City of Witches Chapter 309

-Sssssss!

A barbecue grill containing hot charcoal.

On top of it, a thick slice of pork belly, perfectly scored in a 2.5cm golden ratio honeycomb pattern, is placed.

The icebox brought by the Twins was packed solidly with pork belly, having pushed aside veal and lamb.

Nearly 5kg of it, at that.

Judging by the various wrap vegetables and seasoning sauces like ssamjang, which are hard to find in Gehenna, it seems they really took a liking to what they ate in the Mortal Realm.

"Gulp…."

"Gulp…."

"Gulp…."

Odil, Odette, and Sharon were sitting side by side at the table, tightly gripping forks and knives in both hands.

Their sparkling eyes were locked onto the barbecue Siwoo was grilling, not straying for a single moment.

Delicious food inherently acts as a smooth lubricant for relationships.

It's not for nothing that important meetings like negotiations or matchmaking are held over meals.

Even Sharon and the Twins, who had been engaged in subtle tension earlier, were now united in heart, waiting for the meat to be distributed.

The serious atmosphere from before was broken by Sharon's lively entrance, and the four of them enjoyed a pleasant seaside leisure together.

They built an enormous sandcastle by piling up sand with Magic.

They also had a swimming competition, swallowing plenty of salty seawater.

Siwoo, not wanting to ruin this rare vacation, enthusiastically lifted the mood, so all four gathered here were ravenously hungry.

Thus, watching the sunset burning the once blue horizon, they began the highlight of the vacation: the barbecue party.

-Sssssss!

The Twins, who had been whispering about something, and Sharon, who had been chiming in occasionally, all fell silent, listening to the sound of the fat sizzling, more beautiful than an orchestra performance.

"Slurp…."

As the sweet meat aroma painfully stirred their empty stomachs, a bit of drool trickled from the corner of Odette's slightly parted lips.

"Is this about right?"

"Assistant, that's enough. I think you can stop grilling now. Even I can see it's fully cooked."

"Actually, meat is most delicious when eaten medium rare."

Listening to the Twins' urging, he placed the pork belly, steaming with rising heat, on a cutting board and sliced it.

Was it because three beauties were watching?

Or was it because he had boldly promised to grill the meat first?

Despite the barbecue fire being hard to control, the result was an amazing visual.

"Wow, it's grilled perfectly."

The exterior, golden brown and crispy.

The unique aroma of cooked pork mixed with herb seasoning already made mouths water.

So perfectly cooked that when the knife touched it, it made a crisp, cookie-crumbling sound.

As the knife slid in smoothly, the juicy moisture dampened the cutting board.

The white, greasy cross-section was irresistibly tempting and voluptuous.

Siwoo arranged the meat beautifully on plates and set them on the table.

"Here you go, served~"

"Wooaaah!"

"It looks delicious!"

The Twins cheered, clapping their hands.

Meanwhile, Sharon wrapped a piece of meat in lettuce she had brought and popped it into Siwoo's mouth.

"Siwoo, you worked hard grilling, so have the first bite."

"Mmm, thanks."

The Twins, who had been eagerly picking up and eating pork belly after the long wait, froze stiff upon seeing that scene.

Their expressions were like those of politicians who had lost an election.

While Sharon naturally took care of Siwoo first, they had been busy putting meat into their own mouths.

Consideration that seemed so natural.

It was a slightly lacking aspect for the Twins, who had always been treated with reverence.

The Twins started wrapping lettuce wraps at lightning speed while chewing the meat in their mouths.

But compared to Sharon, who had ten years of experience living in Korea, their technique seemed somewhat clumsy.

Placing lettuce on the plate, they piled meat generously—very generously—as if folding origami, and when the shape didn't hold, they simply covered it with another lettuce leaf like a sandwich.

"Assistant, ah~"

"Assistant, we made one too!"

The wraps they made were even bigger than the Twins' fists.

Siwoo forced a bitter smile at the super-sized wrap pushed right under his nose.

"I don't think something that big will fit in my mouth."

"No, I thought it wouldn't fit either, but it all went in."

"That's right! It might seem impossible at first glance, but somehow, someway, it works!"

That's a sweat-inducing joke.

Eventually, Siwoo opened his mouth wide enough to dislocate his jaw and accepted the Twins' wraps one after another, chewing as he went to grill more meat.

Drinking the alcohol they brought, eating pork belly, and enjoying the grilled mushrooms, the sun had completely set beyond the sea before they knew it.

As the full-fledged seaside night arrived and the alcohol kicked in moderately, a festive atmosphere of merrymaking ensued.

"One, two, three. One, two, three!"

"Two, two, three, two, two, three!"

"Odette! Stop stepping on my feet!"

"You're pulling too hard, unnie!"

Odil and Odette, having volunteered for a talent show, held each other's hands and danced a waltz.

It was a swaying dance that made the sandy beach seem like a ballroom, but likely due to being tipsy, Odette staggered, turning it into a strange dance in the end.

Sharon and Siwoo laughed until their faces turned red watching the adorable sight.

"Now, look at this bottle. It's clearly tightly sealed, right? I'll open it without touching it."

Siwoo used a simple magic trick suitable for a drinking party to make the Twins' eyes go wide.

"Oh my god!"

"Without using magic power or Magic... this is revolutionary!"

"Assistant! Teach me too! How did you do it?"

The Twins gasped in amazement, then clung to Siwoo, asking for the secret.

Since the fun of magic tricks lies in not revealing the secret, Siwoo tried to keep it hidden till the end, but eventually, he was completely exposed down to the last detail.

The Twins' curiosity truly was unbeatable.

"Now it's my turn? Ahem, you shouldn't make fun of me even if I can't sing well?"

Sharon lifted the mood by singing a beautiful verse of a song.

Sharon, singing a pop song with chopsticks stuck in a bottle beside the crackling bonfire, looked as radiant as a fairy.

After each showing off their talents, there was a brief lull.

Having spent the day swimming and the evening eating, drinking, and having orientation time frantically, they needed a moment to catch their breath.

The four moved their gathering to the villa living room overlooking the beautiful night sea.

It seemed the bugs outside were just too aggressive.

"I'll step out for a quick smoke. Please take good care of Odil-nim and Odette-nim so they don't cause any trouble."

Leaving the festive atmosphere behind, Siwoo stepped outside.

The slightly chilly sea breeze tickled his cheeks, making him feel like the heat in his head was subsiding a bit.

"This is fun."

An everyday life with little to worry about.A vacation spent in a splendid mansion by the beach, a place I might have stayed at once in my lifetime, if at all.

And here, there are the twins who could conquer the world with cuteness alone, and Sharon, the epitome of a wise mother and good wife.

It would have been even more enjoyable if Master had come too.

Secretly, I also wanted to see Eloa in her swimsuit.

How wonderful would it be if this daily life could last forever?

I think it’s probably just greed.

In truth, the fact that I can happily spend time with both Sharon and the twins is something that only holds true under the premise of Siwoo’s soft and ambiguous stance.

If Siwoo were to choose one of them…

Wouldn’t it be difficult to see a scene like this again?

“Hoo…”

Then, what if Siwoo were to accept the ancient and admirable custom of polygamy?

Even assuming he could make all three women happy, and even if he rationalized it as the most utilitarian and correct choice…

“Do I have the right to do that?”

…such doubts arise.

Setting that aside for now, let’s indulge in a bit more fantasy.

Sharon said that as long as he returns, as long as he stays by her side, she doesn’t care who else he meets.

But would the twins accept that?

This is the city of witches, Gehenna.

Among witches, there was a subtle trend of looking down on men who could neither receive nor bear a Brand.

In fact, aren’t lesbians and bisexuals overwhelmingly common among witches?

Yet Odil and Odette are hothouse flowers who grew up absorbing the trends of Gehenna within the orthodox witch family of the Jemernai Count Family.

Indeed, while Siwoo feels some aversion to the system of Stigma Inheritance, the twins take it for granted.

It’s difficult to even bring up the idea of, ‘Shall we just have a four-person relationship?’ and their reaction is completely unpredictable.

Sharon, whom I met as an equal for the first time in the Mortal Realm, sharing joys and sorrows.

The twins, who showered me with affection far beyond what a slave deserved, even though I saved their lives.

They are all precious.

“Haa…”

At times like this, I envy Takasho.

He probably handled it very well.

A long, lingering trail of cigarette smoke rose steadily from between his lips.

“……!”

Then.

Siwoo felt a chill so intense it made his spine tingle.

It’s not something that can be explained in words.

What he felt was an atmosphere.

The overwhelming trace of magic power, as if thrown into the very center of the deepest abyss where not a single ray of light reaches, feeling as though he would be crushed endlessly.

A presence that, despite sensing no hostility or malice, instills a sense of crisis simply by being nearby.

Siwoo cautiously turned his head.

There stood a woman.

A modest witch’s attire with no exposure, as if clad in a priestess’s robes.

Snow-white silver hair, and following its ends, a myriad of colors seemed to blend in as if dyed.

Beneath thick, lush eyelashes, dignified golden eyes pierced through Siwoo.

Her mysterious eyes seemed to gaze at the present, and at the same time, even gave the illusion of beholding the future and the past.

She was simply beautiful.

But it was a feeling entirely different from the admiration one feels when seeing a beautiful woman.

It was like looking at a galaxy that could reduce even a planet like Earth to mere dust—an admiration and awe for something vast and immense.

Siwoo could intuitively realize who she was.

The oldest and highest witch reigning above all witches.

Duke Keter, who alone treads the demonic realm of the 30th Hierarchy.

Otherwise, it couldn’t be explained.

The presence of an absolute being who could erase Siwoo’s existence without a trace just by sighing.

“It’s been a while. Shin Siwoo.”

“…….”

He couldn’t blink.

He couldn’t inhale or exhale.

He instantly understood why those arrogant, self-centered witches feared and worshipped her.

“Did you like my gift?”

Keter approached Siwoo’s side with slow steps.

Just that made space tremble and time seem to shatter.

The intense body scent of a witch, felt simply by her presence nearby.

A powerful impulse that dulled reason pushed his heart to the brink of explosion.

The only reason Siwoo didn’t move recklessly was due to the fear ingrained in his instincts.

“Two before, two after. Four in total?”

“…….”

“Pathetically insufficient. Even though I bestowed upon you my ‘Vessel’.”

Keter stretched out a slender hand and traced over Siwoo’s eyepatch.

It was warm and soft.

But the fear of being swallowed whole remained.

Amidst the sexual desire and terror that threatened to drive him mad from her body scent, the only way to control himself was to do nothing like this.

“Shall I interfere a little more?”

Keter gave a faint smile and took a step back.

Her golden eyes held a light like the dawn.

————!

The darkness hanging at the edge of Siwoo’s vision began to shatter from its corners.

Through the fragments of the shattered night sky, a blinding white light began to rise.

“Revere.”

If Keter wills it, the world.

Willingly shatters.

And is created anew.

Before the blinding white darkness, Siwoo’s consciousness shattered into pieces and was reconstructed.