City of Witches Chapter 37

Waking up in bed.

Nowadays, even without an alarm, my eyes snap open at 6 AM.

After sleeping on the hard straw mattress placed on a crate, waking up in a fluffy blanket felt incredibly refreshing.

I immediately dashed to the bathroom for a shower.

"A strong and powerful morning."

Come to think of it, how long has it been since I could shower indoors with hot water flowing abundantly?

No need to grumble anymore about things like, "Even in prison, you could wash with warm water once a week."

If Siwoo's room is at the eastern end of the long, east-west stretching mansion, Amelia's is at the western end.

As she had instructed yesterday, I woke up at 6 AM, showered with warm water, got dressed, and went to find Amelia.

After a final check of his attire in the mirror hanging in the hallway, Siwoo opened the door and entered Amelia's room.

"Lady Amelia, may I come in?"

"Come in."

When he knocked and asked, her voice came from beyond the door.

Come to think of it, trivial thoughts like "This is only the second time I've entered a woman's room" quickly vanished.

Amelia's room wasn't much different from Siwoo's.

That is, in terms of its basic structure.

If Odil's or Odette's rooms were rather ornate, this place was plain to the extreme.

Aside from the inherently high-quality furniture, there was no sense of deliberate decoration.

However, her room was filled with all sorts of Magic books, documents, and experimental materials.

Anyway, perhaps because the room was much smaller, it felt even more cluttered than the research wing.

She had stubbornly dragged all her research materials into the house.

"Did you sleep well?"

He almost said "Good morning" but opted for a different greeting, realizing as soon as he spoke that it was rather meaningless.

"I didn't sleep today."

Amelia asked without putting down her pen, seated at her desk.

She was continuously writing something on the paper on her desk.

It seemed she had been doing that all night.

In front of her, a pile of papers with ink barely dry was stacked up.

"Wait a moment."

Having said that, Amelia immersed herself back in her work.

Her eyebrows, slightly furrowed in concentration.

Though she showed almost no emotional expression and had minimal facial changes, those straight, fine eyebrows were an exception.

Siwoo could anticipate her emotions nine times out of ten, largely thanks to those eyebrows.

Anyway, Amelia finished her final touches and finally looked at Siwoo.

"Check here for what you need to do."

Straight to the point.

Amelia rummaged through her desk drawer and handed Siwoo a bundle of papers, about 30-40 pages thick.

"The duties you must uphold as a personal slave. It's a manual briefly outlining tasks according to time and day of the week. Take your time to read and memorize it."

"Yes."

Amelia got up from her seat and came around the table.

She seemed to have changed clothes, now wearing a more comfortable-looking robe.

"Look at page 3, item 15."

"Okay."

It seemed to be some kind of work guide.

As Siwoo flipped through the pages, he suddenly realized the handwriting in this manual looked familiar.

This was written by Amelia, character by character.

Page 3 consisted of tasks to be done after waking up in the morning.

If Amelia was sleeping, wake her; if not, still offer greetings.

After that, tidy the bedding and prepare breakfast.

Breakfast wasn't something Siwoo had to make separately; it was arranged to be picked up from the kitchen in the faculty building.

"Yes, I've checked."

"I'll be waiting in the dining room, so go ahead."

Though the manual was quite thick, it seemed it would take considerable time to memorize everything thoroughly.

Siwoo watched Amelia head toward the bathroom before making his way to the Academy kitchen.

He met a familiar face.

It was Takasho, lazily yawning while cleaning the hallway.

The moment he saw Siwoo's changed attire, he jumped up and down excitedly.

"Wow~ Who do we have here? You look so dashing, it's astonishing."

"Hey, hey, calm down. What's the big deal?"

"Of course it's a big deal! My friend has finally made it!"

He actually had a lot to say, but he wasn't sure if there was enough time.

Siwoo briefly summarized what had happened during that time.

"See, what did I tell you? Amelia does like you, right?"

He patted Siwoo's shoulder with a proud look, as if congratulating a friend who finally passed a long civil service exam.

"What nonsense are you talking? What have you been listening to? How does that lead to the conclusion that Amelia likes me?"

"What do you mean?"

"I just told you. That night, she called me to her quarters not for nighttime service but to make me her assistant."

Takasho's face, beaming with pride, began to change ambiguously.

It felt like watching someone who won the lottery but never plans to visit a bank in their life.

"Wow, where do I even start explaining this? Every time I see you, I'm reminded how incredible you are."

"I almost died of embarrassment because of you, you know? Do you have any idea how Amelia looked at me when you brought up nighttime service?"

The moment he mentioned nighttime service, he was met with a look as if she were staring at a bug.

Just thinking about it now makes his face burn.

"Oh my, you blockhead... You've never had a girlfriend, have you?"

"No, why?"

"...Right, that's true."

Takasho, having even given up on scolding Siwoo, scratched his head wondering where to start, then laid out his thoughts one by one.

"Look, Shin Siwoo. Amelia bought you underwear, right? Gave you cigarettes? Gave you cake? Bought you a suit. Why would she treat a slave she has no interest in so well?"

"How should I know? Maybe she felt a bit sorry after tormenting me."

"Hah... Honestly."

"You'd understand if you spent even a day with Amelia. You said it yourself. Amelia is an Orthodox Witch and has no interest in men or such things."

"That's the story under normal circumstances, but the fact that such an Amelia shows interest in you is special, isn't it?"

Takasho realized that no matter how much he explained, Siwoo wouldn't get it.

"Hey, check out this fabric."

"Hey, don't cling to me! It's creepy."

"This is mohair."

"What's that?"

Takasho gently brushed Siwoo's sleeve and said.

"I've received many suit gifts back when I worked too, you know? Have you heard of cashmere?"

"Cashmere coat?"

"Mohair is a fabric that's just as good or even better. If she had no feelings, would she give such nice clothes to a mere personal slave? Besides, Amelia never kept any slaves before you."Siwoo made a nonchalant expression, thinking that since the clothes were tailored at a shop in Ars Magna Town, they should at least be of that quality.

"From what I see, this is blatant courtship, but you're the only one going, 'Maybe this is just my delusion... hng...' right?"

"I must be delusional, because I don't have any particular feelings for Amelia."

"Are you insane?"

Takasho gaped, utterly dumbfounded.

In a situation he simply couldn't comprehend, after straining to consider Siwoo's circumstances and position, this was the remark he spat out.

"Well, it's true you've suffered a lot because of Amelia until now. But isn't half of that suffering something you brought upon yourself?"

"Why the hell is that my fault? Anyway, I don't believe your words anymore."

"Mr. Shin Siwoo, you're a bachelor, please, you have to believe me. Sometimes when I look at you, I feel like I'm watching a kid skipping stones made of gold. What you're throwing away is a golden opportunity! How long do you think a noble, wealthy, and even beautiful witch is going to keep her eyes only on you?"

"So what's the conclusion? Make it short. I have to go soon."

Takasho pondered for a long while before bluntly tossing out a single sentence.

"After you have sex, give me the details. I'll buy the drinks."

Still, Takasho was getting all excited by himself. Siwoo smacked the back of his head once and went to the kitchen to get the food.

He didn't know how his future life would turn out, but one thing was certain: his luck with food had changed.

The breakfast he brought from the kitchen, rolling the tray along.

To put it simply, it was an English breakfast.

Bagels to accompany bacon with almost no saltiness. A perfectly made soft-boiled egg where the yolk would burst out with a light touch. A salad with salmon, and even warm coffee.

It was a permanent farewell to bread scraps fit for use as charcoal erasers and watery, bland soup.

They were shitty, and let's never see them again.

Siwoo sat at the same table as Amelia, savored each item of the breakfast one by one, cleared the plates after finishing, and headed to the research building.

Breaking the cycle that had been ingrained in him for five years felt strange.

It felt like he should go to the academy right now to do odd jobs.

Siwoo, reading the manual in a corner of the research building, was lost in newfound contemplation.

Amelia, without saying much else, immersed herself in magic research along with a cigarette as soon as she arrived at the research building.

So Siwoo was also diligently flipping through the manual, pretending to be receiving a handover while reading the room.

So, roughly looking over the contents:

Things to do upon waking.

Things to do during lunchtime.

Things to do from evening until before bedtime.

Tasks for weekdays.

Tasks for weekends.

Tasks to do within the mansion.

Guidelines to follow when accompanying to the research building.

Instructions for organizing documents and paperwork.

Cleaning and laundry methods.

How to order various desserts.

In case of problems.

Etc. Various detailed items were written.

If he just reads this diligently, there shouldn't be any major problems.

"Hmm..."

By the way, he needed to move the items from the barn, but it seemed he wouldn't have time for a while.

According to the manual's contents, he basically had to follow Amelia around all day long, and it took about an hour round trip from the research building or the lodgings to the barn.

Should he pick a day and sneak out at night?

It wasn't an urgent matter right away.

It was a place where no human footsteps reached anyway.

-Caw caw!

Then, the sound of a crow cawing came from outside the window.

Wondering where the sound was coming from, as he was about to glance toward the window, Amelia suddenly called.

"Siwoo."

"Yes, Lady Amelia."

"Come back here in three hours."

"Understood. Is there anything I need to do in the meantime?"

"No. For now, just focus on the manual."

"Yes."

Siwoo obediently nodded and went outside the research building.

Warm sunlight.

For late autumn, it was an incredibly mild weather.

Outside the research building, he spreads his arms wide and fully enjoys the peace.

"Ah, this is life."

If it were usual, around this time, he'd be climbing a ladder trimming tree branches or sweeping a corridor that wasn't even dusty.

Having a splendid meal from the morning and leisurely free time.

"This is good."

He had been pondering what to do about the barn issue, and just then, the timing worked out perfectly.

If he goes to the barn right now, brings the magic artifacts to the lodgings, acts completely innocent, and returns, that's it.

Still, he wanted to laze around in bed for about an hour, so let's hurry.

They say happiness comes after hardship. Suddenly everything is going smoothly, how could he not hum a tune?

With light footsteps, Siwoo entered the rose garden.

To get to the barn, crossing this rose garden was the fastest shortcut.

The enchanted roses, having forgotten the seasons, bloomed large flowers of various colors, pleasing the eyes and nose.

And then.

Suddenly, he felt something strange.

"Huh?"

Clearly, this fountain was the same as the one he saw earlier.

A little angel blowing a trumpet.

A witch sprinkling consecrated oil on a witch's child wrapped in a blanket.

Siwoo looked straight ahead again.

He sees the exit.

Siwoo, focusing his mind, slowly takes one step at a time toward the exit.

His consciousness was undoubtedly fixed on the exit without a single second's gap, but just as he thought he was leaving the garden, he found himself back in front of the fountain again.

"Seriously."

A foreboding feeling crept up on Siwoo. He turned around.

There, a carriage three times larger than Sophia's was parked, having appeared at some point.

Two birds with spread wings engraved on the carriage door.

That was the black and white twin birds singing of magic.

Two beings as one witch.

It symbolized the Jemernai Count Family.

Author's Note (Afterword)

Dear Readers,

If you keep recommending the story saying Amelia is cute...

How can I not keep writing continuously?

+Thank you for pointing out the repetitive expressions^^

I've revised it.