Bumping into someone while walking was originally just a trivial matter in Dorothy's eyes, merely an occasion for an apology, and essentially resolved, provided it wasn't a confrontation with someone looking for trouble or an actual injury caused. Otherwise, most normal people wouldn't keep harping on about it.
Though her new clothes were now dirty, this was no big deal for a witch; a simple cleaning curse would restore them to new. And after all, it was an accident with a child, a cute Little Lolita, not some unruly brat.
Besides, she was actually to blame for not watching where she was going, her gaze wandering all over the place. She had her part in it, so it wasn't entirely the other party's fault.
Therefore, Dorothy hadn't planned on making a fuss and was ready to bend down to help that Little Lolita up and comfort the adorable little bunny.
However, now she found herself confused by the over-the-top reactions of the Rabbit People sisters and the other otherworldly races around her. She looked up at Sophia, her eyes inquiring how a typical witch would handle this situation.
But the Angel Witch only returned a distant look, uninterested in getting involved.
Dorothy read the meaning behind that gaze, roughly translating to, "You're the young lady, handle it however you want."
Left with no choice, Dorothy thought it over and decided to stick with her original plan.
What others do is none of my business; as long as I'm happy, that's good enough.
Thus, with a wave of her hand, invisible Magic Power helped the kneeling Rabbit People sisters to their feet.
"This was just an accident, nothing to worry about," she said, comforting the still uneasy bunny girl sister, then extended her hand and pulled out some candies she usually made for herself from the magic bag, now slung over her shoulder like a purse.
"Here, Little sister, don't cry. How about I perform a Trick for you?"
She showed the still-crying Bunny-eared Lolita the candies in her hand. Then, with a surge of Magic Power, the small candies twisted and transmuted, and with a pop and a shroud of magical smoke, turned into several ice creams of different flavors.
Seeing the Little Lolita, who had stopped crying and was now staring at her with wide eyes, Dorothy asked proudly.
After the Loli nodded, Dorothy handed her the ice creams.
"Be careful this time and don't run into anyone again."
She reached out to pat the Little Lolita on the head, the real feel of bunny ears too delightful to let go.
"Madam Witch, I truly beseech you to spare my little sister. She's just a child. Whatever punishment you have, direct it at me," the bunny girl pleaded with a trembling body, watching in horror as her sister held the ice creams, then once again kowtowed before Dorothy.
Dorothy was initially taken aback by the bunny girl's reaction, but she quickly realized what was happening and couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing and exasperating.
"Don't worry, these really are just normal ice creams, I'm not angry at all," she repeated reassuringly as she helped the paranoid bunny girl to her feet once more, explaining patiently.
At the same time, she raised her estimation of how fearsome witches were perceived in this world.
So what exactly did her kin do to make others so PTSD about them?
It took Dorothy some convincing and explaining for quite a while, and it wasn't until she took an ice cream from the Little Lolita's hand and licked it herself that the severely paranoid bunny girl finally believed her. With gratitude and relief, she almost bowed down again, making the young witch even more speechless.
"I truly can't thank you enough for your mercy, Madam Witch. My name is Ellie, and this is my sister Liz. If there's ever a chance, we will definitely repay your kindness," they said as the Rabbit People sisters left after repeated thanks. Watching their retreating figures, Dorothy finally heaved a sigh of relief.
She freed her hands and cast a cleaning curse on her clothes and Sophia's shoes, then turned to the pure white girl in front of her curiously.
"Ah, I'm so tired. Sophia, what did you all do to these otherworldly races before? Why are they so afraid?" she asked.
"The answer is nothing," the Angel Witch shrugged, and seeing her naïve young mistress still looking puzzled, she elaborated.
"Apart from a very few witches with nasty temperaments who did vent their frustration on these otherworldly races, the vast majority of our kin were tolerant of them. Their profound fear comes from two main reasons," she explained.
"The less significant reason is that many of them were war spoils from battles, from worlds we conquered and assimilated. The ancestors of these Exotic Races bore witness to our presence on the battlefield. The fear of witches was then deeply etched into their memory, leading to unavoidable misunderstandings about us in the stories told to their descendants by the Survivors of those worlds."