Wasn’t This Supposed to Be an Erotic Game?

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When the witch held my hand.

It felt like the world had come to a halt.

Why the heck is she holding my hand?

And why is she asking for my name?

I have no intention of getting close to you, not even a little bit.

Not at all.

I don’t have a hobby of hugging bombs, you know.

So I tried to sneak away, but… suddenly, she dragged me to the Temple of the Sun Church, talking about miracles and whatnot.

“Miracles?!”

“Of course, it’s only natural after witnessing such absurd miracles! Rophus! Please care for our guest!”

There, I received an extravagant welcome.

All sorts of priests rushed in, pouring Divine Power into me, and I was treated to delicious freshly cooked meals and a fluffy bed.

I really should’ve been eating and resting in bed.

Am I not supposed to run away right now?

You’re completely right.

Indeed.

I should’ve been running away.

With the witch healed, there’s absolutely no reason for me to be lounging as a saint here.

“How are you feeling?”

It’s all because of the witch beside me, holding my hand and staring at me with those sparkling eyes.

Bloody Dark Magician!!

Could someone please take this Dark Magician away?!

Please get her off me!!

I’m scared!!

“Don’t be afraid. I’m here. I’ll make sure you never fall, Saint.”

Her carefully spoken words sounded like something from a cult leader welcoming a new recruit.

This bomb seems determined to stick with me.

That can’t happen!

Who knows when it’ll explode!

“Witch.”

“Erpa. It’s Erpa, Saint.”

“Lady Erpa. Please go back now. I am fine.”

I’m absolutely fine.

I don’t have any miracles or anything.

It’s just that your presence makes me sweat and tremble like a coward.

“No. I will stay by your side until you’re well. Saint.”

“I’m really fine.”

“But it’s because of me…”

I doubt she’ll listen to sweet talk.

I think I need to be more forceful.

“Lady Erpa. You have become beautiful. No one will judge you by your appearance. But what’s more important is your inner self.”

“My… inner self.”

“If there’s no peace in your heart, what good is looking normal on the outside? I’m just a healer of the lowly. I can treat appearances but nothing more. Only you can lift your own heart.”

“What should I do? Please show me the way.”

Couldn’t you just vanish instead of nagging me?

I’m running out of things to say!!

You know, all those self-help books and Sunday school lines I read!

Please help me!!

“Talk to yourself. Try to find out what you truly want. There are no shackles tying you down now. Think about how you want to write your life from the freest position.”

“……..”

“I was just a cane. The sick need a cane, but after they heal, the cane is supposed to be thrown away. So fly as high as you can without me. Realize what you wanted and move toward that direction. That’s what I wish for you.”

In short, please just go away.

While smiling benevolently and saying that, Erpa starts to tear up again.

“How can I repay you for this grace… How should I repay you?”

You don’t have to repay anything.

I’m leaving.

“I didn’t do this for a reward. If you want to repay me, do it by living your life. I hope you become a person who loves themselves, letting go of hate and resentment.”

Just don’t explode again.

Got it?

I won’t see you again.

We’ll go our separate ways quietly.

Watching Erpa with a nervous heart, she slowly rises from her seat.

“I promise. I would give my whole life for this.”

She smiles brightly.

So pretty yet still a freaking bomb.

“I’ll live a wonderful life for you.”

“I believe so, Lady Erpa. You deserve it.”

“Thank you. I will never forget this.”

You can forget it.

Wait.

Please forget me.

After carefully bowing her waist to me, Erpa leaves the room.

Only after she leaves and the door closes can I finally slump onto the bed.

I really thought I was going to die.

Why is every day a rollercoaster?

Finally, it’s done.

Now that the witch who was keeping close watch has vanished, I can quietly disappear.

Most legends of the Saint from the Arcal Empire wrap up like this.

Now that I’ve bestowed my grace upon you, don’t sin again, but live up to ethics and morality, blah blah, poof.

And vanish.

What if the Lilia Church people come and say, “Hey, she’s not one of our goddess’s followers?!”

You’re a heretic.

Whoosh! Flame on.

I’m not up for that kind of ending, dammit.

I jumped out of bed, opened the door, and stepped outside.

“Saint! Are you awake?!”

“The time has come.”

I smiled at everyone.

“Now I must take my leave. If grace allows, I hope to meet again.”

“Huh? But Saint! The Lilia Church people are arriving earlier than scheduled!”

They arrived early?!

Shit!!

I need to get out of here!!

Right now!

I swiftly used Time Stop.

The entire world froze.

In this state, I strained and began to navigate forward, repeatedly switching the Time Stop on and off in a confined space.

Each time I did it, the mental strain was through the roof.

In body modification, you just open up a character customization window and make changes.

When casting skills, there’s surely mental strain in designating the target; but once it’s done, just give the commands and that’s it with Absolute Hypnosis.

Sensitivity 3000 times… I haven’t tried that yet.

But seriously!

Unlike other skills, this Time Stop is really draining mentally.

No way, seriously.

Why is the skill designed like this?

Just make a world where I can move around freely after stopping time.

That’s the kind of skill I need, seriously.

Or maybe it was simple in the game and just got complicated after stepping into reality.

Anyway.

I barely managed the mental exhaustion and slowly began to move forward within the halted time.

In the distance, I spotted an express train leaving the capital, Mars City.

That’s my ride!!

I’ll hop on and escape from here!

I’ll enter some restroom, release the Time Stop, and then use body modification on myself.

This face is too well-known to use anymore.

I’ll have to tweak my face into another shape, buy a train ticket, and then leave the capital with grace…

Leave… wait.

My mental strain is too low; this is tough.

Maybe I should pause for a bit, rest, then get back to it?

What kind of skill is this, anyway?

But I can’t afford to not use it.

Gotta find a decent spot to release the skill.

Just as I was scanning my surroundings.

I spotted a damp and dirty alley at the corner of the train station.

Perfect!!

No one should be there.

Really, who’d be in such a gross and filthy place?

I’ll just rest there for a moment, then change my face and get out.

It was dirty meeting you, and let’s not do this again.

Farewell, Mars City.

Thinking that, I released the skill.

And the moment I did…

“I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! Aaaah!!”

Sounds of flesh colliding violently filled my ears, a sound I couldn’t hear while time was stopped.

There were people in this damp and filthy alley after all.

As I froze in shock, the sounds continued to echo in my stunned ears.

“I told you to sell everything, didn’t I? You worthless brats!!”

“Aaaah!! I’m sorry! I’ll bring everything! Please!”

“Get out and sell it! Or I’ll slice up the other side of your face!!”

“I’ll do it! I will! Please don’t hurt me!”

Clearly, a deep-voiced man and the thin, quiet voice of a young girl echoed for quite some time.

It was impossible to look away from the weeping young girl.

Glancing into the shadowy corner of the alley, I saw a group of girls clustered against one wall, with a large man standing among them.

What struck me most was how horrifyingly deformed the girls’ faces were.

Some had completely charred upper lips and cheeks, while many were missing teeth.

Young girls who appeared no more than seven or eight years old, the age when they should still be charming their fathers at home, were sobbing with their disfigured faces, begging the man before them.

What in the world is happening here?

As I stood there in shock, the man spat and lit a cigarette.

“Damn it, you worthless girls. You better be useful if you’re from the match factory. If you come back without your quota sold, I’ll have your head, got it?”

“Yes! Yes! I will, please don’t throw us away!”

“Stupid monster girls. Alright, scram. If you don’t pay your dues properly, I won’t give you the matches to sell tomorrow, just so you know…”

As the man spat his yellow saliva, he turned to leave the alley and spotted me, stopping dead in his tracks.

“You…you filthy…”

The expressions dancing in his eyes cycled through shock, surprise, then… greed.

“You’re the one treating people in the slums, aren’t you?”

He cackled as he pulled a dagger from his belt.

Seeing the dagger made my body freeze.

This is real.

Just look at that glare.

This guy is 100% someone who has stabbed a person before!!

Should I use Time Stop and escape?

No!

Using it now would drain too much mental power to activate again!

I need to catch a break, but why the hell is he here?!

“O Saint, so full of grace and kindness. I’m feeling a bit rough these days. Mind sharing some of your kindness with me? You do have some healing money, right?”

That bastard is grinning as he approaches.

What do I do?

Time Stop is just too draining right now.

Body modification?

Where’s the time for that in this situation!

Absolute Hypnosis?

This one’s tough, too.

Getting the target designated takes a lot of mental power, which probably won’t work out right now.

So, all that’s left is…

“Stay still, Saint. I’m just going to rummage through your pockets, so don’t move.”

The thief, seeing me completely frozen, approached with a smug expression, trying to rummage through my pockets.

At that moment, when his gaze was lowered to my pocket, I reflexively touched his body and activated a skill.

[Casting Skill <Sensitivity 3000 Times>!]

“Shut up!”

I swung a punch, missing his head, and dodged back.

It wasn’t a powerful hit.

Just a half-hearted swing, like a ridiculous slap.

The surprised thief chuckled at my weak punch but then suddenly began to shake uncontrollably.

“Ugh…Uggghhh…Uuuhhh!!”

Sensitivity 3000 times.

How’s that?! This should hurt enough that he can’t move…

Except…wait a minute.

“Ugh…Ugh…Ughh…”

Blood vessels burst in the thief’s eyes.

He clenched his teeth so hard they shattered.

They say that if the pain exceeds the limit, a person can’t even scream.

I think that’s true.

The thief dropped the dagger, trembling for a moment before collapsing onto the ground.

Blood oozed from his nose, and his eyes, stained red with broken vessels, wept blood.

“…Excuse me?”

No answer.

Even a fool could tell what happened.

He’s dead.

Most likely a shock death.

This was my first killing.

Nausea surged within me.

I… killed someone.

I just wanted to scare him off, but I ended up killing him.

Having already used Time Stop to get here and now the shock of committing murder compounded with the mental drain, my brain couldn’t handle it anymore.

As my vision spun, I too collapsed, much like the thief.

Just before I passed out, the last thought that flickered through my mind was this.

Just a simple punch could cause shock death, and those grand mages who go through this pain every day, they must be truly inhuman.

 

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