City ​​of Witches 749

Chapter 749 – #160_Let’S Stop Now (2)

#749

1.
Albireo, who was suffering from a headache due to his reckless son-in-law and Deneb’s late-in-life infatuation, chose cognac as his painkiller.

The family photo of the Gemini family, tilted in its frame, caught his eye again.

Albireo and Deneb each holding the tiny Odile and Odette.
It was hard for Albireo, who looked just like Deneb, to say, but even until then, Deneb was the epitome of a witch.

Who would have thought that Deneb would cause Albireo such grief like this?
Especially at this point, with the succession not far off.

To calm this bitter heart, he had no choice but to borrow the power of alcohol.

-Knock knock

Just as he was sighing, a guest suddenly appeared, which he didn’t feel like dealing with.
But on the other hand, to calm this troubled heart, it might be better to talk to someone else.

“Come in. Oh? Ms. Sharon?”
“I’m sorry for suddenly visiting at this late hour. Is this a good time?”
“Yes, of course.”

Albireo blinked.
The guest who had suddenly appeared before dawn was Sharon.

Well, there was nothing strange about that.

Sharon, who had been a guest for about a year, would know that workaholic Albireo didn’t sleep.
And as Sharon was excluded from this rescue operation, she might have some questions.
He thought it was probably another problem related to his son-in-law, but…

He didn’t quite understand why Sharon was dressed in modern-day casual clothes and dragging a large suitcase.

“Ms. Sharon, where are you going?”
“Yes, that’s what I came to talk about.”
“Don’t just stand there, sit down comfortably.”
“Yes, thank you…”

He had many questions and something felt off, but he silently poured cognac for Sharon, who sat on the sofa.

It was hard to pinpoint exactly.
But she had an atmosphere and expression that needed the comfort of the god of wine.
Sharon bowed her head in thanks, but hesitated for a moment without raising her glass.

“I don’t think I can continue my tutoring duties anymore.”
“……?”

Albireo couldn’t keep up with the situation.
But without showing much surprise, he asked calmly.

“I know that Ms. Sharon is not someone who would carelessly abandon her responsibilities. It seems like there’s a story behind this, and if it’s not rude, may I ask why?”

The Sharon that Albireo knew was a very diligent witch.

Despite having astronomical debts, she didn’t go astray and tried to diligently save money, and she never neglected her tutoring duties.
The twins were particularly weak in elemental magic, but after Sharon took over that position, they made quite noticeable progress.

Even aside from these examples, if you had as much experience as Albireo, you could grasp a person’s character at first glance.
If that Sharon was suddenly submitting her resignation and trying to leave, it seemed like there was a good reason.

“……”

But even at Albireo’s question, Sharon didn’t open her mouth.
She just hesitated for a long time, looking at the tips of her knees that were pressed together.

Then, Sharon rummaged through her suitcase and took out a white document.

Albireo, who was most familiar with documents except for magic, immediately recognized what it was.
Two contracts with an unforgeable seal on the magic paper.

It was the IOU that Albireo had returned to Sharon in exchange for her taking charge of the elemental magic classes until the succession.

According to the Gehenna City Law, which was still a bit old-fashioned, only IOUs were recognized as proof of debt.
In other words, if Sharon were to burn the IOU, her obligation to repay the debt would be permanently extinguished.

The amount written on it was a large sum, and considering the hardships she had endured because of that debt, he had expected her to burn it as soon as she received it. To face the IOU again…
Albireo realized that his hunch was right.

Something was amiss.

“Since I’m quitting in the middle of my term… I’ll give this back to you. If you give me a little more time, I’ll make sure to pay back the interest as well.”
“Ms. Sharon, don’t say such disappointing things. Although Ms. Sharon and I are in an employer-employee relationship, how many banquets have we shared together?”
“……”
“Odile and Odette also follow Ms. Sharon well, and I would like this relationship to last as long as possible. If there’s an unavoidable reason, I’ll take it into consideration, so won’t you tell me?”

At Albireo’s coaxing words, Sharon hesitated again for a long time before finally opening her mouth.
Her voice was as if each word was falling heavily.

“We broke up.”
“Oh my…”

Albireo couldn’t hide his sigh.
It was because what he had thought was absolutely impossible, even though his intuition was pointing to it, had come out of the person’s mouth.

“I don’t think it’s right to still receive help from that person when we’ve broken up.”

Albireo, who couldn’t easily open his mouth on such a heavy topic, quietly took the IOU that Sharon had placed on the desk.

“If that’s the reason, I understand. I won’t ask for more details.”
“Thank you for understanding. I’m ashamed to ask, but… is it okay if I ask for one more favor?”

This time, Sharon took out a small jewelry box.
It was quite heavy, and judging by the clinking sound inside, it seemed to contain quite a few jewels.
Sharon wasn’t the type to suddenly indulge in luxury, and considering her magical characteristics, she probably bought them for research purposes.

“I’ll definitely repay the debt no matter what, so could you please give this to Siwoo?”
“If it’s that much… how should I give it to him?”
“Please make sure he doesn’t know that I gave it to him.”

Albireo, who didn’t have much dating experience, realized that this breakup was very sincere for Sharon.
Sharon was trying to get rid of everything without leaving anything behind before the breakup.

“…Okay.”
“Thank you so much. I’m sorry for the late hour.”

As Sharon bowed her head and was about to leave, Albireo called out to her.

“Ms. Sharon.”
“Yes?”

Albireo said, flipping the IOU.

“I’ll keep this for now. But if you change your mind, please come back anytime. I’ll be waiting.”
“…Thank you so much. But that won’t happen.”

“And the officetel I gave to Siwoo before, you can use it until you decide where to go.”
“Yes?”
“Aren’t you planning to go to Seoul?”
“I am, but…”
“It’s just an empty room anyway, and the atmosphere of a house gets gloomy if no one lives there. Stay there for a while and calmly think about your future plans. You have my contact information, so if anything happens, contact me.”
“…Yes.”

Sharon nodded and finally left the office.
In the heavy and gloomy atmosphere, Albireo poured the cognac that Sharon hadn’t even touched into his mouth.

“Oh my, I’m getting old…”

He had done something truly foolish.

Albireo was the strategist and coach for Odile and Odette in the love war surrounding Siwoo.
Even with Deneb’s sudden betrayal, Albireo’s position was solid.

Sharon and Siwoo’s relationship was strong.
Even after entering Gehenna and having more lovers, it hadn’t changed.

She was the lover who had been by Siwoo’s side the longest, and a formidable opponent who had formed a bond through living in the same culture for a long time.
As a witch, her appearance was definitely guaranteed.
She was sociable, had good survival skills and social skills, and unlike the stubborn twins who took after someone, she had a benevolent personality that embraced everything.

That’s why even Albireo had felt a sense of crisis and had tried to keep Sharon at a distance in the past.

In that sense, Sharon’s voluntary resignation was something Albireo would welcome with open arms.
The twins would have a slight advantage in the midst of so many competitors.

Albireo didn’t have to do anything.

At least, he didn’t have to say that he would hire her as a tutor if she came back.
He didn’t have to give her a chance to reconsider by temporarily offering her the accommodation where Sharon and Siwoo had stayed together.

“Even so, how could I do that?”

But seeing Sharon’s expression, which seemed stubborn but also like it could crumble at any moment, he couldn’t bring himself to coldly calculate the situation.

“Anyway, Shin Siwoo is the problem, Shin Siwoo.”

And so, Albireo reaffirmed his hostility towards his son-in-law.

2.
Sharon’s departure was quick.
The people she had to say goodbye to were probably Eloa, the twins, and Amelia.

She had bickered and fought with Odile and Odette, but they had gotten along well.
At first, there were many frustrating things, but if you looked closely, they were cute, and they had grown close like sisters, having developed both good and bad feelings for each other.
They had even gone on trips together, and the twins were always involved in all sorts of strange incidents.

She was a good drinking buddy with Duchess Eloa.
Their first meeting wasn’t so good due to a misunderstanding, but after Eloa had tearfully confessed to Sharon the hardships of a teacher who had fallen in love with her student.
Sharon had also tried her best to help her.
Since then, they had been close and had built a sisterly relationship.

Amelia, too, had built a friendship with Sharon, going to the public bath together or going to nearby cafes on their days off.
Sometimes they would argue over issues like ‘who gave Siwoo a hotter event?’, but when Siwoo was captured by the deep-sea witch in the past, they had opened up their hearts and comforted each other.

“Friends…”

Compared to her past when she was burdened with the stigma of an incomplete succession and a mountain of debt and was kicked out into the modern world, these days were excessively happy.

She had made a lot of friends for the first time, escaping a life where she had nowhere to complain no matter how hard it was, and a life where she had no one to rely on.

Friends who loved the same man and were in friendly competition, but who also cherished each other.
She had never once thought that she hated or disliked such a relationship.

But now that she had declared a breakup with Siwoo, their relationship had become awkward even to say goodbye.
It would probably be like that forever.

-Beep beep!

Along with the sensation of the surrounding space rippling, the scenery of Gehenna disappeared as if washed away, and the noise of car horns pierced her ears.

The night view shimmering like fire on the asphalt, which was wet from the rain.
The cold heat melted the colorful glass windows.

“Now I’m alone again…”

Sharon, who had been standing blankly, finally sat down on the spot.
The cold rain soaked Sharon’s back as she huddled without an umbrella.

The small sobs were buried in the sounds of cars in the indifferent and lonely city night.