The Ruined Temple's Divine Judgment
The carriage rattled and shook along the rough mountain path, making Hans's rear bounce with every jolt. The scenery outside the window changed rapidly. The peaceful view of Ludel village was nowhere to be seen; instead, a forest path overgrown with weeds taller than a person appeared. An eerie wind whistled through the gaps in the windows. Why does the atmosphere feel like this? They're not actually taking me to an execution ground, are they? Hans swallowed dryly.
Lucia sat across from him with her arms crossed and eyes closed. The sound of the longsword hanging at her waist clinking was unusually loud. "Um... Lady Karen. We're not heading to an execution ground right now, are we?" Hans asked cautiously.
"Haha! What nonsense. Do not be afraid." Karen laughed heartily and slapped Hans hard on the back. "This place used to be visited by many villagers in the past, but with the population decline, it is now a closed temple. It is the perfect location for a quiet verification."
"Ah... perfect for a quiet verification..." Hans automatically translated the words in his mind as "perfect for quietly killing and burying someone." A chill ran down his spine. Overwhelmed by despair, his head drooped on its own. At the end of his gaze, Lucia's lower body came into view. As if entranced, Hans stole a glance at her black stockings. Imagining those smooth legs trampling him filled him with both terror and a strange excitement. I'm insane. Getting hard even while being taken to my death.
While he was berating himself, the carriage came to a stop.
The interior of the ruined temple was larger than expected. The ceiling was open, revealing the sky directly above, and weeds grew wildly through the gaps in the floor tiles. Yet the central altar remained eerily clean.
"Prepare yourselves." At Lucia's firm command, the priestesses who had followed in the carriage dispersed in perfect order. Cold holy water was sprinkled across the altar, and hands holding white pigment began carving an intricately grotesque magic circle onto the floor. A low hum resonated as the priests chanted their incantations, causing the patterns on the floor to emit a faint golden glow.
A high-ranking sacred ritual designed to detect and purify magic.
"Withdraw." With a wave of Lucia's hand, the priestesses bowed their heads and vanished outside the temple. Now only three people remained in the vast space: Lucia, Karen, and Hans. Silence fell.
Lucia slowly ascended the altar. Looking down at Hans with cold eyes, she spoke. "This formation tracks all intentional mana interference and artificial magic infusion occurring on the altar in real time." Her voice echoed off the temple walls. "Should even the slightest trace of mana attempting to deceive the body through sorcery be detected, the sacred flames will immediately incinerate you."
"Eek..." Hans instinctively took a step back. Karen clenched her fist beside him and mouthed "Fighting!" but it offered no comfort whatsoever. If I mess this up, I'm going to be roasted alive. Yet at the same time, a strange sense of relief washed over him. His technique contained not a single drop of mana—it was purely a 100% physical engine. Only the delicate control of finger muscles and the dazzling dribble of the tongue. That was all.
Hans took a deep breath and stepped onto the altar.
Lucia lay flat on the altar as Karen had instructed. Her expression was as solemn as a saint facing martyrdom. Hans cautiously approached between her legs. First... I need to help her relax. He reached out to place his hand on Lucia's thigh.
Lucia flinched, her body stiffening. She had expected the sacred flames to erupt at any moment and burn away that filthy hand, so she narrowed her eyes. But then—his hand settled gently on her thigh. "......?"
The formation remained silent. The golden patterns merely glowed faintly; no alarm sounded, no flames erupted. The silence was deafening.
"Why... is there no reaction?" Lucia's pupils trembled. "Is he still suppressing his mana?" She mistakenly believed Hans was an immensely powerful high-ranking mage who had perfectly concealed his mana. Her wariness only increased.
Hans snorted inwardly. Mana, my ass. I just put my hand there. He boldly moved to the next stage. "Pardon me. For an accurate diagnosis, we must remove any obstructions." His hand slid down the black silk stocking covering Lucia's knee. A rustling sound accompanied the soft sensation transmitted to his fingertips. "This black fabric is blocking the flow of energy, preventing an accurate pulse reading. Please remove it."
"Wh-what?!" Lucia nearly bolted upright. "This is part of the sacred uniform! How dare you—!"
"Lucia!" Karen shouted from below the altar. "This verification concerns your very life. If you do not cooperate, Hans may be unjustly executed!"
"......Kuh." Lucia bit her lip. Karen's words were logically sound. Refusing now would make it seem as though she were fleeing in fear. "I shall remember this humiliation... without fail." Breathing heavily with indignation, Lucia lifted her hips while still lying down. She personally grasped the stocking band and pulled it down below her knees. Swish— As the black barrier was peeled away, pale white flesh that had never seen sunlight gleamed dazzlingly. The skin that had been tightly compressed by the stocking's pressure swelled elastically with a sense of liberation, tracing soft curves.
All that remained was the uniform skirt. Hans carefully lifted it. Above the thighs, contrasting sharply with the white flesh, jet-black panties came into view. "This scrap of cloth must also be removed, Lucia. It will interfere with the purification."
Karen tossed the words out casually, as if it were obvious. "Wh-what did you say?!"
"Lucia, did you not hear when the stockings came off earlier? There must be no obstructions for turbid energy emission. I, too, wore not a single thread. Only then can the turbid energy pour out without blockage."
"K-Karen... you really...!"
"Remove them quickly. The longer this drags on, the longer your shame will last. Or shall I remove them for you?"
Under Karen's piercing pressure, Lucia tearfully brought her trembling hands to the edge of her panties. With quivering fingers, she slowly pulled the black fabric downward. Her face flushed crimson as if it might burst from shame, and a suppressed moan escaped between her lips. When the panties finally fell to the altar floor, Lucia instinctively pressed her legs together like chopsticks, desperately trying to conceal her private parts.
"Lucia, what are you doing keeping your legs straight like that?" Karen clicked her tongue in frustration as she watched. "You are blocking the passage through which the turbid energy must be expelled. You must bend your knees and spread them as wide as possible to either side for the turbid energy to emerge properly. I did not know this at first either, but this is the proper form of purification."
"Wh-what... are you telling me to assume such a vulgar posture...!"
"It is not vulgar; it is treatment. Quickly now." At Karen's confident urging and provocation, Lucia finally surrendered, using her trembling hands to forcefully push her thighs apart to either side. Wow... Thank you, Lady Karen. Seriously. For the first time in his life, Hans felt genuine gratitude toward the muscle-brained knight. She had perfectly instructed and guided the humiliating positions he would have had to explain in painstaking detail himself.
The moment Lucia's legs spread perfectly into an M-shape—Whoosh—! An indescribable scent assaulted his nose. It was as if aged cheese left under the midsummer sun, several-day-old fermented soybean paste, and sour vinegar had all been mixed together and simmered for a long time... a matured, pungent odor. "Urgh...!" Hans instinctively covered his mouth and gagged. "Ugh! Bleh!"
"Hans?! What is wrong?!" Karen rushed over in alarm.
"The turbid energy... the turbid energy is too strong! Ugh! My eyes are stinging...!" Hans made excuses while tears welled up. The heretic inquisitor who had traveled for days without stopping at an inn had a lower body that was nothing short of a biochemical weapon.
"Is that... truly so? My body harbors such potent turbid energy...?" Lucia's face was filled with bewilderment. Never dreaming the smell originated from herself, she believed some evil energy was truly emanating from her body and tormenting Hans. "Quickly, begin at once! Eliminate this impure energy immediately!" Lucia urged him desperately.
Hans felt like dying. But there was no retreat. If he refused here, it would mean immediate beheading. Hans searched his past-life memories. Back in his university days, the desperate survival technique of eating triangular kimbap in the school restroom. Its name: the secret art of breathing only through the mouth. A high-level survival technique that perfectly blocked air flowing through the nasal passages and forcibly numbed the sense of smell by drawing in oxygen solely through the mouth. I can do this. I can do this. This is not a smell. It is just air. Hans hypnotized himself. "Hoo... hoo..." Breathing only through his mouth, the stench that had stung his nose gradually faded. He looked again between Lucia's legs. "......" There was... a lot of hair. The concept of waxing did not exist in this world. Lucia's precious place was covered in a dense, lush forest. It was no wonder the smell was so strong when that thick undergrowth had absorbed sweat and secretions and aged.
Hans extended a trembling hand, trying to part the forest and find the sanctuary within. The moment his fingertip brushed against the pubic hair— "Stop!" Lucia screamed and clamped her legs shut. "Eek?!" Hans jerked his hand away in surprise. "Wh-why are you doing that?"
"M-my body... feels strange. Something... tingling..." Lucia's face flushed red. She had lived an ascetic life until now. She had never even examined her own genitals in detail, let alone masturbated. Moreover, she possessed a hypersensitive constitution she herself did not know about. The strange pleasure she occasionally felt while bathing or bumping into the corner of a desk—she had never recognized it as sexual, dismissing it merely as "a pleasant sensation."
"The turbid energy is resisting. You must remain still." "B-but...!" "If you move again, treatment will be impossible. Please just endure it." Hans pressed forward with bold confidence. "Ugh..." Lucia bit her lip and spread her legs once more. "Very well... do it. But if you attempt anything strange, I shall cut you down immediately."
Hans reached out again. This time, he did not hesitate. Using his index and middle fingers, he parted the dense hair and found the red flesh hidden within. Squelch. Love juices had already begun to flow, making it wet. The smell was foul, but the condition was not bad. Hans lightly brushed his finger near the clitoris. "Hngh! Ugh!" Lucia's hips bucked upward.