Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Passionless Cohabitation (2)
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1.
Waking up in bed.
These days, my eyes snap open at 6 a.m. even without an alarm.
After sleeping on a hard straw mattress in that cramped box, rising from soft blankets felt refreshingly luxurious.
I bolted straight to the bathroom for a shower.
"A strong and mighty morning."
Man, how long had it been since I'd showered with hot water gushing indoors like this?
No more grumbling about how even prison lets you wash with warm water once a week.
If Siwoo's room was at the eastern end of the sprawling east-west mansion, Amelia's was at the western end.
As she'd instructed yesterday, I woke at 6, showered with hot water, got dressed, and went looking for her.
After a final outfit check in the hallway mirror, Siwoo opened the door and stepped into Amelia's room.
"Lady Amelia, I'm coming in."
"Come in."
He knocked and called out, and her voice came from the other side.
Any half-hearted thought like this is only my second time entering a girl's room vanished in an instant.
Amelia's room wasn't much different from Siwoo's.
Well, structurally speaking, at least.
Odile or Odette's rooms had some flair to them, but this place was plain as could be.
Other than the high-quality basic furniture, it didn't feel like much effort had gone into decorating.
But her room was stuffed to the brim with magic books, documents, and experimental materials of every kind.
Somehow, it felt even more cluttered than the research building, probably because the room itself was so much smaller.
She'd finally dragged all her research gear right into the house.
"Did you sleep well?"
He'd meant to say good morning but switched to something else, only to realize it was pointless the moment the words left his mouth.
"I didn't sleep at all today."
Amelia asked without setting down her pen, still seated at her desk.
She was scribbling nonstop on the paper in front of her.
She'd probably been at it all night.
A thick stack of freshly inked sheets was piled up before her, the ink still drying.
"Just wait a moment."
With that, Amelia dove right back into her work.
Her brows furrowed ever so slightly in concentration.
She rarely showed emotions or changed expressions, but those sharp, slender eyebrows were the exception.
Siwoo could read her moods nine times out of ten just from them.
Anyway, once she wrapped up, she finally turned to Siwoo.
"Check what you need to do here."
Straight to business.
Amelia rummaged through her desk drawer and handed Siwoo a bundle of papers, about thirty or forty pages thick.
"It's a manual summarizing the duties you must follow as her exclusive slave—by time and day of the week. Take the time to read it and memorize it."
"Got it."
Amelia stood from her chair and came around the table.
She'd changed into a more comfortable-looking robe.
"Check page 3, item 15."
"Yes."
Some kind of job guide, apparently.
As Siwoo flipped through the pages, he suddenly realized the handwriting looked familiar.
It was all in Amelia's hand—one letter at a time.
Page 3 covered morning routines after waking.
If Amelia was asleep, wake her; otherwise, greet her anyway.
Then fold the bedding and prepare breakfast.
Breakfast didn't require cooking from scratch—just pick it up from the academy kitchen.
"Yes, confirmed."
"I'll be waiting in the dining hall. Go get it."
Still, it was pretty thick. Memorizing it all would take a while.
Siwoo watched Amelia head to the bathroom, then made his way to the academy kitchen.
2.
He ran into a familiar face.
Takasho, yawning hugely while sweeping the hallway.
The moment he spotted Siwoo's new outfit, he started hopping around in excitement.
"Whoa~ Who's this fine gentleman? So sharp I can barely look."
"Hey, hey, calm down. It's not that big a deal."
"Of course it is! My buddy finally made it big!"
Siwoo had plenty to say, but he wasn't sure if he had the time.
He gave a rough summary of everything that had happened.
"See? What'd I tell you? Amelia totally likes you."
He patted Siwoo's shoulder with the proud gleam of a friend who'd finally passed the bar after years of studying.
"What bullshit. What exactly did you hear? How'd you jump to her liking me from that?"
"Huh?"
"I just told you. She didn't call me for night duty—she brought me to the dorm to make me her assistant."
Takasho's beaming grin turned awkward.
Like staring at a guy who'd won the lottery but never bothered cashing it in.
"Man, where do I even start? Incredible every damn time."
"I nearly died of embarrassment because of you. You know the look she gave me?"
The second he brought up night duty, she'd stared at him like he was a bug.
Thinking back still made his face burn.
"Poor fireboy... You've never even had a girlfriend, have you?"
"Nope."
"...Yeah, figured."
Takasho gave up on scolding him entirely, scratched his head wondering where to begin, then laid out his thoughts one by one.
"Look at yourself, Siwoo. Amelia bought you panties, right? Cigarettes? Cake? Even a suit. Why shower all that on a slave she doesn't care about?"
"How should I know? Maybe she felt bad after messing with me."
"Jeez..."
"You'd get it if you spent even a day with her. You said it yourself—she's a straight-laced witch with zero interest in guys."
"That's her in general. The fact that she's showing interest in you is what's special."
Takasho realized words alone weren't getting through to Siwoo.
"Feel this fabric, dude."
"Hey, don't cling! Gross."
"It's mohair."
"What's that?"
Takasho stroked Siwoo's arm and explained.
"Back when I worked, I got gifted a bunch of suits. You know cashmere?"
"Cashmere coat?"
"Mohair's just as good, if not better. If she had no interest, would she give an exclusive slave something this nice? Especially when she's never taken on any slaves before."
Siwoo shrugged nonchalantly, figuring a suit from Ars Magna's tailor would be top-notch anyway.
"To me, this is straight-up courtship. You're the only one going 'maybe it's all in my head, eek...'"
"Maybe it is. I don't really have feelings for Amelia anyway."
"You're insane."
Takasho gaped in disbelief.
Unable to comprehend, he racked his brain considering Siwoo's situation before blurting out,
"Fair enough—you've suffered plenty because of her. But wasn't half of that suffering you brought on yourself?"
"Why the fuck is that my fault? Anyway, I don't believe you anymore."
"Virgin Siwoo, please believe me. Sometimes you seem like a kid skipping stones over a pile of gold. What you're tossing away is a golden opportunity! A noble, rich, gorgeous witch—how long do you think she'll keep eyeing just you?"
"So what's the takeaway? Make it quick. Gotta go."
Takasho pondered for a long moment before dropping one line.
"Bang her and spill the details later. Drinks on me."
Siwoo smacked the back of Takasho's head—still buzzing with his solo excitement—and picked up the food from the kitchen.
3.
He didn't know what the future held, but one thing was certain: his luck with food had turned.
The breakfast he fetched on a tray from the kitchen...
Simple terms: it was an English-style breakfast.
A bagel paired with nearly saltless bacon. Perfectly sunny-side-up eggs where the yolk burst at a mere touch. Salmon salad. And hot coffee to top it off.
Farewell forever to those charcoal-eraser crumbs of bread and watery slop pretending to be soup.
It'd been shit. Never again.
Siwoo sat at the same table as Amelia, savored each bite, cleared the plates, and headed to the research building.
With his five-year routine shattered, everything felt off.
He half-expected to head straight to the academy for chores.
Siwoo sat in a corner of the research building, reading the manual and lost in fresh thoughts.
Amelia arrived, lit a cigarette without a word, and dove into her magic research.
So Siwoo played along, pretending to go over handover notes as he pored over the manual.
A quick skim revealed...
Routines for waking.
For lunchtime.
From dinner to bedtime.
Weekday tasks.
Weekend tasks.
Mansion chores.
Rules when accompanying to the research building.
Document sorting guidelines.
Cleaning and laundry methods.
How to order desserts.
What to do if problems arise.
And so on—every detail spelled out.
Just studying this diligently should keep him out of trouble.
"Hmm..."
Still, he needed to move his stuff from the stable soon, but time was tight for the foreseeable future.
According to the manual, he'd be shadowing Amelia all day long, and a round trip from the research building or dorm to the stable took about an hour.
Maybe grab a night to sneak out?
It wasn't urgent anyway.
No one ever went there.
Caw caw!
A crow's cry echoed from outside the window.
As Siwoo wondered where it came from and glanced toward the window, Amelia suddenly called.
"Siwoo."
"Yes, Lady Amelia."
"Come back here in three hours."
"Understood. Any tasks in the meantime?"
"No. Stick to the manual for now."
"Yes."
Siwoo nodded obediently and stepped out of the research building.
4.
Warm sunlight.
For late autumn, the weather was remarkably mild.
Outside the research building, he spread his arms wide and soaked in the peace.
"Ah, this is the life."
Normally, he'd be up a ladder pruning branches or sweeping spotless hallways by now.
A hearty breakfast followed by leisurely free time—what luxury.
"Perfect timing."
He'd been mulling over the stable issue, and here was the ideal window.
Head to the stable now, grab the magic tools, move them to the dorm, play dumb, and return.
He wanted at least an hour to roll around in bed, so no dawdling.
After all that hardship, paradise at last—everything falling into place like this had him whistling a tune.
With light steps, Siwoo entered the rose garden.
Crossing it was the fastest shortcut to the stable.
The enchanted roses bloomed in vibrant, oversized colors regardless of season, delighting the eyes and nose.
And then...
Something felt off.
"Huh?"
This fountain was definitely the same one from before.
The little angel blowing a trumpet.
The witch anointing a bundled witch baby with holy oil.
Siwoo looked straight ahead.
The exit was in sight.
He focused his mind and took slow, deliberate steps toward it.
His awareness never wavered from the exit for even a second, but the moment he thought he'd cleared the garden...
he was right back in front of the fountain.
"Fuck."
A creeping sense of dread rose as Siwoo turned around.
There sat a carriage three times larger than Sophia's, parked who-knows-when.
Two birds with wings spread wide, engraved on the carriage door.
The black and white twin birds that sing magic.
The witch who is two yet one.
The symbol of House Gemernai.