1.
Just like all the witches Siwoo had seen.
The appearance of the uninvited guest before him was as beautiful as a painting.
Her dress, made from pitch-black fabric, clung gracefully to her body, as if it was created exclusively for her.
It was hard to believe that her crimson eyes were that of a human's. Her lips exuded a seductive aura.
Her hair, falling just below her shoulders, evoked the image of a deathly flower, perhaps due to her slender body line.
'It's just like…'
'The Higanbana…'
The flower that bloomed at the bank of the river that ran through the underworld.
Siwoo felt a shiver run down his spine.
What was reflected in her eyes when she calmly interacted with him wasn't a form of respect one would show toward another human being.
It was an indifferent gaze, as if she was looking at a worm incapable of communication. Though, she probably hadn't realized it herself.
Even her excessively sweet tone felt incredibly nauseating.
No witch he had encountered so far had this kind of gaze toward another human.
What he felt from her was an instinctual fear that one could feel from facing a natural predator.
That fear overcame the effects of the alcohol he just consumed. The sense of crisis he felt dragged his consciousness to sobriety.
Though he still didn't know the reason why he felt this unsettled, he lowered his head anyway, before carefully asking.
"My name is Shin Siwoo, an exclusive slave of the Baroness. Have you made an appointment in advance? Would it be okay for me to inquire what kind of relationship you two have?"
"Unfortunately, I made no such appointment. And as for what kind of relationship we have… Let's just say that we're friends."
The atmosphere she exuded and the way she answered his question made Siwoo heightened his guard.
'With that shitty personality of hers, Amelia only has Sophia as a friend.'
'Since that's the case, why is this witch referring to herself as Amelia's friend? What's her purpose for coming here anyway?'
Siwoo let out a slight smile.
"Ms. Amelia is currently out for a moment, but she should return soon. Shall I escort you to the reception room first?"
In any case, he had to buy time for himself first and foremost.
That was what his instinct told him to do.
After all, he couldn't exactly ignore the chill that he had been feeling.
"Is that so?"
In response to Siwoo's words, the witch replied with an elegant smile and followed behind him with her heels clicking rhythmically.
Siwoo caught sight of the expression on her face through a glass door.
If a male-devouring monster existed in this world, then they would look exactly like this woman.
The mole under her left eye exuded such seductiveness that made him want to undress to see what might lie beneath her black dress.
'Beautiful' wasn't enough to describe her.
'But, what's with this uncomfortable feeling?'
'Something just feels terribly wrong…'
There was something about the heavy air this witch exuded.
It clung to his lung and made it difficult for him to breathe. It was as if he was breathing on a humid summer day.
Because it was a place to receive guests, the reception room was the most decorated part of the mansion.
After guiding her to a table covered in a white cloth, Siwoo pulled out a chair for her to sit on.
"Please wait for a moment. I will prepare tea for you to drink."
He would use that chance to escape.
Back in his room, there was a music box under his bed.
If he were to activate it, he could block her senses before escaping through the window.
His relationship with Amelia had already been ruined beyond repair anyway.
There was no need for him to wait for Amelia to come back while stupidly entertaining her guest. Not to mention that said guest was a potentially dangerous individual.
"It'd be too lonely if I were to wait here by myself, don't you think? Why don't you have a seat with me?"
As Siwoo pondered on how to respond so that he could deceive her and make a smooth escape, the witch sent him a whisper.
With an overly seductive and sweet tone.
"Please, for me?"
"Excuse me."
Left with no other choice, Siwoo pulled out the chair beside her and sat down.
He tried to control his expression to the best he could, trying to make things less awkward between them.
"It's an honor to be able to accompany you."
"Do you know who I am?"
"I apologize, I'm but a humble slave and my knowledge is limited. Would it be acceptable for me to inquire about your identity?"
"Ea Sadalmelik1Sadalmelik, or Alpha Aquarii, is one of the stars located in the Aquarius constellation.."
"A beautiful name, befits of a noble like you."
Ea covered her mouth with a playful gesture as she chuckled at Siwoo's attempt to flatter her.
"What about you? What's your name?"
"My name is Shin Siwoo."
Feeling that the atmosphere wasn't turning unpleasant, Siwoo let out a sigh of relief.
In truth, he was worried that he might have overdone it a little when he talked to her.
However, judging by the flow of the conversation, it seemed like he had handled it well.
"It seems like the Baroness won't be returning any time soon."
"Indeed…"
Considering how she rushed off so hastily.
It didn't seem like Amelia would come back soon.
Even after contemplating it, Siwoo couldn't understand the reason why she had fled.
If he was in her shoes, he would have definitely disposed of himself right there and then without any hesitation.
With an intrigued expression on her face, Ea scrutinized every inch of Siwoo's face.
She licked her lips before opening her mouth to speak.
"I hate waiting in boredom… Why don't we have some fun to kill time?"
A thick and dense scent permeated through the air.
It was as if the wind had intentionally shifted direction to fill Siwoo's nose with her subtle, yet distinct feminine fragrance.
"Can I know what do you mean by 'having fun?'"
"I have a very bad habit. It's an embarrassing habit, a flaw that I can't speak of confidently in front of others because it's so improper and shameful."
'Huh, seriously?'
Siwoo's poker face faltered a little.
From her tone, it sounded like she was flirting with him.
It was subtle enough that she still looked elegant while doing so, though.
Showing her an ambiguous smile, Siwoo quietly listened to her words.
Ea, who had been resting her chin on her hand, extended her delicate hand and gently took Siwoo's.
"Um…"
Guided by her soft and slender fingers, she brought one of his fingers near her lips as she playfully nibbled on it.
"Whenever I indulge in a secret affair, I have to expose that flaw to the other person. It's honestly quite an embarrassing thing to do."
Siwoo hesitated. Unsure whether to withdraw his hand or not.
He hadn't paid it much attention until now, but this woman exuded such an alluring atmosphere that he inadvertently swallowed his saliva.
"Can you guess what my bad habit is?"
"No, I can't…"
"Is that so?"
This time, Ea slightly parted her lips before gently touching Siwoo's fingertip with her tongue.
It wrapped around his fingertip surprisingly quickly.
Up until today, Siwoo had never known that someone's tongue could move so delicately yet so quickly like this.
"U-Uhh…!"
When he tried to resist this terrifying witch, she stuffed his fingers into her mouth.
'She doesn't show any shame even after doing all this…'
With a playful smile, she started sucking on two of her fingers with her lips while licking them intensely with her tongue.
It was as if she was sucking on his dick.
However, despite this arousing situation, his cock didn't even move.
Rather than getting aroused, Siwoo was just scared to death.
"My bad habit is… I keep wanting to steal another woman's man. Oh, I feel so embarrassed now…"
'What the hell is this nutcase saying?'
Ea let out a smirk as she cupped both her cheeks with her hands. A blissful smile as if she was melting from pleasure spread across her face not soon after.
Siwoo's statistical assessment was correct. Witches like Ea were likely to be either a nutcase or batshit crazy.
Even if Siwoo's status was nothing more than a slave, what Ea was trying to do was considered a taboo.
It was like a man trying to spend a night with an emperor's cherished concubine.
Proposing such nonsense when Amelia might return at any given moment was a clear proof of her insanity.
'Wait, is she even a proper guest to begin with?'
First, she lied about being friends with the clearly friendless Amelia, then she openly declared that she was into NTR…
Not to mention the suffocating atmosphere he had been feeling for a while.
Her sweet scent reminded him of a carnivorous plant that exuded its fragrance to ensnare the insects around it.
"Don't you like me? Are you maybe thinking about your master?"
"I'm just feeling lost at this undeserved attention being directed at me."
"C'mon, tell me. Are you thinking about Marigold right now?"
Ea seemed to be extremely excited for some reason.
She leaned in closer to Siwoo, half of her buttocks were already off the chair as she positioned her face just a few inches closer from his.
Siwoo's dilated pupils were reflected in Ea's blood-red eyes.
"Honestly, I can't blame you for thinking about her."
'Is it even something you can blame me for?'
Her words confused him, but he just obediently nodded his head.
Though, he wasn't sure that he could get away with lying right to her face when their eyes were locked to each other like this.
"Yes."
"What part of her are you thinking about? Her voice? Face? Or possibly, her naked body?"
Ea started speaking rapidly, clearly excited, while Siwoo was startled by her change.
He really couldn't understand where all her excitement came from.
However, it wasn't like he could just tell her that all he could think about Amelia was his hatred toward her.
"I think you misunderstood something… The relationship between Ms. Marigold and I are merely that of an associate professor and her exclusive slave."
"Oh, is that so?"
Hearing that answer, Ea's excitement waned and she leaned back against the backrest of her chair.
She had no intention to hide her loss of interest to him.
"What a shame. It would have been better if there's something deeper going on between you and her."
"I apologize for not meeting your expectations."
In any case, he wanted to gradually distance himself from her.
He felt like there might be sparks flying for no reason just by being next to her. If possible, he didn't want to be by her side at all.
His instincts were telling him.
That this witch was dangerous.
"Ah…"
At that moment, Siwoo happened to notice something and stopped in his tracks.
On the edge of her dress, there were intricate black laces made by twisting fabric. It formed a certain pattern.
At first, he thought it was either something like flowers or vines.
But after seeing it closely, the pattern resembled a water jug.
It depicted water pouring out of the jug. The fact that he couldn't tell such an unnatural pattern showed exactly how skilled the weaving techniques used for the dress was.
At that moment, two words came to his mind.
'An Exile.'
In truth, he considered this possibility because of her distinctive aura.
However, it was hard for him to imagine that an exile would boldly visit Amelia's house, so he buried that possibility deep into his thoughts.
Siwoo remembered what Sophia had said on the night when Amelia was almost kidnapped.
Back then, she referred to the mastermind behind that incident as the 'Witch of Aquarius.'
And right before him stood a woman exuding an ominous aura while wearing a dress adorned with lace patterns resembling a water jug.
This couldn't be a mere coincidence.
Siwoo had been planning to run away from her and now his desire to run away became stronger.
He had to run quickly.
Sure, he might have put his life on line when he confronted Amelia just a moment ago, but he wasn't inclined to sit still in a life-threatening situation like this.
Moreover, he still had more swear words to say to Amelia, so he couldn't afford to die yet.
Without changing his expression, Siwoo leisurely stood up from his seat.
"The Baroness might take a while longer to be back, so let me bring out some fine whiskey for you. Please don't let me embarrass myself by not being able to serve an esteemed guest like you."
The Witch of Aquarius, who was wearing a faint smile, gently places her chin on top of her clasped hands without uttering a single word.
Siwoo glanced at her calmly and started to make his way out of the reception room.
-Woong!
Then, he felt a dull vibration from behind.
Siwoo was familiar with that sensation, he could immediately tell what it was.
A unique phenomenon that emerged when someone moved the mana around them.
"You sensed it, huh?"
In an instant, magical waves flowed from the witch's cat-like pupils.
Behind her back were several layers of fluttering black ribbons-like objects.
Siwoo could sense an overwhelmingly high concentration of mana, it felt like it could take a chunk of a mountain just by grazing it.
His thoughts moved quickly.
If a witch bothered to go out of her way to confront someone who was ranked 22nd in the hierarchy, that meant she was confident that she was at least a match for the latter.
Siwoo could tell that she didn't bring out those black ribbons out of good intentions.
"Fuck."
RUN.
It was time to escape.