Episode 9
Episode 9
I washed the black nun's habits and priest robes in the small stream inside the orphanage.
I repeatedly scrubbed and rinsed them with both hands.
Even after repeating the process, the black clothes remained stubbornly dark, making me grumble.
"Is it because they're black... Why do they look the same before and after washing? I feel like I went through all that trouble for nothing."
Ivy, who was doing laundry beside me, smiled as she replied.
"But at least the smell is gone. The boys run around in these, so they get really sweaty."
"That's true. We smell like food too."
"Isn't that why we do laundry regularly like this?"
The nuns and priests at the orphanage couldn't handle all the work themselves.
They were busy with administrative duties, external tasks, and their primary duties as nuns and priests.
That's why the children helped with managing the orphanage.
The girls helped with laundry and cooking, while the boys helped with physically demanding tasks whenever they had free time.
Unlike before when we at least got to exercise, since coming to the orphanage nearly two years ago, we've been repeating prayers, studies, and housework.
"I want to stop doing laundry. It's not fun anymore."
"Mia, if you get married, you'll have to do this for decades more, right? You used to do it fine at home before."
"That's because I was also going out for training back then..."
"You're more active than I thought, Mia. Your future husband will like that."
"Ugh, that topic again? I told you it's irrelevant."
Perhaps because we're entering puberty, the girls were indulging in all sorts of fantasies.
Among them, there was a popular rumor going around lately.
That lively girls are also lively in bed at night.
It was that kind of talk - like if your nose is big, that part is big; if your hands are big, that part is big. Just baseless stories kids tell each other.
"But you actually have good stamina, right? And you like physical contact too."
"It's not that I like it - it's that Ivy likes it."
"But if you allow it, doesn't that mean you like it too?"
"I just tolerate it, that's all."
Ivy had always been physically affectionate, but lately it had gotten worse.
These days, she tries to hug me at every opportunity.
"From the beginning, Ivy said that's just how it is between girls..."
"Huh? Right. Is it strange for girls to hug each other? Even in our orphanage, girls often cling to each other. They even give each other cheek kisses."
"Well... that's true but..."
For an orphanage, there was already a noticeable feminine energy.
Somehow, a sticky, cold, and damp atmosphere seemed to envelop the entire building.
Probably because at this age when hormones are raging, there's nothing else to do.
Since we can't even exercise because we're supposed to be pious, the energy builds up.
It's so intense that I suspect everyone will get married immediately once they become adults.
"Well, Ivy must be right."
Originally, in my previous life, I attended all-boys middle and high schools, so I wouldn't know.
Since places like communities said that in girls' schools, girls often date each other, maybe this physical contact is actually common.
After finishing the laundry, we carried the baskets to the drying area.
"Can't they lower this just a bit more..."
There was a handmade clothesline in the backyard, but it was higher than expected.
Other kids could reach it fine with a step stool, but even when I stood on it, I had to tiptoe because it was still slightly out of reach.
"Hnng! Hhuup! I really should have grown taller."
I swung the laundry like I was throwing it, barely managing to hang it on the line.
Ivy, who had been watching me, slowly climbed onto the step stool.
"Ivy?"
She came up behind me, positioning herself as if hugging me from behind, and hung the laundry.
Despite being the same age, she was a full head taller than me.
"Since when did you become so tiny, Mia? You fit so perfectly in my arms that you look even cuter."
"You're the one who's really tall."
"No, you haven't grown since coming to the orphanage, right? Is it because you eat less and exercise? It seems like you're not getting enough energy for growth."
"Is that it? Maybe you're right."
The orphanage basically provided meals.
The meals given to girls were a small amount of soup and half a piece of bread for breakfast and dinner. For lunch, they added soup with a little meat and salad.
The amount I ate was much less than when I lived at home before.
'Compared to that, my activity level seems about the same though...'
Other girls only did things like laundry or cooking assistance, but I was also exercising.
Though I only exercised in spare moments, it made me hungry every day.
I came down from the step stool with Ivy, who had hung the laundry for me.
"Should I reduce my exercise?"
"You're already petite, Mia, so whether you exercise or not seems the same. Can't you just not do it?"
"If I don't do anything, I probably won't be able to become a mercenary later..."
"Let's just become nuns together. That would be better anyway."
"Hmm..."
I wanted to, but I couldn't.
If I became complacent with this life, I would really have to part with Ivy in less than a year.
There was no way an ordinary nun could follow the Hero.
"No. If I stop exercising too, I'll really look like a child."
"But you are a child."
"That's not the important point. It's necessary for my important plan."
"The Hero story again?"
I nodded.
"Later, when Ivy becomes the Hero and leaves, I'll be left alone. To prevent that, I need to succeed as a mercenary and join the Hero's party."
"Really? But I might not become the Hero... You're always working so hard, Mia."
Lately, Ivy just listened to my words as if they were jokes.
She tended to just listen with a smile and let it go.
"Yes, because I don't want to send you off alone..."
At my quiet response, Ivy tightly hugged me from behind.
Her arms gently wrapped around my stomach and neck.
"I don't want to be separated from you either, Mia."
*
Ivy had been interested in Mia from the beginning.
Her attitude, always overflowing with confidence no matter what she did.
Her bold manner toward everyone.
Mia always moved with certainty about what she was doing.
The fact that she always did strange things made being with her never boring.
Plus, she always called Ivy the Hero, which was enjoyable in many ways.
'So is that why it's fun to be with her?'
If asked if she liked Mia, she did.
However, if asked if she loved her, that wasn't it.
Ivy herself wanted to marry a man.
She even had dreams of being dominated by a strong man and becoming a virtuous wife and wise mother.
So Mia was truly cherished - a friend who made her happy to be with, but whom she occasionally wanted to tease.
She was what people commonly call a best friend.
That feeling began to twist slightly on a day they went on an outing as usual.
"This kind of hugging is normal between girls, right?"
"R-really...? If you say so, Ivy..."
She happened to see Mia's reaction when she hugged her.
Her face turning bright red, hurriedly standing up.
Her gestures, her movements, and her voice were incredibly youthful and cute.
Seeing that side of always-confident Mia made Ivy get goosebumps all over and feel like fireworks were exploding in her head.
It felt like freely touching a treasure that no one else could touch.
From that moment, Ivy began to educate Mia according to her tastes.
In the village, when they played alone together, and after the village was destroyed, she exploited the strangely weakened gaps.
"Mia~ What are you cooking today?"
"Huh? Just making potato soup. Did you come to help?"
"Of course."
"Here, then... This is how you can help."
"Do you have to hug me? It's uncomfortable..."
"This way I can teach you faster and more easily, right?"
Ivy's desire, satisfied by seeing Mia's embarrassed expressions, gradually sought greater stimulation.
The conclusion reached at the end of that pursuit.
Not anything else, but truly 'female' behavior.
The femininity ingrained in her body, despite her attempts to act somewhat masculine.
She wanted that femininity to explode.
She wanted to see Mia - who acted like a boy, would get married, meet someone she loved - completely become some man's female and pant beneath him.
"Our Mia will make her husband happy later. You cook so well like this."
"I'm not getting married. I'm not interested in men."
"Ah, right. And you have that..."
So she intentionally taught Mia feminine things.
She stopped her from playing rough with boys and taught her more about knitting and cooking. Mia seemed to dislike it, but complied when asked.
She also brought her along during laundry to include her in girls' conversations.
She continuously made her imagine a future where she would become a wife.
"You're so lively, Mia. Your husband will like that later."
"What kind of talk is that again?"
"They say lively girls are also lively in bed."
"That has nothing to do with it! You're saying weird things again..."
She watched Mia, whose face turned bright red as she denied it when such topics came up.
From that point, Ivy began to think.
'I want to live under one man together with Mia.'
A way to both see Mia's feminine side and fulfill her own desire to be dominated by a strong man.
That twisted desire blossomed in Ivy's heart.
"Hmm... Is there no way? Should we leave the Church together and look for a suitable noble?"
She shook her head.
"Nobles can use and discard us whenever they want. Besides, Mia is weak, so to protect her, we both need to become stronger..."
From that moment, Ivy began contemplating ways to become wives together with Mia.
That became more important to her than anything else.
Finding and executing a way to be together with Mia - the sole survivor of their village, whom she wanted to corrupt into femininity more than anyone else.
That alone became her life's purpose.