"I curse this damned fate."
Under the dim light, the handsome young man shook his snow-white hair, his lips curled into a slightly awkward, dry smile.
"Isn't this, bro... really not right?"
Herbert reincarnated and recently awakened his past life's memories.
As a corporate rookie who had only worked for two years, the previous Herbert didn't even have time to let his remaining value be fully exploited by capitalists before being flattened into a paper-thin figure by a hundred-ton truck loaded with steel coils.
Don't ask.
If you ask, it's because life is tough for truck drivers.jpg
If you ask, we're all living as hard as we can.mp3
But at this moment, Herbert was not cursing the tragic fate of his past life.
Anyway, in his previous life, he was a solitary man, and during holidays he could only go to the martyrs' cemetery to pay respects, with no attachments behind.
Being able to win the reincarnation match and return to life after his dreams and body were shattered into dust felt like a great deal to Herbert.
What made his expression subtle was the scene he found himself in—a dark and cold prison.
Good news, he's not a prisoner but the Prison Warden.
Bad news, this prison belongs to an ancient monastery.
Monastery...
Is this really a place for an eighteen-year-old full of youthful vigor like him?
But for Herbert, this wasn't the most fatal part yet.
Trees move to die, people move to live; if worse comes to worst, just pack up and leave.
He's not an ignorant college student, he's got plenty of tricks up his sleeve learned from the corporate world.
What really broke Herbert was everything that happened the day before he regained his past life memories.
Yesterday at noon, under the watchful eyes of the Divine Spirit, Herbert took his Divine Oath and was officially accepted by the monastery as an Ascetic Paladin.
The oath he took with his own mouth was called—the "Purity Oath."
In the presence of the Divine Spirit, Herbert vowed to dedicate his life to justice and order in the world, to fight for the weak, and to always maintain purity of spirit, emotions, and body...
Listen to that!
Does that sound like something a person would say?
Regarding this oath, after a moment of shock, Herbert shouted internally—
"Isn't this basically the Magic Side's chastity lock!!?"
Herbert admitted that in his past life he did indeed have a lot of "undignified" movies stored on a 24TB hard drive, and he played many head-scratching little games...
But to make him live this life as a desire-restrained ascetic, isn't this punishment a bit too harsh?
The crime doesn't warrant such severity!
Those resources, I didn't hoard them all for myself; I shared them after organizing tags.
You can't just torment me alone!
This mental shackle, let them wear it too!
If I can't escape, neither can you all—
"...Tsk."
Looking at the Holy Mark on the back of his hand that emitted a faint golden glow in the dark, Herbert's dissatisfaction swelled even more.
Others starting in the Shaolin Temple Chores Courtyard to become monks, that's alright; although they remain celibate, at least they have a chance to return to secular life, work hard, and even have a child with a Demon Sect enchantress.
But Paladins in this world are different; they really suffer backlash if they break their vows.
All Paladins' powers come from their Divine Oaths, and the heavier the oath, the stronger the blessing after fulfilling it.
As the vanguards against madness and despair, Paladins are favored by the Divine Spirit, receiving many lavish blessings.
Some Paladins with grand vows even gain terrifying strength to wrestle with a Giant Dragon directly.
But, as all stories say, miracles and magic were never free; all fate's gifts come with a price secretly paid in advance.
The more they are gifted, the greater the backlash when a Paladin falls and breaks their vows.
Mental collapse, physical decay, soul exhaustion... these are just the basics; in some cases, they might even transform into Abyssal Monsters who only know slaughter.
With Herbert's current situation, once he breaks the vow, at best he would be severely injured, at worst he would die on the spot and be sent to join someone else in another resurrection match.
Therefore, at this moment, for Herbert—lust equals doom.
Tsk!
To be honest, Herbert felt that his current situation wasn't much better than being castrated.
The eunuchs at least had their desires permanently severed, with hearts but no power, leaving no fantasies at all.
And himself?
Not as good as those above, but better than those below, with strength but no place to use it... pure torment!
Alas.
My life is bitter!
Herbert took a deep breath, tilted his head back and exhaled slowly, his mouth opening and closing silently.
Humming, chanting ahhhhhh—
After venting his impotent rage, the calmed down Herbert reluctantly accepted the current situation and squinted his eyes to think about his next move.
"Breaking the vow is something that has to be done; this life could never be without breaking the vow... but for now, just bear with it, no rush."
The feeling of someone forcibly suppressing him made Herbert uncomfortable, but he wasn't a lust-driven ghost who couldn't think without his lower half, he didn't go crazy over this.
Nor did he think about escaping from the monastery.
On the contrary, he planned to stay here and continue his cultivation.
In fact, Herbert didn't come to Mist Monastery voluntarily but was forced there under the guise of "atonement."
The Albert Family, to which Herbert was born, were the founding nobles of Frost Crystal Kingdom, and as hereditary dukes, they maintained a good relationship with the royal family, with frequent intermarriages between the two houses.
And as the most talented second son among his brothers, Herbert had a close relationship with his childhood friend, Little Princess Philia; they were almost inseparable confidants.
Many believed they would become the new Queen and Prince in the future—Herbert, though indifferent, acknowledged that it was a likely outcome.
So, when Little Princess Philia's personal maid came to invite Herbert for a private meeting, he followed her without any suspicion.
Afterward, when Herbert arrived at Philia's boudoir for the meeting, he was arrested by the Royal Guard on the absurd charge of "attempting to defile the Princess's purity."
Herbert tried to explain, thinking there was a misunderstanding, but no one listened to him.
The other party involved, Philia, never showed up and tacitly allowed others to accuse and slander Herbert.
In the end, a disheartened Herbert stopped defending himself and accepted the punishment of being sent to the monastery.
After arriving here, he even voluntarily devoted himself to the Church and tried to prove his innocence by taking the Purity Oath.
He's like the protagonist of a classical tragedy who declares their innocence with death.
Is it tragic?
Yes.
Heartbreaking?
A bit, but only a bit.
For this life, Herbert feels more disdain than sympathy for himself.
As a noble scion, his conduct was simply too foolish.
Naive, too naive!
The clueless and naive youth couldn't see through the twists of conspiracies and never suspected others.
He never realized this was a cruel plot deliberately targeting him, not a beautiful misunderstanding.
But looking back now, Herbert could easily detect the overwhelming sense of discord in this farce.
Oh, didn't he just get framed?
I thought something serious happened.
After all the fuss, isn't this just a classic setup?
How amusing!
Herbert expressed that he was very familiar with this kind of scheme...
Don't get it wrong, he just had many friends who were frequently set up in this way.
Really.
Because he was once an outstanding litigator... oh no, a legal professional.