"I’m leaving for classes now. I will be back in a few hours. It won’t take long. You can read some of the books if you like."
"Understood, master. But you forgot, I can’t read or write."
Yeah, I keep forgetting these major things. Thank God it’s not my ex-girlfriends, or they would make a deal out of it. But I’m not someone who forgets thrice.
"Then maybe see if those books have pictures."
Rue nodded and gave a smile. She reminds me of Remmy. I don’t want to remember her, but it’s hard not to. Will I get attached to Rue like I did with Remmy?
What am I thinking! She is not Remmy. Come together, Mark.
I left, and I felt something off, as if I was forgetting something. Ohh yeah, I have to stop by the church. Or else Sister Maren will give me the bell treatment.
Trauma is really a strong force.
When I got there, Sister Maren was giving blessings to some girls. The Weeping Crescent Cross in her hand. She was in her usual attire. Her white bangs hiding her eyes. Her circlet of thorns, shining more than usual.
⟨ You should have made some progress with her. Darling, are you taking my suggestion lightly? ⟩
"Someone is impatient. I have a gacha system here. Progress is going to be slow. And I was just thinking of using Kinky Scent on her."
⟨ Hmm. Hurry up, you don’t have much time left. ⟩
"Fine. Relax a bit."
My steps echoed as I approached the first row of benches. I stopped when I sat down. My turn would come after the girl. I had to wait.
"Sister Maren, I have been having trouble falling asleep lately."
The girl in front of Sister Maren genuinely sounded like she hadn’t been sleeping very well.
"Let me guess. You are experiencing an eeriness, in which you see things shifting, more like vibrating in place."
Sister Maren smiled, her small pink lips making her expression even more serene to look at.
The girl in front of her was stunned, as if her mind had been read, and even her friend had a reaction.
"How did you know, sister?"
"Hm, you are not the only one who is experiencing this. Many other students have reported the same eeriness. Some can tolerate it, others cannot."
Interesting, I haven’t experienced such things, but I did wake up in the middle of the night for no reason. I was tired, so it shouldn’t happen.
The same thing happened to Rue. Then you know what happened. But is there a connection, or am I trying to connect things?
"So why is this happening to us? Is there a cure?"
The girl asked.
"I’m trying my best to find the root cause, but it will take some time. I could make some real progress if I experienced this eeriness myself."
Sister Maren reached into her pocket and took out a small, pen-sized brown bottle with a wooden sealed cap.
"For now, use this oil. Rub a few drops on your forehead before sleeping, and you will be able to sleep well."
The girl took the bottle with both hands, holding it carefully.
"Thanks a lot, Sister Maren."
Sister Maren pressed the Weeping Crescent to the girl’s head and blessed her. With that, the girl left, and it was finally my turn.
"Oh, Elias. Regular, like I said. Good. I was hoping you would not feed your soul to the sin of lust, but I was wrong. I smell a woman on you."
What the fuck!? She not only reads minds but smells... does she mean literally or metaphorically?
What should I even say? I feel like anything I say will get me in trouble.
"I don’t want get involved in your personal matters. Whoever this girl is, you should be faithful."
Faithful? I’m trying to build a harem over here, excuse me? She pressed the Weeping Crescent to my forehead and blessed me.
"Are you having any negative thoughts lately?"
"No, sister. I’m perfectly fine. However, I do want to ask you somethings."
Sister Maren waited for me to reply. I had other plans; I made it look like I was rubbing an itchy nose. But I was activating my skill, Kinky Scent.
"Go ahead, what do you want to ask?"
Skill activated, my scent changed into something heavy and hard to swallow, like oil. Scent is different for every individual, makes sense.
But what does it tell me about Sister Maren? Maybe it reflects the truth of her nature.
"You know... our professor was telling us all about how your prayers got answered, and many more things."
I stepped forward suddenly, and she stepped back. I wasn’t doing anything suspicious. I was just trying to put some power into my next words.
"And the best part, which became my inspiration, is the part where you traded most of your power for knowledge of the world."
I even raised my voice so she could see the inspiration, giving a performance like those flamboyant men in anime.
I really thought this would flop, but it made Sister Maren blush. Although her grip tightened around the Weeping Crescent, she suppressed it.
"You think so? Most people call my decision... a waste. Since I still can’t grasp the entire knowledge of the world."
"No. I really meant it. I would love to learn from you, and what you did with the knowledge."
Her words felt sad, so I added some encouragement. Then a wind hit and messed up her bangs. I saw her eyes, those sparkling ocean-blue eyes, a white crescent carved into them.
Her blush was visible, and her hand touched my chest, gently.
"You are full of surprises, Elias. You even smell different. Your scent..."
Her breathing became a little heavy, and she was more flirtatious than you’d think, not like her usual cold and calm nature.
She suddenly came back to her old self, retreating her hand and holding the Weeping Crescent. Stepping back and fixing her bangs to hide her eyes.
One thing has been bugging me from the beginning. How can she even see with her eyes hidden? I’m in a magical world, I should stop asking obvious questions.
"Apologies. Forget I said anything. And about the knowledge of the world, it’s not something a student should stick their nose into."
"Oh, sad to hear."
Kinky Scent did work on Sister Maren, but she is a nun, so her self-control saved her. I can’t wait to try this on my future wife. Saelith, I want to see the naughty side of you.