The Saint, Shocked Twice
The water came down in a roaring shwaaaa! The powerful stream hammered against the back of her neck and shoulders.
Adele had been savoring the warm pressure with a languid expression when she suddenly brushed her fingertips across her lips. Then she hung her head. Jihyeok’s face, drawing steadily closer, had risen vividly in her mind. She remembered every minute detail of his tense expression, yet the precise moment of the kiss remained hazy. Right before their lips met she had squeezed her eyes shut and begun reciting the Rosario Church commandments, but the instant that soft sensation touched her she had lost her place. All she could do was feel sorry for Rosario.
No matter how flustered she had been, it was absurd. As the Saint—a bishop-level figure—she had failed to recite the commandments properly.
Lord… please forgive me…
After offering her silent apology to Rosario, Adele turned around. The pleasant warmth enveloping her whole body brought a happy smile to her face. She looked down at herself and poked her belly. It felt squishy. She had probably gained a little weight from eating too much lately. It was completely different from Silvia’s healthy, vibrant figure.
Adele adored Silvia’s refreshing personality, her impressive height, and her alluring facial features. She was the very picture of a true adult—the ideal. Adele, who startled at nothing and tended to overreact, knew she could never become someone like that no matter how many years passed.
Feeling oddly gloomy, she thought of Jihyeok. He liked her exactly as she was. The affection practically overflowed from his eyes.
—I like Adele too.—
Recalling the sweet confession he had made before the kiss, Adele’s eyes turned dreamy. As she squeezed body wash onto the shower ball she unconsciously murmured.
“I like you too…”
After washing herself clean, Adele stepped out of the bathroom, vigorously toweling her hair. Silvia, who had been sitting on the sofa, approached with a smile.
“I’ll dry it for you. If you sleep with it wet because it’s bothersome, you’ll ruin the pillow.”
“I-I’m not a child… I can do it myself…”
“I know. The truth is, drying your hair is an excuse. I wanted to talk. You didn’t say a single word to me when you came back.”
“Did I?”
“You ignored me and headed straight into the shower room. What happened?”
What happened? Something enormous had happened. Until yesterday Adele had believed sharing everything with Silvia was only natural. Today was different. Speaking about the kiss with Jihyeok felt unbearably awkward. How could she possibly talk about something so embarrassing and personal?
The problem was that the existence of a secret was written all over her face. A clumsy deflection would never get past Silvia’s sharp eyes. She was trapped.
Adele’s mind spun desperately, but no good excuse came to her. She could not lie even if it killed her, and changing the subject would only make Silvia more suspicious… In the end she chose honesty.
“It’s difficult to say…”
“Is that so? All right.”
Silvia accepted it cheerfully. The easy response only made Adele feel guiltier. They had always shared their worries honestly until now.
When Adele’s shoulders slumped and she hesitated, Silvia gave her a bright smile and comforted her.
“Everyone has secrets they want to keep. I’m not upset at all, so don’t worry.”
“I’m sorry…”
“And stop apologizing.”
“Yes…”
“Also, while you were showering Jihyeok called.”
“Jihyeok?”
“Yes. He said he had something important to discuss. It was about the device charging method.”
Adele felt a sting of discontent. In terms of closeness she was far nearer to him than Silvia, yet he had spoken to her first. Of course it wasn’t wrong. Speaking with Silvia, who possessed outstanding insight, was probably better. Still, feeling upset was feeling upset. Tomorrow she would scold him properly!
“How does it charge?”
“Well…” Silvia hesitated, then answered. “It charges with the emotion called love.”
“Love?”
“Yes. Honestly it’s hard to believe… but he spoke so seriously that I had no choice but to accept it.”
Silvia remained half-doubtful, but Adele thought that the pure power of love could certainly serve as the source of Aether’s mysterious energy.
“I see… So love alone is enough?”
“I’m not sure. He said he would explain the details to you tomorrow.”
Those words sent a warm breeze through Adele’s chest. It was just like Jihyeok. The firm scolding was canceled. She would gently admonish him instead.
“Is that so…? It looked like it would have been better to tell you first, sister… I’m a little disappointed.”
“You don’t look disappointed at all. You’re smiling right now.”
“No, I’m not…?”
Unable to hide the smile blooming across her face, Adele mumbled vaguely and slipped into the bedroom. She flopped onto the bed, picked up her phone, and found two missed calls from Jihyeok. It seemed he had tried to tell her about the Aether charging method first. With this much room for consideration, showing mercy was only right.
Thinking so, Adele sent him a text.
Just moving the time up by a single hour… Adele frowned and sent the emoticon. After the final exchange she set her phone down and stared at the ceiling for a moment. Then she pulled the pillow over her face. She crossed her legs and drummed them against the mattress. The smile kept blooming on its own. She was in love.
Click. Done. Now all that remained was to insert the Aether and cover the center with Polymus. The device for Adele was nearly complete.
After setting down the tweezers and wiping away cold sweat, I felt a gaze coming from the break room’s transparent window and turned my head. Adele was inside. She had been staring fixedly at me for a full two hours while eating snacks and drinks. It was almost impressive that she hadn’t looked away even once. The source of that concentration was surely love—the sweet, first love she had never experienced before in her life.
I sat down, stretched, and beckoned her over. Adele immediately opened the break-room door and hurried to sit across from me.
“Why? Why did you call me?”
She asked in that bouncy, lively way of hers. I gave her a gentle smile and pointed at the device.
“This is the device you’ll be wearing, Adele. It’s almost finished—take a look.”
“R-really!?”
Adele’s eyes widened and she scooted close. She examined every part of the device with open curiosity and let out a sigh of wonder.
“Finally, I too…!”
“Yes. You’ll become a Beast Slayer together with Sehwa and Yuria. The final process remains, but once the Aether is inserted it will be completed quickly. I’ll make a weapon for you as well. A war hammer, correct?”
“Yes…! A blunt weapon with protrusions on both sides. I’d like the handle to be long so it’s easy for me to swing. Should I draw it for you?”
No need. Since I died from being hit by it, I remember the design perfectly. If I produced something almost identical to the image in her head without a reference, she would grow even more delighted and claim we shared telepathy.
“Can I leave it to you?”
When I phrased it as though I would make it myself, Adele nodded at once.
“Of course. I trust you, Jihyeok!”
She clasped her hands together and giggled with joy. It seemed she wanted to become a hero as soon as possible.
I watched her quietly. Once she had calmed down I brought up the important topic.
“Adele, now that the device is nearly finished… there is something important I must tell you about the charging method.”
“Please speak.”
She straightened her posture and placed both hands neatly on her knees. After a brief pause I spoke to the brightly smiling Adele.
“You probably heard a general explanation from Silvia yesterday, correct?”
“Yes. She said it charges with love. A strong heart that cares for the other person fills the power of Aether, right? If so, my Aether should have no trouble charging?”
She had let her imagination run wild—in a very optimistic direction.
“No. Saying that love is necessary was actually a very softened expression. Charging is accomplished through a specific act.”
“What kind of act?”
“You know… when two people love each other there are physical… expressions of affection. It begins with simple things like holding hands, and of course includes the kiss we shared yesterday…”
“W-wait a moment!”
Adele suddenly cut me off. She covered her face with both hands. Recalling yesterday seemed to have embarrassed her. After a while she lowered her hands and let out a long sigh.
“Haa… You may continue now…”
“Yes. I will. Not only kissing but even bolder acts… Aether draws its power from those bold acts.”
Adele’s eyes darted about.
“B-bolder than a kiss… act?”
I nearly laughed at her reaction but kept a serious expression and nodded.
“Correct. To be precise, sexual acts with the person you like—that is what charges it.”
“…..”
Adele’s face went blank. Her jaw had dropped so far she looked ready to topple over. Her mouth hung open wide enough to fit a fist, and her already large eyes had grown at least twice their normal size. She opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish before finally squeezing out a voice.
“L-lie… Don’t lie to me…! Did you think I would laugh at a prank like this…?”
Yes, it was natural to think it was a joke.
“I decided I had to tell you because your device is nearly complete. If you ask Sehwa, Yuria, or The Doctor, they will give the same answer. I am not joking.”
Adele could not continue. Such a reaction was only to be expected. The innocent girl had neither experienced nor even imagined sexual acts. Her mentality appeared badly shaken… but since she was compatible with Aether, she would overcome it soon.
Beep-beep—! Beep-beep!
BEEP-BEEP!
WARNING TONE ECHOING THROUGHOUT THE LABORATORY
We had been staring at each other in silence, but the alarm snapping through the lab brought us back to our senses at once. Without a word, we both turned to look at the status panel.