Side Story 3: The Case of Edwin Andersen (1)

The sharp edge of a razor pressed against Edwin’s chin. With his eyelids languidly lowered, Edwin gently smoothed the blade up along his skin.

As he meticulously concentrated on shaving, his hand suddenly came to a halt. In that moment, the image of his beloved lover flickered through his mind.

A faint smile broke across lips that had been dry and expressionless.

“What the…”

But as he indulged in those happy thoughts, the sudden chill beneath his chin snapped him back to reality. Bl＊＊d trickled down in red drops from the split skin.

“This is ridiculous.”

No matter what he tried to focus on, her face kept coming to mind at the most inopportune times. The eyes that curved gently as she smiled, her cheeks blooming like ripe peaches, even those lips always soft with moisture…

Everything about her shattered Edwin’s peace of mind. Because of her, he’d been making constant mistakes for the past two weeks.

“I really am hopeless.”

Edwin wiped away the droplets of bl＊＊d with his fingertips and stared into the mirror. The scar along his jaw had faded a bit, but a faint reddish mark still lingered there.

A long trace remained, following the path where the lye had burned him. His fingers traced the outline downward, lingering over his pronounced Adam’s apple and then sensuously along the curved line of his collarbone.

“Ah…”

A low groan slipped from his lips. Simply touching the scar sent a dull, throbbing pain deep inside his throat. The memory of that day sometimes filled Edwin not just with fear, but real agony.

Even so, he thought to himself that for Alicia, he could swallow lye again and again. Not just to drink it, but to let himself dissolve entirely inside it—he’d be fine with that.

“Honestly, this is serious.”

He was someone of unyielding character, not a scratch on his resolve, but when it came to love, he became clumsy like a boy in adolescence. Well, it didn’t really matter anymore.

The merciless force that toppled his world had such a lovely face—there was simply no way he could not love her.

“Love, huh…”

Even the word rolled around in his mouth felt strangely embarrassing.

***

The Andersen family’s carriage came to a stop on a quiet street. The destination was still a little ways off, but Edwin stepped down from the carriage without hesitation.

Without a single attendant in tow, he started walking alone down the street. The closer he got to the entrance of the convent, the more the sounds of people faded away, leaving only the chirping of birds.

“Welcome, sir. Please, come inside.”

A young novice nun passing by the gate greeted Edwin warmly. “Sir”—the address felt awkward on her lips.

“Aren’t you coming in? Mass is about to begin.”

It seemed she was a new arrival, joining the convent while Edwin had been away. He sheepishly scratched the back of his neck and stepped inside the grounds.

“Nothing’s changed.”

As he looked over the wide expanse of the convent, a gentle, swelling emotion rose from deep within his chest.

Putting those feelings aside, Edwin made his way to the chapel. Inside, he was lucky to find an empty seat among the tightly packed pews. He squeezed his long legs into the narrow bench just as Mass began.

“Gather at the feet of God, and let all lift their voices in song.”

As the candles on the altar were lit, a soft organ prelude gave way to the entrance hymn. From the raised platform, Father Daniel stood in solemn silence, his gaze sweeping over the congregation.

When the congregation began singing the hymn together, Daniel’s gaze landed on a man sitting alone with his arms crossed. The moment he saw the man’s face, Father Daniel’s lips started to tremble.

“Father Edwin…?”

Daniel called out his name, his voice shaking. Edwin gave him a faint smile and lifted a finger to his lips.

After Mass ended, the congregation filed out of the chapel one by one. From the altar, Daniel hurriedly jumped down and ran straight to Edwin.

“Is it really you, Father?”

Instead of answering, Edwin simply raised his right hand and gently ruffled Daniel’s neatly combed brown hair.

“You managed to conduct the service perfectly well on your own. Looks like you won’t have to worry about Mass anymore.”

That long-missed, brusque voice rang out, and Daniel’s eyes grew misty with tears. He wanted to break down and sob like a small child.

He wanted to cry out—Why are you only coming back now? Do you know how long I’ve waited? If you were alive, you could have at least sent a word. He wanted to let all his grievances spill out in a wavering, tearful voice.

“Welcome back, Father.”

But Daniel decided to sum up all those swirling emotions with a simple, matter-of-fact greeting.

“It’s been so long—let me make you some tea.”

“I’ll pass on the tea. I’d rather take a walk around the monastery.”

“Then let’s walk together and talk. There’s so much I’ve been wanting to tell you, Father.”

Edwin and Daniel walked side by side out of the chapel. Now and then, nuns who recognized Edwin looked over with teary eyes and gave him a silent greeting. Having returned as nothing more than a layman, Edwin responded with polite respect.

“A lot has happened since you were gone, Father. Some left us, but many new faces have joined our family, too.”

“Those who left…?”

“Father Marco has gone to be with the Lord.”

Edwin’s lips pressed into a thin line. He wandered the monastery at a slow pace, his thoughts lingering on the departed Father Marco.

From Edwin’s earliest days as a rookie priest, Marco had been a gentle teacher—never once raising his voice, always showing kindness.

“I should have come back sooner.”

Edwin looked up at the sky, longing in his eyes. As if lost in the memory of Marco, he drifted into silence for a while, until Daniel finally spoke.

“So, Father, when do you think you’ll be coming back to your place?”

“…Coming back?”

“Well, it’s just—I’m out of breath trying to conduct Mass all by myself. I hope you’ll return soon. I’ve still got your old request forms, too.”

Daniel’s lips curled into a sly grin. Edwin, uncharacteristically hesitant, handed Daniel the letter he’d been holding tightly in his left hand.

“Sorry I didn’t mention it sooner, but—I’m getting married. I’ve lost my priesthood, and now I want to live out the rest of my days as an ordinary man.”

“Oh, married…?”

Daniel’s fingertips trembled as he clutched the edge of the wedding invitation.

“So you really just came today to deliver your invitation. I went and said all that, not even realizing.”

“I know it’s a bit much to ask, but I’d really like everyone from the monastery to come.”

“What do you mean, of course we’ll be there. Even if you’ve put down your cassock, you’re still a member of Archelio Monastery. That hasn’t changed.”

He’d expected at least a little reproach for suddenly announcing his resignation and marriage.

Luckily, Daniel didn’t seem to take it that way, though there was a faint shadow on his face.

“Father Edwin, there’s something I’d like to show you. Would you come with me for a moment?”

Daniel led the way to the priest’s quarters where Edwin had once stayed. On the cramped bed lay a freshly laundered cassock. Edwin gently ran his hand over the snow-white robe, then glanced toward the window.

“…What’s that?”

In the spot where a flowerpot had once been, a single, carefully folded paper flower rested. Even without asking, Edwin had a feeling he knew who had left it there.

“Can I take this?”

“Of course, please do. This room will always be yours, Father Edwin.”

A gentle smile spread across Edwin’s lips as he carefully picked up the paper flower. Watching him quietly, Daniel bowed his head and spoke.

“After you left, Sister Alicia really struggled. Sometimes in the early morning, I’d hear someone crying in the halls, and sure enough, she’d be here in this room, weeping.”

“I suppose I’m a sinner…”

“Maybe because of what happened to you, she left the monastery not long after. I bumped into her a few times by chance, but I was never able to properly ask how she was doing.”

Daniel trailed off, his lips growing heavy. After a long moment of hesitation, he forced himself to continue.

“So what I’m saying is… I’d really like to let Sister Alicia know that you’re alive, Father. Even if you are getting married, the two of you were always… Ah, I’m sorry if I’m overstepping.”

Edwin, watching Daniel in silence, absently rubbed his chin with a puzzled expression.

‘Does he really not know?’

It seemed there had been a major misunderstanding. Wondering how to clear things up, Edwin pointed at the wedding invitation in Daniel’s hand.

“That invitation…”

Daniel looked up, caught off guard by the sudden change in topic.

“Sister Alicia wrote it herself.”

“What?”

“I mean, that invitation. Sister Alicia was the one who wrote it.”

“…Why would she write your wedding invitation, Father?”

After a brief, stunned silence, Father Daniel let out a shriek loud enough to shake the whole monastery.

“Whaaaaaat?!”

***

Returning to the Grand Duchy, Edwin glanced down at the mountain of luggage piled up in the corner of his bedroom. It was everything he’d brought from Archelio Monastery.

[Oh, Lord. Are you telling me those two I trusted completely were doing such shameless things within the sacred monastery walls?]

Daniel had lost his mind, grabbing Edwin by the collar and shaking him so hard that his shirt was left full of wrinkles.

[I hate Sister Alicia! I hate Father Edwin even more! Take all your things out of your room, and take Sister Alicia’s stuff too! I’m not speaking to either of you until after the wedding!]

Just remembering Daniel’s tear-stained face made Edwin burst out laughing. After a while, still chuckling, his eyes moved to the bundle of luggage in the corner.

He carefully picked up the set of pure white vestments—unsure when, if ever, he might wear them again.

“Maybe I should put them on one last time.”

He slipped off his wrinkled shirt and, out of old habit, put on the vestments. The collar felt a little tight around his neck, but for some reason, a sense of calm washed over him.

“So this is what it felt like.”

He would never again wear the vestments, never again stand on the altar as a priest. For some reason, the thought was oddly bittersweet.

After finishing his brief contemplation, Edwin’s hand, which had been reaching for his old habit, stopped. The nun’s habit that Alicia had brought from the convent flashed before his eyes.

Gulp.

Glancing back at the tightly locked bedroom door, Edwin picked up the nun’s habit without hesitation. The habit, which he held tightly, faintly carried the scent of his beloved lover.

“Hah…”

He hadn’t seen her face for the past week because he was busy preparing for the wedding. He was so anxious that he felt as if his insides were rotting away.

With his face buried in the nun’s habit, Edwin took a deep breath and soon found himself indulging in a forbidden fantasy. Just for a moment, just a moment would be okay, wouldn’t it?

Unable to withstand the rising heat, he loosened his belt.

“Alicia…”

Burying his nose deep into the neat nun’s habit, he pulled down her skirt. Simply inhaling her scent was enough to send Edwin’s desire into a fiery frenzy.

 “Haa…”

The scent of her perfume brushing against his nose made his mind go hazy. The pillar, which seemed ready to burst through her underwear, throbbed painfully as he held his head high.

Unable to hold his boiling desire, he roughly pulled down her underwear. His swollen p*nis, ready to burst, twitched and flailed in the air.

 “Ugh, Alicia…”

The nun’s habit, which she clutched tightly, seemed to be part of her body as she cried out her name pitifully. Immediately, she grabbed the pillar violently and swept it from the root to the tip in one swift motion.

 “Ha, ha…”

A transparent droplet that had been precariously clinging to the tip of the gl*ns trickled down. Like a beast in heat, he wildly shook his hands while expelling bodily fluids.

From top to bottom. Again, from top to bottom.

Each time his rough palm swept over it, the lewd folds curled up and then fell back down repeatedly.

“Huuu…”

The sensitive flesh flushed red from the violent stimulation. It twisted and shook violently, like squeezing a ripe fruit.

Squish, squish, squish.

Every time the flowing juice rubbed against the ridges of the gl*ns, a damp friction sound echoed.

“Ah, Alicia…”

No matter how much he rubbed and shook, the boiling desire did not subside at all. Instead, the longing only deepened due to the frustration of being unable to reach her.

Like a starving beast, he gasped heavily, spreading Alicia’s nun’s habit—which he had been clutching tightly in his arms—wide across the bed.

He pressed his g*nitals against the nun’s habit, which faintly carried her scent, with such force that it seemed as though he might crush it. Each time he gently thrust his hips, the neat hem of her skirt rubbed against his prominent g*nitals.

“Hoo, ha…”

The nun’s habit, wrapped around the protruding veins, swayed her hips as if it were her own g*nitalia.

He couldn’t stop thinking about her. He imagined how her mucous membrane would quiver as he pushed past her wet entrance, and how she would scream as he thrust deep inside her.

“I want to thrust into her until she melts away…”

‘If I pushed her body to its limits, sweet juice would flow down between her spread-open flesh. I wanted to hold her hips tightly so she couldn’t escape, her body writhing in pain and pleasure, and continue the piston-like thrusting until words of pleading flowed from her saliva-stained lips.’

“I want to come inside you…”

Edwin’s breathing grew increasingly ragged as he frantically rubbed his lower body against the creaking bed. Drenched in depraved fantasies, he was nearing climax. Drunk on a dizzying haze, he was about to violently thrust his hips.

“Young master, Miss Alicia has come to see you.”

The deep voice of the butler echoed outside the bedroom door.

“Huh? What? Tell her I’ll be right down. No, wait a moment…”