Miss Witch, please don't leave your fragrance everywhere

Chapter 6: Witch and Black Beast Mercenary Group

　　Seeing Ecricia puffing up her cheeks in indignation, Angelica roughly understood what the princess was thinking.
　　"He must be very good to you, right? I think he probably treats you like a daughter or granddaughter."
　　"For me, the teacher is my second father. Although he is old enough to be my grandfather, his mentality is always young."

　　"I can see that."
　　After all, decades have passed, and that kid still remembers using her boots to irritate her. Should we say that he has not made any progress or that he has not forgotten his original intention?
　　"The teacher adopted Slude as his adopted daughter before I was born, and also said..."

　　"More?"
　　"It is said that... after he leaves, Slude will take over as the Chief Magician of the Palace. The position of Chief Magician of the Palace is not hereditary, but considering that the teacher has devoted himself to the kingdom and Slude's magical talent is worthy of the title of a true genius, we have decided that Slude will become the successor Chief Magician of the Palace."
　　Ecricia couldn't help feeling a little sad; she respected Merlin from the bottom of her heart, so when Angelica complained that Merlin was a fool, Ecricia protested with dissatisfaction.

　　Although magic exists in the other world, due to factors such as medical level, the average life expectancy of humans is only about 60 years. Merlin has extended his lifespan through his inherent magic, but everything has an end.
　　Merlin, who was in his seventies, adopted Slude, believing that Slude could inherit his mantle and continue to protect the Kingdom of Pilsen.
　　"Ms. Angelica, can you help the teacher?"

　　Ecricia asked sincerely. Originally, she needed Angelica's help, but now she was the one asking Angelica for help.
　　Angelica was not surprised by this, as people always believed that an ageless and immortal witch could do anything.
　　"Let me talk about something else first. You want to hear a story before falling asleep anyway. How about the story of the mercenary group?"

　　"Eh... well, I don't mind..."
　　"Projection sequence 2 space/spatial warp is a convenient magic that can quickly move across the continent. A long time ago, I was still young and had not yet mastered the space warp. If I wanted to travel across the continent, I had to find ways to get the money for the trip. At that time, I was looking for a medicine called St. John's wort."
　　The St. John's wort in the other world is a rare herb, and its name is the same as the herb in the world Angelica lived in before she crossed over. However, Angelica, before crossing over, was just a social outcast, and she had no knowledge of herbs at all, so she could not tell the difference between ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) the St. John's wort in the two worlds.

　　"I was passing through a certain town and helped the tavern deal with a group of drunken mercenaries. Then it suddenly occurred to me that if I were with the mercenaries, I would have food, clothing, shelter, and transportation... Ahem, no, I have a strong sense of justice, so I decided to educate them."
　　“Is this really the reason?”
　　"Of course, being on the way is secondary."
　　Angelica said confidently.

　　"In the end...I was fooled."
　　"Huh?"
　　"I'm so stupid, really. I only knew that mercenaries were all uneducated men, but I didn't know there would be a group of mercenaries who couldn't even take care of themselves. Those guys simply didn't take a shower when they couldn't find a water source. They stink so badly that even wild boars ten kilometers away shook their heads. The way they repaired their armor was so crude that it was hard to look at. In the end, I had to find a water source and teach them how to maintain their armor... Oh, and the food they provided was not delicious at all. I should have thought about what good food the mercenaries could get."

　　Angelica held her chin with resentment.
　　"In a few days, I will almost become their old mother. Princess, guess how they will repay me?"
　　"From now on, I will work hard to improve myself?"

　　"No, they shouted, 'We don't have anything else to offer, so why not give us our bodies!' and proposed to me. In the end, I beat them all up. Anyway, no one could beat me. I advise the princess to stay away from the mercenaries. They never follow the etiquette of chivalry. All they know is how to trick women into bed."
　　A simple princess like Ecricia would probably be able to count the correct words in just a few nights.
　　"During the time I was with the mercenary group, the number of women who came to me after being made pregnant by those bastards was close to three digits, and I had to pay out of my own pocket to send them away. If I hadn't used magic to directly avoid the dangerous period, I'm sure the number of deaths would have been even higher."

　　"It sounds like a very chaotic place. Miss Angelica, won't it be dangerous if she stays in the mercenary group?"
　　"As long as you are strong enough, it's fine. And after a while, even the rudest men will learn to respect me. Later, they gradually learned to restrain themselves in front of me and even called me princess."
　　"Eh? Miss Angelica is a princess?"

　　"They thought that a girl as cute as me must be a princess from some country, and they imitated the oath of a knight to pledge allegiance to me. The leader of the mercenary group even decided to let me rename the mercenary group."
　　"That's great... Miss Angelica must be very touched, right?"
　　“Not at all.”

　　Angelica said in a muffled voice.
　　"I am more like a servant in the mercenary group, not a princess."
　　However, to outsiders, the beautiful girl surrounded by a group of rough mercenaries is definitely a delicate flower protected by fully armed knights.

　　By the way, Angelica was so angry that she changed the name of the mercenary group to the Black Beast Mercenary Group, and it was well received. They said it sounded like a pig rushing forward, and the only flaw was that it sounded like an orc mercenary group. Angelica calmed down and thought about it carefully. For those who didn't know the meaning behind this name, it didn't seem to be out of place.
　　However, even if Angelica mentioned the name of the mercenary group, it was still a very unfamiliar organization to Ecricia. There were many mercenary groups on the continent, but only a handful of them were famous. Many mercenary groups only existed for a short time before disbanding.
　　After all, the nature of the mercenary group itself determines that it is not easy to pass on for a long time, not to mention...

　　"Ms. Angelica said that, so she must still be in contact with them now? It sounds like you have a very close relationship."
　　"No. I can't contact them even if I want to - because they are all dead."
　　But witches are different; they won't die.

　　Ecclesia's playful smile froze on her face. In fact, Angelica's encounter with the Black Beast Mercenaries happened about seven hundred years ago, and now Angelica can hardly remember what they look like.
　　Angelica was not good at memory. She had lived for nearly twenty years before she traveled through time. At that time, she could no longer remember what her deskmate in elementary school looked like. At most, she could only remember his name.