City of Witches Chapter 165

For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped, and only her face was visible.

Her cheeks, slightly flushed peach-pink like when she had just stepped out of the shower, and her eyes, drifting ambiguously as if unsure where to settle.

Now I understood.

Sharon was feeling just as awkward and embarrassed as Siwoo was.

“Can I ask one more thing? It’s nothing serious.”

“What is it?”

[Happy Halloween! I prepared a Witch costume for you!]

[Oh, fuck!]

By the way, the actor in that movie has been fucking for nearly five minutes straight.

The movie quickly shows through various special and comedic events how the two spent a good year together doing all sorts of things.

Of all the timing, it had to be now, and it was driving me crazy.

Sharon swallowed hard and opened her mouth.

“In movies... they often go from kissing to sex naturally, don’t they? Like in that movie.”

“Yeah.”

Scenes of heated men and women intertwining after a kiss are almost a staple.

But Sharon’s words trailed off there.

Wondering if she hadn’t heard his response properly, Siwoo answered again.

“Yeah?”

After hesitating for a long while, Sharon opened her mouth hesitantly.

“But I feel like asking this might be rude.”

“If we’re close, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Is that so?”

“Hmm... maybe?”

Still, he could roughly guess what she was about to ask, and it was something he could answer without much difficulty.

“Hmm... so, you’ve done it too, right? That.”

Sharon’s slender finger pointed at the screen, where a man was ejaculating forcefully inside his girlfriend’s vagina.

“Yeah.”

“I see. You suddenly seem more grown-up.”

Sharon smiled as if she understood, then laughed awkwardly.

In response, Siwoo offered an equally ambiguous smile.

“So, like with kissing, do you naturally feel the timing to move to the next step?”

For some reason, it felt strangely familiar.

If I said it reminded me of when I was giving the Twins sex education, would that be a misunderstanding?

As soon as I became conscious of it, my eyes were drawn to her cleavage as if being sucked into a black hole.

Her ample upper chest, which looked more than enough to envelop Siwoo’s thing, reflected the dim light with a subtle sheen.

“Uh... hmm... yeah.”

At that moment, Sharon’s gaze followed Siwoo’s eyes down to her chest for a split second before returning.

Even though it was just a fleeting moment, he’d been caught staring blatantly at her chest.

As he wondered whether he should apologize, Sharon, showing no sign of concern, quietly straightened her upper body, which had been leaning slightly toward Siwoo.

“I see...”

And so, for the rest of the movie, not a single word passed between the two.

“Hmm......”

The time when a normal, socially functioning person would be asleep.

Sharon sat on her bed, tilting her body as she sank into deep, deep contemplation.

She hadn’t stayed awake from the start to ponder various things.

Her main goal was to replenish the magic power in her Brand, which had been completely drained after healing Siwoo following today’s battle with Della.

Typically, the magic power stored inside a Witch’s Brand is highly concentrated.

Magic power of such high concentration develops the property of attracting surrounding magic power.

Utilizing this property to draw external magic power into the Brand and refine it for easier use is the process of ‘self-magnetization.’

Since the Brand was now completely empty, its ability to attract magic power had weakened.

To fully replenish it, it would take a relaxed estimate of about two weeks.

Magic power was essential for hunting Homunculi, her biggest source of income, and with no means to replenish it, such as Magical Power, Sharon’s situation was far from ideal.

Sitting around blankly, it looked like two weeks would fly by.

“Sigh... what should I do...”

Having thought that far, Sharon let out a sigh that seemed to sink the mattress.

It was all because of Della.

Even if she recovered some magic power and resumed hunting Homunculi, the hunting grounds she had been using until now had been taken over by Della.

Given that nasty woman’s temper, it was obvious she’d cling to hunting grounds she didn’t even need and threaten Sharon every time she encroached.

Moreover, not content with tormenting Sharon, she had to go and do that to Siwoo.

Just thinking about it made her fists tremble uncontrollably.

The most frustrating thing was her own powerlessness—being this angry yet unable to confront her immediately.

“Should I leave...?”

Seoul was where Sharon had fortuitously settled after wandering aimlessly when she first arrived in the Mortal Realm.

She wasn’t sure if she had grown attached, but there was no place she was more accustomed to living.

Finding a new location, securing hunting grounds, and setting up a residence would require significant effort.

In the meantime, her tribute payments would fall behind, interest would pile up, and the amount might even exceed what Sharon had paid off so far.

On top of that, would she have to live apart from Siwoo?

She didn’t have the nerve to ask him, who was already well-settled, to leave with her because of her debts.

But telling him the whole truth felt awkward, as it might seem like an implicit request for him to pay off her debts.

Thinking about it made her feel a bit lonely.

“There’s no other way...”

For now, she’d have to somehow separate from Siwoo and hunt in secret.

If she got caught by Della...

It was infuriating.

Truly infuriating, but she’d have no choice but to beg for mercy or accept that suspicious part-time job she had offered.

“Sigh...”

Another deep sigh.

Feeling stifled in the spacious room, Sharon opened the door and stepped out.

And for some reason, she slipped into Siwoo’s room right across the hall.

Strangely, whenever she did something with Siwoo, she could forget her troubles, even if just for a moment.

It was as if an aura flowed around him, allowing her to forget the complexities of reality and simply relax.

So much so that she had neglected preparing this quarter’s tribute payment while having fun.

“Hoo...”

He was sleeping with a peaceful expression.

The chair she had placed when nursing him earlier was still there, so she carefully sat down, trying not to wake him.

Siwoo’s chest rose and fell evenly, accompanied by the sound of his breathing.

“That’s better.”

Today had been a day filled with many thoughts.

Seeing Siwoo beaten to a pulp and collapsed by Della, she was overwhelmed with guilt.

Yet, seeing Siwoo lie for her sake, she shed tears of gratitude.

While showering, thinking of him made her heart race.

It was an inexplicably heightened, strange pulsation.

Once it had gone awry, the erratic beat hadn’t returned to normal even when Sharon came back from work.His heart raced even when he said thank you, and it raced again when they sat down to eat together.

Everything familiar felt different, as if a camera filter had changed.

For example...

She had always known that Siwoo occasionally glanced at her chest, but she never paid it much mind.

It wasn't like it wore out from being looked at, and his gaze wasn't particularly lecherous.

But today, she felt shy.

Wasn't that why she had gone and worn the bra she usually disliked because it was uncomfortable?

"Come to think of it..."

Sharon recalled what Siwoo had said earlier when she asked during the movie how kissing happens.

'Your heart races.'

Sharon quietly placed her hand between her breasts.

Her heart, thumping away.

The pulse sending blood throughout her body was beating just a tiny bit faster than usual.

And all just because she had entered Siwoo's room.

"It's racing..."

Sharon looked down at Siwoo's face, fast asleep.

And then, Siwoo had said this, hadn't he?

'After that, it's like your lips just look magnified? You start thinking you want to kiss them first, and then you just give it a try.'

Sharon's gaze slid down to Siwoo's lips.

While his face was generally handsome, today his slightly parted lips seemed particularly vivid.

Little by little.

Her heart beat faster.

So, was she also feeling the desire to kiss him?

"...What would it feel like?"

She was already familiar with it from movies.

Touching or serene background music would play as the female protagonist stood on her tiptoes and the man held her waist.

The lighting would suddenly intensify between their tightly pressed faces, and the camera would move around.

Their lips would slant together, then their tongues would twist like pretzels, exploring each other's mouths.

Sometimes they would suck on an upper or lower lip.

"........"

Unconsciously, Sharon touched her own lips.

They were soft and plump.

She moved her hand and brought her fingertips to Siwoo's slightly parted lips.

They felt a bit thicker, but were similarly soft, plump, and bouncy.

So much so that it was hard to think of them as just a body part.

Just once.

What if she just touched them, ever so slightly?

Sharon leaned her upper body down slightly.

With each gradual closing of the distance between their lips, her heart pounded fast and loud.

With a trembling heart, attempting a secret kiss, Sharon stopped abruptly, leaving about a centimeter of space.

His breath, warm and gentle, brushed against her halted lips.

Sharon felt her breathing grow ragged, matching the heartbeats echoing in her head.

She hurriedly got up and left Siwoo's room.

"Ugh, I've just made myself more flustered for no reason."

She had come to forget her real-world problems, but instead was confused by strange impulses.

A secret kiss?

Kissing is an important act between a man and a woman.

Doing it unilaterally and secretly without his permission was a cowardly foul.

Had watching too many romance movies messed with her head?

"Good thoughts, good thoughts."

She plopped down on the sofa where they had been watching the movie just moments ago.

Patting herself, Sharon deliberately steered the flow of her thoughts elsewhere.

Yes, this is a good line of thinking.

"Hmm... What should I do?"

Siwoo, who had worked so hard in various ways for Sharon.

In contrast, Sharon hadn't been able to give Siwoo any proper compensation.

Just some king crab and healing.

She knew that if Siwoo wanted, he could order hundreds of king crabs to eat.

The wounds Sharon's Magic could heal were only physical ones.

Wounds of the heart could not be healed by any Magic.

For Siwoo, who had overexerted himself for her, she wanted to help somehow.

Therefore, she accessed the Akashic Records existing in the Mortal Realm, Google, which holds the secrets of all creation.

"How... to comfort... a friend..."

Typing clumsily, a list of results scrolled down.

Truly, the science of the Mortal Realm is great.

Most things could be solved with just this.

"Rather than searching for special words, comfort them sincerely... Before comforting, consider the other person's emotions... Acknowledge and support the other person, validating their situation..."

She wasn't a fool; she knew this much.

What made openly comforting Siwoo awkward was that she had to comfort him without it being obvious.

If handled poorly, it could inflict secondary damage to his pride.

"How to comfort a boyfriend?"

While sifting through the superficially impressive Akashic Records, she belatedly discovered the related search terms.

In Korea, 'boyfriend' literally means a male lover.

Siwoo and Sharon were not lovers or anything like that.

But since Siwoo was also a man, wouldn't it be somewhat helpful?

"Let's just take a look."

Patting his head.

Hugging him.

Kissing him.

Acting cute.

As expected, these were things difficult to do unless they were lovers.

It might not be immediately helpful, but perhaps it would be someday.

As for hugging, they had already done that earlier today...

"Huh?"

Then, Sharon discovered a post on a question and advice community.

The title was 'My boyfriend is too depressed.'

Summarizing the content: her boyfriend had failed a certification exam multiple times and was very upset, but he forced himself to smile around her without showing it, so she was hesitant to comfort him for fear of hurting his pride.

It was exactly the same situation Sharon and Siwoo were in.

"This is it!"

Sharon internally shouted 'Eureka!' and hurriedly looked at the replies.

[Let him touch your breasts. It's the direct solution.]

Simultaneously, all the anticipation she had built up deflated with a pfft.

Breasts, what breasts.

"Isn't that stupid? If that worked, there wouldn't be any men with worries left in the world."

Well, it's called the Akashic Records, but while there's a lot of useful information found on the internet, there's also plenty of useless, garbage stuff.

Scrolling down listlessly, Sharon's eyes widened.

[Breasts are the best. When my boyfriend messed up his college entrance exam, I said, 'Want to touch my breasts?' and he was over the moon.]

Below that, similar advice followed.

Sharon read through the various replies with a shocked expression.

Just looking at breasts makes the mood better.

I tried it after seeing it online, and it was really effective.

It's good to show them or let him touch them when he's angry too.

A woman's breasts psychologically and biologically calm men down.

And so on, followed by countless paeans to breasts.The final finale is the author's response.

[Thank you^^ I did as you all advised, and my boyfriend loved it. I'm glad he seems to have regained his energy. I plan to cheer him on by his side for one more year.]

"Really? Just this is enough?"

Sharon stared blankly and turned off her phone screen.

Come to think of it, Siwoo had also subtly glanced at Sharon's chest.

Would it really be comforting if she openly let him look or touch?

Men were too difficult.

A word from the author (author's note)

Originally, it needs to be aged for a long time to bring out the flavor

I'll open it after proper aging, before it goes bad.