City ​​of Witches 728

Chapter 728 – #156_Fugitive(3)

#728

1.
A stealth journey of about 24 hours from Rosie’s mansion to Zlata’s apothecary.

To have safely arrived, breaking through the heightened security, was a stroke of luck, no matter how many times one said it.
Especially since they had arrived with three witches who hadn’t become great witches and Linne, who couldn’t even walk on her own.

Of course, it wasn’t just luck that got them there; Siwoo’s contribution was immense.

He had instantly woven together Linne’s magic, which erased the color of magic, and Manya’s magic, which was specialized in concealment and called the ‘Night Mist Witch,’ creating a joint magic formula.

Even if the magic had similar properties, a linked formula of different magnetic magic couldn’t be established in just an hour or two.

However, mixing all sorts of magnetic magic to create new magic was Siwoo’s specialty.
Moreover, with his magic eye that could read the flow of magic, he taught them a new linked formula in just 15 minutes.

‘Siwoo, I’m not doubting you, but does that really work…?’
‘It will work. I’ve done it many times.’
‘Wow, what? It really does?’

As a result, Linne was given the role of being carried on Siwoo’s back and using only the minimum amount of magic, while Manya was tasked with using that to create an even more perfect concealment field.

Also, whenever they rested at the hiding points Linne had set up in advance, he checked on Linne’s condition and readjusted the magic to reduce her burden.
They barely managed to reach the apothecary, all the while receiving the awed gazes of Manya and Malisha.

He hurriedly called for Yebin.

Yebin was truly a doctor revered as a saint in Tarot Town.
Even though Linne had imprisoned and oppressed Yebin for months, she didn’t hesitate to roll up her sleeves, despite Linne being the patient.

“Siwoo, please lay her down here.”

Yebin laid Linne on the bed, which had been cleared except for a white sheet, and loosened her clothing.
Linne, whose condition had been worsening, was now struggling to breathe, panting and trembling.

“This is…”

The moment Linne’s martial arts uniform was loosened, Yebin frowned.
Siwoo was also surprised.
The situation seemed infinitely worse than when he had loosened her belt and checked before they left.

It was no longer just a matter of wounds.

The purple bruises that covered Linne’s white skin, mainly around her waist, were forming what looked like handprints.
It was a sinister shape, as if someone had been forcibly trying to drag her away.
The blood vessels, which had begun to bulge out, especially where they were wrapped around her, were turning black.

There was a scent of death.
It was the pungent scent that rose when the life in a cup had evaporated to the point where the bottom was visible, and it was making its last struggle.

Siwoo felt his heart sink.
It was hard to say that his relationship with Linne was a good one.

However, the thought that she might die like this felt ominous.

“It’s a curse. I’ll check her physical condition first.”

The moment Yebin’s pale blue hand touched Linne’s abdomen.

“——!!!”

Linne, who had suddenly opened her eyes, violently reached out towards Yebin.
She thrashed and bared her teeth, like a wounded wild animal that had been touched.
Her eyes, wide open, were filled with red veins, and it seemed like they would start to bleed if a little more time passed.

“Master, it’s okay. It’s me. I’m trying to heal you.”

Siwoo grabbed her wrist and calmed her down.
Linne’s gaze turned to Siwoo.
The strength left her trembling arm.
Her venomous eyes also turned dull again, and soon she closed her eyes and slumped.

“I’ll examine her right away.”

Yebin, who had almost been attacked a moment ago, didn’t seem fazed at all.
Instead, with a serious look, she projected magic into Linne’s body.

“…Ah…”

It was a mess.
Multiple organ failure, to the point where it was a miracle she was still breathing.

There was no bleeding or fractures, but the internal injuries were similar to those of a human who had fallen from a high place with their bare body.
Her blood pressure was fluctuating wildly, and her heart, which was beating strangely fast, was reminiscent of the last gasp of a dying candle.

At this point, even the natural healing power of a spirit body couldn’t recover.
She could have stopped breathing at any moment, even within 5 or 10 minutes.

“How is it?”
“……”

If this were Hyangwolru, it would have been difficult.
There were no treatment tools or surgical tools for Yebin in Hexennacht.
However, whether it was something Linne had arranged in advance or a coincidence, this was an apothecary.

Even if she had to perform a somewhat rough emergency treatment, it meant that she could use internal medicine procedures to stabilize her.

“I can treat her.”

Yebin withdrew her magic and said in a firm tone.

2.
Siwoo was asked to leave by Yebin.

Since it was a sensitive operation, even the slightest flow of magic couldn’t be missed, and the reason was that if Siwoo, who was a great witch, was next to her, it could cause unnecessary noise.

Siwoo, who came out with an indescribable sense of unease and guilt, found Alice, Manya, and Malisha hugging each other, sharing the joy of reunion.

“Sister, I’m so glad you’re safe.”
“Are you okay? Did that crazy bitch Rosie do anything bad to you?”
“Well, she sometimes made me do perverted things… but surprisingly, I liked it.”

They were practically strangers, but seeing them so happy made him feel a sense of accomplishment.

“Ah! Siwoo!”

Malisha, who had been sniffling with red eyes, smiled brightly when she found Siwoo.
Now, the title was completely fixed as Siwoo.

“As you know, Siwoo even broke Rosie’s head.”
“I guess there’s a reason why you lost to her.”
“Okay, you guys wait here for a moment.”

Alice patted Manya and Malisha on the head once each and then grabbed Siwoo’s wrist and pulled him away.
They went down the hallway towards the dining room.
Once they were out of sight of others, Alice bowed deeply to express her gratitude.

“Thank you, thank you so much…”

Along with her tearful voice, silver droplets fell onto the wooden floor.

“You don’t have to do this. The work isn’t over yet. You can pay me later, so please raise your head.”

No matter how many times he tried to dissuade her, she kept bowing as if she were nailed to the spot.
After expressing her gratitude for a long time, Alice wiped her red eyes with her sleeve.

“If we ever get out of here, you can really treat me however you want. No matter how embarrassing the things you make me do, I’ll do my best to comply. Or, should we do it now? There are many rooms here.”
“No, I told you before that it’s okay.”

Just as Alice, who still seemed to have misunderstood something, was about to loosen her clothes, a voice full of resentment was heard.

“This isn’t a motel, it’s my house, you know?”

Zlata Justitia, the free witch, a Latina sister who looked great in hippie clothes.
She was chewing on her thumbnail instead of the cigarette she always had in her mouth, and she separated the two with a very displeased look.

She had put up a closed sign and taken Linne in, but Zlata’s heart was burning black.
It was like she was holding a time bomb that could explode at any moment.

“What are you going to do about this? Honestly, I want to kick you all out.”
“I understand.”
“If you understand, please leave? Why does it have to be my house? I spent all my savings to move in here…”

Even Siwoo could see that she was the most innocent victim in this situation.
But they would be in trouble without her cooperation.
With enemies lurking everywhere, where could they go if they left their hiding place?

“I’m really sorry for causing you trouble. How can I compensate you in a way that you can accept?”
“What compensation? Just say you’ll beat me up if you don’t like it. I’m here, and so are you.”

Alice whispered something that was truly a fugitive’s idea, so he sent her back to Manya and Malisha.

If you think about it simply, it’s a perfectly reasonable thing to say.

The free witch was neither a great witch nor a witch specialized in combat.
It meant that Alice or Siwoo, who were great witches, could just overpower her.

However, given the current situation, where they would have to film ‘Anne’s Diary’ for quite some time, forcing cooperation was a bad move.

There was a possibility that Zlata, who was upset, might risk it and report them, and even if she didn’t, they would lose a collaborator who could move around outside most freely at this point.

“Zlata.”
“Don’t act like we’re close. Leave by tonight. I swear to God, I’m desperate too.”

Her lips were tightly shut, with no room for negotiation.

Then, something caught his eye.

The glass bottles filled with medicinal herbs that were piled up on the dining room shelves.
Zlata’s house was filled with these herbs, from under the table to the ceiling.

It was only a three-story wooden building, and it was narrow from side to side, so if she wanted to set up a workshop in this kind of house, space utilization was essential.
Among them, there were several products with the genuine certification mark of the Jemernai Count’s family.

“If we manage to escape safely, I will give you a reward worthy of it.”
“No, my life is the most important thing to me.”
“You said you were a fugitive, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Do you happen to know the Jemernai Count’s family?”
“Of course, I know them. All the high-quality medicinal herbs I handle are processed and imported from there.”

Zlata answered with a nonchalant look, as if to say, ‘So what?’

“I have a deep connection with the Count’s family. I can provide anything you want.”
“You’re kidding me. Hey! Don’t touch that.”

Zlata, who was about to dismiss it as just boasting, hurriedly stopped Siwoo, who was opening a bottle.
But Siwoo had already taken out a withered star-gazing flower.

This blue and elongated star-gazing flower was a catalyst accelerator produced by the Jemernai Count’s family through selective breeding.
It was a magical crop that had caused a revolution in catalysts, with its excellent versatility and its own non-attribute, and of course, it was very expensive.

Zlata was fidgeting as if she had been taken hostage when he grabbed it.

“Look closely, bloom.”

This star-gazing flower was famous not only for its performance but also for its special effect.
That is, if it was affected by the Jemernai Count’s ‘Singing Magic,’ it would bloom again, emitting a mysterious blue light, no matter how dry it was.

Siwoo imagined the magic he had received from his little mother-in-law and sent the extracted magic into the star-gazing flower.

As the magic flowed in, the star-gazing flower, which had been dried like a dried flower, took on a vivid vitality, as if it had just been picked from the garden.
The mysteriously flowing blue light and spore-like particles were the unmistakable brilliance of a genuine product.

“I, is it real…?”
“That’s right. Ask Yebin, who’s treating her up there. She was also a fugitive, but she received immunity and citizenship in exchange for treating me.”

Zlata’s eyes were shaking wildly.
She was probably calculating the risks and returns of cooperation.

Siwoo drove the wedge in, without thinking about how much his mother-in-law would scold him later.
First, they had to survive, didn’t they?

“If you help us now, you’ll get free citizenship in Gehenna. Interest-free loans for establishing a workshop in Tarot Town. Direct purchase benefits for some magical crops, and a separate bonus.”
“Ugh…”

“I can assure you that Gehenna is incomparably more beautiful than Hexennacht. Imagine Zlata leisurely enjoying cultural life, sipping coffee while sitting in the luxurious Malcuth Gallery Cafe.”
“Ugh…”

“The madam of the host bar, where the most handsome men and women of Gehenna gather, is my close friend. I’ll tell her to treat you well.”
“Ugh…”

“When you’re tired of enjoying the nightlife, how about taking a vacation at the high-end leisure facility, the Levana Grand Bath, which only wealthy witches in Ars Magna Town can enjoy? You’ve heard the saying, ‘If you don’t have a membership to the Levana Grand Bath, you’re only enjoying half of Gehenna’s abundance,’ right? I’ll get you a membership.”
“Ugh…”
“I’ll write a contract. You can even set up a guarantor.”

The explanation, which he rattled off like a travel agent, was not a bluff.
Almost all of it was something Siwoo could provide if he just bowed his head a little.
Siwoo’s sweet offer, who had somehow come to possess Gehenna’s golden connections, made Zlata forget the risk.

Zlata, who had been suffering from internal conflict with her eyes tightly closed, slammed the table and shouted.

“Fine, I’ll hide you.”

And so, they were able to secure her cooperation.