City ​​of Witches 456

Chapter 456 – #96_여행(5)

#455

1.
After their fresh kiss, the two naturally separated.
Well, it’s hard to say it was natural.
Amelia suddenly seemed startled and pushed Siwoo away, pulling back.

“S-sorry….”

Amelia looked at her hands, then at Siwoo, as if surprised by her own actions, completely flustered.
Her pale face was flushed red, and she swayed as if someone were pulling her from side to side, unable to stand still.
It was as if she were drunk.

“Did I do something wrong?”
“No! Absolutely not! It was good! It was good, but….”

When Siwoo asked worriedly, Amelia shook her head and hands frantically at the same time.
There couldn’t be a more definite gesture of denial than that, and it was refreshing to see her use such large movements, something he hadn’t seen before.

“……”

Amelia seemed to give up trying to explain something to Siwoo, closing her mouth like a clam and bowing her head deeply.

It had been a while since he’d seen the top of Amelia’s head.
Her pointed ears, peeking out from her incredibly thin and radiant blonde hair that flowed like a waterfall, were flushed red.

Come to think of it, Amelia in his memories wasn’t lacking in sexual knowledge, but she had always maintained very proper behavior.
If he had gone back to his days as a caretaker and said to Siwoo, ‘You’re going to kiss Amelia in the future?’ he wouldn’t have been able to imagine it.

Such a sudden advance might have been embarrassing for her.
Especially since it hadn’t been long since they had reconciled.

“It seems like we got a little carried away….”
“It’s not Siwoo’s fault. I’m the one who suddenly pushed you away, I’m sorry.”

The two looked at each other and bowed politely, apologizing to each other.
When they raised their heads, Amelia was brushing her hair with her fingers, trying to smooth out the awkwardness.

He was self-deprecating, thinking he had gained quite a bit of experience with women.
But seeing Amelia’s fresh reaction, as if she had just finished her first kiss, made him feel embarrassed as well.

“Ahem…. Well, shall we grab some breakfast?”
“Okay…!”

As a way to change the mood, Siwoo casually brought it up, and Amelia jumped at the idea.

“If there’s anything in particular you’d like to eat, please let me know. I heard the hotel restaurant here is delicious.”

Amelia answered almost without hesitation.

“Kimchi stew.”
“Pardon?”

Amelia was a native of Gehenna, and Gehenna itself had a very Western-style diet, so he naturally expected a Western dish, but she suddenly said kimchi stew.

“It’s Siwoo’s hometown food, isn’t it?”
“Ah.”

During his somewhat distant second adolescence, he had asked Amelia for it without much thought.
They had gone grocery shopping together and bought the ingredients, and Amelia had worked hard in the kitchen, but the result wasn’t very good.
Amelia might have noticed that Siwoo had been forcing himself to eat it, pretending to hide it.

“That’s nice.”

He felt a warmth in his heart, grateful that Amelia still remembered that incident.

2.
While walking to a nearby kimchi stew restaurant that was known to be delicious, he did his best to tell Amelia about the modern world.

Siwoo had been dragged to a ridiculous place called the City of Witches and had seen all sorts of amazing things, but Amelia was experiencing a cultural shock that was incomparable to Siwoo’s.

That was because the overall atmosphere of Gehenna was from the ‘past.’
Whether there was an academy resembling the Palace of Versailles or a market that looked like a village straight out of a fantasy game, at least there had been opportunities to experience it indirectly.

But what about the modern world?
From Amelia’s perspective, this place was the perfect future.
Seeing her anxious yesterday, he decided to explain it more carefully.

“That over there is called the National Assembly Building. It’s ugly, isn’t it? But despite its appearance, it’s the central government office. Unlike Gehenna, Korea has a separation of powers, with the administration, legislature, and judiciary operating separately.”
“…Yes.”

Siwoo introduced the building that stood tall by the river, a cautionary tale for architecture students who ruined the night view.
It was something he couldn’t avoid mentioning while touring Yeouido.

“Oh, and that’s a bus. Like the car I mentioned earlier, it uses fossil fuels. It’s a carriage that uses an internal combustion engine. But it’s bigger and not owned by individuals, but runs on designated routes to help citizens get around. Of course, you have to pay a fare.”
“…Yes.”

He tried his best to explain, using plausible examples tailored to Amelia’s level.

“Amelia.”
“…Yes.”

Something was wrong with Amelia’s condition.
She was answering, but her voice sounded half-dazed.
Until now, he thought she was just distracted.
Siwoo had been in a similar state when he heard a renowned mathematician present a new paper that broadened his horizons at an academic conference.
But no.
She was clearly distracted.

“Amelia.”
“…Yes.”

A dazed Amelia was quite a rare sight.
He couldn’t help but feel the urge to check it out.

“Amelia, do you sometimes drink tea through your nose?”
“No.”
“Ah, you were listening.”

He tried to make a light joke, but Amelia just looked up at Siwoo with a puzzled expression, as if asking, ‘Why are you asking that?’
He had tried to smooth things over with a joke, but it didn’t work.
Come to think of it, he didn’t remember seeing Amelia smile brightly very often.

Her base expression was always a mask-like blankness.
Even when she smiled, there was hardly any change in her expression except for a slight twitch of her lips….
At this point, it would be okay to set a goal like in a romance manga to make Amelia laugh.

“Does Siwoo drink tea through his nose?”
“No, I don’t…. I was just joking because it seemed like you were distracted….”
“A joke…?”
“I’m sorry if I offended you.”
“No, it’s not something to be offended by.”

After that, Amelia and Siwoo walked to their destination again.

“……”

In fact, Siwoo’s guess that Amelia was distracted was correct.

Until his sudden words woke her up, Amelia’s mind was like a hurricane raging through a blooming rose garden.

It was because the afterglow of the kiss lingered.
Even now, when she closed her eyes, she could feel the hot, soft sensation on the tip of her tongue, and his thick hands that had wrapped around her waist.

It felt like thousands of balloons were attached to her waist, making her float.
Even the streets of the modern world, which had felt unfamiliar and frightening, felt dreamy, as if she were walking in a dream, and even the neatly laid, solid bricks felt soft.
If she wasn’t careful, she would be so happy that she would start walking with a light, frivolous rhythm.

“We’ve arrived.”

This kimchi stew restaurant was found on a blog and boasted an 80-year tradition.
It had recently been remodeled, so the structure was quite clean.

No matter how much Park Young’s talisman blurred the impression and image of the user, it was impossible to completely block it like a music box.

When a blonde beauty, whom they had never seen before, appeared in a restaurant where a balding department head would wipe the sweat from his forehead, it naturally caused a commotion.
Fortunately, thanks to the talisman and the partitions that did their job, the commotion quickly subsided from the moment the waiter took their order.

Meanwhile, Amelia, who had been walking in her own cloud, had calmed down a bit.
The stimulating smell of food and the chaotic atmosphere of the restaurant had calmed her down a little.

“Amelia, by the way, would it be okay to talk about something a little more realistic?”

Siwoo, who had been watching Amelia’s expression, opened his mouth.
The fines and damages newly imposed on her were an amount with four digits in front of the word ‘billion,’ an amount that was truly astronomical.

No matter how satisfying and enjoyable this moment was, if Amelia couldn’t pay that amount within 10 years, she would face a terrible punishment of imprisonment followed by deportation.

“Realistic talk?”

Realistic talk after a dramatic reconciliation and a sweet kiss….
Could it be about marriage?
Amelia, who was truly immersed in a girlish happiness, was in a high state with a surge of serotonin.
Therefore, she came to a somewhat absurd conclusion and sat up straight, looking at Siwoo with a serious gaze.

“I’m ready.”

Siwoo hesitated at Amelia’s appearance, which exuded a strange spirit.
He brought up the words he had prepared.

“It’s just that, the fine is quite a large amount, isn’t it? I want to be of help, and I also need to know exactly how things are progressing.”
“Oh… that’s what you wanted to talk about.”

The moment Siwoo finished speaking, Amelia understood the situation.
Her expectations, which had been so high, deflated like a rubber duck losing air.
In a way, it was a relief.
Her reason, which had seemed like it would fly away at the slightest carelessness, had returned to its place.

“Siwoo doesn’t need to help. It’s my fault.”
“I want to do it. Even if I can’t be of great help, I want to help. What’s the current situation? Please, just tell me.”

Siwoo’s sincere gaze was unexpected.
She could feel that he genuinely wanted to help, not just paying lip service, and Amelia was happy once again.
She told him about the general situation.

“I’ve decided to sell the Marigold mansion in Ars Magna Town. If I sell all the surrounding private land, I can get about 8,000 pounds.”

In addition to that, if she were to gather all the inherited assets:

5,000 pounds in cash stored in a bank vault.
About 10,000 pounds worth of magical items and artifacts that are not related to Marigold’s magnetic magic.
Various works of art worth 2,000 pounds.
A pasture in the northeast of Tarot Town worth 1,000 pounds.
And various villas scattered throughout Gehenna, totaling 4,000 pounds.

Siwoo was mentally calculating as he listened to Amelia.

The total amount of fines and damages Amelia had to pay was 212,000 pounds.
The total assets she could gather by selling her inheritance were about 30,000 pounds, which was about 24 billion won in Korean currency.
Even after taking out the small change, the remaining amount was 180,000 pounds, which was about 144 billion won in Korean currency, a staggering amount.

The number of digits was still the same.

In fact, the money that the previous Marigold had left to Amelia was not even up to the average wealth of a witch living in Lenormand Town.
This was because a huge amount of money had been spent on Amelia’s medical expenses.
It was an amount that wouldn’t greatly hinder her magical research and enough to live a luxurious life, but it paled in comparison to the astronomical debt.

“……”

Siwoo felt his vision darken.
It wasn’t that there was absolutely no way, but he felt like a hard road was clearly opening up before him.
Sharon, who had been in a similar situation, had earned 1.3 billion won over 10 years and paid back 100 million won of the principal….
He didn’t know whether to be relieved that the fine didn’t accrue interest or not.

“Don’t worry too much.”
“It’s hard not to worry….”
“I’ve decided to sell perfume. I’ve ordered the necessary materials and equipment…. I’ll be able to start working on it in a day.”

Amelia’s perfume.
It was said that even among the wealthy witches of Gehenna, it was so rare that it was impossible to obtain, but he wondered if she could really pay off her debt with that….

While Siwoo was feeling confused, the kimchi stew they had ordered arrived.