Chapter 75
Chapter 75
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: 15. My Corruption Value Has Risen Too Much... (4)
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Not long after Deacon Rachel left, Bishop Lisa came in. She entered the room with an indifferent expression, then flung open the window wide to air out the stuffy space.
Chirp chirp—
And right on cue, as if they'd been waiting for this moment, two sparrows landed on the windowsill. The pair, clearly a happily married couple, ignored Bishop Lisa standing right there and started nuzzling each other.
"Haa..."
Bishop Lisa let out a deep sigh and leaned on the windowsill with both arms.
Now what was I going to hear from her? Already intimidated, my body flinched on instinct.
"Haa... It's not like I can just lock you up somewhere..."
She glanced at me as if making sure I heard, then said it. Hearing that made my body shrink even more.
"Tsk..."
She clicked her tongue once, dragged a chair over in front of me, and sat down. The old chair let out a loud creak of protest under her weight.
"Sorry. I didn't mean it like I was actually going to lock you up."
Realizing her slip too late, she apologized. I accepted it half-heartedly, but I knew more than half of what she said was sincere.
"You've been having so many incidents lately. Didn't something like this happen just before?"
"..."
Something like this... She must mean the kidnapping from last time. Thinking about it, I had nothing to say. Just like she said, it hadn't even been that long, and here was another mess—anyone would find it ridiculous.
Of course, most of it was bullshit framed to make me look bad, but to an outsider, it'd seem like what the hell is wrong with this guy.
"Aha... This is just..."
Bishop Lisa rubbed her eyes, openly showing her frustration.
Anyone else might think she was being ridiculous with someone who'd nearly died right in front of her, but I understood her completely. Not like I was normal myself.
She must be going insane. Her life was already packed with endless work that piled up no matter how much she handled every day, and now the guy under her wasn't helping—in fact, he was causing more trouble.
Honestly, putting aside all the details, I'd be stressed out too if I were her.
And she couldn't even vent by yelling at anyone about it. It just kept building up.
"Don't go out anywhere from now on."
"Ah, yes..."
"I'm too anxious to even send you anywhere now. If you wander off again, I'll nail you in the basement storage and fuck you senseless."
Bishop Lisa spat out words that could be concern or a threat. Everything else aside, her intent to keep me from going out was crystal clear.
"No answer?"
"Ah, yes..."
Was she planning to confine me to the church outright? She hammered it home. I wanted to believe it was a joke, but her face was dead serious.
Damn... If I really couldn't go out, that'd be a problem...
It wasn't like I had somewhere specific to go, but I hated feeling cooped up.
Of course, if this were my original world instead of this one, I could've stayed indoors for over a year straight, 24/7. There, I had phones, movies, games—plenty to do at home, no need to go out.
The problem was this wasn't my world. There was jack shit to do here. Same people, same scenery every day. You could endure it once or twice, but keep that up and even a sane person would crack.
But I didn't have the guts to tell the terrifying Bishop Lisa no, so I just grumbled internally. Keeping my mouth shut was best for my health.
"You look like you hate the idea."
Bishop Lisa said something chilling that pierced right through me. I scratched my head awkwardly, insisting I had no such intentions.
"N-no, I don't hate it... I'm scared to go out now anyway. What if something awful happens again? I'll stay inside like you said, Bishop."
"Hmph..."
Her eyes were full of doubt. Well, with 'I don't wanna' written all over my face, it was only natural to be skeptical.
Fuck... But what could I do? Anyone who's been in the military knows. That hell of being stuck in a cramped space, unable to go out, just staring blankly at the sky. I didn't want to relive that here.
"Anyway, have you eaten?"
"F-food? Ah... Deacon Rachel brought some porridge earlier, so I ate that. Why...?"
"..."
Huh? At the mention of Deacon Rachel, Bishop Lisa's eyes darkened further. Had I just said something wrong? I quickly replayed it in my head, but nothing seemed off.
"Just to check, you're not doing that with Deacon Rachel too, are you?"
"D-doing that?"
I pondered what "that" meant for a second before a thought flashed through my mind. Cold sweat trickled out as I frantically shook my head.
"N-no way. Even I wouldn't... Deacon Rachel's barely an adult. How could I do that to a kid...?"
I slapped on my best poker face and lied. My conscience stabbed my heart like a dagger over and over.
No, but how did she... It felt like a wild guess, but in that moment, it was like my neck was on the execution block.
"Right. She's still a kid..."
She propped her chin, trailing off. Her words seemed to agree, but her face still held suspicion.
Well, with my colorful history, I'd suspect myself too.
"Got it. Rest well then. If you feel anything wrong with your body, tell me right away. Understand?"
"Ah... Yes..."
Clunk—
She gave me one last sweeping glance from the doorway and left.
As the massive wave that was Bishop Lisa swept through, leaving my mind in shambles, I finally exhaled the breath I'd been holding.
"Haa... I can breathe now."
I'd passed the biggest hurdle. I'd been dreading what she'd say to me the whole time, but thankfully, it ended without disaster.
What was it...
It hadn't been like this before, but now just her presence alone made my hairs stand on end without a word. Standing there was intimidating enough; it felt like her whole body was engulfed in a black aura.
Of course, that dreadful energy vanished completely once she left the room.
With the tension gone, I leaned back against the hard bed headboard. Lowering my gaze, I summoned a translucent window in front of me.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Current Corruption Value +35 (Locked) Due to the Corruption Value rising too rapidly, an issue has occurred in your divine circuits. Locked at current value until physical recovery (364 days, 22 hours, 10 minutes, 32 seconds). [NEW]
Physical Weakening: Overall physical abilities drop to child level. Notably weak to sexual temptation; even basic stamina training yields minimal results. [NEW]
Sensitivity Increase: Overall sensitivity greatly increases. Erogenous zones become especially hypersensitive; increase equivalent to +10 Corruption Value (Locked). I stared silently at the text for a while. I'd been too busy getting squeezed here and there to check it before, but now I finally could.
And yeah... It's really locked...
Right from the start, I knew it wasn't a dream. The sensations were way too vivid for that. Actually, I'd opened the status window just now to confirm if what I saw in that dream was really Saintess Amaness or just some bullshit hallucination.
She'd said she'd locked the Corruption Value from rising, so I figured leaving it open would show some change.
"Fuck... But who would've thought the mastermind was Amaness."
It all happened so chaotically that I was still confused.
Did she send me to this world too? I couldn't say for sure, but the circumstances pointed that way. Otherwise, why seek me out? From the first time I saw her, she already knew all about me... Something was up.
And...
What was that about karma...? What the hell did she mean?
She'd said all this was karma from what I'd done. Like I deserved the backlash, so take it sweetly. Fuck... What the fuck does that even mean?
No, what the hell did I even do?
Haa...
This world is such bullshit...
I dismissed the windows and slumped down. My body, leaning against the headboard, slid slowly until it sank into the soft sheets.
Getting mad wouldn't make the person responsible appear, so it was just frustrating.
Hmm... A year from now, right?
Saintess Amaness had said we'd meet again then, so to get straight answers, I'd have to wait until then.
Yeah, one year. Just hold out for one year.
After that, maybe I'd get some hint about going home.