episode_0057

“What… ? Want me to tell you a story from the past?”

I heard that story about three years after I started dating Lacey. During that time, we talked a lot with each other. The placenta was a story from Lacey’s past. Lacey’s question about my past wasn’t unexpected.

Because it’s not my duty as a lover to only listen to the story and not bring up my story. I brought up a story from my childhood that had been buried deep in my memory.

“My family has been serving as a royal guard in the royal palace for generations. So my future was naturally destined to be a member of the Royal Guard, and accordingly, I received arduous training from a young age.”

According to what I saw in the library inside the mansion, our Symphony family had been working in the royal palace for at least 100 years. Every year, many people take exams and put in great effort to join the knights’ order directly under the royal palace, but I, a member of the Symphony family, just because I have devoted myself to the royal palace for a long time, am equipped with the body and skills suitable for being a knight and a member of the royal guard. I was able to join.

“Thanks to our ancestors who served the kingdom for a long time… You could say that, but I really hated this. Just because I got in, someone else who worked so hard might fail… Above all, I didn’t really like holding a sword.”

As they said, he started babbling, and since he was a toddler, he has been learning etiquette while holding a wooden sword under his parents’ instructions. And it wasn’t just me who went through that process.

“Have I said this before? I have one older brother. ah… To be precise, it would be correct to say ‘there was’.”

Luckily, I had other relatives besides my parents. The name is ‘Tune Symphony’. A man with light red hair that looks like my pink hair minus a bit of white. No matter how difficult the training was, we overcame it by relying on each other. At the same time, we both developed a common hobby.

“Lacey. You know that my hobby is playing the violin or piano, right? It was like that last time, and I told it to you often. That was when I acquired that hobby.”

No matter how strict parents were, they never abused their children. Is it for the sake of their children, or is it because they don’t want to ruin it too much? I’m still not sure, but he gave me the opportunity to go to the kingdom once a week for relaxation and leisure activities.

By chance, my brother and I saw a bard playing a lute and singing beautiful melodies in the square, and we fell in love at first sight. The bard had a shabby appearance that did not fit the splendid kingdom, but the melody he played was much more beautiful than any other sculpture in the kingdom.

“The sound of a song that soothes a tired heart. That tone had a huge impact on my life. Not like cancer.”

From the next day, I started swinging the sword and gained the motivation to overcome the difficult physical training of my arms and legs. After training, we gathered in our respective rooms or in the garden and hummed the melodies we heard at the time, and sometimes looked through books in the library and read about how to play the instrument.

When we went down after that, the bard wasn’t there, but my brother and I looked for traces of that music as if we were possessed. Due to being from a wealthy family of knights, the two of us had plenty of pocket money, so we had no shortage of buying related tools at the time when we were passionate about music. My first instrument was the violin and my brother the lute.

“My parents allowed me to play a musical instrument as long as it did not interfere with my training. In the past, I felt very grateful for that one word, but now that I think about it, I wonder if I would have planned to stop it at any time if it interfered with my training.”

Yeah, those were good times. My parents, who didn’t interfere more than necessary, and me, who used to sing and play the violin comfortably under their shade. Me, who liked quiet tones, and my brother, who enjoyed cheerful tones. Occasionally, the residents of the mansion would come to listen to our temporary concerts.

That’s how my brother and I got older. My older brother, who was three years older than me, was scheduled to be inaugurated as the commander of the Royal Guard that year. The problem started from there, and the happy days surrounded by melodies and tones ended from that day.

Just thinking about that time… My mouth felt bitter. It’s something I naturally want to wrap my head around.

“But the days when I could hold a musical instrument no longer existed. It was the moment when my childhood indulgence came to an end. By none other than my brother’s hand… ”

I wave my hands in the air and recall the events that flash before my eyes.

“It was a summer day when the rain was pouring down. My brother disappeared. With just one letter left behind. The content was simple. ‘I like music. Therefore, even if it means abandoning my family name, I will pursue my own melody.’ In my brother’s room, only his beloved lute was missing.”

The decision made by the parents on their eldest son, who had neglected his duty as a knight and his family duties, was expulsion. I didn’t even pretend to look for it. The name ‘Tune Symphony’ no longer existed in the family. Any mention of anything related to my brother was prohibited within the mansion. Names, whereabouts, even rumors going around. The aftermath didn’t end there.

“My violin was confiscated, and I was banned from even humming a song inside the mansion. At the same time, the intensity of training became more intense, and my parents’ interference also increased. Etiquette as a noblewoman, attitude as a royal guard. It felt like everything was focused on me as one of the weights they were carrying disappeared.”

There wasn’t a day that went by where my body wasn’t healthy. The hands that had been playing the violin were calloused from swinging the sword vigorously, and the mind filled with sheet music and tunes was being replaced by the etiquette and norms that a nobleman and captain of the Royal Guard should know.

“I also blamed my brother. If you’re going to go out, can’t you take me with you? But I can’t just blame it. The thing that created such an older brother was… Because it was hard training and oppression carried out from childhood, packaged as a family tradition… Oh, of course, I never gave up on my passion for music!”

Then, as time passed, she took her brother’s position as commander of the guards. After finishing a small ceremony for the inauguration of the head of the guard, I was on my way touring the royal palace where I would be working.

“A cathedral located within the royal palace. You know that too, right? I also played the role of accompaniment there… As a paladin, you would have known. How was my performance then? Well done!”

Inside the cathedral I entered by chance, a huge piano sparkled with light reflecting off the rainbow-colored stained glass. I approached there as if fascinated, carefully sat down on the chair and pressed the keys. If I were to hear the bard’s song that I heard as a child resounding through the keyboard… For some reason, my heart sank.

Every time I pressed the keys and each time the melody filled the cathedral, my emotions grew stronger. That is when the melody echoing in the empty cathedral ends. I made up my mind.

“Isn’t it a little strange? As the captain of the guard, I will take on the role of accompaniment. Actually, this was the first and last time I took advantage of my position to be unreasonable. At least while I’m working in the kingdom as a knight, I don’t have to worry about my parents, and I can play musical instruments to my heart’s content.”

There were people who were not dissatisfied with the abuse of power. Representative examples include priests at cathedrals. To them, the fact that I, the captain of the guard, would play the role of accompaniment, which was naturally theirs, and not anyone else, would have seemed like I was usurping their position. Well, their complaints quieted down after hearing my performance.

Of course, due to my position as a guard captain, I was able to play the accompaniment myself about once a month. If the workload was too heavy, it could only be done about once a quarter. So, it seems that when I was absent, the cathedral used a separately prepared accompanist…

His suppressed passion for music was limited to playing the piano. On days when I was irritated by the heavy workload and friction with the higher-ups, I calmed my mind by playing the violin I personally purchased, and sometimes I made up my own sheet music and lyrics and played them while humming.

” Those were the only good times. The story that follows is one you know well. The very expedition that witnessed the miracles of Goddess Hecate. A campaign in which many people were killed and injured, and I had one of my arms torn off. And the very day you saved me. also… The expedition that led to my being expelled from my family.”

A brilliant light that burns monsters to death. The day when the so-called miracle of the goddess occurred. The priests were happy and cried out that it was the second coming of the goddess, but at least the people at the scene could never laugh. Many of my colleagues became minced meat, and most of them were not even found.

I also resigned from my position as Knight Commander shortly after returning from injury. Strictly speaking, should I say that I was dismissed?

“According to my subordinates who worked in my place while I was away due to recuperation, there was pressure from my family. The one-armed guard captain is not needed in the palace. When I returned to the mansion, I left the family as if I was being chased.”

When I returned to my family, what came back to me was confinement in a monastery, which was close to being virtually disowned. That was no different from kicking me out of the family. Was losing an arm such a big sin, or was it punishment for my incompetence, losing an arm in a battle with a monster?

To be honest, I thought I would remain in the family forever. Furthermore, because of my position as a woman, I was confident, not certain, that I would leave behind my blood in order to have children who would continue the family. Even when my brother ran away, I ended up with the instruments confiscated without any punishment. The absurd idea that it would not be abandoned until at least a successor was created was beautifully shattered.

“It was pointless and pointless. When my body became unwell, I screamed and started a riot for the first time in my life at my parents, who had even abandoned my own relatives, but I was subdued by the employees of the mansion. Even if I had both arms, I wouldn’t have been overpowered like that… It was difficult to fight with one arm.”

The faces of my parents were cold until that moment… Even as time passed, it still gave me chills. Exhausted as I was, I quickly cooled down from my anger and, following my parents’ wishes, I left home and entered the monastery.

Still, it was fortunate that I went to the monastery. At that time, I witnessed the miracle of the Goddess with my own eyes and was secretly yearning for that miracle, and since I had nowhere else to go, I received training as a priest and ended up in my current position.

“Meeting you… Yes, it’s all thanks to the goddess. Maybe it was because I was able to survive with only one arm, or maybe it was you who happened to save me… And the fact that I met you again and formed a relationship like this. Hehe… Was this a story that made you a little irritated for the icy type of person you are?”

The story I heard after that was that in the Symphony family, a child from another Symphony family became the captain of the guard in place of me, who had been excommunicated under the pretext of recuperation. The only children in the family are me and Tune. Of course, he must have been an adopted child, but for some reason, according to newspapers and occasional public information…

“They say it’s a hidden child. It’s not even funny, right? Such an absurd fabrication. No matter how deeply our family is embedded in the kingdom, we cannot do this alone. There must be a backseat. And that’s enough to be able to package this much information as if it were real.”

This is a story that will definitely make you laugh. If that child gets hurt, he won’t be replaced with a new child… Putting aside my pitiful sympathy, the fact that I am here now without any threat, knowing that the information is false… Either my parents completely forgot about me, or they kept me alive because of the affection between parents and children, or even that…

Maybe they’re trying to kill me the moment I open my mouth, or maybe my throat is still attached because I haven’t opened my mouth yet.

“Ahaha… I guess it was a bit heavy story? Well, no need to look so serious! Because it’s in the past anyway. Let’s just have a drink. Cheers!”

After I finished telling my past story, Lacey’s expression darkened considerably. After all, it wasn’t a story worth telling at a private drinking party… To lighten the gloomy mood, I made a toast by forcefully pushing my glass into Lacey’s glass, which she had not even taken a sip of while listening to my story.

“Still, I’m impressed, right? You get angry on my behalf… You worry about it as if it were your own… And you, the savior of my life… I am so happy that you came back to me and became lovers again. I want to feel your warmth all the time… Is that okay?”

“… … of course. Muse.”

*

*

*

A place that looks like a church. However, to be called the interior of a holy church, it has turned into a bizarre space with dark red tendrils surrounding the ceiling, floor, and walls. The rainbow-colored stained glass had faded, and blood stains were clearly visible on the windows.

No one was sitting on the chairs arranged in rows, and only the red light was bright… A blasphemous space that could easily be called a brothel before it was a church. Among them, the most shocking one is a stone statue with a male genitalia attached to a female body in a strange posture. The statue of Goddess Hecate was naturally located where it was supposed to be.

And the organ sound. A huge pipe organ beneath the statue. A woman who occupies it. Even though I could only see the back, I was able to capture quite a bit just by looking at it.

Pink skin that completely denies being human, and dark pink hair tied back on one side. In a place where one must look neat at all times, the lewd backside of one’s big buttocks and smooth back is clearly visible without any clothes on. Also, her huge breasts stand out even though they are shown from behind.

As a priest who serves the goddess, I must stop the strangely changed interior of the church and the woman who plays in a vulgar image. There is an obligation to do so. however…

[♩♪♬♩♪♬♩♪♬♪♪♪~]

I felt like I was lost in the sound of the organ played by the woman’s long, thin right arm and the hideous devil’s left arm. When I see that, I forget to get angry and become absorbed in it. A gentle singing voice that seems to kindly embrace everyone. It was like the tone I remembered listening to with my brother when I was young.

Even the woman’s humming sound along with the organ was a heavenly voice that touched the heart. If I go up to that woman now and stop the music, I will never hear this note again. For some reason, I had a feeling that would be the case. That’s why I couldn’t move my leg, which was barely outstretched. No, it didn’t move.

–Clap clap clap!!

[It’s a really good performance any time you listen to it. Muse♥]

While I was concentrating on the music and concentrating on each melody, the sound of applause that broke into the song. If you follow the sound and look back, you will see a woman… There was a devil. A sexy-looking devil with blue skin and pink eyes. Moreover, like that statue, the devil, who proudly had his male organ growing out despite being a woman, was wearing a black swimsuit, one of the luxury items of nobles.

Although it cannot be compared to the woman playing the organ, the devil opens the church door and walks slowly, making a voice that is just as thrilling. When she heard the voice, the woman stopped playing.

And looking back…

[Come on. Grace♥ my love♥]

A long piece of cloth is wrapped vertically around the body so that it doesn’t even look like it is worn, and as expected, a huge male organ is lifting the cloth… An appearance that can no longer be described as vulgar. And that woman’s face and, as I now realize, that voice…

“I… Right?”

*

*

*

“Ugh… !!”

I throw off the blanket and get up. He is breathing heavily, as if he had been submerged in deep water and emerged from it. A dream too vivid to be dismissed as a nightmare. I didn’t see a ghost, fall from a high place, or have my limbs cut off.

“Why… why me… ?”

Obviously that face was me. The voice was mine too. But it wasn’t me. I don’t have that skin color, that body, or that twisted left arm. I was a man, a priest, and my left arm… Because there wasn’t. Above all, even though she has a body that is more overwhelming than that of any woman I have ever seen, she directly denies that… A huge penis. Maybe something bigger than Lacey…

“Sa, the priest has risen! Quickly call a therapist!”

“What… ?”

In the meantime, my ears caught my attention as I heard a familiar voice, and soon I began to slowly remember what situation I was in. I, who should have been in church wearing a priest’s uniform, was lying on a bed in the treatment center wearing a patient’s uniform.

“What… Did something happen?”

“Muse Priest. Don’t you remember anything?”

The voice I just heard was that of a junior priest. He was looking at me with a worried face. I can’t remember… What happened that brought me here?

–Squeak… !

Without having time to sort out the confusion in my head, the door opened immediately and people came in. The lord’s direct guards, as well as the therapists at the treatment center. And my lord… ?

“Did you wake up? Muse Priest.”

“Lord… ? Why is the lord here in person?”

“I’m sorry I just woke up… Do you know why you are in the treatment center?”

The lord speaks in a worried voice that does not match his wolf-like appearance. I tried to think of something in his words and actions that were not like the usual serious lord…

“I don’t remember very well. Could something happen to me… ?”

“Phew… yes. In fact, not remembering could be helpful to you. However, since you are already involved in this case, it would be better to hear the full story of what happened to you.”

What happened to me… ? And then you get involved. If it’s something that might involve me, my lord… I just went there to talk for a church lecture. ah… Could it be because of that? What really happened to me? I was very embarrassed as things I didn’t know were coming at me without end, and I was also doubtful about what situation I was in.

“Calm down and listen. Muse, you… I was attacked last night.”

And what the lord said after that… If I were in good health, it was such a horrific and upsetting story that I would have been so angry that I would have destroyed everything.

attack… ? There may be. Haewolgyo is not the only religion in this world, so being attacked by a hostile religion is something to always keep in mind. Even if you are not a religious person, there are thugs who attack innocent people for no reason, and I may be their target. But the attack I suffered… It wasn’t a physical assault or anything like that.

“Harassment… I got hit. Do you mean my body?”

It is said that I was discovered by a patrolling security guard who became suspicious that the church door, which was supposed to be closed that night, was left open. There, the priestly uniform I was wearing was torn and my underwear was disheveled. In other words, it means that someone used me as a tool to satisfy their sexual desires and then ran away.

Not only that, it was said that there were several dark lip marks and strong grip marks left on the body. In particular, the red mark on my neck remains like a brand and cannot be erased.

“That’s a lie!? No, no no no. wait for a sec. Please wait a moment. yesterday evening? Yesterday I was probably at church for the evening prayer meeting! And speaking of people who came to see me during that time… ”

Going back to my memories. You have to remember everything that happened yesterday. Morning as usual and on the way to church. In church… I met a noble-looking lady with light blue hair who said she admired me, and after that, I cleaned the church with my fellow priests in preparation for the evening prayer meeting…

After the prayer meeting is over and everyone has gone home, I say my last prayer alone. That day… I was worried about the safety of Lacey, who suddenly left without saying anything to me, and was praying to the goddess to protect him. and…

“Lacey… Lacey is here! He, that person, saw me alone in the church… !?”

“Truly. Muse Priest! Lacey… ? That can’t be possible. He took on a mission, and now within this territory… ”

“No! Absolutely! He wore heavy armor that he didn’t normally wear, and spoke to me like he was his usual warm person… … Huh?”

I was clutching my head and finally pulling out the memories that were deep inside… The more I thought about it, the more questions intertwined and interconnected, creating new questions. if… If Lacey was planning to meet me one last time before going on a mission and then leave, why did she come without even taking off her helmet?

In order not to be caught by others… ? no. The moment I burst through the church door, Lacey would have attracted all the attention, and no matter how much she missed me, she would never have made such a rookie mistake.

There are more than just one or two that come to mind. Lacey’s voice… The voice is quite high for someone to say he has a cold. Basically… Yes, the voices were different to begin with. Why didn’t I know that from the beginning… You gave yourself to someone who called himself Lacey, right? I have no shame in seeing Lacey!

My memory goes only so far. I really don’t remember anything after that. But according to the circumstances… I was attacked and physically harassed by that strange man… Maybe even rape!

“Lord! Was there anything else wrong with my body? Well, what is that… ”

It’s a sentence that feels awkward to say in person… Asking with my mouth, “Are there any signs of rape on my vagina?” I’m so embarrassed that I just keep my mouth open. The lord, who could not see me like that, spoke first.

“Muse Priest. There was nothing found on your body that would cause you concern. In the past, other people’s bodily fluids did not remain in the body. Is this enough?”

“Ah… Thank you.”

Wow, you’re quick-witted. Okay, now that I have a good understanding of what happened and the current situation… I need to get up right away and do something too.

“If you are planning to wake up and return in that state… I would recommend not going.”

The moment I thought about this and was about to get out of bed, the Lord spoke as if he had known from the beginning that I would return. I recommend not going… ? No, it couldn’t be done.

“Thank you for your concern, but I am not a saint enough to stand still after someone beats me. I will run myself to find out the truth. So please don’t stop me.”

“Something is for you, but I want you to know that you are already a target. I feel like I want to go out and sweep down the chimney myself, but I am a human being with more limitations than I think.”

“You’re a target… ?”

“Do you remember the last time you called me out at dawn and asked me to use divine power to detect you all over the alley?”

If I don’t remember, I can’t not fly. He forced me to wake up from a sound sleep and made me stay awake and perform a detective tour in the alley until the morning sun came up. He didn’t even tell me what was going on, and after confirming that there was a barrier carefully constructed with divine power, he left in a hurry without even looking back. It was so absurd back then…

“There was a disappearance incident. The missing people are all pickpockets and homeless residents of the back alleys. There were too many strange things to pass it off as a simple disappearance, and it is expected that there is a rather vicious type lurking in the shadows. There is a very high possibility that your attack was also related to that.”

The lord continues his conversation calmly. I could deeply understand the true meaning behind it. Before simple worries…

“Are you sure you don’t want to create more obstacles? If I, who was targeted and attacked by the unknown mastermind, got up and started working within a day, it would be like giving them bait.”

“I won’t deny it. However, my concern for you is genuine. You are also one of the residents of this territory, and you were once a brave knight. I’m saying it’s better to stay in the clinic, at least until the incident calms down. I put a silence order on others so that they won’t say anything about what happened.”

“You react quickly. The lord’s words make sense, but… Well, let me ask you just one thing. Lacey… Is that person also involved in this incident? Could it be that Lacy disappeared after receiving a hasty mission… !”

“That… It’s okay. He is a veteran adventurer whom I trust more than anyone else. So, rest assured and focus on your recovery. Then I’ll just go. There’s so much work piled up.”

After saying those words, the therapists, including the lord, got up and left. Don’t worry, strong and trustworthy adventurer… It was the lord’s praise that was nothing but praise for that person… I saw the slightest embarrassment beyond that.

In a remote treatment room filled with silence, I feel like a loner who doesn’t know the story that everyone else knows, and I think of Lacey’s face. My love, my most wonderful prince… When I think of that person’s face, I feel like my anxiety is fading away…

“Lacey… Is it okay?”

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Name: Muse Symphony

Gender: Female

Occupation: Former royal guard belonging to the Knights of the Kingdom, current priest of Haewolgyo Church

Race: Human

Height: 160cm

Weight: 51kg

Hair color: Pink / Eye color: Gray

Three sizes: B76 W50 H72

Equipment: Rapier, official priestly supplies (priest clothes, shoes, cross), left arm prosthetic, small harp, hymn sheet, wedding ring

HP 799 / Holy Power 650 / Strength 138 (-30) / Durability 97 / Dexterity 111 (-30) / Intelligence 75 / Charisma 35 (-10) / Luck 12

Skills: [Rapier][Playing the Harp][Command][Defense Against Monsters+][Provocation][Protection][Charge][Shield Art][Weapon Care][Inspiration][Enhancement+][Recovery++][Flash] [Seongsu Manufacturing]

Special Note 1: Status abnormality ‘Stamp of Temptation’ is being applied

Special Note 2: When not wearing a prosthetic hand, strength, agility, and charm values decrease.

Name: Tune Symphony

Gender: Male

job : ???

Race: Human

Height: 173cm

Weight: 61kg

Hair color: red / Eye color: brown

equipment : ???

HP ??? /MP ??? / strength ??? / Duration ??? / Agility ??? / Intelligence ??? / attractiveness ??? / luck ???

skill : ???

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