Chapter 757: Sharon
Wendy walked into the hospital with a dinner box in hand.
Near the entrance, she found Nana’s father—Viscount Tigui Pine—deep in conversation with a man and a woman. The couple bowed repeatedly, then bent their knees as if to kneel; Tigui stopped them each time, and the exchange went on for some minutes before they finally bowed once more and left reluctantly.
“Who were they?” Wendy asked as they went out.
Tigui shrugged. “The new witch’s parents. They were worried about leaving her alone in the hospital and asked whether they could take her home. The moment I told them it was the king’s wish for her to stay, they changed completely—expressed nothing but gratitude.” There was a faint edge of disappointment in the last sentence, and something that was also unmistakably pride.
Wendy couldn’t help smiling. “You think every parent is like you—willing to break into a lord’s castle for their child.”
She knew exactly why he was disappointed. He believed that parents should never hand their children over to anyone, even on a king’s orders. When Nana awakened, Tigui had walked straight to Roland’s castle without a letter of introduction. Fortunately, the prince had never intended Nana any harm, and that act of desperation had become something of a fond legend. Had he walked into Duke Ryan’s castle instead, or any other great noble’s in the Western Region, the story would have ended very differently.
Wendy hadn’t been in Border Town when it happened, but she had heard it from Nightingale, more than once.
“At least they’re far better than Summer’s parents,” Wendy said, and sighed.
Summer’s parents had sent her to the castle the day she awakened—in exchange for one gold royal. They had treated her like a servant delivered to a new master, warning her not to refuse any of the king’s requests. If not for the money, they might not have let her go at all. Since then, Summer had stopped going home as often as before; the Witch Building had become what her birth family never quite managed to be.
She was lucky, as witches went. As a daughter, she had been surrendered.
Tigui nodded slowly. “Yes. One of them works in the Furnace Area, the other is a handyman on the construction team. They had no idea what happened until their shift ended, and the moment they heard, they came straight here without stopping for dinner. I can read a parent’s face. They care about the girl.”
“It sounds like I was right to bring the dinner box,” Wendy said warmly. “Will you take me to Sharon?”
He touched his beard. “Of course. Follow me.”
After its recent expansion, the hospital had an inpatient ward now—though it was rarely full. Nana and Lily could treat most patients in Neverwinter within a short sitting; the usual practice was a brief stay in the hall until the cure took hold. For Sharon, Roland had arranged something different. He wasn’t certain how all the new arrivals to Neverwinter—people drawn from every corner of Graycastle—would feel about a witch moving back among them. Better to keep her here for now, where she was safe.
Tigui gently pushed open the door to the recovery ward and waved to Nana, who was sitting beside the bed. “Dinnertime. You can talk to your friend later.”
Nana looked up, startled. “She isn’t eating with us?” Then she saw Wendy. “Sister Wendy—you came too!”
Wendy patted the dinner box. “I brought her dinner.”
“Oh.” Nana said goodbye to Sharon and left with her father.
Wendy walked to the bedside and set the dinner box on the cupboard. She turned to find Sharon already watching her—curious, wide-eyed, unafraid. The girl had a childish face, short rosy hair, a shade Wendy had rarely seen in Graycastle. It reminded her of a rosebud. The awakening had already begun to work its changes; she could imagine, easily, how striking the girl would look once she entered adulthood.
“How do you feel,” Wendy asked, “about being a witch?”
“I felt something get into my body.” Sharon pursed her lips. “Miss Nana told me that was the magic power.” A pause. “Are you a witch too? Does it always hurt the first time?”
The second question had a broader meaning—but Wendy knew which meaning the girl intended. “Yes, I’m a witch. You can call me Wendy. As for your second question: it isn’t quite like that. Once you learn to use the magic power, it will become part of you—like your arms and legs.” She opened the iron dinner box and began laying the food out on the cupboard.
Sharon swallowed hard. Then her stomach made a sound she clearly could not prevent.
Her face flooded scarlet.
“Are you hungry?” Wendy smiled and set a bowl of Bird Beak Mushroom soup in front of her without delay.
Pale yellow broth, scallions floating on the surface, a sheen of oil shimmering in the firelight. It smelled of meat in a way that distinguished it sharply from any vegetable soup, and the smell filled the small room immediately.
Wendy had learned this from Roland—always welcome someone new with good food. She had watched him do it at every banquet for every witch who arrived at the castle, and she understood now why it worked so well.
Sharon nodded vigorously.
“Drink some soup to warm your stomach before anything else.”
The girl ate as if she were afraid the food might disappear—which made Wendy feel hungry herself, just watching.
“Where is your friend?” Wendy asked, once the edge had come off the hunger. “Did she go home?”
“Probably,” Sharon said between bites. “She might not fully trust me. I’m from the Southern Territory, same as the students who were bullying her.”
Wendy stared. “You’re from the Southern Territory?”
“Yes.” Sharon stuffed a piece of Bird Beak Mushroom into her mouth. “Mapleflower Town—a small town near Eagle City. It’s uninhabitable now.”
“I assumed you were from the east. I thought that was why you defended her.”
Sharon blinked. “I shouldn’t help her because we’re from different regions?” She said it plainly, without heat, as if the conclusion genuinely puzzled her. “The nobles’ disputes have nothing to do with her. Those students just wanted an excuse to bully someone. Wrong is wrong, wherever you come from. If I didn’t stand up, no one would correct it.”
Wendy was quiet for a moment.
Your Majesty, you were worried for nothing. This girl doesn’t need comforting. She doesn’t need to be guided toward right thinking, or told that witches belong here, or reassured that no one will come for her in the night.
She already knows what she’s decided—and she decided before anyone told her it was allowed.
Chapter 757: Sharon
Translator: Transn Editor: Meh
…
Wendy walked into the hospital with a dinner box in hand and there she saw Nana’s father Tigui Pine talking with a man and a woman. They bowed and then bent their knees, acting as if they were going to get down on their knees, but Viscount Tigui stopped them at once. This went on for quite a long while and then they bowed to him and left reluctantly.
When they got out of the hospital, Wendy came to him and asked curiously, “Who’re they?”
Tigui shrugged and said, “Who else could they be? They’re the parents of the new witch. They were worried about leaving her alone in the hospital and were asking whether they could take her home. After I told them it was the king who wanted her to stay here, they immediately changed their attitude and expressed gratitude to His Majesty.” Wendy sensed a little disappointment and pride in his last sentence.
Wendy couldn’t stop herself from laughing, “You think every parent is like you, who dare to break into the lord’s castle for his daughter.”
She knew why he felt disappointed. He believed that parents should never hand their kids over to anyone else, even if a king asked. When Nana had awakened, he had gone directly to Roland’s castle without a letter of introduction. Fortunately, the kind and merciful Prince Roland had never intended to do any harm to her, so this incident had ended up becoming a moving story. If he had intruded into the castle of Duke Ryan or any other
great noble in the Western Region to save Nana, he would have never been able to get off so easily.
Although that story had happened before Wendy had come to Border Town, she had heard it from Nightingale repeatedly. That was why she naturally understood where Tigui’s pride came from.
“At least, they’re way better than Summer’s parents,” Wendy sighed.
Summer’s parents had hurriedly sent her to the castle to get one gold royal when she awakened to be a witch. They had treated her like a slave they had sold to the king and the Witch Union and warned her not to refuse any of their requests. If it hadn’t been for the money they would’ve got, they probably would not let her return home.
Disappointed by her family, Summer did not return home as often as before once she got used to living with all the sisters in the Witch Building.
As a witch, she could be considered as lucky.
However, as a daughter, she had been abandoned by her parents.
Tigui nodded and agreed with Wendy. “Indeed, they are. One of them works in the Furnace Area and the other is a handyman in the construction team. They had no idea what happened to her until they finished their jobs, but as soon as they heard the news, they hurried here without even having dinner. I can tell from their faces, they do care about the girl.”
Wendy smiled and said, “It looks like I was right to bring this dinner box with me. Could you take me to Sharon?”
Tigui touched his beard and said, “Of course, please follow me.”
…
After the restructure and extension, this hospital now had an inpatient department, but only a few patients would stay here, as Nana and Lily could cure most of the patients in Neverwinter in a short time. They usually just needed to stay in the hall of the hospital for a while to fully recover.
Considering that the influence of the church might still exist, Roland had asked the hospital to let Sharon stay. He was not sure whether all the people who had immigrated from the other districts of Graycastle could accept the witches as one of them. By keeping her in the hospital, at least, he could ensure that she would not become homeless or get hurt by her family.
Tigui and Wendy came to the recovery ward. He gently pushed the door open and waved to Nana by the bed. “It’s time dinner. You can talk to your friend later.”
“She’s not going to have dinner with us?” Nana asked surprised. She then saw Wendy and said, “Sister Wendy. You also came.”
Wendy smiled and patted the dinner box in her hand, saying, “I brought her dinner.”
Nana said, “Oh, I see. You guys talk first. I’ll come back later.” She said goodbye to Sharon and left the ward with her father.
Wendy walked to the bed and put the dinner box on the bedside cupboard. She turned around and met Sharon’s eyes. The new witch was looking at her, her face curious. Wendy asked, “How do you feel about becoming a witch?”
The girl had a childish face and short rosy hair. It was a rare hair color in Graycastle and reminded her of a rosebud. Wendy knew for sure that she would become more beautiful after her awakening. She could already imagine how extraordinary she would look once she would enter adulthood.
Sharon replied, “I felt that something got into my body… Miss Nana told me that was the magic power.” She pursed her lips and continued, “Are you a witch, too? Does it always hurt the first time?”
Though her second question could cause some ambiguity, she knew exactly what she was talking about. “Yes, I’m a witch. You can call me Wendy. As for your second question, not really… It’s not that important anyway. As long as you learn how to use the magic power, it’ll become part of you, like your arms and legs.” With these words, she opened the iron dinner box and put the steaming food on the bedside cupboard.
Sharon swallowed twice to prevent herself from drooling, but she could not stop her stomach from growling.
She blushed with embarrassment at once.
“Are you hungry?” Wendy smiled and immediately placed a Bird Beak Mushrooms soup in front of the little girl.
Some scallions ware floating in the light yellow soup. The oil on the surface was shimmering in the firelight. Compared to a light vegetable soup, the smell of the meat made this soup much more tempting.
Wendy had learned this trick of using nice food to reassure people from Roland who liked to hold a banquet to welcome new witches.
Sharon nodded vigorously.
Wendy said softly, “Drink some soup to warm your stomach first before you eat other food.”
Soon the little girl started to gobble down her dinner, making even Wendy feel hungry, too.
She asked, “Where’s your friend? Did she go home?”
Sharon said while devouring her food, “I don’t know… probably yes.”
Wendy was surprised. “Didn’t she come to see you?”
“No…” Sharon shook her head. ” She probably did not trust me completely. After all, I also came from the Southern Territory like those students who bullied her.”
Wendy was startled. “What? You’re from the Southern Territory?”
“Yeah.” The little girl stuffed a piece of Bird Beak Mushroom into her mouth. “Mapleflower Town, a small town near Eagle City… but now it’s uninhabitable.”
Wendy exclaimed, “I thought you’re from the east just like her. I thought that was why you helped her.”
“I shouldn’t help her as we’re from different regions?” Sharon blinked her eyes and said seriously, “the disputes among the nobles obviously have nothing to do with her. Those guys just wanted to find some excuse to bully her. No matter where we came from, wrong is wrong. If I didn’t stand out to stop them, nobody would correct such a mistake.”
She remained speechless for a while, lost in her thoughts.
Your Majesty, you were worried about nothing. This girl doesn’t need me to comfort her.
I can tell from the expression in her eyes—She’s absolutely certain about her decision.