Chapter 508
Chapter 508
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 508
Chapter Title: Cooperative Relationship
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1.
"I'll scout around a little more. There might be some spot we can use. Can you start recovering your mana right away from now?"
"Ah, yeah... I will."
With those words, Si-woo left Deneb alone in the church hall and hopped away.
"......"
Deneb, left by herself, hid her troubled feelings as she recalled what she had just seen.
His left hand, trembling like an aspen leaf.
It was a scene hard to imagine from the sight of his back boldly advancing toward the kraken without a hint of fear.
"Haa..."
Deneb let out a sigh.
It felt like her own foolishness was stabbing at her head over and over.
Looking back, it was all so obvious.
Shin Si-woo was in his mid-to-late twenties—a young witch who had become one less than two years ago.
And his opponent was a mindless monster that defied all common sense.
No matter how many abnormal combat experiences he had piled up or how many near-death crises he had survived, that didn't mean fights came naturally to him.
Yet Si-woo hadn't suggested the simple mana-charging method to Deneb.
As if it wasn't even an option, he had voluntarily chosen to play the role of bait.
The time it would take Deneb to recover her mana through normal means: about three or four days.
This world repeated its day-night cycle every eight hours, meaning Si-woo would have to face the kraken alone for four full cycles.
Both Deneb and Si-woo knew that wouldn't be easy.
This wasn't some game that handed out retry coins.
Suggesting a mana charge for her was the obvious solution anyone would think of.
In a life-or-death situation, heading straight for the shortcut was the smart move.
So why hadn't Si-woo proposed sharing a bed with her?
He wasn't oblivious enough to miss the reason.
He had stubbornly refused even the "verification" with her.
"What a fool..."
Lately, Deneb had only ever looked at Si-woo with dissatisfaction.
She scolded him at every turn, practically breathing criticisms, kicking his shins whenever she saw him.
Even just watching him walk around made her eyes narrow in pointless irritation.
She realized now how childish those tantrums had been.
Even if more and more things about him grated on her nerves these days, he was still the benefactor who had risked his life for her twins—strangers to him.
And that was hardly all.
He had subjugated the Witch of Cowardice for the sake of others, confronted the Witch of Desire to save a friend, and just recently rescued Amelia.
If Si-woo were truly some shameless, foolish lightweight, would he ever throw his life on the line for anyone else?
Deneb had simply pretended not to know, even though she did.
She used her dislike of him as an excuse.
Seeing only what she wanted to see, judging and undervaluing him every chance she got.
"And amid all that, calling him disappointing on a human level or whatever..."
The immature one had been her.
Unable to even grasp the reality of things, yet raising her brows and doubting his every action.
Deneb chased after Si-woo, the hem of her nightgown fluttering behind her.
2.
Si-woo wasn't far away.
He was up in the church bell tower, inspecting the bell.
"What are you doing here?"
"The bell rang just before sunset. I was checking if there might be some magical connection."
"Is there?"
"Looks like nothing after all."
Si-woo flashed a wry smile and ran his hand over the bell's surface.
He hadn't expected an easy solution anyway, so there was no real disappointment—just a sigh at the hardships ahead.
"Si-woo-kun."
"Yes, Countess."
"There's something I want to ask."
"Go ahead."
Deneb steeled herself and took a large step toward Si-woo.
This wasn't a question she could ask lightly.
The moment she voiced it, the solution he had been quietly glossing over would come sharply into focus.
"Why aren't you choosing the easier path?"
"Easier path?"
"Don't play dumb! You know what I mean! You too, Si-woo-kun!"
But on this matter, her mind was already made up.
She just wanted to hear his thoughts.
"...Haa, we could just do it. With me."
Now that the words were out, how utterly crass they sounded.
Deneb felt her face burning hot.
This was different from the verification.
Back then, she had been wildly excited, her head spinning.
There had been the greater cause of the twins.
And above all, Deneb now knew all too well just how mortifying physical intimacy between man and woman could be.
She wasn't the clueless Deneb anymore.
Embarrassed, she rattled on in her usual rapid-fire patter.
"You have mana duplication, don't you? If we link up to recharge, there's no need to take stupid risks.
Why insist on the dangerous road? Or were you planning to wait around until I said it first?"
In the end, she even spat out words she didn't truly mean.
"No, that's not it..."
"Then what?"
"You're my mother-in-law too, Countess Deneb. Even if that last time was unavoidable, anything more would feel like a betrayal to Odil-nim and Odet-nim..."
The answer she had expected.
Normally, she would have laid into him: Then fooling around with other women isn't betrayal? A spineless guy like you bragging about your womanizing history?
But now, that trembling hand lingered in her mind far more than any hypotheticals.
"I figured it probably wouldn't work anyway. No guarantee we'd have to. I thought I could buy enough time on my own."
Would someone truly confident in handling it alone shake like that?
Seeing him bluff to reassure her only made her feel even more pathetic.
"What a fool..."
Deneb bit her lip and tugged his wrist along.
Deneb and Si-woo returned to the bishop's room where they had shared drinks earlier.
She would have loved a bath or shower, but facilities this rundown wouldn't have any.
At least there was something imitating a bed—that was a mercy.
Deneb snapped her fingers, casting a cleansing spell over them both once more.
"Deneb-nim?"
"Undress. We're doing it."
She reached back, gathered her hair into a tie, and tossed the words out curtly.
Si-woo panicked visibly, staring at her in blank bewilderment.
"No time to wait three days. My sister's worried sick, and no guarantee you'll hold out that long."
"Deneb-nim? It's only been a day. Even if we do it, shouldn't we observe things a bit longer...?"
"Think about it. If you get taken out before I've recovered enough mana, I'm next— no vanguard, mana running low. This way is safest. Surest."
It wasn't just empty talk.
Last night, her mana had been full, and Si-woo had shared the aggro in perfect shape.
But if he took even a scratch, she'd have to juggle escape, mana conservation, and recovery all at once.
Dragging her feet over mother-in-law and son-in-law nonsense could turn this into a real mess.
"No need to feel sorry for Odil and Odet. If I end up dying here, that would be the real apology owed. What are you waiting for? Undress."
"Deneb-nim, I get that you're worked up, but..."
"Don't worry. This isn't sex."
"...Pardon?"
But Deneb hadn't dragged Si-woo here without a plan.
She had a brilliant idea.
"Si-woo-kun, for mana charging, we just need internal ejaculation, right?"
Deneb continued her explanation with a faintly smug expression, like she had come up with something clever.
"Sex follows this mechanism: insertion, reciprocation, ejaculation. Along the way, mutual pleasure, confirming feelings. Correct?"
"Yes, that's right."
"But we'll skip the reciprocation, mutual pleasure, and feelings confirmation entirely."
In other words...
"You thrust in right at the moment before ejaculation... Get what I mean?"
"......"
"It's an unavoidable situation either way, but this keeps you guilt-free with the twins. What we're doing isn't sex. Just a quick insertion for mana transfer."
Coincidentally, Deneb's idea matched the one from Countess Yesod just days ago.
Of course, back then it had been under that hag's ejaculation control, but purely in results, the mana charge would be the same.
"But... Countess, this is your first time, isn't it?"
There was a slight difference in position between Countess Yesod and Deneb.
Deneb was a virgin.
Si-woo fretted over whether it was right for her first time to happen like this.
"So what? Getting out of here safe—for the twins' sake—is my top priority. I never planned on being with a man before succession anyway."
Si-woo mulled over Deneb's proposal.
"Time's short. Nightfall's coming soon."
He wasn't sure if this was truly right.
But it was undeniably the fastest shortcut.
"...All right, for now."
"Good. I'll get ready."
With that, Deneb laid out the rest of the plan.