This Isn’t an E*otic Game?

"Iomene, how is she doing, Saint?"

The question came from Princess Almene, her face gaunt and shadowed by deep dark circles beneath her eyes.
Whenever she mustered even a little strength, she would often call for me to inquire about Iomene's condition.
"She's steadily improving, Your Highness."

It was the truth.
Since the cessation of the torture sessions that used to occur every Tuesday, Princess Iomene had shown remarkable progress.
Hearing my response, Princess Almene smiled faintly, her relief evident.

She absentmindedly touched the area around her left eye.
Her left eye, sealed shut and unable to open, glimmered faintly with the glow of a magical sigil.
"Sometimes, horrible sensations and memories seep through the magic and reach me. They're so agonizing that all I can do is lie in bed. I can't even begin to imagine what Iomene must have endured."

"You will recover. I promise you."
At my words, Princess Almene smiled faintly again.
A hidden princess who had never once shown her face to the public.

If she had, she likely would have become immensely popular.
She was that beautiful.
"I've tried to create only foolishly happy memories. Pretty, beautiful, joyous, and blissful things. I made it a point to eat only the most delicious food and worked hard to build pleasant memories."

"That's admirable, Your Highness."
"It seems selfish, doesn't it? While Iomene suffered in isolation at the Secluded Palace, I was indulging in all the good things by myself."
I shook my head.

I understood why she had chosen that path.
"If Iomene's suffering can breach the magic and reach you, then I believe your joyful and happy memories and emotions can also pass through to her, don't you think?"
Princess Almene chuckled softly.
"That's right. I don't want Iomene to die. I want her to recover so we can share joyful experiences together. When her pain transfers to me, as difficult and painful as it is, I feel strangely glad. It's like I'm helping to carry even a fraction of her burden."

"You are truly noble."
Perhaps it was these efforts by Princess Almene that kept Iomene from completely losing her mind. If negative influences could pass through the magic to Almene, the reverse surely must be true as well.
"Iomene will surely recover. After all, you, Saint, are personally treating her, aren't you?"

I don't know.
Who am I to make such a confident assertion?
But I nodded anyway.

"Yes, she will."
Princess Almene smiled at my words.
I smiled back at her.

*****
Today was Tuesday.
The grandfather clock chimed, marking 2 PM. Iomene trembled violently, burrowing into my embrace with a look of unease.

I held her close, patting her back gently.
Lying down on the bed with her wrapped in the blanket, I could feel the trembling in her body gradually subside.
"Feeling a little calmer now?"

At first, I had been formal with her, but after three weeks of observing her behavior—which resembled that of a child or a pet—I had grown accustomed to speaking informally.
Perhaps it was because I had resigned myself to the idea that I'd never see her again once the curse passed to me.
Iomene raised her head to look at me in response to my question.

"Want a snack?"
No reaction.
Maybe she wasn't hungry since I'd just fed her.

"Want to sleep, then?"
She didn't look tired either.
She just stared at me quietly.

Without the ability to speak, I had no way of knowing what she was thinking.
"A book? Want me to read you a story? A fairy tale?"
Her gaze changed.

So that was it—fairy tales.
I fetched a picture book meant for children and opened it in front of her, reading aloud.
It was a common, predictable story.

The kind you could find anywhere.
But to her, who seemed to be experiencing it for the first time, her eyes sparkled with wonder.
By the time I had read through about three picture books, she clung to me again.

She looked up at me.
"What? What is it now?"
Staring at me blankly won't help me figure out what you want.

Her expression turned slightly pouty.
She raised her arms and waved them around, as if trying to convey something.
I sat calmly, waiting for her to express herself.

"Uh... ah... uh."
Her mouth opened.
"Sing... sing for me..."

My eyes widened.
She spoke.
She actually spoke.

"Sing... sing for me..."
Iomene placed her hand on my lips, gently brushing against them.
"Sing... sing for me... please."

My jaw dropped.
She said it!
She formed a sentence!

"You want me to sing?"
She offered no verbal response, only staring at me with those glimmering eyes.
But from the look in her eyes, it was clear she wanted me to sing.

I felt embarrassed.
I was terrible at singing.
She must have remembered the awkward anime songs or lullabies I'd sung to soothe her on anxious Tuesdays.

But so what if I was terrible?
This was the first clear request she'd ever made of me.
"Alright. I'll sing for you."

I sang as she asked.
Even to my own ears, my singing was atrocious, but Iomene seemed delighted.
As I sang a cheerful anime song, she let out a pure, childlike laugh.

Then, climbing off the bed, she began to awkwardly mimic dancing. I joined her, holding her hands, and together, we clumsily danced.
Iomene smiled brightly.
Why did her laughter feel so heartbreaking?

Before I left, I wanted to make her as happy as possible.
So, we danced and played together.
The Tuesday afternoons she once feared so much, at 2 PM, were now filled with laughter and playful noises.

Before dinner, we danced and had fun. After a sweet dinner, we played simple games like hide-and-seek.
Iomene seemed overwhelmingly happy with all of it.
Eventually, her insistence kept us playing until midnight.

But now it was time for bed.
"I'm glad you can smile now."
I carried Iomene to her bedroom and laid her down on the bed.

"Now, wash up and sleep. It's late. Understand?"
When I stroked her hair, she suddenly began rubbing her face against my hand.
"Like... like it... I like it."

"What do you like so much?"
"Like... I like... like it..."
Iomene smiled awkwardly, repeating the word "like" in her faltering speech as though savoring its sound.

Whoever cursed her—they were truly despicable bastards.
Sixteen years.
She had endured sixteen years of relentless torture, never once spared.

Her plight had also incapacitated Princess Almene, and even pushed the Emperor and Empress into an abyss of endless guilt.
What crime could this young princess and her family have possibly committed to deserve such torment?
"Soon, you won’t have to hurt anymore. You’ll never feel pain again. Understand?"

"Hu... hurt?"
"You won’t need any more treatment, and you won’t hurt anymore. You’ll have nothing to be afraid of. I’ll heal you."
And in exchange for that, I would vanish from this place forever.

We would never see each other again.
But there was no need to explain that part to her.
"You’ll get to eat delicious things, have so much fun, and for every moment you suffered, you’ll have twice as much happiness. Your mother and father are truly amazing people. They’ll give you anything you ask for—anything at all. Whatever you want, you can have it."

"Ev... everything? Everything?"
"Yes, everything. Once you recover, you’ll become someone noble, loved, and happy beyond measure. So don’t give up. Live your life to the fullest. You deserve to be even happier than anyone else for all the suffering you’ve endured. Understand?"
"I like it. Like it."

Iomene laughed like a child.
Her massive wings fluttered gently behind her.
It was late.

I should leave now.
"I’ll be going for today, Iomene. I’ll come back tomorrow, so take care until then..."
Iomene grabbed my arm.

She looked up at me with those bright, imploring eyes.
"Stay... together."
Together?

Iomene pointed to the bed, her expression resembling that of a puppy needing to go outside.
"Stay... stay... together..."
Together? As in sleeping in the same bed?

"No, I need to go back. You can sleep on your own, can’t you?"
"Together. Together."
She insisted.

But I shook my head.
I had to leave.
Even if it was for her treatment, sharing a bed with the princess was out of the question. Who knew what the Emperor might say if he found out?

"Sorry, but I need to go. Sleeping together isn’t appropriate."
Iomene’s face showed her dissatisfaction.
But there was no helping it.

What father would approve of his daughter sharing a bed with an unrelated man?
I carefully removed her hand from mine and offered a smile.
"How? How? Together? Together? How?"

Her faltering voice questioned me.
How could we sleep together? Was that what she meant?
"If we were married, then we could sleep together."

"Married. Then let’s marry!"
Iomene clutched my hand and shook it enthusiastically.
This was troubling.

Everything had been fine until now—why was she suddenly acting like this?
"Night... lonely."
Her voice grew faint and melancholic.

"Lonely. Alone."
No one else occupied her room.
Because of the curse, no one dared to approach her.

The only people who came near her were the priests who bombarded her with divine magic every Tuesday.
Cleaning?
The magic etched into the Secluded Palace handled that.

She likely never had any opportunity for human connection.
"Song. Bed. Together. Together."
This was problematic.

If His Majesty the Emperor found out, I wouldn’t be left unscathed.
...But then again, I wasn’t going to be around much longer, was I?
In that case, couldn’t I do as I pleased?

I wouldn’t actually sleep in the same bed with her.
I would just stay by her side until she fell asleep.
"Fine. Let’s lie down together. I’ll stay until you fall asleep."

At my words, Iomene’s face lit up with joy, like a child’s.
We climbed into the bed together.
Iomene clung to me like a puppy, and I stroked her hair, singing softly.

After spending the entire day playing and eating with me, she began to nod off quickly.
"Tomorrow... again?"
I was tired too, after spending the whole day with her.

Yawning, I nodded.
"I’ll come again tomorrow, Iomene."
"Promise?"

"Yes, I promise..."
I was so exhausted.
It felt like sleep was pressing down heavily on my eyelids.

As my head nodded, I finally surrendered to the drowsiness.
Just before I fully drifted off, I heard her murmuring in a voice tinged with sleep.
"Like it."

That was the last thing I heard before my consciousness faded.
*****
When I woke up, it was already 6 a.m.

I’d slept like a rock.
Carefully, I disentangled myself from Iomene, who clung tightly to me in her deep sleep.
I left the Secluded Palace.

There wasn’t much time left now.
There wasn’t really anything left to "put in order" regarding my affairs.
I’d already left instructions for Erfa, ensuring he could continue living after I was gone.

The High Priest Yodel and the rest of the Lilia Church would probably remember me as the noble Saint Amayel, who heroically sacrificed himself to remove the Evil God’s Fragment.
The Saint who saved the princess and the world from the fragment that could destroy everything.
Cool, isn’t it?

As I walked the quiet streets, the thought that I would never see this place again stirred something inside me.
Had I grown attached, even begrudgingly?
Despite the fact that there were hardly any good memories here, the idea of leaving made my heart feel oddly unsettled.

Enough.
What’s with this sentimentality?
It was disgusting to meet you, world.

Let’s never see each other again.
With that in mind, I turned towards the Third District of the slums, heading back to the towering Mage Tower temple that loomed so high it could be seen even from the outskirts of the capital.
Then, suddenly—

A horrifying chill froze me in my tracks.
I wasn’t the only one.
"What was that? What just happened?"

"Something feels... off!"
People began pouring out of the Mage Tower temple, and the streets filled with crowds in mere moments.
Everyone turned their heads, slowly, toward the source of the ominous sensation.

The imperial palace.
The feeling scratched at my very soul, an eerie, malevolent presence announcing its arrival into the world.
The source of that horrific presence was revealed from the lips of an old man who stumbled out of the temple in his nightclothes—High Priest Yodel.

"A c-curse! Why is there cursed energy coming from the imperial palace?!..."
As soon as I heard those words, I started running.
I cast body enhancement magic on myself, propelling my body forward at a breakneck pace.

Why?!
Her mental state should’ve been stable!
The Evil God’s Fragment was supposed to be on the verge of transferring to me!

So why now?!
What kind of absurd twist of fate is this?!