Frieren still hadn't been completely indifferent after all!
After reading for about an hour, she saw that it was still early and started to feel bored. So she took Fern along to scout the area near the place where they had sensed the unusual surge of mana earlier. They hurried back just before late afternoon.
However...
"!!"
"?!"
As soon as they opened the carriage door and stepped into the expanded living room, they were shocked to find someone there: a young witch who looked only a year or two younger than Fern, standing in the hall that should have been empty at this time of day.
When the stranger turned at the sound, they saw a girl with long gray-white hair and glassy eyes. She wore a black robe and a witch's hat that was black on the outside and pink within. A fearsome "bear-head brooch" was pinned to her chest. On closer inspection, runes pulsing with some kind of powerful magic had been carved into it, spelling out the words "Gray Witch."
They didn't recognize the script, but the magical runes conveyed the words clearly and unmistakably to the two witches.
"..."
They watched her warily for a moment. Then, seeing that she didn't seem hostile and that the bear-head brooch looked remarkably familiar—like Tibbers's fearsome bear head—Fern took two hesitant steps forward and asked in a quiet voice:
"Excuse me..."
"Who are you?"
They had left that morning, and only three or four hours had passed. Yet when they came back, there was another person in their home.
"..."
Frieren didn't ask aloud, but she also gazed at the stranger in surprise and curiosity.
She had no idea who the woman was. But the fact that she had found their carriage and entered without permission meant she