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 84: Joker and the Four Great Witches

Chapter 84: Joker and the Four Great Witches

[Rachel Poker]

Last night, I picked out my school uniform from the large suitcase I had just bought at the mall.

I’ve been using the washroom and other things around here freely, but the owner of the house still shows no sign of waking up. She’s really not a morning person.

After changing into my uniform, I stared at the card in my hand. A playing card, likely possessed by all the witches of Ravens—one of the set.

The Joker card.

If my memory serves me right, infusing magic into this card should allow me to teleport to Ravens’s headquarters.

There must be witches there who know who I am.

Why do I have no memories?

Who planted these false memories in me?

What was their goal?

If I use this card, I might find a clue. Or perhaps—I’ll reach the answer all at once.

“…I’m off, Hikari. Don’t be late for school, okay?”

Wrapped in a blanket on the sofa, the sleeping girl let out soft, adorable breaths.

The girl who said she liked me.

How would she feel, waking up to find me gone?

What would she think if she learned I had become someone else entirely?

As I channeled magic into the card, it shone brilliantly—

──Is this… Ravens’sheadquarters?

Engulfed in the Joker’s light, I had certainly teleported away from Hikari’s room.

—But the scenery before me was oddly familiar.

The walls, the ceiling, the floor—everything was engulfed in a pristine white.

If my memory as Sakurako is correct, then this place is…

“…Huh? Sakurako-san?”

“…It’s been a while, Rose-san.”

From the lone door in the square-shaped room, Rose emerged.

Which meant, without a doubt, this was Witch Association Seraph’s headquarters.

The place Magenta had once brought me to using a glowing card.

“W-Wait, why is Sakurako-san here?”

Still unable to grasp the situation, Rose looked incredibly confused.

“To be honest… I don’t really know myself.”

I waved the Joker card lightly for her to see.

“……!? That card… Looks like we need to have a little chat.”

For a moment, Rose’s eyes widened in surprise, but she quickly regained her composure.

“Where did you get that card?”

“A witch hunter attacked me recently…”

“…W-What!?”

“Oh, but Bubblegum-san just happened to be nearby and chased them off, so there wasn’t much damage.”

“I-I see… A lot has happened in such a short time, huh…”

The last time I met Rose, she had a calm and composed demeanor. But today, overwhelmed by the unexpected situation, she seemed different.

“I found this card lying around after the attack. I picked it up, and just now, when I was idly touching it, it suddenly started glowing… and before I knew it, I was here.”

“I see… That must have been surprising for you. I’ll arrange for you to return home soon.”

Of course, I had no intention of revealing to Rose that I was actually Rachel.

In fact, at this point, I had no intention of telling anyone.

Rose was once a member of Ravens—she must know about the Trump Cards.

To avoid unnecessary suspicion, it was best to pretend I had simply picked up the Joker.

“…This might be a bit much to ask, but… would you mind talking with me for a bit?”

──My teleportation to Ravens’s headquarters hadn’t worked as planned, but Seraph also housed many former Ravens witches.

I came here to learn about Rachel. That goal hadn’t changed.

If anything, I might have ended up here eventually, no matter what.

“…Oh my, oh my. Of course, I don’t mind. Given what happened before, I thought you might hold a grudge against the Seraph Witch Association… I’m glad to see you don’t hate us.”

Rose blinked in mild surprise before flashing a playful smile.

“Oh no, I would never.”

“Thank you. I’d love to treat you with some of my finest tea and cookies… but can you wait just a little longer?”

“Sure, I don’t mind… Here, in this room?”

“Yes. Actually, the reason I came here wasn’t to slack off on work.”

“…?”

She was joking, of course. But it was true—this empty room seemed like an odd place for her to be.

—And then, suddenly, light filled the center of the room.

In the next instant, two women appeared.

They had teleported in.

“──Arrived… Wait, Rose and… Baba Sakurako?”

“S-Sakurako-san!? What are you doing here?”

The ones who teleported in were Magenta, who had once kidnapped me, and her colleague, Emilia.

“Good morning.”

It all made sense now. Emilia, likely sent as a spy to VCU, must have been making a routine report when I just so happened to bump into her. What a crazy coincidence.

“Well then, shall we all have some tea together?”

＊ ＊ ＊

Just like the last time I was brought here, I climbed the long staircase, passed through the grand entrance where a massive chandelier loomed above, and entered the room where Rose-san kept her prized tea.

The differences this time? Hikari and Karuta weren’t here, but Emilia was.

And instead of me, Sakurako—now, I was Rachel.

“──I see. I thought it would be fine since Vivian was with you, so even if the witch hunters made a move, you’d be safe… But, huh, you were sleeping the whole time?”

“Yes, she slept the entire time we were fighting the witch hunters.”

“…In a way, she never fails to meet expectations, does she?”

With that, Emilia’s report on the hot springs training camp incident came to an end.

Thinking about it again… What is Vivian even doing? Rose and Magenta looked just as exasperated as I felt.

“So, in the end, we still don’t know what Vivian is up to. Emilia, I’ll leave the continued surveillance to you.”

“Understood. But, um… why is Sakurako-san here?”

Even while reporting, Emilia had been sneaking glances at me. Well, of course she’d be curious. Honestly, why didn’t anyone just explain it to her from the start?

“Isn’t it obvious? She probably got fed up with Vivian and came to switch sides to the Witch Society, right?”

“Is that true!?”

“Hey, Magenta, don’t go making things up. Sakurako-san is just here to have some tea and chat with me.”

…Well, the nuance felt a little different, but overall, it wasn’t exactly wrong. So, whatever.

“Is that true, Sakurako-san?”

“Yeah, more or less.”

Emilia still looked unconvinced, but thankfully, she didn’t seem inclined to press further.

“Now that the report is done… Sakurako-san, what did you want to talk about?”

“Right. Actually, I want to know more about the Four Great Witches.”

“Oh my, you always bring up the most unexpected topics… Ah, but I don’t mean that in a bad way, of course?”

Come to think of it, I feel like I’ve heard that line before. Back when I was still Sakurako.

“The Four Great Witches, huh? What brought this on?”

Magenta leaned against the wall, eyeing me with suspicion.

“Vivian told me that one of the Four Great Witches used the same magic as me. It piqued my interest, but I haven’t really had the chance to ask about it until now.”

The witch who could use Kurobane that Vivian mentioned… was, of course, me. Not that they’d ever guess.

“The same magic as the Four Great Witches? Which magic are you talking about?”

“…This one.”

I stood up from my chair and activated Kurobane. In the eerily pure-white room, my jet-black wings fluttered mesmerizingly.

“…Wha—K-Kurobane!?”

“Oh my, it’s been decades since I last saw that…”

“This magic… I don’t like it.”

Magenta, Rose, and Emilia each had their own distinct reactions.

“So… Sakurako-san, you want to know about Rachel Poker?”

“Yes. I’ve heard she’s already passed away, but I thought you, Rose-san, might know something about her.”

Of course, she hasn’t actually died.

“I understand. Like I mentioned before, I joined the Raven faction a few years before the organization split, so I don’t know her all that well… but is that fine with you?”

“Yes, anything you can tell me will be helpful.”

This was the first step on my journey to uncover my lost memories.