Chapter 149 – #32_The Debt-Ridden Witch (4)
#147
1.
Sharon vividly remembers the last day in Gehenna, which she was able to spend with a peaceful heart.
Evergreen’s magnetic magic was elemental magic based on Tarva’s five elements.
The experiment that day was a magical formula to promote the growth of the stigma, which had not yet been activated, using an elemental magic circle.
It was also the final step for Sharon, who had inherited the stigma imperfectly from her predecessor, to rise proudly to the 20th rank, just like her teacher.
“Hoo… Okay.”
The ground had been hardened with salt and purified water for several days.
It was five minutes before midnight, when the magic power in the atmosphere would be at its peak.
And the offerings, which had been carefully collected for months, were perfect.
With a tense expression, Sharon clutched her wand tightly and looked down at the magic circle she had set up.
The diamond-shaped magic circle, with its corners extending to the east, west, south, and north, had been drawn with Sharon’s blood and saliva mixed in.
At each vertex of the magic circle, an ‘altar’ for placing offerings was shaped in the form of a circle.
Magic is basically a science of calculation and formulas, but at the same time, it is also a science of symbols and rituals.
Especially in the case of Evergreen’s elemental magic, which values rituals so much that it is considered old-fashioned, the importance of offerings was very high.
No matter how meticulously the magic formula was calculated, the mystery that was manifested would be different depending on what offerings were made.
Therefore, Sharon checked the offerings on the altar one last time.
Even the offerings that seemed to have been placed randomly were all positioned to have the optimal symbolism in the optimal location.
“Okay, shall we take a look?”
The element to be placed on the eastern altar of the diamond was Apas (Water).
It is responsible for the order and operation of the ritual.
She offered a sapphire, which she had bought at a high price from the Red Roof Salon, and a high-quality, clean coral as offerings.
The element to be placed on the western altar of the diamond was Tejas (Fire).
It is responsible for the connection and transmission of the ritual.
She offered black gunpowder made by mixing charcoal and sulfur, and topaz, also known as the stone of fire, as offerings.
The element to be placed on the southern altar of the diamond was Pritivi (Earth).
It is responsible for the balance and foundation of the ritual.
She offered a handful of soil mixed with wheat ears and small jade pieces like rice grains as offerings.
The element to be placed on the northern altar of the diamond was Vayu (Wind).
It is responsible for the change and manifestation of the ritual.
She offered the white mane of a mare that had not yet mated and a crystal stone that had been exposed to the wind under the moonlight for a long time as offerings.
All preparations were perfect.
No matter how hard Sharon racked her brain, she could not have drawn a more perfect magic circle than this.
“It’s okay, let’s stay calm… I can do it.”
The clock was now showing two minutes before midnight.
The ritual was scheduled to begin at exactly 12 o’clock.
Her cold reason was telling her that she still lacked study.
However, the fact that she had not perfectly manifested the stigma inherited from her predecessor was an unacceptable disgrace to Sharon.
Even to wipe away that stain, this level of risk was necessary.
The element to be placed on the central altar of the diamond was Akasha (Void).
It was the space where all rituals would manifest.
Sharon stepped into the very center.
She would offer herself as a sacrifice, and in the end, be reborn anew.
Sharon did not believe in gods.
But under the night sky where even the wind was still.
For the first time, she offered a prayer to someone she didn’t even know who.
“If only this is over… I too….”
She wouldn’t be pointed at as a premature child.
She wouldn’t have to hear the jeers of being a defective product.
She would be reborn as a perfect witch who had perfectly inherited the stigma.
It was time.
The emerald embedded in the wand that Sharon held shone brilliantly.
Sharon recited the incantation that she had chanted countless times.
“Balance!”
And…
What was the mistake?
Was the condition of the offerings not good?
Or was there a mistake in the operation of magic power due to her impatience?
Or was it that she couldn’t control it because she prepared too good of offerings compared to her lack of skill?
The result was disastrous.
The wave of the ritual that spread from the magic circle to the Cloud Mushroom Village greatly increased the growth of the nearby acorns, not Sharon.
Sharon lost consciousness at the sight of thousands of acorns sprouting at once and becoming giant trees, destroying the mansion.
2.
Witches are generally wealthy.
In the process of inheriting the stigma, the inheritance of property naturally takes place, and most things in the world increase in value over time.
Sharon also inherited a vast fortune from her predecessor, Evergreen.
The vineyard near Paris that her predecessor had bought 120 years ago was developed into a downtown area, leaving a huge profit.
Therefore, Sharon was not too worried the day after the accident.
If she had destroyed the house, she would just have to pay for it.
Rather, only the self-loathing that she had not yet perfectly inherited the stigma was stabbing her heart.
But there was a problem.
If Sharon’s experiment had only destroyed the mansion, there would have been no problem.
However, unfortunately, the Mushroom Cloud Village was a place where the witches of the Border Town gathered, and the indiscriminately grown oak trees destroyed not only houses but also several witches’ workshops.
There were witches whose elixirs, which contained the results of their research, were shattered, and there were witches whose carefully drawn magic circles were transformed beyond recognition.
Seventeen witches, whose magical research had been greatly disrupted, filed a class-action lawsuit against Sharon.
Despite disposing of her inherited assets and desperately raising money, Sharon was unable to raise all the compensation for damages.
All that was left for Sharon, who had become penniless, was a huge claim for damages amounting to about 90,000 gold coins from the Central City Hall.
When she first saw the number written on the document, it was an amount so large that she couldn’t even fathom it.
Sharon had two options.
To run away from Gehenna and elope to the mortal world, or to borrow money, finish paying the damages, and then pay off the debt.
In the end, Sharon visited several nobles, bowed her head, and wrote debt documents.
She borrowed a total of 90,213 gold coins from Count Yesod, the owner of the Levana Grand Bathhouse, Duke Erelim, the chairman of the Truth and True Name Academic Conference, and finally Count Gemernai, who was famous for being wealthy, using her citizenship and stigma as collateral.
There was no way to repay this amount within Gehenna, so Sharon accepted a temporary deportation order and headed to the mortal world.
This was a story from 10 years ago.
“Ilun Musk, you traitorous bastard!”
And now, 10 years later, at the convenience store checkout counter.
Sharon was grinding her teeth, looking at the coin that had plummeted due to someone’s actions.
Resentment surged.
“You said I could buy a car with this… You said we were going to Mars… You said it was the currency of dreams….”
After saying that, he turned his words around overnight and sold it off, causing a massive crash!
The rich are even worse, and she wondered if this guy was even human.
Sharon clenched her fists and trembled.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
Of course, Sharon wasn’t stupid, so she hadn’t poured a lot of money into cryptocurrency.
Still, with a hopeful heart, she had invested the money she had collected from her part-time jobs, so the original investment was about 5 million won.
The money she had put in, hoping for a little bit, had become 3.5 million won while she was at work and looking at her phone.
Moreover, it was obvious that it would go down further at this rate.
150+@ had evaporated in the blink of an eye.
“Ah… headache….”
Sharon felt dizzy and put her hand on her forehead.
Should she sell it off now? Or should she hold on and hope for a rebound?
She was planning to sell it off after it hit 7 million won this time, but how could it have turned out like this?
“My sweet and spicy chicken… tteokbokki… kimbap… sundae… give them back….”
The illusion of the food she had planned to enjoy that day fading and disappearing into the sky appeared.
Sharon, who had been sighing deeply at the checkout counter where there were no customers, checked that it was almost time to leave work and suddenly remembered.
“He’s not coming to buy cigarettes today…”
It was about Siwoo.
Her work hours were from 6 PM to midnight.
She didn’t know if it was because their life routines overlapped, but he always came during this time.
In fact, it was only yesterday that they had formally learned each other’s identities, but Sharon had been aware of him before.
That’s because, aside from his handsome face, how could she not remember an impressive customer who came every day wearing a leather eye patch and buying cigarettes and cola?
As a result of their conversation yesterday, he was a man with a fate as unfortunate as Sharon’s.
It was strange that a man had become a witch, but it was also strange that he was so versed in magic that he could hunt homunculi.
In addition, he was not only acting for his own safety, but also taking risks for others and trying to hunt homunculi, which was a plus.
She didn’t know the details, but he had also bought her king crab, so she thought he was a good person.
However, the words he had said when they parted last time, that he would pay off her debt for her.
That was a line he had crossed.
Although she was now just a debt-ridden witch, Sharon had a proper pride and self-esteem as a witch.
There was no reason to receive help unilaterally, as if she were a poor neighbor being helped.
“I told him he didn’t have to worry about it.”
But it wasn’t like he had said it with any particular malice, and he had apologized right away, so she hadn’t held it against him.
But he himself was nowhere to be seen.
Sharon, who had been trying to teach him things because he seemed a bit clumsy and kind-hearted, felt a little awkward.
“Was my reaction too harsh yesterday?”
After handing over to the next worker and coming out of the convenience store, she saw a familiar figure smoking a cigarette in a nearby alley.
Sharon smiled and strode towards him.
“What are you doing here?”
When she tapped him on the shoulder and spoke, Siwoo was startled.
He seemed more awkward than when they first met, so it was clear that he was still thinking about what happened yesterday.
“Sharon-ssi.”
“Just call me Sharon, and speak comfortably.”
“Uh….”
“Let’s not be so stiff with each other, we’re in similar situations. We’re colleagues walking the path of magic, and we’re in similar situations, right?”
“That’s a bit uncomfortable for me. I guess…”
“I guess you really want to make sure that I’m older than you?”
“Ah, no. That’s not it.”
She had only made a subtle joke, but his flustered appearance was quite cute.
“If that’s not it, then speak comfortably.”
“…Okay.”
Sharon chuckled as she watched Siwoo scratching his head, as if he was still a bit uncomfortable even after speaking.
Was he shy, or just a bit docile?
She didn’t dislike this kind of personality.
“I wanted to apologize for my rash remarks yesterday.”
“Hey, I said it was okay.”
“Still, I think it was too hasty of an action. I’m really sorry.”
“Oh, oh, don’t do this.”
Sharon was rather embarrassed by his reaction, which was devoid of laughter, and he bowed deeply to apologize.
Since there was no part that had been a sore spot in the first place, she hurriedly raised Siwoo.
“It’s not much, but would it be okay if we put up flyers together today? And also search for homunculi.”
Looking at Siwoo, who was speaking cautiously, Sharon smiled brightly and nodded her head readily.
“Okay!”
