Shin's plan was simple.
The Great Witch had placed him under house arrest and forbidden him from leaving. Now that he had St. Trina's nectar in hand, all he needed was an opportunity to slip it into the Great Witch's afternoon tea or meal. Once she took it in, he would be free to do what needed to be done.
"Still lounging around first thing in the morning, scrolling through the chat…"
"Looking at that image… The ones who wiped out the Witch Clan were people from a human Church? Makes sense, actually — a witch trial. That kind of thing wouldn't be surprising from them."
Shin read the chat while holding a cup of tea he had laced with St. Trina's nectar, turning things over in his mind.
He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little surprised — he hadn't expected the ones who destroyed the Witch Clan to be a religious faction.
But honestly, that made things easier. If it was a religious faction, the scope narrowed immediately.
All he had to do now was march to their cathedral doors, force the ringleaders of the Witch Clan massacre to the surface one by one, deal with them accordingly, and the Great Witch would have no reason left to go ahead with any foolish plan to spread witch's factors.
Oh — one more thing in the chat had actually surprised him: after seeing the Great Witch's declaration about destroying humanity, a certain golden-skinned fellow had not responded with their trademark ha!
Could that be a specific personality of theirs? Thinking back to the ha! emoji that one had sent earlier, it wasn't out of the question.
The black tea steamed gently in Shin's hand, amber liquid swaying in the porcelain cup.
In a manner of speaking, this was a sleeping tea.
Inside it, nectar potent enough to send even a demigod into eternal slumber — though Shin hadn't dared add much. St. Trina's nectar in excess carried a genuine risk of death.
Accounting for the Witch Clan's glass-cannon constitution, he had also added a little of his own blood — that way there was no risk of a tragic accident.
Still, this was the first time Shin had ever considered drugging his own mother, and however he justified it, his nerves were showing. This wasn't some lowbrow story, and he certainly had no unsavory intentions — but that "betraying the hierarchy" feeling, coming from someone who had been a good, rule-following child in his past life and this one alike, gave him a genuine sense of guilt.
Even with a body that had transcended biological limits — with the ability to precisely regulate his own breathing and heartbeat — that forced control was still a far cry from the natural rhythm of a person with nothing to hide.
Nothing to be done about it. Guilt doesn't care what level you are.
"Good morning, Mother. You're awake?"
"I brewed some morning black tea to help you get going. Take your time — I'll go make breakfast with Meruru in a bit."
Shin kept his voice steady and warm, with the particular tone of someone who had come out the other side of their rebellious phase wiser and more settled.
"Hm? Has it already gotten this late…"
The Great Witch lying on the sofa rubbed her slightly dry eyes and pulled her attention away from the chat.
Her white silk bodysuit caught the morning light at soft angles, snow hair falling loosely around her shoulders, a trace of the long night's work still lingering in the corners of her eyes.
She slowly sat up from the sofa, stretching lazily, her petite curves swaying in a way that left one vaguely dizzy.
"You're sweet to do this, Shaya."
"All that activity yesterday with Meruru — I thought you two would sleep much later. The energy of youth, I suppose."
"I've heard that boys are most energetic in the morning. So then — you're not going to go spend a little more quality time with your sister, cultivate the bond between you?"
The Great Witch said it lightly, teasing. She had come downstairs three times the previous day, and every time, sounds had still been drifting from Shin's room.
Meruru deserved credit — luckily the girl was naturally well-built for the role she'd been placed in, and her magic was [Healing] of all things. Without that, the demands of such an energetic older brother might have required putting Meruru through a full witching transformation just to keep up.
If it had been herself with her own build instead… mm.
The Great Witch's typically pale face flushed ever so slightly, unnoticeable by most.
"Feelings take time to build — but you're more important right now, Mother."
Shin said it without a flicker in his expression. He set the brewed tea down on the table naturally, sliding it toward the Great Witch:
"Oh, and Mother — please, help yourself. This is a new blend I found in one of the books. It's quite good for settling the nerves."
Very good, actually. Drink it and you'll sleep right through the night. Or the week.
"Is that so? Shaya really is getting more and more attentive toward his mother."
The Great Witch smiled, pleased, and wrapped her delicate fingers around the teacup handle.
The plan was going smoothly — Shin had always felt his luck ran good.
He watched the Great Witch's hands lift the cup with his full concentration, silently urging her on. All she had to do was drink it —
But then, just as the cup's edge was about to touch the Great Witch's lips, she stopped.
"One moment, Shaya."
Those pale blue pupils contracted slightly. She turned her head toward him.
"…What is it, Mother?"
Shin held his face together. Had the trace of his blood's vital energy leaked from the tea and been detected? Or did the Great Witch have some [Detection] magic he didn't know about — one glance and she'd catalogued every ingredient?
"You, child…"
The Great Witch set the cup down and leaned closer to him.
The delicate face under the wide sun hat came within a breath of his nose. She inhaled lightly, then tilted her head with an expression of faint suspicion:
"The smell is off."
"What smell?"
"You… why don't you smell like Meruru?"
The Great Witch's brow furrowed slightly.
"You two have been in the room all this time — I heard sounds from there even in the middle of the night. You should be absolutely soaked in that particular… scent, by now."
"But why, Shaya, do you smell this fresh? Like nothing happened at all?"
Shin: …
"Ah — we, ah… we're very particular about hygiene."
Shin pointed calmly toward the library door:
"We just got out of the bath. We were sweaty."
"Oh —"
The Great Witch stretched the syllable out and let her suspicion dissolve.
"Right, of course — it's not like Mother has any experience with these things, either."
"Alright then, go take care of yourself, Shaya. Spend some more time with Meruru if you want — that's perfectly fine."
And she raised the teacup again.
Shin turned away and watched from the corner of his eye as the Great Witch moved to finally drink the tea. This time it looked like there would be no complications, he thought.
But just when Shin thought the dust was about to settle — she stopped again.
"Oh, one more thing."
She set the cup back down at the last moment, like something had just come to her, and waved a beckoning hand at Shin as he was about to leave:
"Come here, Shaya~"
"A warm moment like this — we have to take a picture for the chat, don't we?"
"The two new members haven't seen your face yet — come let Mother post a picture and make them jealous~"
Shin's eye twitched.
Mother. Can we please just drink the tea first? Is this whole 'must photograph everything before eating or drinking' personality something you caught from that useless shut-in NEET princess?
[Spreading Witch Factors: [Image]
The image was the cup of tea Shin had brewed, and a photo of the Great Witch and him together in the morning light.
[Spreading Witch Factors: We'll continue what we were talking about later. My Shaya really has gotten more and more grown-up — came to check on me first thing this morning.
[Spreading Witch Factors: So sweet of him — I worked through the whole night, and here comes this considerate child with his own hands delivering morning tea~
[Spreading Witch Factors: @Moon Princess — I think I understand a little better now. You were right — if a child this good is around to look after you, there really isn't any rush to force yourself~
[Moon Princess]: ?
[Moon Princess]: What do you mean? Great Witch, are you doing impressions now? Your mood shifts faster than turning a page.
[Moon Princess]: Also, those teacups look terribly old-fashioned. I much prefer the cyberpunk-style crockery of the Lunar Capital.
[Spreading Witch Factors: Ha, I'm just musing. I'm simply reflecting that Moon Princess, you weren't wrong.
Weren't wrong — at this rate, the Great Witch feared she would lose even the will to force herself toward revenge.
The Great Witch's fingers flew over the keyboard, her white-stockinged feet crossed up on the sofa armrest and swaying gently. She was entirely absorbed in the chat and paid no attention whatsoever to Shin's expression beside her — which he was heroically working to keep composed.
"Shaya, stop standing there daydreaming — go grab me a cushion."
The Great Witch chatted away while directing him with one hand.
"I want to find a comfortable angle to finish this cup of tea, then take another photo for the chat — help me figure out which angle works best."
Shin drew a slow, controlled breath.
Hold it together. At least she still hasn't suspected anything.
So Shin dutifully retrieved a cushion and tucked it behind the Great Witch, propping up her petite frame so she sat a little straighter and with a touch more presence.
"How's this, Mother?"
"Mm, that's nice…"
The Great Witch, teacup in hand, settled into a comfortable pose. Once the photo was taken, her gaze finally returned to the tea itself.
"Alright, I'm actually a bit parched."
The Great Witch picked up the tea. This time, no interruptions arose.
The clear tea caught the light and mirrored those deep, pale blue eyes.
Shin stood at her side. If he had been an ordinary person, cold sweat would have been breaking out across his skin.
He had rehearsed in his mind, countless times, what he would do once the Great Witch drank St. Trina's nectar and fell asleep. The plan was laid out precisely.
The moment she swallows the first sip, the nectar will pass through her throat and into her body.
Based on what he had tested on the Tarnished earlier, the process would take no more than a few seconds — and then he could lift this troublesome little mother of his and carry her safely back to her bed.
After that, he would take over the boundary around Witch Island, strip away the illusion that had obscured sixteen years of truth, and from there he could leave Witch Island — and begin dealing, one by one, with those so-called human enemies of the Witch Clan.
"Gulp."
The Great Witch made the motion of drinking, graceful and unhurried.
Shin's eyes locked onto her throat.
And yet —
The tea had only barely grazed her lips.
"Mm."
The Great Witch looked up suddenly, locking eyes with Shin directly.
Her voice rang clear in the quiet library:
"I was wondering…"
"Shaya — what exactly are you expecting right now?"
To be continued…