City ​​of Witches 302

Chapter 302 – #67_미마야 타카쇼

#300

1.
It goes without saying that the town where Siwoo spent the most time in Gehenna was ‘Lenomond Town,’ where Trinity Academy was located.

It was the second wealthiest area in Gehenna, where witches who were not nobles but possessed comparable or even greater wealth resided. If Ars Magna Town was like Gangnam Seocho, then Lenomond Town was akin to Yongsan Gangdong.

Therefore, while ordinary citizens and witches lived together in a balanced mix in Tarot Town, the proportion of witches in Lenomond Town was more than double.

Siwoo used spatial teleportation to arrive at the northern faculty building of Trinity Academy, which was shaped like a cross. It was magnificent, reminiscent of the Palace of Versailles, especially the Hall of Mirrors.

Everywhere you looked, the flames flickering on the candelabras created a splendor that seemed as if gold had melted. It was a place that reinforced the blind notion that such beauty would remain unchanged even after 1000 years.

“It’s still the same here….”

The moment he stepped into the corridor, years of struggling flashed before his eyes like a panorama. He thought it would be closer to PTSD. But somehow, it ended with a nostalgic, heart-tickling, and slightly ambiguous feeling of annoyance.

“Well then….”

Should he look around casually while also searching for Takasho? At this hour, he would either be cleaning the hallways or just waking up in another professor’s bedroom.

Siwoo leisurely moved his feet, peeking into his old workplace. With such splendor, there should be a lively noise, but the faculty building was eerily quiet, as if the silence of dawn had descended. It was a sense of incongruity he hadn’t felt in a long time. The difference was that now he was walking leisurely, whereas back then, he had to feel it while diligently dusting the candelabras.

The well where he used to wash his body with cold water after work. The drainage he had to dig out diligently whenever it rained. He slowly scanned his original workplace and the library where he secretly conducted magical research, but Takasho was nowhere to be seen. He felt like he had looked around for a good hour.

“Where did he go again?”

Siwoo thought that if he kept searching like this, they might keep missing each other, so he headed to a new destination. The administrative office located in the southeast of the faculty building. As its name suggested, it was the department in charge of trivial administrative tasks.

-Knock knock

The administrative office had a more worn-out appearance than the library where Siwoo used to work. When he knocked and entered, he saw a woman rummaging through documents from early in the morning. It was a woman he recognized. They didn’t have any personal connection, but he had received work instructions directly from her.

“Hello.”
“Huh?”

The woman, who had been moving her pen with blurry eyes behind her glasses, looked at Siwoo and her expression changed as if she had woken up from a deep sleep.

“Y-you, th-that… that? Caretaker Shin Siwoo?”
“Yes, though I’m not a caretaker anymore.”
“Greetings!”

The administrative office employee stood up from her seat and bowed her head like a soldier who had just joined the army. The employees working in the administrative office were ordinary citizens of Gehenna, not witches. Siwoo had become an official ‘witch,’ so he was naturally in a higher position than the female employee. However.

“…U-u….”

Siwoo looked at the female employee, who was trembling with her head bowed low, with a perplexed expression. As it was his old workplace, the news that caretaker Shin Siwoo had become a witch would have spread faster than anywhere else. But was that a reason to be so scared?

“I-I’m sorry… about the dormitory incident back then, I’m really sorry….”

Ah.
That was the reason.

The fact that Siwoo was kicked out of his decent dormitory and forced to live in a barn was, after all, due to the interference of the administrative office. It seemed she thought that the former slave-turned-caretaker, who had risen in status, had returned to take revenge.

“It’s, it’s okay, so can I ask you a few things?”
“Y-yes!”
“First of all… would you like to sit down comfortably? I didn’t come here to do anything bad.”
“I’m sorry!”

First, he calmed the female employee through a long and detailed persuasion. He felt bitter, wondering how bad the image of witches was among the citizens for them to be so scared.

After about 10 minutes of soothing, the two were finally able to have a conversation. Despite his repeated refusals, he ended up sitting across from the female employee at a tea table she had meticulously prepared.

“I’m really sorry….”
“I’m not bothered at all. By the way, do you happen to know Mimaya Takasho, who used to work here with me?”
“T-Takasho-ssi?”

As soon as Takasho’s name came up, a blush appeared on the female employee’s face. Oh my. He had even extended his reach here. He was a great guy, even if he was his friend.

“Yes, I came to see him. But I can’t seem to find where he’s hiding.”
“Takasho-ssi completed his 6 years a few months ago….”

Ah.
He had completely forgotten.
Like Siwoo, Takasho was a public slave under the Gehenna City Hall. If he had completed 6 years, he would be transferred to another assignment.

“Could you tell me where he was assigned?”
“He wasn’t assigned anywhere.”
“What?”

Siwoo’s face hardened.
He wasn’t assigned anywhere?
Had he finally crossed the line after living so dissolutely?
Did he touch a novice witch and die?

All sorts of ominous thoughts came to mind.
This was, after all, the city of witches.
No matter how resourceful Takasho was, he was just a slave.

“I believe Count Adonai bought him as his exclusive slave.”
“What?”

2.
After asking more questions, he was able to get the address of where Takasho was currently working.

“I was surprised.”

He had suddenly thought that Takasho had died or suffered a terrible fate because he hadn’t been assigned anywhere. But Takasho was the type of person who could live well even if he was thrown into the desert, charming the cacti, so it was a needless worry.

Anyway, it wasn’t that far away.
It was still in Lenomond Town.

If ‘Contact Point’ in Border Town and ‘Plaza Market’ in Tarot Town were in charge of Gehenna’s logistics, then ‘Malkuth Gallery,’ an arcade shopping street, was in Lenomond Town.

Border Town hardly dealt with retail customers, and there was no large shopping street in Ars Magna Town, which was rated higher than Lenomond Town, so the most dynamic movement of goods took place in this Malkuth Gallery.

It was a place where the shops were lined up on both sides of a wide road that could accommodate four carriages racing, and the area was covered with an arched glass ceiling, creating an indoor space.

As an aside, it is said that these arcade-style shops, which can still be found today, first appeared in the early 19th century. The Malkuth Gallery in Gehenna appeared in the late 17th century, so it was quite a trendsetter.

As befitting its scale, which was more than 400 meters in a straight line, it sold a wide variety of items.

Various magical tools, artifacts, alchemical materials, and reagents related to magic.
Luxury goods such as jewelry, crafted goods, furs, liquor, hookahs, herbs, carpets, works of art, and various furniture and fixtures.
In addition, it also provided various services such as beauty salons, theaters, boutiques, bookstores, and bars.

Of course, when Siwoo was a slave, he would have had to spend his entire fortune just to buy a handkerchief here, so this was the first time he had actually come inside. He stepped onto the floor, which was as shiny as if it had just been laid yesterday, and looked around blankly.

“He works here?”

It was still only 7 o’clock, so the surrounding shops were not open yet. He could only see a few ordinary citizens preparing to open their shops, and there were no witches. It was fortunate for Siwoo, who attracted witches like a moth to a light just by walking around.

“Hmm….”

Siwoo looked around and walked towards the shop where Takasho was said to be employed.

“Is this the place?”

The place Siwoo arrived at was at the very end of the gallery. It was a building without a sign, tucked away in a corner as if it was deliberately hard to find.

Of course, the exterior was neat, with a red carpet laid out from the stairs. But even if it was a secluded place, it was hard to imagine that a slave would have work to do in such a building.

First, he walked up and grabbed the doorknob, knocking on the tightly closed door.

-Knock knock!
“…….”

The sound echoed quite loudly.
There was no response from inside, so he knocked again, and the door finally opened.

“Who is… who are you?”

It was a young man with blond hair and blue eyes, who looked a little younger than Siwoo. His hair was disheveled, and his clothes looked like they had been thrown on haphazardly.

One notable thing was that he was quite tall and handsome. The man, who had opened the door with a forced, friendly smile, immediately looked annoyed as soon as he confirmed that the visitor was a man.

“I came to see someone.”
“Someone?”
“Yes, Mimaya Takasho. Is he inside?”

As soon as Takasho’s name came out of Siwoo’s mouth, the man’s expression changed again. The annoyance disappeared completely, and his eyes became bright and clear. He asked with a cautious attitude.

“Are you a friend of Takasho-hyung?”
“Yes.”

At that moment, the man quickly scanned Siwoo. His eyepatch, which looked luxurious at first glance, his modern clothes, and even the ring on his hand. It was an outfit that was not allowed for ordinary slaves.

“Ah, please come in and wait. Hey! Liam! We have a guest. By any chance, what is your name…?”
“Shin Siwoo.”
“Tell Takasho-hyung that Shin Siwoo-nim has come to see him!”

With a vigorous call, Siwoo stepped inside.

After passing through the front door and opening another thick door, a fancy salon appeared. Or rather, he wasn’t sure if it was a salon, but its structure was very similar.

Chairs and tables were scattered here and there, and wooden boxes were piled up in a disorganized manner, but the interior itself was decorated with a very sophisticated design.

The murals and sculptures hanging around, and the pool table for pocket billiards, didn’t look cheap either. It had a very classic bar-like atmosphere, and even though it was morning when the sun was just rising, the interior was very dim.

“Please wait a moment. Hyung will be here soon.”
“Is this a bar?”
“Yes, something like that.”

Just as Siwoo was feeling bewildered, a heavy voice was heard along with the sound of footsteps.

“Shin Siwoo!”

Although his voice was much lower than before, Siwoo quickly recognized its owner. But when he turned around, it wasn’t Takasho who was there.

“It feels like it’s been a long time. It’s good to see you!”

It was a Japanese man, dressed smartly in an Italian suit, with his hair slicked back with hard pomade, a neatly trimmed beard to match, and even wearing a shiny Patek Philippe. Takasho’s confident smile and pearly white teeth, as he offered a handshake without hesitation, shone brightly even in the dim light.

“You, are you really Takasho?”
“Of course!”

Siwoo shook his hand in a daze and remained awkwardly stiff. As if he had expected such a reaction from Siwoo, Takasho smiled boldly and handed him a business card.

“The owner and madam of ‘Rose Glass,’ Gehenna’s only host bar, which has just opened. Mimaya Takasho, at your service.”