The pure white room was utterly silent.
Aponia stared at the line of text, and a sudden wave of dizziness washed over her.
The strongest psychic MANTIS, feeling dizzy just from looking at some words?
"Ngh…"
The holy nun, full of compassion for all humanity, parted her moist, cherry-like lips and let out a scorching breath.
The sound was so bewitchingly delicate that even Aponia herself was surprised by it.
Aponia's body swayed slightly, and she couldn't help but press a hand to her forehead.
The hem of her skirt, ethereal as a butterfly's wings, fluttered, and a few faint blue, glowing butterflies flitted away from it.
However, without Aponia noticing, the world… began to reconstruct itself.
To be precise, this pure white space was reconstructing itself.
「Time Flow Rate: 1 to 20,000」
「Reconstruction Location: Dusk Street」
「Character Status: Cognitive Alteration (Mild), Hypnosis (Mild)」
「World Modulation No. 1 — Simulator, activating」
「Simulation Keywords: Church, Nun, Little Boy, Raising, Mutual Dependence, Forbidden Knowledge, A Lamb Kneeling for Its Mother's Milk, The Grace of Being Nurtured in Return, Virgin Widow, Growth Diary...」
On a drizzly morning, Aponia, dressed in black, held a black umbrella as she walked through a damp maple forest.
Aponia had once been an ordinary nurse, but a certain event had led her to devote her entire being to the sisterhood.
This morning, she was returning from a house call to provide free medical care for Grandma Marie, and had even received a pumpkin pie as thanks.
Yet, when she looked back on her past, it felt like viewing flowers in a fog. The world didn't feel quite real.
Aponia stood still under the curtain of rain in the maple forest, holding her umbrella.
She looked up. The edges of the dark clouds glowed with a bright white light as fine raindrops fell from the sky.
"Something feels… a little discordant…"
Before she could ponder it further, the cry of a baby shattered the fleeting, subtle feeling.
「The sound of a baby's cry caught Aponia's attention.」
「She picked up the swaddled infant from the bushes. The child's clear eyes gave her a sense of redemptive comfort.」
「She decided to adopt this poor, abandoned child.」
「Because he was found in a maple forest, Aponia named him "Feng."」
「Feng's appearance injected vibrant color into Aponia's previously black-and-white life.」
「The lingering pain of the past was also slowly healed by Feng's arrival.」
Held in Aponia's arms, Ye Feng watched as she tilted her head down, her fragrant breath like orchids, and gently pressed her soft, scented lips to his cheek in a kiss.
"I cannot save anyone. That is my sin. But at the very least, I will save you. I must. [Please] live on with me."
Aponia spoke these words as if in defiance of fate, and also as a [Discipline] she was imposing upon herself.
Lying in Aponia's magnificent bosom, Ye Feng could feel just how smooth and delicate the skin of this voluptuous beauty was, even through a layer of cloth.
The "Simulator" gameplay seems pretty good, too.
Ye Feng thought about the upcoming "plot" while his small hands grasped at Aponia.
「Soon, Aponia encountered her first predicament.」
「What should the child eat?」
「He refused formula and the milk from the wet nurse she hired. This sent Aponia into a frantic panic.」
「Aponia knelt in the church, praying. She pleaded with the ethereal, great existence for an answer. What was she to do?」
From his swaddling, Ye Feng turned his head to look.
Though the church was spacious, the light was somewhat dim.
Sunlight streamed down from the glass dome above, like a pillar of light for ascension.
The nun kneeling before the statue was bathed in the golden radiance, looking so holy and pious.
Ye Feng couldn't help but scrutinize her.
A white veil embroidered with thorns of suffering covered her head. A lock of flaxen hair fell below her forehead, separating a pair of almond-shaped eyes whose lids were always lowered.
Her sharp, delicate chin nearly rested upon her high, taut twin peaks. Even the chain of the crucifix around her neck was buried in the deep ravine between the blessed gifts the nun struggled to conceal.
If her sensual upper body gave her a powerful affinity, then the lower half of her extremely curvaceous figure held an unparalleled allure. From her slender waist, a pair of light-blue butterfly wings seemed to flutter behind her, accentuating her voluptuous yet long legs, making them appear even more translucent and smooth.
A chain-like garter was set on her left thigh root, pressing slightly into the plump, moist skin, teasing the visitor's gaze. Below her abdomen, a narrow black ribbon floated, hanging straight down to her ankles.
The color black, representing the forbidden, was solemn and dignified, but on Aponia, it only exuded a mystery that beckoned one to explore its depths.
"So beautiful, Aponia."
To be able to wear such a holy nun's habit so sensually, so dazzlingly, it almost perfectly tempted out the desire hidden in one's heart.
「Aponia's prayers received a "revelation" from fate.」
「The nun, a pure and untouched virgin, was also able to produce milk.」
「The little fellow wasn't weaned until he was 8 years old.」
「Perhaps because the nun's milk was so nutritious, by the age of eight, Feng was already almost as tall as Aponia.」
「Feng was also extremely intelligent, displaying the qualities of a prodigy from a young age. He skipped several grades and is now a third-year high school student.」
「Feng was Aponia's pride. And even more so, her emotional anchor.」
「It was just that his occasional, willful little requests not only put Aponia in a difficult position, but also made her feel embarrassed and shy.」
"I got first place in school again today."
Returning from school, Ye Feng ran happily into the church to report the good news to her.
A heartfelt smile appeared on Aponia's face. She lovingly stroked Feng's head.
"Little Feng is so amazing."
"Mhm, because Mama Aponia wanted me to study hard, I studied with all my might. For Mama Aponia, I can do anything."
"Such a good boy."
Aponia held Ye Feng in her arms, enveloped by a warmth she had never felt before.
"I'm hungry."
"I'll go make you a meal right now."
Aponia turned to leave, but was pulled back by Ye Feng.
"I want to eat…"
Ye Feng's gaze fell upon Aponia's chest, and the pure and holy nun immediately blushed.
She cupped Ye Feng's face in her hands and patiently admonished him, "Little Feng, you're a big boy now, you can't eat... eat this anymore. Other people will laugh at you."
"No, no, I want to drink it! Please, please, please!"
"Little Feng."
Aponia's expression turned slightly stern. "[Please], do not be willful."
However—
Ye Feng whined, shaking Aponia's hand, "Mama Aponia said that if I got first place in school, she would grant me one request."
"...I did say that."
"Well, I want to eat it now."
Aponia's expression froze, her eyes filled with disbelief.
She didn't know if she was more surprised that her [Discipline] had no effect, or that Feng's request was so audacious.
"Now? In the church?"
"Mhm. It's because Mama Aponia always refuses me. I've been hungry for days. If Mama Aponia goes back on her word again this time, then I'll starve to death before I eat anything else."
Ye Feng turned his head away angrily.
"..."
Aponia reached out a hand, but he dodged it.
The loving affection on her face had nowhere to go, leaving her looking slightly forlorn.
Her eyes flickered, and she finally said with resignation, "...Just this once."
"Yay!"
Ye Feng joyfully pounced on her.
The church fell silent, the giant statue of the goddess silently watching the scene below.