After the carriage carrying the August siblings and Agnes departed, we divided the remaining group into two, with four people in each carriage.

Fortunately, there weren’t too few carriages. It just so happened that our destinations overlapped or were in similar directions.

"I'll see you at the academy, Hero. And… if you get too close to Miss Selenna, she might get angry when you meet again."

"...I told you, that’s not going to happen. Have I ever even touched anyone up until now?"

"Hmm, that’s true. You haven’t. And that’s the problem. Being cautious is good, but I do wish you’d choose someone soon."

"I’m not in a position to choose anyone, Seraphin."

"R-right! You shouldn't pressure the Hero into choosing someone!"

"Yeah, don’t do that."

"My mother always told me not to fall for popular men... Sigh."

With a quiet sigh, Seraphin climbed into the imperial carriage, as did Serista, who also had business in the capital.

Watching from the side, I almost let the words "this is ridiculous" slip from my lips, but I held it in. Seeing a harem protagonist up close sure felt strange.

"Please send my regards to Miss Agnes, Lady Lilith."

"You just spoke with her, Prince Antonio."

"Well, even so."

With a strangely relaxed smile, Prince Antonio climbed into the carriage as well. Once the carriage led by Sir Colt departed for the imperial capital, the last remaining carriage was for the rest of us.

It was a rather odd mix: Gerenol, Selenna, and me, along with Ethan.

"Sorry to trouble you. No matter how I look at it, walking all the way to Blackwood Estate is impossible."

"It’s fine, it’s fine. The Blackwood Estate is on the way to the World Tree Forest anyway. Don’t think of it as a favor, just relax."

Though Ethan wasn’t thrilled about having to travel with the hero, even he wasn’t brazen enough to complain when getting a free ride.

If it weren’t for Gerenol’s consideration, the six of us would’ve been crammed into the imperial carriage back to the capital, and from there, we’d have had to ride another day to reach the Blackwood Estate. By that time, summer vacation would’ve been practically over, and it would’ve been straight back to the academy.

Anyway, after traveling for three days in this peculiar group, we returned to the Blackwood Estate. Gerenol and I took turns driving the carriage.

Nothing particularly eventful happened over those three days. On the first day, we encountered a pack of monsters. On the second day, we ran into bandits. We gained a good amount of experience, but it wasn’t quite enough to level up.

One unusual thing did happen, though. Before leaving the Witch’s Forest, the “Witch’s Pendant” was given to me, not Gerenol.

"Miss Maychiling? What is this?"

"It’s… our family’s pendant… Since I received a lot of help from you this time…."

"But wouldn’t the Hero or someone else be more deserving?"

"E-even so, I want to give it to you… Please accept it…."

"Alright. Thank you for the gift, Miss Maychiling."

"Th-thank you for accepting it...!!"

And so, thanks to that series of events, I ended up with the “Lara’s Secret” event’s final reward.

Of course, I wasn’t planning to keep it, so I tried to hand it over to Gerenol during the night watch on the first day. But he refused, saying it wasn’t right to take someone else’s gift.

"If she gave it to you, how would it look if I wore it? Lara might misunderstand our relationship. I don’t need it, so just keep it for yourself."

"But it’s the Witch’s Pendant, a final-tier item. Without it, you won’t even have a suitable lower-tier item for the final boss fight."

"I already have the necklace I got from Liria. And honestly, the reason I asked for your help this summer wasn’t to get double the rewards but because I wanted to help both Liria and Lara. I’m not fixated on any rewards."

"...Alright. Just don’t complain later."

And so, I ended up with the Witch’s Pendant, a final-tier item. Its stat boosts were decent, so I decided to keep it for now. Accessories like this worked even without being worn, simply by owning them.

Thus, the events of this incredibly eventful summer vacation came to an end, and we returned to the Blackwood Estate.

On the first night back, as I lay in the waiting room, I seriously contemplated the plans regarding Ethan and me.

"Now then…."

How could I create a situation where I could sleep with Ethan?

As I mentioned before, it’s not like I want to do it with Ethan. It’s just something I have to do under the circumstances.

I no longer needed to maintain the title of Saintess, and now this power was just shackling me. Being a Saintess came with responsibilities and obligations, but gave nothing in return.

I wasn’t like Serista, who’d say, “As long as I’m by the Hero’s side, that’s enough for me.”

To get rid of the Saintess’ power, I needed to discard my qualifications as soon as possible. And the only person who met the conditions for doing that was Ethan.

I couldn’t stomach the idea of getting rid of it through self-pleasure or by having my first experience with some random man. My pride wouldn’t allow it.

"The problem is the situation. I need to make it feel as natural as possible."

I couldn’t just barge into Ethan’s bedroom without an excuse. That would be far too unbecoming of a virgin.

I wanted to approach this like a pure love route, not like some desperate woman. I couldn’t let Ethan misunderstand.

"If only I still had some of that special tea from the royal villa…."

That tea would have made it much easier to set the mood, but unfortunately, I had already used it all. If I’d known, I would’ve saved some.

The closest alternative was alcohol. It was a classic "excuse" used often in my previous life.

"Maybe I should ask Dietmaier to sneak me a bottle of strong liquor."

I could bring it to Ethan, suggest we share a drink, and then “accidentally” get drunk and let things happen naturally. Surely Ethan wouldn’t be able to resist if I let myself fall into his arms.

That thought crossed my mind briefly, but I dismissed it. Seducing him with alcohol didn’t feel like the right way.

If we’d already crossed the line, maybe, but I wasn’t comfortable with the idea of using alcohol for my first experience. I wanted to remember it clearly, and alcohol might cloud the memory.

Besides, knowing the current Ethan, he’d probably just tuck me in with a blanket if I passed out drunk. That would be a blow to my pride I wouldn’t recover from for a while.

"Inviting my employer to drink with me is inappropriate, anyway."

It would be insubordinate in several ways, so that plan was scrapped.

That left only one viable excuse.

"Offering it as a reward after Ethan wins a duel... seems like my best option."

If Ethan managed to defeat Harold in a duel, I could offer myself as a reward. It was the perfect excuse.

After all, we’d already done other things as rewards for Ethan’s victories, like letting him touch me or other smaller favors.

And since it was summer break, Harold was staying at the estate, so Ethan could duel him as often as he liked.

Ethan had gained plenty of experience from our hunting trips in the Witch’s Forest. He even fought McHart in a near one-on-one battle and came out victorious.

It wouldn’t be easy, but I figured he could win one round in ten or twenty against Harold.

"Even if it's just one victory against a Sword Master, it would be a remarkable achievement for a second-year academy student."

Such an accomplishment would certainly be worthy of a significant reward.

Ethan wouldn’t find it strange if I offered my first experience as a prize for defeating his father.

"There are five days left until we return to the academy…."

I had to make sure Ethan won the duel within the next three or four days.

There was no way I was going back to the academy still carrying the burdens of the Saintess’ title.