Chapter 37

**Chapter Thirty-Seven** of the seventh volume of the *Witch Hat Atelier* manga series.

## Summary

Coco has just arrived to the Tower of Tomes, although the bridge that would take her to the entrance is still far away. It would be faster to fly over the lake, but she may be attacked by the sea monster that dwells under the surface. For a second she considers making all the water in the lake vanish, like what happened at the stairway river, before reconsidering and taking into account the lives of the fishes that live in the water. Besides, she is incapable of using such a powerful spell, and wonders how she even did it the first time. Coco tells herself that the answers for all of her questions must be in the Tower of Tomes, because that’s what Qifrey told her and he wouldn’t lie to her.

At the Windowway Parlor, in the Great Hall, Qifrey, Olruggio and a small illusory Beldaruit notice one of the windowways has been connected to the Tower of Tomes. Qifrey is marvelled, since Coco memorized the combination even though she only saw him opening a gate to the Tower once before. Beldaruit tells him not to underestimate the lengths a child would go to for the things she loves. Qifrey crosses the windowway, arriving just in time to see the monsters that protect the Tower emerge from the lake. He notices the monsters are attacking a far cliff. He uses a spell to create a water duplicate of one of the monsters, managing to distract them while he flies towards the cliff.

Beldaruit confides in Olruggio that he may have misjudged Qifrey. At first, he thought his former apprentice would go to any lengths to take back what he lost, but now he realises that Qifrey is willing to risk his life to ensure Coco’s safety. He recognises that Qifrey has become a full-fledged professor. Meanwhile, Qifrey finds Coco near the cliff hiding from the monsters. He tells her that everything is going to be alright now, but the girl seems distressed. She admits that, as she learns more about magic, she is constantly being told there are things she mustn’t do, and she is worried that she won’t be able to help her mother. For this reason, Coco has begun to lose hope and to believe she might soon reach for things she shouldn’t. If such an event ever came to be, Coco thins it may have been better she never became a witch.

At this point, Qifrey hugs his young student. He says that, while the Tower of Tomes may not give her the answer she wants, she only needs to find the magic book the brimcap gave her years ago. If she finds it, figuring out how to break the spell will be like solving one of the problems Coco and the other apprentices are used to facing. While she didn’t know anything about magic until recently, her friends and her have overcome many obstacles by relaying on their wisdom. After all, the essence of magic is to rely on one’s imagination to come up with new answers.

Suddenly, one of the monsters emerges from the water and attacks them. Olruggio and Beldaruit watch from afar, powerless. Beldaruit is merely there as an illusion, since he can’t leave the Great Hall, and Olruggio must protect the windowway for when Qifrey and Coco come back. Luckily, Qifrey and Coco have managed to use a spell to shield themselves from the attack. The master laments not being in good enough condition to take them both flying across the lake, and asks Coco to take a tiny notebook from his back.

Coco complies with Qifrey’s request and, following her master’s instructions, releases the clasp to undo the spell of reduction, causing the book to return to its original size. Next, Coco closes the rings on the spells of expansion and levitation inside the book, so it becomes large enough to support them both. One of the monsters emerges from the water once again. Qifrey tells Coco to finish large, empty seal inside the book by drawing a single straight line. To her right, there’s the windowway that will take her back to the Great Hall; to her left, there’s the Gate to the Tower of Tomes. Qifrey tells Coco to make her choice while he buys some time for her, and jumps off the cliff, ready to face the guardians of the lake on his own. Coco doubts between going back to where she came from and moving forward.

## Characters by Appearance

* Coco
* Olruggio
* Qifrey
* Beldaruit