City of Witches-Chapter 411: Harvest Festival (4)

1.

The famed male witch fought with the Witch of Desire and managed to come back alive.

Though rumors and news usually circulated slowly among the witches, this piece of news spread through Gehenna in the span of less than a single day.

That was how surprising and sensational the news was.

Even Diana—someone who barely left her room—heard about the news, so there was no need to doubt how well-spread the news was.

The first time she heard this news, her shoulders were puffed in pride.

‘As expected of someone who had received my first kiss! He’s so capable!’ She said to herself.

She was proud of herself for discovering his worth earlier than others.

Of course, she dismissed the fact that he had basically laid his talent bare for her on their Witch Board games, and yet she still failed to notice it for the longest time.

Anyone in my position would react in the same way!

But, that feeling was soon replaced by gloom when she remembered that she had basically given him to her mother.

That aside, it had been four days since their previous class—the time when she asked him to seduce her mother.

Earlier today, she heard words that their class would resume starting today, leaving her excited.

She even dolled herself for 2 hours, even though she knew that there was no point in doing that.

“Hello, Ms. Diana. It’s been a while.”

“Hello. It’s been a while.”

Siwoo entered the room with his usual expression.

For some reason, Diana felt a strange sense of mysteriousness emanating from him.

Her play tutor, the black knight, her mother’s lover…

She vividly remembered the time when he defeated that Homunculus and saved her.

However, that Homunculus couldn’t be compared to his enemy this time, an infamous 22nd-rank Criminal Exile, the Witch of Desire. And yet, he fought against her and came back safely.

Diana knew how powerful a 22nd-rank witch was—her mother was one, after all. Hence why she could appreciate his achievements more than the average person.

She already believed the rumors to some extent, and now that she was seeing him in person, she came to believe the rumors even more.

“Come in.”

“Yes.”

Diana walked towards the sofa and sat down.

It was the same sofa where he had treated her sprained ankle with Healing Magic.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. My injuries weren’t that serious.”

“…Really?”

His injuries weren’t that serious…

Hearing him saying those words so calmly felt jarring.

Normally, people in his position would go on a bragging spree, becoming big-headed, but he was acting the same as usual.

“Did you…win?”

“Huh?”

“You fought the Witch of Desire and survived, no? I won’t tell anyone, so, can you tell me what happened?”

In the end, Diana failed to suppress her curiosity.

She didn’t realize it, but her body was leaning forward, expressing how curious she was.

Probably, for her, this conversation was as exciting as an interview with a hero who had slain an evil dragon.

“Honestly, it just…happened. I don’t know if I could say that I won or not…”

“If you won, you won, if you lost, you lost. How hard could it be?”

“It’s a long story…”

“I don’t mind a long story. You can brag about it with me. Just tell me.”

“Sorry, but I can’t. There are some private circumstances…and things that I can’t tell you about, Ms. Diana…”

Seeing his lukewarm reaction, Diana’s brows straightened.

Something’s strange…

Diana herself hated attention, so she’d rather lay low most of the time, but if she were to defeat a powerful enemy, she’d be more than willing to brag about it for 15 minutes.

But the man in front of her was so evasive that it was suspicious.

Are the rumors…false…?

If that’s the case, it’s understandable that he doesn’t want to tell anyone the details of what happened…

“Hmm…”

“You don’t need to be suspicious of me…”

“As expected… You just can’t trust the rumors, huh?”

“Even if you provoke me like that, I still won’t open my mouth.”

The more one tried to hide something, the more curious others became. That was the basic human psychology.

“Alright, I’ll just trust you. You must have your reasons.”

However, Diana had already built up some trust in Siwoo.

After all, she had gone out of her way to tell him secrets that she had never confided to anyone before, and even made a bold request to him to seduce her mother.

“Tell me if you feel like it later.”

“I’ll do that.”

Fighting a magic battle herself was a scary thing, but it was different to hear other people’s tales of bravery.

She actually wanted to spend today’s class hearing how the Witch Board’s genius utilized his magic in a fight.

It was regrettable, but she decided to move on. After all, she had something else that she wanted to talk about.

Soon, Gehenna would be covered in a rowdy atmosphere of a certain festival.

The Harvest Festival where people would celebrate their harvest for the year—three days and three nights of drinking and partying.

But that wasn’t all. This was also the time when lovers would affirm their affection towards each other.

There was a popular saying going around that couples who met during the Harvest Festival would fall in eternal love until death separated them apart.

Though she didn’t know where that saying came from, and she actually didn’t believe it that much, but that was what one of the novels she read said.

Considering that a man and a woman who were in love tend to be heavily influenced by their emotions rather than logic…

This was a golden opportunity that they shouldn’t miss.

If Siwoo could seduce her mother during this time, she might just wish to stay alive for a while longer, and that would be in line with Diana’s goal to delay her brand succession for as long as possible.

Even if she had to let go of the man that she liked as the price.

“By the way, do you know?”

“Know what?”

“The Harvest Festival. You were a slave once, right? So, you know what I’m talking about?”

“Ah…”

After hearing Diana’s words, the bitterness that Siwoo had been suppressing coated his tongue again.

Basically, the Harvest Festival was Christmas.

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But, as time went on, and the notion of religion faded into obscurity in Gehenna, the religious implication of it had also gone, turning it into more of an annual festival than a holiday.

“There are many romantic places in the Levanna Grand Bath, I’ll tell you some of them so you could have a good time with Mom there.”

Diana pretended to be calm, but her face was completely red.

It was only natural. After all, it hadn’t been that long since she dashed out of a building after seeing the twins casually kissing Siwoo on the lips.

After she accidentally caught Siwoo and her mother in the act, she asked him to do her a favor.

To seduce her mother and delay her succession for as long as possible.

Since she knew exactly what they were doing, there was no way she could keep her composure when talking about such a topic.

“I’ve prepared a nice wine for you, and Mom should have some spare time on that day since she’d want to spend her time with me. As for gifts, you should prepare them yourself. I mean, you’re a man and all.”

But, Siwoo hadn’t even given his clear answer to her request.

While yes, he understood her feelings—she just didn’t want to be separated from her mother…

He felt that if he were to agree, he’d be betraying the women that he loved.

For a long time, he had been pondering about this.

And after going through the Palace of Memories and regaining his lost memories…

He had to think about Eloa as well, on top of Sharon and the twins. The woman who had been hiding her feelings on her own, while watching over him from afar.

Siwoo knew…

That if he were to hold off from giving his answer to Diana, eventually, someone would suffer from it, just like what happened with Eloa.

‘If you have time to feel guilty towards me, then you should spend it to fall for me.’ Periwinkle’s words once again came to his mind.

But, the problem here was that his relationship with the countess started due to her seduction, then things happened and it turned physical.

It was a casual relationship at best, the kind of relationship that he could easily stop.

The question here was, should he do that or not?

“…”

In the end, he decided to stop his relationship with the countess, at least for the time being.

Until he either got permission from his four lovers, or when he was in a more stable state to decide his answer for good.

“…?”

Seeing Siwoo remaining silent, Diana, who had been passionately planning out his date with her mother, gradually changed her expression.

From confusion, suspicion, to surprise.

Though her body gesture turned languid, her brain quickly connected the dots.

“…You! Could it be…?!”

“First, let me apologize, Ms. Diana.”

Diana’s expression, which had been rippling like waves, turned frozen like ice.

Her usually sleepy eyes were snapped open, giving off a fierce impression.

She bit her lip, clenching her molars.

“What?”

“I need some time to think about your request.”

“…Why?”

The atmosphere around them turned terrifying.

While yes, if a fight were to break out here, she couldn’t even dream of touching a part of Siwoo’s hair, but she still bared her fangs regardless.

And there was nothing Siwoo could do about it.

“I haven’t told you, but… I actually had a lover already… We’ve been together even before I’ve met you, Ms. Diana… Our relationship is…quite deep…if I may say so…”

He didn’t bring up the fact that the countess was the one who seduced him first to protect her honor.

This whole thing made him feel like he was in a drama. Like he was confessing to a daughter of a divorce, who had been trying to make him her step-dad, that he already had a family to take care of, and he couldn’t marry her mother no matter what.

Now he could understand what Sharon meant when she said that her stomach felt like it was being twisted whenever she got anxious.

But, it wasn’t like he could just back down here. He didn’t want to leave both Diana and Countess Yesod with an empty hope.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t seduce Countess Yesod anymore. You can blame me all you wish.”

“…”

Diana remained silent for a long time. Meanwhile, Siwoo kept his head low, as if he was a sinner.

“So…”

Then, a low, drawn-out voice, just like that of a beast, trickled from her mouth.

There was an obvious anger in that voice, accompanied by the feeling of bewilderment, and betrayal.

“…My mom was just a plaything to you?”

Of course, she was completely mistaken.

But, someone’s conclusion of an event always depended on their position and knowledge. A single event could be interpreted in various ways depending on the person.

In this case, Diana’s words expressed her perspective of Siwoo’s actions.

Either way, the truth of the matter was, he was too weak and fell for the countess’ seduction. He had no excuse for his behavior.

“So you think you could just have a taste of my mom and throw her away?”

Diana spoke bluntly, ignoring even the most basic honorifics.

Siwoo felt his heart grow cold as he saw her rapidly approaching him, like a sports car accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in a single second.

“You…! Bastard!”

Then, with a glass in her hand, she swung at him.

The glass bounced off the side of his head, making a ‘Clink!’ sound.

“You jerk! Who! Do you think! You are?! Treating my mom like that!”

“M-Ms. Diana…! Listen to me first!”

“Get out! Get out of my sight!”

Just as the countess loved her, she also loved her mother.

His words suggested that he had been using her mother as a place to release her carnal pleasure, of course she’d rage at him.

Her depression from before was changed.

Into fuel that fed the flames of her rage.

Siwoo tried to talk it out with her, but she was having none of it—she threw everything she could get her hands on at him.

From wine bottles, vases, pillows, to even fountain pens.

In fact if she were just a little stronger, she’d probably throw the table at him.

“Never! Show up! In front of me again! Get out of here! Now!”

After enduring her rage for a bit more, Siwoo was eventually kicked out of her room. A fountain pen was stuck on the back of his /genesisforsaken