---

The soldier is my profession, but I surprisingly don’t wear my combat uniform often.

Perhaps that’s to be expected since I’m an information officer. To be precise, I’m a military information officer belonging to the information agency.

When I worked at the Information Command, it was the transition period from analog to digital, so I received a digital combat uniform, but I rarely had the chance to wear it.

During commutes, I had to wear civilian clothes (which were basically suits), after all.

With an ID badge only recognized by the staff, I’d step into the first floor dressed in my formal wear, greeted by plainclothes personnel armed with gas guns, and head towards the elevator.

Pressing the buttons in the designated order to reach the floor of the office, I would change into one of the two sets of combat or duty uniforms from the cabinet in the corner.

It was only at that moment that I finally donned the combat uniform.

Of course, when going abroad or even working domestically, if I had on-site duties, I was often too pressed for time to even change into the combat uniform.

Maybe that’s why I ended up wearing the combat uniform more often while working at the Military Intelligence Agency compared to my time at the Information Command.

After all, I was stuck in the office every day performing my duties as Colonel Clevenz’s advisor.

Anyway, the point is simple.

Whether I like it or not, I am someone who wears civilian clothes more often than military ones, and thus, I’m more comfortable in civilian attire wherever I go, especially in a suit.

However,

For some reason,

Today, my suit feels particularly constricting.

As I loosen my tie and drape it over my unbuttoned shirt, I let out a faint sigh internally.

“…Are you ready?”

“Oh, yes.”

Upon hearing Lucia’s voice, I slowly turned my back.

Trying to keep her out of my sight. Trying not to make eye contact.

Though, given how cramped the room was, even turning my gaze felt rather awkward.

“……”

I sat on the edge of the bed.

And right in front of me,

Lucia, the saint—or rather, the priestess, was dressed so minimally it was hard to believe.

“Well then, shall we begin?”

She started to approach slowly.

Episode 12 – The Most Powerful Magician Ever

The healing preparations were complete.

The first to lie on the bed was me. I neatly arranged my discarded clothes and lay down, and during that time, Lucia, wearing her robe, approached the bed.

It was quite the sight.

Priestly attire is designed to allow for a degree of movement by being somewhat loose-fitting. This was true for priests, inquisitors, and nuns alike.

You could even say it resembled a one-piece dress.

Because of that, it wasn’t easy to gauge the figures of many clergymen, including Lucia and Veronica, who wore robes. The nature of such loose clothing meant that the outline of the body was hardly visible.

So, whenever I saw Veronica in civilian clothes, it was always a hard adjustment.

After all, being a saint, Veronica always wore various things in official settings, so even when seen up close, she didn’t evoke much reaction, and naturally, my gaze would drift to her face. But when she showed up in a form-fitting shirt or pants, it was hard to find a place to look.

Lucia had a similar situation.

Her complexion was flawless, so white you could hardly find a blemish. Skin as smooth as a luxurious silk blanket.

Her hair, not tied up, flowed down and dazzled in golden hues, so bright it could be believed to have been made from melted gold.

A slight glance upward would reveal her sea-blue eyes.

The moment I looked into those eyes, memories of the Birth of Venus I had seen on a brief visit to Florence came flooding back.

Though the colors of her eyes were different, and Lucia’s appearance clearly differed from the painting’s Aphrodite, her bashful, shy expression as she used her arms to cover her chest was no different from the Venus depicted in the masterpiece.

“……”

I didn’t know since Lucia was so religious and had never worn civilian clothes.

She was far more beautiful than I had anticipated.

“Wh—why are you looking at me like that…?”

“……”

“I—I’m a little embarrassed…”

As Lucia’s voice lingered in my ears, I felt my mind clumsily stumble back into reality.

In a hurry, I turned my gaze to the ceiling. To make matters worse, I turned my head entirely away.

“I—I apologize. That was rude of me.”

“…There’s no need to think it was rude.”

I heard Lucia’s voice, soft and almost hesitant.

When I squinted to take a glance, I saw her lowering her head.

She looked like she was trying to suppress her embarrassment, but the bright red flush on her ears and her hands hastily covering her body made it clear she was struggling to contain herself.

“Now it’s my turn to join you. Please give me a moment….”

“Oh, yes.”

“Thank you.”

As I moved to make space, the awkwardly positioned Lucia slid in next to me.

With her hand lifting the blanket, footsteps thumping against the floor as she dashed over, and her swift motions in covering herself with the blanket, I could sense her urgency.

In all honesty, considering her face was as red as a beet, it wasn’t necessary to pay attention to her gestures.

“……”

“……”

After she had jumped onto the bed, silence descended upon us.

Contrary to her bold demeanor, Lucia’s face remained flushed as she clutched the blanket and fidgeted, while I kept my gaze fixed on the ceiling, my mouth tightly shut.

To be honest, this was the most nerve-racking moment of my life. Even more so than during my business trip to China.

The quiet room echoed only with our intermittent breaths.

Worried that any movement might bring our skin into contact, I didn’t even dare to try and adjust my position.

Both Lucia and I remained pressed against the edges of the bed, staring only at the ceiling and the floor as we cautiously breathed.

We had rented a motel with the aid of some drinks, yet here we lay, not making any progress like a couple stuck in silence.

However, we could no longer postpone what needed to be done.

“…Um.”

As the awkward silence stretched for a few minutes, a faint voice emerged from Lucia, her back turned to me.

“Uh…”

“…Yes?”

“Um… shall we start with the treatment…?”

“……”

Feeling the soft texture of the blanket connecting Lucia and me at my fingertips, I hesitated for a long moment before finally speaking.

“…Let’s go ahead.”

I tried to adjust myself. Meanwhile, Lucia helped me find the optimal position by slightly shifting aside.

But,

“Um.”

“…….”

As I was getting into position, the moment I brushed against Lucia, I felt something strange. And I realized.

The bed we had been using was indeed a spacious one. When I first woke up in the cathedral, I had been lying on a bed that was at least a queen size, perhaps even a king.

But the bed we were currently lying on was a single. It was so cramped that there was hardly any space left for an adult male.

With both an adult male and an adult female lying together on that tiny bed, it was perhaps only natural that our bodies would inevitably touch with even the slightest movement.

“…Uh, um. What do we do? It seems like there isn’t just a little—no, a lot of space missing.”

“W-Well, I think it should be fine.”

In a moment of panic, I threw a question at Lucia, but her answer didn’t ease my worries.

It seemed she hadn’t anticipated the bed to be this cramped either. Or perhaps she was just too flustered to even consider it.

Regardless, with the situation as it was, there was nothing we could do. Lucia, who had momentarily pulled her body half out of the bed, cautiously lifted the blanket that was about to fall and slowly climbed back onto the bed.

Very slowly.

Exceedingly slowly.

“…….”

Lucia’s face, as she climbed onto the bed, looked as if it were about to burst from how red it was.

Since I was watching her with a tense face, I could precisely see her moving as if a snail was crawling.

Her flushed face, the eyes wavering in all directions, and her hair that had fallen out of place.

Her shiny blonde hair, led by gravity, cascaded down to cover her upper chest. The pristine underwear covering her important parts was not particularly distinctive, but given who was wearing it, its very existence felt special.

Was it because of her tension? The cold air reflected the dried sweat that had accumulated, causing a sheen to begin forming across her skin.

It was not an exaggeration to say her figure was almost intoxicating. As Lucia slowly drew closer, I found myself desperately searching for a place to avert my gaze.

“Ah, no!”

With a face ready to burst, Lucia yanked the blanket and bolted upright.

“…Huh?”

“Please wait a moment…!”

Lucia nearly jumped out of bed and started running toward the direction of the drawer.

In the blink of an eye, she arrived and flung open the drawer with all her might, rummaging through it. She tossed aside books, clothes, socks, and all sorts of personal items as if she was frantically looking for something.

It was a flurry of hands so urgent it made me wonder if she was a robber or a homeowner. Lucia dug through the drawer like a scavenger, then reached deep inside the now emptied drawer, fumbling around until she let out a small exclamation and pulled out an object.

The identity of that object was,

“…Wine?”

It was none other than a bottle of wine.

“This is the wine used during mass. It was blessed directly by Archbishop Theodosius, the diocesan bishop.”

“Why do you have that…?”

“I brought it back since there was a bottle left after mass.”

“No, why did you bring it? Aren’t you a priest?”

Is it even okay for a priest to drink? Judging by how deep it was hidden in the drawer, it couldn’t be something too respectable.

I said something out of sheer disbelief, but it seemed to have not reached Lucia. She seized the bottle and, without any tool, popped the cork off.

-Pop!

The cheerful sound of the cork opening echoed through the room.

As the clear sound rang, the wine sloshed against the glass walls of the bottle. Lucia brought the bottle to her lips and gulped it down.

“…Phew.”

After drinking for a while, Lucia wiped her lips with the back of her hand and exhaled. Having finished off half the bottle in an instant, she trudged back to the bed and handed me the remaining half of the wine bottle.

It was an invitation to drink.

I took the bottle she handed over and downed the rest of it. Since it was something used in the cathedral, it must have been a rather high-quality wine. I barely had time to taste it.

As I gulped the wine down, unsure if it was entering through my mouth or nose, after a moment, I pulled my lips away from the now empty bottle. Lucia took the empty bottle back and placed it on the desk.

At that moment, I could feel the alcohol racing through my veins.

My thumping heart pushed blood forcefully, spreading oxygen throughout my body, and the alcohol mixed in with the blood seeped into every corner of my being, matching the rhythm of my heartbeat.

“…….”

Lying quietly on the bed, I took a moment to let the alcohol spread through me.

-Swoosh.

Lucia, who had been standing still, slowly lifted the blanket and climbed back onto the bed, casting her back toward the moonlight.

“Though my greetings are a bit late, I’m relieved we made it through today safely. Luckily, you seem to be uninjured.”

I hesitated, silently watching Lucia as she settled beside me.

I wanted to say something, but the atmosphere wasn’t right. Whether it was due to the alcohol or my own embarrassment, Lucia’s face was flushed red, and my heart was racing like a malfunctioning engine.

Was it the wine’s effect?

The temperature in the room felt particularly hot.

I spread my arms to make space for her to lie down. She expressed her gratitude softly and nestled into my embrace. I wanted to offer her a pillow, but being the patient, I conceded my use of it.

Carefully, avoiding any injury, I turned to face Lucia, who lay next to me, and asked a trivial and meaningless question. It was such a silly question that I normally wouldn’t have asked.

“Is it okay for the saint to drink?”

To this, the saint replied in a rather serious tone.

“Well, it’s best to refrain since I am to undergo canonization soon, and alcohol isn’t good for the body.”

“But…?”

“As long as no one knows, it shouldn’t matter, right?”

Because of the proximity, I felt her scent with every slight movement. The fragrance intertwined with the smell of alcohol. Simultaneously, the softness of her hair and skin that rested against my body tickled me.

“As you know, the work I plan to undertake is something that hasn’t received the Council’s approval. Even Pope His Holiness does not know. Saint Veronica… I mean, my sister is unaware as well.”

“…….”

“So, at this moment, whatever happens here…”

As Lucia carefully lifted her head, I could sense her gaze slowly meeting mine.

A seemingly eternal moment made time feel as if it had stopped.

In that breathlessly silent instant, Lucia’s rosy lips began to part.

“Secrets.”

“…….”

“You will protect it, right?”

And thus, I was burdened with one more secret I had to take to my grave.

 

---