"So… you weren’t actually hiding a woman after all?"

In the cramped room, Katarina bit her lip, her expression utterly desolate.

"Yes," Gu Qinghan replied, weeping so convincingly it felt painfully real.

A wave of dizziness washed over Katarina. She still couldn’t accept it.

"What about the bloodstain on the bed?"

"Moving books—hardcover smacked my face!" he sobbed, tears and snot streaming, pointing to his bruised nose.

"And the fallen vase?" Katarina asked, lightly biting her lip.

"Bumped the stand while dragging the bookcase!"

"And the bathroom…" Her voice faded to a mosquito’s buzz.

She already knew.

Everything was just to hide those erotic manga.

No hidden woman existed here.

Hohenheim was simply an ordinary otaku all along!

His first lie? Only to protect his harmless hobby.

Katarina’s cheeks burned. She felt like evaporating from shame.

Because of the Truthseeker’s manipulation, she’d wrongly accused an innocent citizen.

Unforgivable.

The Church of the Kingdom of Pure Love upheld the continent’s strictest laws—

yet no rule banned beautiful fantasies of love.

The Church even encouraged them.

Reading erotic manga? A little odd, yes—but still fantasy.

In short: the boy’s thoughts weren’t filthy. They were *endorsed*.

But someone *was* lewd here.

Katarina.

*She* was the pervert.

Her face flushed crimson, recalling her academy professor’s words:

"There is no ‘yellow’ in the world—only tinted glasses create it."

Her brain felt like it was short-circuiting.

*Do I carry filth inside me?*

She swayed unsteadily.

Impossible. Absolutely impossible.

Yet the truth stood undeniable.

"Waaah—"

Hohenheim wailed louder, his sorrow so raw even legends would plead his innocence.

Katarina stumbled, gripping the table to stay upright.

Frozen. Lost. Gaze hollow.

Every deduction—wrong.

She’d never met a citizen like Mr. Hohenheim.

Someone who preferred 2D characters over real people?

How?

But facts refused denial.

Self-reproach gnawed at her.

Meanwhile, Hohenheim slumped like a stolen treasure, weeping uncontrollably.

"Eri… Nozoe Izumi… I must leave you… even if you’re only paper wives…"

Gu Qinghan’s performance deserved an Oscar.

Katarina forced a stiff smile. *Comfort him. Face your mistake.*

"Liking… erotic manga is totally normal! No need to stress…"

Her cheeks flamed. Lips twitched. She was a terrible liar.

*Physically*, she despised lewdness.

Absolutely forbidden!

But as an Inspector, she pushed through.

"But… wouldn’t normal people hate this?" Gu Qinghan wailed, clinging to her black-stockinged thigh.

"N-no way! I… I enjoy reading e-erotic manga too!"

Her smile froze. Goosebumps prickled her skin.

A transparent lie.

Yet he blinked, pure-eyed. "Really?"

"O-of course! I’m an Inspector—I’d never lie…"

She gritted her teeth, blurting words she didn’t mean.

*End this. Encourage him. Punish myself.*

"A-actually… as an Inspector… I sometimes read… erotic manga~"

Gu Qinghan’s eyes widened. "Really???"

"Y-yes…" She forced a brittle smile.

"What genres do *you* like, Inspector?" he pressed eagerly.

Katarina stared into his sincere eyes. Mind blank.

No knowledge. No words.

But *he* had plenty.

"Captivity?"

"Mm… I read those," her lips twitched.

"Mature women?"

"Mm."

"Legal loli?"

"Pure love?"

"Hypnosis?"

"Cuckolding? You must hate that…"

"What about stories where the cuckolder *loses*?"

"Oh! A fellow enthusiast!"

"Pleasure! True pleasure!"

Hohenheim’s sapphire eyes sparkled. Katarina’s body burned—brain overheating.

Bizarre terms shattered her innocent worldview.

Too much. Too soon.

Today, Katarina had grown up.

…

Two hours later.

Mind blank. Limbs weak. Dizzy.

She’d left his room like a sleepwalker.

"Inspector! Come discuss again next time!" Hohenheim waved, sunny as a child.

Katarina’s smile cracked. "N-next time…"

*No.*

*Never again.*

—SLAM!

The door shut. She exhaled.

That sunny smile now felt like Satan’s grin, scorching her soul.

She’d survived. Barely.

*Tonight… the confessional.*

First assignment: total failure.

Just… find peace.

…

Melancholy Blues Café.

Across the street from Hohenheim’s residence.

Soft music. Simple decor. Soothing her wounded spirit.

Katarina sipped coffee on a leather seat, pulling out the list.

Her gaze lingered on the first name.

*Hohenheim.*

Ten years ago, another boy bore that surname.

Hohenheim Autley.

Neat hair. Slender frame. Upright heart.

Her childhood friend.

Also an erotic manga reader.

(Not *this* Hohenheim.)

He vanished into the Empire of Indulgence—a nation beyond forgiveness.

Never seen again.

Memories, like old photos, still warmed her chest.

*If he’d stayed… he’d be the Academy’s star.*

Her talent? Child’s play beside his.

No "what-ifs."

Autley was gone.

She sighed. Coffee tasted bitter.

*This Hohenheim… needs checking.*

Maybe a connection?

*Ding—*

A sharp chime. Her earring glowed.

"Captain Katarina! We caught a man guilty of promiscuity—confirmed!"

Gruff voice. Routine alert.

"Do I *need* to be asked?" she mentally snapped.

"But he’s a first-timer! Usually—"

"PUNISH SEVERELY! First or repeat—*any* violation gets crushed! Understood?!"

Fury burned in her chest.

*Misjudged Hohenheim? Think I’ll misjudge you too?*

Wolf in sheep’s clothing—you!

Silence. Then: "Understood."

She sighed, drained.

Gathered the list. Drank the bitter coffee.

Work wasn’t done.

But this effort *would* make the City of Devoted Love purer.

Less sin. More pure love.

It *would* flourish.