## Chapter 663 – #134_A Peculiar Date (4)
#663
1.
The minor commotion ended, and I went up to the second floor where Rinne was waiting.
Because of the ruckus downstairs, a few witches were already paying attention, but Rinne was still Rinne. She sat upright on the sofa, not looking anywhere in particular.
As I approached, I felt like I was passing through a thin membrane. It was the most basic of barrier magic. A soundproofing barrier that blocked outside noise and prevented inside sounds from leaking out.
“I brought it. And here’s your change.”
I placed the Moscow Mule in front of Rinne, sat down, and took a drink. The tangy acidity of the lime juice was followed by the intense ginger scent of the ginger beer, which stung my nose.
My parched throat, dry from the pointless scuffle, felt refreshed.
“Haa, that hits the spot.”
It was indeed the most popular drink in the shop.
I casually leaned my arm on the windowsill and glanced at the dock view.
Below the sheer cliff, the dark blue sea rippled, and cargo ships floated on it.
On the cliff, a huge crane-like machine was pulling cargo from the ships. Unlike Border Town, there was no proper place to dock, so they were lifting cargo vertically from the sea.
Siwoo, reading the flow of the golden light of the gate at the edge of the sea, couldn’t help but be surprised.
As far as Siwoo knew, a gate was a very elaborate and complex piece of magic. Also, he had heard that Hexennacht was a city created by a collection of public enemies.
But the ‘gate’ of Hexennacht was not just a magic that was merely imitated.
Its intricacy, its precision, its grandeur.
It was in no way inferior to the ‘gate’ of Border Town. It was at a level where it could be believed that the gate technology had been completely leaked, or that Keter had made it himself.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t just keep looking outside. If a man who had been taken prisoner was just staring at the exit, what would he be thinking?
I turned my gaze back to Rinne, conscious of her presence…
“……”
I saw Rinne staring blankly at her glass. She hadn’t even taken a sip yet.
Anyone would think it was poisoned.
“Aren’t you going to drink?”
“There’s no reason for me to drink. You bought it on your own.”
“That’s true. But how can I drink it all by myself?”
Buying Rinne’s drink was entirely Siwoo’s decision. Even with the money she had given him.
I also wanted to have a more sincere conversation. I also wanted to prolong the conversation with her as much as possible to observe the gate, but it was purely for Siwoo’s convenience…
I had a good excuse.
“We’re on a date, after all. You haven’t forgotten today’s purpose, have you?”
“……”
“You said you wanted to know the secret to Tiferet’s strength. We have to work together.”
A magic phrase that could control Rinne’s actions to some extent. As soon as those words came out, Rinne’s fingers twitched.
Rinne reluctantly picked up the cold copper glass, took a small sip, and put it down.
“It’s quite delicious, isn’t it?”
“I cannot taste.”
From the very first step of starting a conversation, I got an answer that was difficult to respond to.
It felt too indifferent to say, ‘Oh, I didn’t know that.’ And it felt like an overreaction to say, ‘I’m sorry for not being considerate.’
“The scent is good.”
Fortunately, thanks to Rinne continuing the conversation, I was able to avoid falling into the abyss of silence.
Look at that. Even if it wasn’t immediately important, as soon as we started talking over drinks, I learned that Rinne was taste-blind.
“Huh?”
Can’t taste… Can’t taste… As Siwoo pondered Rinne’s answer, he felt something like a burr in his mind.
Can’t taste?
“Master, excuse me, but may I ask you one thing?”
“Go ahead.”
“Do you perhaps… have any other senses that are dulled or that you can’t feel?”
It was a somewhat rude question. Because I had a hypothesis that suddenly came to mind.
Rinne, who didn’t react at all no matter how hard Siwoo tried all night. And Rinne, who couldn’t taste.
The two elements combined to create the hypothesis that ‘maybe Rinne has anhedonia?’
“I do.”
Rinne was taciturn. If she judged a question to be unnecessary, she would ignore it, and she rarely talked about herself.
But this time, for some reason, she answered readily.
“Warmth, and coldness.”
And quite a few in a row.
“Pleasure, appetite, lust, and even the desire for sleep, I cannot feel any desires.”
It was a dry statement, not a lament or a sigh. It was enough to make Siwoo, who had only asked about her erogenous zones, feel embarrassed.
“Ahem, that must be hard for you.”
“It’s not a problem.”
It seemed that she liked the scent, even if she couldn’t taste it. Rinne, who casually brushed off Siwoo’s consolation, picked up the glass again and put it down. There was no sign of rejection or wariness, so I decided to probe a little more.
“Then… may I ask you a little more?”
“Do as you please.”
After that, Siwoo asked about a few more cases. The facts he learned were shocking.
Rinne could not feel pleasure, that is, any sensation that could be translated into ‘joy’ in life.
For example, even if she soaked in a hot spring, she would feel the ‘heat’ but not the ‘relaxation’ or the ‘refreshing feeling of being relieved of fatigue’. Even if she had sex with Siwoo, she would feel the ‘pressure’ and ‘foreignness’ but not the ‘pleasure’.
It meant that she was experiencing a disability not only in her physical aspects but also in her mental functions.
A life where one cannot experience any physical pleasure or mental happiness. What kind of life would that be?
Rinne’s expression, as she indifferently put down her glass, looked even more doll-like. Like a doll sitting on a fancy display, observing the world but unable to feel anything within it.
Only then did I understand Rinne’s excessive asceticism. For her, lying in bed or meditating in a seated position was no different.
“……”
However.
At this point, Siwoo felt one question.
The behavioral principles and survival instincts of all animals in the world are ultimately linked to pleasure. In other words, if all pleasure is limited, then any action or purpose loses its meaning.
But Rinne has a very strong sense of purpose. The pursuit of strength.
Also, I saw Rinne’s face when I risked my life to fight her before. Not a mask-like expressionless face, but a face that seemed to be enjoying the fight.
I didn’t think it was contradictory behavior.
Siwoo was also a seasoned warrior who had risen through many battles. He knew the exhilaration and thrill that only combat could provide. The intense experience of life and death being decided in a split second, where one second is divided into hundreds, gave a thrill that could not be experienced in everyday life.
Then, even if Rinne couldn’t feel anything with ordinary stimuli.
Maybe she felt alive in that moment.
Maybe that’s why she chased after fights until she was given the name of Sword Demon.
Such a deduction was possible.
“Still, it’s good that we can talk like this. I had no idea at all.”
“……”
“That’s why dates are good.”
Of course, Rinne’s reaction was that she didn’t care.
“Don’t you have any questions about me?”
“No. When are we going back?”
“Since we’re out, let’s stay a little longer.”
I stopped Rinne, who was trying to rush. I hadn’t even properly analyzed the gate yet.
I subtly turned my eyes outside and opened the conversation.
“How did you become a witch, Master?”
It was too direct to ask, ‘How did you become a public enemy?’ so I asked it in a roundabout way.
At the same time, I grasped the main points of the gate. The gate itself was a huge piece of magic, but all magic had a core axis.
I was scanning the three main points that could be confirmed by the flow of magic power when I suddenly turned my eyes at the sudden silence.
“Master?”
“……”
Rinne didn’t answer. Rinne sat blankly, blinking her eyes.
Could I have asked something I shouldn’t have? Or was my intention exposed because of the way I was observing the gate?
I was on edge.
“Master.”
“…I’m listening.”
Only after the second call did Rinne answer slowly. She picked up the glass she had been holding tightly with both hands and wet her lips again.
When Rinne put down the glass.
Siwoo saw it.
Where was the sharp gaze she usually had?
Her eyes were now half-focused, repeatedly going in and out of focus, and were blurry.
“Are you drunk?”
“…No.”
As if that wasn’t enough, she slowly blinked her eyes and shook her head. Her complexion hadn’t changed at all, but her tongue was also strangely twisted.
Siwoo looked at Rinne’s glass.
It seemed like she had only drunk about half of it. Although it was based on vodka, the Moscow Mule, which contained lime juice and ginger ale, was only about 15 degrees. Considering the ice that was added, the actual alcohol content would be lower than fresh soju.
The witch’s mark, which had self-defense activated, also served as an antidote. To get drunk on purpose, you would really have to drink like there was no tomorrow.
Even my master could easily finish a bottle of whiskey in one sitting, right?
But who would have thought that Rinne, who wasn’t even a novice witch, would be such an alcoholic who would get drunk after drinking so little. Even considering that it was her first experience, it was a bit unexpected.
“What did you say?”
“Ah, I asked how you became a witch, Master?”
“……”
Ah.
She’s asleep.
Rinne’s eyelids, which had gradually become heavier, slowly closed, and her head drooped.
If I had a younger sister like this, I would have stopped her from going to a drinking party even if I had to tear her away.
This wasn’t what I intended, but the heavens were helping me. A golden opportunity to observe the gate without being conscious of Rinne!
Siwoo, who was about to look out the window immediately, frowned.
Even if a soundproofing barrier was in place, it didn’t limit the senses. I could feel the footsteps on the floor approaching this table with a thud.
There was not even an attempt to hide the anger.
When I turned around, as expected.
There was the witch who had flirted with Siwoo on the first floor earlier, and a witch who looked familiar.
“Dorothy-nim! This is the guy!”
“Huh.”
Gray hair and unique silver eyes.
The witch with I-cup breasts resting on her arms folded her arms and smiled at Siwoo.
“This guy looks very arrogant, doesn’t he?”
Mommy to rescue