A Down Payment and a Hug

Having concluded her important task, Gloria let out a satisfied sigh.

She gently caressed the exquisite, perfectly shaped, springy, and smooth ‘artwork’ on her chest, which, though not ample, was flawlessly formed.

A soft chuckle escaped her lips as she said, “Therefore, I’ve stressed this to you before: stop trying to oppose me. I am not your adversary.

I would never consider mortals my enemies.

Collaborating with me is a serendipitous encounter, and you should cherish this opportunity, setting your sights on more tangible pursuits.

Revenge, gaining strength, conquering the world—any of these will do.

Just stop letting your hormones dictate your every thought, constantly fixated on lewdness!”

“Yes… Lady Gloria,” X replied weakly, her will to resist utterly gone.

Beyond the pursuit of carnal desires, X, having gained freedom, found herself with no other ambitions.

Yet, was this world truly beyond saving?

A fleeting, hazy memory flickered through her mind, as if someone had once spoken those very words to her…

“Have you still not clearly considered what it is you truly need?” Gloria rose to her feet once more and slowly approached X, her diminutive form looking down upon the dispirited girl before her.

X’s soul was so transparent, so luminous, like an inextinguishable source of light.

Yet, her mind was so defiled, her thoughts so corrupted.

This world was to blame for tainting such a beautiful spirit, reducing it to a wretched mire.

To conceal her defiled inner self, she was compelled to wear a mask of deceit.

Damn it all!

Once she reclaimed her true body, Gloria vowed to cleanse this unjust world with a torrent of blood.

“Don’t forget, this is a long-term transaction.

You’ll have many more opportunities before my true form is recovered.”

She gently patted the girl’s head, a hint of tenderness softening her gaze.

“Heh heh, if you suffer from social anxiety and find it difficult to speak, I wouldn’t mind answering for you.”

X glanced up at Gloria, then buried her head once more in her disheveled long hair.

Her hypocrisy and desires might have cost her a chance at a genuine friendship.

Consequently, she remained steeped in remorse and self-reproach.

‘If only there were a cure for regret in this world,’ X thought, ‘for from the moment she met Gloria, she should not have harbored even a sliver of doubt.’

After all, this world had already decayed to such an extent.

In her memories, aside from those children, no one had ever genuinely treated her with kindness.

Even if Gloria had her own agenda, manipulating X’s body in various ways and diminishing her interest in it by half, X still shouldn’t have complained.

That was her savior!

Yet, unable to control her desires, and instinctively distrustful of the entire world, she had uttered such blasphemous words to her benefactor.

She truly deserved death a thousand times over.

‘Ugh, I’m such an utter scoundrel!’

The thought of her own scoundrelly past—having aided villains, harmed numerous good people, and even caused the Iron Gale Fleet’s complete annihilation—filled her with even deeper self-reproach, threatening to plunge her entire being into shadow.

“Hey, if you don’t answer soon, I might just take advantage of you myself!”

Gloria called out, only to suddenly realize that within the mental space, X’s soul was growing increasingly dark, her form gradually shrinking, and an ominous aura of an evil god emanating from her.

She moved instantly.

A small, white flame plunged into the impenetrable darkness.

Meanwhile, X, lost in her agonizing memories, suddenly felt a warm, cotton-like presence tumble into her embrace.

Tender, small arms wrapped tightly around the girl’s pale neck.

A delicate head nestled between her breasts, rubbing gently.

‘So soft, so springy, so fragrant!’

‘So this is what Gloria-chan smells like?’

‘Sweet and soft like cotton candy, making one’s mouth water.’

The clouds in her heart were swept away, and X felt hope surge back into her life.

She didn’t need to actually do anything with Gloria; simply having Gloria there filled her heart with warmth, as if it had been replenished by a cup of warm milk.

Such a wonderful loli like Gloria was a treasure to humanity, bringing hope to all.

She should only be admired and protected from afar, never defiled.

Yet, why did she always feel a strange tickle in her heart?

Gazing at the delicate pink ears hidden within the forest of gray hair, she licked her lips.

“This is merely a down payment,” Meanwhile, Gloria, utterly oblivious to X’s small gestures, gently patted X’s back, as if the girl, several times her size, were the injured little baby.

“I know all you truly need is a gentle hug.

If you also lack familial affection or friendship, I don’t mind becoming that person for you.

But after this, you must listen to me and stop giving up on yourself, alright?”

As if deeming that insufficient, Gloria then lightly kissed X on the forehead, explaining,

“Your soul might be even more alluring than your physical body, but this is not a good thing.

Your mind is far too unstable; should it veer to extremes, and your soul become defenseless, those Nihilistic Evil Gods will frantically exploit the loopholes, striving to usurp your consciousness and seize your body.

I regret not paying closer attention; the outside of this world is far more chaotic than I anticipated.

The enemies threatening you are not merely those dark clouds.”

Perhaps that troublesome world barrier actually served to protect this world.

However, Gloria’s arrival seemed to have somewhat compromised its defenses…

In times past, when the Blasphemous Demon God still held her true name, capable of striking awe throughout the cosmos, who would dare infringe upon a soul she guarded?

The mere scent of her presence would have been enough to shatter them into fragments.

Yet, in the aftermath of that war, the history of the Blasphemous Demon God—her past, her true name—had been largely purged by the Supreme Divine Realm, so much so that many legitimate Order-aligned Archdeities no longer recognized the Blasphemous Demon God, let alone Gloria, who had never departed the Ruin Realm.

Indeed, even within the Supreme Divine Realm itself, after several successions of personnel, few remembered her title, assuming ‘Gloria’ to be some insignificant petty thief.

Precisely for this reason, how could those evil gods take a soul protected by Gloria seriously?

It was quite possible that her very protection only made them covet this tempting morsel even more.

Such a thing absolutely could not be allowed to happen!

She could never accept a treasure under her protection being snatched away right before her eyes.

Meanwhile, X, having been bestowed with Gloria’s kiss, was utterly immersed in a sensation of happiness she had never known.

‘Was she… caring for me?’

‘Someone actually cares about a scoundrel like me?’

‘What surprised her even more was that this treatment was merely a down payment!’

‘If she, as the collaborating party, could satisfy such a generous principal, why would her grand dream not advance further?’

‘She resolved then and there: she, this pervert, would begin to learn sincerity.’

‘Still, Gloria-chan in a state of fluster was utterly adorable.’

‘She couldn’t help but want to demand an advance payment from her principal.’

“Awoo.”