Editing Failing Witch:Volume2 Episode4 (section)

===Part 3===

After eating breakfast, Viocia and Freynir left the building.

They found themselves in a tiered city colored white and black.

“What are your plans, Freynir?”

“I’m passing out fliers.”

The long-eared elf showed off a stack of parchment.

“I said I wanted some way to thank Lady Olivia for giving me a place to live, so she gave me this job. I pass out fliers during the day and gather customers at night.”

“Hm.”

Incidentally, the supposedly-extinct elf wasn’t wearing a disguise or covering up her long ears in any way, but it hadn’t caused a commotion yet. In a world where costumes were the norm, Temple School City actually had quite a few ''exam students who liked to dress up as elves''.

“You still carry that staff around? It makes sense in the forest or mountains, but do you need a walking stick in the city?”

“Staff?”

“Why do you look confused?”

“Because this is a crossbow.”

Viocia frantically tried to confiscate the weapon and accidentally triggered it. With an unpleasant “thunk!”, a dangerous looking thing stabbed deep into the sign displaying an especially expensive nightlife ad right out in front of the building. At 15cm, the arrow made of wood and sharp stone was extremely short compared to the launching device.

So were the horizontal protrusions at the end of the “staff” not in fact there to make it a cross symbol?

Viocia looked up at the fearsome object.

“Strena is going to yell at me again. Ugh.”

But if that was a weapon, why had she thrown away her staff(?) and grabbed at the wicked witch back in the Dazzling Forest?

Well, it did make sense she wouldn’t want to aim something like this at the old woman who had discovered her and become the only person she knew.

“Yell at you… Come to think of it, I got yelled at for some reason when I offered to help them inside the shop.”

Viocia was on her way to Carraway Cs Prep School, so she parted ways with Freynir who was on her way to the nearby main street.

“Hm, hm♪”

The orange and purple pumpkin tart of a witch passed by a bear cub who appeared to be a garbage collector.

“Damn, another job taken by those familiars. Them and their stupid mass-production. If we can’t gather trash or wash windows, how are we supposed to make any money!?”

“W-wait for me!”

“Roslynica, we’ll do the work, so you stay home and study to be a witch!!”

Artificial familiars like the koalas handing out fliers or the weaving spiders were certainly convenient, but that wasn’t always a good thing. Or so Yagoro had said before. Viocia hadn’t entirely understood his explanation of why.

(Hm, I don’t see why an easier life could be a bad thing.)

Freynir was apparently passing out fliers and gathering customers, so did this mean she had to compete with those artificial rivals too?

Viocia found something like a stuffed animal collapsed face up on the side of the road.

It was a black cat familiar that worked a delivery job.

“Oh, no! I think he’s in trouble!”

She had never had a chance to ask his name, but there was only one black cat who specialized in deliveries in this area. She picked up the unmoving familiar and held him in her hands as she visited a nearby business.

“Mister, I found him collapsed on the side of the road.”

“You did? Thanks for bringing him here.”

The middle-aged man in the business looked surprised.

He roughly grabbed the black cat familiar in a hand.

“I’m glad we didn’t lose the package. We don’t make familiars here, so I don’t know how they work… He has been collapsing a lot lately, so maybe it’s time to buy a new one.”

“Could I try to fix him?”

“I use him for work, so I’m not sure letting a student work on him’s the best idea. Then again, you go to a prep school, right? Then maybe it’ll be fine?”

The delivery business was particular about time, so there were several weight-powered clocks on the walls. Each and every one provided the time with absolute precision.

Viocia screamed when she saw them.