Chapter 422
Chapter 422
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 422
Chapter Title: Verification (3)
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Si-woo swallowed hard.
"Mm..."
Should he be grateful that at least Albireo, who was reasonable enough to talk to, had shown up?
He could hear the two countesses chatting away amiably.
Their conversation would likely decide Si-woo's fate from here on out.
The vast chamber echoed so much that he couldn't make out the exact words, but whenever Deneb raised her voice, her crisp diction cut through clearly.
It was all vicious phrases like "We should chase him out!" "Part of me wants to just make him disappear!" and "I can't forgive him!"—enough to make him shrink back involuntarily.
"Hiss! Hiss!"
Then, a snake-like sound came from somewhere.
At first, he'd thought it was just wind leaking through the piles of rocks.
"Assistant...! Assistant...!"
He turned his head and spotted Odil and Odet huddled in the passage, peeking out just their heads.
True to their elusive nature, the twins had popped up out of nowhere.
They glanced around cautiously before tiptoeing over to Si-woo's side on their toes.
Their eyes, filled with tension, clouded over with worry at the sight of Si-woo covered in dust, with blood trickling from a gash on his forehead.
"Assistant... You're bleeding... What do we do... It's because of us..."
"It's okay, Assistant. Just stay still. We'll get you out."
"Odil... Odet..."
In truth, ever since Deneb had said even the twins didn't know about this underground prison, Si-woo had suspected otherwise.
How could twins who embodied curiosity itself be unaware of such an intriguing dungeon?
As Si-woo had predicted, the twins knew all about the underground prison.
They'd anticipated he'd been captured here and come to rescue him, each clutching a thick bundle of spare keys.
"Odet, you take the arms. I'll handle the legs."
"Got it, sis."
"Is this really okay?"
Odil and Odet each took a key and tried inserting and turning them one by one.
Si-woo asked worriedly.
"Assistant, do you think little master will just let this slide?"
"Hide for now. We'll take the blame and defend you."
The whispers and the jingle of keys rang out like thunder in his ears.
But he knew that fleeing wouldn't solve anything amid a situation as volatile as an autumn wildfire.
"I'll take your intentions to heart. Leave me and slip out quietly. I'll talk to Lady Deneb myself."
"Assistant, quit talking nonsense and run."
"You'll really be in big trouble..."
Meanwhile, the twins, well aware of Deneb's fiery temper, prioritized getting away scot-free.
Any rational talk could wait—what mattered was preventing Si-woo from ending up battered and dragged off like before.
Without them acting as a buffer, that grim future was all but certain.
"Why won't it open...?"
"There are too many keys, sis..."
But there were far too many keys.
No matter how they struggled, the restraints wouldn't budge.
Finally losing patience, Si-woo spoke up.
He didn't want the flames he'd fanned through his own poor judgment to spread to the twins unnecessarily.
"I'll handle this somehow. No need to get tangled up because of me—go on and escape."
"We barged in here on our own, how could we just run?"
"Yeah, we have a sense of responsibility too."
Just as the jingling grew more frantic...
The voices of Albireo and Deneb in conversation fell completely silent.
The twins had been fully focused on freeing Si-woo right up to that moment, but they hadn't timed it perfectly.
"Ah..."
Albireo returned after finishing her talk with Deneb.
The two of them discovered the twins plastered to Si-woo's sides, desperately working at the restraints.
"Haa... You little rascals..."
"How did you two even get here?"
Albireo sighed, while Deneb stared at the twins in shock.
She'd surely put them to sleep with magic, and she'd never told them about this underground prison.
Yet here they were, brazenly descending—and with spare keys, no less.
"Master! The assistant did nothing wrong!"
"Yeah! We seduced him first! If anything happens to him...!"
"We won't ever see you again!"
The twins abandoned any thought of escape and went for a frontal assault, while Deneb chewed her lip.
"Sis! Take the kids and go up!"
"No way!"
"We're never leaving the assistant!"
But the twins stuck firmly to Si-woo's sides, making their stance clear.
Unable to hold back any longer, Deneb shouted.
"Do you even know how many women this man has toyed with?"
"We know! But our feelings for the assistant won't change!"
"We get it! He's loyal like a dandelion!"
Deneb shrieked in disgust at the twins raking open the wounds she'd barely soothed.
"Sis! Hurry up and go!"
"I'm not falling for the same trick again...! Yawn..."
"Solving everything with magic is cheating...! Mmm... Snoore..."
With no other choice, Albireo cast a sleep spell on the twins.
They tried resisting with their own magic, but every spell they knew was inferior to a countess's version.
Albireo scooped up the quickly slumped twins.
"Hoo..."
Deneb let out a deep sigh as she watched.
The twins' brief appearance and swift exit had nonetheless conveyed their intentions perfectly.
They'd infiltrated knowing full well it would fail and that they'd get scolded later.
As Albireo had just pointed out, it proved their feelings for Shin Si-woo were genuine.
"I'll drop them off quick, so don't get any funny ideas, okay?"
"I know, sis."
Albireo issued one last earnest warning.
In truth, up until bringing Si-woo here, Deneb had harbored quite harsh intentions.
She'd planned to expose every one of his crimes, dig into any lingering offenses, impose a fitting punishment, and banish him.
But Albireo's calm appeals and persuasion, combined with the twins' desperate defense, had successfully halted her raging emotions.
It had only restrained her outburst, but for Si-woo, it meant a moment's relief.
"Si-woo."
"Yes, Lady Deneb."
"I'm deeply, deeply, deeply disappointed. I trusted you."
"I have no words for letting you down like that. It was my indecisiveness that blew everything out of proportion."
Deneb snapped her fingers, dispelling the Confessional Verse on Si-woo.
She then released the shackles binding his hands and feet.
"You can't even imagine my devastation. Maybe you'll understand a little once you have your own apprentice witches someday."
Deneb's tone remained prickly.
But as she reached out to heal the gash on his forehead too, it seemed Albireo had successfully talked her down.
"There's a lot to say first, but... Already back?"
"No issues?"
"I said I'd calmed down."
Albireo returned not long after.
Considering how quickly she'd come back, she must have been truly worried about Deneb's rampage.
If anything happened to Si-woo, it wouldn't just earn the twins' resentment—it would strain things with Duke Tiphereth to some degree.
For Albireo, reining in Deneb's recklessness was both the righteous and practical choice.
"Deneb, you held it together well. That's my little sister."
"Shut your mouth, sis."
The Jemernai countesses bickering like that was quite the spectacle.
As Si-woo watched, Deneb shook off the overly clingy Albireo and stepped forward.
"For now, fine. I'll reluctantly accept the physical relationship with the twins..."
-Crunch
Her words cut off as she ground her teeth for a moment.
Soothing herself with yet another sigh of the day, Deneb continued.
"I've understood the reasons and circumstances behind it. And the countless other witches you've seduced and bedded. Since the twins themselves are fine with it, I have no right to interfere further."
"Si-woo, even so, isn't it too many? And every one a duchess, countess, grand witch... Are you planning to encrust them with national treasures or something?"
"No, that's not it... Circumstances just led to..."
Si-woo's shoulders hunched under the mothers-in-law's perfectly synced barbs.
But a crisis was also an opportunity.
If he played his cards right now, he could get Deneb to acknowledge his half-official relationship with the twins.
Si-woo swallowed calmly and met Deneb's eyes.
"What are you staring at?"
"Ah, nothing."
He quickly averted his gaze at her sharp rebuke.
He'd wanted to show some manly responsibility for once, but she was too intimidating.
Who could stare down those piercing blue eyes?
"I'll admit there was a misunderstanding earlier. I attacked because I thought you, without any proof, irresponsibly, for base pleasure, without a shred of conscience, had defiled, sullied, adulterated, and ruined our twins' futures."
His shoulders flinched with every elaborate descriptor.
"But since you've shown at least a rat-tail's worth of conscience, a soybean grain of responsibility, and a chick-tear's amount of remorse—not to mention the past favors you've done... Very regrettably, the exile is off the table."
"Phew..."
Albireo, who had been listening quietly from behind, sighed in relief at Deneb's verdict.
She'd tried persuading her however she could, but acceptance hadn't been guaranteed.
"However."
Like a judge delivering a final ruling with a tense twist just before closing the verdict...
"All this leniency will only stand once we've confirmed your actions with the twins have zero impact on the vessel. Even if you swear off physical relations with them from now on, I can't trust that. No complaints about this, right?"
Si-woo had already deceived Deneb and fooled around with the twins, so he had no objections there.
But something about Deneb's words felt off.
"Pardon?"
"Huh? Deneb?"
"In other words, I'll personally verify every mana reaction and effect from anal intercourse. If even the slightest negative impact is observed, all prior leniency is void. Meaning, no contact with the twins until they inherit."
Si-woo blanked out for a moment, unable to process.
Let him sum this up.
Telling them not to do it wouldn't stick—they'd ignore it anyway. She accepted no issues with the vessel so far, but to be sure, thorough verification was needed.
And even if nothing seemed wrong now, latent problems might lurk, so direct testing was required.
That's what she meant.
"Pardon?"
Si-woo jolted in shock.
"What?"
Albireo, listening beside him, was equally stunned.