CHAPTER 498: PERFUME TYCOON (5)

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Under the faint scent of antiseptic, various examinations were conducted on Siwoo, but the whole process took only about 30 minutes.

He had thought he wasn’t too worried about his condition.

But now that he was getting a full-scale check-up, it was starting to get to him. He couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Especially after seeing Countess Kohav’s expression remained sour the entire time.

As if he wasn’t anxious enough after recently finding out that his mana amplification thing didn’t work with Amelia.

“Is it over?”

“I’ve done what I can, yes. You can get dressed.”

Siwoo put his clothes back on, still looking bewildered.

Countess Kohav pulled out a cigarette pipe with a water beak attached to it and lit it.

Thin stream of smoke stretched between her lips.

She closed her eyes with a troubled expression, so Siwoo went forward and asked first.

“Did you find anything wrong?”

“...No. There’s nothing.”

Countess Kohav spoke with reluctance, as if admitting that was the equivalent of insulting herself.

“But, there’s no way the sensory link would fail for no reason. This means I just couldn’t find what the issue is.”

From her view, there was nothing wrong with the procedure.

The major blood vessels, capillaries, bones, muscles, and nerve connections were all intact, and the attachment was cleanly handled.

She perfectly deduced the form of the magic circuit spread all over his body and artificially reconstructed them.

So, the sensory link shouldn’t fail, but for some reason it did, and she didn’t have any idea why.

“The only clue I have is that you lost your arm in a spatial randomization.”

“Does it matter where I lost it...?”

“That place is an unobserved anomaly where anything can happen. Your spirit body might have sustained some minute damage that even my examinations can’t detect.”

“So what does that mean for me?”

It turned out the issue he had been brushing off as nothing was something serious.

Seeing his expression starting to darken, Countess Kohav cut straight to the point.

“I provided the best treatment. The payment I received from Countess Gemini only covered the prosthetic replacement from the elbow down. Anything beyond that isn’t my problem.”

“What? But I still can’t feel anything.”

“I told you, it’s not my problem. I did the procedure perfectly under the assumption that your spirit body was fine. If there is an underlying problem, then it was Countess Gemini’s fault for not disclosing it to me beforehand.”

Siwoo swallowed back the urge to snap, ‘What the fuck are you talking about?’ at her.

He understood what she was trying to say.

Basically, she didn’t want to work beyond what she was paid for.

Still, even karaoke bars would throw in a little extra time and yet here she was, telling him his arm might be permanently screwed, but she’d only do what the money covered?

As a patient, of course he’d get pissed.

“Fine. How much do I need to pay?”

He had no personal ties to Countess Kohav and in truth, he could accept her reasoning.

After all, this wasn’t as simple a matter as changing a water filter. If his arm was going to be worked on, it needed to be done properly.

Hearing that he was willing to pay, Countess Kohav responded in a flat tone.

“I don’t need money. I’m not even sure this is something that could be paid with money.”

“...”

“Although, I’m personally interested in your body.”

She turned her gaze towards him.

A flicker of curiosity burned in her eyes like a candle flame.

“...”

“I’ll look for a way to cure you. In exchange, let me study your body.”

Was this her plan from the start?

Siwoo let out a sigh.

He had a premonition that things were going sideways.

But he didn’t expect such a cheap trick waiting in the wings.

How obvious.

There was a good chance that Countess Kohav could actually heal him, and she was just dragging things out on purpose.

As for why, she had mentioned it, to study his body.

He wasn’t sure what exactly her ‘study’ was about, but he wasn’t keen on being a lab rat.

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to ask.

“What kind of study?”

“The spirit body is a flawless form granted alongside the brand. But even within that, there are inherent differences between male and female bodies. I wish to map your physical structure. It’s a necessary step to address the sensory link malfunction anyway.”

“...”

Siwoo took a moment to think.

Is this actually a bad thing?

His spirit body was full of unknowns.

The mana amplification thing aside, it was practically a black box of undiscovered functions.

If cooperating with Countess Kohav’s research could help him better understand his own body, then perhaps it wasn’t such a bad deal.

Besides, unlike when he was a slave, he now had people who’d raise hell if something were to happen to him.

But there was one problem.

One of the unique aspects of Siwoo’s body was how he could amplify mana, overwrite or even steal others’ brands, and the new inheritance method he was developing with Countess Yesod—all achievable through sex.

Each of them was something that would take up the witches’ interests.

That was why he kept them hidden from everyone but his closest allies.

He didn’t know what kind of person Countess Kohav truly was.

For now, she might be satisfied just by gathering data, but if she uncovered those secrets, there was no telling how she’d react to them.

And if the truth got out somehow, he’d have to deal with a swarm of witches hunting him down like predators after fresh prey.

“...I’ll think about it and let you know.”

“Alright. You can leave now.”

Surprisingly, Countess Kohav backed off without hesitation.

Siwoo left her workshop, leaving her to dive back into her research without so much as a goodbye.

“Hm... Should I go to Tarot Town?”

There was something off with his spirit body.

And if there was one witch who could help him, it would be...

Yebin Smyrna, a 19th-ranked witch, a healing specialist.

a specialist in healing.

Although the one who ultimately healed him was Keter, thanks to his subconscious’ violent resistance, it was Yebin who had originally treated his battered body.

He had been thinking about visiting her at least once, but there was a reason why he hadn’t done it all this time.

“Things between us are a little...awkward...”

The relationship between them wasn’t one that could be described as romantic.

They shared a pretty bizarre first encounter, but after that, their interactions had been limited to two days in bed.

It happened after he got his memories back, when he was down in the dumps because of that major drama with Amelia, and he ended up hooking up her on impulse after falling for her seduction.

But that was a while ago. Now, he had a handful of lovers by his side.

For the first time, he was starting to think about responsibility.

It might be different if Yebin were to reach out to him first, but for him, someone who already had multiple lovers, approaching her wasn’t an easy thing to do.

“Still, this is an important matter...”

Regardless, meeting her didn’t mean things would automatically get steamy.

His body was acting up, and he needed answers.

“Huh?”

As he was lost in thought while descending the stairs without a proper send-off, someone suddenly blocked his path.

Who was it? Well, it wasn’t that surprising who it was.

Duchess Erelim, the 24th-ranked Witch.

Full name: Blanche Erelim.

Her long, silky black hair cascaded down to her hips, framing a pair of mesmerizing eyes that shimmered like a mix of silver and white.

Despite covering most of her skin, her white dress hugged her figure so tightly that it highlighted every curve, exuding an irresistible allure.

Her notable features included her tall stature—easily over 170cm—and her ample chest.

Siwoo had only seen her in court, and this was his first time seeing her up close.

Now that he was facing her one-on-one, he could instantly tell that her presence was unlike anyone else.

He bowed his head respectfully in greeting.

Regardless of anything else, she was a duchess, and this was her estate.

“Greetings, Duchess Erelim.”

She radiated a queenly aura just by standing there.

Her face was utterly devoid of warmth, even more than Countess Kohav, her cold, detached presence stripping the luster from her breathtaking beauty, like a flower with no scent.

Not that she cared about such things, though.

In truth, Siwoo found her presence unsettling.

His interactions with her  had never been pleasant, so it was hard for him to feel any goodwill toward her.

Duties aside, she was the one who had sent the Spear of Judgment after him and Amelia, and he still remembered the icy composure she had shown during the trial.

On top of that, she was a staunch conservative among witches and their leader at that.

She was someone who was difficult to deal with in every way.

He wanted nothing more but to leave right away, but he knew that this encounter wasn’t a mere coincidence. After all, her mansion was too vast for them to encounter each other by chance.

She had come here to see him.

“...”

And yet she just stood there in silence, staring at him.

“...If there’s nothing you need from me, may I take my leave?”

“You’re that male witch. The one who stopped Baron Marigold’s rampage.”

“That’s right.”

The duchess slowly opened her mouth to speak, in which he replied, keeping his tone as polite as possible.

She placed a hand over her chest, inclining her head slightly.

Her voice was as cold and sharp as glass.

“On behalf of the witches of Gehenna, I offer my gratitude for your service.”

“I only did what had to be done.”

Hearing her say that made him uneasy. After all, Amelia’s rampage had a direct connection to him.

He had planned to exchange simple greetings with her and leave, but she showed no sign of willingness to step aside.

“Would you grant me a request?”

Fortunately, she wasted no time getting to the point, as if expressing that gratitude had only been a formality.

“I would like to see your eye.”

“My eye...?”

“The one beneath the blindfold.”

Siwoo hesitated for a moment.

Unlike other witches, his brand was carved into his left eye.

It seemed Duchess Erelim wanted to see it for herself.

“It’s not a difficult request, but....”

Compared to Countess Kohav’s earlier demand to study his body, this was nothing.

So in the end, he relented and reached up to remove his blindfold.

The moment he did, Duchess Erelim stepped forward.

She leaned in so close that their lips could have touched, forcing Siwoo to hold his breath.

His body was far too sensitive to the presence of high-ranking witches.

Who knows what might happen if he took in the scent of a 24th-rank witch like her, but he knew that getting horny here could spark a disaster and a half.

“...”

Her glass-like eyes locked onto his left eye, scrutinizing it intensely.

He thought that she was someone who could stay emotionless even if the world split in two, but then he saw her expression start to twist.

Of course, he had no idea why.

It could have been shock, awe at the mystery, or sheer curiosity about the unknown.

“I-I think this is enough.”

Seeing the intensity rising in her gaze, Siwoo cautiously pulled away from her.

Whatever the reason, a chill crawled down his spine.

His heart pounded as if he were bracing for a fight.

“...”

After murmuring softly to herself, Duchess Erelim abruptly walked past him.

He had no reason to stop her, and the atmosphere between them wasn’t one for small talk, so all he could do was stand there dazedly while listening to her footsteps fading down the stairs.

“...It should’ve been me?”

He quietly repeated the part of her whisper that he had barely caught.

Just as he didn’t know where her passion was directed, he had no idea what she had meant by those words.