City of Witches Chapter 24

During the time Amelia was taking a long bath.

Siwoo, who had been kicked out of the treehouse, was puffing away on a cigarette.

"Hah, bitter..."

In a way, it was a bit of a shock.

Amelia, who tormented Siwoo daily, and her sudden kindness.

Honestly, wasn't there plenty of room for confusion?

Telling him to come to her quarters after work on a dark, lonely night.

What man, hearing those words, would think, 'Ah, she must want to take me on as her assistant'?

Moreover, Takasho's snide remarks and fanning the flames from the side played a significant role.

That Amelia had fallen for Siwoo, that she looked just like a teenage girl in love.

Perhaps Siwoo himself might have wanted to believe it was true.

Along with the dreary sound of rain, embarrassment washed over him.

Having blurted out in front of her, 'Weren't you trying to have sex with me back then?' how utterly absurd must Amelia have found it?

Once Amelia finishes her bath, they have to spend the day alone together in this villa, and the worry is already overwhelming.

Hearing the bathroom door close, Siwoo agonized for a while over whether to go in or not.

Truthfully, his true desire was to curl up on the terrace, even if it meant rolling off in his sleep.

He simply couldn't face her again.

Siwoo gulped and opened the door.

After all, she probably got dressed inside, and once the Witch's bath was over, the slave had to attend to her.

The cheeky excuse of getting some fresh air wouldn't work on Amelia.

"......."

Amelia was intently examining something placed on the bed.

Her cheeks, flushed a peach color, likely from just finishing her bath.

Above them, her starlight-like eyes were clouded with contemplation.

Siwoo also looked at the object Amelia was scrutinizing.

It was a babydoll nightgown.

Thanks to Amelia lifting the nightgown, unaware of Siwoo's return, the design became even more visible.

Hmm.

What should he say?

Well, first of all, it's see-through.

Not some cheap, sleazy costume sold at an adult shop, but an expensive, sensually sheer silk weave that would reveal the skin beneath the moment it was worn.

Amelia turned it over and over for a long time, tilting her head in confusion.

While Siwoo instantly recognized it as 'lingerie meant to please a man,' Amelia was different.

Because in Amelia's standards, a 'useless scrap of fabric you can see right through' wasn't considered clothing.

Yet, since it looked like clothing, she couldn't help but wonder about its purpose.

But soon, having guessed this was all Sophia's doing, Amelia also figured out the purpose of that scrap of fabric.

-Sizzle!

Soon after, the babydoll nightgown, which had never once united with its owner, let out a death rattle and met its demise in her hand.

"Such a pointless... thing..."

Amelia shook her head as if finding it ridiculous, then noticed Siwoo standing close by.

And she froze rigidly, holding the two torn pieces of the nightgown.

"Ah...."

Before it could even dry in Amelia's hand, pink flames blossomed forth.

"Wait a moment!"

At first, Siwoo reflexively crouched, thinking she was about to hurl those embers at him.

Contrary to expectation, it was the nightgown she had been holding that was caught and burning in the thousands of flames.

The nightgown, evaporated without a trace of ash.

And Amelia, acting as if nothing had happened.

"The room feels chilly."

Having grasped what she wanted, Siwoo also pretended not to know.

This villa belonged to Amelia's friend, who was probably a Witch who really liked men.

So she must have decorated the villa like a love hotel and prepared that kind of nightgown.

"Is that so? I'll light the fireplace immediately."

For such a small villa, it had everything.

As Siwoo walked towards the fireplace.

He sensed something strange.

Black smoke was billowing from the window above the fireplace, meant for ventilation.

"What's this?"

Siwoo opened the window, climbed onto the fireplace, and looked down.

And he saw it.

At the base of the giant oak tree bearing the treehouse, the same pink flames that had just executed the babydoll nightgown were flickering.

"Um, Lady Amelia."

It wasn't ordinary fire.

The crimson blaze fueled by her magic power was climbing the tree trunk with an unbelievable ferocity, greedily seeking something to burn.

"I think we're in big trouble?"

"What's the matter?"

"I think we need to get out quickly."

"Where do you think you're going at this hour..."

-Whoosh!

Less than 15 seconds after Amelia's reply, the splendid treehouse was engulfed in magical flames.

Fire-igniting magic is very easy.

Being one of the Four Elements—fire, wind, earth, water—it doesn't require complex transmutation; a single pass is enough to easily manifest it.

It meant it was too basic a Magic for someone who had reached the lofty realm of the 22nd hierarchy like Amelia to fail at controlling.

The flames that had been rushing into the villa as fiercely as if from a flamethrower vanished as if they never existed the moment Amelia flicked her fingertips.

However, the villa, already clawed by the fire demon, was little different from ruins.

The moment Siwoo and Amelia landed side by side on the ground using her Magic.

-Creeeak Thud!

The tree, which had turned to charcoal all the way to its core in that short time, collapsed sideways with a heavy thud.

Naturally, the once cozy villa was shattered as pitifully as a bird's nest swept away by a typhoon.

"Associate Professor."

"......."

"What should we do now?"

"......."

Amelia and Siwoo stood watching the broken tree and treehouse, getting rained on for several minutes like displaced victims of a natural disaster.

"We can't spend a day in such a vulgar house."

"So you burn the house down?"

"Be quiet."

It seemed Amelia intended to quietly gloss over her earlier magical mishap.

Siwoo, also burdened by his prior mistake, said nothing more, and eventually, only a heavy silence flowed between them.

-Caw! Caw! Caw!

From somewhere, the mournful cawing of crows could be heard.

Siwoo might be different, but Amelia was a person of high status.

There was no way she would sleep rough under the morning dew and drizzling rain.In the end, the two walked for quite a while, leaving the forest path and returning to the dock of Border Town.

Even though at least three hours had passed since earlier and it was now past midnight, the dock was still bustling with slaves moving cargo.

As the port responsible for all of Gehenna's supplies, it operated at full capacity 24 hours a day.

"I'll look for lodging nearby."

While holding the umbrella for Amelia, Siwoo ran around here and there searching for a place to sleep.

Inland cities like Taro Town or Renomond Town had no lodging facilities.

This was because the citizens of Gehenna were essentially no different from serfs, and thus travel was not free for them.

Even if business reasons required a visit to another town or village, it was common to pay a certain amount at a tavern and stay in an empty room.

However, Border Town was a different story.

There were many sailors and captains constantly traveling between the Mortal Realm and Gehenna, and many Witches who lived in the Mortal Realm but visited Gehenna temporarily, so there were quite a few large-scale lodging facilities.

The problem was that all those many lodging facilities were packed full with other guests.

Occasionally, a single room would be available, but nowhere had two rooms vacant.

After searching through all sorts of inns, the last one Siwoo found was the Resting Serpent Inn.

It was a three-story wooden building; like most inns, the first floor operated as a tavern, with guest rooms on the second and third floors.

"Cheers!"

Speaking of which, the tavern was incredibly crowded.

Men with tanned skin and rugged builds—clearly dressed like sailors—were talking loudly in thick voices.

"Everyone, attention! Next, we'll have a toast from our captain!"

"Woo-hoo!! Just drink!"

Pushing his way through the laughter and jeers, Siwoo asked the innkeeper standing at the bar counter if there were any vacant rooms.

"Might there be any rooms available?"

The man looked more menacing than your typical innkeeper.

Chewing on a cigar and wiping a glass, he glanced over Siwoo's appearance and replied.

"Rooms are available, but I can't take guests."

"If it's because I'm a slave..."

"It's not that. Today, this inn has been entirely booked by the crew of the Naga."

This was a problem.

This inn was the last one.

Just as he was worrying, a completely unexpected face suddenly appeared beside the bar counter.

"Innkeeper, aren't you being a bit too strict?"

It was Larissa, who had enthusiastically sucked Siwoo's thing at the connection office around noon today.

Seemingly pleasantly drunk, her face was unusually bright red.

"What are you talking about? You guys said you wanted to party hard amongst yourselves."

"Still, you can at least lend a room to someone who looks like they have nowhere to go."

"Well, if that's the case, I'm fine with it."

The innkeeper shrugged his shoulders and put down the glass he was diligently wiping.

"For a double room, the daily rate including breakfast is 1 shilling per person. Plenty of rooms are left, so pick any one you like."

"Thank you!"

Having successfully secured a place to stay, Siwoo also bowed politely to Larissa.

"Thanks to you, I found a place to sleep."

At his polite greeting, Larissa smiled, revealing her white teeth.

It was a smile that somehow reminded him of a puppy showing off.

"Did you miss me that much? Wanted to squeeze in between my breasts?"

Larissa giggled, subtly emphasizing her cleavage.

The sight of the pendant necklace dangling between those ample valleys was enviable.

"That's not it. I didn't even know you were here."

"Oh my, who doesn't know I'm the only woman on the Naga? The ship that supplies goods to the Blue Serpent Connection Office is the Naga."

Come to think of it, such a misunderstanding was plausible.

She probably thought Siwoo, having heard her sweet promise, couldn't wait a single day and rushed straight to this inn where she was staying.

"But it's really not. A Witch is waiting outside right now."

"A Witch? That person from earlier?"

Larissa's gaze seemed to change for a moment.

But that too was brief, as she soon returned to her usual charming, seductive smile.

"Anyway, the Witch is also here to sleep, right? If you have time tonight, come to my room."

If this kept getting delayed, it would be troublesome.

Just as Larissa's fingers tickled under his chin and Siwoo glanced toward the door, a savior appeared.

"Larissa, picking up guys again? Don't do that, come to me instead. What's so attractive about a scrawny kid like this?"

The man who interjected with a gruff voice was a giant who fit the description "mountain of muscle."

He looked like he could seriously wrestle a gorilla and have a fifty-fifty chance.

"No way, Fyodor. You look too dumb. Guys like you think using just strength is enough even in bed, right?"

"Once a cock's inside, a bitch who'll be moaning has a lot to say."

"Really? I bet you'd cry like a girl and cum in three minutes."

Fyodor let out a hollow laugh, seemingly pleased by Larissa's unyielding retort.

As Siwoo carefully tried to extricate himself from the conversation that had suddenly shifted from R-rated to beyond, Fyodor grabbed his shoulder.

"Hey, kid. Don't get any funny ideas, just go to sleep. Unless you want your back broken and turned half-crippled."

"Stop it, you jerk! Why are you scaring the kid like that?!"

"Just kidding, kidding."

The mere pats on Siwoo's shoulder from him transmitted enough impact to make his head ring.

Siwoo made an effort to ignore the gorilla and said his farewells to Larissa.

"Anyway, thank you for your help, Larissa."

"No need to thank me. Let's have a drink later."

"If I have time, I'll definitely come."

Leaving behind Larissa waving her hand, Siwoo headed outside the inn to fetch Amelia.

Author's Note (Author's Afterword)

From here on is some setting play for those confused about the regions.

It's okay to skip.

Settings revealed in the afterword may have minor changes in the future.

1. Ars Magna Town

The central city and affluent district of Gehenna. Accordingly, various living facilities are also high-end. While the facilities themselves are accessible to anyone, only nobles can reside there, so the population density is very low compared to the transient population.

2. Renomond Town

This also belongs to the upper-tier towns. A place where Witches possessing Magic or wealth equivalent to nobility gather and live.

Witches residing here receive quasi-noble treatment.

It is a city formed in a ring shape surrounding Ars Magna Town.

Unlike Ars Magna Town, it doesn't have an exclusionary atmosphere, making it a relatively free town for ordinary citizens to come and go.

3. Taro Town

The town where the most ordinary citizens live.

Among them, there are many artisans with specialized skills.The last town where one can relocate without permission, where most affluent citizens live out their days.

To borrow the Witch's expression, a district filled with indecent amusements and secret pleasures.