Ch.281Episode 12 – The Strongest Mage in History
by fnovelpia
“Always be careful of women, no matter when or where you’re deployed.”
A long time ago, a senior military colleague used to emphasize this point until it was etched into my ears.
An expert among experts with over 10 years of overseas experience, he was such an outstanding intelligence officer that he once received a job offer from the National Intelligence Service.
He was someone who didn’t just run but flew through fieldwork, someone with exceptional skills who didn’t just collect but raked in commendations. Had he stayed in intelligence, he might have been the first among his peers to be promoted to lieutenant colonel. He was truly remarkable.
When I heard the news that this senior had taken off his uniform to marry a foreign woman, I couldn’t hide my surprise.
The fact that this senior with the most outstanding talent among his peers—the very man who preached until he was blue in the face about being careful around women—had fallen in love with a foreigner during a mere three-month stay abroad and quit his perfectly good job because of it was simply unbelievable to me.
Honestly, it was hard to understand.
So I thought that if I ever met him again, I would ask why he did it, why he ruined a career built over more than a decade for just one woman.
Of course, since we lost touch after his resignation, I never got to hear his answer.
…Yes.
There was definitely a time when I couldn’t understand my senior who left his job for just one woman.
For some reason, today I felt like I might understand him a little.
Episode 12 – The Strongest Mage in History
This wasn’t my first treatment with Lucia, but the current situation was a first in all the time I’d spent with her.
A bed just the right size for a single adult man—no more, no less.
I was lying with Lucia on an old bed that seemed as ancient as the centuries-old cathedral’s history.
Holding each other tight.
To be honest, embracing each other was a decision born from a slightly impulsive thought.
The bed was barely big enough for me alone, let alone with Lucia added. How could we possibly use the space comfortably?
To prevent the unfortunate accident of Lucia, a holy maiden, being thrown off the bed and rolling on the floor, I had no choice but to hold her close.
It was a plausible excuse, but upon careful consideration, it was a sophistry full of logical flaws.
No, putting that aside, if someone were to witness this scene and report it to the Inquisitor, I might have the honor of becoming the first Abas diplomat in history to be “subjected to a religious trial in a host country.”
However,
Before getting on the bed, Lucia had carefully locked the door, making the probability of such an unfortunate incident approach zero.
“……”
I rolled my eyes slightly to check the complexion of the woman lying beside me.
Whether due to intoxication or embarrassment, Lucia’s face had been flushed red for quite some time. I could feel the heat from her cheeks against my forearm, and her bright red ears peeked through her hair, standing up alertly.
Since she was looking down, I couldn’t see her expression.
But before I could properly examine Lucia’s face, I found myself frantically searching the air, not knowing where to fix my gaze.
What was revealed between the blankets draped just below her shoulders was shocking.
The white undergarment covering her chest had a plain design without even the slightest pattern or decoration, and her breasts, usually hidden beneath her habit, were so large they wouldn’t fit entirely in my hand if I tried to grasp them.
There was even a sheen on her milky skin. Her flawless complexion reminded me of a yard covered with the first snow of the night—pure, like a surface unmarked even by cat paws.
The sheen intensified as cold sweat cooled on her skin. Her complexion, reflecting even the faint moonlight, hardly seemed human anymore. Add to that the golden hair clinging to her neck, collarbone, and upper chest.
As the sweat on her soft skin and firm breasts cooled, I could feel our skin sticking together.
Not knowing where to look, my eyes wandered aimlessly, and I inadvertently found myself appreciating Lucia’s half-naked form.
As my gaze lingered in that ambiguous position, Lucia slowly raised her head, our eyes met, and a sudden wave of regret washed over me.
What am I doing? I must be out of my mind.
“……”
Her blue eyes began to pierce through me. Since drinking wine and lying down, Lucia hadn’t spoken a word.
My heart was pounding violently, and my skin was burning hot. In contrast to the cold, dry air of the room, the air under the blanket was slightly humid.
I could feel Lucia’s floral scent, like spring blossoms, captivating my senses. Her body fragrance, intensified by her warmed temperature, was already filling the entire bed.
“…Hand.”
At that moment, Lucia’s lips parted.
“Hold me. You may even embrace me if you prefer.”
For a moment, my brain froze.
What did I just hear?
“Did you just ask me to embrace you?” I asked in a bewildered voice, wondering if I had misheard.
I hadn’t.
“Yes. To be precise, ‘pull me closer’ would be the correct expression. Otherwise, I’ll fall off the bed.”
“Is that really okay?”
“You may… pull me firmly, even with some force.”
Lucia answered in an indifferent tone. However, as if not immune to embarrassment, she trailed off mid-sentence and took a deep breath.
“…Understood.”
I put my arm behind her back and pulled her toward me with a bit of force.
In an instant, Lucia, who had been precariously perched on the edge of the bed, was in my arms.
Like lovers embracing, I gently pulled Lucia close, and she leaned into my embrace without resistance. Although it wasn’t the most comfortable position due to our height difference, we held each other with our bodies pressed together.
What we had to do next was simple.
We just needed to fall asleep in this position, holding each other. Whether we actually slept or stayed awake all night didn’t make a meaningful difference.
What mattered was for Lucia’s divine power to purify the evil energy in my wound and drive out the energy that had seeped into my body.
It was uncertain when the treatment would end or if one session would completely heal the wound, but according to Lucia, we needed to wait until morning when the clergy would rise, monitoring the progress.
In other words, I had to stay in bed with her, pressed together, until then.
Yes, that was all fine.
But.
For some reason I couldn’t explain.
I had a feeling I was about to make a serious mistake tonight. Was it just my imagination?
With this ominous premonition washing over me, I gently closed my eyes and prayed.
Please, let nothing happen.
Let me just fall asleep like this and wake up in the morning, I pleaded.
However, life rarely goes according to plan.
In the strangely humid and sticky blanket, I felt blood rushing to my lower body.
In other words.
To put it politely.
“…Ah.”
I had an erection.
*
There are many reasons why a physically and mentally healthy person might suddenly feel suicidal, but few causes are more certain than becoming sexually aroused in front of someone of the opposite sex who is not your lover.
For example, having your secret emergency fund discovered by the household minister (your spouse), shouting “NASDAQ-DICK-YANGBONG-HOROSEX-GO” in a company group chat, or making eye contact with a sibling who walks in while you’re browsing porn sites with a VPN.
Of course, none of these applied to me, but this was the first time I had become sexually aroused in front of someone of the opposite sex who wasn’t my lover, and worse, showing it outwardly.
The problem was that the person in question was Lucia.
“……”
I could feel my lower part stiffening as blood rushed to it.
Normally, I would have brushed it off as nothing significant, but the situation was far from ideal.
I checked Lucia’s expression as she lay beside me, almost in my arms, for the treatment. From my angle, I couldn’t see her face, but I could clearly tell that her arm awkwardly wrapped around my waist had become rigid. She seemed even more flustered than I was.
I needed to say something. Whether to break this awkward atmosphere or to get past this crisis, I had to speak up.
Just as I was about to open my mouth:
“…Holy Maiden. This is—”
“…Stop.”
Lucia’s voice cut me off.
“Just a moment.”
“……”
“Please wait, just a little, even if it’s just a moment.”
Whether she was trying to gather her thoughts or calm her startled heart, I couldn’t tell, but Lucia asked me for a little time.
She didn’t say anything else.
Though I could sense her bewilderment in her voice, that was all. She didn’t get angry, embarrassed, or upset.
Lucia simply kept her head down and avoided my gaze without saying a word.
However, her slightly roughened breathing echoed in my ears, and occasionally hot breath tickled my chest.
With her arm awkwardly around my waist and our bodies pressed together, Lucia maintained her silence with her gaze lowered. Though I prided myself on having seen all kinds of people in my life, it was difficult to guess what was going through her mind right now.
Why was she acting like this?
What was she trying to do?
Lucia lying still without moving a muscle almost seemed angry.
Was she suppressing her anger and desire to run away because I was a patient? Or was she planning some mischievous prank like her sister Veronica might? I simply couldn’t tell.
Like someone handling a cracked piece of porcelain, I watched her, my lips moving slightly, unable to either touch or push her away.
But no words came out of my mouth.
Thirty seconds passed.
One minute passed.
Five minutes passed.
The ticking sound pierced through the silence, and even as midnight approached, the silence that had begun in the early evening showed no signs of ending. We remained pressed against each other, unable to move, silently passing the time.
However, as every beginning has an end.
Lucia’s long silence concluded as midnight approached. After a full two hours, her firmly closed lips finally parted.
“…I am.”
Her lips, reminiscent of red plums, opened slightly.
“I am a member of the clergy.”
“……”
“According to church law, priests cannot engage in relations with the opposite sex without marriage, and all relationships are only permitted after marriage. Of course, there are those who don’t follow these rules. But I have never broken the rules in my life.”
Her voice continued, sounding slightly hoarse. It seemed strained with fatigue, or perhaps tinged with tears.
Lucia continued in a low voice, her gaze still lowered.
“To be more precise, breaking the rules was something I couldn’t even imagine.”
“……”
“However….”
Looking down at the bed, Lucia slowly raised her head.
“Thinking about it now, I may have been a bit too rigid. Perhaps, as that demon said, I was foolish.”
“Holy Maiden.”
“So.”
Her arm wrapped around my chest.
The arm that had been awkwardly around my waist slowly traced up my side and settled between my armpits.
“From now on…”
Just as I had done, Lucia gently embraced me.
“Call me Lucia.”
“……”
“By my name.”
She whispered softly with a flushed face. With that, she granted me permission to use her name.
There was no need to ask if she had feelings for me. She had spoken first.
“…At least when we’re alone.”
When our eyes met as Lucia smiled shyly.
Before I knew it, I had curled my body slightly and pressed my lips against hers. No more, no less. We began to overlap our lips.
My hand, draped over her shoulder, was lightly embracing her back. Feeling her hand caress my forearm, I moved my own. The hand that had been stroking her back had somehow slipped under her white undergarment, grasping her luscious breast.
Our lips moved, and excited breaths escaped. Two red pieces of flesh intertwined with wet sounds, and our rough breathing began to tangle like threads.
The kiss was so intense that for a moment I felt dizzy, finding it difficult to breathe.
Yet even then, our lips didn’t part. We took short breaths and continued kissing.
Her skin was white and smooth like porcelain. The firm flesh curving under my fingertips traced elegant lines.
When I gently pinched the protruding tip, an unexpected reaction followed. Lucia, who had been continuing the kiss, abruptly pulled her lips away as if burned, let out a moan I had never heard before, and sharply pulled back her chin. It was an instinctive, reflexive movement.
“Are you alright?”
“…Yes.”
Lucia, looking visibly startled, nodded while catching her breath.
“I was a bit surprised. It’s my first time…”
“……”
Lucia didn’t add anything more, and I didn’t feel the need to speak either.
Instead, I slowly slipped my leg between hers, gently pulled her close,
And we kissed again.
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