Chapter 497 – #105_Perfume Tycoon (4)
#497
1.
After helping out at Amelia’s shop, it was already evening.
Siwoo made an excuse that he had some business to attend to and left for a while.
It was the day he had an appointment with Count Kohav to adjust the prosthetic arm.
If there had been any sign of his arm recovering, he would have told her honestly.
However, since that day, Siwoo’s left arm was still numb like a piece of wood.
He could move freely, so there was no major inconvenience in his daily life, but to be honest, he didn’t want to add to her worries.
It’s not like he was worried about his arm either.
He had somehow managed to fix his brain that had been turned to mush.
He had a vague belief that he would somehow manage to fix his left arm as well.
Count Yvonne Kohav.
She was a rare high-ranking witch who did not have her own mansion.
She lived separately in an annex of Duke Erelim’s mansion, which also served as the main building of the Truth and Name Academic Society.
At first, Siwoo was worried that he might encounter too many witches.
As a result, he was worried that he might get caught up in troublesome situations, but it was all for nothing.
Duke Erelim’s mansion grounds were as large as a small campus, and most of the witches were holed up in their laboratories doing research.
Still, as many witches came and went, he encountered a few while walking, but they all just glanced at him with curiosity and didn’t show any blatant interest.
Thanks to that, Siwoo was able to leisurely look around until he reached the annex.
“It’s like a temple.”
If he were to give his personal opinion, it was like a less flashy Trinity Academy.
The quiet atmosphere like a church where time had stopped, the nuns-like witches who were devoted to research away from the secular world, and the traces of long years that could be felt everywhere.
He could vividly feel how much tranquility a beautiful building could exude if it spent a long time under excellent management.
A house is a direct reflection of the resident’s personality.
Just looking at the bright and cozy feeling of the Yesod mansion, or the calm elegance of the Jemernai mansion, isn’t that the case?
He had never spoken to Duke Erelim personally, but just by looking at her mansion, he could guess what kind of personality she had.
A seeker who single-mindedly pursues his path to achieve great things.
That’s what came to mind.
Come to think of it, Count Kohav, who was known as her follower, also had the impression of a stubborn scholar, even more so than Amelia in her prime.
Among the buildings that were sparsely scattered across the wide field where even the sidewalks were not properly paved, Count Kohav’s annex was located in the center of the grounds, east of the ‘Hall of Truth,’ which was Duke Erelim’s residence.
The white roof, like a swan landing, was impressive.
Like the other buildings on the grounds, it was a three-story stone mansion that stood tall, covered in ivy, instead of showing off its splendor.
-Knock knock!
“Excuse me.”
The annex had a door as small as a typical house in Tarot Town.
He knocked on the door next to the doorknob.
-Creak!
After a while, a woman in her 40s with freckles quietly opened the door.
Judging by her attire and age, she seemed to be a maid working in this mansion.
“Hello. My name is Shin Siwoo, and I have an appointment with the Count at 8 PM.”
“……”
“Is Count Kohav here?”
“……”
The maid who opened the door bowed politely to Siwoo and then led the way without saying a word.
She didn’t even offer a greeting, let alone any explanation, so he stood there for a moment before belatedly stepping onto the wooden floor and following her.
He glanced around the inside of the building, where a quiet silence flowed.
It was supposed to be the Duke’s annex.
He had expected the interior to be well-decorated, even if the exterior was a bit shabby, but his expectations were pleasantly betrayed.
In a word, it was like an old laboratory where silence had fallen.
It was even more outdated than the research building that Amelia used to use at the old Trinity Academy.
Even when passing through the corridors where rooms (probably laboratories and workshops) branched out, when passing through the hall, and when climbing the stairs, the only decorations were a couple of desolate-looking frames.
There were no chandeliers, which were often seen like fluorescent lights in the Jemernai mansion, no fresh flowers to decorate the desolate corners, no exhibited works of art, no plush sofas or fancy tables.
The floor was made of wood, not even marble, let alone carpet.
The fact that there was not even a creaking sound or a speck of dust, despite it being wood, felt almost obsessive.
As the sun began to set, the decorative lights that illuminated the bleak interior were also mass-produced items that could be found in Border Town.
Was it just because it was alone in the space that it looked small?
The width itself was wider than he thought, and it took quite a while to reach.
“Excuse me…”
“……”
Even when Siwoo called out quietly, the maid continued to walk without saying a word.
-Knock knock
Having reached the third floor, she knocked on the first door she saw, bowed quietly to Siwoo, and disappeared silently.
The fact that she didn’t make a sound was like a ghost.
“Come in.”
The door opened more smoothly than it looked, and beyond it, he could hear Count Kohav’s voice.
Siwoo cleared his throat for no reason and stepped inside.
The first thing he saw as he opened the door was Count Kohav sitting at a rosewood desk in front of him, frantically moving a quill pen.
“You’re 15 minutes early. Please be on time.”
“Ah, yes. I’m sorry.”
Ivory-colored eyes.
Her short black hair was as sharp as her tone.
It wasn’t like he hadn’t seen her in a long time, so she hadn’t changed.
What surprised Siwoo a little was the scenery of the workshop.
The first thing that came to mind before a witch’s workshop was an artisan’s studio.
The interior was much larger than he had expected.
It was a three-story mansion, but there was a reason why the corridor was as narrow as a studio apartment.
Instead of tearing down walls or maximizing the ceiling height to create a sense of openness, it seemed that it was built to pursue efficiency, as if all the space was to be used for the workshop.
The wide space was cluttered with mannequins of various body parts hanging here and there, stuck on shelves, and rolling on the floor.
It was probably her specialty, ‘self-made prosthetics’.
Just by looking at the cut surfaces, they were not ordinary mannequins.
They weren’t as grotesque as if they had cut off the arms and legs of real people, but the intricately crafted blood vessels, bones, and joints were enough to make him feel eerie if he were alone.
“……”
“I, I came for a checkup.”
“……”
Count Kohav continued what she was doing without saying a word.
She didn’t tell him to sit down anywhere, nor did she even look at Siwoo.
Could it be that she wanted him to wait because he was 15 minutes early?
As he stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do, Count Kohav sighed briefly and gestured with her chin.
“…Sit down and wait.”
He had felt it before, but she seemed to be a very principled person.
Siwoo carefully moved the mannequin that was sitting on the sofa and sat down.
Exactly 15 minutes passed.
Kohav took off her monocle and got up from her seat.
In her hand was a toolbox, as if she had prepared it in advance, which he had seen before.
Kohav walked over to Siwoo without saying a word and began to unfold the box.
He had not been used to such a bleak atmosphere recently, so he tried to start a small conversation.
“Is the only employee here the one who guided me earlier?”
“Why are you curious about that?”
“Because I only encountered one person the whole time I was coming here.”
“That’s right.”
“She was very taciturn.”
The Count glanced at Siwoo, as if she was a little surprised by his attempt at small talk, and then continued to lay out her tools.
Still, she responded well when he spoke to her.
“The Truth and Name Academic Society is a place for witches to explore and contemplate. Employees are prohibited from speaking without permission during work hours.”
“What?”
But the words that came out of her mouth were very cold.
Even if Count Kohav’s tone was her personality, the content was like that.
It wasn’t like she was a high school senior who was being hysterical before the college entrance exam, but to say that they couldn’t even talk because they had to concentrate.
Siwoo thought it was a bit of an overreaction, but Kohav didn’t even add an explanation, as if it was very reasonable.
Well, he had heard about it from Count Yesod.
The Truth and Name Academic Society is the largest school of Gehenna, along with the Emerald Tablet, with the most witches.
Its nature is very conservative and close to orthodox witches.
Witches who do not pay attention to the outside world and only explore their own magic.
Even if they were just ordinary members of the society, Count Kohav, who was the vice-president, might have been fully equipped with the privileged consciousness of a pre-modern aristocrat.
He knew that not all witches were like his teacher, Sharon, or the twins, but when he saw witches like this, he felt uncomfortable for no reason.
“How is the condition?”
“Externally, there is no change from last time.”
“I’ll check the sensory linkage again. It might sting.”
Kohav took out a menacingly sharp needle and stabbed Siwoo’s left hand.
The sharp silver needle pierced through the palm and protruded out the other side.
Knowing that it was physically pierced, not a magic trick, made him feel eerie even if there was no pain.
“I still can’t feel anything.”
“…That can’t be.”
Count Kohav frowned.
She seemed to be doing various tests while looking at the parchment she had seen before, but her furrowed brow showed no sign of smoothing out.
“Count Kohav, this is a prosthetic, right?”
“Yes.”
“Can’t we take it off and attach another one?”
“That’s a waste of time. The prosthetic organ has been marked as having no problems at all. If there is a problem in this case, it’s not me… it’s you.”
Count Kohav’s words were filled with absolute confidence in her magic.
Rather, she looked at Siwoo with a look that seemed to say, ‘Why are you like this?’
“For example?”
“We can’t rule out the possibility that there is a problem with your spirit itself.”
“That… doesn’t the spirit usually solve most problems on its own?”
“That’s right. If it’s a minor problem.”
The spirit has durability and recovery power that far exceeds that of a normal body.
Unless the structure of the spirit itself collapses, it will recover even if its arms and legs are cut off.
Kohav began to put the devices back into the box.
“Is that it?”
“No, I’m going to do a more detailed examination with a more advanced device. Don’t get your hopes up too much, I’m just a prosthetic specialist. Follow me.”
Count Kohav led him to a workbench that was about the size and height of a billiard table in the corner of the room.
Around it were prosthetics that exuded a gloomy atmosphere, and strangely shaped strings and hoses hung down like unorganized wires.
“Take it off. Just your top.”
This was a somewhat familiar development?
Even if he tried to think that way, the stern look, eyes, and tone of Count Kohav would make any lewd thoughts disappear.
“You’ve been injured a lot.”
“You can tell.”
It was pointless to even mention what had happened before, the fierce battle with Bianca, the rescue of Amelia, and so on.
He had been through quite a lot recently.
However, the performance of the spirit, which even healed scars cleanly, meant that it wouldn’t be noticeable at first glance.
Count Kohav immediately pointed it out.
She attached electrodes (or whatever they should be called) that hung from the ceiling of the workbench to various parts of Siwoo’s body and began a full-fledged examination.
