Pitter-patter.
It had been raining outside the convent for the first time in a long while.
It was precisely because of this continuous rain for three or four days that the survivors gathered in the hall looked worried.
"Lord Silas relied on fire to avoid those things, right?"
"He must have another way?"
"No matter what his way is, he hasn't been back for so long... we'd better prepare for the worst. Fiona, you distribute the supplies; we can't wait anymore."
"..."
"Distributing supplies is fine, but those on watch must continue their shift. I will go with them."
Fiona drew her sword and placed it on the table, scanning everyone. "This isn't a joke. We can't let the safe zone Mr. Silas created go to waste just because you're scared. Have you all forgotten the misery of dozens of people squeezed into one room?"
"Then... wasn't it you who said staying with those knights might cause problems, so you forced us into one room?"
Someone retorted.
"You should be grateful."
Fiona pointed her sword at the person's face. "What those knights said at the beginning was to pick some to discard, take some pretty ones with status, and leave the others to fend for themselves."
"Which one do you think you are?"
"..."
The woman being pointed at lowered her head and stammered for a long time, unable to refute.
"Since you want to go, then go. After the rain stops, you can make me pull as many shifts as you want, but I'm definitely not going now. I don't want to die."
"I don't want to go either."
"Yeah, your abilities are better than ours, and you've been trained. Can't you just guard for us until the rain stops?"
"..."
Fiona grit her teeth; she really wanted to curse. She wanted to explode, to cut off a few heads like the elders in her family would have.
But she knew doing that now would only make people's hearts scatter further.
"I'll go."
Just as she was about to compromise, a voice sounded from the doorway.
It was the Sister, carrying a wooden basin, her hair soaking wet. The basin was filled with clean sheets; no one else had thought to bring them in, only she remembered.
"Sister Rose? You... alright."
"The Sister will take your place this time. But next time... whoever refuses a shift because of the rain..."
Thud!
Fiona's sword hacked into a wooden chair, leaving a deep gash. "I will personally cut her head off."
"...Eek!"
The survivors jumped in fright.
Outside the convent.
Fiona held a simple umbrella and handed the Sister another coat to keep her from getting soaked to the bone during the patrol.
"Sorry. I promised to look after you, but instead, you ended up out here with me."
Fiona spoke first.
"It's fine. I'm happy."
The nun showed a smile that Fiona couldn't quite decipher.
"How do I feel like... you aren't scared at all?"
"I am scared. But since he said the surrounding area is safe, it should be fine, right?"
"...Sister Rose, you seem to have changed."
"Have I?"
Rose put on the boots Fiona handed her. "This is my first time wearing such high-quality boots. But they look like men's combat boots?"
"Ah, these are what Lord Silas used for work. The waterproofing is quite good."
"Have you worn them?"
"Eh?"
Fiona was stunned for a moment, then gave a bitter smile. "I have my own boots. So, why can you still smile? The situation is delicate. I thought with plenty of supplies, keeping them stable for a month wouldn't be a problem. I didn't expect one rainstorm to break their spirits."
"Because I found out you aren't that perfect either."
"Who in the world is perfect? Even as good as Lord Silas is, he at least has the flaw of not quite grasping a woman's heart."
"I know, but this is the first time I've seen your flaw directly. Miss Fiona, your hand is shaking."
"..."
Being stared at by the nun, Fiona looked down at the hand gripping the hilt of her sword.
She wasn't wrong.
The knuckles gripping the hilt were indeed trembling slightly.
"Actually, they've never seen those monsters. But I have. I almost died at their hands. Honestly, just the thought of encountering them again terrifies me. You must have seen how wretched I looked when Lord Silas rescued me."
"I saw it. But I thought it was normal then. If it were me, I'd be scared too. I'd grab his arm because I felt so insecure."
"Ah, are you attacking me over this now? I already admitted defeat."
"..."
The two walked half a pace apart, moving through the wind and rain to the first intersection. There was an organized wooden shed nearby where they could take cover.
Despite the protective gear, Rose's habit was quite wet, revealing her somewhat flashy underwear underneath.
"Did Miss Rose... wear this kind of underwear back at the convent?"
"How could I?"
Sister Rose shook her head, staring out the window at the empty intersection. It was quite safe.
"Then... did you specifically do this to wait for him to come back?"
"Mhm."
"Sigh, I've noticed you two both speak so bluntly."
"Has Mr. Silas ever said anything blunt to you?"
"Forget I said anything."
Fiona glanced at the nun's bulging breasts and then looked down. She instinctively touched her cheek.
She felt Silas really hadn't been lying.
The gap wasn't just a little bit. Even as a woman, she wanted to know what that texture felt like.
"...Miss Rose?"
In her astonishment, she saw the nun smiling.
"My figure really is the best, it seems. It's natural. My mother had this figure too."
"Should I take that as bragging?"
"I'm just reclaiming my self-esteem."
"How so?"
"I have what you don't. I'm not afraid of what you fear."
"..."
That pithy meaning and the smile brimming with a hint of confidence left Fiona stunned for a long time.
"Miss Rose, you've changed quite thoroughly."
"If I don't change, he really will be snatched away."
"I only admire Lord Silas's abilities..."
"I wasn't talking about you, Miss Fiona."
"..."
Seeing the Sister sitting there with a calm smile, Fiona spoke again. "So, Miss Rose really isn't worried about Lord Silas at all?"
"I am worried."
"Then why..."
"Worry is useless. He saved me twice. Both times he came back right when I was about to give up in the face of cruel reality. He will this time, too."
"Ah, I can't take this. Is it necessary to have a bragging smile while saying 'saved me twice'? It makes me feel heavy. Is that something you use to build self-esteem, too?"
"...I think it is."
"Sigh, it's easy to imagine Rose as a nun giving birth to his cute children in the future."
"...?"
The Sister's expression, which had been steady until now, finally broke, her face turning slightly red.
"Hehe, now I've reclaimed a bit of self-esteem, haven't I?"
Splash, splash.
Fiona left with the umbrella, saying she was going to patrol other intersections to see if any walking dead were approaching.
Only the somewhat awkward nun remained in the shed.
Children?
That... would be natural. If he was willing to respond to her feelings. She didn't plan on being a nun anymore; what was so strange about it?
Looking at her joined toes, the leather boots were a bit dirty.
For no reason at all, she just normally took them off. She instinctively held them in her arms.
This man... did he work for several days straight in these boots and couldn't even bear to wipe them or wash his feet?
If... if he married her, they wouldn't be so smelly.
Of course, she was also uneasy.
How could she be so calm?
She was still regretting to this day—if he had said something else when he said goodbye, would he have stayed? But it had already happened; all she could do was stay behind and wait.
If she imagined unfortunate scenarios, she wouldn't have the confidence to be this calm. She could only think of heart-pounding scenes that hadn't happened yet.
Rustle.
She rubbed the leather of the boot against the chest of her habit. Within seconds, she felt the buds pressing against her underwear, feeling a bit awkward.
Her hand reached further down into her skirt.
Rubbing the engorged part of her slit.
Who needed so much of his finger's attention? Her body... had long since become strange. When she pulled her finger out, it was trailing strings of slime.
Please come back soon.
She no longer felt that slut was something insurmountable. As long as she wanted to, as long as he was willing to respond to her, she could do anything.
She didn't feel the female knight was that noble either; she got scared just the same. And her figure wasn't as good as her own. She wouldn't be as good at taking care of people, either.
This was all learned from the notes. Although the notes said if one wasn't satisfied, one could self-satisfy like this. The nun, however, used it to discard negative thoughts, thinking only of the good.
"..."
A moment later, her body trembled slightly, her lips parted.
A large amount of love juice sprayed onto the leather of the boot. She stared at it wordlessly, then hurriedly looked for something to wipe it clean.
She waited for perhaps an hour.
Fiona, soaked to the bone, returned.
Sniff...
"Hmm? Why do I smell a strange fragrance? Did Miss Rose bring perfume?"
"No, it's your imagination. I'm tired; I'll leave the rest to you, Miss Fiona."
"No trouble. I should be the one thanking you. If Miss Rose hadn't proactively teamed up with me, I wouldn't know what to do."
"..."
"Can you... not stare so directly at my breasts while I sleep? It feels weird."
"..."
The nun was indeed staring at the small shapes of her breasts through her wet clothes, gaining a certain sense of superiority from it.
She closed her eyes.
Visions of Silas encountering something difficult and dying flashed in her mind—horrific images.
She brushed them away.
Go to sleep.
He told Fiona it would take a month at most; it had only been over half a month. It was still early. Instead of thinking about him meeting misfortune, she'd better think about what to say when he got back.
Boldly, she'd take his hand, press it against her chest, and ask if he liked her breasts, if they were the best... no, that's too slutty.
Just normally apologize to him, and then say it out loud...
Gradually, Sister Rose fell asleep in a beautiful dream.
"Ah, Mr. Silas."
"..."
She was woken up by noise at some point. Opening her eyes, she saw the familiar figure.
"I thought you really wouldn't be back for a month. Honestly, I was about to reach my limit."
Fiona breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"..."
The Sister sat up, finding it a bit hard to look Silas in the face. Seeing his hair dripping with water and his clothes completely soaked, she hurried to find something—a cloth... ah, this one was just used to wipe herself down there and the boots.
She'd use the clothes she was wearing.
"You, why do you look so relieved? Do you want to trade with me again?"
"Th-that..."
Hearing Silas's exhausted and slightly cold voice, the Sister's toes curled. She almost retreated.
"Is it... not okay if I do?"
She hung her head, but still gathered the courage to say it.
But what greeted her was no answer, only Silas falling face-first into her chest.
"Mr. Silas (Lord Silas)!"
Now the Sister saw it. Silas's sleeves weren't just soaked with rain; it was mostly blood. Peeling back the sleeve, the arm inside was almost necrotic, with purple veins extending all the way to his neck. Unquestionably, it was a toxin spreading.
"Sister Rose, it looks like Lord Silas is poisoned. We have to cut this meat off quickly!"
"..."
She watched Fiona take action, only to shake her head dejectedly because the toxin was spreading too fast and covered too large an area.
The Sister took the knife, but she didn't know where to start. After all, besides his head, no part of Silas's body wasn't contaminated.
Why didn't he come back easily, just as she had imagined?
She knew he was a normal person too. He would encounter danger. It was her... who only wanted to think about the good things.
And why did she always wait until she truly lost something to start feeling regret?
Back then, he was clearly going to find a way out for her, yet she took out an IOU and talked about payment after the trade was over... she only thought about cutting ties so she wouldn't suffer.
Truly, I am sorry. I realized too late.
What should I do?
"..."
"Miss Fiona, help me carry Mr. Silas back quietly! I have a way to save him!"
Ah.
Right. She had been contaminated before, and then he used that slippery thing to save her. It will definitely restore him.