CHAPTER 500: PERFUME TYCOON (7)

0% 1.

After meeting Countess Kohav and Duchess Erelim, Siwoo headed straight for Tarot Town.

He didn’t need to convince himself anymore, he had to go and see Yebin to check on his condition.

Of course, he knew exactly where to find her.

The same place where they had spent the last two days fucking.

A two-story stone building stood at the corner of the plaza, tucked away in an area where business wasn’t exactly booming.

As soon as Yebin had obtained her citizenship, she had opened a free clinic for the people of Tarot Town.

If Lenomond Town was a lavish, dreamlike recreation of the Belle Époque era, then her clinic was something that fit Tarot Town perfectly.

The building wasn’t flashy even a little, but instead, it bore the unmistakable marks of time, faded paint, worn stone, and the lingering weight of history.

When he arrived, he quickly knew that this was a wasted trip.

He knocked on the door, but the door was locked tight.

It wasn’t that late, yet both the second floor, where Yebin lived, and the clinic on the first floor were completely dark.

Is the clinic already closed?

Or...did she move somewhere else?

He then went to an old man who was packing up his stall and asked him.

“Excuse me, may I ask you something? Do you know where Yebin Smyrna is?”

The old man who had a wrinkled face due to his age, yet had arms that were thick with muscles as he stacked the fruit crates in front of him, wiped the sweat off his forehead before answering.

“Yebin Smyrna... Oh, you mean the saintess?”

“The saintess?”

“Aye, the Saintess. She treats folks like us for free, never taking a single coin. That’s why we call her that. She even straightened out my back. It was hunched over like a damn shrimp before she fixed it.”

The old man chuckled, patting his now-straightened back.

Siwoo had to admit, what Yebin had done was something really extraordinary.

She claimed she was just doing her research, but anyone could tell that healing minor illness wasn’t a crucial part of any kind of research.

For common folk who had only ever seen witches strut around with their noses up, a witch who gave free treatment might as well be a saintess.

“Do you know where she went?”

“Well, she said she was going on a business trip to get some herbs. But it’s already been over two months.”

“Two months?”

This wasn’t an urgent matter, but he still hadn’t expected to miss her by that much.

“If it’s important, I can let her know you came by once she’s back.”

“I’d appreciate that. Just tell her Shin Siwoo was looking for her.”

2.

“Ugh... I’m so pissed...”

While Siwoo gained nothing from his outing, Sharon had just come home from the perfume shop and was now groaning over a massive, unexpected expense.

Siwoo’s reaction alone had convinced her that the perfume was worth its full price.

But at the same time, she was still unable to believe it.

If she were to convert 25 fl.oz to ml, it was only 75 ml.

“A standard yogurt cup is 65 ml, so this thing is just a little more than that...”

And yet, the whole bottle cost her 122.2 gold pounds.

With the installment plan, it meant that she had a fixed expense of 10 gold coins a month for the next 12 months.

The gold coins she received from the Geminai mansion as upkeep for her status as a tutor were 12 per quarter, and the gold coins she received as research funds were 12 per month, totaling 15 gold coins per month.

In other words, she had a decent amount of money.

Especially since her rent, workshop fees, and food expenses were all covered by the Gemini Mansion.

But, due to the nature of her magic, every research came with an insane price tag, leaving her constantly walking a financial tightrope.

At least with Siwoo’s help, she didn’t have to pay interest on the installments but still, this expense hit her like a gut punch.

“...I knew my luck had been too good lately.”

Aside from the brief scare she got from Siwoo’s coma, she had been feeling that spring had come to her life.

Ever since she overcame her incomplete inheritance, her magic research took off like a rocket.

It seemed that dropping down to the 17th rank and rebuilding her fundamentals had actually helped her in the long run.

“Ugh... Should I start a side job or something...?”

Still, no matter how well her research was going, if her budget was in shambles...

For the time being, she obviously couldn’t buy the peridot she had planned to buy, so two out of her five ongoing research would be put on hold.

With a heavy sigh, Sharon lowered her head and picked up the crystal perfume bottle; its contents gleaming through the glass.

She popped the cap open, let a tiny drop fall onto her wrist, and brought it to her nose.

“Sniff...”

The moment the scent hit her, a peaceful warmth spread through her. It was as if she had stepped into a blissful dream.

This fragrance brought back the heart-fluttering thrill of the first time Siwoo had held her in his arms.

Of course, even now he still made her feel butterflies in her stomach every time she saw him, but this was a nostalgic thrill, like reliving a glammed-up memory from way back.

The scent was so comforting that it made her forget about her money troubles and the stress of her messy love affairs, even if it was just for a moment.

“Haa... How do you even make something like this?”

A soft smile tugged at her lips as she sank into the sofa.

In truth, the only magic effect the perfume added was a slight energy boost.

Everything else came purely from the exquisite scent itself.

A bittersweet smile appeared on her lips. She felt like a ‘car-poor’ person caressing the Mercedes-Benz logo on her steering wheel, trying to forget her painful worries.

-Knock knock knock

“Huh?”

Suddenly, someone knocked on her door.

Immediately, her heart started racing.

There were only two people who ever visited her this late at night, Duchess Eloa, inviting her for a drink, or Shin Siwoo

The duchess is away to solve some problem in the Modern World, so it has to be Siwoo!

Springing up, Sharon rushed to the mirror to check her appearance.

It had been way too long since she and Siwoo had done anything together.

“...Which means tonight, we’re hitting the bed!”

She put on a nightgown that was thin enough to look moderately sexy.

Hair? Smooth and flawless.

With her new secret weapon, that perfume from Amelia, she could try to spice things up and relive that first-time spark with him tonight.

“I’m coming~”

After a quick final check, she practically flew to the door and flung it open.

Then she froze.

“Eck...”

“Sorry to bother you so late. Do you have a moment? I won’t take long.”

Because the person waiting for her at the door was Amelia.

3.

In truth, the matter about the perfume was just a distraction. Something had been weighing on Sharon’s mind.

She owed Amelia an apology.

Back in the perfume shop, she had let her emotions get the better of her and said some things that were hurtful to Amelia. Worse, she had never properly said sorry for it.

Sitting across from each other with steaming cups of tea between them, Sharon was the first one to speak.

“Um... I just wanted to say I’m really sorry. I was way out of line.”

“It’s okay, really. I get it.”

“No, I mean it. I’m not just saying this to be polite. If it weren’t for you, I never would’ve even met Siwoo... So, me talking to you in that way was just wrong.”

Sharon bowed her head repeatedly.

Meanwhile, Amelia had already stopped paying much attention to Sharon’s words.

She hadn’t come all this way after closing her shop just to hear an apology.

“Ms. Sharon, I need to tell you something.”

“...Yes?”

She set down the thick book she had been holding against her side, placing it on the table.

“I understand how you feel, Ms. Sharon. After all, you’ve been with Siwoo for a long time. In my case... I’ve met him after a difficult time, so I wished to be together with him for as long as I could...”

“...I understand.”

“Anyway, I came for this. This book is a Kill List I received from Duchess Keter as payment for healing Siwoo.”

Amelia ran her fingers over the book cover with a complicated gaze.

She hadn’t fully carried out the Kill List yet.

There were still half of the book’s worth of Criminals and Homunculi that she had to hunt.

“Once I gather enough money for the fine, I’m planning to go to the Modern World and finish this Kill List. Of course, I’m not planning to involve Siwoo in any of it. So, until then... Could you let me spend a little more time with him?”

“Do you...need a hand...?”

“No. This is my responsibility.”

Her words carried a proud resolve.

A vow that no matter what happened, she wouldn’t let Siwoo get dragged into danger.

“Do you mind if I take a look at it?”

Seeing Amelia’s nod, Sharon carefully took the Kill List from her.

It was heavy and thick.

So this is the Kill List from the mysterious Duchess Keter...

She was worried about the dangers Amelia would face, but curiosity burned inside her too.

Who were the witches listed inside? What kind of homunculi existed in these pages?

When Sharon opened the book.

She couldn’t help but tilt her head in confusion.

“Ms. Amelia.”

“Yes?”

“Are you sure this is the Kill List?”

“Huh?”

Sharon showed Amelia the Kill List, or rather, the mysterious book that she wasn’t sure of if it was really the Kill List or not.

“There’s nothing written on it...”

Indeed. No matter how many times she turned the pages on the book, the Kill List was just filled with blank pages.

Amelia took the book back and flipped through it roughly, but the result was the same; from start to finish, every single page was a pristine white, as if brand new.

“H-How...?”

Amelia was left dumbfounded.

This was the first time she had checked the Kill List ever since her reunion with Siwoo.

The texture of the pages, the weight of the cover...

She had carried this book with her for so long, she would never mistake it for another.

Yet as if it had fulfilled its purpose, or as if it had completely broken down, there wasn’t a single word left inside.

Amelia had always known this book wasn’t ordinary.

In truth, it was more like a prophecy than a simple list.

No matter how unpredictable the Homunculi or the Criminal Exiles were, the book had always managed to pinpoint their exact locations.

And now, such a book had suddenly turned blank.

What did this mean? Was this a bad omen?

With a growing unease, Amelia stood up.

“Ms. Sharon, I’m sorry. There’s somewhere I need to go.”

“Y-Yeah?”

Without even saying a proper goodbye to Sharon, Amelia rushed out the door.

This wasn’t about someone else; it was something related to Siwoo.

So, she decided to see Duchess Keter.