The Succubus, The Priest, and His Fall Into Lustful Heat - Chapter 40
To put it simply, things were not okay.
“Sue, what are you doing there! Why haven’t you moved the vase yet?”
“That area still needs to be cleaned!”
“Sue, come here! You’re in the way!”
It wasn’t just something related to Payne that was not okay; she herself was in a problematic situation.
“Uh, um, yes?!”
As soon as she arrived at work, she was pulled in every direction for various chores, and now they were bossing her around relentlessly.
Was the job of a maid always this tough? It seemed even harder than yesterday.
“Just a moment! I’ll be right there!”
Due to all this, she hadn’t even caught a glimpse of Payne.
Considering he might think he encountered a demon in his dream, she needed to see his reaction.
‘Wait, why am I even working here?’
Perfect camouflage was essential, of course. This is Katzel Medialle.
But did that mean she had to be a perfect maid?
‘If there are exemplary maids, there must be bad ones too!’
Having been diligent so far, perhaps she could afford to slack off a bit now.
With that thought, Ashtel casually backed away while pretending to lift a peculiar vase—engraved with Katzel’s sigil.
She was planning to sneak off to where Payne was, but then…
“Miss, is it okay to put that there?”
“Ah!”
Suddenly, someone grabbed her shoulder.
Startled, Ashtel turned around to face a familiar paladin.
“Sir Duval?”
“It’s Duvalkan.”
He swept back his short blond hair with a charming smile.
But Ashtel wasn’t going to be swayed by that. She quickly raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms.
“What do you want? Why are you here?”
“I came to see Father Payne.”
“Oh, is the Father around here?”
“Yes, but… are you not going to move that?”
Caught trying to escape, Ashtel rolled her eyes and feigned exhaustion, shrugging her shoulders.
“I couldn’t possibly move it alone; I was looking for a helper.”
“Oh, really? Shall I help you?”
Duvalkan tilted his head with a friendly smile and stepped up beside the vase as his armor clanked.
Regardless of the reason, if Duvalkan was willing to help, Ashtel saw no harm in accepting his offer.
‘Every time I try to find Payne, this guy shows up.’
Not long ago, he had grabbed her arm quite forcefully. Ashtel found Duvalkan quite disagreeable, but she couldn’t exactly show her displeasure, so she just shuffled her feet quickly.
Her reaction seemed like that of an angry kitten, which made Duvalkan chuckle softly.
‘What, is he laughing at me?’
Was he looking down on her because she was just a maid doing menial tasks?
Her eyebrows knitted fiercely as the knight’s smile grew wider. But Ashtel, having observed many human men over the years, knew that his laugh was not out of genuine amusement.
‘He’s scrutinizing me.’
From every strand of her hair to the thread sticking out of her apron. He seemed oddly on guard, cataloging every detail about her.
‘…Why?’
Just then, Duvalkan lifted the vase effortlessly and strode forward. The clanking of his armor passed by Ashtel.
“Should I place it here, Miss Sue?”
“Oh, yes.”
“Right.”
Duvalkan set the vase easily on the shelf, then stretched his shoulders nonchalantly, grinning.
“To task such a fragile maid with this work. The staff must really be short-handed.”
How could he say such annoying things? Surely, this wasn’t his idea of making an effort?
‘My stomach is churning. I want to see Payne.’
Ashtel’s sullen expression was forming when Duvalkan cocked his head curiously.
“Miss, are you feeling unwell?”
“No, I’m fine. Since you’re done here, you can go now.”
“Oh, but I’d like to chat more with you.”
I certainly would not.
Just as she was about to say that, Ashtel caught a familiar scent.
Sniffing the air, she turned to see Payne crossing the corridor in the distance, accompanied by several high priests.
‘Payne!’
Her face lit up instantly, resembling a wagging puppy. Duvalkan followed her gaze.
“Oh, there’s Father Payne.”
“I need to go see him!”
“That might be difficult right now. He’s preparing for the upcoming hymn ceremony.”
“What?”
“Father Payne has been selected to lead this session’s prayer, I also had matters to attend to.”
Duvalkan rubbed the back of his head. He seemed to say that Payne’s tied up right now and Ashtel might need to wait a bit before talking to him.
‘…A hymn ceremony?’
Ashtel furrowed her brows. She hadn’t heard of that before. The morning had been busier than usual, and now she realized it was because of this unexpected event.
Damn, I didn’t know, and I’ve been cursing needlessly.
‘Wait, that scent coming from Payne…’
Could it possibly mean he is e–ct right now?
