Sure Enough, She's a Madwoman

Higashino Makoto looked at her, his golden eyes devoid of any emotion, but he already knew the answer in his heart.

Sure enough, all witches are madmen.

Echidna is, Typhon is, Sekhmet is, Carmilla is, Minerva is, Daphne is.

Now, Pandora is too.

They've all gone mad, just in different ways.

"I refuse."

Pandora frowned slightly.

"Why?"

"Because my favorite thing is saying no to those self-important guys!"

Don't you want to understand others? Don't you want to be Human Order? Don't you want to live without lies and without pretense?

"No, I absolutely do not want to become the complete person you described."

"Why?"

"Because I am who I am. I don't need to become someone else, nor do I need anyone else to become me. I don't need to understand everyone, nor do I need everyone to understand me. I have my own life, I have my own woman. If you want to complete humanity, that's your business, but don't drag me and my things into it!"

Pandora looked at him, her eyes flashing with a complex light.

Then, a smile tinged with regret appeared on her face.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto, you are unlike anyone I've ever known."

"I know."

Do you know what the grave sin of deception is?

"I know. But you've got one thing wrong. Pretense isn't all bad. Some lies are for protection, some disguises are for avoiding harm. You hate pretense, but I think a world without pretense is more terrifying than one with pretense."

Pandora tilted her head, her eyes filled with confusion.

"What's the meaning?"

"It means... your world where everyone is honest with each other will not lead to harmony, only destruction. When everyone can read each other's minds, when no one has any secrets, war will not disappear, it will only become more brutal. Because you will know what others are thinking, and others will know what you are thinking. Can you tolerate that? Can you tolerate others' disgust, jealousy, and hatred towards you, piercing your eyes nakedly and without any cover?"

"I can."

Pandora gave the answer without hesitation.

Higashino Makoto shook his head and spoke.

"Those who walk different paths cannot make plans together, so in my opinion, you're just crazy."

Pandora looked at him for a long time, then she chuckled softly.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto, I'm not crazy. I'm just walking a path that leads to human Peace but is Human Order... It's a real shame that Mr. Higashino Makoto can't understand it either."

Even madmen don't think they're crazy.

Maybe, but I won't give up.

She turned around and walked towards the window.

"Satella's seal must not be touched. You may kill the other Sin Archbishops, but you cannot kill the Witch of Envy."

Higashino Makoto looked at her.

Are you ordering me around?

Pandora stopped in her tracks, without turning back.

"No, it's just a suggestion. Perhaps you'll understand soon."

"I won't figure it out."

"Maybe, but I'm not in a hurry."

Her skin began to fade.

Like a painting slowly fading under the scorching sun, from vibrant to dull, from dull to transparent, and from transparent to Void.

"A clone?"

"Higashino Makoto," he said in a low voice.

Pandora's voice came from the Void.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto, I look forward to seeing you again."

Then, she disappeared.

A faint, floral fragrance lingered in the air.

Higashino Makoto sat on the bed, his golden eyes gazing at the empty windowsill.

Elsa Granhiert leaned on his shoulder, her dark red eyes filled with worry.

Higashino Makoto.

"Um."

"He's a troublesome opponent, much harder to deal with than my mother."

"Indeed, if the real entity doesn't appear nearby, my 'Garden' can't sever the opponent's Authority."

Elsa Granhiert remained silent for a moment.

Higashino Makoto.

"Um."

You'll win, right?

Higashino Makoto felt he should answer that he would win, but he had a feeling that something bad would happen if he said it.

However, no matter what, I won't lose!

Pandora is only difficult to kill; it's unlikely she could defeat him.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have come to conduct these so-called negotiations.

"Yes, her Authority are troublesome. She can alter cognition and distort reality. Her true form is unknown, and her clones are endless."

Elsa Granhiert gripped his arm tightly.

Higashino Makoto.

"Um."

"I'm scared."

What are you afraid of?

I'm afraid of her world, I'm afraid of losing you.

Higashino Makoto looked at her, and as he listened to these words from this once cold-blooded assassin, a gentle light flashed in his eyes.

"No, it won't."

"Why?"

"Because I am very strong, no one in this world can truly kill me."

Elsa Granhiert looked at him for a long time.

Sure enough, he's an arrogant fellow.

Then she smiled.

That smile carried a languid and alluring quality, but more than that, it was a genuine smile, tinged with a sense of reassurance.

"Good."

There was a knock on the door.

Three strokes, neither hurried nor slow.

Rem's voice came from outside the door.

"Mr. Higashino Makoto, dinner is ready."

"Knew."

"Also, Miss Reisen said that Miss Meili touched her ear so much that it became bald, and she requests your intervention."

Higashino Makoto was silent for a moment.

It's hard to imagine that a level 100 NPC would be bullied by a little girl.

"... knew."

The footsteps faded into the distance. Elsa Granhiert chuckled softly.

"Higashino Makoto, your maids are worried about you."

"I know."

"You worry about me too, so I love you all the same!"

Elsa Granhiert leaned on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

Higashino Makoto gazed out the window at the sky dyed red by the setting sun.

Pandora's image still lingered in his mind.

"The Witch of Vainglory."

He said in a low voice.

"You wait."

A purple-gold light flickered in his palm.

It was like a response, yet also like a warning.

Novas Etier, Fourth Level, Silent Great Library.

Higashino Makoto leaned against a pillar at the entrance to the library, his golden eyes gazing at the witches in the common rest area.

Echidna sat on the sofa, her long, silvery-white hair cascading over her shoulders, her dark eyes fixed on the book in her hands.

Beatrice sat beside her, her cream-colored double-curled ponytail cascading down her shoulders, her blue eyes also fixed on the book in her hands.

Typhon lay sprawled on the table, his crimson eyes half-closed.

Sekhmet lay on the bench, her long, purplish-red hair cascading onto the cushions.

Minerva sat beside the bookshelf, her blue eyes fixed on the book on magic theory.

Carmilla sat in the corner, her long, light red hair falling down and obscuring her face.

Daphne was washing dishes in the kitchen; the sound of water came from afar.

Echidna.

"Um."

She didn't look up.

"Pandora has come to find me."

Echidna's finger paused for a moment, then continued turning the page.

What did she say?

"She said the seal on the Witch of Envy cannot be touched; she wants to create a world where everyone is honest with each other, and she needs Satella's Authority."

Echidna put down her book, looked up, and stared at him with her dark eyes, showing no surprise whatsoever.

"You refused, right?"

"It was rejected."

"Why?"

"Because her world isn't utopia; at least for me, it's destruction."

Echidna looked at him, her face beaming with the joy of seeing one of her own kind.

"Yes, that's what I think too. That's why Pandora and I just don't get along, and that's exactly why we parted ways four hundred years ago."

"Oh?"

"After all, in her world, there is no future. Without a future, everything becomes known, and I might go crazy from boredom and inability to satisfy my own desires."

Higashino Makoto looked at her.

"So, what's the easiest way to deal with her?"

"It's difficult... However, I suggest you go directly to the Witch of Witch of Envy. After Witch of Envy dies, she might go berserk and come after you."

"I understand. But I have a feeling you're quite happy about me killing the Witch of Envy?"

Echidna revealed undisguised joy and malice.

"Yeah, I'm so happy! He's so strong, but when I fought Pandora, he didn't help at all. He ended up going crazy. There's no more stupid guy than him."

"Well, it seems even a witch is still a woman... She's so vengeful and petty."

"I am a woman... Higashino- kun, be careful of her. Vanity Authority is troublesome. I suggest you don't bring anyone else with you on your next mission, or better yet, hide yourself. She'll most likely target those around you."

Higashino Makoto nodded.

"I see."

He turned around and walked out of the library.

"Reisen, it's almost time for the rotation day, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Reisen's voice carried a hint of reluctance.

"Later, I'll temporarily send the manor's maids and the Elsa Granhiert sisters to Novas Etier, and I'll try my best to take down Pandora."

"Yes, Master, please be careful."

"It's alright. Within the boundaries of my Garden, she can't activate her Authority, and any attempt to use Authority from afar, whether it's altering cognition or anything else, will be blocked by Huginn and the others."

Ultimately, Higashino Makoto did not believe he would suffer an unexpected setback.

Pandora is nothing more than difficult to kill.

"Unfortunately, because of her Authority, Pandora's whereabouts and future are difficult to record in the Tome of Wisdom. Otherwise, killing her would be quite easy."

Standing at the entrance of the library, gazing at that artificial starry sky.

"Pandora, you just wait."