Wandering Witch - The Journey of Elaina - Volume 2

EPILOGUE

Clouds floated across the boundless blue sky, casting shadows onto the plains
below.

There was one patch of land that was the most ideal temperature, shielding
exposure from the direct sun, where a single tree stood beneath the clouds, top
swaying in the cool air.

The leaves stirred in the breeze, rustling before taking flight from the single
tree on the plain and drifting through the air. Spinning around as if dancing, the
leaves whirled around a certain witch before finally scattering.

“…Hmm.”

After lightly touching her cheek where the leaves had caressed her, that witch
looked up at the tree.

Her long, sleek ashen hair swayed in the breeze as she soared on her broom.
This young woman was a witch and a traveler. She was clad in a black robe and
a pointy hat, and upon her breast was a star-shaped brooch that served as
proof of her witchhood.

She tilted her head quizzically as she gazed up at the tree.

“…Hmm?”

She had a memory of this tree, standing with an air of composure,
surrounded by small grasses and flowers. Landing her broom beneath its
branches, she recalled when and where she had seen it before.

“This is where I took shelter from the rain.”

She remembered this view. It had rained in the middle of her travels, so she
had settled down on this spot for a short while.

Somehow or other, it seemed she had returned.

Recalling the scenery as it had appeared the last time, the witch let her mouth
form a little smile.

And then, perched atop her broom, she gently rose into the sky. Before her
stretched an expanse of pale greens and deep blues.

It was beautiful.

It was ordinary scenery, the kind that was common anywhere.
But it was enchanting.
“……”
But the witch did not stop like last time. This time, it wasn’t raining. She had
no reason to linger.

As a witch and as a traveler, she delighted in traversing this beautiful
landscape more than simply gazing at it.

She walked around beneath the tree, thinking about where she should head
next. But that quickly grew tiresome, and she left to return to the sunshine.

The plants below her glittered, swaying in the sunlight, as if to greet the
traveling witch.

The wind blew tenderly, as if to caress her.

The ordinary landscape kindly greeted the witch, as always—as if inviting her
to the places she had not yet seen in the wide world.

“…I wonder what kind of place the next country will be,” she mumbled to no
one in particular.

She didn’t know the answer, but she was eager to find out.
With a heart jumping from excitement, the witch continued her journey.

Who was she?
She was me.

Afterword

Nice to meet you. Or maybe I should say, “Good to see you again.” My name
is Jougi Shiraishi.

Recently, I’ve become a full-fledged member of society. When I was small, I
pictured all grown adults as perfect human beings. But, well, when I tried to
become a cog in the wheel of society, even though it was awash in amazing
people, I myself was unable to become one of them. People don’t always go
through a dramatic personal change just by experiencing a shift of
circumstances, and now I earnestly think that I will remain who I am, even as an
adult—at least, until I have a change of heart.

Speaking of which (?), thank you for purchasing Volume 2 of Wandering
Witch: The Journey of Elaina.

Just as in Volume 1, she went around meeting people, weaving stories with
them before parting ways…but if that’s all there ever is to the plot, it wouldn’t
be very interesting! I was worried that might be the case, so I decided to change
the plan for Volume 2. And since Elaina is constantly flying through forests, I
decided to give it more of a seasonal touch. As a result, poor Elaina endured
traveling through both snow country and the desert in a single volume.

Also, when I showed my manuscript to my editor, it turned out to be packed
with dark stories. It could have been because I was writing this volume right
around when I was preparing for my first year as a full-fledged member of
society, or maybe because my apprehensions about this new lifestyle were on
the rise. Or it could have been because I had reached the peak of my
dissatisfaction with the world at large.

And because my manuscript was overly dark, my editor expressed concern for
me: “Jougi, have you fallen to the dark side? Are you all right?”

I’m all right. I’m feeling very well, in fact. By the way, the story that was too

dark was revised to be a tiny bit milder, and I meant for it to be included as one
of the chapters in this book, but then it was cast down into hell (meaning it was
rejected).

Now then, on to the acknowledgments.

To my editor, M. Thank you for saving me before I descended into the dark
side. May the force be with you.

To Azure, thank you for continuing to draw adorable images and characters as
you did for Volume 1… Princess Chocolat’s cuteness is especially dangerous.
Like I almost fell in love. But she’s gay. Tough luck for me.

Finally, to everyone who had a part in the publication of this book, and to all
the readers who have been kind enough to read all the way to the end of this
empty afterword, thank you all very much.

…I’ve got a few lines left over, so I’ll give you some spoilers for the next
volume (assuming it gets printed).

Some guy named Jougi Shiraishi from the present day is reborn in another
world. However, he is neither gifted with convenient special abilities nor
surrounded by beautiful women. Since he had only lived in modern civilization,
he has no specialized knowledge, and no one else speaks his language anyway.
For all these reasons, he starves to death in a matter of days. I’ll depict a course
of events along those lines. Of course, the essential parts of a person don’t
change just because their environment shifts. I’m planning to make that the
punch line.

That’s a lie, of course. Well then, if there’s another volume, I’ll see you there!

Thank you for buying this ebook, published by Yen On.

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