The Speedrun Manual of Miss Witch - Chapter 69

Her black robe had long since been torn open by whips, revealing the pale, bloodstreaked skin beneath.

At this moment, she was standing tiptoe on a wooden stool, her head lowered, apparently unconscious.

“She was captured just this morning, and I interrogated her immediately.”

Kitty stepped aside to make room and bowed slightly in Ciel’s direction, continuing, “I ensured that no one else knows about this, Your Excellency.”

Ciel stared expressionlessly at Adele’s suspended form, making no move.

This was just a simulation.

With the aid of 【Calm Mind Lv.2】, and having died multiple times in previous simulations, Ciel’s emotions remained steady.

“Wake her.”

Kitty seemed dissatisfied that Adele was still unconscious. The white shadow beside her slipped through the cage and kicked the stool beneath Adele.

The stool wobbled violently, and Adele, barely propped up, swayed unsteadily.

“Ugh…”

Her body jolted. The wounds on her arms and mouth were torn further, and the resulting pain startled her awake. She opened her eyes, but could see nothing.

Her vision was already obscured by dried blood.

Adele dared not struggle—she knew that any movement would only deepen the torment inflicted by the silver and iron hooks embedded in her flesh.

“Where’s the ‘Plague Bearer’ potion?”

Ciel looked at Adele and asked Kitty indifferently.

“It’s here! I’ll get it immediately!”

Kitty visibly perked up upon hearing this.

She understood—this meant the Bishop had accepted her revised plan. She had redeemed herself.

After bowing several times toward the Bishop, Kitty quickly exited the chamber and headed back upstairs.

Only after her footsteps had faded did Ciel let out a long breath and turn her eyes away from Adele’s ravaged figure.

Meanwhile, Adele, her mind in a haze, struggled to stay conscious.

Plague… Bearer?

They… want to convert my path… brainwash me…

If the path is changed—if I become part of the Divine Advent Church… not only will I never save anyone again—I may end up killing countless people…

Absolutely not.

Through the blurry red glow of two oil lamps, Adele vaguely saw the silhouette of a person standing in front of her.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she summoned what little strength remained and kicked over the stool beneath her.

Rip—

The silver barbs tore through her skin inch by inch, and the iron hooks ripped open the corners of her mouth under her body weight.

Thud—

Adele collapsed to the ground. With the last of her strength, she hurled one of the silver hooks—still dangling by thread—straight at the shadow’s neck.

Clang—

A clear metallic ring echoed. The silver hook struck a black handgun, fell to the stone floor, and lay still.

That “Bishop” hadn’t even turned around.

She’d blocked Adele’s desperate attack effortlessly, as if she had eyes in the back of her head.

Despair spread in Adele’s heart. The edges of her vision darkened, blood loss threatening to pull her into unconsciousness.

She didn’t even have the strength to take her own life.

Regret surged inside her. If she could do it all over again, she wouldn’t have thrown the hook—she would’ve aimed it at her own throat.

A trace of silver light flickered.

In the corner of her blurred vision, Adele saw the silhouette approaching her.

The figure crouched in front of her. Gray-blue hair dangled before her eyes as the shadow reached out a hand.

Kill me…

Adele wanted to say it, but she no longer had the strength to open her mouth.

Suddenly—

A familiar medicinal scent wafted under her nose. She felt moisture on her lips.

Instinctively, she swallowed. The potion, mixed with the blood in her mouth, slid down her throat. She felt the pain slowly subsiding.

“It’s alright… just sleep.”

A gentle, familiar voice echoed above her. Adele struggled to remember whose voice it was.

She had no mother, but at this moment, she thought—if she did, this might be what her mother’s voice would sound like…

She forced herself to stay conscious. The potion’s effects had pulled her back from the brink of death.

Adele was sure—that potion had come from her own hands.

Every “Physician” had their own unique formulation—ingredients, effects, even taste were distinctive.

The potion the Bishop had given her… she had tested it countless times before. This one was unmistakably her own.

In the Redemption Society, only the cheapest and most efficient potions were mass-produced. Adele’s mixtures used the most expensive ingredients, and she liked to add mint essence to drinkable ones—giving them a green color and a refreshing, cool taste.

Who… is she?

Adele wanted to lift her head to see the “Bishop,” but the little strength she had regained wasn’t enough for such a demanding act.

A flash of silver light passed again, and her awakening mind was hit with a powerful spiritual warning.

It was a primal instinct from her soul, warning her not to look up.

Or she might die.

“Your Excellency, Bishop!”

Just then, Kitty’s voice rang out from the doorway.

She hurried to Ciel’s side and looked down at Adele, whose cheeks had been completely torn open.

“You perform the baptism.”

Ciel stood up, slid the pistol back into her belt, and spoke.

“After she drinks the potion and hears the Mother’s teachings, she will understand the importance of faith.”

Ciel spoke with her back to Adele.

Even in a simulation, Ciel couldn’t help but feel a trace of pity at Adele’s state.

Killing her would only make Kitty suspicious. Better to let her join the cult—in the simulation, at least.

Given her current injuries, even if she were brainwashed, she would spend the rest of the simulation recovering. At the very least, no further harm would come to her.

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

Kitty looked at the Bishop’s back, gratitude rising in her heart.

Being entrusted with the baptism ritual meant she wasn’t in danger—for now.

And if Adele demonstrated her talent after joining the church, Kitty’s own status would also rise.

This was grooming her.

Kitty wasted no time. She manipulated the white shadow to enter Adele’s shadow, guiding her hand to take the potion bottle.

But what Kitty didn’t expect was that Adele, after receiving the bottle, opened her mouth and tilted the potion in on her own.

Huh?

Kitty was stunned.

What just happened?

Wasn’t this girl stubborn earlier? Why did she drink the “Plague Bearer” potion voluntarily?

What exactly had the Bishop done in the cell to make Adele willingly drink the potion?

This Bishop… was far more skilled than she had imagined.

But everything was progressing smoothly.

When she saw Adele swallow the potion, Kitty began the chant without delay.

A black circular mark slowly appeared on Adele’s right hand, and when Kitty finished the final words—“Mother Goddess above”—Adele’s expression turned vacant.

Under the combined pressure of the potion and the whispering, Adele had been branded with Sadhana’s mark and officially became a cultist.

Only after seeing the mark vanish and Adele fall completely unconscious did Kitty finally exhale.

“Your Excellency, I’ll arrange for someone to tend to our new member. Next, we simply wait for her to awaken…”

Kitty stood up, lowered her head, turned toward Ciel, and began to speak.

But Ciel spoke first, cutting her off.

“We can’t wait.”

Ciel shook her head. “Do you know who she is?”

“I do. From the Redemption Society, Sherlon’s student…”

Kitty seemed to sense the Bishop’s concerns and quickly explained, “I investigated. She already left the Redemption Society. Right now, she’s just a transcendent unaffiliated with any organization!”

“She has no organization, true.”

Ciel shook her head. “But do you know who her sister is?”

“Her… sister?”

The question completely dumbfounded Kitty.

Her prior investigations had focused solely on Sherlon. Naturally, she also looked into his students.

Among them, Adele had been the most inconspicuous.

The others described her as an orphan who hadn’t produced any research, leeching off Sherlon’s success to join the Redemption Society. She was lazy, reclusive, socially inept, and frequently contradicted Sherlon’s theories in public.

Such a person didn’t seem worth further scrutiny. Once Kitty confirmed she posed no threat, she hadn’t wasted any more time on her.

But… now that she knew Sherlon’s research had come from Adele, Kitty had to reconsider everything.

And when she heard the Bishop mention that Adele had a sister…

Kitty’s heart, which had just begun to settle, rose in panic again.

Did I miss something critical…?

“Her sister is…?”

Kitty knew her plan had another flaw, so she could only brace herself and ask.

Surely it couldn’t be someone high-ranking in the Redemption Society, right? That’s hardly possible… If she were high-ranking in the Redemption Society, why would she let her own sister study under a fraud like Sherlon.

Kitty might not be able to judge the academic results, but the Redemption Society leadership couldn’t possibly be unaware.

“Uris.”

Ciel spoke slowly, “The current High Priest overseeing the Clock Tower Church, second-tier ‘Missionary’.”

A “Missionary” of the Church of the Savior Goddess? And a High Priest?

That meant her potion’s digestion was nearly complete. At the very least, it was more advanced than Kitty’s own…

If Adele truly had a sister in the Church of the Savior Goddess, then this was a serious problem.

If Adele was missing for too long, the High Priest would begin an investigation. Their entire plan would be compromised.

Every word out of this Bishop’s mouth was a heavy blow, dripping with pressure. Even if she spoke little, her knowledge of the situation exceeded Kitty’s understanding—despite Kitty having operated in Berren for years.

“She’s at the ‘Good Night Inn,’ Room 202.”

Ciel turned her head, looking at Kitty. Kitty buried her head even lower. Ciel continued, “I need her brought here, alive.”

“Yes, Your Excellency, Bishop, I’ll make arrangements right away. In three days… no, within two days…”

Kitty nodded repeatedly.

“Must she be captured alive?”

A second-tier “Missionary,” and with the advantage of surprise, killing her wouldn’t be difficult. But capturing her alive would pose some difficulty.

“All heretics must face judgment.”

Ciel’s stiff smile beneath the mask made her words sound even darker. “Let her witness her sister’s conversion firsthand.”

Kitty, seeing the Bishop’s legs approaching, swallowed hard and dropped to one knee again.

She felt the Bishop’s hand rest on her hair. The Bishop leaned in close—their faces nearly touching.

Kitty’s spiritual warning screamed in her mind. A hidden mark on her abdomen began to react. Mad whispers roared through her head.

“The Mother wishes to hear me say she is guilty.”

“Understand?”

“I’ll give you twelve hours… bring her to me.”

“Otherwise, the Mother will judge you.”

The conflicting sensations of warmth from the mark and the mental assault from the whispers overwhelmed Kitty’s mind. She nodded frantically, and once the Bishop gave her permission, she fled the dungeon to begin the capture plan.

The Bishop… was terrifying! Kitty screamed internally.

More fanatical and extreme than any ‘Avenger’ Bishop she had ever met. Her devotion to the Mother was beyond anything Kitty could comprehend.

Meanwhile, Ciel remained standing, only moving after a long while. She raised her hand and gently touched the mask on her face.

Was playing the villain… just a little too natural for her?

Alright, it seems I’ve actually done quite a few bad things… but that was simulated Ciel. What does that have to do with the real me?

In the next simulation, she’ll be a first-rate good person again, the savior of the Clock Tower Church.

Ciel cast one last glance at Adele inside the cell, then turned and walked toward the cell door…