City of Witches Chapter 225

After the unexpected incident, Sharon locked herself in her room, saying she had research to do.

Well, considering she ran out the door dressed like that and saying those lines, only to get caught red-handed, it's understandable she'd want to die of embarrassment.

When I changed clothes and checked on Sharon again, she wasn't studying at all. She was lying on her bed, blanket pulled over her head, pounding her pillow.

"I'm heading out. You really not coming?"

"Ugh! Go away! I said I'm not going!"

When I asked with a laugh in my voice, the pillow she'd been furiously pummeling came flying at me.

I caught it stylishly.

"You probably shouldn't think too much about it."

"Please... just... let me be like this..."

Hearing Sharon's half-dead voice, I gave up and left the house.

Today's outfit was neat shorts-style slacks and a short-sleeved t-shirt.

I realized the days for dressing like this were numbered, as the air gets cool once night falls.

Opening the door, I found Duke Tiferet standing there waiting.

"Sorry I'm late. I thought it'd be better with more people, so I tried to get Sharon to come too... but she said she had a lot to do."

"Is that so? A pity."

I haven't spent a long time with Eloa, but there's one thing I'm sure of.

She's not the careless type to pry into other people's affairs.

So, as expected, her reaction was predictable.

Even though she said it was a pity, she didn't seem particularly regretful, nor did she seem to be letting her imagination run wild about what happened earlier.

She simply carried her usual quiet dignity, like a well-polished sword.

"Where shall I take you?"

Therefore, I didn't expect what came next.

"You said it was a housewarming... so it's only right I treat you myself."

"Huh?"

"First, I need to do some shopping. There's not a single ingredient at home, you see. Could you guide me to a nearby store?"

"Yes, of course."

I never imagined she would personally cook and host me.

Feeling bewildered, I followed Eloa and got on the elevator.

Exiting Shinchon Rotary and walking along the main road, turning left leads to a department store where the basement level has a food court and a grocery store.

It doesn't have the vast selection of a large supermarket, but it has everything you need and is the closest, so it was a place I frequented too.

By the way, we were walking together for about 15 minutes without exchanging a single word.

As it was my first time seeing Eloa in a daily, non-sparring context, I kept stealing glances, admiring her lovely profile.

It wasn't out of any impure thoughts; it was more like being drawn to gaze at a beautiful work of art.

So, if I had to give an appreciation comment...

'If a magical girl existed in real life, wouldn't she look something like this?' she was quite cute to that degree.

It's an audacious and presumptuous thing to say, but it's true.

Apart from her large eyes with long, deep double eyelids and long eyelashes, everything about her was quite small and delicate.

She wasn't particularly tall, and her head was small like that of a dancer.

The nose, mouth, and ears that all had to fit on that small face were all tiny too.

I never noticed it before because of her aura, but based on appearance alone, she felt more like a younger sister than an elder.

So... if the Twins were like youngest sisters with a 12-year age gap, Eloa would be like a quite mature eldest sister?

Just as my sense of awe or fear was starting to fade from observing only her exterior, I realized once again.

Her aura really is different.

Her straight eyebrows and gaze are sunk as if indifferent.

Her lips, with their soft, faint lines, are also firmly closed, utterly serious without a hint of a smile.

Her gait is not frivolous but measured, as if drawn with a ruler.

Every time I noticed these aspects, I thought:

She's not someone you can judge by appearances alone.

"Ah, let me pull it."

"Thank you."

Anyway, it was only when we arrived at the department store and it was time to get a shopping cart that I finally managed to speak to her.

Until then, I was too busy observing her, and we weren't on such familiar terms to naturally start a conversation anyway.

El headed to the meat section and put two whole chickens for baeksuk (white boiled chicken) into the cart.

Then, at the vegetable section, she added things like carrots, onions, potatoes, cabbage, and mushrooms.

Judging by her unhesitating movements, she seemed to have already decided what dishes to prepare.

It might have been a misconception, but she seemed somewhat more animated than usual, so I asked.

"Do you like cooking?"

El looked slightly surprised, as if my speaking to her was quite unexpected.

Still, it seemed we'd have many points of contact going forward, so getting along would be good, and to do that, wouldn't we need to have some conversation?

"...I used to do it a lot."

"I see."

But I'm not exactly a smooth talker either.

Moreover, in a situation with a far greater status gap than between a professor and a graduate student, I had no idea what topic to continue the conversation with.

Unexpectedly, Eloa spoke first.

"But doing it again like this is truly after a very long time. So, don't expect too much."

After speaking in a somewhat awkward tone, Eloa turned and moved to the seafood section this time, picking up various items.

She put so much in, it was hard to tell what she planned to make.

After getting de-boned cod fillets, shrimp, lobster, and clams including cockles, she finally bought packaged mixed herbs and bay leaves and paid in cash.

On the way back.

My hands were full of bags packed with ingredients.

I had firmly declined when she offered to carry them and took them myself.

"It's fascinating."

"Huh?"

"Up until I first established a Witch Point here, Seoul wasn't like this, you see. It was more rural and pastoral. There were more mountains than buildings, more trees than people. I've seen many countries, but a place that has changed so much in such a short time is probably Seoul."

"When did you establish it?"

"1920... around then, I think? It was a foothold for advancing to Western nations from between China and Japan, so I paid particular attention to it."

I had guessed from her words, but it was such a distant past that I couldn't really relate.

Seeing my reaction, Eloa seemed to notice, offering a bitter smile.

"Well, you said you haven't even lived 30 years yet, right? I've been rambling on pointlessly."

"Not at all. It was kind of amazing. It feels like seeing living history."

"You'd be even more amazed if you saw Teacher Sua."Before long, after exchanging rather meaningless small talk, Siwoo found himself entering the new home of his downstairs neighbor, Eloa.

When he first stepped into her home, Siwoo was slightly taken aback.

Being the floor directly below in the same building, the layout was exactly the same.

But the atmosphere was completely different.

Even considering she had moved in less than a day ago, aside from basic furniture like a sofa and table, there wasn't a single personal item in sight.

At most, three blue boxes piled in one corner of the living room like confiscated evidence?

And judging by the papers sticking out, they were probably about Homunculi or public enemies...

It felt more like a fugitive's hideout than a home, utterly devoid of any sense of lived-in life.

It seemed to starkly show what she lived for and what she had sacrificed for that purpose.

"Place it on the kitchen table."

"Yes, yes..."

Somewhat solemn, Siwoo set the bag on the table and began unpacking its contents.

Once in the kitchen, he finally saw what could be considered Tiferet's personal belongings.

Various types of alcohol filling one side of a shelf.

"It'll take a bit of time, is that alright?"

"I don't mind. Shall I help?"

"Then I'd be grateful."

Eloa took off her windbreaker and rolled up her sleeves.

First, with swift movements, she began sorting the ingredients.

Vegetables with vegetables, meat and seafood requiring preparation separately, and anything needing washing was placed in the sink.

"You handle preparing the vegetables. Nothing special, just shake off the dirt and wash them clean."

"What about these?"

"If you can manage, please wash the seafood too. Scrub them with this brush until the slime is gone."

"Got it."

Siwoo turned on the water and began diligently washing the potatoes, onions, and seafood.

Eloa lightly rinsed a whole chicken that was already prepped, patted it dry, and made a marinade with pepper, salt, and olive oil.

Somehow, it looked very familiar.

"Pass me the carrots and onions first. Ah, and the garlic too."

"Here you go."

Eloa spread out a cutting board and took out a kitchen knife.

Her hands began to move as if dancing.

It took less than ten seconds to completely peel one potato.

-tap tap tap tap tap

"Oh..."

Watching her slice the peeled vegetables into appropriate sizes, Siwoo pursed his lips.

Fast and precise.

With each cheerful sound of the knife hitting the board, various vegetables were neatly sliced into uniform pieces.

Her movements were far too skilled for someone who claimed not to have done this in a while.

"Could you pass the seafood too?"

"Yes, I'll give it to you after I finish washing this. It's not fully cleaned yet."

As he answered, Siwoo diligently scrubbed away the remaining slime.

Eloa, who had been watching him intently, spoke.

"You put effort into everything you do."

"Ah, maybe it's because of my slave experience?"

Flustered by the sudden praise, Siwoo answered sheepishly.

"Come to think of it, you were a slave in Gehenna, weren't you? Where were you from?"

"I was a public slave belonging to Trinity Academy in Renomond Town."

"Renomond Town... You must have suffered greatly among those stubborn Witches."

"Is that so?"

Eloa took the live lobster Siwoo handed over.

She closed her eyes briefly as if in prayer, then swiftly ended the lives of the three lobsters.

"The Orthodox Witches residing in Renomond Town have a mindset particularly stuck in the past, you see. I can imagine the hardships you must have endured as a slave."

"I haven't met many people, but... Witches from outside seem to have a much freer feel, I think. But still, there were many good people in Gehenna too."

"You don't hate Witches?"

"As the saying goes, misfortune may be a blessing in disguise, but in the end, being captured and brought to Gehenna saved me from a fate of death and allowed me to learn Magic. I also made good connections."

Eloa stared intently at Siwoo's profile as he answered.

Physiognomy doesn't tell everything, but a person's attitude and approach to life inevitably leave traces on their face.

Siwoo had a kind impression, with no sense of malice.

"Uh..."

As Siwoo fidgeted, not understanding why she was looking, Eloa gave a faint smile.

"Weren't you also sneaking glances at me earlier? So I looked back."

"S-sorry."

"What's there to be sorry about? It's true, my hair color is something people find novel when they first see it. You didn't need to sneak glances; if you had asked, I would have shown you."

The reason he had looked at her wasn't simply because her hair or eye color was unusual...

But he didn't bother to tell the truth.

By now, the kitchen was filled with the fragrant smell of butter and the aroma of sautéing vegetables.

With the ingredient prep finished, Siwoo had nothing left to do.

"Wait in the living room. It'll take a little while."

"Is there nothing more I can help with?"

"I appreciate the thought, but keeping a guest standing in the kitchen any longer is something a host shouldn't do."

And so, Siwoo returned to the living room and was left to wait idly.

Author's Note (Afterword)

I thought while writing this:

Things that would have happened if Amelia and Siwoo hadn't drifted apart...

Unable to withstand the debt collectors, Sharon gets kicked out of her attic room and ends up wandering the streets.

Eventually, unable to resist the temptation of the high-paying part-time job Della offered, she falls into sexual slavery through snail sex.

Eloa... would have committed suicide, right...?