## Chapter 820 – Winter in the Capital

“Shouldn’t this humble one try it herself?”

With those words, Risha naturally brought the flask to her lips. No, what is this sister doing? I immediately grabbed Risha’s wrist.

“Huh?”
“No, Risha. You’re just going to drink this? Without testing it on something else?”
“Ah…”

Why is she trying to drink it so casually?

This requires clinical trials.

Clinical trials.

In that instant, the innocent faces of Il-ryong and I-ryong, sound asleep in the barn, flashed through my mind. Of course, those bastards are beings I love. I can’t do clinical trials on them. Naturally, I’ll have to use some other plants or buy some guinea pig monsters from somewhere.

“Hehe, are you worried? It’s alright. This humble one would never do anything dangerous. Of course, I’m only doing this because I’m completely confident…”
“No, still. Why drink it yourself? We don’t know what might happen.”
“Ah!”

I snatched the flask from Risha’s hand. No matter what, I can’t let her just drink experimental substances.

“I-It’s alright. This humble one is very used to this. I’ve lived my life experimenting directly like this whenever I make something, so there’s no danger at all. You know that, don’t you?”
“I know, but still.”
“…”

You have to do animal testing first for this kind of thing.

“In that case… I understand. Let’s postpone the testing and try researching in other ways.”
“Yeah, there’s no rush, so let’s do it next time. Why drink it yourself?”

There’s no urgency.

“Really…”

I’ll have to take this test sample with me when I get a chance to go out.

“Are you that worried? There’s no need to be…”
“Of course I’m worried if you say you’re going to eat a test sample. Anyway, let’s do it next time. This one.”

Risha nodded at my words. She said she could do research in other ways anyway. In any case, the research started again. I stood behind Risha and watched her touch the heart. I don’t really understand even when I watch, but she’s using black magic and tools, and it’s progressing smoothly.

I watched that for a bit and then went back upstairs.

I’ll just have to run through the daily cycle until the day after tomorrow.

I’m a bit worried about seeing the Saintess the day after tomorrow, but I can’t skip training because of that. I’ve already crammed everything about Mirkesha into my head anyway.

No problem.

Let’s just try to make excuses when I go the day after tomorrow.

* * *

Two days later.

I woke up early, washed my body clean, tied my hair back, and put on casual clothes. Today, I’m going straight to that restaurant, not to the church, so there’s no need to put on the ceremonial armor.

Besides, it’s a bit dented now, so it’s uncomfortable to wear.

But it’s a bit much to go without wearing anything at all, so I decided to put on the Battle Priest Quilted Armor. If I just wear this, it’s not much different from a black coat. And it’s winter outside, so the temperature is low.

ㅡCreak.

I put on my shoes and went straight outside.

There was no one to see me off. I woke up earlier than usual. Ari and Hilde will probably wake up a bit later. Ari also seems to have lost some strength because it’s winter, and she can’t wake up well in the morning.

Seeing that, Risha might wake up even earlier.

These days, Risha keeps waking up early and holing herself up in the basement. She’s having a lot of fun touching the Spirit King’s heart. Winia also goes down to watch from time to time.

Claudie, Karin, and Liz-unni, well, when I’m training in the afternoon, they come out and help me. Yesterday, we also matched our movements for a while, as a tactical training exercise. Positioning and things like that, in preparation for fighting a guy like the Spirit King again.

I need to set a date and do this properly once.

No kidding, that Spirit King bastard was seriously strong. We caught him with a proper combined attack, but if we had made a mistake, we would have had to retreat. Now that there might be more of those guys invading, training is essential.

“…”

Ah, damn it.

Just thinking that I’m going to get scolded makes it hard to calm down. No, polygamy isn’t a crime. Nobles and kings all do it, so it feels too inhumane that I’m being reprimanded for this.

But what can I do?

That’s how the world sees it.

The Saintess knows all that, so she has no choice but to be like this to me. I walked while thinking that. Still, the fact that she told me to meet her at the restaurant means she won’t scold me too much.

Is that sister the type to scold someone while eating?

This might be a gesture to indirectly let me know that she’s forgiving me or putting this matter to rest.

Thinking that, my steps became lighter again.

I’m thinking of the Paladin position as my lifelong job, so I guess I reacted sensitively to something that wasn’t a big deal. Yeah, I’m a man who has nothing to lose. Because I’m a true hero. But this fickle, wavering heart is… like a ‘Kim Kat, the Popstar Princess’.

ㅡThwack.

Before long, I arrived in front of the restaurant. It’s still a big and impressive building. How did I get in last time? I think I just followed the Saintess and went roughly.

Let’s go in for now.

“Excuse me. Please stop for a moment.”

As I went in, a woman who looked like a waiter stopped me. She skillfully asked about the purpose of my visit and my name.

“Kat. Someone is waiting for me, having arrived earlier.”
“…I understand.”

After checking my face for a moment, she nodded and told me to follow her. I followed her deep inside. I was guided right in front of the stairs.

“You can go into room number 4 on the top floor.”
“I understand.”
“Please take this.”

She gave me a key and greeted me. Does that mean I can open the door and go in with this? I went straight up the stairs.

ㅡThump, thump.

“Ah, damn it.”

Where’s the elevator?

But I’m not late, am I? The sun hasn’t even fully risen yet. This is early enough in the morning. I would have come earlier, not later. As I moved while thinking that, I was already on the top floor.

ㅡRoom 4.

I stood in front of that door.

“…”

I’m getting a little nervous.
But now I have no choice but to go for it.

ㅡClick.

I immediately inserted the key and turned it. ㅡCreak. The door opened smoothly, and the unique, luxurious red background came into view. The red floor, walls, and even the sofa were all red.

“You’ve come.”

Right in front of me, Saintess Kadia was sitting.

“You came early. You kept the appointment time very well, so I don’t think this Saintess has any reason to be angry.”
“Saintess?”

I was momentarily frozen.

“Why?

Because the Saintess’s attire was very daring.

ㅡWhite.

And a very tight mini dress at that.

It was an even more daring outfit than when we came here together last time. The cleavage of her ample breasts was exposed by more than half, and the hem was barely hanging on her hips.

At this rate, the clothes would ride up with just a slight movement, and her panties would be completely exposed. No, it’s not just that. Just walking would cause too much exposure on the chest side, and her breasts might fall out as they are.

Since they’re so big, they’ll shake, so it’s a natural thing.

It was such a severe exposure that it seemed to be just barely covering her nipples. Even the top and bottom were like that. Isn’t this almost like clothes that refugees would wear…? There wasn’t enough fabric that I thought only true refugees could wear it, breaking through these strict wearing restrictions and occupational restrictions.

Even though it was such a poor outfit, the Saintess’s nobility was not diminished at all. In the first place, it’s an extremely expensive-looking outfit. The subtle decorations felt quite beautiful.

How much did they put into that small outfit?

It was a disguise, a deception of refugees. How could a person who is the Saintess of a religion be like that? This was wrong. Even at this moment, there are countless vagrants who have lost their fortunes and become refugees due to war, monsters, and various criminal acts.

Anyway, because it was white, it seemed to suit the Saintess’s brilliant blonde hair quite well.

“…”

She only wore that… right? Looking at it, there was a pile of white clothes and a veil neatly folded next to her. She covered her body and came in like last time.

“Heh.”

Just as I was about to say something, the Saintess, who smiled faintly, opened her mouth first.

“If you have something to say, say it properly. If I call you and you’re quiet, I don’t know how to react.”
“…That’s…”
“Well, it’s not polite to keep you standing. Why don’t you come and sit next to this Saintess? We came to talk, so we should talk now.”

The Saintess, who spoke as if cutting off my words, tilted her head slightly.

“With our womanizer Paladin.”
“Womanizer, you say…”

Oh dear.

Is this title fixed?

Anyway, I took off the quilted armor I was wearing as an outer garment and threw it down appropriately. It was a bit much to go and sit right next to her, so I just sat down on the sofa that was stretched out on both sides.

ㅡRustle.

Then, the Saintess naturally went and sat across from me… No. More than that, questions don’t stop. Today, she called me to scold me, didn’t she? There’s no reason to be wearing clothes like that?

It was an outfit that pursued extreme sexiness, literally. Even though it was a dress, it was just covering her abdomen with fabric, but the exposure was the same as underwear.

Naturally, my eyes can’t help but go there.

“Is the word ‘womanizer’ uncomfortable?”

The Saintess, who was sitting across from me, said that.

“…”

I couldn’t find a place to put my eyes, so I raised my gaze to her face, but when I looked, the Saintess’s face was a little different from usual.

ㅡLight makeup.

It was a beauty that didn’t need any makeup at all, but now it was lightly made up to the point where it didn’t hide that beauty at all, but rather assisted it a little. Looking at it like this, the seductive feeling is too severe.

“Before saying whether it’s uncomfortable or not, I can’t concentrate because of the Saintess’s clothes.”
“Ah, you mean the outfit.”

The Saintess said in a flat tone.

“You were conscious of this.”

ㅡSwish.

And then, as if it were nothing, she slightly pulled on the piece of fabric that was barely covering her chest with her finger. With that, her breasts, which were already severely exposed, were almost completely revealed.

You crazy…!

“It’s nothing much. Shouldn’t I wear proper clothes when I come out?”
“I think your sense of wearing them properly is a bit more serious than last time.”

Refugee style.

Oh, oh, oh, oh.

Oppa refugee style.

“Is that so?”

The Saintess didn’t react much. It was as if she didn’t care at all about her outfit or my gaze.

“Well, I said that I should have a long talk with the Paladin, but when I sent the Paladin away and thought about it, I felt that this Saintess reacted a little too harshly.”

The Saintess, who said that, reached out and grabbed the cigarette case on the table.

“Even though he’s a Paladin who always does his job well and comes back, just because the culture is a little different… I reacted first.”
“…”
“So, I was worried that if I came out wearing my usual clothes, it would look like I was trying to reprimand the Paladin in an imposing manner, so I deliberately chose these clothes. You don’t really feel like you’re being scolded, do you? That’s what I was trying to induce.”

That was certainly the case.

“And although it wasn’t intentional, thanks to that, I can feel the Paladin’s hot gaze very well. Starting with this Saintess’s chest… Ho? It’s going down to the bottom. How lewd can you be.”

ㅡHwaak.

The Saintess, who said that, crossed her legs to the other side. Because of that daring movement, her panties were almost subtly visible.

“It’s truly the gaze of a womanizer.”
“No, Saintess. It’s not like that.”
“What do you mean it’s not? The way you look at women is like that of a beast. Actually, it was a kind of experiment, and as expected of the womanizer Paladin, even in the gaze of looking at the noble and dignified Saintess, there is an untamed wildness melted in.”

The Saintess started talking like some Gungye… No! She’s definitely trying to scold me!

“That’s… Haa. I’m sorry.”

She’s this angry, what can I do?

“Is there anything to be sorry about? The Paladin didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just a difference in culture… Yes, that’s all. At this rate, it feels like this Saintess, who didn’t consider the difference in culture, is picking on you and scolding you. Raise your head properly and look at this Saintess’s face, womanizer Paladin.”

I’m going crazy.

“…”

I raised my increasingly lowered gaze again and looked at the Saintess’s eyes.

“…Well, there’s no malice in the word ‘womanizer’. It’s just that there’s no other word to describe the Paladin’s state, so I’m just saying it like that. So, don’t be uncomfortable and let’s start with the meal. What are you doing? Aren’t you going to eat?”

Various foods were laid out on the table, but I didn’t think I could get anything down.

“We are steadily formalizing the Spirit Realm. This is a personal treat for the Paladin who has achieved such a great feat, so you can eat as much as you want.”

The Saintess, who said that, didn’t even pick up the tableware and started smoking a cigarette.

ㅡWhoosh.

Damn it.