Chapter 132: Tying Up Loose Ends (2)

༺ Tying Up Loose Ends (2) ༻

1.

‘Why is the Countess here?’

Odile had clearly said that the Countess wouldn’t be able to contact him for about a month since they weren’t in Gehenna.

‘Isn’t this like when your girlfriend invites you over because her parents are on vacation, but when you’re having fun with her, they suddenly come back home?’

Of course such a dreadful situation was merely a metaphor for Siwoo as he had never actually encountered that situation in his life.

As for Odile, she didn’t have the opportunity to ask them anything.

“Come over here, Odile.”

The Countess’ gaze turned to Odile.

Her voice was gentle, but it carried a different weight than usual.

There was a sense of reprimand and scolding in her tone. It was so obvious that even Siwoo could feel it.Ñøv€l-B1n was the first platform to present this chapter.

“M-Master, I-I’ll explain—”

“I’ll hear that later. First of all, come inside, Odile.”

Odile casted an apologetic look at Siwoo before entering the living room hesitantly.

Before he realized it, Siwoo followed behind her. The sense of pressure he felt was immense.

The white haired Deneb lightly took hold of Odile’s wrist.

While doing so, she seemed to be examining something as she stared at her silently for a while before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

She was confirming if there was any harm to her apprentice’s ‘bowl.’ It was a natural course of action, after all, the girl suddenly informed her to stay overnight, went out late at night with a man and only returned when dawn was about to arrive.

Fortunately, everything was fine. Once Deneb confirmed this, she lightly smacked Odile in the head.

“Ow!”

“Who gave you permission to stay overnight? Do you know how long we were searching for you guys?”

“I-I’m sorry... B-But, Mr. Assistant had woken up! I-I didn’t want to leave just like that...”

“Listen carefully, Odile. We won’t take this incident lightly, but since it’s late, go upstairs and sleep. We’ll discuss this after you’re awake.”

‘Huh? Are the Countess actually in Gehenna? Was it a mistake to completely believe in Odile’s words?’

Siwoo stood around, feeling perplexed. As he was drowning in his emotion, Albireo called out to him.

“Shin Siwoo, please stay here with us.”

“Master, please let me explain! Mr. Assistant is not at fault! I was the one who persuaded him to go for a stroll! I was also the one who told him to sleep here!”

But, Deneb swiftly dismissed Odile’s words.

“We’ll ask you about it later, Odile, so go up for now.”

“B-But...”

“Go up.”

Unable to break through Deneb’s stern demeanor, Odile reluctantly complied.

To Siwoo, this was like him seeing his lawyer getting kicked out of the courtroom before she could bring up his case to defend him.

‘What is this shitshow?’ That thought looped endlessly like a broken record in his mind.

“Odile, I hope you won’t do anything else to make me even angrier than I currently am.”

Upon hearing Albireo’s cold voice, Odile couldn’t maintain her stubbornness anymore.

After all, it was the first time she had seen her master get this angry.

“Alright, I’m going upstairs, but please, Master, please promise me one thing.”

“Do you think you have the right to ask for that?”

“No, but I have to ask!”

Odile shouted her words with determination, to ensure the ultimate safety measure for Siwoo.

“If you were to hurt him, I’ll never see your face again, Master! Never!”

“This brat!”

Deneb, who was already fed up with her audacity, was about to smack her on the head again.

However, Albirero, who was seated in her chair while sipping her alcohol, interjected before it could happen.

“Deneb, enough.”

“But Sister! Look at the audacious way this brat speaks! Who does she think is at fault here? And what’s with that outfit? Seriously? Going outside with just a cloak and her underwear?!”

“Deneb, I said, enough.”

Albireo waved her hand dismissively and made eye contact with Odile.

The latter widened her eyes, trying not to avoid her gaze.

She acknowledged her own mistake, but Siwoo’s well-being was a more urgent matter than her receiving a severe scolding from her strict master.

“I swear that I will not bring harm to Shin Siwoo. Are you satisfied, Odile?”

Odile pressed her lips tightly before nodding slowly.

“It’s late, so go upstairs and sleep. We have other matters to discuss.”

“Yes... Sorry for acting out on my own...”

As soon as she managed to assure Siwoo’s safety, Odile humbly apologized, as if all her stubbornness just now was a lie. Then, she mouthed, ‘I’m sorry, Mr. Assistant,’ before going upstairs.

‘Well, that’s that.’

Odile’s matters were resolved for now, but for Siwoo, it had only just started.

“Now, why don’t you have a seat? Let’s talk, shall we?”

“...”

As soon as the name Marigold was mentioned, Siwoo’s face stiffened.

In his current state, Siwoo was unable to maintain his composure upon hearing that name.

The confusion he had barely managed to set aside with Odile’s assistance resurfaced.

“Baroness Marigold made tremendous efforts to save you, Mr. Siwoo. She even summoned a witch specialized in healing. Even I, as a spectator who only observed from the sidelines was amazed—”

As Deneb knew that Amelia had a crush on Siwoo, she mentioned part of the things that Amelia had done for him.

‘It was Amelia’s desperate struggle that saved his life,’ she implied as she casually made her remark. There was also a hidden intention of her to probe whether there was some progress between the two.

However, she quickly realized that something was wrong when she saw Siwoo’s uncomfortable expression, prompting her to stop speaking.

Siwoo regained his composure rather quickly, but by then, an awkward atmosphere had already settled in.

Luckily, Albireo managed to smoothly change the subject.

“...In any case, let’s talk about your compensation. A reward that you think might be sufficient for you, Mr. Siwoo.”

Siwoo felt his stomach churn as he briefly closed his eyes.

‘Amelia, Amelia, Amelia...’

‘I should stop thinking about her for now...’

‘Let’s assess the situation carefully first before taking up on their offer.’

‘They’re the only ones who can get me out of Gehenna, after all.’

‘But, I need to hide my desperation from them.’

“I still haven’t changed my mind since then. My wish is to return to the modern world.”

‘My goal is to leave this place.’

‘And when I go back to my peaceful life, I will eventually forget all these troublesome things.’

In the first place, there was no reason for him to change his request, especially considering that he had been longing to leave this place for five years already.

Returning to the modern world was his only goal in life. Compared to being confused over the person that he both used to love and hate, he judged that it would be better for him to focus on this goal instead.

“Hmm...”

“I don’t mean to pry, but... Have you heard from the Baroness about the things that might happen if you were to leave this world?”

“...Pardon?”

‘What will happen if I leave this world?’

‘Since I’m a man who knows how to use magic, does that mean the witches would take an interest in me?’

The situation was even more urgent if that was the case. He had acquired a ‘brand’ on his own, so he had to be more cautious with his actions.

But, it wasn’t a problem that he couldn’t handle.

Not only did he have the music box he received from Odile, the number of people who knew about his brand was also very small. As long as he could hide it well and tread carefully, everything would be fine.

“We have no intention of changing your mind, or preventing you from going back to the modern world.”

“While you are an oddity that would make witches drool to obtain you, repaying our debt to you is more important.”

“Thank you for saying that...”

“However, we still need to clarify some things if you truly insist on returning to the modern world. If you still have the same thought even after we’ve explained everything to you, then we have no choice but to respect your decision.”

Suddenly, a serious atmosphere enveloped the room.

Siwoo was bewildered.

He thought that everything would be over once he left, but it seemed like that was merely a naive thought of his.

“Please take off your eyepatch.”

“Pardon?”

Albireo pointed to his left eye as he stared back at her in confusion.

“There’s something that we need to clarify.”

‘Is showing them my left eye here really the right choice?’

Siwoo trusted the twins.

While they were naive and at times, stubborn, he had unwavering confidence that they would never betray him.

But, the Countess were different.

He wasn’t sure if he could fully put his trust in them despite their connection to the twins as their masters.

“We will never disclose or reveal the matter. We are willing to stake our name as the Countess Gemini.”

Siwoo hesitated for a moment before removing the eyepatch that concealed his eye.

As he opened his previously closed eyes, his radiant golden irises came into view.

Just by seeing it, Albireo managed to recognize what it was.

“As expected, it’s a brand.”

“Incredible...”

Siwoo’s physical appearance had returned to back when he hadn’t received his heavy injury.

However, despite that, he still wore his eyepatch even though the tiniest imperfections that were left in his body should have been flawlessly fixed. This was the fact that made Albireo suspicious.

Unable to comprehend the situation, Deneb instinctively covered her mouth with her hand.

“Yes, it’s a brand. Will this become a problem?”

“Not at the moment, no, but there’s a possibility that things might turn complicated.”

“I’m listening.”

In front of Siwoo, who was leaning in attentively to discuss his plans for the future, the Countess continued her explanation.