere else?”

“Hah? This is the only bottle I got stashed here. Usually, I get tossed in this cell every time I get locked up, so I always hide some booze here, but this time they put me somewhere else. Guess Snow must’ve figured me out… That bastard.”

…She’s been thrown in prison more than once?

And considering she’s made duplicate keys and stashed liquor, she’s way too used to this. You should at least pretend to feel guilty.

“So, when you say here, does that mean you have liquor hidden somewhere else too?”

“Yeah, in the castle. Ain’t drinkable right now, though—it’s in a perfect hiding spot.”

“If I bring that booze here, will you help me?”

“…The hell did you just say?”

Predictably, Ys, who had been chugging straight from the bottle, perked up.

“You can’t be seen leaving the underground prison, right? So I’ll sneak in and grab your stash for you.”

“Newbie, you even hear yourself? If the castle folks catch you, you’re screwed.”

“It’s only a matter of time before I’m screwed anyway. If I’m gonna die, I’d rather go down fighting.”

I met Ys’s eyes and stated it plainly. I had a feeling she’d respond better to straight-up honesty than some half-baked lie.

“…GWAHAHAHA!! I like you, newbie!! Alright, if you really bring me that booze, I promise I’ll help ya out!”

“Then tell me where it is. I need to start planning.”

A faint light of hope flickered in the darkness. I had been completely cornered, but now, there was at least some way forward.

“Oi, don’t rush it, newbie. Abyss won’t be back for at least a month. I’ll draw you a detailed map by tonight. For now, let’s drink and celebrate!!”

Of course, being underage, I politely declined.

Ys might not be such a bad person after all. If I play this right, I might get way more than just an escape route out of this—