The Goddess Is Obsessed With Me

"Wa..Wait a minute..."

I stammered, raising a hand to stop Mir, who looked suspiciously triumphant.

"Why? I'm offering to free you from the curse as you wished. Do you have any complaints?"

I was utterly flustered, but she tilted her head as if she couldn't understand my reaction.

"It's not a complaint, it's more like an aversion. What did you just say? I have to break the oath?"

As Mir, with her criminal-looking eyes, approached me, I instinctively stepped back.

"To lift the curse, there's no other way. I don't know which heretic you battled, but the curse engraved in you is not ordinary."

While a curse is never ordinary, she held the dagger with a solemn air, trying to convince me. She looked ready to stab me with that blade, and I felt that if I kept retreating, I'd face a dire situation.

Remembering the unpleasant sensation of almost having my oath forcibly broken by Mir, I felt a shiver run down my spine.

Like a criminal cornering a protagonist, she deliberately approached me slowly, while I tried to keep my distance.

Thud!

"Wha?!"

My escape had its limits. Soon, my back hit a cold, hard wall, making it clear I had nowhere left to run. Whether it was bad luck or Mir's cunning trap, I found myself in a desolate alleyway.

"Why are you resisting? I'm offering to remove the filth that contaminates your soul. Shouldn't you be grateful?"

Of course, her offer to lift the dreadful curse was tempting... but the process she proposed was unbearable.

How the curse would be lifted, I didn't know, but the mere idea of breaking the oath provided ample reason to reject Mir's proposal.

"Aren't there any other magical ways to do this?!"

The traumatic end of that dark day, when the curse had begun to torment me, bubbled up, intensifying my aversion.

"I don't think so~?"

She stretched out the sentence with a mischievous smile.

This... This expression meant there certainly was another way...

But Mir insisted there wasn't, pushing me into a corner of inner conflict.

Do I endure the curse and its agony or break the oath and find peace?

The curse's effects were debilitating, making daily life unbearable. I needed a solution.

However, breaking the oath wasn't an easy choice either.

Breaking the oath felt like a death sentence to me, mainly because of Eleona's intense obsession.

The oath symbolized the bond between a deity and its servant. My engraved oath was definitive proof of my connection with Eleona.

Breaking it would sever that bond, leaving no reason for me to stay by her side, which is why I had always been sensitive about it.

Eleona had warned, almost with disdain, that breaking the oath would be catastrophic and should never happen.

Whenever I tried to do so, she'd summon me and pressure me with cold, intimidating eyes.

After my first attempt to break the oath, Eleona's demeanor changed. Every time I tried to do so, she'd suppress my freedom, ensuring I couldn't escape her.

Though I've suppressed thoughts of breaking the oath, the desire hasn't disappeared.

If I tried to part ways with her now, she'd capture me just like before.

With all the memories I've shared with her, including those I can't undo, she'd likely go mad if I left now... Just imagining it made me involuntarily groan.

I had to think of an excuse, something to convince Mir, who seemed to know of another method.

In the midst of my desperate search for a way out...

Huh?

A vague memory surfaced, providing a potentially useful argument.

It was a fragment of a memory, a vivid scene of the day I first met Mir. The day she asked me to become her dark knight, I chose the goddess I serve. That day, Miru tried to forcibly sever my oath.

The dagger she used then was exactly like the one threatening me now.

In a crazed frenzy, Mir tried to thrust the dagger into my chest, intending to sever the symbol connecting me to Eleona and forcibly bond me to herself.

But just as the oath was about to be broken, I was summoned by Eleona and had to painstakingly explain the situation.

The key point was that if someone tried to forcibly sever the oath, I'd be summoned by Eleona.

I need to use this point to make my case to Mir.

"But if you tamper with the oath without the goddess's permission, wouldn't I just vanish like last time?"

I said with a self-assured smirk, but...

"That's not your concern. I was merely caught off guard last time, unaware of such a mechanism. This time, I won't make that mistake."

Mir seemed to have had a countermeasure from the start, easily refuting the argument I'd desperately come up with.

I thought I'd thrown a trump card, but... her refutation was so swift that I was left speechless.

"Thought you had something clever up your sleeve, but that's all?"

With a dismissive look, Mir gazed at my flustered face, and the energy from the dagger intensified.

"If there's nothing else, let's proceed."

Contrary to my seriousness, she casually thrusts the dagger towards my chest.

"Wait!!"

In desperation, I shout. She sighs exasperatedly, briefly glancing at the sky.

"Why? I've already said there's no surefire method other than this."

Her eyebrows furrowed, seemingly unable to understand my hesitation.

No surefire method other than this...

Reflecting on Mir's words, I spot a loophole.

"You mean it's a surefire method, but not the only one, right?"

She remained silent, seemingly unable to deny it.

"If you try to sever the oath again, I'll be summoned by Eleona. And she'll do whatever it takes to reclaim me."

"Hmm..."

She looked at me, intrigued yet slightly uneasy.

"So, if there's another treatment, tell me. Breaking the oath... not right now."

Perhaps moved by my final plea, she groaned inwardly. She then sheathed the threatening dagger.

"You really are a slippery fish. Fine, for now, I'll back off."

Relieved, I exhale deeply, releasing all my tension.

"Well, another method isn't necessarily bad for me."

So there was another method besides breaking the oath.

"So we agree to proceed with the alternative treatment?"

Seeking confirmation, I nod strongly at her.

"I don't know what it is, but please go ahead."

The moment I gave permission, she grabbed both my shoulders, immobilizing me.

"Good, you agreed? No regrets later."

Her words were unsettling.

"Mir? What are you about to—"

Smack—

Caught off guard by a sudden unease, my protest was cut short by the sensation of her lips against mine.

"?!?!"

Mir's surprise kiss caught me completely off guard, delivering a critical blow.

As I came to my senses, my eyes widened in shock. I tried to resist her forceful intrusion, but... "Shh, if you act like that, it's distracting. Stay still."

The increasing force of her hold meant I had no choice but to let her steal my lips without resistance.

"Puh..."

Finally, our lips part, and I'm thankful to breathe the cold air again. Still, the feeling of being taken advantage of left a bitter taste in my mouth.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

As soon as my mouth was free, I immediately protested, but she just shrugged and retorted.

"You said to try another method, didn't you? I just respected your opinion and did as you wished."

Is this the... other treatment method Mir mentioned?

But before I could voice my disbelief, her next words forced me to accept the reality.

"I've sucked out the darkness the curse is harboring within you, because I feed on darkness. This might be a bit stimulating, but by directly absorbing the darkness from you like this, the curse will become much less bothersome."

I wanted to argue, but her convincing words left me with lingering doubts that I had to accept.

"So... has the curse been lifted now?"

But she shook her head to my question.

"Unfortunately, no. I've just sucked out the darkness the curse was harboring, not the curse itself. It still remains within you."

Then, what was the point of all this... intimacy?

I grumbled internally, but she seemed to read my thoughts and refuted them.

"Still, the pain from the curse will be lessened for a while. And remember, I told you the surefire method was to sever the oath and lift the curse. You chose this method. Isn't it a bit unfair to look like that?"

I might be at fault for not asking for details and just asking her to do it, but seeing her smug expression, I still wanted to retort.

"Alright... So, what should we do next? The root cause hasn't disappeared, so it's not like this will be the last time you steal my lips."

I half-hoped it would be, but reality was cruel.

"Right, so when the pain from the curse becomes unbearable, you'll need this treatment again."

Hearing her words, I heaved a huge sigh. I wanted to toss everything aside, but knowing that this wasn't as bad as severing the connection with Eleona, I begrudgingly accepted it.

"But... why can't this method completely break the curse? The heretic who threw that dagger didn't seem all that powerful."

Mir began to explain about the curse embedded within me.

"It seemed like the curse was contained within that dagger and transferred to you when you were struck by it. I wasn't there, so I can't be sure, but this curse isn't ordinary."

Once again, she emphasized the danger of the curse, raising another question in my mind.

What kind of curse could it be that even the last dragon, who has fed on darkness all its life, cannot easily break?

"But I've been wondering all along, what is this curse? What is its nature that you speak of it this way?"

Mir pondered for a moment, creating a silhouette reminiscent of a detective in deep thought.

"From the power the curse emits... I can't be certain, but I think I know its master."

Its master? Does that mean she knows who cast the curse?

"Who is it?"

Unable to contain my curiosity, I pressed her. Mir set a heavy atmosphere with her serious gaze.

"Rusria... one of the ancient gods that no longer exists in the world. A god who fell from grace due to the darkness..."

She murmured as if speaking of someone familiar.

It was a name I had definitely heard before. While she never appeared directly in the game, she was an ancient deity described indirectly. According to the lore, Rusria was originally a goddess of purity but accepted darkness for power during the era of the war with the dragons and fell from grace. Given the nature of the heretics who worship and serve the fallen deities, or the ancient gods, it made chilling sense if the curse was related to this ancient deity, as Miru suggested. "I faintly remember, but she probably vanished before I reached my full form."

No matter if they were both deities, in an era with a common enemy like dragons, if one fell to darkness, they'd be considered in the same vein as dragons and would be opposed by other gods and eventually disappear.

Mir's words revealed intriguing facts that weren't known in the game.

"I'm not sure if you're aware, but... the ultimate goal of the heretics is to resurrect the ancient gods. So, it's not surprising that you, who had an encounter with heretics, are cursed with the power of Rusria."

Everything began to fall into place as I quickly pieced together the facts and information.

"But how did these heretics manage to infuse the curse with the power of an ancient god like Rusria?"

"Even though they're heretics, they have their own skilled practitioners. They probably used some kind of dark magic, studying the gods they worship and somehow recreating a semblance of their power."

So that's why even Mir couldn't easily break it. No matter how much Mir consumed darkness and grew stronger, the curse within me was, in a way, divine power... It made sense.

"It's unfortunate, but why did you have to confront these fanatics who possess such dangerous objects..."

Seeing her sympathetic gaze, I didn't know how to respond.

Reflecting on it, my bad luck was undeniable, and I couldn't find the words.

"So, what should I do now? I want to completely lift this curse..."

There was a lot of discussion, but the bottom line was that the curse couldn't be easily lifted...

"Is there really no way?" I murmured, unsure if I was speaking to myself or not. Mir threw in her opinion.

"I can't guarantee anything, but perhaps if you have more direct confrontations with the heretics, some clues might emerge."

That said, unless there's a specific event, it's not easy to encounter heretics. But as I thought about it, a realization struck me.

There is...?

As I considered the progression of the main story, I recalled a major storyline event that was about to unfold.

Like transitioning to the next chapter of a story, the main setting of the story would shift from the guild hall and city streets to another major location...

"I need to go right now. There's something urgent I need to attend to. Thanks for all the information," I quickly said.

"Hmm... If you say so... But remember this: you need to come to me periodically for treatment."

She looked slightly flustered, mixing her advice with a hint of other emotions.

"I understand."

After taking Mir's advice, I left the alleyway in haste.

There might not be a significant change immediately, but the urgency propelled my steps.

I need to be as involved as possible with the heretics... Normally, it would be difficult, but as the main story progresses, that narrative will soon unfold.

Although it might be a slim possibility, the glimmer of hope continued to hasten my steps.