Chapter 32
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: 7. Team Leader? (2)
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― Kyaaah!!
The next day at 10 a.m.
As usual, when I visited Neria's house, a scream like that came from beyond the front door at the same time.
It sounded like Neria's voice. What on earth could make her scream like that?
...Maybe a cockroach had appeared.
I didn't like the sound of that either, so I pressed the doorbell worriedly.
What I ended up seeing wasn't a bug, but a person.
"Oh, Dowon."
Not just a person—a witch.
Erzel, wearing a pure white dress made of soft-looking fabric, had opened the door in Neria's place.
If you judged by her inner workings alone, she might be one of the lewdest people in the world.
Today, as always, she had that innocent, frail appearance, oblivious to it all.
"It's been a while, Erzel. What brings you here...?"
"I got a call from Neria yesterday. She said that sex isn't such a big deal after all. Anyway, I came to see for myself if it's true."
"...So you came right away to check."
"For something like this, I'd cancel any important schedule and come running. Ahem. Won't you praise me?"
"You must really love your apprentice. If I were in her shoes, I'd be thrilled."
"How do you say such pretty things? In contrast, our Neria is... well, anyway. When I checked directly, her hymen was definitely gone, and there was this sticky semen smell wafting off her horribly."
"The smell... I thought it would wash off quickly in the shower."
"Ahaha. It was just a figure of speech. A figure."
"......"
"From what I just checked, instead of any slutty white stuff, all I saw was a pretty pink color."
"Master...!"
And with that frail appearance, her actions were forcibly inspecting her apprentice's hymen.
I was imagining how many news stories would flood out if Erzel's gender were swapped when Neria finally shuffled out from the bedroom with awkward steps.
At the same time, seeing her holding her waist uncomfortably, it seemed her back was hurting too, not just her legs.
...I didn't see what happened just now myself, but they must have been wrestling or something.
As I alternated glances between the two witches with a troubled smile, Neria growled from afar once more.
She looked just like a grumpy cat.
"Close the door already! Are you trying to advertise to the whole neighborhood?!"
"S-Sorry... Anyway, Erzel? If you stand there like that, it's hard for me to come in..."
"Hm? Didn't I step aside properly?"
"......"
Your tits are so unnecessarily huge that even if you step aside, they'll brush against me if I pass.
No, not just brush—they'll press right into my forearm.
I couldn't say that out loud, so I averted my gaze instead, and then giggles came from Erzel behind me.
"Come to think of it, I heard about that too. That Dowon's got an impressive cock, and more importantly, his semen tastes amazing..."
"...You're too kind."
She did it subtly, blocking Neria's view with her body while grabbing my wrist.
...Unlike her apprentice, this one was sly as a fox. We'd barely exchanged a few words, and I already felt drained.
"Neria said it's three times better, right? Is that true?"
"I wouldn't know. That's something only a witch like Neria could explain."
"Ah, true. No way to know without trying it myself... Hm."
"......"
"Dowon's got a pretty toned body too. And a handsome face. ...From what I just heard, your dick—oh, I mean your cock is quite impressive..."
"......"
The sly fox whispered conspiratorially for a moment.
Pulling me toward her as if sharing a secret, she then stood on tiptoes and murmured,
"...Do you have no interest in older women?"
"......"
Well, fair enough.
She looked like a young housewife, but Erzel was hundreds of years older than me.
"Maybe there's some rough play you've wanted to try with an obedient bitch? Most of what I imagine is right in your strike zone..."
Hundreds of years older or not, with a witch's looks, age didn't matter to anyone.
Every one of them could debut as idols or actresses without holding back—in fact, they'd dominate the industry. Who cared about age?
But still...
"...Um, Erzel. I..."
Her experience... might be a bit much for me... No.
I mean, innocent Neria who was a virgin with men, or training her... No no.
As I pondered how to refuse smoothly, Neria finally shuffled over and tugged at Erzel's arm.
"What are you two whispering about?! Nam Dowon, close the door already...!"
"What do you mean? It was grown-up talk, Neria."
"Grown-up talk my ass... For starters, he's my age, and you were clearly hitting on him for sex!"
"It's mana recharging, dear. Not sex—mana recharging. She used a lot, so she needs to recharge just as much. Right?"
"Ugh..."
"The reason you can laze around in this house right now is thanks to my massive earnings."
I'd thought she made a killing from actual games, but nope—it was Erzel's money after all.
Makes sense for the Water Witch; she could earn in all sorts of ways.
Perhaps hit a nerve, Neria looked troubled, but luckily Erzel seemed satisfied and lightly stepped aside from the entrance.
"Anyway, it's a relief. That Neria's learned about men... So, what's the plan going forward?"
"Uh, the plan going forward...?"
"Is this the end? Or will you keep going with Neria?"
And then the question.
Surprisingly mundane, so mindful of Neria glancing over, I answered.
"If Neria doesn't want to, it'll end here, but if she does, I plan to keep helping."
"Ah, so as long as Neria wants, she can keep doing it with Dowon."
"Yes. Unless I get too busy someday, right now I'm only handling Neria."
"Come to think of it, Eve said something like that. Our apprentice is actually a bit lower on the priority list, but she's paying extra attention because it's you."
"...Ahaha."
"Did you know, Dowon?"
"I... heard a little."
"I see."
She stroked her chin, veering into another topic, then nodded.
Afterward, she alternated between patting her apprentice's waist and looking at me.
"Neria, do you want to do more with Dowon?"
"......"
"......"
...I expected that as soon as I heard it.
Neria's response was to open and close her mouth shyly instead of answering.
As if expecting that, Erzel turned to me with a similar question.
"Dowon, would it be okay to see you more?"
"Like I said, I'm fine..."
"Not for work reasons. Did you enjoy it with Neria?"
"......"
Neria was now silently screaming in embarrassment.
Anyway.
The right answer was obvious,
And my honest feelings weren't far off,
So I nodded.
"With a pretty witch like Neria, I'd be the one begging."
"Oh my..."
"......"
Sure enough, it was the correct answer.
...Though Neria's reaction was a bit ambiguous.
At least for Erzel.
I thought Erzel would leave soon after, but surprisingly, she plopped down on the sofa, saying she'd have lunch here before going.
Before I arrived, she'd found ingredients in the fridge by chance, grown suspicious, and interrogated Neria.
The result? Testimony that lately, she'd been getting fried rice from me.
I first thought it was an excuse to devour me, but the atmosphere wasn't like that.
Even when I explained it was basic singleton fried rice, she didn't change her mind.
At this point, it seemed less about checking her apprentice's portions and more about genuinely grabbing a meal.
It might not suit Erzel's tastes perfectly, but it wasn't inedible, so I prepared three servings including hers.
"Mm, fried rice that kids would love."
"...I-Is that so."
"Especially the parts loaded with ham and egg."
"......"
"It perfectly hits Neria's tastes. Our apprentice definitely has a baby's palate."
That was just because Neria asked for extra ham and egg yesterday.
Which also meant it was her taste, so I stayed quiet.
Maybe embarrassed by 'baby palate,' Neria beside her was glancing around nervously.
Thankfully, Erzel didn't notice, elegantly wiping her lips with a tissue.
After setting down the tissue with just a bit of grease—no makeup—she asked,
"Dowon, do you always walk here for work? I mean, without borrowing Eve's help."
"Yes. No car yet, so I commute by subway."
"Hmm? Why? Hasn't Eve told you what kind of witch she is?"
"I heard Space Witch... or something."
"Right. Especially her teleport magic is super useful. Low mana cost, huge range unlike regular witches limited to line-of-sight, and she can even calculate coordinates for others besides herself."
"I see..."
"Yet you take the subway... Did you get on Eve's bad side? But whenever we talk, it's all about you."
Team Leader, so that's what you do behind my back.
But usually it wasn't just talk—I got sexually harassed whenever she had a chance—so I thought of her as consistent and continued,
"Less that, and more that I haven't asked her. I think Team Leader and I get along okay."
"Oh? How so?"
"...Probably not the kind of 'getting along' you have in mind, Erzel."
"Ahaha. Yeah, probably not. Especially since it's Eve."
"......?"
Did I missay something?
The Team Leader I knew was as bad as Erzel with sexual harassment.
Or maybe 'getting along' means something else among witches.
Or she might've meant it literally.
This felt nosy, but better to correct it.
If word got back to Team Leader as 'they say you two don't get along,' I'd be in trouble.
"Erzel. What I mean is, nothing naughty with Team Leader—just that as fellow Rehab Support members, we get along normally..."
"Hm? That's what I meant too."
"......?"
"Especially since it's Eve. Nothing naughty with Dowon. Yet you get along— what's the secret?"
"No real secret... She treats me so well from the start..."
"Hmm...? Hmmm~"
As I bothered to correct for that reason, Erzel tilted her head lightly and spoke.
"...Ah-ha~"
Then, moments later, as if struck by insight, she smiled brightly.
"Dowon. Dowon."
"Yes, Erzel."
"Do you know what I've been up to lately?"
"...Not really."
"Recently, I went to the US for fun and made it rain buckets. They were in a huge drought crisis."
"Ah..."
"Plus, countries wire the money directly, so it's reliable."
A true Water Witch move.
Finishing her explanation, she continued musingly,
"Anyway, what do you think our Eve was doing then?"
"......"
"Eve could make money in tons of ways if she wanted, so why work under the government? Job stability?"
Now that she mentioned it, it was odd.
The only reason I could think for Team Leader taking that role was to help apprentices like Neria.
She could fill her bank account instantly by charging for 14th-floor-like spaces.
Factories needing lots of space, land-hungry companies.
Shady folks wanting discreet work.
Just off the top of my head, but still she chose this job because,
"I wonder why~?"
...As mentioned before, to help apprentice witches like Neria.
If it were just me, I might've let it slide.
"...Hmm."
"Hehe. Eve's fun to watch up close, but actually..."
But with Erzel here.
Team Leader's old friend spilled a secret.
"She's an even bigger scaredy-cat than Neria."