On the morning of the Foundation Day.

Forced to wake up at the crack of dawn, Evelyn was seized by the maids. She was dragged straight to the bathroom and had to be submerged in a warm bath mixed with flower petals and fragrant oils. Evelyn shuddered and curled her legs, still feeling as if her lower parts were stretched in the shape of Hezel’s manhood with fluid leaking out.

‘Is that stamina even real?’

What kind of man gets aroused at any time like that? The other male leads are the same, and so is Hezel. Truly, a stamina patch was more urgently needed than a balance patch.

Thanks to being entangled all night, she had successfully cleared an unexpected sub-quest and Hezel’s affection level approached 60%. But at this rate, she felt like either her pelvis or her waist would break first. Fortunately, among her basic skills was ‘Magic Shower,’ which allowed her to cleanly remove all the blood congestion left on her body.

‘The maids would have been shocked if they had seen.’

Especially Maria, who thought this world was a flower garden except for the demonic beasts. That’s how thoroughly Hezel had deeply engraved his marks all over her body. With only the Tower Master remaining among the male leads, she was already dreading the thought of mixing bodies with him.

“Saintess. Are you alright? You don’t look well.”

Maria, who was gently pouring water over her hair, tilted her head.

“I didn’t sleep well.”

“Please get plenty of rest after returning from the banquet today! The Purification Festival will be starting soon.”

The Purification Festival was a kind of tour where she, as the Saintess, would travel around territories contaminated by demonic energy for three months, purifying the land and healing people who had been harmed by demonic beasts. It was a golden opportunity to elevate the status of the main god Helios and the Empire, so the Emperor and the High Priest were making thorough preparations.

Because of this, she had heard that Nox and Luinel, the other main characters of the Purification Festival, were so busy lately that they barely had time to sleep. This was rather fortunate for her. If not for the Purification Festival, she might have been pinned under them from the first day of the Foundation Festival.

Holding her still-aching waist, Evelyn moved around as guided by the maids. When she came to her senses again, her grooming was already complete, and she was standing in front of the imperial palace’s main gate dressed in a white dress.

Soon, when those massive doors opened, she would be escorted by the Imperial Knights and Holy Knights to tour the capital’s main road. However, feeling a gaze boring into her profile, Evelyn turned her head. Nox, who had looked troubled since the welcome banquet, was staring down at her intently.

“It’s been a while, Nox. Do you have something to say to me?”

“…You look a bit unwell. Did you not sleep well last night?”

“I think I was too nervous about the Foundation Festival. I didn’t sleep well.”

Unable to tell him that Hezel, who had invaded two days before the Foundation Festival, had drained her energy, she made up a reasonable excuse. The deputy commander of the Imperial Knights approached Nox, who was looking at her with a gaze mixed with faint suspicion.

“The procession of the imperial family is almost over.”

“Make sure the Saintess doesn’t get even a hair harmed during today’s procession. Control the parade without any gaps.”

At Nox’s command, the knights lined up in front of the main gate all bowed their heads in unison. Evelyn took a short, deep breath as she grabbed the hand he extended and boarded the flower carriage waiting in front of the main gate. The thought of occupying this spacious four-person open carriage alone to tour the capital already drained her energy.

“Don’t be too nervous. I will be with you, Saintess.”

“Thank you, Nox.”

Nox smiled faintly at Evelyn’s small greeting and headed to the front of the carriage. At the same time, a magnificent trumpet sound announcing the Saintess’s appearance rang out, and the tightly closed main gate of the imperial palace opened wide.

Two white horses pulling a flower carriage advanced toward the main road connected to the imperial palace, triggering thunderous cheers and magical flower petals showering from all directions. The dazzling flower petals that dispersed before even touching the skin helped ease some of the tension constricting her entire body.

“Saintess!”

“Please look this way just once, Saintess!”

Evelyn, riding alone in the large flower carriage, had only one task to do throughout the parade. To smile and wave at the citizens who had flocked to the main road to see her. Since the appearance of magical beasts in this land, countless deaths had stained the earth, so they had always eagerly awaited the advent of the Saintess. Among them were those who couldn’t control their flowing tears and burst into sobs.

Evelyn smiled and waved at them as she rode in the flower carriage escorted by Nox, circling the capital once. By the time they passed through the imperial palace’s main gate again, the sun had already completely set. The carriage carrying the half-exhausted Evelyn stopped in front of Graham Hall, the largest hall in the imperial palace.

They said festivities would be held day and night for the next three days. From the entrance, she could sense an atmosphere much more boisterous than her own welcome banquet. Evelyn, who had gotten out of the carriage holding Nox’s hand, raised her head as she felt someone approaching.

“From here, I shall escort you.”

“Your Highness, Crown Prince.”

Luinel, whom she hadn’t seen for quite some time, just like Nox, was wearing a formal uniform with epaulettes embroidered with eagles, the symbol of the imperial family. Evelyn grabbed the arm Luinel extended and turned to look at Nox, who had seemed strangely subdued since earlier, and smiled.

“You worked really hard today, Sir. Would you like to have tea with me later when you have time?”

“That would be lovely. Then I shall see you inside Graham Hall later.”

Leaving Nox who bowed his head behind her, Evelyn entered Graham Hall escorted by Luinel. The hall, which rivaled the size of a decent Olympic stadium, was a special place that opened only for the Empire’s Founding Day or the Emperor’s birthday.

“Entering are His Highness Crown Prince Luinel El Granteum, the next sun of the Empire, and the noble Saintess Evelyn, sent down to this land by the deity Helios!”

At the doorkeeper’s announcement, made without taking a breath, the heads of the nobles filling the hall to bursting all turned toward the entrance at once.

Evelyn’s shoulders tensed up under the countless gazes, incomparable to the modest welcome banquet from before. Luinel, who chuckled at this, kept his eyes fixed forward and whispered in a lowered voice.

“Don’t stick too close. I don’t want to enter with an er*ction in front of them.”

Knowing well Luinel’s condition of being er*ect all day whenever he saw her, Evelyn immediately relaxed her body. Enduring the arrow-like stares from all directions with her whole body, she moved her numbed legs to walk with Luinel toward the Emperor.

Behind the Emperor, who was seated alongside the Empress, she could see the High Priest smiling contentedly at her. Near them were the imperial family members lined up and…

‘Tower Master.’

Among the sages wearing robes that only mages belonging to the Magic Tower could wear, the Tower Master was dressed in his invariably pitch-black robe with a half-mask covering his face. Despite the gradually closing distance, the Tower Master, or rather Ian, looked at her with eyes devoid of any emotion.