Chapter 55: Warming Up

‘It looks like I’ve been discovered,’ Vi thought.

Not using the Disguise Art earlier was definitely a mistake.

She wondered what Sephine would think if she found her wandering around outside…

But Sephine didn’t seem to react, remaining seated as she gazed at the scenery.

The seat opposite her had been empty the whole time — was it meant for her?

‘Maybe I’m just being conceited,’ she thought.

“You’re not going to take such a good opportunity?”

Auntie Xue wiped her hands and sat back down.

She had seen young couples bickering before; usually, a good talk was all they needed.

But their situation seemed a bit different.

It was serious enough that Vi didn’t even dare to approach her.

“Are you henpecked?”

“Me? Don’t be ridiculous. I’m the Demon King.”

“Then that’s that.”

Vi didn’t want to argue with Auntie Xue.

Sephine was still working, so it would be best to use this time to stay with the children a bit longer.

“I’m leaving now.”

Vi downed the alcohol in her glass.

The taste was strange, but not bad — it seemed to be a new variety.

“It tastes good. See you next time.”

“Wait.”

“Is there something else?”

“Sephine! Come over here for a second!”

Auntie Xue shouted toward the window.

Sephine flinched, appearing startled.

Listening to the call, she walked over with small, hesitant steps and looked at Auntie Xue.

“Boss, what is it?”

“This guest is dissatisfied with our service. I hope you can resolve it.”

“Is this… my entry test?”

“Exactly.”

Sephine took a deep breath.

She had lost her composure the moment she saw Vi, and her fingers were trembling uncontrollably.

Her neck was stiff, and she kept her head turned toward the window so she wouldn’t give herself away.

‘I don’t know why, we only separated a few days ago.’

“Gu… guest… is… is there… anything… you’re dissatisfied with?”

“Huh? Do you have a stutter?”

“Stutter… stu… what?”

“Don’t be nervous. It’s your first day of work; being tense is perfectly normal.”

Sephine kept her head down, not daring to meet Vi’s eyes.

Vi wasn’t doing much better; a faint blush appeared on her cheeks, and she turned her head away, unable to face Sephine.

Auntie Xue was puzzled.

The way these two interacted was strange.

Were they having a falling out? It felt more like they were meeting for the first time.

“Mom, I can’t keep up!”

Xiao Yi shouted from the back kitchen.

Even though Xiao Yi was a bartender on the level of an octopus, she couldn’t handle the increasing number of customers alone.

“Sephine, don’t let me down. If sales are good, I’ll give you a raise today.”

“Okay…”

Auntie Xue left.

“I have no complaints. I’m leaving.”

Vi’s voice was stiff, though she didn’t stutter like Sephine.

Just as she turned to leave, Sephine grabbed her.

The long-awaited skin contact made Vi’s head spin.

Her blood pressure spiked, and her already faltering speech system seemed to collapse entirely.

Every clever plan she had stored in her mind was wiped clean.

Sephine’s hand was just as it had always been — smooth and soft.

Vi wasn’t a perverted hand-fetishist, but she was still deeply infatuated with it.

“Guest! Please come again!”

“Mhm. Let go of me first.”

Sephine’s hand was still gripped tightly around Vi’s.

Realizing her gaffe, Sephine quickly let go.

“I’ll be back.”

Sephine stood frozen in place as Vi left.

She wasn’t sure what she was doing.

She had already decided not to get involved with her anymore, yet when they actually met, she couldn’t even control her own body.

Sephine returned to her original spot and watched Vi on the street.

‘It’s cold today. She seems to be wearing very thin clothes. Is she cold?’

Sephine exhaled a breath of air onto the glass and drew half a heart.

—

Vi took a detour.

She couldn’t go straight to Sephine’s house right under her nose.

“Miss? Do you want to buy a scarf?”

“No need.”

“Miss, want to buy apples?”

“No.”

Busy districts were a hassle with people pitching products everywhere, but it showed how quickly the city’s economy was growing under their leadership.

Particularly Magic Tools, which were very popular among the citizens.

A large portion of the National Treasury’s funds came from exporting Magic Tools.

Other kingdoms didn’t have such advanced technology; even being able to build a Magic Lamp was considered cutting-edge for them.

Vi had been afraid Catherine would use her research to pressure her into withdrawing from the competition.

But that morning, Catherine had told her that business was business and personal matters were personal; she didn’t want to tarnish her research.

‘These witches have some principles after all. When they say fair competition, they mean it.’

After Vi left, Catherine, who had just finished work, also went to her favorite tavern.

She wasn’t much of a drinker, so she especially liked Apple Cider.

This tavern’s Apple Cider was the best in the Royal Capital.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going!”

“Ah, sorry, sorry!”

“Honestly, don’t get so distracted just because you’re in a hurry to get inside.”

The large man she bumped into merely complained a bit before continuing to wait in line.

You couldn’t see the line from outside earlier, but now it stretched out into the street.

The tavern wouldn’t be this popular just because of the eye-catching Sephine, but the customers she attracted then tasted the unique liquor, causing the crowd to grow even larger.

“Why are there suddenly so many people?”

Catherine was a bit confused. She had asked Freyja to join her, but Freyja was so busy she couldn’t leave.

Her dark circles had dark circles; Freyja only slept 3 hours a day.

Catherine had even brewed a Magic Potion for her, fearing she might drop dead from exhaustion.

“Maybe I should just go somewhere else. There’s no need to waste time.”

Catherine checked her watch. Her time was precious.

“Did you see that staff member inside?” the person behind her in line asked.

“I saw her. I have to say, it’s worth it. The alcohol is good, too.”

“She even waved at me earlier! Ohoho!”

“Calm down, there are too many people here. Don’t make a scene.”

“You’ve already seen her, so of course you’re not in a hurry! Can this line move any faster…”

Catherine was curious.

What kind of staff member could get them so excited?

From this angle, she could see a little… looking closely, the staff member had white hair.

‘Oh, white hair is a rare color.’

Aside from Sephine, Catherine hadn’t seen any other young people with white hair.

She had to see for herself.

“Attention, everyone in line! Business hours for this morning are over. Please come back this afternoon!”

As soon as those words were spoken, the crowd outside began to murmur and grow rowdy.

They hadn’t waited in such a long line just to hear a closing notice!

The outside grew chaotic.