City ​​of Witches 441

Chapter 441 – #92_Wandering(4)

#440

1.
Albireo’s face paled.

According to Deneb’s message, the meeting was not a meeting at all.
It was merely a reflection of Duke Erelim’s one-sided briefing and preaching, without any modifications.
That was how solid his justification was, and how suspicious his circumstantial evidence was.

In fact, even Albireo was starting to think, ‘Could Baron Marigold have become a public enemy?’
Even in his confusion, Albireo relayed the whole story to Siwoo.
He also showed him the bird’s-eye view that Duke Erelim had submitted during the meeting.

Siwoo, who had been receiving a strengthening ritual on the magic circle created by Sharon, was surprisingly calm and seemed to have steeled his resolve.
On the contrary, Sharon’s hands, which were reinforcing the joints of the black armor with elemental magic, were trembling much more.

“So, the time limit is 30 minutes, the safety of the citizens is not a concern for now, and it’s a large-scale magic unfolding in a randomized space, is that correct?”

Siwoo calmly summarized what Albireo had said and asked again.

Albireo roughly guessed the relationship between Amelia and Siwoo.
He was her exclusive slave, and Amelia had a crush on Siwoo.
He vividly remembered her efforts to save him when he was half-dead.

However, due to some incident, the two had parted ways, and he had no memory of seeing them face each other again since then.

The twins were so eager to push them together that Albireo was doing his best to support them, but in some ways, he didn’t like Siwoo.
He was a womanizer and a troublemaker who stirred up trouble wherever he went.

However, he believed in Siwoo’s inherent goodness.

Just like how he fought against the homunculus and stood against the public enemy for the twins, who were practically strangers to him.
This time too, he would move his limbs for Amelia.
Even though only God knew what would happen after that.

“To be honest, I want to stop you.”

Just like Sharon, who had been silently helping with the preparations with tears welling up in her eyes, Count Geminai wanted to dissuade Siwoo from entering.

He was already a son-in-law who would end up rolling around in a dangerous situation if he took his eyes off him for a moment.
Entering a randomized space, where an unknown magic was unfolding, alone…
Judging very coldly, this was a suicidal act.

In order to navigate through a distorted magical realm where the rules of all creation were warped, and where magic was activated on its own, the use of magic was inevitable.

However, beyond this boundary, normal magical dynamics did not apply.
No matter what magic was used, feedback had to be reflected according to the rules of the ‘space’ that changed every moment.

If a minor mistake occurred in that process, the magic that had been carefully cultivated would turn its fangs on its master.
The higher a witch’s magical achievement, the greater the accompanying risk.
That was why so many nobles and great witches were standing by.
After all, witches valued their own safety above all else.

“I’m already getting a headache thinking about what kind of nagging I’ll get from the twins for not stopping this…”
“It’s okay. I have similar experience. I moved without any problems back then.”

While all objective indicators and circumstances were sending ominous signals, Albireo realized that he was having absurd thoughts.

He had captured a homunculus when he was human, and he had been resurrected even after the witch of Aquarius had messed with his brain.
He had survived the calamity caused by the witch of cowardice, and recently, he had even defeated the witch of desire.

If he was the one who had somehow managed to overcome the worst situations so far, wouldn’t he be able to twist the predicted bleak ending?
It was a baseless optimism that even he found laughable.

“It’s ironic. There are so many witches here, and yet, you’re the first one to enter.”

If he could, Albireo would also want to help, but he couldn’t.
Albireo had the twins.
If he were to be swayed by his emotions and follow him into a place with a slim chance of survival, and die there, it would be terrible for Odile, who would not be able to inherit the mark, and for Odette, who would only inherit a half-mark.

“I’m sorry, but I’ll go in right now. It’s more urgent than I thought.”
“Please come back.”

With those words, Albireo stepped aside.
He joined Deneb to prepare Plan B and also gave Sharon and Siwoo a chance to say goodbye.
After all, he was heading to a battlefield.

“I’m sorry.”
“If you say that one more time, I’ll slap you.”

Sharon’s beautiful makeup was melting and running down her face with tears.
Her carefully pointed eyelashes were also wet and drooping.

He would go in.
Moreover, since he had heard that if Siwoo didn’t move, her execution would be decided, there was no way he would turn his back.

Thanks to the magic she had cast, hoping that it would become unnecessary, Siwoo’s armor was gleaming with all sorts of magical enhancements.
She had emptied out all the expensive treasures she had been saving to use later, following him on his way to get the Red Branch.

Sharon’s magnetic magic was Tarba’s elemental magic.
The power of the magic was also enhanced in proportion to the offerings… but.
Even with the finest rubies, black pearls, and blue-tinged diamonds as offerings, there was one unchanging fact.

Amelia, who had created this dangerous space, was a 23rd-tier witch.

Sharon, who had just reached the beginning of the 20th tier by using offerings, would only be a hindrance to Siwoo if she went in.
All she could do was to use every method she could to maximize the resonance of his armor.
She swallowed the tears that were welling up and looked at Siwoo.

“I won’t kiss you, and I won’t ask what’s going on. I won’t even talk about getting married when you come back safely.”
“…Sharon.”

Because he would come back safely anyway.
Because Siwoo had died and come back to life at least five times in less than two years.
She firmly, as firmly as possible, believed that he was not the kind of person who would fall apart over something like this.

“You too, just go and come back without saying anything.”

So, as if it were nothing.
She pushed him on the back like a casual farewell.
Siwoo, who had been looking into Sharon’s eyes for a long time, took off his eyepatch.

Like oil droplets floating on the surface of water.
The boundary with psychedelic colors swallowed Siwoo’s back.
Sharon, suppressing the urge to collapse, approached Albireo, who was waiting a little further away.

“Let’s do what we can do.”

Sharon, who was a scaredy-cat who would quickly shrink when something scary or frightening happened.
Her eyes were filled with tears, but at the same time, they showed a trust and determination that was not broken by tears.

2.
The moment he stepped into the boundary, he felt an enormous overload on the magic circuits that spread throughout his body.
A tingling sensation spread like putting a mercury battery on his tongue, and the shadow of the firmly reinforced armor rattled like a boiling kettle.

A silence so profound that he could hear the blood flowing in his veins.
The world, which had withered into a deep green as if through a filter, was gloomily covered by rain pouring down like rust water.
It was truly surreal.

“Hoo…”

A crazy magical realm where common sense did not apply.
It was true that he had experienced it before, but that was only half the truth.

He had only accessed memories from an unconscious state, and the Shin Siwoo in that state had a computational ability that could not be compared to his current self.
Still, if he could just walk leisurely, he would have been able to figure out how to solve the inexplicable natural disaster.

However, three misfortunes overlapped.

First, this place was not simply a randomized space, but a mixture of magic that could explode at any moment.
Second, Siwoo even had to move towards the center of it.
Third, not only that, but there was also a time limit.

Naturally, he had to use magic recklessly, a single mistake would cost him his life, and even if he overcame all these misfortunes, if he didn’t make the time, Amelia would be purged.
If Siwoo was nearby at that time, he would be caught up in it as a bonus.

There was no more time to hesitate.
Siwoo immediately took the Red Branch, which had the control formula ribbon removed.
This Red Branch was an extremely useful weapon, except that it could turn the user’s body into a rag if used incorrectly.

Basically, no matter how severe the distortion in the randomization, it was a phenomenon that affected the entire space.
The distortion field emanating from the Red Branch could not be invaded.

“Bloom.”

He traced his memories.
Just like the Shin Siwoo of that time, he moved forward through the distorted path, centering on the Red Branch.

For now, it wasn’t that difficult.
However, that was not a reason to be optimistic about the situation.

As shown in the bird’s-eye view that Albireo had shown him, this phenomenon intensified as it went deeper inside.
Conversely, it meant that even though he was only on the periphery, he was already experiencing this much of a burden.

-Clank clank

It had been almost a year since he had faced her in the fierce battle with Bianca, but they had not had a proper conversation.
After returning to Gehenna, Siwoo had looked for Amelia.

Negative emotions tend to dissipate over time.
The betrayal and anger he had felt towards Amelia when he regained his memories.

The bitter memories that he would rather have dismissed as if they had never happened had also subsided with time, and now only gave him a sharp sting like a thorn stuck in his fingertip.

There was regret, and there was also a feeling of guilt.
He had not gone to see her, using the excuse that Amelia had not come to him first.
The fact that she had not come to him after reading the letter indirectly indicated that she wanted to cut ties.

He wanted to hear the stories he had not been able to tell, have the conversations he had been putting off, and apologize for the things he needed to apologize for.

However, no one knew the whereabouts of Amelia, who had resigned from her position as an assistant professor.
All he heard were speculations that she had gone to the mortal realm, and his attempts were repeatedly in vain.

“Why….”

But why did it have to be this kind of reunion?

Siwoo didn’t know much about Amelia.
She was a difficult person.
Often, or rather quite often, she was an incomprehensible person.

All of her actions so far were closer to those of a public enemy.
Even if Siwoo had attended the noble council, he would not have been able to refute Duke Erelim’s words and persuade the witches.

However, there was something that firmly guided Siwoo’s steps, more than the logic that Duke Erelim had presented in an orderly manner, more than all the circumstances that were visible to the eye.

It was faith.

Amelia was an incomprehensible, difficult person, but she was definitely not a bad person enough to become a public enemy.
The kind smile and cheerful consideration she had shown in the log cabin were not lies.
All of this was just a misunderstanding or an error.

He believed it ridiculously.
He couldn’t stand by and watch Amelia be purged while holding onto a misunderstanding.

Siwoo’s pace quickened.
His mind began to adapt to this space at an astonishing speed.
He inhaled deeply into his lungs the air that smelled like oxidized iron, with the twisting of gravity that felt like his intestines were being twisted.
He moved forward.