The carriage rocked rhythmically as we navigated the winding dirt road leading back toward the village. The sun was dipping lower, casting long, golden shadows through the dense pine trees.
Rose sat opposite me, her hands resting on her lap. She was gazing at me with a look that was becoming dangerously familiar—a mixture of reverence and suppressed hunger. She wasn't looking at a Priest; she was looking at a savior.
I smiled at her, a benevolent mask, while my mind worked on a different frequency.
The ride was too smooth. Too quick. I needed time. I needed to solidify Rose's loyalty before we reached the chaos of the market, and I needed to test the limits of her devotion outside the walls of the Villa.
Slither.
Underneath my heavy robes, my true limbs uncoiled. A single, slender tentacle snaked down my leg, slipping through a small gap in the carriage floorboards. It moved with the speed of a viper, trailing along the undercarriage until it found the wooden spokes of the rear left wheel.
SNAP.
I applied a burst of crushing pressure. The wood splintered instantly.
CRACK-THUMP!
The carriage lurched violently to the left. Rose gasped, nearly falling off her seat.
"Master!" Gaston shouted from outside as he pulled the reins hard. "Whoa!"
The carriage ground to a halt, tilting awkwardly to one side.
I opened the door and stepped out, offering a hand to help Rose down. "Are you unhurt?"
"I... I am fine," she breathed, taking my hand. Her palm was sweaty.
Gaston was already crouching by the wheel, scratching his head. He looked up, his face smeared with road dust.
"Apologies, Master," he grunted, kicking the splintered remains of the wheel. "Must have hit a hidden rock. The rim is shattered. It's going to take me at least an hour to swap it with the spare and align the axle."
"An hour?" I sighed, feigning disappointment. "Very well, Gaston. Do what you must."
I turned to look at the surrounding forest. It was wild here, overgrown and lush, with the sound of rushing water echoing from somewhere deep in the trees.
Rose looked around, her eyes lighting up with recognition.
"I know this place," she whispered, a smile breaking through her shock.
"Do you?"
"Yes," she nodded, pointing toward a deer trail that vanished into the ferns. "When I was younger... before I was fully in service to the Villa... Sister Clara and I used to sneak out of the Sanctuary. We would come here to play. There is a beautiful waterfall just beyond that ridge."
"Sister Clara?" I raised an eyebrow. The submissive nun I had met earlier. "Interesting company."
"Show me," I commanded softly.
Rose looked at Gaston. "Gaston, we will take a stroll while you work. The falls are close."
"Aye, Miss Rose. Stay close," Gaston grunted, already pulling out a jack.
We walked into the woods. The air was cooler here, thick with the scent of damp earth and moss. As we moved deeper, the sound of water grew to a roar. We broke through the tree line and found it—a secluded grotto where water cascaded down a jagged cliff into a crystal-clear pool below. Mist hung in the air, creating intimate, shimmering rainbows.
"It hasn't changed," Rose said softly, stepping onto the smooth river stones. She turned to me, her face glowing. "It feels... peaceful."
She took a step closer to me, her voice trembling with emotion.
"Priest-sama... I just wanted to say... I am so happy."
"Happy?"
"That you didn't abandon us," she said, looking up into my eyes. "When the Lady ordered you to leave... I thought you would just go. I thought you would save yourself. But you stayed. You accepted the Sanctuary. You are still trying to help the village."
She reached out, her fingers brushing the fabric of my robe.
"You really are a good man."
I looked down at her. She was so earnest. So blind.
I caught her hand.
"I am not a good man, Rose," I whispered, my voice dropping to a low rumble that vibrated in her chest. "I am a merchant of faith. And in my religion... nothing is free."
Rose's breath hitched. "W-what do you mean?"
"I stayed because there is something here I desire," I said, stepping into her personal space, backing her up until her heels hit the edge of the water. "Salvation comes with a price, Rose. Are you willing to pay it?"
She swallowed hard. She knew what I was asking. She had seen what I did to Kara. She had heard the sounds from Julienne's room.
"Tell me the price," she whispered, her eyes darkening with anticipation.
"Strip."
The command hung in the air, heavier than the mist.
Rose hesitated for a second, her hands hovering over the buttons of her maid uniform. "Here? In the open? Gaston might..."
"Gaston is busy," I cut her off. "And nature has no judgment. Strip."
Her hands stopped shaking. A flush of heat rose up her neck. Slowly, deliberately, she undid the buttons.
She shrugged off the heavy woolen dress, letting it fall to the stones. She stepped out of her petticoats.
I watched, expecting the standard, dull undergarments of a servant.
I was wrong.
When the last layer fell, my eyebrows shot up.
Rose was wearing scandal.
Against her pale skin, she wore a set of bright, canary-yellow lingerie. It was lace, sheer and provocative, hugging her curves in ways a maid's uniform never allowed. The bra was cut low, exposing the tops of her breasts, and the panties were high-waisted but translucent, leaving nothing to the imagination.
"Yellow," I mused, a hungry smile spreading across my face. "A bold color for a shy maid."
"I..." Rose covered her chest with her arms, looking down, her face burning. "I bought it... from a traveling merchant... months ago. I never wore it. I didn't have anyone to wear it for."
She looked up at me through her lashes.
"But today... when you asked me to come with you... I put it on. I hoped..."
"You hoped I would collect?" I finished for her.
"Yes," she moaned.
I didn't make her wait.
I shrugged off my robes. They pooled on the ground, leaving me standing naked in the sunlight. My body was sculpted, not just by muscle, but by the strange biology of my species—lean, hard, and vein-touched.
Rose's eyes widened as she looked at me. Her gaze dropped to my erection, standing proud and heavy.
"Beautiful," she breathed.
I reached out and pulled her into the water.
SPLASH.
The water was freezing, but the heat between us was scorching. Rose gasped as the cold hit her ankles, but she didn't pull away. I grabbed her hips, my fingers digging into the yellow lace.
"Then let us pray," I growled.
I kissed her. It wasn't gentle. It was a claiming. I devoured her mouth, my tongue exploring her, tasting the desire she had bottled up for years.
I spun her around, pressing her back against a large, sun-warmed boulder. The rough stone scraped against her skin, contrasting with the soft lace.
I reached down and hooked my fingers into the yellow panties.
RIIIIP.
I didn't bother taking them off. I tore the lace aside.
"Master!" she shrieked, half in shock, half in thrill.
"You belong to the sect now, Rose," I whispered against her ear.
I lifted her leg, hooking it over my arm. I positioned myself at her entrance. She was wet, soaking the torn fabric.
I thrust forward.
SQUELCH.
"AHHH!"
Her scream echoed off the cliff face, drowned out by the roar of the waterfall. I buried myself inside her, stretching her, filling her completely.
"So tight," I groaned, gritting my teeth.
"Yes! Yes! Please!" Rose threw her head back, her wet hair spraying droplets of water. Her nails dug into my shoulders, drawing blood.
I began to move. Fast. Hard. Primal.
SLAP. SLAP. SLAP.
The sound of flesh meeting flesh was rhythmic, a carnal drumbeat. I pounded into her, driving her against the rock. Her breasts bounced in the yellow bra, threatening to spill out.
"Say it!" I demanded, grabbing her chin and forcing her to look at me. "Who do you serve?"
"You!" she cried, tears streaming down her face—tears of pleasure. "I serve you! Only you!"
"Good girl."
I felt the familiar pressure building. My tentacles stirred beneath my skin, wanting to join, but I held them back. For Rose, the man was enough. For now.
"I'm close," I warned her, picking up the pace.
"Fill me!" she begged, wrapping her legs around my waist. "Give me your blessing!"
I drove into her one last time, hitting the deepest part of her.
"Rose!"
SPLURT.
I erupted inside her. I held her tight against the rock as I poured my seed into her, pulsing again and again. She convulsed around me, her inner walls clamping down on my shaft, milking every drop.
We stayed like that for a moment, panting, the water rushing around our ankles, the steam rising from our joined bodies.
Slowly, I pulled out.
Rose slid down the rock, her legs trembling so hard she could barely stand. She looked wrecked—her hair wild, her lingerie torn, her eyes glazed over with bliss.
"The price is paid," I whispered, leaning down to kiss her forehead.
She looked up at me, a dazed smile on her face.
"Can... can I pay again?"
I laughed, a dark, genuine sound.