Chapter 674
Chapter 674
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 674
Chapter Title: Dual! (2)
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Last night.
"The Silent Witch is, well... a total nut when it comes to Location Board."
Dorothy said it in that unnecessarily serious tone of hers.
Si-woo was the one who'd asked for detailed info on Lodge Alu to get Malisha and Manya back, but this felt like a completely off-base explanation.
Normally, you'd expect answers like what kind of magic she uses, her hierarchy rank, her spot on the achievement list, stuff like that, right?
"Is that your answer?"
"Ah, she mainly uses self-cursing magnetism spells. 20th Hierarchy, works with a bunch of witches. Curse magic really shines in support roles, after all."
No matter how you sliced it, Dorothy had just tacked on the basics she should've led with.
But once he actually met Lodge, Si-woo got why she'd brought up Location Board first thing.
"Let's head to the playroom. She's in there. You like booze? Got some good brandy if you want."
"Ah, yeah, sure."
Lodge grabbed Si-woo's wrist and hurried down the hall with quick steps.
Her speech never had much distance to it anyway, but right now it was downright chummy.
Like reuniting with a childhood friend after ten years.
Lodge had to have a ton of questions burning inside her.
Like why Si-woo had shown up at the mansion all by himself.
Or why Linne let him wander freely without any explanation.
Or the story behind becoming a witch in a man's body.
Or how he'd gone from being known as Tiferet Duke's priest to Linne's disciple, and so on.
Once they sat down, there'd be endless conversation topics impossible to wrap up quickly.
And yet here she was, turning her back on all that just to set up for a stupid board game.
At this point, his earlier worries—like her maybe saying something lame like "Eh, not really feeling it right now? Got a male witch right here"—seemed downright silly.
Good.
It was just a subquest with no real bearing on the escape, so the plan had been pretty half-baked, but he'd cleared the first step like a champ.
"This way, this way."
From the first-floor reception room, up two flights to a door.
Her playroom was sealed tight with soundproofing material straight out of a theater.
But Si-woo whipped off his blindfold and sized it up right away.
This wasn't a normal room.
Hundreds of layers of barriers, densely woven from gloomy magic threads that evoked miasma blooming across a scorching wasteland.
A pitch-black prison naturally rose in his mind's eye, and from a magical standpoint, it was fortified like a bunker.
He had no clue why, but this sudden twist wasn't exactly welcome.
On top of that, the place gave off this grating displeasure that scratched at his nerves.
So before stepping in, he straight-up asked.
"That said, this place feels kinda off, doesn't it? Got some scheme going on?"
Lodge—who'd been buzzing like a heroine on her first date—froze in her tracks.
She stood there gripping the doorknob for a moment, then turned back.
Not like he'd sniffed out some hidden plot, but more like she'd been caught with something super embarrassing.
"I'll let you in, but tease me and I'll get mad."
"Huh?"
"Don't make fun when you see it. Promise?"
Not even close to a real answer.
"No, I mean, these barriers are packed crazy tight. What's the deal?"
"First time letting a guy in... makes me kinda wanna show it off."
"......"
Once again, the conversation was going sideways.
He'd asked about ulterior motives, and she said don't tease.
Asked about the barriers, and she says it's her first time with a man but wants to brag.
Sure, finding a witch who's not totally mypace was the real challenge, but this felt like talking right past each other.
"Promise me."
"Promise what?"
"I said it already—no teasing."
In the end, she was acting like going in without a straight answer was already a done deal.
Was she that bloodthirsty for Location Board?
Or just dying to show off her workshop?
"......"
Her opponent was 20th Hierarchy.
No Red Branch or anything, but with his rings, he could handle her somehow.
Even if the room was a trap and she'd rigged it ahead of time, he had some confidence.
Plus, with Linne's backing, she wouldn't dare pull anything rash, right?
"Fine, I promise."
"Kyaa! This is so thrilling!"
Lodge made a huge fuss all by herself and flung the door wide open.
Si-woo, wondering what the hell kind of room could get her this worked up, stepped into a space way bigger than it looked from outside.
Probably half those barriers were for spatial refraction spells.
The room's shape? Dome, about 20 meters across.
But to explain why she'd hemmed and hawed so shyly...
"Ugh, it's embarrassing. Guess I didn't get enough love growing up, so I just love this cutesy stuff. Whaddya think?"
"It's pretty."
First off, the floor was covered wall-to-wall in fluffy sheepskin carpet.
Sky-blue wallpaper dotted with white fluffy clouds, star stickers plastered everywhere.
A bed loaded with frilly ruffles, a dainty little table—furniture that all came together to feel like a dollhouse for little girls.
No normal witch would paint her stuff in those garish pastel shades.
It was the kind of design only a kid would call pretty, heavy on visual pop over any real aesthetics.
"Not too childish?"
"Not at all."
"Hehe, that makes me happy."
He had to work a bit to keep his expression neutral.
At a glance, the age-mismatched decor felt more creepy than comical.
"You called it a playroom, but this is your workshop, huh? Magic research and all."
"Yeah, exactly."
His head nodded on its own.
The overkill barriers made sense for a playroom? Nah, but for a workshop, perfect.
Witches' labs were always top-tier anyway—for security and experiments.
"Hey, what's with that door over there?"
The space was so cluttered it'd taken him a sec to clock it.
If their entry was at 6 o'clock position, there were three more doors: 9, 12, and 3.
"Oh, that? Where I keep my precious collection."
Malisha and Manya had to be in there.
His intuition prickled even without anyone spelling it out.
He'd brought up Location Board to snag those two anyway, so peeking around fit the flow.
Could set up a nice "Oh, you like those? Let's make a bet" vibe.
"Mind if I check it out?"
"Check it out? Eh, nothing special. Sure."
No need to beg twice.
Lodge perked right up like she'd been waiting for him to ask, bouncing over eagerly.
She looked itching to show it off.
Chaotic room plus hyper Lodge? His head was spinning.
"Okay then, first collection reveal!"
-Creak!
The leftmost door swung open.
The innocent, childlike vibe of the main room flipped completely across that single threshold.
"How's it look?"
Red brick walls and iron bars—a prison cell.
But the setup was way too plush for just locking up victims.
Beyond the bars: a private bathroom, luxury bed, high-end sofa.
Ignore the sealed entrance and the seedy red lighting, and it could've passed for part of the playroom.
"Lodge, is that you?"
Door barely open, rustling from the bed—a black-haired woman with a languid air sat up.
A witch.
"Yeah, Mama. It's me!"
"It's been a while."
Lodge slotted in the key, shoved the bars aside, and dove straight into the naked witch's arms.
The witch hugged her tight and slowly stroked her hair.
"Did you miss me?"
"Of course. You know how much Mama loves Lodge."
"How much?"
"As much as the sky and the earth?"
What the actual hell was this?
Si-woo could only gape, dumbfounded.
He knew apprentice witches and their masters sometimes played at being mother and daughter, calling each other Mama and kid.
But Lodge was a grand witch.
Succession complete.
By witch logic, her master flat-out shouldn't exist anymore.
So who was this witch Lodge called "Mama," and why was she part of the "collection" in this cell?
That subtle unease from earlier prickled anew.
Like a duo of discordant strings screeching wildly—his nerves were shot.
"......"
His eyes suddenly met the witch's as she held Lodge.
Hers trembled, soaked in raw fear and terror.
The shake didn't stop there—he clearly caught it reaching her fingertips.
That instant.
"Only that much?"
Lodge's voice sliced sharp, like flipping her palm.
"N-no! Way more—more than the sky, more than the earth!"
"That's right."
"Of course!"
Just that, and the witch foamed at the mouth like a blade was digging into her throat.
Her hysterical freakout screamed how much Lodge had been grinding her down.
"Kiss me as much as Mama loves Lodge."
Lodge stuck out her tongue, studded with metal bits.
The witch drew it in slow, caressing it like an act of worship.
Half-bared breasts, two beauties locked in a lewd kiss—plenty to stir lust.
But Si-woo's desire didn't twitch an inch.
"Lodge. What the...?"
"Mmm, oh right—you're here too? Sorry, sorry."
She gave Mama's cheek a light shove to break the kiss, then beamed at Si-woo all innocent-like.
A smile clear as glass beads.
"This is Mama. Mama, say hi—that's Shin Si-woo over there. A legit male witch."
"Ah... hello."
"Ah, yes. Hello."
Polite greeting earned a polite reply.
But...
Dark alleyway.
The vibe of stumbling on a suitcase abandoned on the street.
One shoved near a streetlamp, soaked through with some mystery fluid.
Swarming bugs, thick stench.
Big enough to cram a whole person inside.