Chapter 328
Chapter 328
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 328
Chapter Title: I'll Pick You (4)
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1.
With Clara's joining, one notable change in their wandering life was the establishment of a somewhat makeshift base camp.
They even had a campfire going, and a tent to ward off the sand winds.
Occasionally, they were even treated to warm meals.
Of course, it was all courtesy of Clara, who took the initiative.
Clara, who cheerfully anticipated others' needs with thoughtful consideration.
She asked for nothing in return, simply staying by their side. That gratitude probably prompted Amelia to open up first.
Originally, she hadn't wanted to tell a soul.
Not even Sophia.
As she gazed at the crackling campfire, Clara handed her a warm cup of chamomile tea.
And so the long story began.
"The reason I hunt Public Enemies... is because I owe a debt to the Kether Duke."
"K-Kether? Oh, no, sorry. Please, go on."
Clara flinched back, visibly startled.
In truth, the Kether Duke was someone no ordinary witch would ever cross paths with.
An transcendent being even among witches, one nearly impossible to approach.
The absolute authority who would sacrifice her own kind for the sake of balance.
That was the overwhelming perception.
No witch shared a personal connection with Kether, and scarcely any had exchanged even brief words or transactions.
In most cases, any association with Kether spelled death for the witch involved.
"To save one person's life, she demanded that I hunt the homunculi and Public Enemies listed in the Ledger of Death. That's what she asked of me."
"Ah..."
No matter how agonizing or unprepared she felt, Amelia couldn't simply flee.
Siu's life hung in the balance.
If she failed to uphold the contract, Kether would reclaim him without a second thought.
The Kether of history had always acted with such ruthless resolve.
"...Is he someone you love?"
Amelia hesitated at Clara's infinitely cautious question.
She simply couldn't settle on an answer.
So, slowly, she began unraveling it from the very start.
Her innermost thoughts, ones she'd never shared with anyone.
"At first... he was just a slave."
A slave who had refused her nighttime services.
Amelia back then had been arrogant.
Arrogant and foolish.
Suddenly bereft of her mentor, saddled with a witch's responsibilities.
Trapped alone within thick walls of stubborn self-righteousness, gazing only at the square patch of sky above.
"At our first meeting, he refused my request, and I took it as an insult."
A mere slave defying a witch—no, a baron's—plea.
The childish, impetuous rage that sparked from it.
Like a child denied a coveted gift, she unleashed her anger unilaterally.
"I deliberately summoned him for the dirtiest tasks, made things as hard as possible. I tormented him."
At first, it was mere venting.
Because he was insolent, because she resented him, because he annoyed her.
She'd cloaked it in lofty excuses to fool herself back then, but the core never changed.
Amelia had simply been throwing a tantrum.
Days turned to a month, a year, three years.
No matter the grueling chores, his silent compliance occasionally drew her eye.
Unlike the other slaves forever bowing and scraping, his steadfast stubbornness irked her—yet at some point, she caught herself tracking him with her gaze.
After that, she called him for other reasons.
Terrified that Siu might perceive the undefined emotions she couldn't even name herself.
She tormented him only with haughty airs.
"I kept summoning him, assigning him menial tasks by my side, because then he'd look at me. Deep down, I liked that... so I just kept repeating the same mistakes."
She never realized the grudge deepening.
Never grasped what sort of feeling stirred in her heart.
Amelia had convinced herself it was wounded pride.
Only Siu had suffered from her dishonesty.
"It must have been so hard, so painful for him. Why... why can I only think like this now?"
Ignorance doesn't absolve sin.
That truth gnawed at her relentlessly.
"I regret it... I want to take it all back, but..."
"......"
"I don't know how to face him. What expression he'll wear, what look will be in his eyes. It's terrifying... I can't bear it..."
"Amelia..."
Facing Siu again filled her with dread.
Amelia still remembered him vomiting blood, cursing her with raw resentment.
How had her pleas for forgiveness appeared to him, when he knew nothing?
The sense of betrayal he must have felt upon regaining all his memories terrified her beyond measure.
Even the note he'd left after time had passed—she kept it unopened, too afraid to read.
If it contained what she feared, what she imagined...
She'd lose all will to press on, and Siu would perish by Kether's hand.
"Amelia."
Amelia's words weren't neatly organized eloquence.
Just endless, rambling murmurs of her thoughts.
Yet Clara gazed at her with eyes full of understanding.
"Have you talked to him about it since?"
"......"
Amelia shook her head faintly.
Clara pressed a little further.
"Have you asked for his forgiveness?"
"When everything's over... then I'll go to him and beg forgiveness."
Amelia knew full well this was cowardly.
Once Siu learned she'd endured all this torment to save his life, he couldn't simply rage.
The man who'd saved her wretched life despite her torments, with a mere "that's not right."
Even as she acknowledged her grave wrong against him, she leaned on his kindness.
"Hmm..."
Clara watched Amelia stare endlessly into her teacup, clutched tight in both hands.
She seemed like an immature, inept child.
Like a selfish girl regretting how she'd tormented the boy she secretly loved.
Slender, abundant golden blonde hair like threads of spun gold.
Amelia Marygold, whose beauty sent chills even through another witch.
Should she offer more comfort?
Or nudge her forward?
Not yet.
Amelia needed a bit more time to mull it over.
"Thanks for telling me."
"......"
"Everyone makes mistakes, I think. I can't do much, but if it gets too tough... come talk to me now and then."
"Thank you."
"No need to thank me! Helping out is my thing."
Clara's somewhat forced cheerful laughter.
A sliver of ease softened Amelia's deeply furrowed brow.
2.
Rose Glass was thriving as usual today.
The atmospheric paging system Takasho had swiftly implemented helped disperse the endless line of witches stretching out front.
Moreover, Periwinkle's rave reviews weren't mere flattery; as a bar with fine ambiance and drinks, the third floor now operated fully as a cafe.
Capturing an entirely new clientele.
"Haa..."
Siu, who had today alone played conversation partner to over ten witches, returned to the office and puffed languidly on his cigarette.
Now that he'd gotten the hang of it, the stress from entertaining felt lighter than before.
But claiming it was easy to deal with witches eyeing him like some exotic specimen? He'd sooner tear his mouth open than admit that.
Thus, using the dinner hour as pretext, he'd requested about an hour of rest—and was currently enjoying it.
That's when a commotion erupted from downstairs.
"We're telling you, we're super tight with Assistant Siu!"
"We even brought money—what's the issue?"
High-pitched, brimming with complaint, the voices carried clearly through the window.
Peeking out, he spotted the expected familiar faces.
The twins, dressed modestly in frocks with half bonnets, were bickering at the entrance.
"Well... there are so many others waiting..."
Liam, sweating bullets at the sudden troublesome customers.
He was, after all, a Gehenna rookie in his first year.
Even for mere apprentice witches, the twins' brazenness and overwhelming mypace nature could prove daunting.
"Odil, Odet. Long time no see. Liam's fine—let them in."
"“Assistant!!!”"
No need for Liam to grant entry; the twins, spotting Siu at the second-floor window, hopped right in.
Their signature window-jump entrance.
Siu spread his arms, and the twins fluttered their skirt hems as they dove into his embrace, one in each arm.
"What brings you all the way here?"
"You haven't shown your face at all, so we came looking!"
"We missed you. Heard you started a new gig?"
"Isn't that kinda mean?"
"Totally! You should've at least told us!"
The twins rubbed their cheeks against him freely, overjoyed.
It'd been less than three days since they'd last seen his face, yet they welcomed him like it had been three years.
Odil and Odet, cute as ever no matter the occasion.
"Sorry, things have been hectic lately."
"If you're sorry, welcome us with butt pats. We never allow this greeting normally... but special exception for our Assistant."
"Yeah! Speaking for myself, I even permit through the drawers."
"Yes, yes, I'll do it. Through the drawers might be a bit much, though."
While embraced, he patted the butts they subtly thrust toward him over their clothes.
Mind and body weary, the soft, springy sensation through the fabric was pure healing.
Once the peculiar greeting wrapped up, Odil and Odet's eyes sparkled with curiosity as they unleashed a barrage of questions.
"Anyway, Assistant, what's the deal? A job? Pouring drinks for other witches and acting all cutesy?"
"Did your mentor snatch your credential? We could help with that..."
"Ah, just lending a hand to a friend."
Siu laid out the full story for the twins.
No need to embellish or trim; it was straightforward.
A friend opened a shop, business was slow, so he was helping with promotion.
Nothing more than pouring drinks and chatting.
"Phew, here I thought you'd turned into a voluntary sex ed prop."
"I was so worried, but what a relief."
Only then did the twins sigh in relief, patting their chests.
"Anyway, since that's how it is, we came to buy up your time. Can't let some shady witches steal you away."
"Broke the piggy bank for this—you'll play with us, right?"
"No... afraid that's tricky."
He was grateful for the sentiment, but it wouldn't work.
Right now, Siu wasn't available for private bookings—he was promo totem material.
Monopolizing him went against policy, no exceptions, not even for the twins.
"Why!"
"Why?!"
Their cheeks, puffed with eager anticipation moments ago, now ballooned with indignation.
Having come all hyped up, even smashing their piggy bank—sending them away empty-handed didn't sit right with Siu either.
"How about this: I'm free after work wraps up today. Meet then?"
"Today?"
"At night?"
"Yeah, was thinking I should swing by the mansion anyway. We could grab drinks together."
"Yay! Awesome!"
"I'll prep the best booze!"
The twins bounced with excitement at his suggestion.
He wanted to bask in a bit more of that healing, but his break was drawing to a close.
He stroked their heads in farewell.
"Gotta head back down. See you later."
"Assistant! Mind if we watch you work?"
"Yeah, super curious what you do."
Watch?
Nothing to hide.
The queue was backed up massively, but if he gave Takasho a heads-up, squeezing in one table was no issue.
Siu nodded readily.
"Then I'll snag you a table near me."