Chapter
City of Witches Chapter 233
After closing the rooftop door, Eloa hurried home with brisk steps.
Like a patient having an asthma attack searching for medicine, she frantically pulled a bottle of liquor from the cabinet.
The 52-proof strong liquor went down as smoothly as water, accompanied by gulping sounds.
"Phew...."
Even that wasn't enough to calm her down, so she washed her face with cold water in the bathroom, splashing vigorously.
She scrubbed her face so hard that her bangs were completely soaked, yet she still felt dazed.
"What in the world is this...."
Her head spun with bewilderment.
There was no other reason.
It was because of the unfortunate incident during the final sparring session.
The daily 12-hour training and sparring sessions followed a rather monotonous pattern.
Siwoo would attempt something.
Eloa would block it.
She would provide feedback on the issues and areas for improvement.
They would return to step 2) until the pointed-out areas were improved.
When it came to skill improvement, sparring was indeed the fastest and most effective method.
Even if it wasn't as intense as real combat, there was no difference in terms of 'learning how to move one's body.'
Moreover, Siwoo didn't settle for just one method; he prepared various strategies for each session, making it highly efficient.
That Siwoo, having seen something yesterday, attempted repeated takedowns during today's sparring.
His effort and spirit of challenge were admirable, but to Eloa, his attacks were so clumsy that it was difficult to intentionally let them land, and she also shouldn't have allowed them intentionally.
Implanting the experience that such immature attacks could succeed carried the risk of having a negative impact in the future.
Still, since he had prepared so diligently.
She thought it wouldn't be bad to let him showcase what he had prepared for the final sparring session.
Seeing his admirable persistence despite being knocked down repeatedly, she decided to indulge him a little.
Of course, she would have later explained that attempting a submission on a Spirit Body reinforced with magic power was a poor choice.
The moment she turned her back and Siwoo clung tightly to her.
Looking back, she recalled that not-so-long moment.
Coincidentally, it was a position resembling a back hug.
Since there was a height difference between the two, Siwoo could rest his chin on top of Eloa's head.
At that time, the hard, firm part of his body she felt against her back, whose heat she could sense even through the clothes....
"That was...."
Needless to say, it was a male genital.
Moreover, a male organ that had hardened, filled with blood, just like when he was having intercourse with Sharon.
Furthermore, the breath tickling her ear felt different from when it was merely rough from sparring.
Should she say it was a bit more primal, a bit more instinctual?
Anyway, it was a breath she had never heard or felt before.
"Completely out of his mind..."
Eloa absentmindedly stroked her back and shook her head.
No matter how little Eloa knew about relationships between men and women, she knew 'when does a man get an erection?'
Wasn't it an important lesson that couldn't be skipped at Trinity Academy?
It's when he feels sexual excitement.
Of course, erections sometimes occur naturally, and they can also unexpectedly enlarge when one needs to urinate.
But unfortunately for Siwoo, such precise knowledge wasn't in Eloa's mind.
"This won't do."
Eloa abruptly stood up and took off her clothes.
In this state, her confused mind wouldn't calm down.
Thinking it would be better to wash her body and mind by taking a bath, she filled the tub with water and brought the liquor with her.
With a towel wrapped around her head to keep it dry, she pondered repeatedly in the warm water.
"....Sigh..."
A sigh carrying the warmth of the alcohol created ripples on the water's surface.
The time spent with him these past few days had brought an uncharacteristic tranquility to Eloa.
She still tossed and turned from nightmares, sometimes clutching her chest and sinking down while thinking of Raphi...
But little by little, things were changing.
Her daily life, once stained only with regret and lamentation, was gradually transforming.
As if the frozen ground within her was melting under the warm spring sun, giving rise to a silent green revolution.
The times she cried alone decreased.
Instead, the times she smiled increased.
Days appeared where she cooked in the kitchen, which she hadn't entered since Raphi left, and sat at the table enjoying a meal with quiet conversation.
Instead of pouring alcohol to forget the pain, she gained the leisure to savor the flavor and aroma of the drink.
She knew why.
Because Tiferet was projecting Raphi onto Siwoo.
Because through him, she could relive the days when a smile would appear on her lips just from the thought rising.
When training with him, sharing meals, tilting glasses together.
Eloa could forget her anguish.
For that, she felt immensely grateful to Siwoo.
Although not yet in a formal master-disciple relationship, she still thought of him only as a cute disciple.
Conversely, she believed Siwoo also regarded her as a teacher.
But...
"Was he... seeing me as a woman...?"
That was something she had never imagined, to a startling degree.
From the start, Eloa had no points of contact with men.
Naturally, she had never seriously contemplated relationships between men and women, nor had any other experience.
Therefore, regarding Siwoo seeing her in that light, she felt only bewilderment, before any joy, displeasure, or contempt.
If forced to make an analogy, it felt like a strangely shaped golden beetle clinging to her clothes—she couldn't shake it off, nor could she just grab it?
No.
The more she tried to analogize, the less she understood.
Eloa sipped her drink and continued her thoughts.
"But...."
She knew Siwoo was sincere, affectionate, and possessed a gentle nature.
Thus, while she cherished Siwoo greatly, she had never once thought of him as more than a disciple.
If Siwoo harbored feelings of affection for her... she would be grateful for his heart, but she would have no choice but to decline.
"Wait.... come to think of it..."
As Eloa pondered how to decline without hurting him, or whether it would be better to let it pass naturally as if she hadn't noticed, like today, one fact flashed through her mind.
That's right.
Siwoo was already in a romantic relationship with Sharon, where they shared their bodies!
An advanced problem suddenly dropped before Eloa, who lacked even basic knowledge about 'romance.'
It felt like her vision was spinning, even though she wasn't that drunk.
Eloa began organizing her thoughts, counting on her fingers one by one.Already being involved with Sharon, yet harboring such feelings for Eloa?
That doesn't simply end with Eloa being a difficult problem.
Back during her apprentice witch days when she took lessons from Teacher Sua, she also learned about proper conduct for men and women.
Even considering that Teacher Sua's teachings were slightly behind the times, what's called 'two-timing' is morally and ethically wrong.
If it were just that, it would be something to sternly scold and move on from...
But considering Siwoo's usual conduct, he isn't the frivolous type of man who would chase after this woman and that woman, which makes it all the more confusing.
"This won't do."
She absolutely couldn't sort out her thoughts alone.
Nor was it a worry she could confide in anyone else.
Thus, the conclusion she reached: just bury it.
Siwoo, who had looked at Eloa with a bewildered gaze.
He was making a face as if even he hadn't anticipated this situation.
Then perhaps it could be interpreted as a spontaneous impulse...
There was no need to deliberately make it an issue.
Didn't they say men often get caught up in such impulses?
Eloa already cherished him far too much to distance herself from Siwoo over such a trivial incident.
Eloa got out of the bathtub, dried herself, and changed into her pajamas.
Her hair, which was surely covered in dust, she cleaned neatly with magic.
Coming out to the living room holding a full glass of wine, things she usually passed by without a thought began to catch her eye.
It must be because he worried about Eloa struggling alone.
Siwoo would stop by Eloa's house after his training, or whenever he thought of her.
Always with something in both hands.
Perhaps because of that, traces of him began to appear all over the house.
The once desolate room had also changed to feel a bit more like a lived-in place.
The refrigerator was filled with various ingredients for cooking for Siwoo.
Bottles of soy sauce, vinegar, and olive oil now occupied the cabinet that used to be full of only alcohol.
In the bedroom, plush-looking cushions and a mood-setting stand lamp had appeared.
Even the pajamas she was wearing were something Siwoo had bought for her.
Being the recipient of such meticulous care and concern, she had no thought of nitpicking a small fault and hating him for it.
"It'll work out."
Eloa flopped down onto the bed.
Pretend nothing happened.
Tomorrow, train as usual and invite Siwoo over to cook for him.
After that, drink fine wine and discuss the results of their recent training.
As soon as that thought solidified, her turbulent mind calmed down a bit.
"Haaam..."
Lying on the bed, Eloa let out a small yawn.
The mandatory four hours of sleep per day.
After the bath, drowsiness, the effects of the alcohol, and hugging the plush cushions Siwoo bought made sleep begin to gently creep in.
No matter how much she had lightened her mental load, this time was one of fear and terror for her.
It was the moment she had to forcibly open the memoir recording Tiferet's transgressions.
With a feeling of being sucked into a vortex, her darkened consciousness cut off and then...
Resumed.
Eloa carefully, very carefully, opened her eyes.
Trembling with fear over which past she would have to revisit today.
"......?"
Eloa blinked her eyes.
The location was inside Eloa's room.
Naturally, this wasn't a place holding memories with Raphi.
Therefore, it wasn't a place that should appear in a dream.
It felt like she had just closed and opened her eyes for a moment, but already she could see the sky tinged blue outside the window.
"No dream at all..."
She didn't have one.
The nightmare that had tormented Eloa without fail every day, that made her dread the moment night fell, did not appear.
Eloa sat up and looked around with dazed eyes.
-Click!
Then the bedroom door opened.
A person appeared from the dim shadow.
It was Siwoo.
"You? What brings you here?"
Siwoo always visited Eloa around noon.
But now it was the crack of dawn, before the sun had even risen.
Eloa looked at Siwoo with a puzzled gaze and straightened the collar of her pajamas, which had become disheveled in her sleep.
"I came because I wanted to see you, Master."
"Mas...ter?"
Siwoo had never called Eloa 'Master' before.
Instead, he called her 'duke'.
Partly because Eloa hadn't instructed it, but probably also because he understood her sorrow at losing Raphi.
Therefore, the sudden change in address, along with his visit in the dead of night, was puzzling.
"Well, you came. Since I've slept all I need to, there's no reason you shouldn't come. Care for a drink?"
"That would be nice too."
Siwoo said while staring intently at Eloa's face.
It was a voice with considerable resonance, a relaxed tone.
Somehow feeling a different atmosphere than usual, Eloa hesitated. Siwoo slowly approached the bed where she was sitting.
"Seeing you like this feels different again. You always wear your training clothes."
"Aren't these the things you bought? They're quite comfortable, so I use them often. Could you wait outside for a moment? I'd like to change my clothes."
Even so, she couldn't receive a guest in sleepwear.
As Eloa tried to get up to dress properly, her movement halted at Siwoo's next line.
"You are beautiful."
"Wha, what?"
"You are beautiful. More so than any witch I've met in my life."
Eloa's pupils began to shake uncontrollably.
A word from the author (Author's Note)
Illustration Production Status
Yebin: Almost at the completion stage
Tiferet: Received the rough sketch
Ah, and I'd appreciate it if you could avoid arguing in the comments section if possible ㅜㅜ
All of you are precious readers to me, and it hurts to see you fight.