Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: Living Together (3)
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After the movie ended, Sharon's eyes were all puffy.
It was because she'd watched the whole thing wiping away tears and snot with nearly a full box of tissues.
Even with her eyes so swollen, she didn't look the least bit ugly—probably because her raw material was just that flawless.
As Siwoo spread a blanket over the sofa, he called out to Sharon, who was still lost in a whirlpool of emotion.
"So, I'm gonna catch a quick nap. What about you?"
"Sleep? Sounds great—it's been ages."
"You don't usually sleep much?"
"I never have time normally... but I do love sleeping. And since I'm in such a good mood today, a nice snooze sounds perfect."
For witches, sleep was purely a matter of preference, but far more of them actually slept than didn't.
Witches were human at their core, after all.
Sleep was a time to rest with a complete blank in your thoughts, free of any worries.
Especially young witches freshly turned—they tended to crave it the most.
Siwoo himself always made sure to snag three or four hours a day.
With dawn already breaking beyond the blackout curtains, Siwoo had locked the door tight.
Truth be told, the "sofa" was wider and softer than most beds; throw on a blanket and pillow, and it was perfect for a solid nap.
"I'll crash in the living room tonight. You take my bed."
"Huh? No way! I'll take the sofa."
"You're a guest—how could I make you sleep on the couch?"
"I'm the one freeloading here."
He'd already ordered a bed frame and mattress anyway.
Just a couple nights on the sofa, and it'd be fine—but Sharon wasn't budging an inch.
She darted over, slipped under the blanket he'd laid out, hugged the pillow tight, and staked her claim.
"I'm sleeping here."
"Fine, then I won't sleep at all. You take the bed."
"No! You're just skipping sleep because of me, right? Then I won't sleep either."
"I'm seriously fine. The sofa's plenty comfy, like a real bed."
"Then I'm even more fine. You said it's as soft as a bed."
Why was she being so stubborn about sleeping on the sofa? He felt bad sticking his rare guest—especially a woman—out in the living room.
At this rate, neither of them would sleep.
Then Sharon lit up like she'd just had a brilliant idea.
"How about we share the bed? It's big enough anyway."
Siwoo shut it down flat.
"No."
"Why not?"
But he didn't have an immediate comeback for her quick retort.
"Even so, sharing a bed feels... off."
"Why? They share beds in the movie."
The romance flick they'd watched did have plenty of scenes with the leads waking up together in the same bed.
And some subtly implied sex scenes too, nothing too explicit.
Which had made watching it together a bit awkward.
"Uh... well... they're a couple. They're in love."
"So if you're not in love, you can't share a bed?"
"Sure, the movie goes from sharing a bed to hooking up, but you're not planning that, right? And neither am I. So no problem?"
Siwoo sure as hell hadn't suggested living together with any shady intentions toward her.
That said, he wasn't blind to her appeal either.
He just didn't want any awkward mishaps from tumbling around in the same bed.
"Anyway, no."
"Then I'm not sleeping."
"Me neither."
"........."
"........."
Sharon stared at him like his logic was utterly baffling; Siwoo looked downright flustered. Both fell silent.
Then, as if on cue, they locked eyes and burst into pointless laughter.
The whole situation was just... ticklish, somehow.
Sharon giggled first, breaking the ice with an apology.
"Sorry, I was being stubborn. Still, I'll take the sofa tonight. Don't worry about it—the bed's coming in a few days anyway, right?"
"Got it. I just wanted you to be comfy since we're both off today."
"It's seriously comfy, no worries. I set an alarm—we'll regroup in three hours."
"Cool."
In the end, Siwoo took the bed, and Sharon claimed the sofa.
2.
"Time for me to earn my keep! Sharon Evergreen's Magic Classroom—let's begin!"
After wolfing down a quick breakfast of waffles and pancakes, Sharon marched energetically into Siwoo's room.
Siwoo followed after tidying up.
Sharon poked around, eyeing his room curiously.
"Y'know, this is my first time in a guy's room."
"Really? You didn't say anything when you came over earlier."
"Wasn't thinking about it till now. But that movie made such a big deal of it... now I'm self-conscious."
Sure enough, her awkward smile suggested the film had planted some ideas.
Though she'd probably brushed off half the vague feelings Siwoo was wrestling with.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have suggested sharing a bed—or still be lounging around in those embarrassing sleep clothes.
"You must study hard."
"Easier to see everything laid out like this."
"Still... it looks so professional."
One wall was dominated by a corkboard, strung with threads linking clues and knowledge like a detective's case map.
The whiteboard held rough equations sketching magic circle forms.
By Siwoo's estimate, he'd decoded maybe 50% of the magic from Ain.
"Mind if I take a look?"
"That's what I was hoping for."
"I'll ask about anything confusing—mind explaining on the side?"
Sharon scrutinized the magic circles he'd organized, cross-referencing the formulas pinned to the corkboard.
She needed to gauge his level across fields before teaching.
After a long review with Siwoo's side notes, she nodded.
"I think I get it. The big picture."
"Yeah?"
Siwoo perked up.
His magic research had hit a brick wall lately.
With no references or mentors, that impenetrable barrier felt impossible to breach alone.
"Yeah. Have a seat here first?"
Sharon patted the spot beside her.
She began a calm explanation, jotting notes on paper as she went.
"You know magic falls into four main lineages, right?"
"Yeah."
Elemental, Alchemy, Incantation, and Barrier.
With as many Self-Generating Magics as there were witches, they couldn't all fit neatly—but over 90% fell under these four as subcategories.
Starting with the first...
Elemental.
Universal across cultures East and West, it harmonized water, fire, earth, and wind to weave diverse spells.
With ancient traditions stretching back to antiquity, most orthodox witches hailed from this lineage—and it boasted the largest numbers.
In Gehenna, the society for elemental witches was the Society of Truth and Essence.
Amelia Merrygold, who fused wind and water into Particle Magic, belonged here too.
Next up: Alchemy.
Where elemental magic made the caster the direct conduit for mystery via mana, this lineage leaned hard on tools and catalysts.
Drug-making—elixirs, reagents, potions—and magitech artifacts both fell here, giving it elemental-level versatility and numbers.
In Gehenna, alchemists had formed the Emerald Tablet Society. Stats even claimed elemental and alchemy witches together made up over 90% of the total.
Then: Incantation.
Users dwindled here, blurring the lines of "lineage."
It manifested inner imagery as spoken "incantations"—essentially a subset of the chanting in most magics.
"Words" as the agent made standardization tough, earning it a reputation as outdated and clunky. Most users had shifted to elemental lineages.
These days, famous incantation witches boiled down to Countess Gemernai.
Finally: Barrier.
Even incantation had some users, but barriers were practically extinct, some said.
Calls to rename them the "three great lineages" cropped up often.
Many witches could handle basic Reverse Barriers, but that was thanks to Duke Keter's reforms making it accessible to all. Few delved deep.
In Gehenna, only Duke Keter and Viscount Yesod, wielder of Force Field Magic, remained.
"First off, know that I'm genuinely impressed. You've got real talent."
"R-Really?"
"Yeah. The kind that makes me jealous enough to cry."
Sharon's close inspection confirmed it: Siwoo's achievements were astounding.
Too refined and innovative for solo work in just a few years.
Unique feats piled up at dazzling speed, unseen before.
But his Self-Generating Magic was incomplete.
Masterful with limited materials, yet his fundamentals screamed novice.
Easy to see why such talent had stalled.
"Your Self-Generating Magic blends two lineages.
Can't pin it exactly, but you called it Coordinate Shift? No help there—sorry, but you'll need independent Barrier research.
Shadow Rule, though? That's elemental. I can assist."
Sharon flicked her wrist, her body flashing brightly.
The classic magical girl transformation.
Now in her witch uniform, she waved her wand with one hand.
"My Self-Generating Magic applies Tarva's five elements—pure elemental lineage. You're clueless on elements, right?"
"Yep. My research was just dimension shift, and that's from the Gnosis egg."
"From today, I'll teach you everything I know."
Sharon extended her hand to Siwoo.
He eyed it awkwardly.
"What? Grab it."
"My hand?"
"Yeah. I'm gonna share my worldview with you. Physical contact for imagery sync."
Siwoo hesitantly took her hand.
An awkward handshake grip.
"Not like that—properly, like this."
Evidently wrong—her long, slender fingers slipped between his, locking in an interlace.
"Uh..."
"Ah..."
Both let out a sigh-like gasp in unison.
Siwoo from her soft, dainty knuckles; Sharon from his unexpectedly thick, firm palm.
She beamed, shattering the awkward silence.
"Was just gonna teach magic... feels weird now. Shouldn't have watched that romance flick."
"Yeah. Next time, war movie."
"But scoot a bit closer? Don't stay so far."
"Like this?"
"Yeah, perfect."
Hands interlaced like a waltz hold, facing close.
Sharon flashed a soft smile at his bashfulness, then closed her eyes.
"Okay, close your eyes. Feel only my hand's touch."
"Got it."
"No need to reply. Just relax slowly... imagine us as one."
She squeezed his hand tight.
Mana flowed from her palm, weaving into his skin at the contact point.
A bizarre sensation beyond mere hand-holding.
He heard her heartbeat as his own, felt her breaths, shared her senses in mystic unity.
Dazed by the novel feeling, Sharon suddenly let go.
Focus shattered like surfacing from water.
She looked sheepish.
"S-Sorry... your heart was pounding so hard, it startled me. You okay?"
Siwoo instinctively clutched his chest.
Yeah—his heart was thumping wildly.
Just as he'd felt her senses, she'd felt this?
Mortifying.
"Nah, just... uh..."
Sharon giggled at his fluster, her laugh knowing and tickled.
"Super nervous, huh? Normal. Not scary, though. Deep breaths."
"Hoo... haa... whoo..."
"Good. Again."
It took nearly thirty minutes for Siwoo to behold the element-packed world Sharon intended.
And that day, her convenience store shift came only after hours of elemental magic lessons.