The Existence Called Hero!
"Slurp, smack, smooch, chu♡"
"Chuuup, smoooch, haum, haa...♡ Ah, Master. You're awake?"
I opened my eyes to see two women rubbing their tits against me while giving my horse cock a morning blowjob.
I gazed at their sleeping faces—well, they must've dozed off just before dawn. Did they wake up while I was out and start this?
Lizbet and even Klea looked so content, probably because they'd finally gotten some real rest and calmed down.
"You two sleep okay? Puhuhu. Waking up to my bitches glued to my horse cock first thing in the morning puts me in a great mood."
"Chu♡ We couldn't do it properly yesterday...♡"
"Smack♡ Yes. We were a little disappointed...♡"
With that, my bitches dove back into servicing my horse cock. Watching their faces brought back memories of yesterday—me helpless against Viper's Fang and the Hero Eater.
Yeah... To protect scenes like this, I gotta get my shit together and put in the work from now on.
After feeding the two my morning horse semen, we washed up together, caressing each other like lovers.
I was tempted to get all sloppy first thing, but that could wait till we got back to Radia.
As we got dressed, I asked Klea about her plans.
"Klea. What about the saint exam? After yesterday, you could just drop out, no problem."
"...I have something to say about that."
Klea, standing by the window in her underwear with her nun habit in hand, turned her serious face toward me.
She set the habit down, clasped her hands, took a deep breath like she was steeling herself.
"I'm going to become a saint."
With the window at her back, her face looked like she'd made some massive resolution.
"...You sure? Viper's Fang is done for, but it'll still be rough..."
"It's fine. I can handle it."
She nodded gently with a smile, then her expression hardened with a hint of anger as she explained.
"More than anything, it was shocking to learn there are people in the church who could pull off something like yesterday. In the Church of the Goddess, which exists to bring peace and stability to the world in Her name..."
She bowed her head, trembling—it really looked like she was furious about it.
"I won't let people like that run wild in the church anymore. So nothing like yesterday happens again... I'll become the saint and stop them."
"...Yeah. You can do it, Klea."
Hmm. Kinda disappointing, though. That means she'd head to the Royal Capital... Being apart sucks. But with that look on her face, hard to argue her out of it.
Guess Lizbet and I would have to come to the capital too? ...Yeah, probably.
"How dare those... trash... fucking dog-shit scum... I gotta clear them out..."
Huh? Did Klea just mutter something under her breath? What was that?
Sounded like some harsh words she'd never say... Nah, must be my imagination. Sweet Klea wouldn't talk like that.
"...Ahaha♡"
Lizbet, who'd been nearby, giggled while eyeing Klea, then leaned in to whisper something.
What the hell? Keeping me out of it? Kinda hurts my feelings.
"What's with you two? Include me."
"Hehe♡ Girls' secret♡"
They whispered out of earshot, and their faces lit up with some weird brightness.
Two days passed after that.
The church seemed pretty chaotic too—they couldn't decide on the next event right away and kept the saint candidates on standby.
Baul had apparently stuck his neck out to help Klea, so we barely saw her for those two days. She only got called in briefly now and then; otherwise, pure waiting.
Fine by me—thanks! I spent the time enjoying their sweet bodies at the inn or chatting with Lizbet about getting stronger after the saint selection wrapped up. A nice break to recharge.
Well-rested and sorted, time to talk adventurer life with Lizbet? Viper's Fang and the Hero Eater were still out there, nagging at me... but leave that to the kingdom knights. They were combing the capital and surroundings already.
And today, I went down to greet Baul, and he told me the saint trials were resuming.
"Starting today? That fast okay?"
"A bit rushed, but selecting a saint is crucial. Sigh..."
Baul looked exhausted. Must've busted his ass these two days. Poor guy.
"Anyway, we're excluding the demon beast subjugation score from the other day. Klea's situation with the Hero Eater was too unique—impossible to compare fairly with the others."
Figured it'd come to that. Kinda obvious, really. Sucks for us and the other candidates too.
"...And Sister Clarice is still in the running. No ties to Viper's Fang turned up."
"Seriously? Even with the circumstances..."
"Sadly, it's just your and Klea's testimony. Nothing else. The capital's bishops and some archbishops got pissed, calling it slander against Clarice."
Whether she hid it well or there's something else, even her fellow adventurers from joint ops swore no Viper's Fang links. What? That thorough? Or coincidences? Or maybe Bivora and the Hero Eater set some trap?
No evidence, not even suspicions. How much effort did they put into covering tracks? Not even a guild tattoo... Guess can't be helped.
"Unsettling as hell... but nothing we can do about Clarice. With all eyes on her now, she won't try anything."
Baul shook his head regretfully, then switched back to business and outlined the rest.
"From today, the other verification trials continue as planned: temperament test, clerical skills, holy law abilities and talent assessment, and then... seven days of ascetic prayer. We'll tally all prior activities, then archbishops and bishops vote to pick the saint."
"Sounds like standard tests except... holy law's priest skills, right? Clerical how?"
"Yes. Like magic for mages, but classified separately. No need to convert Esser to mana... And for clerical, someone'll assist Klea."
Mostly doable stuff... But what's ascetic prayer?
"Uh, so... what's the ascetic prayer? Seven days?"
"Seven days of silence, fasting, and sleepless prayer to the Goddess."
"What...? Silence aside, seven days no food and no sleep?"
"Sleepless is nominal—they all doze a bit in prayer pose. Breaking form deducts points. Fasting's tough, but one cup of water daily makes it bearable. Me, Klea, other candidates—we've all done it once or twice."
Insane... No Goddess, and they're doing batshit prayer like that. Heard of silent retreats on Earth, but seven-day fast plus no sleep? And they've done it multiple times?
"It's fine. I've done it before, so I can endure."
As I gawked at Klea and Baul, she smiled reassuringly and nodded. Her face screamed unbreakable resolve—no way to talk her down.
"Also, security'll be tighter than planned. Originally just a few kingdom knights and one Hero Knight overseeing, but now Hero Knights escort each candidate one-on-one during trials."
Those powerhouses one per girl... No worries during tests then... right?
"Can we trust the Hero Knights?"
"...? Of course—ah, right. You wouldn't know, Sema."
"...Yeah. Never mentioned it."
Baul and Lizbet gave me odd looks, then realized and nodded.
Baul cleared his throat, puffed his chest, and began.
"Hero conditions aren't fully known, but researchers agree on basics."
"Basics?"
"Yes. Very straightforward."
He glanced at Klea, smirked with faint annoyance, then declared proudly.
"Those with pure hearts who seek to protect something become heroes... That's the common wisdom."
Baul beamed at Klea like it was the highest praise.
"That's what a hero is."
He nodded firmly, smiling at me like there was zero doubt.
"Hero Knights are selected from those heroes with strong wills to defend kingdom and citizens. No danger there."
He brimmed with utter confidence.