City of Witches

“Balance!”

As soon as Sharon figured out the location of the Homunculus, she tightly held her wand and chanted her spell.

The large green emerald adorning the wand’s tip emitted a radiant light, sending out ripples throughout the surroundings.

Those ripples moved, as if it was melting, replicating their surroundings before engulfing them and formed a barrier.

Seeing a witch employing a secret barrier for the first time, Siwoo was surprised.

Meanwhile, Sharon glanced at the compass again, quickly deciding which direction they would go.

Then, without saying anything, she started to jump, leaping off walls and buildings like a nimble cat as she aimed for the rooftops.

“What are you standing around for? We need to hurry!”

‘…Let’s see…’

Watching her bouncing around agilely made Siwoo think, ‘Can’t I do something like that?’

But, he knew he shouldn’t do strange things as he couldn’t make her wait any longer.

Almost immediately, he encased his entire body in armor. Then, he gathered mana at the tip of his toes before jumping up with all his might, landing next to the witch.

Sharon looked at the compass before opening her mouth.

“It should be near that parking tower.”

“Do you really need to change your clothes like that?”

Siwoo asked.

His shadow armor provided both protection and physical ability enhancement, but that didn’t seem to be the case with Sharon’s attire.

“Evergreen’s self-essence magic is an elemental magic that manifests through rituals. Clothing is an integral part of it, so, yes, I have to change my clothes.”

‘This is the essence of professionalism.’

Beneath her wide-brimmed witch hat, Sharon’s face gleamed with grace. There was no sign of the broke beggar crying over a penny’s worth of food anymore.

Instead, she showcased the wisdom of a mature witch who had braved countless challenges of the modern world.

In short, it made her look reliable.

“I’ll take the lead, so keep your guard up and follow me.”

“Got it.”

Sharon kicked her feet and used Water Lizard Stride (maybe), hopping from rooftops to utility poles in the direction of the parking tower.

While she used her mana to enhance her physique, she had an exceptional sense of balance.

At the same time when she was doing this, a subtle tension hung in the air.

Siwoo wasn’t quite used to battles or hunts yet.

It wasn’t anything strange. He had only been involved in a few incidents, it was a given that his experience regarding that was extremely limited.

And so, it also wasn’t strange that he became somewhat fearful and uncertain about the dangers posed by the upcoming encounter with the Homunculus.

“…I am doing this because I want to.”

No one forced him to hunt those Homunculi.

He reassured himself that it was his own decision to take action and prevent more casualties.

‘I can’t get cold feet and change my mind at this point, can I?’

-Swoosh!

Suddenly, a large pair of wings, made of shadow, emerged from behind him.

He swiftly moved through the night streets like an arrow, following Sharon behind.

The breeze brushed against his ears. Feeling the freedom from the shackles of gravity made him feel exhilarated, like a bird slicing through the night air.

But, that feeling was short-lived.

Since the compass could detect spatial distortions within a 150 meter range, it meant they were about to cross paths with a Homunculus soon.

Their destination, the parking tower, was an elevator-type one, constructed in the crowded downtown to make use of the limited parking space around the area.

The Homunculus’ appearance matched Sharon’s previous description; It was suspended from the parking tower’s intricate steel frames, like something typically seen in a jungle gym.

Siwoo expected that she’d start the hunt immediately.

But, contrary to his expectations, she came to a stop and began assessing the situation instead.

Apparently, there was something strange going on.

“What is that…?”

“Huh?”

“Over there.”

Siwoo shifted his gaze to the direction Sharon was pointing at.

In that direction, stood a single Homunculus, growling while glaring their way.

It looked exactly the same as the monster he had encountered in the city park and on the rooftop of the old building near the station.

He recalled the scene from the park; Where the Homunculus feasted on a man’s body. It made him furrow his brow involuntarily.

“Huh?”

Then, he narrowed his eyes and looked around the parking tower, confirming what Sharon had noticed was indeed unusual.

There wasn’t just one Homunculus.

Three. There were three of them slowly approaching Sharon from the parking tower.

“There are three of them?”

“Make speculations about it later, okay?”

“Can you handle them by yourself?”

“Watch.”

Sharon ruffled the edge of her cloak and gripped something in her hand.

A 500 ml bottled water.

Obviously, she didn’t take it out because she was thirsty.

This was the ‘offering’ she needed to sacrifice in order to use elemental magic.

Unlike ten years ago, she couldn’t afford to use expensive offerings, so she had to settle for a lower-quality one.

“Apas.”

As Sharon poured the water from the bottle onto the floor, a magic circle emerged from that spot.

The water that fell to the floor immediately disappeared before it even touched the ground.

Truly a mysterious sight that even science couldn’t explain.

Gradually, a faintly colored mana reflection began shimmering throughout the tense air.

At the same time, a much larger amount of water than what she poured seemed to seep out of the dry asphalt, forming a massive puddle.

It was as if a small pond had manifested beneath the witch’s feet.

-Grrr…

-Roar!

The sudden surge of mana seemed to agitate the Homunculi.

At the same time, one of them lunged at Sharon like a predator attacking its prey.

“Those guys won’t be using any complex spells. Rather, they’d rely on brute force to push forward, which made them easy to deal with.”

As Sharon raised her wand, a barrier as tall as a three-story building quickly emerged from the puddle at her feet.

The barrier, to be exact, the colossal wall made of compressed water and mana, looked exactly like a tsunami.

“You just need to crush them with a greater force.”

Looking like an enraged wolf, the Homunculus charged at her fiercely before colliding with the barrier, creating a loud sound. But, the wall made of water remained undisturbed.

Back when Siwoo first blocked a strike from a similar Homunculus, he couldn’t maintain his balance and even tumbled on the ground.

But, Sharon didn’t even flinch. Even when she was facing three of them at once, her expression remained unperturbed.

“Also, keep in mind that, even if those guys seem to be easy to handle…”

As she said that, she drew a small circle in the air with her wand.

The barrier made of water changed its shape, following her command.

It ascended into the air, forming a spherical shape.

From how the massive amount of water reduced into half of its original size, one could easily surmise that it held a great amount of pressure; probably even greater than the deepest part of Earth’s oceans.

“…You should never let your guard down and crush them with all your might.”

-Whoosh! Whoosh!

Then, she tapped the ground with her wand. Sounds, resembling the crack of a whip, echoed multiple times in the air.

Following that, dozens of high-pressure water streams surged from the compressed sphere, lashing out like whips.

The change occurred so quickly that if Siwoo didn’t have the ability to read the flow of mana, he would definitely have missed it.

What happened afterwards was predictable; Those razor-sharp water sliced through the Homunculi’s bodies like butter.

Said blades were so sharp and precise that even though they also cut through the asphalt after going through the monsters’ bodies, not a single crevice or crack could be seen.

“Wow…”

Siwoo gazed bewilderedly at the lifeless Homunculi that Sharon had swiftly taken down.

Unlike his approach, Sharon’s wasn’t as reckless.

She used clean and precise magic to hunt, boasting the right amount of efficiency.

Yet, despite such a clean kill, she didn’t wear a boastful expression.

Rather, there was a hint of dissatisfaction in her face.

“Sorry, I wanted to teach you more about hunting techniques and such, but… Something feels off…”

“What?”

“There’s something strange… No matter how much I think about it, it’s still strange…”

She dispelled the water that was hovering in the air and clenched her jaw.

2.

The spectacle Siwoo saw after the Interdimensional Barrier was lifted left him with awe.

Sharon’s strike didn’t just cut through the Homunculi and the asphalt beneath them.

It also sliced the parking tower and streetlights that stood in that direction.

But, the cut was so clean that they managed to maintain their shape for a while.

While the structures remained intact, if one were to give them enough weight and pressure, they’d inevitably collapse, and that was what exactly happened in the next second.

Though, with the barrier being lifted, those destroyed parts of the city were restored to its original state, giving an awe-inspiring sight as if time was being rewound.

‘It’s comparable to Duchess Keter’s spell…’

After collecting the crystals from the Homunculi’s bodies, the pair changed back into their casual clothes and headed to a nearby pub.

“…”

Inside, Siwoo ordered two cold beers and some chicken.

Meanwhile, Sharon wrested her chin on her hand while wearing a serious look. She seemed to be lost in thought, ignoring the beer on her table.

“What are you worrying about?”

When Siwoo offered to come here, she didn’t react as if she had won the lottery just like what she did before the hunt.

Noticing that and her current expression, Siwoo decided to ask her.

“Huh? Ah, sorry. I was spacing out, wasn’t I…?”

“It’s fine.”

“Anyway, you said that the Homunculus you faced before we met looked exactly the same as the ones we fought earlier, right?”

“Yeah. Is something the matter?”

Sharon cheerfully drank half of her cool beer and tapped the table a couple of times.

“Normally, each Homunculus has a different appearance… But, I’ve hunted six of these similar-looking bastards so far. Including the ones we just hunted and the ones you personally hunted, that means there are at least ten of those fuckers roaming around.”

“Is that a problem?”

To Siwoo, who had just started his hunting journey, this didn’t seem like a big deal.

‘Is it really that unusual to have Homunculi with the same appearance?’

“Not really… Or at least, I can’t say it’s a problem, at least for now. I mean, I could be overreacting, you know? Well, I’ll go to the Witch Point and gather some information about it tomorrow.”

‘Witch Point, huh…?’

‘I wonder what kind of place it is…?’

Naturally, Siwoo was curious about the place, but he was hesitant to visit it in person.

‘But, why would I go into a place where Exiles are freely lurking around?’

“Here’s your fried, seasoned, soy garlic chicken combo.”

As they were talking, the chicken they had been waiting for had arrived.

Sharon, who had been putting some deep thoughts about the matter, suddenly perked up when the scent of the fried food entered her nose.

She looked at the chicken with shiny eyes, as if her serious look just now was a lie.

The intense and loving gaze she directed toward the chicken would be enough to spark Siwoo’s jealousy if he was her boyfriend.

He picked up a chicken leg and placed it on her plate.

“Let’s just stop worrying about it and eat.”

“Yes!”

Despite the hot temperature of the fried chicken, Sharon dove right in, completely disregarding it.

Looking at her unexpected behavior made Siwoo chuckle.

The majestic gait she showcased when she slaughtered those Homunculi earlier was gone.

“W-Woah… So this is what chicken tastes like! All those things I ate at the convenience store are fakes! Fakes, I tell you!”

Having only eaten low quality chicken so far, the taste of the real Korean chicken seemed to shock her.

Those chickens she had been buying at the convenience store weren’t even crispy and they had a strong chicken smell that she hated.

But the one she was currently eating was on a whole different level. The beer enhanced its taste perfectly. She could totally understand why Koreans would go crazy for chicken and beer.

Together, their taste was world-shaking!

The juicy chicken leg that oozed with flavor gave it a golden taste, just like El Dorado, while the ice cold beer gave a refreshing taste that sent a chill down your spine, like a refueling station for one’s weary soul.

“Eat it slowly.”

“Thank you…! Thank you for treating me to something so delicious!”

While Sharon was busy devouring her meal and expressing her gratitude, Siwoo quietly collected all the chicken legs and put them on her plate.

In that moment of bliss, the witch temporarily forgot about the matter involving the Homunculi and her debts.

After that, Siwoo ordered two more chickens for her and they spent the night eating, talking and enjoying each other’s company.

But, Sharon didn’t notice it at all.

This rare moment of happiness had blinded her.

From the cruel tragedy that awaited her tomorrow. From the merciless world that would trample the weak without batting an eye.