Buzzzz
“Is this where they use the term ‘to have my energy drained’?”
I staggered out of the room. Floretta and Luna, still sporting cheerful expressions, followed me. Luna had been wearing that expression ever since she started changing clothes.
I felt completely drained, even though I hadn’t done anything but witnessed the Pope’s changing scene right in front of my eyes. I must have been so tense trying not to react that my energy just gave out.
Ultimately, what I chose was the dress that Floretta and Luna had originally picked up.
As for the other clothes left behind—no, I didn’t even want to imagine what could hardly be called clothes.
They said it was an outfit meant to be worn only on very special occasions, designed to bring one closest to God… but it was just another way of saying it was the most exposing.
Floretta and Luna’s C-string with chest covers were way more revealing than a micro sling shot. At first, I honestly thought they were just completely naked. But apparently, that was what they were wearing.
There was effectively only one choice.
“Considering they were changing in front of me…”
When the Popes started to take off their sacred robes in front of my eyes, I honestly jumped straight off the sofa without exaggeration. I just couldn’t shake it from my mind.
Floretta chuckled as she saw my startled face, but her lush hair hid enough that most wouldn’t have even dared look properly.
Luna was the same way. She also had relatively flashy hair, but when she turned around to change clothes, I caught a glimpse of her butt peeking out intermittently, and I suddenly stopped thinking.
I had no clue what to make of it. Was it really necessary to change clothes in front of a man? There were curtains lying around everywhere, so it shouldn’t have been visible from behind them.
I wondered if they simply had no qualms about exposure, but when Luna blushed right after realizing I had glanced at her exposed behind, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
“I… don’t know.”
I gave up on thinking. I really didn’t think I could solve anything by lingering here.
As we entered, Floretta and Luna flanked me once again, surrounding me as we returned to the circular area. I wondered if the other side was done as well as I pulled the curtain aside.
Knight Commanders, wearing the same expression as mine, were sprawled on the sofa.
“….”
Their faces looked nearly lifeless. Their eyes were vacant, and they leaned against the sofa while their entire bodies drooped. A huuuu moan escaped their lips.
The dresses they all so proudly wore were neatly organized in a pile. Right next to them stood the nuns, wearing proud expressions and standing at attention with their hands together.
As footsteps were heard, the Knight Commanders turned their heads. Lize, with a voice drained of energy, opened her mouth.
“…Delta, where have you been?”
“I was… picking out the Papal dresses.”
Since I couldn’t even bear to call them clothes, I stuttered for a moment due to my inner conflict. A look of confusion appeared on Lize’s face at my answer.
“Why are you the one picking out dresses for the Popes?”
That’s a good question. Why was I the one picking out dresses that the Popes would wear when I wasn’t even an Inquisitor? Even if I wanted to answer, I had no idea.
An awkward silence lingered.
“Our distinguished guest has been incredibly helpful. An individual of remarkable taste.”
Floretta smiled brightly and clung to my arm. Lize seemed completely unprepared for the Popes to directly respond on my behalf, stuttering as she struggled to follow along.
“That’s right. We received great help from our distinguished guest.”
Luna, maintaining her usual cold and aloof face, subtly attached herself to my arm too. The blush she had just moments before had completely vanished.
Lize continued to stare blankly at the Popes.
“Have you all selected your dresses?”
At Floretta’s question, Iris nodded her head this time.
“Yes, that’s right. Your Holiness.”
“Could you tell us what you chose?”
At the Pope’s request, the nuns stepped forward once more. Iris, Erika, and Claudia jolted simultaneously on the sofa, their pupils trembling.
Only Lize quietly stared at the Popes who were clinging to my sides.
It took quite a while before we managed to exit that place. When we stepped outside, Stella and Selene were waiting with the battle nuns, and we were escorted back to our lodging once again.
After making it through the entire day filled with that confounded banquet attire, just as we were about to head to our respective rooms, Claudia stopped me.
“Delta. Wait a moment.”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s talk for a bit before resting.”
After signaling for the other Knight Commanders to go ahead, Claudia waited until she confirmed Lize had also ascended to the upper floor before speaking.
“It’s about tonight. Don’t lock the door when you sleep.”
“…What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Don’t ask, just do as I say. You never lock it anyway.”
“If you know that, then why make this request?”
Upon hearing my question, Claudia grinned.
“I’m perceptive.”
“Perceptive? What does that mean…?”
“Never mind. Just do as I say. Don’t act petty and do the opposite. I’m heading upstairs now. I’m exhausted from changing outfits all day.”
I waved goodbye, staring blankly at her pink retreating figure. I had no idea why she was suddenly acting like that.
My head felt too cluttered.
That night, I struggled to fall asleep, haunted by Claudia’s words.
“Don’t lock the door?”
I’d never locked it in the first place. As Claudia herself mentioned, the Knight Commanders were well aware. They had already visited my room several times. They didn’t lock their doors either.
Still, for her to say something like that…
“Does it have a different meaning?”
As my thoughts multiplied, sleep naturally eluded me.
After all, my only task in the Holy Kingdom was to rest, and there were still two days until the banquet, so it didn’t matter if I stayed up late. Yet, being awake felt strangely off.
Time passed, and as night fell, the bright moonlight streamed into the room.
Click.
I had been pondering the true meaning of Claudia’s words for quite some time when I heard the click of someone opening my room’s door. I instinctively became alert.
In that brief moment, numerous thoughts raced through my mind. Should I wake and greet them, or pretend to be asleep? If I did wake up, what reactions should I show?
“……”
Ultimately, I chose to pretend to sleep.
I didn’t even know why. Maybe it was a habit from secretly using my smartphone at night and pretending to be asleep when I heard noises, or maybe it just felt like the atmosphere mandated it.
The door clicked shut again. Someone had entered my room. Clunk, the locking mechanism on the doorknob sounded. Then, very faint footsteps began to approach me slowly.
The person who entered briefly paused at the edge of the bed, then pressed their hand down on it. The area beside my calf sank down. Soon after, the space next to my knee seemed to sink as well.
The sinking space began to move. From next to my ankle to beside my knee, from my knee to my thigh, from beside my thigh to my waist, and from my waist to my shoulder.
As if crawling over me, the sides of the bed continuously went up and down. My body shook side to side. Even if I was pretending to sleep, this movement would have woken me.
The motion stopped shortly after. It felt like whoever was there was peering down at me. Then it fell silent, only to be broken by a voice.
“Delta, awake?”
‘……Lize?’
It was Lize.
In a state of panic, I continued to pretend to sleep, only to feel a finger gently sweep across my lips. A soft sensation washed over me.
“I know you’re not sleeping. Wake up.”
At this point, keeping my eyes closed would be impossible. I cautiously opened my eyes. Lize was right there, looking down at me. The moment our eyes met, she beamed at me.
She was almost half on top of me, with her hands on either side of my face, one knee pressing against my left side, and the other knee lightly resting on my abdomen. It was as if she were ready to pounce on me.
Whether it was intentional or just a lack of awareness, the strap of her sleeveless top had slipped down to the middle of her arm. Because of that, her upper chest was even more exposed than usual.
Her ample breasts swayed from side to side or up and down every time Lize moved. It was a weighty presence that could be felt just by looking.
My gaze fell into the vast chasm that had formed, and as I became aware of my actions, I quickly looked away. It seemed I was already too late. Lize was smiling at me with glee.
“…Why are you here? At this late hour?”
It was an undeniable situation to ignore the fact I had been staring at her chest. Clearing my throat, I attempted to change the subject, but even to my ears, it sounded feeble.
With a meaningful smile, Lize answered my question as if to grant me this one chance.
“Why do you think?”
“…….”
“Late at night. A woman visits a man’s room. The locked door. Our position. It’s obvious, isn’t it?”
“I know. I was just saying something. I can’t pretend to be clueless in a situation like this. I’m not that oblivious.”
“Well, it seemed you were.”
“Me? About what?”
“Look at this. You don’t know, do you?”
Lize bent her elbow, and the distance between our faces grew smaller. Her breath mixed with mine, and warm air brushed against my lips.
Her sapphire blue eyes pierced directly into mine.
“Originally, I was just going to seduce you slowly and wait until you couldn’t stand it anymore to pounce on me. It’s just not my style to be on top of a guy.”
Her fingers, which had been sweeping over my lips, moved to my bangs. Swoosh, Lize pushed my hair back.
“But at this rate, I felt I might lose you.”
“Me?”
“Of course, it’s you. Who else would it be?”
“To whom?”
Her face drew even closer.
“To the Papal Holinesses.”
