City ​​of Witches 931

Chapter 931 – #202_미아(5)

#925

1.
Lafi died.
Because of her own recklessness and arrogance.
She lost her one and only beloved daughter because of her negligence in not taking proper responsibility.

She chased after Eah.
She would capture and kill Eah to get revenge.
That was all she could think about.

However, Eah Sadalmelik was an excellent hunter, so she knew how to evade pursuit well.
Even after 10 or 20 years, she kept chasing after her shadow.

Emptiness and despair.
Skepticism and helplessness.
Self-reproach and self-loathing flowed down a funnel.

Every day, it felt like she was swallowing boiling mud that made her want to throw up.

When she opened her eyes, she cursed herself, and when she closed them, she always shed tears of blood.

In the endless game of tag, Eloa set a new goal.

Yes.
Let’s kill all the accomplices who harmed the apprentice witch.

So she killed them.
While chasing Eah, she roamed the world’s harsh lands with a sword, killing every witch designated as an accomplice for ‘killing an apprentice witch’ whenever she encountered them.

She killed.
She killed.
And she killed again.

But no matter how many times she stained her hands with blood and struck down wicked villains, the emptiness did not go away.
The self-satisfaction of having realized justice faded faster than the wick of a burnt-out candle, leaving only a lingering, acrid regret.

It must have been around that time.
That Eloa belatedly recalled Lafi’s request.

As Lafi had implored Eloa in her last words to protect the powerless, Eloa established the Location Point to hunt homunculi and accomplices.

She sold all her assets, and the shortfall was covered by agreements with various governments.

After that, Eloa slowly changed over a very long time.
It would have been a positive change that Lafi would have been very pleased with.

The Location Point saved many humans.
Holding the precious lives that would have died helplessly brought Eloa a little comfort.

She would sometimes smile warmly as she watched people who had been saved from unmanageable disasters thrive.

For a long time, the Location Point was Eloa’s greatest achievement and pride.

And even at this moment, it was the reason for her life.

However, the scene she saw from the ‘Ark’ prepared by the Witch of Creation was shaking Eloa.

Is it really right to save humans who commit such cruel acts?
If, as Lydia said, humans who have gained power use the law of the jungle to dominate witches,
then why shouldn’t witches dominate humans at this moment?

If this is the future that will come in the distant future.
What exactly has Eloa been fighting for?

She doesn’t know the answer.
She wants to give up everything and run away.

If she could erase her memories from this place, she would gladly do so.

“Shiwoo.”

The door closed.

Eloa, who had entered the room as if she was about to have a serious conversation, conscious of Lydia, was gone.
The Tiferet Duchess, who had shown her dignity without wavering at Lydia’s provocation, was also gone.

“Shiwoo….”

The moment they were alone, Eloa revealed her fragile inner self, as if she would crumble at the slightest touch.

In fact, there were many things to discuss.

Discussions about what to do with the gate once they obtained it.
Discussions about the possibility of someone else getting their hands on Angel’s technology.
Discussions about whether to disclose the information about this city to the witch society.

But Eloa could only bite her lip, unable to say anything, while being held in Shiwoo’s arms.

She didn’t want to think about complicated things.
She just wanted to be held in Shiwoo’s arms.
She wanted to be showered with words of love and be petted.

Only the intense impulse stemming from her escape mechanism dominated Eloa.

“Master, are you okay…?”
“Kiss me.”

Her heart regained stability as if an anesthetic was spreading over Shiwoo’s face, who was looking at Eloa with worried eyes.
She even tried to ignore the self-reproach of using her beloved disciple to escape from unpleasant things.

“Chuu, chuu….”

Eloa took off her clothes while continuing the kiss.
Today, Eloa was so proactive that Shiwoo was surprised.

She straddled his still not fully aroused member and forced her way in while continuing to kiss him as if clinging to him.
Eloa’s slender legs wrapped around Shiwoo’s waist, pressing their entire bodies together.

“Shiwoo, hold me tighter….”
“Master….”

Shiwoo was a bit oblivious.

But how long had he been watching over his master?
Today, she was different from usual.
The arms and legs that clung to Shiwoo seemed to convey even a sense of desperation.

“Shiwoo.”
“Without saying anything… can’t you just hold me?”
“I don’t think you’re feeling well.”
“I know. But, it’s okay. It’s really okay, so… can you say you love me and hold me…?”
“…Of course.”

But no one could give her the answer to this dilemma.

It was something that only Eloa herself had to resolve.

2.
“Hmm.”

Lydia looked at Rinne with a displeased expression.

“……”

Her ice-cold beauty and expressionless face.
So far, it was the same Rinne that Lydia knew.

But what on earth were those unhideable flushed cheeks and hazy eyes?

Even though quite some time had passed since she came out of the room, she was still like that.
She seemed to be trying to pull herself together, conscious of Lydia sitting in front of her, but it didn’t seem easy.

Lydia was curious about what exactly they had done inside to elicit such a reaction.

“Do you like it that much?”
“Be quiet.”

Look at that.

Her curt way of speaking was the same as usual, but it was an awkward way of speaking, as if a person in a great mood was forcing themselves to be angry.
The atmosphere that seemed like it could cut you if you touched it was now sheathed in its scabbard.

Lydia had also tasted it a bit.
It wasn’t that dramatic, so was it because it was hard to grasp its true value with just one bite?

“Why did you go in alone with the Duchess?”
“I have no desire to talk.”

“It was terrible when I did it with you. Was love the most essential seasoning?”
“It’s none of my business.”

“You’re no fun. We’re just killing time anyway, so a little chat is okay, right?”
“……”

When she tried to provoke her, Rinne completely closed her eyes and blocked any pointless chatter.
Lydia was good at reading others, but Rinne was a formidable opponent in her own way.

In the end, she couldn’t find any clues, but Lydia glanced at the tightly closed door of the inner room.

She was dying to know what was going on behind that door.

Not only was it soundproofed, but it was also covered with all sorts of magic that restricted observation.
It wouldn’t be difficult to peek if she was determined, but there was no way Rinne would let Lydia’s magic go unchecked right in front of her.

As far as Lydia had gathered, Shin Shiwoo’s history with women was quite promiscuous.
Rinne, Dorothy, R’lyeh, and lastly, the apprentice witch from the Jemenae Count’s family.

Well, he was the only male witch in the world, and his specs were above the 20th level.
He was a handsome man with chiseled features and a beast-like physique.
If he set his mind to it, he could probably seduce about a quarter of the witch population, so if he only had four or five, it could even be considered healthy.

She wouldn’t be surprised if he had about ten more secret partners.

But if the Tiferet Duchess was one of them, that was a different story.

“Just asking, but is that man also in a relationship with the Duchess?”

Tiferet, who was known for her upright character, was actually in a secret relationship with her disciple.
While she was suspicious, the inner voice saying ‘No way’ was louder.

A moment later, the door opened again and Shiwoo walked out.

“Why are you coming out alone?”
“She said she was going to sleep.”
“What did you two do inside?”
“We just talked a bit.”
“What kind of important conversation was it that you had to seal it off with magic?”
“It’s a secret.”
“Was it a naughty secret?”
“Hey now….”

In the past, he had to grovel because he had to please Lydia, but in the current situation, she was nothing more than a dangerous person to be wary of.

“Stay away from my husband.”

Rinne quickly came to his aid when she saw Shiwoo making a disgusted face.

After that, Lydia kept asking questions on her own, but when she was ignored, she grumbled, “What, no fun,” and became quiet.

He had a bitter taste in his mouth.
Kisses, caresses, hugs, and a barrage of “I love you.”
He had tried his best to cheer up his master.

His master had finally fallen asleep, feeling a little better, but the fundamental problem had not been resolved.

She was probably carrying a conflict and worries that were hundreds of times heavier than this uneasy feeling.
Still, the first priority was to return alive.

“My head is killing me….”
“Husband, if you give me your hand, I will press on acupressure points that are good for headaches.”

Everyone was serious, but Lydia was taking out a new bottle of champagne from her subspace.
There was no guarantee that she would be able to survive in this city full of Angels.

“You’re very carefree.”
“I’m sulking.”
“Never mind. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No, actually, I don’t think I’m that sulky.”

Could she have another hidden force?
It was a reasonable suspicion.

“Do you have something to rely on?”
“You and your master are very much alike. Do you not trust me that much? The Solidus Merchant Guild keeps its word.”

She tried to probe vaguely, but she was immediately seen through.
Lydia, who had been casting an inscrutable gaze, said as if it was nothing.

“Actually, if you pay me enough, I can clean up all these Angel bastards.”

She tried to pass it off as a bluff.

There were more than 320,000 Angels in the city.
AA-000 said that was enough to fight 16 witches of the 22nd level at the same time.
Having fought them directly, it was definitely possible.

Even if she was a 23rd level witch, to be able to take care of that alone.

“That’s a big bluff. So, what’s the price?”
“Hmm…. About 9.4 billion dollars. If you only consider the cost, that should be enough.”

She was asking for an amount that was over 12 trillion won in Korean currency.
But even though it was a joke, Lydia didn’t seem to be joking.

He decided not to question whether it was true or not.

Even if it wasn’t a joke, there was no way to come up with that much money anyway.
Besides, since they were on the same boat, she would probably use it if they were in a life-threatening situation.
He didn’t want to think about anything more complicated.

-Wiiiieeeeeeeng!

Suddenly, a sharp siren rang throughout the city.
Shiwoo tensed up, wondering if their location had been discovered.
Even Lydia’s relaxed expression stiffened.

“What is it?”
“The magic hasn’t been detected.”
“Look over there.”

Shiwoo looked.

An unrealistic night view was overlaid with a fantastical presence.
A being stood tall on the concrete wall that surrounded the entire city.

A male deer with huge, flowered antlers and leather covered in grass and moss.
A king of beasts that evoked the image of a spirit protecting nature.

Behind it, a legion of homunculi began to appear one by one.

Like a swarm of bees sensing a wasp attack, tens of thousands of Angels were gathering.