24 Hearts

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Calypso’s Nightmare

As soon as she opened her eyes, she muttered that she was hungry, and the woman who had been eating ramen in the corner stared at her. She covered her mouth to hide the ramen she was consuming.

Meanwhile, Priest Arhil stretched out her hand and struggled to sit up, so Judah unconsciously held her hand and boosted her up.

“I’m hungry…”

Judah nodded, his gaze fixated on her pitiful eyes.

“Wait, what should I cook for you?”

“…Ramen.”

He was more than ready to accommodate the priest’s hunger, who had been deprived of both sleep and food for ten consecutive days, so upon hearing her request, Judah hurried to the kitchen and cooked ramen with plenty of eggs and vegetables, right in front of the adventurers washing dishes.

“You’re cooking a lot. Are you still hungry?”

“The priest woke up. I came to cook for her because she said she was hungry.”

“Arhil?”

Adventurers rushed to her room, leaving Judah like the ramen was no longer important. With an empty bowl and a whole pot of ramen, he slowly headed to the room. Jeanne opened the door when he knocked on the door with his tiptoe. He heard someone gulp and saw Arhil’s gaze water at the scent of the freshly cooked ramen.

“Everyone, please leave. Except for the boy with the ramen.”

Arhil ordered. Did she want to discuss matters with him alone, or did she wish to eat in private? Either way, Jeanne and her caretaker stepped out, and soon the adventurers followed after casting one last glance at her.

“Come on. Please give me my reward for living through that menace.”

Judah sat on a chair and used a ladle to pour her ramen and broth into the bowl. She clasped her hands together in prayer before picking up the chopsticks and inhaling the smoke deeply.

She went straight at it.

Her hunger strike of ten days showed as she ate. Without a care for Judah’s presence, she devoured the noodles and broth aggressively, unlikely of the manner of a priest. She returned the empty bowl to Judah, who filled it up instantly.

Judah felt awkward to think that the priest won’t be able to finish everything he prepared. After finishing another bowl, she looked at Judah again, like it still wasn’t enough. Judah showed her the empty bowl, to which she replied by sticking her tongue out and rubbing her belly.

“Would you like some fruit?”

“You have some? Yes!”

Her voice had more energy after gaining it back by eating. Judah nodded before opening his -bag- to give her the fruits.

“Wow! Oh my god, oh my god. That’s a subspace, right? Did you buy it from a mage?”

“No. It’s just a natural ability.”

“Aren’t you precious?”

“Do you see it?”

As he pulled out the fruits and another bowl, she rolled her eyes as if thinking for a moment before nodding with a smile.

“Yeah.”

She was out of her nun attire, and because of the effects of her characteristics, Judah felt tempted by the mere sight of her.

“This is late but thank you. I ate well. I am a priest serving Jopiel. My name is Arhil.”

She said as she bit into the apple with a loud crunch.

“I’m Judah Arche. I’m just an ordinary adventurer.”

“Oh my god, you don’t look normal.”

“Really? I’m just a young adventurer.”

“Okay, but you’re a bronze adventurer with a subspace…”

Her voice slurred. She reached out the apple to brush it against Judah’s lips. Judah bit into it in a trance, watching Arhil tilt her face closer to his.

“You even own fragments.”

She whispered, knowing how easy it was for the outsiders to hear them.

“What are you talking about? Fragments?”

Arhil grinned, her eyes squinted.

“Shh. They might hear you from outside. But don’t worry, I’m the only one who knows.”

Judah’s eyes narrowed at her attempt to reassure him. Blue eyes stared at him intently, smiling along.

“Oh, I see you’re thinking about how to react. If you’re going to attack me, don’t do it. I know I’ll lose anyway. I’ll surrender in advance. Really. So don’t do it, please?”

[She “…How did you know?” you.]

“Oh! I knew it. Even though I am a nun, as you can see, I saw how people stared at you from head to toe.”

He didn’t expect the compliment. Judah let it sink in and sighed a little.

“Do you know how I knew about your fragments…?”

Her eyes flickered to the door when she asked. She had no choice but to be cautious because she knew the room wasn’t soundproof.

“Do you know about the veil? It’s used by empires like Baekje or Gauri in the upper continent.”

“?”

Out of nowhere, she changed the topic.

“It’s the shield that I conjured for ten days to protect the town hall. At first, it was just that, but it became my eyes and ears six to seven days later. It was the first time I experienced it, but I got the hang of it quickly. Because of it, I knew exactly where the shield was weak and where the ghosts would go to attack, so I was prepared. But it wasn’t good either. I could hear everything the ghosts were saying. They were the only ones around me for days.”

She took her breath for a second before continuing.

“Then you came. You might have thought that no one would see it… but unfortunately, I saw it.”

“…”

“I saw all the thorns of blood that came from your dagger wipe out all those ghosts. I even heard the Lancer call it a fragment. To be honest, I didn’t believe it, but your reaction just confirmed it. I’m sorry if I sort of confused you. I wanted the truth, you know?”

Judah sighed again, shaking his head. Maybe he reacted too hastily. He did, and he regretted it, but he already gave her the answer. Like spilled water, he couldn’t take everything back anymore.

“As long as this stays between us, then there’s nothing I can do.”

“No way, you plan to kill and silence me?”

“Fortunately, I don’t have that mind yet.”

Arhil frowned at him.

“Still… I hope you don’t want to do that in the future. If I pray to Jopiel, will you listen?”

“Hmm. Sorry, I’m not going to listen to it. What’s the reason for bringing that up anyway?”

“Uh, I didn’t mean much. I just thought I had to talk to you, so I brought up whatever for conversation’s sake. Now, I have a reason. You don’t have a priest on your team yet?”

“I take that you want to join our team?”

Her only intention was to ask if there was a priest in his group. And whether his reply was correct, she clapped her hands and nodded in delight.

“That’s right, that’s it! You’re fast at picking up. I’m a pretty capable priest even though I look like this. Don’t you want someone like me in your team?”

Certainly, the story would go smoother with a priest around. He was planning if recruiting her anyway, but it felt like they were rushing.

“What about the adventurers you teamed up with?”

She shrugged simply. “It doesn’t matter. It’s not because I wanted to join them. They invited me to go with them, temporarily, and that I could leave whenever I wanted. And… I was a little disappointed with it.”

She didn’t tell him what she was disappointed with. However, it was enough to confirm that her existing team had no heart. It didn’t matter if she was pretending or not. Judah nodded his head eagerly anyway.

“Okay. Jeanne and I have no choice but to accept if a capable priest comes to our team. But you’re suspicious, and you know too much. Can I trust you?”

“Of course. But how can I show you my loyalty? Should I do it in the name of Jopiel? Or do I swear before God?”

He had a way to gain her loyalty without all the hassle she proposed. Judah took her hand. Arhil flinched and jumped at the sudden contact, but she didn’t pull back her hand.

“Uh… Holding my hand like that is weird. I’m… My trust in you and my faith in my decision is rapidly falling.”

“You said you want to join my team, right?”

“…Yes, yes, but… You see, if you want my body, that’s difficult. Of course, it’s not a bad carnal desire. Yes, if a man and a woman agree, you can have sex together. Uh…”

Judah erupted into laughter while she stuttered.

“It’s not like that, don’t worry. This is just a magic trick..”

She knew he had one fragment, but Judah had two. He triggered Carpe Diem’s ​​Subordination, the twenty-fourth fragment, that he obtained first. Its condition was met, as her statement of surrender a moment ago counted as a defeat. His obsidian ring shimmered, her eyes turned hazy, and her loud mouth fell silent. As soon as he saw her head droop, several windows appeared.

[You subordinated Priest Arhil.]

[She will obey you.]

cannot do anything to harm

[She will grow to endear your words and will act on your signal if possible.]

[Her subordination lasts until she dies and is dismissed if she dies and then resurrects.]

[Unless otherwise stated, she is unaware of the subordination spell.]

[Reliability is fixed at 100 until the dependent is revoked, but the favorability decreases by 10.]

[Priest Arhil’s…]

There were several other windows, but they weren’t important, so Judah turned off all the other windows. Judah paused, opening the windows again to read them one more time.

[As Priest Arhil is subordinated to you, you can only hypnotize her once.]

[You can change what she knows and lead her to specific actions.]

“…”

As long as he used subordination, he can now trust her completely. Since she couldn’t harm him, he didn’t have to worry about her betraying him, so he set aside his suspicions of her for the time being. She became a trusted companion. With a flick of his finger, Arhil came to her sense. Getting out of the hypnosis, her thoughts became hazy.

It was a little disappointing if he let the chance slip.

Judah recalled the daydreams he had had at least once as a man back in the real world. This was his first time using the fragment, but there was no doubt that he now had the power to achieve the different fantasies he dreamed of. His heart pounded at the dark desire, but soon Gentia’s face came into his eyes, and his heart weakened. However, the opportunity was too precious to skip. With his conscience guilting him, Judah called her name.

“Arhil.”

“…Yes?”

She responded softly to the call. Judah thought for a moment before triggering the hypnosis. Whatever he tells her will be inscribed in her soul, mind, and body. But when he tried to speak out, his mouth hung open in hesitation, unable to say anything. After a moment, he sighed deeply.

“Good thing for you, I still have a conscience. But isn’t this unfortunate in a way? Anyway… Arhil, remember what I’m about to tell you.”

“…Yes?”

“You will find me more interesting in the future than you do now. And if you like what I’m doing to you, it will make your heartbeat. …If you’re like that, we’ll get along. You will love me the moment you feel like you want to. Of course, when you’re unhappy, it’s okay to get it out of your mind. That’s all. End.”

Judah snapped his finger. It was only at that moment that he debated whether it was right to play with someone’s heart… but Judah had already done it. He pledged not to do anything like this in the future, and at the same time, felt that it was unavoidable. Yes, it can’t be helped. He knew what he said was bullshit, but for her to receive the effect of her S rank trait in -For You-, she had to fall in love. He stared at his companion that he had just hypnotized for the sake of her superior abilities. Her head sat there hanging.

‘Isn’t this okay? It’s not like I forced her to love me. I just made it a little easier.’

As he bit his lips, he felt the beating of his heart pound throughout his body. He felt embarrassed and guilty. He seemed to have crossed the line that should not be crossed.