Episode 2. The First Trial—Aphrodisiac

“Sir… Sir Knight…!”

At Heliod’s sudden movement, I fell backward, my upper body collapsing as well. Lying on the stark white floor, Heliod gasped for air, his pupils dilated as he moved his hips.

“Ah… Ugh, hmph.”

His feather-like hair brushed against the nape of my neck. Heliod’s black cloak draped over us like a curtain, and the sound of his thick, erect member rubbing against the fabric echoed in the white space. As my mind went blank, I felt an overwhelming sensation and gulped. When I forced myself to look down, there it was—Heliod’s member, even more massive up close than it had appeared from a distance.

‘Even down there, he’s perfect…’

I was ashamed of myself for having such thoughts in this situation, but I couldn’t help it. How could anyone not get excited when someone so beautiful was panting from the effects of an aphrodisiac?

I discreetly rubbed his groin with my knee, and Heliod’s hips trembled violently.

“Hnngh!”

More than anything, this man was extremely sensitive. Even though he was under the influence of an aphrodisiac, the fact that he looked like he was about to finish after just a few rubs…

Ah… If this goes on, I won’t be able to hold back either…

“Gasp. This isn’t right.”

Never mind the vow of chastity for a paladin; this place was a dangerous, mysterious space. Heliod said it was a dream, but if so, it had to be the work of high-level magic, which meant there was no time for this. I hurriedly pushed away Heliod’s advances.

“Sir Knight! Sir Vus! You can’t do this!”

I pushed against his shoulders, trying to snap him out of it, and Heliod hesitated. However, he didn’t stop moving his hips like a beast in heat. In the end, I gritted my teeth and bit down hard on his neck.

“…Hnngh?!”

Heliod’s head snapped back, revealing his flushed face and tear-filled eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut and covered his neck, where a drop of blood had begun to form.

“I’m sorry for hurting you. Sir Knight, we don’t have time for this!”

Heliod’s gaze, momentarily regaining focus, locked onto me. He breathed heavily, furrowing his brows, though soft moans still escaped his lips.

“Lady… Arpen…”

“Are you alright? Are you coming to your senses?”

Heliod didn’t respond. He bit his lip and staggered as he tried to stand above me. I wiped the sweat from my forehead, which had been brought on by Heliod’s intense body heat, and looked him over.

The front of his pants was soaked, and his face, lost in pleasure, looked dazed. He clenched his hand over his neck, trying to regain control, but his breath remained ragged.

I shook my head. I needed to get a grip. Heliod was under the influence of a poison right now.

‘I can’t give in!’

When Heliod wobbled, trying to get up, I quickly moved to support him and asked,

“It’s because of the aphrodisiac, right?”

“…Yes.”

“How did we end up like this?”

Every time my hand touched him, Heliod flinched and twisted his lower body. I quickly withdrew my hand and took a step back. Heliod’s face flushed with shame and guilt.

“I’m sorry… This is all my fault…”

“Was it an assassination attempt aimed at you, Sir Knight?”

“Uh, something like that.”

He shut his eyes tightly, struggling to continue speaking.

“It’s a demon’s curse.”

“…What?”

I couldn’t help but be shocked by Heliod’s words. A demon’s curse?

“Aren’t all the demons supposed to be gone?”

“The last… remaining demon cursed me.”

Heliod’s left hand trembled as if it was about to move downward. I realized he was barely holding back his urge to release. Clearing my throat, I looked away from him.

“What kind of curse is it?”

“…”

“Is it related to this situation?”

Heliod nodded. As his breathing grew more labored, the neatly buttoned jacket he wore heaved noticeably.

“It’s… a curse of corruption.”

“Corruption?”

Heliod’s already flushed face turned even redder, like a ripe apple. He covered his face with one hand and took a deep breath.

“Yes… and it seems that Lady Arpen got caught up in it.”

“Uh?”

I awkwardly laughed and glanced around.

“By corruption, do you mean… in that way?”

I couldn’t hold back any longer. I had been trying to act like I wasn’t paying attention out of respect for the Empire’s hero and holy knight, but I couldn’t stop my finger from pointing downward.

Heliod grabbed his cloak and covered his lower body. The hand clutching the cloak trembled. His damp eyelashes fluttered rapidly as he nodded.

“Huh…”

I let out a laugh in disbelief. The last demon’s curse was something like this?

“What exactly is the curse? How do we get out of here?”

Heliod hesitated, his face turning even redder as he answered.

“…I must maintain my purity.”

“Pardon, what?”

“If I can resist… the trials the demon puts me through and maintain my purity… Ah.”

Heliod wavered again. When I took a step closer, he reached out a hand to stop me.

“So please, don’t come near me… If we slip up… it might happen again, like before…”

Was he referring to when he was rubbing himself against my leg? Heliod’s blue eyes wavered as if recalling the recent incident.

I hesitated before speaking cautiously.

“So, if you just keep your purity, um, your body intact, we can leave this dream?”

“Yes, that’s right. But since we’re asleep… it’ll take a few hours…”

Heliod’s blue eyes darkened with gloom for a moment.

“When enough time has passed for us to wake up, we can leave.”

Hmm. I rubbed my chin.

It seemed that there wasn’t any danger beyond the threat to his purity. If waking up from the dream would let us escape…

‘Why me, though? Is it because I happened to be near him?’

That hypothesis seemed likely, but I couldn’t imagine a demon’s curse being so simplistic. Still, no matter how much I thought about it, there was nothing more I could deduce at the moment.

As I approached to speak with Heliod further, he startled and backed away.

“Sir Knight?”

“Please…”

Heliod tightly shut his eyes and lowered his head. His firm lower body twitched.

“Please, don’t come any closer.”

“Is it very difficult?”

Heliod didn’t respond. He clenched his mouth shut, his breath hot and heavy as he covered his face.

“It’s hard to stay sane… I might end up burdening you…”

“Do you have to endure like this until we wake up?”

“Probably… yes.”

Heliod’s face darkened as he bit his lip. For the next few hours, the relentless waves of pleasure seemed suffocating; he tore at his collar, desperate for relief.

“Sir Knight.”

“…Yes.”

“Enduring the effects of an aphrodisiac for hours is torture.”

Heliod’s eyes, clouded with the heat of the curse, showed he agreed with my words. There had to be a way to help him. I thought hard.

I always carry a protective artifact with me, but none that could neutralize an aphrodisiac. If we leave things as they are, Heliod would suffer too much. Plus, there’s the real risk that, under the influence of the aphrodisiac, he might lose control and attack me, as often happens with such substances. My safety was at stake as well.

‘It’s a real possibility. A vile demon’s curse would likely target that.’

Heliod Vus, unable to control his desires and pouncing on me like a beast… Ah, that’s… too much to handle…

“Gasp. No, this isn’t right.”

I slapped my cheek to snap myself out of it. The thought of our noble and holy knight succumbing to lust and committing a crime was unacceptable.

“Sir Knight, perhaps it would be better if you… took care of it yourself? As long as you keep your purity intact.”

“…What?”

Heliod jerked his head up, his blue eyes trembling as if he hadn’t heard me correctly.

“You see, keeping your purity means… um… as long as, well, there’s no… penetration, or, um… intercourse… right?”

I struggled to avoid saying anything too crude, and my words came out awkwardly. But Heliod seemed to understand, as his face turned bright red, and he gripped the edge of his cloak tightly.

“I… I can’t do that. Not in front of you, Lady Arpen…”

“I’m suggesting it because I’m worried you might completely lose control like before. Wouldn’t it be better to relieve yourself a bit and try to endure?”

“But, that’s…”

By now, I was more intrigued by the idea of seeing Heliod in such a vulnerable state than I was worried about the curse. I took a step closer to him, subtly.

“It’s okay. You’re struggling too much as it is.”

Heliod’s face was full of hesitation. He was clearly having trouble even standing, twisting his hips now and then as he fought against the overwhelming pleasure. I moved closer, until we were nearly touching, and gave him a gentle smile.

“Or… would you like me to help you?”

Heliod’s expression, already filled with heat, cracked slightly.

“What… are you saying…?”

“If you lose control, I could end up in danger too. It’s actually safer for you to deal with it now.”

Heliod’s mouth opened slightly in shock. His lips, swollen and red from biting them, parted just enough to reveal his bright red tongue, making me want to kiss him.

“Is this your first time, Sir Knight?”

“…”

“I have a little experience, so I could help you.”

Heliod’s eyes wavered greatly as he looked at me. His face, flushed with heat, trembled as he gulped and lowered his gaze. He looked at his disheveled uniform, my elegant dress, and then at his painfully erect member, and finally, he covered his eyes with his hand.

“…Are you a demon?”

“What?”

I gave him a mockingly sweet look.

“Of course not. If I were a demon, I would have started by stripping you down.”

Heliod looked horrified at my retort.

“How can you say such things…?”

“I’ll only help you with… self-relief. But if you don’t need my help, then I guess that’s that.”

Heliod’s face flushed bright red again. I noticed his arousal throbbing through his pants as he tried to maintain his composure. When he saw my eyes drift downward, he quickly grabbed my shoulders and pushed me away.

“…I mustn’t lose control.”

Heliod struggled to find his words.

“Please, Lady Arpen, keep your distance. I will… try to handle this myself.”

“Hmm, alright.”

I nodded, hiding my disappointment. At least I had managed to convince him this much.

Once we had reached a conclusion, Heliod immediately distanced himself from me. I turned my back to him, giving him privacy for the sake of his mental state. But after 10 minutes, 20 minutes, even 30 minutes, I still heard the same wet, slick sounds coming from where Heliod was. Something felt off. I knew I shouldn’t, but I couldn’t resist cautiously approaching the panting Heliod.

“Um… Sir Knight?”

“Ah, ah, ugh…”

I asked urgently, keeping my back to him.

“What’s wrong? What’s the matter?”

“Ah, hnngh. My body… isn’t responding…”