City of Witches Chapter 194

The typhoon that had poured rain all night had crossed over Seoul's skies.

Even now, thunder could be heard in the distance and rain was still falling, but it wasn't coming down as crazily as yesterday.

"Hmm... The Mortal Realm is impressive."

"It's big... and tall..."

Odil and Odette, having gotten out of the taxi, craned their necks looking up at the tall buildings and voiced their impressions.

"But just being tall doesn't necessarily make it great. Architecture is an art form, so measuring greatness by height alone is impossible."

With a serious expression, Odil began critiquing the buildings as if she had become a critic.

"That's right. To me, these tall bui... bui..."

"Buildings."

"Oh, right, thank you, Assistant. Anyway, these 'buildings' just look like structures built by sacrificing beauty to somehow stack things up to maximize the use of a small plot of land. I'd give them a 7 out of 10."

Odette also followed her sister's lead, crossing her arms and sharing her thoughts on the magnificent buildings.

Since they had decided to keep their nighttime stroll with Odette a secret, the natural form of address was 'Assistant'.

The buildings in Gehenna, especially those in Renomond Town or Ars Magna Town, are all beautiful.

As Odette had hit the nail on the head, buildings are products created to maximize land use, so purely from an aesthetic value standpoint, it's true they are hard to compare.

"Alright, alright, critiquing is fine, but shall we go in?"

"Okay, I'm looking forward to seeing what wonderful tour itinerary the Assistant has prepared."

"Me too!"

Odil and Odette were dressed very prettily.

Oversized T-shirts with rabbits printed front and back, tennis skirts, and finally, white sneakers.

Contrary to Siwoo's worries, Deneb had properly prepared Mortal Realm attire for them.

The Twins would have looked good in anything, but seeing them in such casual clothes felt new again.

Should I say it gives a strangely familiar feeling, or that they look like models?

With their level of beauty, even casually taken photos uploaded to social media could easily make them global influencers.

"Assistant, is it really okay to walk around in an outfit like this? The skirt feels too short. It's light and..."

"You're wearing shorts underneath, so it should be fine, right?"

"But my knees are showing..."

Meanwhile, Odette seemed to have been very concerned about her outfit for a while now.

Well, for the two of them, who had only worn splendid, flowing dresses, a tennis skirt that clearly revealed their legs might be a bit daring.

"It's really fine. Let's go."

They had been whispering in front of the building for a good ten minutes.

Now that he wanted to go inside, the Twins kept getting distracted by things here and there, grabbing Siwoo each time.

This time it was Odil.

"Assistant! Your ear for a moment."

"Yes, yes..."

"Look over there."

Odil gestured with her eyes towards a Seoul citizen walking by in the distance.

It was a woman wearing skin-tight leggings and a crop top.

"See that woman walking over there, revealing her whole figure?"

"Yes, I see her."

"Is she perhaps someone who works at a place like a brothel?"

"No, she's not."

"Then why is she dressed like that?"

Odette chimed in.

"In the Mortal Realm, women who are confident in their figures reveal them boldly. That level is socially acceptable exposure."

"But that's practically underwear, isn't it? Her cleavage is all showing..."

"I'll explain in detail later, so please follow me. You need to see things first."

Siwoo took each of the Twins by one hand and half-dragged them along.

He had anticipated their curiosity would explode, but it seemed like this would never end if things continued this way.

They whispered and asked about something every three steps, so it took over three hours just to get here.

Anyway, after much trouble, the place they arrived at was the aquarium.

While pondering what the Twins would enjoy most, he considered taking them to an amusement park or an aquarium, but due to the rain, he chose the latter.

Since the entry time and number of people were limited, after getting the tickets, he sat down at a cafe to wait, and a sigh escaped him as soon as he did.

"Haa..."

It's more tiring than he imagined.

How had Deneb always taken care of these Twins?

Suddenly, he began to feel respect for Countess Gemernai.

If the music box hadn't been there, it would have been a hundred times more difficult.

Probably because of the Twins' beauty, all sorts of attention would have been drawn to them.

Siwoo, who already felt exhausted before it even began.

Meanwhile, the Twins were each clutching a pager, examining it with serious expressions.

While they were doing that, Odil was the first to speak to the exhausted Siwoo.

"Assistant, why do you look so tired?"

"Well, I wonder why..."

"Should I give you a pat-pat?"

Saying that, Odil already began gently stroking Siwoo's head.

Strangely enough, that somehow made him laugh and he felt his stamina returning.

"You two are both amazing. Even in such an unfamiliar place, you're just like usual. You're not intimidated at all."

"We have the Assistant with us! That makes us feel secure!"

"That's right, and I like the Mortal Realm. The air is a bit bad, but if I'm with the Assistant, I think I can have quite a bit of fun."

"Me too! That's why I'm studying hard to receive the Brand quickly!"

If I'm with the Assistant...

Come to think of it, the Twins were on a temporary outing.

Only after formally inheriting Gemernai's Brand would they be able to freely come and go to the Mortal Realm.

But inheriting the Brand means that Albireo and Countess Deneb will disappear.

Do the Twins accept this fact without any concern?

For them, they are their Masters and essentially their mothers.

"Um, I don't know if it's okay to ask this. May I ask just one thing?"

"What is it?"

"Does inheriting the Brand mean that Countess Gemernai will disap... pear?"

Siwoo's cautious question.

But contrary to expectations, Odil and Odette's reactions were utterly nonchalant.

"That's right. It's sad, but it's something we must accept."

"You seem more composed than I thought."

"It's sad that Master will disappear, but inheriting the Brand means we have gained the qualification to carry on Master's will. I think I'll be very proud, and Master will be proud of us too."

"Odette is right. That is the reason we, we Witches, exist."

Even hearing the explanation he already knew added on, it still didn't feel understandable.From the very beginning, there was a vast perceptual gap between the Twins, who had been raised and educated in Gehenna since childhood, and Siwoo, who was a modern person.

Just as the Twins couldn't understand the attire of a woman wandering around in athletic wear.

"That makes sense."

It didn't seem to be a matter for Siwoo to criticize.

It was also something that would happen quite a bit later.

Instead, he suddenly thought of someone and asked.

In fact, he had been quite hesitant about whether to ask since yesterday.

Casually, really casually, he asks so it doesn't show that fact.

"Come to think of it, how is Associate Professor Amelia doing?"

The name he had deliberately tried not to think about.

The name he had intentionally pushed to the corner of his consciousness.

The moment he uttered it, a coffee-like bitterness spread.

"You didn't know? After you recovered, the professor in charge changed."

"Huh?"

"The professor had personal circumstances, so Avene, the head professor, ended up taking over the courses originally handled by the associate professor."

"Why?"

"Well, I don't know either."

"I don't know either."

Siwoo closed his mouth.

It seemed unlikely that she wouldn't have read the note Siwoo left by this much time had passed...

"Eek!"

Just then, the Twins' short scream cut off Siwoo's wandering thoughts.

The vibrating bell buzzed, announcing that the drinks were ready.

The Twins, their eyes wide open, staring at the blinking, buzzing vibrating bell.

"This... this, is it an Artifact?"

"No, it's not. It's about time, so let's go."

Siwoo smiled slightly at the cute Twins' reaction and headed towards the aquarium.

"Wow......"

"Wow......"

The Twins were exclaiming as they looked around everywhere as if they had entered a different world.

Their already large eyes had become perfectly round, and both had their mouths wide open.

What had completely captivated the Twins was a school of jellyfish undulating and swimming in a large tank.

Subtly projected neon lights created a mysterious atmosphere.

The two were watching the jellyfish with their cheeks pressed close, as if trying to enter the tank.

"Oh my, look at them. They look so cute."

"Are they models? Should I ask if it's okay to take photos?"

"The guy next to them is handsome too."

Even though the music box was operating, it seemed they were being recognized to some extent if they attracted this much attention.

From a position that anyone would see as a guardian, it was a bit embarrassing, but fortunately, it was a weekday afternoon, so there were almost no visitors.

"What is this, what is this....?"

"They're called jellyfish...."

"They look like they're wearing dresses. I wonder how it would feel to touch them?"

"They look squishy."

Both Twins' words trailed off as if they were entranced.

And no wonder, this aquarium was the largest in Seoul, exhibiting all sorts of fish and marine life, as well as rare animals and insects.

If they were going to show the mysterious Mortal Realm, the thought to show things they could absolutely never see in Gehenna seemed to have been spot on.

After all, the aquarium was filled with sights everywhere to satisfy the curiosity of the inquisitive Twins.

"Alright, alright, how about we stop looking and move to the side? I see there's a place here with Amazon fish gathered."

"Can't we look a little more? They're so pretty."

"I'm so sad, I want to buy them to look at forever! How much are they?"

"Hmm, they're probably not for sale? And there are many more interesting things ahead."

Not realizing time was passing, he gently pushed the backs of the Twins, who were wandering around the jellyfish tanks, urging them on.

It's good to look around, but according to the pamphlet, there were many more things to see ahead.

At this pace, it seemed they wouldn't be able to leave the aquarium today.

Still, it felt good since they seemed to like it.

This time, the Amazon fish corner.

The Twins were amazed looking at a huge fish that seemed to be about 1M, maybe even close to 2M.

"Wow, this is the first time I've seen a fish this big!"

"Assistant, Assistant! Can't this be bought at an auction? I want to take one home!"

"You probably wouldn't call something like this a fish? And this is probably not for sale either."

"Assistant, before the overwhelming wealth of our Zemnarai family, something like 'not for sale' doesn't exist."

"When I become Countess, I'm definitely going to buy this aquarium!"

"Oh, that's not a bad idea either."

Siwoo smiled and applauded the Twins for their bold aspirations.

He remembered the time he followed them on a picnic to the Latifundium.

Back then, Siwoo was the one marveling while the Twins explained various things, and he felt a sudden sense of the passage of time.

Crossing a skywalk overlooking the Amazon tank, a large tunnel appeared.

Of course, it wasn't just any tunnel; it was an underwater tunnel designed to make you feel like you were walking inside a huge tank.

Amidst the pervasive blue light, fish, sharks, rays, and the like could be seen swimming leisurely here and there.

"........."

"........."

Even Siwoo felt somewhat overwhelmed, so how much more for the Twins?

At the tunnel entrance, which looked like a bluish dungeon with the water color enhanced by lighting, they stood frozen, not taking a single step, hugging each other tightly.

"That, that terrifying-looking thing... is a shark, right?"

"Let me see, it says it's a bull shark."

"That, do turtles get that big? The one Pecha picked up before was only palm-sized..."

"Ah, that's a green sea turtle."

A giant ray passing overhead, a shark with sharp teeth bared brushing past, a school of thousands of sardines swimming in a group with their scales glinting, a turtle swimming slowly with its mouth open.

Soon, the Twins, having mustered courage, scurried around the tunnel with excited steps, and Siwoo followed leisurely behind.

Finally, they left the aquarium after buying two sets of pajamas at the souvenir shop.

Author's Note (Afterword)

Whenever I go to the aquarium, I always crave steamed ray and soju.