NOVEL NEXT Chapter 39 - The City of Witches (5)
“Ugh…”
Kim Baram woke up with a throbbing headache, groaning as he instinctively grabbed his head with his right hand.
Wait, why had he been sleeping in the first place?
“Ah, you’re awake?”
A gentle voice sounded from in front of Kim Baram. He lifted his head to assess the situation.
There, with her chin resting on her hand and gazing at him with a tender, almost affectionate look, was a beautiful woman with bright red hair.
“Ugh… Where am I? Why was I sleeping? I remember hearing your name… and then nothing.”
After that, everything was a blank.
And why had Aurora’s favorability toward him suddenly gone up?
As he glanced around the room, Kim Baram noticed the message window indicating her increased favorability and tilted his head in utter confusion.
Aurora, meanwhile, had been watching Kim Baram’s confusion with a warm smile, silently observing him.
Once Kim Baram seemed fully awake, she began to explain what had happened.
“As soon as you heard my name, you suddenly collapsed onto the table. From what I can tell, it seems to be a side effect of the spatial distortion when you entered the dungeon. It happens sometimes, especially in high-level dungeons like ours, the City of Witches.”
‘Was that even a thing? I’d never heard of it before.’
It seemed like a new piece of lore that hadn’t been mentioned in the novel.
Still, Kim Baram did remember feeling dizzy when he first entered the dungeon, so her explanation made a lot of sense.
‘So that could happen again in the future. I’d better be more careful and check my condition next time I enter a dungeon.’
Now understanding the situation, Kim Baram felt guilty for making Aurora wait while he had been passed out.
Kim Baram lowered his head and apologized.
“I’m sorry for keeping you waiting. You must be busy.”
“Hehe, don’t worry about it. You looked cute and handsome while you were sleeping, so I couldn’t help but watch over you.”
‘Ah, so that’s why her favorability went up. Hah, yet another woman has fallen for my charm.’
“Haha, thank you for saying that. So, um, about my magic talent…”
“Your name.”
“Huh? My name?”
“Yes, what’s your name? We were supposed to introduce ourselves, but you collapsed right after I told you mine.”
“Oh, right. My name is Kim Baram.”
As Kim Baram told Aurora his name, it might have been his imagination, but she seemed to look at him with even more affection in her eyes.
‘What’s going on? Do I have honey smeared on my face or something?’
While Kim Baram was trying to figure out her overly affectionate reaction, Aurora suddenly extended her hand for a handshake.
“Nice to meet you, Baram. Just call me Aurora.”
“Okay, nice to meet you too, Aurora.”
As Kim Baram reached out to shake her hand, she grabbed it before he could fully extend it, intertwining her fingers with his and holding his hand softly, not letting go for a long time.
‘W-What’s going on? Why the sudden hand-holding?’
‘Did she really fall for me?’
It might have just been Kim Baram’s misunderstanding, but based on Aurora’s gaze and her actions up until now, it really felt like she was showing him a lot of interest.
“Uh, excuse me… Can I have my hand back…?”
“Ah, sorry about that. We witches often interlace fingers when greeting someone. It must have surprised you, huh?”
‘Oh, so that’s what it was. I completely misunderstood.’
“Shall we get to the main point then? Unfortunately, Baram, you don’t have any talent for magic.”
“I see…”
Even though Kim Baram had already anticipated this from the novel, hearing Aurora confirm that he had no magical talent made him feel a wave of disappointment that he couldn’t hide.
Seeing his disheartened expression, Aurora observed Kim Baram carefully and quickly changed the subject in a soothing yet urgent tone, as if trying to comfort him.
“Don’t worry about it! Even though you don’t have a talent for magic, you can still develop your magical power!”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“While you were asleep, I checked your body. I’m sorry for examining you without permission, but Baram, you have incredible potential.”
“Oh, no, it’s fine. I can’t blame you for not just sitting around while I slept… But, potential, you say?”
Aurora smiled brightly, as if pleased by Kim Baram’s interest, and nodded enthusiastically.
“Yes! Normally, people in your world, the ones you call Players, only have one type of magic attribute or none at all unless they are special. But you…”
“Yes, that’s how it usually is.”
What she was saying was something Kim Baram already knew. Why was she bringing this up now?
“Have you ever taken an elixir related to fire or ice attributes? I’m talking about a very high-grade elixir because right now, Baram, your body contains both fire and ice elemental magic.”
As soon as she said that, something clicked in his mind: the Solar Ginseng and Evercold Ice.
Evercold Ice wasn’t an elixir, but rather a poison.
However, Kim Baram decided to ask her something that was bothering him.
“But my status window only shows wind as my available attribute.”
“That’s because the other attributes are still ‘dormant.’”
“Dormant? You mean they’re hidden?”
Aurora nodded her head, seemingly pleased with how quickly Kim Baram was grasping her explanation.
“Yes. If you hadn’t met someone like me, sensitive to magic, you might have lived your whole life without realizing you had these dormant powers. Meeting me here in the City of Witches is a great stroke of luck, or rather, destiny!”
Aurora had been calmly explaining, but suddenly, she got excited. She stood up and leaned in toward Kim Baram, enthusiastically elaborating on the latent magic within his body.
As she stood up, Kim Baram couldn’t help but notice her mature figure, and before he realized it, his eyes had wandered.
He quickly averted his gaze, feeling embarrassed, and hastily complimented her.
“Aurora, you really are amazing.”
“Hehe, do I look a bit different now? Anyway, I know how to awaken the magic inside you. I can help you unlock your powers.”
“Wait, really? Is there… a cost for this awakening process?”
Having already witnessed the capitalistic ways of the City of Witches before coming here, Kim Baram cautiously asked, expecting a high price.
But Aurora simply smiled warmly and reassured him.
“Hehe, don’t worry. This is the first time I’ve seen something like this too, so I’ll do it for free.”
‘What? Free? That’s awesome.’
Aurora’s surprising generosity left Kim Baram staring at her with newfound respect. She seemed to notice, and her expression brightened even more as she began explaining the process.
“The awakening method is simple. I’ll inject my fire and ice elemental magic into your body, and you’ll need to focus on feeling it. I’ll be as gentle as possible, but you might feel heat or cold, so don’t be too alarmed.”
Was Aurora always this kind?
In the novel, the original Kim Baram did something to her that led to him being dumped on a forest path.
What did he do?
For a moment, he recalled the episode from the original story where Kim Baram had gone missing.
He briefly wondered if Aurora might be playing a trick on him, but then he dismissed the thought.
With how she had been treating him so far, there was no way this was an act.
Anyway, after finishing her explanation, Aurora slowly moved behind Kim Baram, and soon he felt her arms wrap tightly around him from behind.
Squeeze.
“W-what are you doing…?!”
“Hehe, to properly transfer my magic, it works better if there’s a lot of physical contact. I can’t help it.”
As Kim Baram stammered in surprise, Aurora responded with a playful, relaxed tone. Her sweet fragrance filled the air around him, and he could feel her soft body pressing against his back.
The heavy sensation behind him was impossible to ignore, and Kim Baram found it impossible to focus.
While Kim Baram’s mind was a complete mess due to her sudden closeness, Aurora leaned in even further and whispered in a sultry voice into his ear.
“Focus, Baram. Hehe…”
Kim Baram really couldn’t focus.
‘Teacher, I can’t take this anymore.’
Realizing that he couldn’t handle this situation any longer, he decided to resort to his final defense mechanism.
And so, he began silently reciting in his head:
‘Until the waters of the East Sea run dry and Mount Baekdu wears away…’
His strategy was to silently sing the Korean national anthem from the first verse to the fourth.
Fortunately, this method seemed to be quite effective. He could feel a sense of peace gradually settling in his heart, and all improper thoughts seemed to fade away.
“Tsk.”
Meanwhile, Aurora, who had been watching his transformation into a ‘sage,’ clicked her tongue softly in disappointment. It was barely audible.
She pouted slightly, clearly showing her dissatisfaction.
***
“Aurora, can you make it stronger? I don’t feel much at the moment…”
“Hmph, stronger… Haa… Stronger? Haha… That’s a bit… provocative.”
“Ugh… Just a little more… I’m starting to feel it now, Aurora!”
“Hm… Haha, you’re feeling it well? Baram?”
“Yes… Ugh… Now… it’s starting to feel really good… There… Just a bit more!”
“Haha, here? Hmph, does it feel good here?”
“Yes… There… it feels the best there.”
Anyone hearing their conversation from outside would almost certainly misunderstand, but in reality, Aurora and Kim Baram were exchanging magic in the most wholesome way.
For the sake of awakening his magic, Aurora had started by giving Kim Baram small amounts of her ice and fire magic.
However, because of his skills
So, Kim Baram asked Aurora to increase the intensity of the magic, and she responded by transferring a greater output of her power to him.
Finally, Kim Baram could faintly sense the cold and heat of her ice and fire magic.
Though, since it wasn’t his own magic, there was an odd, foreign sensation to it.
As Kim Baram pressed closer to Aurora, trying to fully immerse himself in her magic, he began to feel a similar energy within his own body.
‘So this is my fire and ice magic…’
Ding—
[Due to a special magic transfer, your magic power has increased by 7.]
[Your skill
[Player ‘Kim Baram’s unique ability
[You have awakened fire magic. You have earned 500 VP.]
[You have awakened ice magic. You have earned 500 VP.]
[You have gained affection from the character ‘Aurora’. You have earned 100 VP. Aurora’s current affection for Kim Baram: “Interested.”]
“Congratulations, truly.”
As expected of Aurora, a pioneer in magic. She instantly realized that Kim Baram had awakened new magical attributes, even without him having to say anything. She celebrated with genuine joy and hugged him tighter from behind.
The mixture of her sweat and skin scent from her neck created an even more provocative fragrance. She certainly wasn’t shy.
But having completed his national anthem recital, Kim Baram found that her advances had no effect on him, thanks to the overwhelming sense of patriotism swelling in his chest.
“Tsk.”
Aurora clicked her tongue in frustration when Kim Baram remained unresponsive and reluctantly released him.
She then walked into a nearby room and returned with a pouch in her hand.
“Here, take this. I feel bad about how you suddenly passed out earlier, so I’m giving you some magic grass tea leaves. If you brew tea with these leaves, it will stabilize your magic power, and with long-term use, it can even increase your magic levels.”
“Isn’t that too much? Oh, do I need to pay for this…?”
“No, no. It happened in my shop, so I should take responsibility. Besides… I can take care of other things too…”
“Baram! You’re still in there? It’s time for us to gather!”
“…Tch.”
Just as Aurora handed Kim Baram the pouch, Joo Jinyong’s loud voice came from outside, calling for him.
“Ah, I think I have to go now. Oh, right! About my destiny —”
Before Kim Baram could finish his sentence, Aurora gently placed her hand on his cheek. She looked at him with warm, sincere eyes and slowly spoke, her voice filled with care.
“A hero must carve out his own destiny. I’ll be cheering for you. If things get tough, this big sister will always be here to help, so hang in there.”
Kim Baram didn’t fully grasp the deeper meaning of her words, but he could tell that they resonated with him.
They moved him deeply and filled him with a strange sense of purpose.
With that, Aurora gazed at Kim Baram with a longing expression, like someone bidding farewell to a lover.
After staring at him for a while, she finally turned away.
Ding —
[Player ‘Kim Baram’s unique ability
[You have escaped Witch ‘Aurora’s prank. You have earned 1000 VP.]
[You have gained affection from the character ‘Aurora’. You have earned 100 VP. Aurora’s current affection for Kim Baram: “Friendly.”]
‘Ah, I get it now. So, this is why Kim Baram had been left sleeping outside the city walls, deep in the forest. She had been so kind to me, though… What could he have possibly done to deserve being treated like that? This guy…’
***
“Why did it take you so long? I finished a lot earlier than expected.”
“Oh, just a few things here and there. By the way, Aurora was really nice to me.”
“… What things? Aurora…? Nice, you say?”
Joo Jinyong muttered in disbelief, clearly confused by Kim Baram’s answer.
“She seemed really annoyed and did everything half-heartedly for me… That’s strange… She even made me call her ‘Witch.’ What’s going on?”
“Are you okay…?”
As Kim Baram walked toward our meeting spot, brushing off Joo Jinyong’s muttering, Han Suyeon suddenly appeared from behind, looking both startled and relieved as she spoke to him.
“… Huh? What do you mean by that?”
Not understanding the intent of her question, Kim Baram tilted my head in confusion and asked her back.
“Oh, no, it’s nothing…”
Her oddly suspicious behavior made Kim Baram glance over at her carefully, trying to figure out what was going on.
That was when he noticed that her school uniform was covered in dirt and leaves.
‘Where has she been? It looks like she was rummaging through a forest. Was there a hidden item in the woods I don’t remember?’
Kim Baram tried to recall if there were any hidden items in the forest outside the city walls in the novel, but nothing came to mind.
Distracted by the leaves stuck to her clothes, Kim Baram instinctively raised his hand and carefully brushed them off.
“Hey, you’ve got leaves on you.”
“Oh, um… Thanks.”
For some reason, Han Suyeon seemed slightly embarrassed, which wasn’t typical for her, especially after such a simple gesture of kindness.
Meanwhile, Joo Jinyong, who had been watching quietly, placed his hand on Kim Baram’s shoulder and spoke seriously.
“You’re never going to be a mage, man.”
‘What the hell is this guy talking about?’
***
Wuuung—
‘Ugh… I wonder when I’ll get used to this feeling.’
“Alright, everyone, good work today. Let’s wrap it up here and meet again next week.”
With Baek Yuseong’s final words, the members of the dungeon-clearing clan began to disperse one by one.
Since Kim Baram didn’t have anything else planned for the day, he also decided to head home to rest.
“I’ll be heading out too.”
“Okay, take care, Baram.”
“See you tomorrow, Han Suyeon.”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
As a side note, the atmosphere between Joo Jinyong and Han Suyeon was like oil and water— they barely acknowledged each other’s presence.
After saying goodbye to them separately, Kim Baram turned on his smartwatch to check for the next bus home.
Bzzzz—
‘Huh? A message? Let’s see… it’s from the Fixer Clan.’
As soon as his smartwatch powered up, Kim Baram received a notification.
Curious, he opened the Fixer Clan’s chatroom to check the message.
-(Fox): “There’s an urgent request for tomorrow. If anyone can help, please let me know. Baram, I’d really like you to be there.” -2:13 PM.
The first thing that stood out was a message from Shin Yul, sounding unusually urgent.
‘She specifically asked for me to come? Well, I don’t have any plans for tomorrow, so I guess that’s fine. I wonder what’s going on.’
Kim Baram tried to recall if anything significant happened around this time in the novel, but nothing major came to mind. It must not be a critical event.
‘Hmm, I guess I’ll just agree to go.’
-(Monkey): “I’ll join in.” -4:56 PM.