Conquest Complete, So Why Is the Affection Dropping? - Chapter 3
As I quickly closed the book and got up, Hexion opened the library door. Although he was a guardian knight, since there was no real danger inside the temple, his duties weren’t much different from a servant’s. Since awakening in this possessed body, I haven’t opened a door with my own hands.
The temple, as expected, had a spacious and pleasant garden. The Divine Master’s quarters were located in the innermost part of the temple, with the prayer room where priests gathered to pray in front, and the knights’ training grounds in the back.
When we crossed over to the backyard where the training grounds were, I saw an arch covered in white roses. As I was about to descend the stairs, I suddenly became aware that Hexion was following me, maintaining exactly one step’s distance.
‘If I pretend to fall on the stairs, couldn’t I get him to hold me?’ Traditionally, catching the heroine when she stumbles and their eyes meet is a classic cliché. It might be cliché now, but being cliché means it works well.
“Hexion! You know, that bench under the arch…”
I deliberately took a misstep while looking back energetically. I wasn’t worried at all about getting hurt from falling on the stairs. After all, a man who couldn’t catch a falling woman wasn’t qualified to be a capture target in an otome game.
Inappropriate behavior detected!
What?
“Ah!”
“Shin Joo!”
Instead of hitting my foot with the axe I trusted, my knee got hit. Slipping on the stairs and falling face-first onto the stone floor, I thought my knee was shattered. The pain was so intense that tears welled up in my eyes.
“Shin Joo! Are you alright?”
Startled, Hexion approached me with a worried expression.
‘I thought Hexion would catch me…’
Why does a knight have such poor reflexes? Isn’t it basic for male leads in romance fantasy to safely catch heroines falling from rooftops? Maybe it doesn’t apply in games because it’s just a literary license? Wasn’t this supposed to be a universal rule across genres?
As I raised my upper body while massaging my aching knee, I noticed a red warning window appearing between Hexion and me.
Actions violating wholesomeness are restricted. Reason: Attempting physical contact without consent from the other party.
What is this?
What kind of children’s educational game is this? If it’s going to be like this, they should drop the dating game title!
Dumbfounded, I pushed aside the window with the warning message, and the worried Hexion asked me again.
“Shin Joo, are you alright?”
“It hurts…”
“You should watch where you’re going.”
I did it on purpose thinking Hexion would catch me. How was I supposed to know I’d actually fall because the system restricted the action?
Not just Hexion, but the system also wouldn’t tolerate any mischief. If I’d known earlier, I would have just quietly enjoyed looking at the flowers.
“Huu.”
I heard Hexion let out a quiet sigh, and his purple eyes came close enough to reflect my face.
“Forgive me, Shin Joo.”
“What? For wha- Ah!”
Large hands gripped my waist and lifted me up. An arm thicker than my thigh supported beneath my bottom. Suddenly finding myself at a higher eye level, I gaped at Hexion, unable to adjust.
The man who always stood firmly behind me like a pillar was now holding my body in his arms.
“As one tasked with protecting Shin Joo, I failed to fulfill my duty properly. Though it may be uncomfortable, please allow me to carry you like this.”
“Ah, um…”
I should have said it was fine, that my fall wasn’t Hexion’s fault. But the words wouldn’t come out.
‘With such a virtuous face, yet those muscles are insane…!’
My breathing naturally became rough due to the steel-like firm arm muscles I could feel against my bottom and thighs, and the chest muscles touching my knees.
I knew he was big, but actually feeling it physically made me realize he was really twice, no, three times my size. His hands could probably wrap around my waist with room to spare.
‘This is crazy. Look at how big his hands are…!’
Thinking about being touched by those hands as big as pot lids made me want to skip the story and just get to the action. Why isn’t this rated 18+?
“Shin Joo, what’s wrong?”
“Ah, um, Hexion.”
“Does your injury hurt?”
When Hexion’s deep voice resonated near my ear, my breathing quickened. He was handsome enough from afar to make my heart flutter, but up close, it was dizzying. If this were reality, we’d be close enough to kiss.
Inappropriate behavior detected!
A bright red warning window blocked my desire-filled hands from trying to touch Hexion’s chest. I grew impatient.
“Hexion. Can’t I just touch a little bit?”
Message deleted due to inappropriate content.
“Or you could touch me instead.”
Message deleted due to inappropriate content.
As every word I uttered was consistently censored and deleted, I began to grow suspicious.
Just how strict are these settings? Even a conservative grandfather wouldn’t censor things this suffocatingly.
‘Is this really a dating game?’
Don’t tell me the game’s release date kept getting delayed not because of development issues, but because of censorship.
‘What kind of morally uptight game is this!’
Why attach the setting of a chaste and disciplined holy knight to that thick, firm, muscle-packed body? Wasn’t it meant to stimulate women’s hidden desires by making him unattainable?
Yet now they’re saying we can’t touch – isn’t this going too far?
“I want to file for worker’s compensation…”
“While I deeply regret my failure to properly attend to you, you must acknowledge that you were also reckless, Shin Joo.”
“That’s not what I meant…”
I sincerely want to complain to this game’s developers.
Would “I’m dying of withdrawal symptoms because I want to touch my guardian knight but can’t” be a valid reason?
I sighed and muttered complaints that no one would hear.
“Sigh. To see such an indecent chest and not be allowed to touch it – how am I supposed to live with this torment?”
“…”
Hexion’s steps carrying me suddenly stopped.
“Shin Joo.”
“Yes?”
“Did you just imply there’s something immoral about my body?”
“…What?”
I turned my head and met Hexion’s gaze. I could see his usually expressionless purple eyes trembling.
‘Wait. Did that comment get through without filtering? This is crazy!’
They said they’d delete all inappropriate remarks. How come “Let Me Touch You” gets blocked but “indecent chest lament” goes through? What kind of standards are these?
“Um, what exactly did I say?”
“That my chest was indecent.”
“Aaagh! You really heard that!”
“I’m not so mentally lax that I wouldn’t hear words spoken this close to me.”
Despite being sexually harassed, Hexion’s voice remained calm. However, he couldn’t have misunderstood my intentions.
After all, Hexion was looking at me with the expression of a parent who’d just found an adult magazine in their teenage son’s room.
‘I’m doomed. Logout!’
I desperately called for logout like searching for a wooden plank in the vast ocean, but naturally, the system window remained silent.
‘Is logout impossible because this is a transgression?’
My face burned with embarrassment. I wanted to run away from this place right now, but being in Hexion’s arms made that impossible. Unable to hide my overwhelming shame, I covered my face with both hands.
If I die here, would I return to reality? Since Shin Joo has a human body and physical laws apply, would I die if I just jump?
“Shin Joo. You haven’t answered.”
“…I’m sorry, Hexion. That was a mistake just now.”
“A mistake implies an unintended action. Are you saying you spoke those words to me without any thought?”
My character was being thrown into the trash bin right before Hexion’s eyes. Though I brought this upon myself, it still felt unfair. Why didn’t the system filtering work then!
“Speaking such words in jest to someone who cannot defy Shin Joo’s words is not proper behavior for a god’s representative.”
“Well, it wasn’t exactly a joke…”
Rather the opposite. Though it was a lament, the content was sincere. Your body is so sensual that just touching you excites me.
…But saying that would only make me look like a pervert.
‘Damn it, I’m ruined.’
I’ve experienced all sorts of bad endings playing various dating games, but I’ve never experienced such a death by embarrassment. I didn’t want to taste this kind of social death. If they added this as some kind of fresh twist, they should just get rid of it!
“While I would be honored if you regard me specially in any way.”
“Just kill me…”
