Chapter 634
Chapter 634
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 634
Chapter Title: Labyrinth (5)
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A fierce battle had finally come to an end.
The banquet hall, which had at least been somewhat splendid, had been reduced to rubble, as if it had been caught in an aerial bombardment.
"Hoo..."
Si-woo released his armor and reflected on the fight that had just concluded.
Setting aside the two who'd been instantly knocked out the moment he'd sensed their approach, there had been the battle with a 20th Hierarchy great witch.
The result was Si-woo's overwhelming knockout victory.
To draw a rough analogy, it was the payoff from enduring those grueling days of being matched against challengers right from the skeletal stage.
Even a 20th Hierarchy witch was in the top 1% of all witches population-wide.
And he'd secured the win against her using only the Halo of the Angel, without properly deploying Red Branch or his ribbons.
"Master was spot on, not a single word off."
There was something Eloa always stressed.
"You don't need to be stronger than your opponent at every turn. As long as you can surpass them in that one decisive move, that's enough."
Exactly this.
In that sense, the Halo of the Angel he'd received from Dorothy was the perfect spell to showcase the tactical doctrines his master had drilled into him most efficiently.
It allowed for an astronomical stat boost, even if only for a fleeting moment.
The Witch of Mercury hadn't anticipated such an explosive overclock, which was why she'd gone down so pathetically.
"..."
Of course, it wasn't without its downsides.
The Halo of the Angel was undoubtedly an excellent doping tool, but it demanded a hefty price in return.
The overload from movements several times more intense than usual, combined with the massive mana expenditure, was still feeding back into Si-woo's body even now.
His muscles screamed throughout his body.
Every heartbeat brought searing pain from his mana circuits stabbing through him.
From the moment he'd activated the Halo of the Angel to the battle's conclusion—the time elapsed...
"Mere 2 seconds..."
His condition had deteriorated this much in that brief span.
Judging by the trend, he could probably push it to 5 seconds without worrying about aftereffects, or maybe 10 if he factored in some minor injuries as the limit.
"Now what to do..."
In the middle of the ruins lay the three witches, strewn about haphazardly.
The Witch of Mercury, who'd been smacked in the gut by his spear shaft and sent flying like a tennis ball.
One witch with her eyes rolled back white in unconsciousness, and another lying there with her body twisted in some bizarre pose.
For starters, it was clear these exiles had intended harm toward Si-woo.
Had he lost the fight, they probably would have satisfied their desires one way or another.
But did he harbor any real malice toward them...? Eh, not really.
Was it because the win had come too easily? Or maybe because they weren't as vicious as the wanted criminals he'd faced before?
For now, he extracted shadows and fitted collars around each of their necks.
Manipulating shadows was his specialty, so in an emergency, he could generate spikes inside to serve as bomb necklaces.
At that moment, the Witch of Mercury stirred groggily.
Gone was her initial elegance; covered head to toe in dust and grime, she let out a strange "Ughhhh..." while groping at her battered waist—until her eyes met Si-woo's.
"..."
And she froze like a frog staring down a snake.
"Don't move. If I see even a hint of resistance, I'll kill you on the spot."
He said it deliberately cold and detached.
The last thing he needed was her snapping back to defiance the moment she regained her senses.
Better to instill fear instead.
"Ah..."
Alice, who had been unconscious, blinked around blearily and asked,
"W-where are Manya and Malisha...?"
Even in her disoriented state, she looked horrified, as if realizing she'd lost something precious.
He jerked his chin to indicate their positions, and...
"Manya! Malisha!"
Alice shot to her feet and rushed to them.
She turned her back completely to Si-woo as she checked on their conditions.
Si-woo, with his eyes that could read mana flows, knew something.
If Alice had used magic solely to escape with her own skin, she probably could have gotten away.
Even with a significant gap in power, chasing down a witch fleeing at full speed wasn't easy.
But her spell from the start had excluded the option of running solo.
And the reason was likely those two.
Moments like this made him think no one was purely evil.
It was also why he didn't feel any intense rage toward these three witches.
Just like with Dorothy, hearing their side might make it understandable.
"Hoo..."
Realizing the other two were largely unharmed, Alice let out a sigh of relief.
To prevent any tricks, Si-woo approached, and Alice whipped around, spreading her arms wide like a mother bird shielding her chicks to block him.
"D-don't come closer...!"
Her cracked voice and eyes soaked in defeat lacked any of her initial arrogance.
"What are you planning to do with us...?"
Gathering what little courage she could muster, Alice glared at him through gritted teeth.
But she trembled like a prospective victim before a killer, making Si-woo feel like the bad guy.
"We'll figure that out from here on."
It wasn't veiled intimidation; it was genuine.
Honestly, he still wasn't sure what to do with the three of them.
Handing them over to his master was the default plan, but...
That meant dragging homunculus-hunting baggage around by the tail, which was a hassle.
Letting them go wasn't an option either—they'd committed a crime and needed punishment, whatever form that took.
"Hmm..."
Settling it with money seemed ideal.
Witches were all loaded, so 8 billion might be doable.
That way, he could fund Lurye's donations without hunting the homunculus, and Big Mother-in-law would approve since it'd come from beating down criminal exiles.
"Then..."
"W-wait, just hear me out!"
Suddenly, a loud voice rang in his ears.
It was impressive she still had the energy to shout like that.
"Sure, go ahead."
"...Sorry for ambushing you."
"Yeah, you should be. Why'd you do it?"
"...To s-sell..."
"To who?"
"The highest bidder..."
Exactly as he'd half-expected—no surprise there.
"An apology won't cut it."
"I wasn't planning to let you off for free either."
Alice grandly stated the obvious compensation due, while Si-woo replied curtly.
He was ready to graciously accept if she promised cash or good magic items...
"Ugh..."
Biting her lip hard, Alice cast a cleaning spell.
She had no mana left for anything substantial post-defeat, so he let it slide.
Dust cleared, revealing her refined features once more.
Though her terrified, cowed expression was almost pitiful.
"Huh?"
Alice closed her eyes and flung open her blouse with such force the buttons nearly popped.
Beneath the white fabric, black lingerie came into view— the skimpy kind where a single fingertip tug would make her nipples say "hello!"
Hm, about D-cup.
"D-do whatever you want with me...! It was all my plan."
Her neck flushed beet red with every trembling word.
What was this about...?
"What's this?"
"You were gonna rape me anyway, right?"
"Huh? No."
"Don't lie! A pretty witch like me, defenseless, and you won't lay a finger? I don't buy it!"
Si-woo was dumbfounded.
Sure, sleeping with Alice might net him a useful spell.
At 20th Hierarchy, it was a pretty good gacha pull chance.
But he had no intention of committing what amounted to rape just to get stronger.
Let alone making them pay with their bodies.
With his already tangled love life, what excuse could he give his lovers who only had eyes for him?
Above all, ongoing research was revealing that magic copying wasn't omnipotent.
Spells like Halo of the Angel synergized well with his arsenal, enabling level-ups.
But others, like Little Mother-in-law's magic, weren't combat-useful.
Alice's alchemy-based spells were quite distant from his style.
Stealing them would broaden his spectrum by lining up blocks sideways, but they wouldn't serve as resources for real growth.
"I'll do anything you say... So please... don't touch these kids and let them go..."
Ignoring all that, Alice swallowed her humiliation and pleaded desperately.
As Si-woo opened his mouth, still speechless at the absurdity...
"Mr. Witch, do whatever you want with me instead! My breasts are bigger than Alice sis's, and my hips are wider too..."
Manya, whom he'd thought unconscious, sprang up and grabbed Alice's arm.
"Yeah! We're tastier."
Malisha, who'd been playing dead, jumped up and shouted at Si-woo.
Frustrated, Alice yelled at them.
"What are you doing?! You should've kept pretending to be out!"
"But! We couldn't just watch Alice sis get defiled..."
"Leave it to us. You've worked so hard for us every day."
"We're bisexual... so it'll be less repulsive than with sis. If I can save her by sacrificing my body... I'd do it a hundred times over."
"Manya... Malisha..."
Alice's usual venomous expression crumpled amid surging tears.
When had these carefree fools grown such resolve?
It was genuinely touching.
In these three's heads, Si-woo lining them up and taking turns was already a done deal.
"You stubborn idiots..."
The trio ignored Si-woo's sullen expression, embracing hotly to affirm their bond.
Manya and Malisha stood with sharp glares.
"Hey, male witch! Sleep with this big sis once, and you won't glance at other witches."
"We two can more than replace Alice sis, right?"
"For witches, hierarchy is everything—but for women, it's how tender and juicy the insides are."
"..."
Time to end this melodrama.
"No, forget the bodies. Just pay up generously in compensation."
Si-woo held out his palm with a bored look.