She Is Not a Witch

Several burly men sat on rocks by the sea. The area was quite open. A cloth was spread on the rocks, with two half-eaten roast chickens on it. There were also a few empty wine bottles nearby. The men’s mouths were greasy from eating, and they were belching.

“I say, Manda, why did you leave that kid three silver coins earlier? *Hic*~”

One of them who had drunk a bit too much asked, his tongue curling. He leaned against a rock with his legs spread.

“You guys don’t understand the art of milking it slowly. If we took everything, that kid would quit and run away. Who would we rob then?”

“Gotta leave him some hope, make him keep working. That way he won’t give up, you know? Haha!”

Manda was drunk, his face flushed red. He spoke slowly in his drunken state.

“Brother Manda is so smart. Come, have another drink.”

“Cheers!”

The men raised their bottles and drank again. Of the 9 silver coins they had stolen, they had spent most of it that very day.

The boy who had been robbed was the waiter Loranhil had seen at the restaurant before. After that incident, his “reputation” spread among the customers. Some other customers learned to tease him too, making him oink like a pig and deliberately giving him a hard time, wanting to see him make a fool of himself.

This way, they could show off cheaply, as if mocking others immediately elevated their own status.

This world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows; there’s often more meanness and filth.

One day, he finally couldn’t take it anymore. When the boss found out, he didn’t say much, just paid him his wages and told him to try his luck at some workshops in the city. As it happened, the Nisos family’s winery was hiring, so he became an ordinary winery worker. Although he could only earn 2/3 of the pay due to his young age, he was still quite satisfied.

The next day, he went to work at the winery as usual, but he lacked his usual energy. He just worked mechanically, his numb and gloomy expression identical to the other workers in the factory, as if they were all cast from the same mold.

What’s the meaning of living? These laborers don’t think about such complex questions. They only know to work, eat, sleep, and then get up to work again. When they have a little money, they buy something good to eat or some alcohol.

As for what the future holds, they don’t think about it, nor do they want to. Everyone lives like this, don’t they?

Such workers are common in Hopland. Some come from rural inland areas, some have smuggled in from Western Wind, and some are even fugitives from other countries. As long as you can work, no one cares about your past. Even if you were a king, so what? When trapped in this cycle of monotonous labor, people’s spirits are slowly ground away bit by bit, until they finally become stones just like everyone else.

Everyone’s like this, aren’t they? So they contentedly continue on, accepting the fact that they too are just ordinary people.

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But even in this eternally cycling gray world, there are still people trying to ignite a spark.

A new employee came to the winery. He had short black hair and was a young man in his twenties named Gretet. The most striking thing about him was his bright, lively eyes, seeming to hold some kind of belief.

After he arrived, the first few days were normal as he learned the work procedures and precautions. After a while, he quickly became familiar with the young people in the winery. Because of his handsome appearance, even some of the older women liked him.

One day when work finished early, he called out to Bard, inviting him to go have a drink and relax together.

Bard made excuses that he had no money, and he was also a bit self-conscious, feeling he wasn’t good at talking and would only make things awkward if he went.

But Gretet didn’t mind, saying he would treat Bard and forcefully dragged him along. Since Gretet usually behaved well and wasn’t a bad person, Bard didn’t strongly resist. So the two bought some pastries, smoked meat slices, and wine, and went to a clean little hillside by the sea to eat and chat.

“Bard, where are you from?”

“I’m from Gray Thorn County, a poor place in the mountains of Vegar.”

“I see. I’m from Western Wind, my hometown is quite far, near Nid County. We produce a lot of ore there, but mining is too exhausting.”

“Yes, I’ve heard mining is quite dangerous,” Bard nodded.

“Mm-hmm. What about you, Bard? What’s your hometown known for?”

“My place? It’s quite poor. I guess gray hemp is pretty famous.”

“That’s not bad. What does gray hemp look like? I’ve never seen it.”

“Gray hemp is…”

And so, Bard and Gretet talked about their pasts, back and forth, discussing their hometowns, specialties, why they came to Hopland, and how they were living recently.

Bard was a bit stiff at first, but as the two chatted casually and Gretet revealed his own flaws and fears, Bard felt closer to him and opened up more.

At least this person was really listening to me, wanting to understand me, truly treating me as a person. This feeling of caring about another’s feelings and respecting them was something he had never experienced before, a first in his life.

Without realizing it, Bard said many things he had suppressed for a long time—his thoughts, his past, and some recent events.

As dusk approached, the orange sun dipped into the horizon where sky met water. Soft rays of light spilled over the beach and hillside, painting the world a beautiful golden color.

The two stood by the sea. Gretet picked up a small pebble and threw it at an angle, watching it skip across the water surface three times before sinking.

“How about that? Pretty impressive, right?” Gretet said, a bit boastfully.

“Haha, you call that impressive? Watch this.”

Bard also picked up a pebble and threw it at the sea. The stone skipped across the water surface a few times before sinking. Although it didn’t go far, it was still a bit better than Gretet’s throw.

“See? How about that!” Bard said with a laugh.

“I didn’t know you were so skilled, Bard.”

“You bet, haha.” After saying this, both of them laughed.

From that day on, Bard and Gretet became friends. A few days later, Gretet introduced Bard to more people. Some worked at the winery, some at the neighboring oil press factory, and some at the dyeing factory. These people were similar to Gretet—all very sincere and enthusiastic. None of them mocked Bard’s appearance. Instead, they said he didn’t look bad at all, which restored a lot of his confidence and made him much more cheerful than before.

And so, this group often ate together after work and sometimes went out to play. Bard made many friends and no longer curled up in a corner like before.

It was as if the sun had climbed over the wall, its rays spilling into this dark, damp corner, slowly drying it out and making it firm.