Chapter 226
Chapter 226
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 226
Chapter Title: People Trapped in the Past (2)
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Coq au vin.
A stew of chicken slowly simmered in red wine, true to its name meaning "rooster in wine."
Even Koreans unfamiliar with French cuisine would likely have heard of it.
I added the marinated chicken to the wok where I'd sautéed the vegetables in butter.
Ignoring the oil splattering onto the back of my hand, I seared it over high heat, focusing on the skin and fat.
Once the surface turned a beautiful caramel color, I transferred it to a pot and heated it up.
For the final touch, I poured in two full bottles of Burgundy wine and sprinkled herbs on top. That completed the prep work.
The aroma of the wine gently spread as bubbles began to rise with a soft gurgling sound.
It was a gift from Teacher Sua, so it was probably a good vintage.
Sure enough, the fragrance wafting from between the pot lid was quite enticing.
This dish requires long simmering, so it calls for tough, firm rooster meat...
Unfortunately, all the chicken at the market was small-sized.
Eloa settled for native chicken in the end, covered the pot, and began preparing the second dish: bouillabaisse.
This one was, in a word, France's seafood stew.
Premium seafood combined with tomatoes, peppers, garlic, onions, and bay leaves and thyme for aroma.
Traditionally, you'd make stock from fish bones, but with no time, I substituted seafood stock.
These two dishes were ones Eloa was most confident in—and Rafi's favorites.
It had been over a century since she'd last cooked like this, yet her hands and body remembered the recipes perfectly.
If a bit more time had passed...
Would she have forgotten how to cook them by then?
Eloa stood blankly in front of the bubbling pots.
A sudden laugh escaped her.
She'd recalled her own words from a conversation with Siu.
"The orthodox witches residing in Renomund Town are particularly stuck in their old ways of thinking."
Stuck in the past.
Trapped in the past.
In other words, unchanging.
Stagnant, like seawater sunk deep in the ocean depths.
Chewing over words she'd said without much thought, they felt tailor-made for her.
For Eloa Tiphereth, who dreamed every night of the moment she lost Rafi.
For Eloa Tiphereth, tormented by a past she'd never reclaim.
"Eut!"
"Are you alright?"
It had only been a brief moment of reverie.
But the pot in front of her was boiling over.
Eloa hurriedly turned down the heat.
Coq au vin normally simmers low and slow to evaporate the alcohol, but she'd blanked out amid stray thoughts.
"...I'm f-fine."
"I'll help you move it."
Eloa simply watched Siu rummage through the kitchen shelves for dishes.
1.
The bouillabaisse finished first, followed by the coq au vin.
The wine that had amply covered the chicken had reduced to just enough to coat it, soaking into every nook and cranny.
Eloa and Siu sat across from each other at the table, finishing their meal prep.
"I wanted to prepare more sides, but I forgot a lot since it's been so long."
"No, it's fine. It's been ages since someone cooked for me."
"No frills, so eat comfortably."
Siu served some onto Eloa's side plate and sat down.
The two began eating side by side.
For Siu, both bouillabaisse and coq au vin were firsts, but surprisingly suited his taste.
The chicken, infused with wine and tomato seasoning, melted in his mouth.
As the salty savoriness faded, a fragrant aroma and subtle bitterness followed—a unique delight.
Probably how a foreigner feels trying samgyetang for the first time.
The bouillabaisse looked like a spicy seafood stew at first glance, but the flavor was entirely different.
Like the whole ocean in a bowl?
One sip of the soup brought buttery notes and the rich umami of various seafood, delighting nose and tongue.
"Wow, first time trying these, and they're amazing. I'd only heard the names before."
"Plenty more, so take your time. Care for a drink?"
"Sure."
"They pair well with wine, but... I used it all up for the coq au vin. Gin or whiskey—which do you prefer?"
"Whiskey, please."
Eloa went to the kitchen and mixed whiskey with water one-to-one.
Diluted since the proof was too high for a meal.
Eloa herself filled a large on-the-rocks glass nearly to the brim.
As Siu pondered whether to toast or just drink, Eloa raised her glass first.
Clink.
The glasses lightly touched.
"You seem to like drinking."
"Not particularly fond or averse. But I'm grateful it lets me get drunk. And you?"
"I like it. Lifts the mood, no hangover."
Was it the booze and good food?
Their conversation flowed smoothly, like well-oiled gears.
Even Instructor Tiphereth, always sternly calling "Again!", softened her expression.
Thanks to that, Siu relaxed too, enjoying the drinks casually.
"This is really good. Great as bar food too... Why not open a restaurant? Bet it'd do well around here."
"Flattery will get you nowhere."
"I'm serious. Feels light on the stomach, and it's been a while since I ate this happily."
Eloa responded modestly to Siu's nonstop praise throughout the meal.
Still, her lips curved slightly—not displeased.
"This wasn't my best effort. Lots of substitutions. If you come again, I'll treat you to something better."
"Already looking forward to it. Ah, let me refill your glass."
"Thanks."
Siu jumped up and poured about half into Eloa's glass, empty for the third time already.
She drank fast.
Even as a spirit body, alcohol should intoxicate, yet she showed no sloppiness—a real drinker.
The duchess had unexpected sides beyond her appearance.
"I wanted to share drinks like this with Rafi too..."
The words slipped out like a murmur amid her loosened guard.
Eloa shook her head, realizing her slip as Siu startled.
"Nothing. Forget it."
".........."
Siu had no words.
Time stops for those who lose someone precious.
They idly reminisce, regret, shed tears, suffer.
Some shake it off and move forward.
Others wander eternally, seeking an end to unending sorrow.
"Sorry. Ruined the merry mood. I got sentimental."
Even the seemingly unbreakable Duchess Tiphereth was just human.
One person unable to forget the grief of losing her apprentice, tormented by unfulfilled vengeance.
"...Shall I listen?"
Siu asked carefully.
Was it the buzz, or nostalgia it stirred?
Her eyes shimmered like heat haze behind them.
"Pointless..."
Their relationship was oddly complex.
Siu bore Rafi's vessel, and formally received Eloa's guidance.
She couldn't deny unconsciously overlaying Rafi's shadow on his back while teaching him.
Was that why?
An urge shook her—to share memories of those happy days she'd shunned and never voiced.
Perhaps...
The aroma of long-forgotten dishes on the table, shared with someone, had briefly turned back her clock.
As Siu hesitated, wondering if to apologize for his rash words,
Eloa spoke first.
"Rafi... was a bright, cheerful child."
Her voice distant, as if tracing far-off past.
"Chattier than a little bird. She used up a lifetime's words in a year... Still, she had a heart kinder than any jewel in the world."
Eloa wet her parched lips with liquor.
"I loved that child. Too good for an inadequate mentor like me to take as apprentice.
No one in Gehenna hated Rafi. Not even beasts. A notoriously unruly colt would lick her palm."
"........."
"And that's not all. Genius at martial arts, at magic too. Unlike a fake like me mimicking talent."
Memories welled in Eloa's hazy eyes.
A faint smile graced her lips.
A smile blooming just from recollection, as if happy...
Sank with the continuing reminiscence.
"But, as you know... I lost her. Let heaven's excessive blessing slip through my negligence."
"That wasn't..."
"If I'd been a bit more cautious, a bit more careful, a bit more... aware of the world's cruelty... I wouldn't have let her go so vainly..."
Eloa shed no tears.
No choked voice.
She wept without tears, without trembling voice.
"Know what's worst? I don't even deserve to mourn her. Ironic, isn't it."
How shattered, desolate people express grief.
Siu learned for the first time.
"Sorry. I shouldn't have pried..."
He couldn't continue.
The Duchess Tiphereth he knew was strong.
He'd only seen her unshakeable resolve.
Never imagined vengeance-fueled heart rotting so fragilely.
Had his bid for openness merely scraped her scabbed wounds? Remorse settled.
Eloa eyed her empty glass, grabbed the half-full whiskey bottle, and chugged straight.
"Drink slower..."
"I don't resent or hate you for bearing Rafi's vessel. Don't worry."
"That wasn't my concern. I know you're a good person, Duchess."
"...Is that so."
Just another reenactment of endless laments.
Composure returned swiftly.
Eloa straightened her disheveled posture, wiped whiskey dribbled to her chin.
"Overdid the drinking. Sorry for the unseemly display."
"No. Sorry if I upset you by bringing it up..."
Eloa silently reached out.
Her booze-warmed hand lifted Siu's eyepatch.
The golden eye bore the clear stigma of Rafi's vessel.
"You bear Rafi's vessel."
To a witch, a stigma was more than life itself.
"Never dreamed I'd see it again like this..."
After a century, Eloa faced her beloved apprentice's relic.
As if it'd shatter at a firm touch,
Caressing Siu's cheek, her eyelids slowly closed.
Between toasts, sleep had crept in amid liquor; she couldn't hold out.
Siu sighed at Eloa slumped over the table.
His heart heavy.
"Rafi... Rafi..."
Even in sleep, she suffered.