episode_0019

Tick-tock, tick-tock. The sound of footsteps coming from all directions made me involuntarily shiver.

Ever since I met my lovely goddess, Sirang, my strength has been increasing gradually. However, due to the hardships I have endured so far, I couldn’t seem to regain my confidence.

Resting on my back was the ancestral cane of our prestigious family. Our family’s high priest used to wield this to impart teachings to the masses and perform incredible healing.

Honestly, whether it was just a legend or the truth… I couldn’t say for sure.

I’ve never properly used this power before. After all, a priest needs to have faith in a god to wield their power. A priest without a god to believe in is, in other words, nothing more than a useless fellow.

Perhaps my father was completely unaware of this fact. Maybe that’s why he raised me as a succubus rather than as a great priest.

Although he encouraged me to become a great priest who could be a beacon of hope for many, I never truly experienced the power of a priest.

If I had known this would be the outcome, I would have just run away.

Ding-dong. The sound of a bell ringing. As I raised my head, I heard a melodious voice.

“Doruga, please come in!”

It was time to fight in a different sense now.

Tick-tock, tick-tock. The sound of footsteps was now coming from my own feet. As I entered through the open door, I saw a single office worker.

Dressed in a fine suit and exuding a rather greedy aura, he was someone I had seen many times before. It was becoming tiresome.

I closed the door behind me and sat in the chair across from him. Just one of the many ordinary men. Given the scarcity of men, he thought highly of himself among the scattered males.

Compared to Sirang… not a god, but a mere mortal…

“I heard you completed the quest.”

He said, puffing out his chest.

I nodded and presented the evidence. It should be sufficient.

“The orcs in the orc lair had all fled. Since there was nothing left, I brought back some leather as proof.”

“Hmm… it seems quite certain…”

He glanced at me, his thoughts clearly written on his face.

He examined the leather piece by piece. It was a mess, roughly processed in the orc style. Perhaps it wasn’t easy to escape with all the clothing as well.

There were several suspicious points, but if Sirang wanted this kind of response, I had to provide it.

Furthermore, Neru had completely destroyed the orc lair, so it would take at least a year to recover. By then, we might find another party of heroes to drive them out without us.

“To be honest… don’t you think the reward for this kind of thing is… rather meager?”

I glanced at him. A male human trying to take advantage of his gender to get into my pockets. Not as charming as Sirang in the slightest.

“I’m sorry, but I would like to receive the full reward as originally agreed.”

“Do you really need to do that?”

“Pardon?”

I couldn’t help but furrow my brow. What was this man trying to say?

“Thank you for eliminating the orcs, but… it’s a bit difficult to invest so much in a godless priest. And isn’t the hero also… somewhat lacking?”

“Wait a minute. Are you trying to break our agreement?”

“I’m just saying that it doesn’t seem necessary to invest all these resources.”

His strange, circuitous way of speaking persisted. Why not just get straight to the point instead of beating around the bush?

I tried to contain my frustration, but…

“And you’re a priest without a god, aren’t you? Well, I guess that’s why you’ve been holed up in the library for years trying to find your god. Still, it’s truly unfortunate to see a child of such a prestigious priestly family end up like this…”

“Shut your mouth.”

A word that slipped out unintentionally. I felt his expression in front of me instantly freeze coldly.

“What did you just call me?”

Just because my gender is male, doesn’t mean I should be treated like a rampaging pig. There are too many vultures preying on men because there aren’t many of them in the world. Seriously, all of them…

I felt the man’s expression gradually turning into fear.

Why is he acting like this?

“Um, wait… what is that…”

“That? What…”

As I lowered my head slightly, what I saw was a tantalizing golden hair swaying softly. It wasn’t the usual pink hair. It was a beautiful mane that seemed to have been transferred directly from Sirang.

I could feel the pointed ears twitching instead of horns. When I turned my head to the back, I caught a glimpse of a lush tail split into nine strands.

“What is this? What are you doing?”

Ah… this can’t be.

Is that it? The awakening of the divine power that only Eman, the most faithful and strongest priest, can use.

It was the ability to enhance oneself by borrowing the power of the gods. I heard that this kind of thing is rarely used, so why now…

Did Sirang notice what was happening to me and lower her power a bit to help me?

Even though she’s already weak… there’s no need to go this far.

But, I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

Staring at the man in front of me, I shuddered involuntarily. The arrogant guy from earlier seemed to be right, so I couldn’t help but raise the corners of my mouth. It was a laugh so cruel that it seemed desperate.

“You said you don’t believe in gods? I’m sorry, but it seems like you’re wrong now.”

“Ah, but… but how…”

Until now, he had been exploiting Neru, claiming to be a priest without a god. Now, he was so scared that he couldn’t even speak a word.

“By the way, as a priest who doesn’t receive any rewards, it’s too much not to even consider fair compensation.”

I approached him quietly and grabbed his chin, and he stared at me with a dazed look. Could it be that there’s brainwashing power in his words?

Amazing, he’s not just any disaster god. Even now, weakened as he is, he still has this power. How powerful must he have been in his prime…

Faintly, the unique cry of a beast seeped out from outside. The sensation of the nine tails swaying behind me was so soft. If I made a mistake, I felt like I would be sucked into this divine body.

I struggled to straighten my head and tidy up the almost mesmerizing hair. When I looked at the man in front of me, I opened my mouth.

“Listen to me carefully. From now on, even if you’re like me, never ignore or exploit me with lies. Do you understand?”

Slowly, the man began to nod his head. It seemed like he was finally getting it.

“And… this reward… it may be a bit much, but I’ll take it as it is. It’s a gift to you for finding your god. Is that okay?”

He nodded his head again and again.

I didn’t know this would actually work.

“Well then, I’ll be going now.”

As I whispered softly in his ear and stepped back, the disappearing tail and ears made a plop sound. The fluffy sensation disappeared, and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of loss.

By the way, a god is a god. So cute and lovely, yet able to grant such power to my shrine.

Impressive. If a god like Sirang, I can truly believe in.

Chuckling to himself, he walked outside with his purse in hand.

Perhaps… I might be able to eat something delicious today.

When he arrived at the inn, the innkeeper was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she didn’t just go shopping for a moment.

By the way, what are the hero and Sirang doing? Maybe by now they are playing with each other. But I know that the hero is not someone who would starve to that extent.

Thinking this, as he climbed up, he suddenly felt a sticky sweat and a sticky smell when he breathed in.

He froze in place.

“Oh…”

Did I just get hit in the head?

What on earth am I doing…

It was an act of impatience, but I was so overwhelmed by the arrogance that I stuck my tongue out at my belly…

Licking and licking- while licking my abs hard, I raised my head slightly, embarrassed but not shying away, Sirang, who was kind even though he was embarrassed. If he were an ordinary man, he would have been in a frenzy by now.

Two tails swayed behind him. Now the tail has become two instead of one, huh… Maybe it’s evidence that he’s getting stronger.

Thinking this, I was enjoying his body when suddenly Sirang looked at me with a surprised expression and said.

“Uh… Doruga? You have horns and a tail. And your hair color seems to have changed a bit.”

“Oh…”

I guess my transformation has been released.

It was inevitable that I looked at my god with a dazed expression for a moment.