Chapter 138: Homecoming (1)

༺ Homecoming (1) ༻

1.

“Ms. Odile, Ms. Odette, it’s time for your meal.”

Once again, Galina, the head maid of the Gemini Household, knocked on the door to the twins’ room.

Lines of worry decorated her forehead as she held a tray filled with various dishes in her hands..

“...”

“...”

Despite her repeated knocking throughout the morning, she received no response from behind that tightly locked door.

“...Ms. Odile, Ms. Odette...”

After the incident where they stayed overnight without permission, the twins went back home looking really depressed before shutting themselves inside their room, refusing to eat or drink.

Though there was no reason for them to eat their meals since their bodies had already turned into a half-spirit, that didn’t mean Galina would just stop worrying about them.

After all, the twins were so upset that they locked themselves away, ignoring the temptation of the sweet desserts that would always make their eyes sparkle and entice them to come out of their room.

“Galina.”

Hearing the voice coming from behind, Galina, who had placed her hand on her waist before letting out a heavy sigh, quickly turned her head around.

The owner of the voice was Countess Albireo, the owner of this mansion.

“Countess...”

“You’ve worked hard. Leave them to me, I’ll go in and check on them.”

Albireo affectionately patted Galina’s shoulder before opening the magically locked door effortlessly and stepped inside.

The twins’ bedroom was dimly lit.

With blackout curtains drawn and the lights turned off, the room was pitch dark even in the broad daylight.

There was a large bed placed in the middle of the room.

On top of it, there was a bulging blanket.

It seemed like the twins deeply buried themselves under the covers.

After fulfilling her promise with Siwoo, the Countess brought them home and gave them a strict order.

They were forbidden from meeting Siwoo again.

And the outcome of that was clear as day.

The twins refused to eat and drink. They also kept a rebellious attitude toward the Countess.

Though, as stated before, they didn’t need to eat food anymore due to their constitution as apprentice witches.

Which meant, their hunger strike failed to appeal to anyone, so they resorted to a sleep strike instead.

‘If we can’t see Mr. Assistant, then we won’t sleep anymore!’

‘It’ll be Master’s fault if we die from lack of sleep!’

They kept on saying those things.

Of course, in the end, they were unable to endure it for even two days. The Countess discovered them sleeping while huddling on the couch, so she moved them to the bed and covered them with a blanket.

However, they’ve remained in this state ever since.

After turning off the lights in the room, they barred everyone from entering.

They even stopped themselves from receiving any form of education, as they refused to let private tutors in.

Although the twins were mischievous in their nature, they used to obediently follow their Masters’ instructions whenever the latter spoke to them with a slightly stern tone.

But this time, it seemed like they were dead set on becoming rebellious.

“Odile, Odette.”

Albireo tried to remove the blanket that covered the twins’ whole body, but since they were holding onto it and wouldn’t let go, all her efforts failed.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

““...Don’t wanna.””

Weak, tearful voices responded from inside.

This was the first time Albireo had heard them sounding so depressed.

It made her uneasy, made her think that she was the one in the wrong.

“You two know that today is the day Shin Siwoo leaves, right?”

“...”

“...”

They didn’t reply, but they did lower the blanket silently.

Their faces, side by side, appeared in the darkness.

At that moment, Albireo used her telekinesis to open the curtains wide.

That allowed the light to flood in and illuminate their faces.

The twins had naturally curly hair that required careful maintenance.

But, due to their strike, said maintenance couldn’t happen, resulting in their hair becoming all disheveled and tangled. Not only that, their cheeks were swollen and their eyes were puffy.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that they had been crying the whole time they covered themselves below their blanket.

“Why can’t we see him anymore...”

“We just need to be more careful...”

In truth, the Countess was feeling a little embarrassed about this whole matter.

A while ago, after Siwoo beat the Homunculus, she made a promise to send him back to the modern world.

Of course, the twins also knew about this matter back then, but unlike now, they didn’t make this much of a fuss.

‘Maybe it’s because he risked his life for them again? Because he almost got himself killed and managed to recover from that?’

In any case, their attachments to him had grown stronger.

That was the reason why they had been struggling, chasing after the Countess’ tail just to throw their tantrums at her for two days, even though they knew it was futile.

“This is for your own good. What if something goes wrong with you two little cuties in the future?”

“But, that won’t happen...”

Although he was a little tempted to indulge in another sex session, he quickly dismissed those thoughts.

There just wasn’t much time left and he had to prepare for his departure.

Siwoo stopped by the twins’ villa to pack his belongings and tidy the place up.

As he stepped into the gate leading to the Border Town, he noticed three people waiting for him on the other side.

The twins, wearing fancier dresses than usual, along with their trademark half-hats.

And Albireo, who was standing with her hands crossed.

“Hello...”

““Mr. Assistant!””

“Ow!”

With loud squeals the twins rushed toward him, throwing themselves at him at the same time.

He barely managed to avoid getting his back broken and hugged them.

“We’ll be fine here, so please be careful out there, Mr. Assistant.”

“Don’t forget about us, okay? Oh, yeah, you don’t forget about our gifts right? Right?”

“If anything happens, just show them that ring to scare people off!”

“Yes! Most Exiles would run away after hearing the name of the Countess Gemini, after all!”

They greeted Siwoo like a pair of excited puppies welcoming their owner home.

He could only let out a bitter smile and received their wholehearted reception.

“Yeah, yeah, I won’t forget. Ms. Odile, Ms. Odette, you both need to take care of yourselves too.”

“Of course... I’ll definitely become an outstanding witch so I can go out there to have fun!”

“If it’s you, Ms. Odile, I’m sure you’ll achieve that easily.”

“Mr. Assistant, when I go out, I want to visit a dessert shop in the modern world! I’ve gone there once before and their sweets were so tasty!”

“Okay. I’ll look it up in advance for you.”

The twins let out a bright smile with tears in their eyes. They considered themselves fortunate to be able to bid farewell in this way.

Seeing this scene warmed Siwoo’s heart.

When he thought about the various connections he made in these five years, it made him feel like he hadn’t spent all those years wastefully.

At that moment, Albireo, who had been watching their farewell from the sideline, approached them.

“Here are the documents I’ve prepared, Mr. Siwoo.”

She took out a thick envelope, a passport and an ID.

“This is a fake passport and a fake ID. If you were to make them under your name, it’ll disappear in a matter of days. Also, if you want to travel overseas, please use the airline ticket tucked between the pages of the passport.”

“So you can bypass it like that, huh?”

Since everything that connected to Siwoo had already been severed, he could only use a fake identity like this.

“Here are the addresses for the residences you can stay in. We’ve prepared up to ten houses all across Korea, so feel free to choose the one you like.”

“Ah, okay...”

“And this is a black card issued by our family-owned credit card company. It’s linked to the aforementioned fake identity, so you can use it as you please. Also, you can check out the various benefits it provides in the catalog.”

“...Huh?”

He had already been told that the Geminis would provide him with accommodations and a fake identity, but he never expected them to go to such lengths.

Suddenly, he felt the sense of burden on his shoulder increased.

“Uh, excuse me? Um, how do I check the credit limit on this card?”

“As long as you don’t suddenly buy a private jet or something similar, you don’t need to mind the limit. Feel free to use it.”

“Y-You really don’t need to go this far...”

“Just treat it as a token of my sincerity.”

Those gifts were too extravagant.

It basically allowed him to eat and mess around for a lifetime without having to work. Realizing this left him speechless.

After handing over the items, Albireo stepped back and gave the twins their spaces.

It was the twins who wanted to talk with Siwoo in the first place. Besides, he was aware that Albireo wouldn’t feel comfortable around him.

Of course, she didn’t leave them on their own. She still needed to make sure that they wouldn’t do anything foolish, after all.

“Wait for us, okay, Mr. Assistant? We’ll come visit you soon!”

“It’ll only take three years! We promise!”

With a light kiss on his lips, the twins finished their farewells.

At that moment, a part of the portal shimmered like a giant mirror.

If Siwoo were to take a few steps forward, he’d return to the modern world.

The twins held back their tears as they watched him.

Siwoo hesitated for a bit before taking out something from his pocket.

“Lady Countess.”

“Yes?”

“Could you please pass this on to Ms. Amelia?”

Siwoo handed over a folded piece of paper.

Albireo accepted it and tucked it away in her pocket.

“Yes, I’ll pass it on to her.”

Her answer made him feel a sense of relief. He then gently caressed the twins’ heads before walking towards the gate.

“Take care, Ms. Odile, Ms. Odette.”

“Please stay healthy, Ms. Assistant!”

“Let’s have fun together again someday!”

With the twins’ tearful cries, marking their goodbyes.

Siwoo’s vision turned upside down.