TLWCL 21🔐

Chapter 21 …

Hmm…
Refusing without even thinking for three seconds—now that was awkward.

Hahaha, ever since I possessed this body, I’ve rarely been rejected. How embarrassing.

“May I ask why you refuse?”

“Uh, um… I-I have to stay in this forest…”

Ah, so that’s the problem.

Nothing serious, then!

Determined to recruit the Red Witch, Calebrin, no matter what, I prepared my sales pitch like a seasoned corporate salesman.

“I see. But, Sister Calebrin, wasn’t your reason for staying in this forest to purify it so that they could return?”

“Uh… yeah. I-I have to purify this place and w-wait for everyone to come back. T-they told me to wait.”

“But in order to purify it, you’ll have to come with me.”

“T-that’s…”

Her expression wavered nervously beneath her tangled black hair.

“Did you not profess your faith, Sister? Then follow my will. I promise you—once my power grows with your help, I will surely purify this forest. So don’t hesitate. The will of the divine is with me, and so should you be.”

“….”

Calebrin hesitated.

Hmm… seems like this situation calls for a grand performance.

I rummaged through my status window. Neither of us was injured, so there was nothing to heal, and there wasn’t anything visibly corrupt to purify either…

[Followers: 41]

Well, one just got added, though I’m not sure if it’s Calebrin or someone else.

Still, it’s too early for baptism… and I’m out of Faith Points after upgrading both the Purification and Healing relics earlier today.

Convincing her with words alone without a flashy miracle was proving to be excruciating.

Usually, one healing or purification beam was enough to win a convert—but without my cheats, it’s tough.

I stared down at her head for a moment before opening my mouth.

“Do you believe in God?”

“God… you mean L-Lumencia?”

“Whoever it may be. Perhaps Lumencia, or perhaps one of the forgotten gods of legend.”

The Demon Lord seemed to believe in one of those forgotten gods too.

Calebrin scratched the edge of her fingernail and muttered weakly,

“I… I don’t believe in gods. I-in sorcery, gods are c-conceptual beings, and faith… i-interferes with rituals.”

“Conceptual beings. I see. That makes sense. After all, no god has ever shown themselves directly—it’s only natural to doubt. Humans believe only what they can see with their own eyes, don’t they?”

Huh. I thought she’d be an easy recruit, but this was harder than expected.

I let my smile fade for a moment, then put it back on.
Strange magical trinkets hung from her messy black hair.

“But, Sister. If I can purify this vast, corrupted forest and return to you those you’ve longed for… would that not be a divine miracle? I can make it happen—but to perform that miracle, I need your help.”

I reached out my hand.

“So I’ll ask again. Do you believe in me?”

For an instant, fear flickered in Calebrin’s eyes. She looked down at the ground.

Only the patch of earth beneath my feet glowed faintly green, with sprouts beginning to bloom—while where she stood remained covered in rot and corpses.

Her grip on her staff tightened, her pale hand’s dark red nails standing out starkly. For a second, I worried she might hit me with it.

“R-really…?”

“Yes. Faith, by its nature, is such a thing. If you truly believe in me, purifying this vast and corrupted forest will not be impossible.”

Trading belief like it’s a transaction, huh?

The thought crossed my mind, but I quickly pushed it aside.

A real salesman makes the customer sign the deal before they realize what’s happening.

Ah, the memories—thirteen grueling months at that hellish company before getting reassigned instead of promoted. Best not to dwell on it.

Calebrin still looked uncertain. Her crimson eyes darted about, her body rigid with tension.

No need for an appraisal skill here.

She was scared.

Why, I didn’t know—but that wasn’t important.

All that mattered was whether she would believe or not.

“…I-I’ll believe. Calebrin, the Red Sorceress of the Forest, will f-follow you.”

That sounded more like a knight pledging fealty to a lord than a convert professing faith, but hey—

[Followers: 42]

Counted all the same.

“You’ve made a wise choice. I will surely answer your faith. But first… may I administer a ‘baptism,’ to confirm that your devotion is true?”

“B-baptism…?”

“It will be painless and peaceful.”

Calebrin swallowed hard.

To test whether she truly believed…

But I don’t even know what it means to truly believe…

An overwhelming pressure radiated from him.

She could sense it clearly as a sorceress—the fragment of divinity within him.

Though what stood before her was merely a fraction of the whole, the weight of that divine shard made her very soul hum in discord, as if her spirit clashed with something vast and alien.

That heavy, oppressive air—the unease, the racing heartbeat—all of it came from that.

Like standing before a dragon’s breath.

Her instincts easily analyzed it.

She had no desire to oppose this being.

Forget about purifying the forest—nothing good could come from making an enemy of something like that.

If he realizes I don’t truly believe… what if he punishes me?

“Painless and peaceful,” he’d said…

Did that mean the “baptism” would kill her so swiftly she couldn’t even scream?

A wave of fear she’d never known before swept through her.

Her mental barriers—her sorcerer’s defense—were eroding the longer she faced him.

Her body trembled in instinctive terror.

A long, pale hand entered her vision.

Through his tangled black hair, his golden eyes gleamed faintly.

She swallowed.
The only sounds were water trickling somewhere far away, and grass rustling in the wind.

The forest was utterly silent.

—Ahahaha!
—Lina! Over here!

Familiar faces.
She could barely remember where their scars had been.

—If I return those you long for…

The burning forest. She no longer remembered which flowers had bloomed there.

—Lina! Wait!
—You must wait here…
—We’ll come back…

Their voices echoed faintly in her mind.

—If you truly believe in me, purifying this vast, corrupted forest will not be impossible.

—Calebrin! Calebrin!
—We’ll come back for sure…

He’ll give them back to me?

—Faith… that’s what it is.

Tap.

His hand touched hers.

Though he must have cast a warming spell, his touch was icy cold.

“Good. Calebrin.”

She looked up.

“Shall we go to your new home? It’ll be quite comfortable.”

I believe.

Not in him standing before me…

But in the future he promised to return.

As a skilled sorceress, Calebrin could sense it clearly now that her mental barriers had fallen.

It’s possible… not just this forest, but an even wider area could be purified.

A miracle only a god could perform.

“If you wish, I can prepare a new sanctuary for you. But don’t worry—the choice is entirely yours. Do as your heart tells you.”

“C-can I stay with you, P-pilgrim? I-I might… b-be of help.”

Her words tumbled out hastily, and he smiled gently.

“Of course.”

That smooth curve of his lips and his calm tone would seem kind and reassuring to anyone else—
but Calebrin, as a sorceress, could see deeper.

He’s not human.

Inside that human shape were countless things writhing and pressing together.

They weren’t smiling at her at all.

But knowing those horrors wouldn’t bare their fangs at her gave her a strange sense of peace.

As the pilgrim walked ahead, Calebrin followed behind.

The greenery that sprouted beneath his steps withered and rotted the moment he moved on.

A true miracle.

Even if it was just grass, he had the power to create life and erase corruption, returning it to the natural order.

If that wasn’t divine, what was?

“Uh… how will the purification… proceed? I-I mean, no rush or anything…”

He stopped, brushing his hand against a withered branch.

“Purification itself is easy.”

His once-white eyes turned gold.
The branch glowed with golden and green light, sprouting new buds.

“But I’ve realized that purifying little by little is meaningless. I’ll need to gather greater power—to do it all at once.”

When he released the branch, the buds shriveled and fell. The wood turned gray and oozed sap before dying completely.

He still wore that serene smile.

“R-right… then, how do you… gather that power?”

“Simple. The more believers like you I have, the more miracles I can perform.”

She nodded slightly, and seeing she understood, he continued walking.

“I intend to work toward that.”

“W-what should I… do?”

“Don’t rush. Everything has its time, doesn’t it?”

“Y-yeah…”

Everything had its time.

The time for her people to return to the forest would come too. Calebrin, being a capable sorceress, could sense when that moment might arrive.

Until then, she could wait—and leave when needed.

—Lina! Wait!
—You must wait here…
—We’ll come back…

But she knew now that just waiting was no longer enough.

As she walked, the branches beneath her feet were dry instead of rotten.

At the edge of the forest, the line between the green meadow and the dark, decayed woods was clear.

How many years had it been since she last stepped out?

The sky was black yet bright with stars—so foreign and beautiful.

Below, grass and wildflowers swayed. Green. How long it had been since she’d seen that color.

Birdsong echoed—it felt almost miraculous.
In a forest of death, even the birds that once flew above would drop dead and rot midair.

The sound of hooves followed. The pilgrim opened the carriage door with a smile.

“Let’s take the carriage.”

Calebrin stumbled twice trying to get in, and for a brief moment, she glimpsed his inner essence again.

Golden and green light flickered—and the scrapes on her knees, wrists, and hands healed instantly.

“If you’re hurt anywhere, come to me.”

“Y-yes…”

Did Calebrin always have such a clumsy side?

She looked embarrassed, so I didn’t say anything. Maybe she just had poor coordination—
most mages do.

Satisfied with that thought, I leaned by the small carriage window, watching the scenery roll by.

While walking through the forest earlier, I got a relic reward—another random skill ticket.
Now that I’ve got Calebrin with me, I might as well roll the gacha before bed.

She’d fallen asleep long ago, defeated by motion sickness despite her earlier tension.

Maybe I’ll just pull now…

As I stared blankly out the window, a translucent message appeared before me.