Life in Another World as a Witch

Repaying a Debt

Jun awoke to the feeling of something furry brushing against her face. She briefly opened her eyes and saw that a cat was nudging her with its paw. She pushed it away and closed her eyes once more.

"Ugh, five more minutes," she mumbled.

Smack! Something swatted her cheek. She opened her eyes to see the cat again.

"Okay, okay, I'll get up," said Jun, sitting up in bed.

The cat hopped off the bed, meowed at Jun and sauntered out of the room. Sighing, Jun got out of bed and followed the cat. She came to a large room with a table in the center. He guild members were seated at the table, eating breakfast.

"Ah, Jun!" said the male knight. "Good to see you're up thanks to Selia's familiar cat, please, help yourself to some breakfast."

Jun nodded and sat down at the table. There was already a plat set out for her, filled with scrambled eggs and bacon. There were large plates with more eggs and bacon strewn across the table, plus some bowls with bread in them.

She eagerly dug into her breakfast, took seconds, and finished that too. She also took two rolls over the course of the meal.

"I just realized," said Jun. "I never got your names, except Selia."

"I'm Atia," said the knight girl.

"I'm Edelin, nice to meet you," said the girl in brown leather.

"Stella," said the girl in the white gown.

"I am Jore," said the man.

"It's nice to meet you all," said Jun, bowing her head slightly.

They finished eating breakfast, then Selia led Jun out to the back of the guild house.

"Like I said," Selia began, "there's nothing wrong with your staff, you just don't know any magic. I'll teach you the basics, and from there it's up to you to find spell books and learn new spells. To start, magic is the art of making your visions reality. You have to visualize what you want and pour enough mana into your spell to make it happen."

Jun nodded. Selia spent the entire afternoon lecturing and watching Jun cast spells. At the end of the lecture, she gave Jun a small spell book.

"Consider it a gift," Selia said.

"Is there a spell in here to get me money or real clothes?" Jun asked.

"I wouldn't complain about your clothes. They're actually super powerful armor."

"You're joking."

"No, they're enchanted to offer you a high degree of protection."

"Great..."

Jore walked out of the guild house.

"Hey, ladies," he said, "How goes the training?"

"Good," said Selia. "Jun's a fast learner."

"Great, so how soon can Jun leave?"

"What?" Jun exclaimed.

"I told you, you're just here to find your feet. Once that's done, you should leave, for the guild's sake and your own."

"But--"

"Jun, get on all fours and bark like a dog."

Jun immediately dropped her staff and dropped to all fours.

"Woof, woof!" she barked.

"Stop," commanded Jore.

Jun stopped and stood up. She dusted herself off and grabbed her staff from the ground.

"Why did--"

"This is my curse, Jun. It's better if you leave, for everyone."

"Let me at least repay you for your kindness."

"Fine, we have a job lined up today. You can come along and help, but after that, you're gone."

Jun nodded.

Later that day, Jun and the guild headed out to a cave on the outskirts of town. Inside, they found a giant snake. The snake tried to swallow them all whole, but Stella put out her hands and the snake collided with an invisible barrier. It tried to circle around them, but Atia cut off its head just as it prepared to strike only for two heads to grow in its place.

"Darn it, it's a hydra!" exclaimed Jore.

He leapt forward and made to cut off one head, but the monster dodged and head butted him, sending him flying into a wall.

Atia charged forward and cut off both heads in a single stroke, but four more grew back in their places. Edelin fired an arrow to distract the beast, then Selia fired a lightning bolt to stun it. Jore and Atia each cut off two heads. Remembering the myth of the hydra, Jun unleashed a torrent of flame from her staff, cauterizing the beast's wounds and preventing its heads from growing back. What was left of the snake flopped to the ground, dead.

"Thank you for your assistance, Jun," said Jore. "Now, I must insist you leave our guild."

"I don't really understand, but if that's what you want, okay."

They returned to town together, then they split up from there. Jun picked a random direction and headed in it. She hoped she could find a place to sleep.