CHAPTER 501: AQUARIUM (1)

0% 1.

Ever since Duchess Keter stopped showing herself to the public, no witch had been allowed to set foot in the Ivory Tower.

The Ivory Tower itself was a structure that didn’t follow any architectural style of any era; it was simply the most breathtaking creation crafted by Keter herself.

On top of a circular stone platform that resembled a dimly lit chapel, on a throne right on top of it, a single ruler sat.

Her hair was pure white, untouched by any stain of color.

But if one were to trace it to the ends, they’d notice that it bled into a cascade of iridescent hues.

Between her half-closed lids, her golden eyes gleamed; it was impossible to tell where they were looking.

This woman was none other than Duchess Keter, the witch who was revered by all the witches in existence.

She was a once-in-a-lifetime genius who climbed to the 30th-rank alone without passing down her brand even once.

The guardian who imposed order upon the chaos of the witches’ world.

A judge who would cut down even a friend if they crossed the line.

But to Lilith, the woman on that throne wasn’t the Keter everyone heard and known about.

In her eyes, what the woman before her was wearing was a look of resignation for her impending death.

She was a woman who had despaired over her unreachable dreams to the point that she had worn herself out.

Just like a weary dragon who had lost interest in the endless, repeating passage of time.

“Poor Keter...”

Lilith paced twenty steps away from her, her tone somewhere between a taunt and a song.

“So this is the appearance you long for so desperately? To the point that you even cast me aside?”

With a flick of her gaze, Lilith scanned the vast chamber again.

Behind Keter’s throne, countless magic circles were running.

A four-dimensional regular polychoron, incomprehensible to three-dimensional beings even if they were to observe it meticulously. Its purpose was to sustain Keter’s body.

And it was also the reason why Lilith couldn’t step within twenty steps from her.

It was magic no other witch could replicate, but to Lilith, it was nothing but a pathetic excuse for a shield.

“What happened to the magic you were so proud of? The one with those beautiful fractal patterns?”

Once upon a time, Keter’s magic circles had been the most dazzling, like a kaleidoscope of fractal shapes.

Compared to them, these filthy, grotesque, clumsy spells were nothing but cheap tricks.

Of course, the hundreds of potions, drugs, and narcs injected through hoses densely packed behind her were the same.

For Keter, out of all people, to rely on something as pathetic as drugs, it was inconceivable.

“Still running your mouth. Do you not have anything better to do?”

“I went through hell to get in here. The least you could do is have a proper conversation with me. No way I’d leave this place while feeling this let down.”

The Ivory Tower had been sealed shut by Keter’s personal dimensional barrier.

An impenetrable formula, a perfect wall that no witch could ever break.

She probably wanted to hide her authority in that way.

Because it was the path she had devoted her entire life for; to pursue absolute order.

Under normal circumstances, not even Lilith could have forced her way inside.

But Amelia’s little rampage had come at just the right time.

Under Lilith’s manipulation, the smell Amelia unleashed had unknowingly placed a massive burden on the Interdimensional Barrier surrounding Gehenna.

Had Keter been at her full strength, she could’ve repaired it in an instant, but...

That couldn’t be done anymore.

After all, she had been slowly dying for centuries now.

She couldn’t fix the barrier fast enough, so Lilith was able to slip through the fleeting gap and barge into the Ivory Tower, coming face to face with the one she hated most in the world.

“You’re the pitiful one here, Lilith.”

“Oho? The great queen, shriveled up and dying, still has enough lenience to pity someone else?”

Lilith’s sarcasm was cut off by an unexpected sound.

A dry, hollow chuckle that filled the hall, echoing endlessly.

Unexpectedly, that laughter came from Keter herself.

Lilith narrowed her eyes.

“What’s so funny?”

“Don’t fool yourself, Lilith. You’re nothing but a stain—a dried-up remnant of the past that even time couldn’t wash away.”

“...”

“A little wretch who thinks her petty tricks and tongue-lashing make her omnipotent and great. Know that I have no pity or compassion for you.”

-Bang!

In that instant.

A monstrous shockwave tore through the space.

To the point that the transparent barrier between the two witches rippled violently, making it seem like it might shatter at any moment.

Pressing her forehead against that barrier, Lilith glared at Keter, throwing her killing intent at her.

“I really, really wish that I could just tear you apart and kill you right now.”

“Unfortunately, you, more than anyone, know that you can’t.”

Lilith took a deep breath and pulled her hand away from the barrier.

She had already tried various methods, but even after all that, she came to one conclusion: As she was now, she had no way to break through the barrier.

But Keter’s condition was only getting worse.

Also, she had already confirmed that sooner or later, Keter wouldn’t even be able to maintain the barrier properly, so staying here any longer would be just a waste of time.

“No matter how much you dress it up with fancy words, Keter, you are still a failure.”

After composing herself to some extent, Lilith turned away with a smirk.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to hide how stiff her lips had become.

“Just sit there and watch everything you tried to protect fall apart. That’s how I’m going to enact my revenge on you.”

As she walked away, Keter’s dignified voice called out to her.

“Lilith.”

Slipped in her tone, was a different kind of mockery than the one Lilith had thrown at her.

“You’re mistaken about something.”

“...What are you talking about?”

With cold amusement, quiet grief, and a touch of satisfaction, Keter’s next words flowed out of her lips.

“‘All of us’ are failures.”

Lilith walked away, thinking that it wasn’t worth it to respond to her worth.

But a self-deprecating laugh, like scraping her throat, followed her like a shadow.

2.

“Is today just a wasted day?”

When Siwoo returned to the perfume shop...

Amelia was nowhere to be found.

He checked the second and third floors, the storage room, thinking that she might be there, organizing the place, but then he noticed that her cloak, which usually hung by the corner, was missing.

She’s out, it seems.

“Well, she has been really busy lately.”

Since he had nowhere else to go, he left a note on the counter and headed for the Gemini Mansion.

It had been a while since he last saw the twins.

Unlike Sharon, who could move around freely, the twins were swamped with their schedule since they were still apprentice witches. If he didn’t make time specifically for them, he’d barely get to see them.

“Bloom.”

A deep blue mana swirled around his body.

He leaped through space and landed in the courtyard of the Gemini mansion.

It was already late at night.

Even though his mother-in-laws had approved of their relationship, if word got out that he had shown up announced, there was still a good chance that they might just kick him out.

So, he thought about getting their permission first, but the moment that thought crossed his mind, he had to hold back his groan.

“Uggg...”

Did something happen recently?

Lately, every time Albireo and Deneb saw him, they had been kicking him in the shins with their heels.

Back when he first met them, they embodied the word ‘elegance’.

But, in no time at all, they became the kind of mother-in-laws who were itching to rip their pathetic son-in-law to shreds.

It made him realize how true the saying, ‘You can see ten feet into water but not even a foot into someone’s heart’ was.

-Knock, knock.

He knocked lightly on the firmly shut door.

Usually, Head Maid Galina or one of the maids would open the door, but perhaps because it was late, even after he waited for a while, no one came to fetch him.

“Excuse me.”

Since that was the case, he opened the door himself.

At that moment, the chandelier flared to life, as there was a motion-sensor here, and the quiet cracking of burning wood echoed through the dimly lit hall.

“What’s going on?”

Then, a clear voice, sounded clearly irritated, cut through the sound of burning wood.

On the long staircase stretching from the second-floor terrace, there she was, Deneb, his little mother-in-law, standing with a lantern in hand.

He almost averted his gaze without thinking.

The sight of her comfortable-looking pajamas, revealing her pale thighs, made him recall the night when she greeted this little mother-in-law of his.

But, if he let any of that show on his face, it would only make things worse.

From what he had seen, Deneb had written that incident off as a fleeting mistake, so he had to play along with her decision here.

As Siwoo was trying his best to keep his eyes in check, he noticed that there was a large cape draped over her shoulders.

At the very least, it covered some of her skin.

-Tap Tap Tap

Deneb descended the stairs.

Her hair was swept up into a bun. He noticed a few stray locks poking out of it, which meant that she had been lying in her bed just a moment earlier.

With how irritated she looked, it seemed like he had forcefully woken her up.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you...”

“D-Disturb? What are you talking about? I was sleeping!”

Deneb hastened her steps.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, she strode up to Siwoo, raised a finger, and waved the lantern in her hand aggressively.

“Witches need sleep too, you know! I have a very strict sleep schedule!”

“U-Um, yes... S-Sorry...”

I just wanted to say sorry for waking you up...

If there was one good thing here, it was that she didn’t immediately slam her heel into his shin, but it was clear that she still wanted to chew him out for something.

Not that he could blame her, though.

From her perspective—perhaps Albireo’s too—he looked less like a sneaky thief and more like a brazen bandit.

“And just what do you think you’re wearing? I told you to dress properly! If you’re going to call yourself the son-in-law of the Gemini family, at least try to look the part! Also...”

A tirade of complaints poured out of Deneb’s mouth without pause.

After a while, she fanned her flushed cheeks with her hand and let out a deep breath.

“So, why are you here?”

“Ah, I was wondering if I could see Ms. Odile and Ms. Odette if they were awake... Oww!”

Deneb immediately kicked Siwoo in the shin without saying anything.

Although, since she was wearing slippers, not heels, it didn’t hurt as much as usual.

“And why exactly would you be visiting the twins this late at night? You aren’t even trying to hide it anymore, huh...?!”

“Ow! Ow! No, no, no! Ms. Deneb, wait! It’s nothing like that! I just... Haven’t seen them in a while...!”

“It’s all your fault! All your fault! Do you have any idea how much I’ve been through? All this time, you’ve been living with Ms. Marigold, but then here you are! Having the galls to show up at night, brazenly asking me, ‘Can I see the twins?’ Hah!”

Siwoo tried to protest, but she kept hammering the same spot, ignoring him.

In the end, he took the full brunt of her emotion-fueled mother-in-law kicks.

After using Siwoo’s shins as a punching bag for a while, Deneb eventually calmed down—or rather, exhausted herself.

“Haaa... Haaa... Seriously...”

She ran a hand through her messy bangs as she tried to catch her breath.

The way she bit her lip in frustration was reminiscent of the twins’.

Just when Siwoo thought she’d be stopping here, she took a few deep breaths and spoke in a calm yet frightening tone.

“Mr. Siwoo, listen up. Even if you were engaged, coming to see your fiancée this late—wait, you aren’t even engaged yet, are you?”

“...Technically, no...?”

“Ugh... I really want to yank your sideburns out...”

It seemed like listing off everything that pissed her off had drained her energy.

“I have no excuse.”

“Of course you don’t.”

“I’ll come back during the day. Sorry for the trouble.”

Regardless, he knew that he was the source of her frustration.

So, he turned to leave, thinking that it couldn’t be helped, but...

“Wait.”

Deneb called out to him before ruffling her hair.

“Since you’ve come all the way here already, let’s talk for a bit.”