༺ Friendship (1) ༻
1.
“Huff… Huff…!”
The intense battle had come to an end.
As the shadow that enveloped him melted away like ice, Siwoo suddenly collapsed onto the ground.
His upper body, suffering from constant contact with Della’s flames during the battle, was scorched, as if he had been standing under the blazing sun all day long.
Pressed against the ground, his cheekbones and muscles were twitching from the strain, threatening to buckle under the immense pressure.
He could feel a throbbing sensation in his left eyes and the pain from the damaged magic circuits from all over his body; The aftermath of the fight.
Adrenaline in his body started to subside, replaced by the stinging pain from all the injuries he received.
“…Fuck… Did I do it…?”
Now that he had a moment to reflect, he couldn’t believe the frenzy he had just experienced.
It felt like he was watching a crazy movie at his own funeral.
He couldn’t deny that luck has played a significant role in his triumph.
After all, his enemy was powerful, and she possessed a terrifying amount of mana. The only reason why he managed to gain a crucial advantage against her was because she hadn’t taken the fight seriously until midway through.
Not only that, he also possessed a long-range attack that could effectively disrupt her strategies, preventing her from ever gaining her momentum back.
There was also the fact that she had already engaged in a fierce battle with Sharon beforehand, depleting her mana to some extent.
At this point, he remembered the saying of how magic battle was comparable to chess.
Using that comparison, the existence of his left eye that allowed him to discern the flow of mana was like a cheat code that allowed him to predict his opponent’s next moves.
It was ultimately the reason why he was able to press his advantages against her, dispel her repeaters, and thwart her counterattack in that final moment.
“…I should give it a cool name.”
He mused.
‘Like in Japanese manga, they have a lot of those named eyes, right?’
‘Mangekyo Sharingan or what not…’
‘…What am I even thinking about? Did my brain get fried along with my face?’
All sorts of thoughts swirled in his mind.
Exhaustion weighed heavily on his body as he collapsed onto his back when he tried to turn around.
“Ugh…”
At this point, he didn’t need to play dead if he needed to, as he literally felt like he was about to die.
Despite the support from his armor, he still had to wield his sword using all his strength for nearly twenty minutes.
And he had to do that all while continuously checking on Della’s mana, and manipulating his ribbon to disrupt the floating magic circles. There wasn’t a single moment when he could rest even a little.
He had to rely on his amplification technique for at least thirty times because of how quickly his mana was depleted.
Due to him pushing his limit both mentally and physically, it wasn’t a wonder that he became so exhausted, despite possessing a spirit body.
“Ugh…! Sharon…”
Summoning every ounce of strength left in him, he managed to crawl back to his feet.
His eyes fell on Sharon, who remained motionless on the ground.
Before he could even catch his breath, he had to prop her up to ensure she could breathe properly. Of course, he couldn’t let his guard down either because Della was still around.
There was a chance that she could recover her mana through some kind of strange method and launch a counterattack from there, after all.
“Sharon!”
At that moment, the Interdimensional Barrier slowly dissipated, and the destroyed landscapes started to regenerate, as if time was being rewound.
Though, what actually went on was the disappearance of the copy created by the barrier as it was being replaced by its original.
But, that wasn’t important for Siwoo at the moment.
He picked up Sharon, who was completely unconscious, and gently tapped her cheek to rouse her awake.
Sadly, he received no response.
For some reason though, he was struggling to lift her upper body. There was an unnatural feeling of heaviness that he felt, causing him to groan.
‘Did this feeling come from her big chest?’
At that moment, painful groans echoed from the other side of the road, where Della’s body was thrown.
“Ugg…”
“Fuck.”
Leaving the unconscious Sharon to lean against the tunnel wall, Siwoo dragged his tired body towards Della.
The latter’s clothes were disheveled from her rolling on the ground. With great effort, she managed to open her eyes.
Her side was throbbing with pain, causing her face to twist in anguish. She clutched the area where Siwoo’s ribbon hit her.
Seeing this, Siwoo didn’t feel even an ounce of remorse toward her situation.
“I won.”
Realizing that Siwoo was nearby, looking down at her, Della hastily tried to retreat.
Her efforts were futile though, as she was completely drained of both mana and physical strength. She could barely even muster the energy to move, and her hasty attempt only managed to drag her body a few centimeters away.
“F-Fine… I-I admit defeat… What is it that you want from me…?”
Her once haughty gaze, stripped of its confidence, now looked shaken as her eyes trembled.
Compared to before, her current demeanor resembled that of a victim being confronted by a merciless serial killer.
This appearance of hers made Siwoo feel uneasy. All things considered, she was essentially just someone whom he had just met.
It made him think twice of delivering the final blow to her, as she didn’t even try to resist anymore. After all, he wasn’t a deranged murderer or a renowned criminal.
Despite all that, he still chose not to explain himself though, as he found it unnecessary.
Maintaining an intimidating presence would make their conversation smoother, he thought.
“You said you’re Della Redcliffe, correct?”
“…Baroness…”
“What?”
“Baroness Della Redcliffe…”
Out of nowhere, she interjected using her title of Baroness, even though she hadn’t mentioned it before.
Though Siwoo was confused momentarily, he quickly grasped her intention.
What she was trying to say here was, ‘Since I’m a Baroness, you shouldn’t treat me carelessly.’
In other words, she was scared. Siwoo found the change in her attitude, from imposing to scared, funny and satisfying.
“Ah, so you’re a Baroness.”
Other than that, he also felt relieved to know that she wasn’t a wicked Exile.
Then again, considering that she clearly stated she wouldn’t take his life out of respect for the Gemini Household, the likelihood of her being the same kind as Ea was low to begin with.
Since this was the case, there was room for negotiation between them.
“You asked me, what do I want from you, right?”
“Yes…”
“Firstly, I have no intention of harming you, especially knowing that you’re a Baroness now, but I would really appreciate it if you keep my existence a secret.”
That was a reasonable demand since Siwoo would only lose out if she were to blabber to everyone about his existence.
Since he couldn’t just kill her to silence her, he had to find some kind of compromise somehow.
“I will never, ever say anything to anyone. Despite the things that I did, I have no intention of going against the Gemini Household. I will keep the secret of your existence close to my heart.”
Della exclaimed urgently, her words pouring out rapidly.
From her perspective, this was a reasonable answer and course of action.
A man bearing a brand who appeared out of nowhere, who possessed a skillset specialized in fighting against powerful witches, and he was wearing the Gemini Household’s ring.
When she tried to connect the dots, she reached the conclusion that he was a lethal weapon created by the Gemini Household for a hidden, large-scale project.
There was a big possibility that he was their hunting dog, created to eliminate all the wicked Exiles and Homunculi.
After knowing all this, she naturally had no intention of spreading this information.
Countess Gemini wouldn’t normally care about petty squabbles like this, but if the truth about their secret project were to come to light, even Della didn’t know what they might do to her.
Besides, she couldn’t afford to go against the Gemini Sisters at all costs.
Not to mention that she was currently in a very precarious situation where she didn’t even know what this man might do to her to ensure that she kept her mouth shut.
“I’m sorry if this offends you, but… Do you think I can just trust your words?”
While she was going through all those mental gymnasts, Siwoo wasn’t aware of it, and he naturally had no reason to trust her.
In his eyes, if the other witch really was scared of the Countess, she wouldn’t have tried to fight him in the first place.
“Contract…! I-I’ll write a contract… Using my name, my honor as a Redcliffe… I will never disclose any information about you…”
“Hm…”
A witch pledging using her name wasn’t a matter to be taken lightly in the witch’s society.
One didn’t even need to add any magical constraints.
When a witch staked her reputation, built over numerous battles, it was the equivalent of her making a solemn and heavy promise.
Its significance would be even greater when it was someone like Della who did it, as she wasn’t only a conservative witch, she was also a member of the aristocracy.
During Siwoo’s five years in Gehenna, he had only witnessed this kind of exchange three times in total.
“Alright, please write it down, then.”
At this point, Della was having difficulty making her stand and maintaining her sanity.
Immediately after Siwoo gave his consent, she hastily took out a business card and began writing something with small, hurried strokes.
When he glanced over, he could see that she was writing a simple pledge; With Redcliffe’s name at stake, she promised not to disclose his true identity. After that was done, she signed her name beneath it.
To finalize it, Siwoo signed the card too, before placing it in his pocket.
“So… Can I leave now…?”
Her voice had long lost its authoritarian tone. Still clutching her side, she hesitantly asked for his permission to leave.
Siwoo nodded his head, prompting Della to stand up, though she struggled on doing it.
“Ah, right, also, one more thing.”
Siwoo interrupted, realizing that he almost forgot to mention something.
At this point, Della was already walking away absentmindedly, but she immediately turned around, startled, when she heard his voice.
“I don’t know what happened between the two of you, but can you please stop bothering Sharon anymore?”
“…I understand.”
After that, Della quickly walked away in hurried steps.
Watching the red witch disappear from his sight, Siwoo decided to carry Sharon home. Though, he wasn’t confident that he could carry her all the way back, so he used Dimension Shift instead.
Going through three rounds of mana amplification, forcing his tired minds to work through the calculation, he teleported back home together with Sharon.
After that, everything was blank to him.
As he laid Sharon down on his bed, he immediately passed out from exhaustion.
2.
“Ouch…”
Siwoo groaned as he opened his eyes.
The intense pain and headache he was feeling immediately reminded him that the events that had just occurred were not dreams or imagination.
Well, it was the pain that woke him up from his sleep.
Looking around, he found himself still in Sharon’s room.
While his spirit body was more durable than any human’s body, it didn’t mean he could withstand being rolled around like he was made of diamond.
He just had a stronger body than normal, he could still feel exhausted and tired.
Which drove the point home of how intense the battle he just experienced was.
“Huh?”
When he sat up, he immediately felt a warm and comforting touch.
There was a lukewarm towel on his forehead.
Earlier, when he collapsed, he remembered that he was still dressed, but now, his upper body was completely bare, revealing his toned abs that seemed to have naturally appeared after he obtained his spirit body.
Apparently, Sharon had taken the initiative to treat him.
“Fuck, it stings…”
The burn marks had started to lose their color, but his upper body still felt like burning.
His face, in particular, felt as if it had been doused in some sort of chemical reagent.
-Click!
“Siwoo? Are you up?”
Holding a glass of water in her hand, Sharon, who had just opened the door, rushed toward him when she saw him halfway sitting up.
He looked much better compared to earlier, when he was almost dying from exhaustion, which made her feel relieved.
“Look at you, are you okay? Do you feel hurt anywhere?”
Sharon didn’t dare to touch him because he seemed in so much pain.
Tears even welled up in the corners of her eyes, reflecting how worried she was.
“…Are you okay?”
“Ugh… Sob… I’m… Sorry…”
At her intense reaction, Siwoo could only respond in an awkward manner, unsure on how to comfort her. Suddenly, her tears flowed like a broken dam.
She blamed herself for getting involved with Della and causing Siwoo to get hurt.
The weight of her guilt and remorse echoed painfully within her chest.
“It’s my fault… That you ended up getting hurt…”
“Hey, why are you acting so distant? Are we not meant to support each other through tough times?”
“Sob… Sniff… I’m sorry… Really sorry…”
“I told you, it’s fine.”
He wasn’t trying to comfort her, he genuinely believed that he was okay.
Besides, it wasn’t like she forced him to fight, rather he went forward willingly.
Not to mention that he won the whole thing with his own power.
He understood her feelings though, so he decided that he should explain the situation to her.
“That witch… Della, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah… What did that bitch say to you? Did something else happen after she hurt you?”
“Well… Uh… I actually won that battle…”
“What?”
Sharon’s eyes widened in surprise.
“I defeated her in a magic battle and she promised me that she won’t bother you anymore.”
After staring at Siwoo with her mouth agape for a while, Sharon suddenly pulled Siwoo into a tight hug.
Due to their position, Siwoo’s face was buried in her soft chest.
He could feel the sheer volume of her E-cup breasts through her clothes.
“Okay, sure, I get it, I believe you…”
“You didn’t believe me? I was telling you the truth though?”
“No, I believe you, really do.”
For a while, the room echoed with Sharon’s sobs as she tightly pressed Siwoo’s face against her chest.
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