Chapter 447
Chapter 447
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 447
Chapter Title: Reunion
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1.
Another two weeks had passed since Baroness Merigold's rampage.
The incident, which had nearly been etched into history as Gehenna's second invasion, was far from something that could be brushed aside lightly.
Under Duke Ererim's direct command, an investigative committee had been formed to determine Amelia's punishment. Count Cohab had been appointed as the investigator to confirm the damages and establish the chain of events.
Since Gehenna lacked a judicial system capable of trying witches, a hearing would be held to propose a consensus resolution.
"...Any false statements from here on may work against you in this hearing, so please cooperate fully and sincerely with the investigation."
"Understood."
Her short black-dyed hair and ivory eyes gleaming with intellect.
Count Cohab, stylishly sporting a monocle over his gentleman's suit, recited the precautions and began the interrogation.
Amelia had been deemed a flight risk immediately after the incident's conclusion and was thus detained in the underground prison of the Jemernai estate while cooperating with the probe.
Of course, the outcome wouldn't hinge solely on her testimony.
Magical pattern analysis from samples collected that day and evidence gathering would follow, and at the very least, a massive compensation payout was inevitable.
Yet throughout the roughly three-hour interrogation, Amelia showed scarcely a flicker of agitation.
She answered each question in a calm, truthful voice.
Her responses were straightforward, devoid of contradictions or any hint of deceit.
"Very well. We'll take a thirty-minute break and then resume."
"Yes."
Count Cohab rose from his seat, a thick stack of papers already piled up beside him.
It wasn't merely for a breather.
He would likely send those documents straight to the committee for cross-verification and dive deeper into key areas.
A barrage of far more exhausting questions awaited.
But Amelia sipped her cold black tea with icy indifference, as if none of it mattered.
"Baroness Merigold."
Albireo Jemernai, present as a mediator during the interrogation, stepped boldly into Amelia's solitary cell.
"Sorry it's such a humble spot. It hasn't been used in decades."
Though they'd cleaned it thoroughly and provided a fresh bed, the limitations of an ancient underground structure were unavoidable.
The musty odor and the chill seeping from the stone walls were beyond remedy.
"No, thank you for your consideration."
Albireo gazed at Amelia, who bowed her head once more in gratitude.
It was common knowledge that witches were all beauties—no need to belabor the point.
And among them, Amelia's allure was exceptional.
Her neatly coiled side locks evoked ropes woven from golden threads, while her sky-blue eyes, reminiscent of a clear heaven, could send chills down the spine if met head-on.
Her long double eyelids and slender yet elegant figure—even Albireo, who'd lived without complaint about her own looks—felt oddly intimidated.
Many witches leaned heavily toward same-sex attractions, but Albireo firmly identified as heterosexual.
Experience aside.
So why was she suddenly admiring Amelia's beauty and entertaining such thoughts?
"How is Mr. Shin Si-woo doing?"
Because this witch, blending devilish beauty with an enigmatic aura, was none other than a perfect match for her daughters.
Amelia had long shared a deep bond with Shin Si-woo, even blatantly displaying her one-sided affections in the past.
With their relationship tangled from some mishap, and him risking his life to save her, it was a clear path to "reunion after the great crisis"—straight out of a Hollywood cliché.
The shark tank already teeming with Evergreen, Duke Tiphereth, and Count Yesod was about to gain another contender with Amelia's return.
How could a mother's heart not sigh deeply?
"He's fine, though his circuits took a heavy hit and he's still unconscious."
"...And his arm?"
Amelia, who hadn't so much as blinked during the razor-sharp interrogation...
Shrank back with the expression of someone gravely at fault the moment Si-woo's name came up.
"Count Cohab agreed to fit him with a prosthetic. He's the best in the field, so it should be reliable."
"That's a relief."
Only then did Amelia lean back in her chair, visibly relaxing.
She couldn't care less about her own fate, yet Si-woo's situation had her swinging from joy to sorrow.
As expected, the anticipated issue had arisen.
Albireo cleared her throat gruffly and continued.
"We'll know for sure once the formal hearing concludes, but it won't end with a light punishment. Your title will almost certainly be revoked."
The commotion Amelia had caused wasn't a simple affair.
No matter the machinations of the Whispering Witch, she had magically imprisoned thousands of citizens and nearly breached Gehenna's barrier.
Thus, Amelia nodded readily.
"The good news is that sentiment among the witches isn't unfavorable. The prevailing view is that revoking your citizenship would be excessive if proper reparations are made. Your detention will lift as soon as the hearing ends."
"Thank you for always looking out for me."
Albireo swallowed the retort: 'You're welcome... though I have no idea why I'm going this far myself.'
In truth, the consensus at this level had been reached thanks to the combined efforts of House Jemernai and Count Yesod.
Their support for Amelia—a promising rival for their twins' futures—was partly sisterly solidarity among witches, but undeniably aimed at preventing Si-woo's rampage.
Should anything unfortunate befall her, he'd be the first to roll up his sleeves for something reckless.
"Countess."
"Yes."
"If... Mr. Shin Si-woo wakes up..."
Amelia blinked her long lashes, seemingly lost in thought, about to speak softly.
Sudden commotion erupted.
Thudding footsteps rushed down the stairs.
"Amelia!"
A voice terribly familiar to Amelia echoed through the chamber.
Descending with her enormous—no, gigantic—breasts bouncing wildly was...
Sophia Avenir, Amelia's one and only friend.
"Sophia?"
"Amelia!"
"Eek...!"
She flung open the iron grate in an instant and crushed Amelia in a long-lost family reunion embrace.
An embrace so fierce it drew a choking gasp.
Amelia, poised elegantly with her tea, flailed buried in Sophia's bosom moments later.
"Thank goodness... really, thank goodness..."
Amelia had left without properly explaining to Sophia and set off alone to hunt a public enemy.
Unaware of the circumstances, Sophia had worried endlessly and searched for her friend.
Yet even Sophia, who could borrow the eyes of myriad beasts and birds, found not a trace of Amelia.
As if someone had deliberately erased her trail, every lead had vanished cleanly.
Scouring Gehenna's corners to the present world, the thunderbolt news finally reached her.
Baroness Amelia Merigold had invaded Gehenna.
Foaming at the mouth, she'd rushed here on that absurd report.
"I was too late, wasn't I? I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, Amelia..."
"Soph... ah... it's... f-fine... ugh..."
Sophia rubbed her cheeks against Amelia's tearfully, still locked in the fervent hug.
Seeing Amelia turning blue from oxygen deprivation, Albireo hurriedly pried them apart, quelling the uproar.
2.
"Corpse confirmed?"
[Yes, it's been verified that the Whispering Witch impersonated Clara Scorpia to approach Baroness Merigold— that's no lie.]
"Any other notable details?"
[We've assembled a search team for the Class-1 public enemy, the Whispering Witch, in case she's still in Gehenna... though its efficacy is doubtful.]
"Good work. Contact me if there's progress."
Count Cohab ended the communication.
He'd compiled the interrogation intel, forwarded it to the committee for verification, and found no discrepancies so far.
Raiding Clara Scorpia's workshop in the present world's desert had yielded a half-melted golden heap entwined with a mummified corpse.
Whatever the Whispering Witch's motives—and that was secondary—the circumstances further cleared Amelia of malicious intent in the assault.
Of course, it didn't erase her blunder as a baroness falling for a public enemy's ploy.
"......"
Descending the spiral stairs to the underground prison, Count Cohab pondered deeply.
The world changes.
Hypotheses once deemed eternal truths crumble over time.
And such shifts always have precursors.
Omens that go unnoticed amid the flow but stand stark in hindsight—like watersheds dividing history.
He felt them acutely now.
Moreover, two days prior, why had Duke Ererim—ever the neutral party—acted as she did?
"At any rate..."
Personal questions were one thing; duty another.
To repay Duke Ererim's favor, he was obligated to discern the incident's rights and wrongs through transparent testimony collection.
"Hm?"
Count Cohab tilted his head.
An unfamiliar voice drifted from Amelia's cell.
Peeking in: Sophia Avenir tearfully pleading, and Baroness Merigold calmly receiving it.
"It wasn't your fault, Sophia. Without you, I never would have even crossed paths with him."
"Uuugh... Still, I... I should have protected you..."
"It was my own foolishness. You bear no responsibility."
He also glimpsed Baroness Merigold's hand gently stroking the sniffling Sophia's head to soothe her.
"Sorry for always making you worry. Thank you for caring so much."
"Amelia..."
They seemed to be sharing a rather touching reunion.
Third-party contact was technically prohibited during interrogations... but since when did witches adhere so strictly to rules?
Count Cohab glanced at his pocket watch.
"Shall I give them another ten minutes or so..."
He wasn't so lacking in grace as to interrupt a lovers' reunion.
Admiring his own thoughtfulness and sensitivity anew, Cohab leaned against the wall and tapped his shoe toe against the floor.