Rosario? What an Ominous Name

After our passionate encounter, we stepped out of the shower together and cleaned up the living room without needing to say a word. Truth be told, there wasn’t much to tidy. We simply gathered the scattered photos, stuffed them into a disposable box, and tossed the frame in on top. That was it.

When the task was finished, the Doctor wore a refreshed expression. It seemed her heart had truly been unburdened.

“Should we burn them now? Head out to the yard?” the Doctor asked.

I shook my head. “No. You handle this one by yourself, sis. Tomorrow I’m teaching Silvia and Adele how to ride unmanned taxis. You can take care of it then.”

“Why?”

“It’s your chance to say a proper goodbye. You should send him off alone, thinking whatever you need to think.”

When I gently prodded at the last remnants of her guilt, the Doctor let out a sigh heavy with melancholy. Yeah… no matter what she said about me getting in the way or whatever, it was only natural. She had loved him for a very long time.

She looked at me with a gloomy face before accepting the suggestion. “Alright. But just because I say that doesn’t mean I still love my husband. I’ve already decided to give everything to you. So don’t misunderstand.”

“I’m not misunderstanding anything. I only said it because I already know exactly how you feel.”

“Mm…”

“Are you really sure you don’t need to take the medicine?”

“…If you tell me to take it, I will.”

“You’ll be alone for a little while tomorrow. It’d be bad if you had another hallucination, so take it.”

“Okay.”

The Doctor nodded weakly, obediently swallowed the pill, then walked over and hugged me. In a voice laced with regret, she said, “If I had known things would turn out like this, I never should have said those things to you…”

“What do you mean?”

“Back then… when you were on drugs, I only ever got angry at you. But now you’re treating me—so kind even though I’ve become such a crazy bitch…”

“Those two things are completely different. It’s wrong to even compare them.”

“Still… I’m sorry for being so pathetic…”

To think the once haughty Doctor could become this submissive and pitiful. The sense of disparity was overwhelming.

I wrapped my arms around her slender waist and looked down at her with gentle eyes. She stared back at me as if trying to drink me in with her gaze, then her lips moved.

“It feels strange…”

“What does?”

“I used to think of you as nothing more than a smart and reliable assistant. I never imagined I would come to see you as a man… or fall this deeply in love with you. I never dreamed I would come to rely on you so completely.”

The Doctor, too, had been comparing the past and present just as I had. Even though it wasn’t that long ago, it already felt like a story from a distant time, didn’t it? I understood completely.

“Is that strange enough to make you feel that way?”

“I worded it wrong. It feels too good.”

“Same here. Shall we head to bed now?”

“Yeah… stay with me all day today.”

Looking outside, the sun was slowly beginning to rise. I grinned, scooped the Doctor up in my arms, carried her to the bedroom, set her down, and pulled the blanket over her. I poked her straight little nose with my finger and said, “Today, let’s not leave the bed except to eat or use the bathroom. Sound good?”

“Good… Oh, and I need to go find the ring…”

“Do it tomorrow while I’m gone.”

“Okay…”

She found that out fast.

What kind of preparation does someone need to ride an unmanned taxi…? She’s really overdoing it.

I cheerfully ignored Adele’s messages, grabbed the steering wheel, and disabled autonomous mode. Since she was waiting so eagerly that her neck might snap, I had to hurry.

The car soon arrived at the detached house in Uijeongbu. After parking in the outdoor lot and opening the driver’s door, Adele came running out from the front entrance wearing a white polka-dot dress. With white sandals that had ribbons around the ankles, she looked unbearably cute. But was she going on a picnic? It was already autumn—how ridiculous. Still, it was nice eye candy for me.

Behind her, Silvia followed with a tired expression, wearing simple training pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt. It was obvious she had tried to dress Adele in something more comfortable, only to give up when the girl threw a tantrum.

Adele had a personality that could be called pure, or, less kindly, childish. Training her was probably going to give me a bit of a headache. But the taste of devouring her would surely be incredible.

Adele, who had dashed straight toward me, checked the time on her phone and spoke with a pouty face.

“Jihyeok! You’re seven minutes and twenty-one seconds late!”

“I’m sorry.”

“People who don’t keep their promises are the worst, you know!”

“Where did you hear that?”

“In the game chat! The guild members said so!”

“Ah…”

It suited her perfectly, which was a relief… but I hoped no one had figured out she was from another planet.

When I stared at Adele with a suspicious look, she beamed brightly.

“Don’t worry! No one knows I came through a portal!”

She might be an airhead, but at least she had the minimum amount of sense. Thank goodness.

Adele continued to make a fuss, saying I had to be punished for being late and that I should pay a fine. Silvia approached us and offered her thanks.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For taking time out of your busy schedule to grant Adele’s childish request.”

At those words, Adele shot Silvia a glare. It was such a sulky expression that I wanted to pinch her cheeks. Silvia completely ignored the look.

“I’m going to exercise for a bit. You two take the taxi. Once you teach Adele, I’ll learn on my own.”

That worked perfectly for me. “Understood.”

“She’ll probably whine a lot today, so feel free to ignore her. I’m leaving Adele in your care.”

“Ah, yes… Don’t worry and have a good time.”

Silvia gave me a gentle smile, stretched lightly, then jogged off into the distance. As I watched her retreating figure, Adele’s voice snapped me back to attention.

“Jihyeok, you have to grant me one request! It’s instead of a punishment!”

“A request?”

“Yes! A request!”

The sight was so amusing that I crossed my arms. So this was the whining Silvia had mentioned. I stayed quiet with an expression that said, “Go on, let’s hear it.” After fidgeting for a moment, Adele finally spoke.

“I want to visit a cathedral on Earth. Will you take me?”

It was a rather sudden request—so much so that I reflexively repeated it.

“A cathedral?”

“Yes. Please take me to the nearest one by unmanned taxi. I’ll just look around and come right back, so don’t worry.”

A cathedral, huh… It wasn’t like she was going to pray to a different god. Seeing Adele stand there with her arms crossed just like me, looking triumphant, it seemed she fully expected me to agree.

I narrowed my eyes and bluntly replied, “No.”

“Ehh!?”

Adele’s mouth fell open in utter disbelief. Her shocked expression was genuinely hilarious. I chuckled and corrected myself.

“Just kidding. Let’s go.”

“Yay!”

She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thrust both arms into the air and cheered. Her emotions were completely transparent and fluctuated like waves—it made teasing her incredibly fun. Weren’t saints supposed to be gentle, elegant, and profoundly insightful by default? Adele was the complete opposite. Which was perfect for me.

“You installed the app I told you to, right?”

“Yes! The taxi app!”

“Turn it on.”

“Understood!”

Adele’s eyes sparkled as she asked, “It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠says ‘Please tap your card…’ Does that mean I should put it here?”

I nodded. “Yes, go ahead and try it yourself.”

“Whoa… I’m nervous…”

Adele placed a hand over her chest, let out a long breath, then pressed the card against the screen on the back of the seat. With a cheerful beep, the message confirming payment appeared.

“Uh… is it done?”

“That’s right. Easy, isn’t it?”

“It’s ridiculously easy…”

Adele trailed off with a dazed look. After we got out of the taxi, I explained in a gentle tone.

“That’s all there is to paying for a taxi. If the destination is far or you’re short on time, take a flying taxi. The payment process is the same as this unmanned taxi, so don’t get scared in advance.”

“A flying taxi? The ones that fly, right? I saw a few while taking walks!”

“Correct. And for pretty much anything that costs money, this card I gave you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠will take care of everything. If you feel flustered, just present the card. Got it?”

“Yes! Thank you!”

Adele bowed her head. Her lively energy was so bright that just watching her made a fatherly smile creep onto my face.

“Shall we head into the cathedral now? It’s a weekday afternoon, so there probably won’t be many people… It should be comfortable to look around.”

“Okay!”

Adele let out an excited “Hooa!” and hopped in place. She gazed up at the fairly well-designed large cathedral and marveled.

“Whoaaa… It’s huge…”

“On the planet where you live, do you call places where you offer prayers like this ‘temples’?”

“Yes. They’re always open. Like a 24-hour convenience store. But not many people actually visit the temples.”

“Why is that?”

“Because if you have faith, you can pray anywhere.”

She was trying to sound cheerful, but the disappointment was clear in her voice. It seemed the people of her world didn’t have much faith. And since she didn’t mention any other temples, it looked like they only worshipped a single god.

Adele let out a small sigh and asked, “Jihyeok, do you believe in God?”

I am a god myself—why would I need to believe in another?

“I don’t.”

“That’s a shame. Faith can be a tremendous source of strength…”

Yes, I can see that from the way you purify humans tainted with demonic energy. It really is a powerful force. But since it’s the complete opposite of my power, I have zero interest in learning it.

I simply smiled and stayed quiet. That ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠seemed to give Adele courage, because she then said,

“Later, when you have time, would it be alright if I taught you and the other colleagues about Lady Rosario’s doctrines? Silvia unnie refuses to learn, so I feel a bit sad.”

Rosario? Just hearing the name gave off a strong stench of a light goddess—an ominous name indeed.

“Lady Rosario?”

“She is the goddess I serve. She really is an amazing being.”

Amazing my ass… She’s nothing but a fucking bitch. Wait—she said “goddess”? Good… I’ll claim you too. She seems to be some kind of final boss-level entity. I’ll corrupt every last Beast Slayer and make them kneel beneath me as well. I have a strong feeling she’s connected to Aether, but I won’t ask about that right now.

“If I learn the doctrines, will I be able to use holy power too?”

“Unfortunately, only those chosen as a Saint and representative can wield holy power.”

“I see. I’ll ask the others.”

“If the others refuse… I hope you’ll at least listen to the doctrines, Jihyeok. You will, right? Right?”

If I accepted this proposal, I would clearly spend a lot more time close to Adele. I should agree and at least pretend to learn.

“I’ll consider it positively.”

“As expected, Jihyeok, you really are the kindest person.”

I’m the most wicked person… No, I’m the Demon King. The fun I’ll have stripping you bare is going to be incredibly satisfying.

I grinned and said, “Shall we go look inside the cathedral now?”

“Yes!”