Kojo strolled down the hallway of the temple, his eyes scanning the surroundings. The air was thick with the scent of incense, and the soft murmur of voices echoed off the stone walls. He noticed that he hadn't seen a single man, and the women he did see seemed to be looking at him with weird expressions on their faces.
(That's because of the fact that we are in the women's wing.)
"What? You mean I'm in a convent or something?"
(Well, not exactly. But the living quarters are segregated into male and female. Guess where you are now.)
"Lin must have brought me to her room out of habit without thinking about where we currently are," Kojo realized as he began to look around for an exit. He spotted a door at the end of the hallway and quickly made his way towards it, hoping to escape the awkward situation.
As he opened the door, he expected to see the courtyard or any place that was outside, but instead, he was met with a sight that made his eyes bug out. The room was filled with women wearing white garments that had turned translucent because they were pouring water on their bodies in a form of a ritual. They were all performing their morning purification, and they seemed to be completely unaware of his presence, but then they all glanced at the intruder at the same time, halting whatever they were doing.
"Umm...."
For a moment, Kojo and the women stared at each other, frozen in surprise. Then, Kojo slowly closed the door and walked away, trying to act as if nothing had happened.
However, the women shrieked, and Kojo heard the sound of footsteps as a group of four knights, female of course, came to catch him for trespassing.
"It's a misunderstanding," Kojo said, holding up his hands in a calming gesture.
"I just lost my way and was trying to find an exit. Honest. There's no need for violence, I'd be happy if you could escort me out."
The knights glanced at each other. The women in the room, who had now covered themselves in large cloths, were peeping at him from the room, tearfully. Kojo wondered what the fuss was about.
"Well, I did see what I shouldn't have, and man, what a sight—ahem—I mean, my mistake, but why are they acting like someone is dying?" He wondered.
(Being seen by a man while carrying out one's daily purification is considered a sin, as it means that they have gone contrary to the teachings of the goddess and exposed themselves to filth.)
Kojo's eyes narrowed. "Why does the last part of your explanation feel like I'm being insulted?"
Sysia just scoffed.
Kojo took a step towards the women, trying to apologize. However, they disappeared into the room, and the knights pointed their spears at him.
"I mean no ill will," Kojo said, holding up his hands again. "I just wanted to apologize for trespassing during such an important activity."
The knights looked at each other again.
"He seems sincere for a pervert," one of them said.
"I'm sorry, pervert?" Kojo asked.
They lowered their guard and said, "You should come with us."
Kojo obliged, wanting to get as far away from the current situation as possible. The knights were mumbling while they walked.
Kojo overheard one knight say, "At least he's going to die with dignity, since he admitted his fault. Now the goddess may forgive him and give him another chance through reincarnation."
Kojo cleared his throat and asked, "Excuse me, but could you elaborate on what you mean by 'die'?"
"As punishment for breaking the ritual, the unclean individual – i.e., you – would be first castrated and then beheaded, while their severed testicles would be presented to the goddess as a sacrifice," the knight escorting him to his left said.
Kojo's eyes widened.
"Huh?"
The knights nodded in unison. "It's the law of the goddess."
Kojo stopped walking, and the knights stopped and turned to him, their grips tightening on their weapons.
"You know what I just remembered? I have something to do, then I have this other thing, and then something else, and I really, really won't be able to participate in... uh... any castration. So, I'm just going to go..." he said while slowly backing away, but two of the knights grabbed him on either arm, with one behind him poking his back with her spear.
"There's no escape, so you should just accept your fate," the one in front of him said. She was about to turn away but looked at him a second time and squinted.
"Now that I have a closer look, I haven't seen you around, and your clothes are too foreign," she remarked.
Kojo giggled nervously.
"Aw, really? Thank you, I made the coat myself."
She pointed her spear at him, bringing the blade to his chin.
"No more jokes. Come quietly."
Kojo sighed and acted as if he was going with them. However, he seemed to have spotted something through the corner of his eye and looked back.
"Hey, it's the Queen of England!" he said excitedly, pointing in a random direction.
The knights looked in that direction.
"Wait, who is England?" They looked back, only to be met with an empty space where Kojo was, and a puff of smoke. They heard a door closing and looked at the exit in the distance.
Having escaped, Kojo walked away leisurely, but the knights burst through the door and began to chase him.
"Stop him!" one of the knights shouted, her voice echoing through the hallway.
Kojo smiled to himself as he ran, his feet pounding the stone floor. He could hear the knights behind him, their breathing heavy, their footsteps closing in.
Kojo sprinted through the temple, his feet pounding the stone floor as he desperately tried to evade the four knights hot on his heels. He darted between pillars, using his agility to avoid the people who were going about their business while quickly changing direction and keeping his pursuers at bay.
As he ran, more knights joined the chase, their armor clanking and their shouts echoing off the walls. Kojo's eyes scanned the surroundings, searching for a way to escape.
As he ran, Kojo created small gusts of wind to blow out candles and lanterns, plunging the corridors into darkness and making it harder for the knights to follow him.
He also used his magic to create tiny whirlwinds, blowing dust and debris into the knights' faces and temporarily blinding them. The knights coughed and stumbled, giving Kojo a small window of opportunity to slip away.
He spotted a narrow staircase leading up to a balcony. Without hesitation, Kojo took the stairs two at a time, his feet barely touching the ground. He reached the top and leapt over the railing, using his momentum to carry him across the gap to the next balcony.
Kojo continued to run and jump, using his acrobatic skills to navigate the temple's complex layout.
At one point, he found himself facing a group of knights blocking his path. Without hesitation, Kojo leapt into the air, using his wind magic to propel himself upwards. He somersaulted over the knights, landing gracefully on the railing on the other side.
Kojo smiled and winked at them before letting himself fall backwards.
The knights stared at him in amazement, their faces a picture of confusion and frustration. They rushed to look over the railing but didn't see where he had passed. They split up, with some going outside while others went back inside to search.
Kojo looked down at the scurrying knights from the tiled roof of the convent.
(Well, you seem to be having fun.)
"Well, it's not every day you get chased by beautiful women."
(I'll tell Yuki to announce that there's a rabid pervert on the loose seeking to capture the chastity of the nuns.)
"Rabid? I'm a civilized human being."
(Actually, scratch that. You don't have the balls to make a move. Why don't you let them castrate you? I mean, it's a waste for them to just be hanging there.)
"Now that's taking it too far."
Kojo looked up and saw Yuki in the distance, swinging her sword.
"Speak of the devil," Kojo said, taking a step forward.
However, the tile he stepped on dislodged itself from the roof, and he slipped.
The four knights stood below him.
"Where the hell did he escape to?"
Another one clasped her hands together in prayer.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
"I'm praying to the goddess that the pervert be delivered into our hands."
"I don't think it works like that."
Just then, Kojo fell in the midst of the four. He tried to get up but met their gazes.
"Uh.... Hey."
They instantly pointed their weapons at him, poking him in the face with their spears.
"Ladies, come on, let's talk about this."