Chapter 319 – #71_Gehenna’S Host Bar (2)
#317
1.
After a belated vacation, the time had come to achieve the original purpose of coming to Gehenna.
Shiwoo was rummaging through the library of Trinity Academy.
Originally, outsiders were not allowed to enter freely, but with the full cooperation of the administrative staff, he was issued a pass and could come and go as if it were his own home.
Knowledge of barrier magic, essential for interpreting the Red Branch.
He gathered all the books related to it.
It didn’t take long.
In the first place, Shiwoo’s official duty during his slave days was maintaining and managing the library, so he knew where each book was as well as he knew the palm of his hand.
“Even just roughly gathering them, there are so many…”
Just roughly gathering books related to barrier magic resulted in a table full of them.
Each book was close to the size of a phone book, and there were well over 100 of them.
Of course, not all of these were high-level materials.
Such books could only be found in places like the ‘Secret Archives’ of Ars Magna Town or the Truth and Enlightenment Academic Society.
Sometimes, witches would trade them among themselves through auctions.
Anyway, the academy’s library was full of very old books, and given the nature of magic that progresses over time, ‘old’ meant somewhat outdated material.
“But even if I looked at those, I wouldn’t understand… It’s actually better this way.”
Shiwoo, with his meager knowledge of barrier magic, wouldn’t be able to understand such high-level materials even if he saw them.
It would be better to study books that focus on basic concepts.
According to Branch Manager Sua, it would take at least 10 years to properly utilize the Red Branch.
Time was on his side anyway.
There was no need to rush.
“Hmm… Should I start with this one?”
After a long time, he spread out the books and began to move his pen.
Barrier magic is quite different from other types of magic.
For example, if the magic Shiwoo had studied so far was a method of drawing a sketch and coloring it in to gradually complete it,
barrier magic is a ‘method of completing the whole at once.’
Mana is a rather ambiguous power.
It exists and doesn’t exist at the same time, and it follows and doesn’t follow the laws of physics.
‘Barrier magic,’ which involves spreading mana widely to induce a specific effect, is a battle of how well one can control the ambiguity and irregularity of mana.
Therefore, paradoxically, barrier magic begins by denying the nature of mana.
It is nearly impossible for a human to consider every variable and deploy a barrier from the start.
‘Mana is regular under the control of the caster and follows normal physical laws.’
Freely constructing the image the caster desires in this arbitrary force field.
This is the first stage of barrier magic, which unfolds in the ‘Imaginary Realm.’
However, what happens in an artificially set force field is, strictly speaking, not ‘magic.’
It is no different from the boundless imagination of a child who excludes all principles and concepts.
Conceptualizing that imagination and concretizing it based on laws and rules.
Restricting impossible imaginations and leading to their manifestation in the real world.
This is the second stage of barrier magic, which unfolds in the ‘Symbolic Realm.’
If one gets this far, they encounter a problem.
The magic imagined in the Imaginary Realm cannot exist because it does not conform to the principles and laws of the world.
The magic imagined in the Symbolic Realm is refracted away from the imagination according to the principles and laws of the world.
Finding the middle ground and realizing it in the ‘Real Realm’ can be said to be the completion of barrier magic.
It is about making it follow the principles and laws of reality while also following the image in the imagination.
“…Easier said than done.”
It was a magic where neither the process nor the result could be confirmed until it was perfectly realized…
To put it simply, it felt similar to cooking without turning on the lights and without tasting the food.
It was nothing short of a miracle that Shiwoo had succeeded in his research to ‘somewhat shield’ the Red Branch’s distortion field on his own.
No other magic was as dependent on the realm of sensation as this one.
As he continued to struggle alone, it was already well past lunchtime.
“Still, it’s much better than doing it alone.”
His neck was stiff, and the road ahead was still long, but he felt like he had at least grasped a sense of it, compared to being in a state where he didn’t even have the materials.
That was enough for today.
He couldn’t bring the branch, which was no different from a dangerous substance, to the academy, so he carefully stored it in the annex of Jemernaga.
He planned to return home, extract a mana sample, analyze the barrier, and apply the newly acquired concepts from today.
“Should I go meet Takasho?”
The twins and Sharon were busy studying anyway.
He used a coordinate teleportation to move to the Malkuth Gallery in Lenomond Town to catch up on what they had missed before.
“Ugh.”
As expected, there were more people than when he came last time.
Shiwoo, who was crouching down to avoid the gaze of the witches, quickly opened the door to Takasho’s host bar.
“Welcome!”
At the same time, 12 handsome men, six on each side, greeted him with bright smiles.
The welcome from the different handsome men in their neat suits was truly a goosebump-inducing sight.
It seemed that if you just opened the door and came in, they would welcome you like this…
“Oh? Shin Shiwoo.”
While Shiwoo was flustered, a familiar face appeared among them.
It was Paul, the blond man who had guided him to Takasho when he first visited the host bar.
“Sorry for not being a customer. I came to see Takasho, is he available now?”
Gehenna was definitely inconvenient in this way.
If it were the present world, he could have just sent a text or made a phone call to ask.
Seeing that they were in the middle of business, he thought it might be a wasted trip.
Of course, if that were the case, he would wait a bit until they finished their business.
He didn’t have any other appointments anyway.
“Yes, it’s fine. He’s in the office right now.”
Contrary to his expectations, Paul readily let Shiwoo inside.
After passing through the main door and the middle door, he could see the inside of the bar, which was decorated like a salon.
It wasn’t messy, as it wasn’t open time, and the wooden boxes that had been lying around were neatly organized.
The tidier-looking shop and the romantic atmosphere, as if it were night, made him think, ‘They really did a good job.’
But there was one strange thing…
Paul, noticing Shiwoo’s puzzled look, gave a wry smile and spoke first.
“There aren’t any customers, right?”
That’s right.
The reason Shiwoo was puzzled was that in this large business, a host bar that even had 12 people standing at the entrance, there wasn’t a single customer to be seen.
The current time was 3 PM.
Well, it was an inappropriate time to run a bar.
But that was for businesses targeting ordinary people, and this was Gehenna. The main customers of this host bar were witches.
Most witches didn’t have proper jobs, nor were they in a position to keep strict commuting hours.
A nice afternoon like this was a golden time when nearby cafes and bars would be filled with witches.
But not even one or two people were sitting there, it was completely empty…
“Is it just unusually empty today?”
“Actually, it’s almost always like this. It’s been over a month since we temporarily opened.”
“What?”
Shiwoo was shocked.
When he saw Takasho last time, he thought he was just successful.
He thought he had succeeded in becoming self-made by making use of his good talent and adaptability.
But after asking about the details, it turned out that he had started the business by borrowing money from Count Takasho Adonai, and he was trying to make a profit.
But a newly opened business had been like this for over a month?
“Please tell me more.”
He realized that this was not a matter to be taken lightly.
It wasn’t just about the success or failure of the business, but Takasho’s life was at stake.
Why hadn’t he told the truth and asked for help sooner?
Paul hesitated for a moment before carefully opening his mouth.
“Actually, we are all grateful to Takasho. Even though we are public slaves, he saved us from wasting our lives being trapped in a place like this. He even personally educated us… At least we are guaranteed warm meals, accommodation, and a certain degree of freedom, right?”
“I guess so.”
“But… the store’s sales are not coming in at all. In fact, we are only increasing our losses every week. Since there are no customers, we can’t sell alcohol, but the maintenance costs are still coming out, and the cost of the alcohol that we promised to buy in fixed quantities every week is piling up.
We also go to the arcade at night to do odd jobs and don’t even get paid, and we are tightening our belts… I don’t know how long we can keep this up…”
Shiwoo once again scanned the inside of the bar with his eyes.
The alcohol displayed in the showcase, from the furniture to the carpets.
Everything was luxurious, as if they were targeting witches.
Even if all the profits earned by the host bar’s staff from doing odd jobs were combined, it would be difficult to afford even one of those paintings.
“Yo, Shiwoo. You’re here?”
Takasho, who had been told in advance, came out to greet him, waving his hand with a bright face.
But seeing Shiwoo’s serious expression, his smile immediately faded.
He sighed deeply and came down.
“Aish, you punk Paul. You told this friend unnecessary things, didn’t you?”
“I’m sorry, sir… Didn’t you say that this person is close to the witches? We can just go back to our original workplaces if the business fails, but… it’s not the same for you, sir.”
“Okay, you brat, go back to work.”
Takasho patted Paul’s head, who was worried to the point of tears, and smacked his lips.
He stroked his beard with a bitter expression and looked at Shiwoo.
“Haa, I didn’t want to show you this mess.”
“Is it true?”
“What?”
“That business is very difficult?”
After pondering for a while, Takasho sat down on the sofa and admitted it.
He put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it, as if he had a bitter taste in his mouth.
“…Sss, phew…”
Takasho, who had been silent while smoking a cigarette down to the filter in front of Shiwoo, scratched his head.
“Well, what is it. Actually, the situation isn’t that good. I wouldn’t say it’s difficult, no, it is difficult, quite difficult.”
Even if they were close friends, it wasn’t easy to honestly talk about difficult things.
Moreover, having to reveal his hardships while showing a flashy appearance on the outside was something he was reluctant to do.
“I thought of it as still being in the soft opening stage and tried to manage it well in my own way…”
“……”
“Things in the world don’t always go as planned.”
Takasho smiled as if it were nothing, but Shiwoo felt uncomfortable.
They had been through thick and thin together for five years.
It was only natural that he wanted him to succeed.
“What exactly is the problem? I might be able to help.”
“Should we move to another place? The kids might hear us here.”
“Okay.”
Shiwoo followed Takasho, who was wearing a fancy suit, to the president’s office.
