Lind's voice was deep and gentle, ringing out clearly in the empty and silent church. There was no blame, no command, only a calm that understood everything.
It was as if it had pierced through the hard shell she was trying so hard to maintain, and directly touched the chaotic mass of soft flesh inside.
Leonis's body trembled violently, and her knuckles turned white as she clenched her fists.
She could no longer escape, nor could she pretend anymore.
Taking a deep breath, with an almost self-destructive resolve, she slowly straightened up, but did not turn around, instead fixing her gaze on the cold patterns on the base of the statue.
“Lord Lind…” Her voice was hoarse and dry, with a heavy nasal tone and a trembling she tried hard to control, “Please…please forgive my lapse. I…I was just doing evening prayers, and I got a little…too engrossed.”
A clumsy lie.
Even she herself felt pale and powerless.
Linde didn't expose her, but simply took two steps forward and sat down on a bench not far from her.
He didn't look at her; his gaze was also fixed on the icon, and his tone was as calm as if he were recounting an ordinary event:
"It's good to be involved. But true peace cannot be achieved through suppression and escapism."
He paused, lowering his voice further, with a hint of guidance.
"Leonis, tell me, what troubles you? What makes you so distressed and uneasy in the Lord's temple?"
"I....."
Leonis opened her mouth, but her throat felt like it was blocked by something.
Dogma screamed in her mind, warning her to shut up and to repent.
But Lind's gentle yet undeniable voice, like a stone thrown into stagnant water, stirred up a long-suppressed tidal wave within her.
Those chaotic, shameful, and unfamiliar emotions finally broke through the dam of reason at this moment.
She turned around abruptly, raised her head, and tears, which she could no longer hold back, surged from her eyes and slid down her pale cheeks, which were flushed with emotion.
Those eyes, as blue as a frozen pool, were now exceptionally bright, washed clean by tears. They were filled with pain, struggle, confusion, and... a kind of burning passion that even she herself had not fully understood.
"Lord Linde!"
Her voice, broken and tearful, was no longer that of the resolute knight, but rather like that of a lost child.
"I don't know... I don't know what's wrong with me! I can't control myself! When I saw you and Miss Alice... when I saw you embracing... my heart... felt like it was being torn apart!"
She seemed to use all her strength to scream out the most secret and shameful thoughts in her heart:
“I…I’m jealous! I’m jealous that Miss Alice can be so close to you! That she can express her feelings so unreservedly! I hate myself for this! It violates all my vows! It violates the Lord’s teachings! But I…”
She choked back tears, which flowed even more freely, her body trembling slightly from the emotion and sobbing.
"But when I saw you return safely from the battlefield, when I saw you standing there... I... I had only one thought in my mind! It overwhelmed my reverence for the Lord, overwhelmed my knightly commandments! It told me... told me..."
Leonis stared directly into Lind's deep purple eyes, as if drawing her last bit of courage from them. With a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve, she uttered the word that both terrified and yearned for her:
"I love you! Lord Lind! I adore you! Like a woman adores her man!"
As the last word fell, the entire church fell into a deathly silence.
Only the crackling of the burning candle and her own heavy breathing echoed in the air.
She seemed to have all her strength drained away, her head drooping in exhaustion, her shoulders heaving violently as she awaited the final judgment—either Lind's disgust or the punishment of the Holy Light.
However, the expected reprimand or coldness did not come.
Linde stood up, walked to her, and knelt down. He reached out, but instead of touching her trembling body, he gently and carefully wiped away the hot tears from her cheeks with his fingertips. His gesture carried a sense of tenderness.
“Leonis,” his voice was deep and magnetic, with a comforting power, “look up at me.”
Leonis seemed to be bewitched, slowly raising her tear-filled face.
Linde gazed at her, his deep purple eyes devoid of their usual sternness or calculation, only filled with a gentle, understanding, and even... tender warmth.
"Love is not poison, Leonis."
He spoke slowly, his voice echoing clearly beneath the icon.
"It is one of the most authentic rhythms of life, the most ardent flame in the depths of the soul. The Holy Light teaches us to safeguard light and order, but it has never taught us to suppress our emotions as 'human beings'."
True piety is the ability to steadfastly choose the path of faith even after understanding and accepting oneself.
His fingertips gently lifted her chin, making it impossible for her to avoid his gaze.
“Your affection is not a sin, Leonis. It simply shows that you are not only a loyal knight, but also a woman with a vibrant soul and passionate emotions…”
As for me...
Lin De leaned closer, his breath brushing against her cheek, carrying a heart-stopping aggressiveness, yet incredibly gentle.
“I am delighted, Leonis. It is my honor to be loved by such a pure, brave, and beautiful Holy Knight as you.”
His gaze fell on her lips, slightly swollen from crying, yet making them appear even more delicate. His voice was low and almost a whisper, "I've received your feelings. And you? Are you willing to accept... my response?"
Leonis's mind went blank. Lind's words were like sweet rain, extinguishing the self-burning flames within her, but igniting another, more intense, more primal fire!
There is no aversion, no punishment, only...acceptance? Or even...response?
A tremendous shock and unbelievable ecstasy overwhelmed her!
Looking at Lin De's handsome face so close to hers, and at the undisguised admiration and longing in his eyes, the high wall in her heart, built by dogma and on the verge of collapse, crumbled at that moment!
"I...I do! Lord Lind! I'm willing to accept everything from you!"
Her voice was broken and tearful, filled with an urgent longing. Her body leaned forward involuntarily, as if she wanted to throw herself into the warmth that could redeem her.
"very good."
Lind's response carried a hint of hoarse approval. Without further hesitation, he leaned down and accurately captured those two soft lips trembling slightly from crying and excitement.
"Hmm..."
Leonis trembled violently! Her mind went completely blank for a moment!
An unprecedented sensation coursed through her body like an electric current! Strange, scalding, and with a suffocating sense of predation, yet... it made her succumb!
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