Chapter 876 – #191_Leisure
#870
1.
For hundreds of years, Rinne had worn a ‘leash.’
The curse of intentional deficiency, passed down through the ‘Sword Witch’ lineage via a brand, was the name of that leash.
The role and purpose of this leash were simple yet utterly heinous.
It removed all meaning from life except for ‘the moment of becoming stronger.’
Indeed, hadn’t countless Sword Witches before Rinne died in agony, failing to even reach their 100th year?
It was a shackle worthy of the name ‘curse,’ limiting not only the senses related to happiness but also mental fulfillment.
But, very fortunately, Rinne was able to take a different path from her predecessors.
She met her husband and had the shackle removed.
For that one reason alone, Rinne was willing to dedicate her body and soul to her husband for the rest of her life.
At first, it was unfamiliar.
It had been hundreds of years.
The form of life that had been forced upon her for so long had influenced Rinne’s thoughts and behavior.
The curse that had whipped her from behind whenever she tried to stay still had disappeared, but when she was doing nothing, anxiety and impatience gnawed at her heart.
Even after returning to the Hokkaido branch of the Location Point after the group trip, it wasn’t much different.
Just taking a bath in the bathroom made her mouth dry with discomfort and tension.
That’s why she still didn’t sleep, and at night, she would sit on the floor, straighten her back, and enter a state of meditation.
She could only find a brief moment of relief when hunting homunculi.
Even though the situation had changed, she couldn’t adapt easily, so she felt strangely adrift, unable to do anything.
She was wandering through each day as if floating.
Rinne’s anxiety was noticed faster than anyone else by her husband, who came with a beautiful dress as a gift.
“Rinne, that seems too difficult for you.”
“This is comfortable for me.”
There was no need to try to find even more happiness.
Her husband, who already made Rinne happy beyond measure, was right beside her.
Seeking more comfort and enjoyment of life felt like trying to force on clothes that didn’t fit.
“Then, do you not eat separately either?”
“I eat a little.”
“And you don’t sleep?”
“Sleep is unsettling.”
“What do you do in your free time?”
“I meditate.”
“……”
Siwoo pondered for a long time.
The concern and worry on his face pleased Rinne.
The person she loved more than anyone was so sincerely worried about her.
“Husband. It’s okay.”
But apart from that, she didn’t want him to keep worrying.
She was about to tell him that she was satisfied as she was and that he didn’t need to worry too much, but he cut her off.
“I can’t do this. I have to give you homework.”
“……”
“Starting today, you absolutely have to do something enjoyable once a day and write it in a diary to show me when we meet next.”
“Husband. That’s not a diary. It’s a report.”
“But if I don’t do this, I’ll be too worried.”
It was a troublesome and bothersome task.
It was also against Rinne’s will.
In the past, she wouldn’t have taken on a task she didn’t want to do even if a knife was at her throat, but if the person asking was her husband, it was a different story.
“Is this an order as my husband?”
“Hey, why are you being so stiff? It’s a request. A request. But please don’t just write anything carelessly as a lie.”
“…I understand.”
Rinne, who had been given homework, began the task of recording ‘the joys of life’ from that day on.
The problem was that she couldn’t figure out where to even start.
She had to do one ‘leisure’ activity each day, something that had no connection to Rinne’s life, as if it were homework.
But no matter how difficult the request was, it was her husband’s order, and an order given for Rinne’s sake.
She absolutely couldn’t do it half-heartedly.
“What is it?”
Therefore, Rinne sought out the woman who was her long-time rival and would be her eternal rival.
“I want to talk. Tiferet.”
“Very well.”
Eloa Tiferet.
Once, she was Rinne’s goal and rival, and now, they were in a position to serve the same husband.
She knew that harmony between concubines was beneficial to the peace of the household.
Therefore, Rinne was determined to achieve harmony with her other lovers.
However, she couldn’t seem to narrow the distance with Eloa as much as she wanted.
Perhaps Rinne’s remaining instincts as a warrior were unwilling to acknowledge a similar being.
But in Rinne’s eyes, Eloa was a woman who knew how to enjoy life.
She was quite good at cooking, and above all, she was a heavy drinker.
It might not seem like much, but ‘things you don’t necessarily have to do,’ or rather, ‘wasting time and money,’ is the essence of leisure.
In that sense, Tiferet, who never let go of her alcohol, or rather, she who harmoniously enjoyed daily life and leisure, might be the best person to ask for advice.
It was also a bonus that she had similar aspects to Rinne, such as being rigid and living a restrained warrior’s life.
“This is unusual. What brings you here?”
As expected, Eloa seemed surprised that Rinne, who had never had a private conversation with her outside of work hours, had come to see her.
She was even more surprised when she received Rinne’s request.
“You want me to recommend whiskey?”
“That is correct.”
Although things had improved since they had participated in subjugations together, the two had been in a subtle rivalry.
The days they had been hostile to each other were that long.
“Good.”
Siwoo had always wanted Rinne and Eloa to get along, and they couldn’t stay like this forever.
Eloa had also been unsure of how to treat Rinne, with her direction being ambiguous.
But Rinne had come to her with a personal request?
Wasn’t this Rinne’s way of signaling friendship?
Since Rinne had lowered her head and come to her first, Eloa also softened her usual business-like attitude and led her into the guest room with a gentle face.
“But why the sudden interest in alcohol? I didn’t think you were the type to enjoy drinking.”
“I’m going to start now.”
“I see. Follow me. It’s towards the business room.”
Rinne silently followed behind Eloa, who was walking with a light step.
Her steps seemed lighter than usual.
It was as if she was walking with a proud and excited step, wanting to show off.
“How is it?”
“……”
Rinne was momentarily speechless.
Just like in Seoul, the rooms provided to Eloa and Rinne were the top-floor suites.
The rooms had two lounges and five bedrooms, but since there were only three of them, there were empty rooms.
Among them, Eloa had taken over one of the offices where she could work, so it was the first time Rinne had seen the inside.
But what was this?
There were various bottles of alcohol piled up on the bookshelf.
The amount was extraordinary.
Even if she gathered all of Eloa’s personal belongings, it wouldn’t be even half of this.
“These are my collection.”
With a happy face as if looking at a child, she looked at the bookshelf where various bottles of alcohol were displayed, and then, with a sparkling gaze that expected a reaction after introducing her precious toys, she turned to Rinne.
“…Impressive.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Have a seat. I’ll teach you one by one.”
-Thump! Thud! Bang!
After saying that, Eloa picked out a few bottles of alcohol and placed them on the table.
Next to them, she lined up several Glencairn glasses.
The Glencairn glass, with its wide bottom and wide top, taking the shape of a tulip, was a glass that allowed one to gather the aroma of whiskey and savor it more deeply.
“Have you ever tasted whiskey before?”
“No.”
“That’s good, I’ll teach you one by one. Whiskey is an alcoholic beverage with more than 40% alcohol content, made by fermenting barley or other grains with yeast and then distilling it. Broadly speaking, there is single malt, made from barley produced at a single distillery, blended, made by mixing various raw spirits, and bourbon, distilled in the United States. There are also rum, made from sugarcane byproducts, and cognac, made from wine.”
As you can see from this full-fledged explanation and her more abundant words than usual, Eloa was quite excited.
There were many witches who were heavy drinkers, but there were few witches who liked alcohol as much as Eloa.
Moreover, most witches preferred wine or champagne, so whiskey was a rather minor taste.
In other words, Eloa’s heart when looking at Rinne was like that of a veteran player of a bad game who had found a newbie asking for guidance.
She temporarily put down the wall between them and pledged to teach her enthusiastically.
“The world of whiskey is profound. No whiskey in this world tastes the same. If you become accustomed to its delicate flavor, you will feel a lack in other alcohols.”
“I see. I didn’t know that.”
Just like when she learned about relationships from Yebin, and when she learned to cook from Zlata, Rinne’s attitude toward learning was ideal.
She would put aside her own stubbornness and quietly listen with her mouth shut.
“Since it’s your first time, let’s start with single malt.”
Eloa, who was even more pleased with her attitude, took out a higher-grade alcohol than she had originally planned.
It was a precious alcohol that Kim Junbeop had brought as a gift a while ago.
“ ‘Macallan 30 Year Old Sherry Oak’. As the name suggests, it’s an old friend that has been aged in sherry oak for 30 years.”
“What is sherry oak?”
“Sherry oak is a barrel used to age sherry wine, a specialty of southern Spain. The oak barrel in which whiskey is aged is also one of the factors that determine the flavor. The taste varies greatly depending on what kind of barrel and in what region it was aged. Without further ado, let’s taste it first.”
Eloa poured whiskey into the glass in front of Rinne.
One ounce, about 30mL, is the standard for a glass of whiskey.
Rinne stared blankly at the transparent amber liquid at the bottom of the glass.
“Try it. There’s no need to drink it quickly. It’s good to enjoy the time slowly as if having a conversation. Take a small sip, roll it around on your tongue, and then swallow it comfortably. And if you exhale the aroma through your nose like this, you’ll be able to feel the best flavor.”
“Very well.”
Rinne took a small sip of the alcohol as Eloa instructed.
She had no idea of the tragedy that would come an hour later.
