The Priest Wants to Retire

〈 Chapter 89 〉 The Unblessed Wedding (5）

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Even in the dim consciousness, that brilliant shine was clear and distinct.

This heat, like the morning sunlight gallantly sweeping away the dark fog of night.

I was overwhelmed by an unprecedented fatigue, and could barely acknowledge my surroundings, but still, it made it evident that she was here, that the Hero was here.

“Priest-nim! Are you okay!”

I tried to respond calmly to the urgent voice filled with worry, but with barely any strength to speak, I could only let out a few distressed gasps.

With bleary eyes, I quickly assessed my current appearance.

A body drenched in sweat. Weakened breaths. My buttons completely undone, exposing my collarbone to the world, was something I could hardly bear to look at.

It wasn’t hard to guess that all of this was the result of Saintess having her way with me while I was unconscious.

Honestly, it wasn’t all that surprising.

It would be more unusual for a fish left with a cat to be untouched.

In fact, I felt a slight relief that there were no signs of her touching my lower half.

However, how this scene would appear in the eyes of the Hero was a crucial matter that I could not simply overlook.

Even with my vision clouded like I had cellophane tape over my eyes, I could see the Saintess gently caressing my cheek while sitting on my lap, making it look like a couple in a sticky love scene.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine how the Hero, who was already hostile towards Saintess, would react upon witnessing this bizarre spectacle.

Therefore, I had to do something, anything, to alleviate the confusion the Hero was feeling.

It had to be corrected. There was still time to fix it.

My complacent thoughts were crushed, leaving no trace, by a peculiar sound that rang out from the corner of my mouth.

Chu.

“Fuh♪”

The moment the Saintess gently pressed her lips against my mouth, the air around us felt heavy and tense.

Her bright giggle was insufficient to soften the grim atmosphere.

I tried to lift my head to check the Hero’s expression, but the transparent chains that tightly restrained my joints made this nearly impossible.

“Get away. We’re busy.”

With a tone suggesting that an uninvited guest should be shunned, the Saintess suddenly expressed her displeasure towards the Hero.

What more could there possibly be after this much was done?

While I was petrified in shock at her sudden declaration, feeling a creeping sense of dread.

“That is indeed true!”

A cheerful voice that, unlike the worst I’d anticipated, was far removed from that tone.

Though their expression remained vague, that vibrant sound could only come from someone with a bright smile.

I was saved.

I didn’t know why, but the Hero was maintaining their composure.

In this moment, the days of the Saintess stressing that she was not in her right mind shined through for the Hero, who would have drawn his sword just from seeing us hug.

I felt an urge to express my gratitude a hundredfold to the Hero, who precisely grasped the perplexing situation that even a boy detective wearing a bowtie would struggle to figure out.

“I understand well!”

The echoing upbeat shout quickly uprooted the few seeds of doubt rooted in my thoughts.

I realized that this was all merely a delusion spawned from my brain, damaged by the repeated shocks.

“Please wait a moment! Priest-nim! I’ll finish this up right away!”

The moment I tentatively lifted my head, I was struck by the sight of the Hero, slowly drawing their sword with a smile reminiscent of a bright sunflower.

◈◈◈

Pakang!

By the time I regained my senses, the Hero’s fierce blade had already reached right in front of the Saintess’s nose.

It was a moment so brief that it felt impossible to blink.

With my limited eyesight, I could barely catch the afterimages; that series of movements exhibited an otherworldly speed.

But what truly shocked me was not that part.

Clank! Clank!

The Hero’s blade hovered threateningly before the Saintess’s face, emitting a grim metallic sound as it twisted ominously.

That menacing sight resembled a caged beast, desperately straining against its chains to devour prey just beyond its reach.

Something invisible was shielding the Saintess from the Hero’s sword.

The moment I became acutely aware of this unfounded theory was when I realized that the translucent chains wrapping around my body bore a resemblance to whatever it was that bound the Hero.

“Hmm!”

With a faint smile on her lips, the Saintess appeared to wriggle with composure, yet a prominent vein on her forehead understatedly hinted that she was quite agitated.

“Woof.”

Just then.

The Saintess, who had been watching the Hero struggling right in front of her for a while like a beast behind bars, suddenly pointed at him with her finger.

Woof. A child’s word for dog.

That hurtful phrasing, far too insulting to refer to the Hero tasked with the system’s fate, only added to the chilly atmosphere surrounding us.

Huff…

The Hero, bent low with their head down, took a moment to catch their breath.

That dank breath felt more like an internal struggle rather than an outward circumstance.

It was a fierce gasp that suggested they were desperately suppressing wild impulses within, a sight I had never seen from someone who shared a long-standing relationship with the Saintess.

How much longer would that oppressive silence last?

“Please explain!”

With determination, the Hero, who had been staring at the ground, suddenly lifted their head and shot an innocent question at the Saintess, paired with a bright smile.

“I sincerely apologize for suddenly drawing my sword and attempting to pierce the Saintess’s vital spot! But! No matter how you are, I cannot overlook such discourteous behavior towards Priest-nim!”

Though their lips curved into a smile, the artificiality of it was undeniable.

Their trembling lips. The strange grimace on one side of their face. The way they nervously chewed on their lower lip, showed that they were a typical example of someone barely suppressing their anger.

“But! If it’s a situation I cannot avoid! Or! If all of this stems from my misunderstanding, I swear to retract this sword immediately! I am the Hero, a person bearing the hopes of this nation’s citizens! So please, explain to me the unavoidable reason why this situation occurred! You need to hurry! I am losing my composure!”

I felt like standing up right then and giving the Hero a round of applause.

Just imagining how much torment they went through to say those words was enough to make me feel deeply moved.

Yet, despite the Hero’s relentless efforts, the Saintess, who had blocked her ears, seemed to find the Hero’s request for dialogue simply annoying.

“Woof. Be quiet.”

Pop.

I heard the sound of emotions twisting, or rather, a smile being twisted, directly across from me.

In an instant, the Hero’s sword and body, which had been sluggish until now, made a brisk motion right after that.

Clang!

A chilling wave of an ominous tone filled the cramped church, and from the center, the dust flying alongside the Hero’s swift movements made it clear that she had entered into a complete combat stance.

“I don’t know how you bound me, but now that I have confirmed I can break free, your trick won’t work anymore.”

After creating some distance from the Saintess, the Hero solemnly raised their sword towards her and spoke with gravity.

Perhaps she hadn’t anticipated that the Hero would be capable of breaking free, as the Saintess widened her eyes in surprise, momentarily fixating on the blade’s tip.

“I won’t give it back. It’s mine.”

“Ugh!”

The Saintess tightly embraced me, burying my face in her chest, and defiantly declared her unwavering intent to the Hero.

This is mine.

A declaration so simple, even a child who just started speaking could understand.

The Hero’s response to that was this.

“Right now. Get your filthy hands off my uncle.”

The calm voice resonated with a clear intent to kill that reminded me of some moment hidden in my memory.

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