Chapter 868 – #189_A Common Drama (6)
#862
1.
After the three-way meeting with his two mothers-in-law, Siwoo was tipped off by Albireo about the twins’ runaway location.
He steadied his confused mind and headed to the Yesod family estate to meet Odile and Odette.
It was hard to pinpoint who was at fault, but he intended to go and at least bow his head in apology.
He couldn’t forget the twins’ expressions as they ran out crying after seeing Deneb and Siwoo kissing.
“…Sigh…”
What hurt even more was the note inside the box, along with the fountain pen the twins had dropped.
A letter the twins had carefully written.
It started with congratulations for Siwoo’s newfound fame and ended with “I love you, Assistant.”
They had prepared such a thoughtful gift, only to witness a kiss with their small mother-in-law, who was like a mother to them.
He couldn’t just stand by with such a sense of responsibility.
Of course, he didn’t think he was directly at fault for this incident.
Who could have guessed that his small mother-in-law had such feelings?
But now, he regretted not properly explaining the situation to the twins.
He shouldn’t have blindly followed the request to keep it a secret from his big mother-in-law.
It was a matter of sequence.
The twins ran away because they saw Deneb and Siwoo kissing.
They also suspected that the two were having a secret affair.
But now, if he were to belatedly reveal the fact that they had engaged in a relationship for verification, and that they had engaged in a relationship to recharge magic in the fish tank, would the twins be able to understand?
“Still, I have to apologize.”
Siwoo was confused, but his confusion couldn’t compare to that of the twins.
Even if he had to kneel and beg for forgiveness, he had to apologize and ask for forgiveness first.
That’s what he resolved.
“Siwoo, I’m sorry. Miss Odile and Miss Odette said they don’t want to see anyone right now…”
Count Yesod, who had come to the reception room in advance after receiving the call, apologized with a troubled expression.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, I’ve heard the general situation. I’m sorry, Siwoo. If I hadn’t been so nosy about getting research data…”
“No, it’s my fault for not behaving properly.”
He guessed that Count Yesod’s involvement was minimal.
And he couldn’t blame her for being kind to his small mother-in-law, who was suffering.
“Would it be counterproductive to force a meeting now?”
“Siwoo, I understand your feelings, but…”
“It’s counterproductive, Assistant.”
A sharp voice echoed in the reception room.
Surprised, he looked ahead and saw Odile standing there with her arms crossed and a blank expression.
Her long black hair, with a subtle purple hue in the bright sunlight.
Beautiful eyes reminiscent of amethysts.
It was Odile as usual.
“Aren’t you being too shameless?”
But Odile, with a twisted lip and a sneer, was different from her usual self.
Her icy gaze, glaring at Siwoo, dripped with coldness.
“If you had even a shred of conscience, you wouldn’t have come here.”
Odile walked up to Siwoo and stood tall in front of him.
Odile was a head shorter than Siwoo, but her presence was immense.
It reminded him of Odile from his days as a clueless assistant.
“Miss Odile…”
“I still can’t believe what I saw was real. How could you do such a thing?”
“I have nothing to say, even if I had a hundred mouths…”
“You shouldn’t. Of course, you shouldn’t. I understood even if you made many other girlfriends, Assistant.”
-Thwack!
Odile, who had taken a deep breath, jumped up and hit Siwoo’s chin with her forehead.
He knew it was coming, but it was a collision between a hard forehead and a chin.
A throbbing pain resonated through his skull.
“But this isn’t right, is it?!”
Odile shouted as if she was possessed.
“I’m sorry.”
“You’re really too much, Assistant, you’re totally too much.”
“……”
Instead of making excuses, he bowed his head and asked for forgiveness.
He deserved it even if Odile knocked him down and slapped him back and forth with full power.
“But I don’t think I can hate you, Assistant.”
Odile said, as if suppressing her emotions, after sniffing once.
“Miss Odile…”
“You’re my hero, Assistant.”
Even as she shed pitiful tears like a chick, Odile held onto Siwoo’s sleeve tightly.
“But, I don’t want to talk to you right now.”
“…It’s all my fault. When you come back, I’ll beg for forgiveness even if my knees wear out.”
“Yeah, I know. But we need more time right now. Both me and Odette.”
Boundless generosity and forgiveness.
Siwoo felt even more ashamed at Odile’s attitude, which went beyond touching and made him feel guilty.
“Go now. We’ll be fine. You just reflect on your actions.”
Odile’s wish to quietly turn her back was not fulfilled.
Count Yesod brought new urgent news, looking troubled.
“Miss Odile, there’s urgent news from the Geminai mansion.”
2.
As soon as they heard the news that Galina had collapsed, Odile and Odette gave up their runaway and returned to the mansion.
Everything has a cause and effect.
The shocking relationship between the Assistant and their small teacher was certainly not a minor incident, but it was not as important as the fact that Galina had collapsed with pneumonia.
Galina always talked about etiquette and the qualities of a noble lady, and showed a stern, unfeeling side, but they knew that she had a warm affection at her core.
She was like a great mother to them, having been their nanny since the twins were still infants.
“Galina!”
“Head Maid!”
Odile and Odette rushed over, but very carefully, so as not to burden Galina, who was resting, and took her hands.
Her palms were rough and thick, showing the marks of time.
“Miss Odile, Miss Odette.”
The usual sternness that could be felt from Galina, who was lying on the bed, was gone.
She looked exhausted, as if she had aged several years in an instant.
“It’s late. You should have gone to bed.”
“How could we sleep when Galina has collapsed?”
“That’s right! How could you collapse like this…”
“Get up quickly. We promised to see us become witches.”
“That’s right, we absolutely won’t allow you to keep being sick. That’s an order.”
Galina smiled as she looked at the sobbing twins with a kind smile.
“You’ve become such fine ladies. Both Miss Odile and Miss Odette.”
“Of course, do you know who we are?”
“We’re Odile and Odette, who will carry on the name of the great Geminai family.”
“If it’s an order, I have no choice. I’ll recover soon, so you two should sleep well.”
“My darlings.”
Albireo, who had been watching, separated the twins.
If it was left like this, they would be by her side day and night.
“Don’t make it more chaotic and let her rest now. Come on, hurry.”
“Yes, Teacher.”
“Head Maid. We’ll visit you again tomorrow.”
After their final greetings, the twins left the room with their mouths tightly shut.
3.
Odile and Odette attempted another runaway.
Although, it was just returning to the Yesod family estate.
They lay on the guest bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Their minds were so complicated that they couldn’t fall asleep.
“Sister.”
“Yeah.”
“In the end, the Assistant didn’t know anything.”
“That’s right.”
“But he should have told us. It’s bad that he kept it a secret from us.”
“That’s true.”
Before they ran away, Albireo, unable to resist the twins’ nagging, carefully told them the truth about the incident.
The truth they learned far exceeded the twins’ expectations.
First shock, that the relationship between the two was not an affair, but a one-sided crush from their small teacher.
Second shock, that they didn’t just kiss, but had a relationship for ‘verification’, a periodic relationship to escape from the fish tank, and another relationship to cooperate with Count Yesod’s experiment.
‘Girls, I know it’s hard to understand. But can’t you forgive Deneb?’
‘No! How can we understand this?’
‘Deneb is clearly a mature witch and older, but she doesn’t know anything about relationships. It must have happened because she was so clumsy.’
‘I didn’t expect even our great teacher to say that. Do you think that’s an excuse?’
‘…I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. It seemed like Deneb was suffering too much… I wanted you to know that she was really sorry and reflecting on her actions.’
At the time, the twins were angry and indignant, but as they lay in bed, gazing at the ceiling painting, their minds gradually changed.
The sense of betrayal and despair they had felt during their first runaway had somewhat dissipated.
Even though they knew that the Assistant and their small teacher had had sexual relations, their sense of betrayal had actually subsided.
The fact that the affair between the in-laws was not a clash of dark desires made by agreement, but a heartbreaking, forbidden one-sided love.
That might have been the biggest reason.
“Sister.”
“What.”
“If I feel a little sorry for our small teacher… am I too soft?”
“Is that even a question? You’re a softie, Odette. You’re a softie.”
“But… I feel bad for our small teacher.”
“…You’re such a fool, Odette. Just go to sleep.”
And as they forgot the source of their betrayal a little, various random thoughts began to sprout.
The incident of Head Maid Galina collapsing also had a subtle connection to these random thoughts.
“Galina seems to have gotten old.”
“Yeah, I didn’t know the Head Maid was that old.”
“…Will she still be alive when we become witches?”
“Of course. I ordered her to.”
The twins had never experienced a farewell before.
They had a painful past where they almost broke up with the Assistant, but they were doing well together now, weren’t they?
“Why do humans die? It would be nice if we could all live happily together forever.”
“That’s right, we don’t even have to inherit magic. We could just keep living.”
But Galina’s appearance in bed was telling the twins what farewell was all about.
Unlike when they had vaguely thought about it, it was a chilling premonition that seeped into their skin.
What is farewell, what is goodbye?
Not being able to hear the daily routine she would rattle off every morning with her hands on her hips.
The disappearance of the person they had to be wary of when they secretly escaped at night.
Not hearing the words that pointed out their attire, talking about the manners of a noble lady.
Not being able to see the tears welling up in her eyes whenever they did something commendable.
That is goodbye.
Not having to dress up every morning and go to greet her.
Not having to try to make her smile by telling her stories of praise at the table or in class.
Not being called “my darlings” as they became fine ladies.
Fully inheriting the task of the great witch.
This is also a farewell.
It would come quickly and steal away the small happinesses.
The fact that Galina’s appearance overlapped with the appearance of their two teachers was because,
in the end, whether they were witches or humans, they were equal in the face of farewell.
“Sister.”
“Yeah.”
“Shall we go see our small teacher tomorrow morning?”
“…No. Don’t you have any pride?”
“Sister… please just listen to me this once.”
In this aspect, Odile was a little more prideful.
Odette, knowing this about her sister who resembled their great teacher, snuggled up to her, acting cute.
“We’re just going to look at her secretly.”
Odile said, wiping away her tears as if she couldn’t win.
=====
