I had expected Kate to come looking for me even before the release. People with ambiguous knowledge are always the most dangerous, and Kate’s understanding of sexuality was no exception.

She would be shocked by volume 24.5, consult with Luminous, and then come to me. My plan was simple: I would calmly hand her over to the women. They were aware of Kate’s devastating lack of knowledge about sex and would use this opportunity to teach her properly.

They would explain the significance of such acts as a person, what true purity meant as taught by the church, and why it was important not to misuse her body, even for the sake of Luminous or me. I hoped this would help her see me differently and perhaps even temper her fanaticism, improving our relationship.

At least, that’s what I thought.

“Lord Isaac, I have a request.”

“Yes, please go ahead.”

“Please spend the first night with me tonight.”

“Understo… What?”

Until Kate, with an uncharacteristically flushed face, made her request. It seems “no backing down” was the phrase of the moment.

Ignoring my and everyone’s astonishment, she placed her hand on her chest, closed her eyes, and spoke in a voice that seemed to be calming her excitement.

“After reading the holy scripture, I felt desires for you, Isaac. I felt guilty for harboring such desires and pleaded to Luminous. But Luminous told me it was alright, that I had only come to realize it late. He also told me that my feelings for you are ‘love.’”

“…”

“Thanks to that, I realized. I love you, Isaac, and my desires are also part of that love. The acts described in the scripture are acts of love, and they will bring me greater pleasure than when I pleasured myself. Just the act of receiving your seed holds immense significance.”

Then she opened her eyes and looked directly at me. There was madness and desire in her gaze, but strangely, it didn’t feel sordid or repulsive.

It was clear I needed to handle this carefully.

Despite being completely colored by ‘lust,’ her purity remained intact. It was this purity, now tainted by lust, that made her seem fallen in another sense. What kind of conversation had transpired to change her so drastically? I was utterly bewildered.

It’s not as if she had become a different person; Kate’s characteristic innocence remained. It was just colored by something different.

“So, Isaac, I ask you. Please spend the first night with me. I need to know beforehand to receive your seed more easily in the future.”

“…Is that really your only purpose?”

A lust-driven Kate aroused suspicion. In the past, I might have just thought she was a bit naive and let it pass. But now she knew the ‘methods.’ However, she only understood the methods and not what they symbolized or meant.

In other words, it’s not her knowledge that’s the problem but her ‘perception.’ Let’s think about how terrifying a fanatic can be. They are monsters who believe that anything is permissible for the sake of their god.

Fortunately, Kate wasn’t entirely like that, but still…

“Yes. And Isaac, you can also experience pleasure. Luminous told me that it’s okay for the man I love to feel that pleasure.”

“Oh my…”

She was simply lacking. I held my head, feeling dizzy. Kate’s words weren’t wrong.

The pleasure that loving couples derive from sexual relations is a natural sensation. Luminous probably meant it in that sense, but Kate was the problem. From the beginning, she considered receiving my seed to be a sacred act.

Moreover, Kate, as a cardinal managed by the church, had lived a celibate life. They say late awakenings are the scariest, and she was a prime example of that. Combined with her unique devotion, she had become an unpredictable individual.

Realizing her feelings for me as love, she was charging forward like a runaway train.

“…Wait a moment, Cardinal Kate. Can we talk?”

Finally, Marie, unable to watch any longer, called out to Kate.

Kate turned her gaze towards Mari. Marie sighed at the sight of Kate’s seemingly innocent yet lustful face. It was a sigh filled with complex emotions.

Afterwards, she pondered on how to explain and then quietly opened her mouth.

“Cardinal Kate, have you now learned how babies are made?”

“I learned it through the scriptures.”

“Did you not feel embarrassed or think it was shameless while reading it?”

Even the most open-minded person has a hint of embarrassment, as Marie’s question implied. This is a basic human emotion.

It can happen when one’s intimate parts are exposed due to a mistake or when they are inadvertently exposed to a certain atmosphere, and so on.

I wonder if Kate feels such emotions too.

“Why would it be embarrassing? Lord Luminous said it was natural.”

She doesn’t! I became convinced and clapped my forehead.

Once again, Kate hadn’t changed at all. She was simply colored by different hues.

She would carry out all commands for Luminous and would even sacrifice her life for me, the clergyman.

A new desire called ‘lust’ was just added to this large canvas, but the base itself remained unchanged.

“…….Then, Cardinal Kate, do you have such feelings for any man other than Isaac?”

This was not Marie’s question, but Cecily’s. Her question was filled with curiosity, as she shared many similarities with Kate.

She considered me both the savior of the demons and a grace bestowed by the gods.

Now, she treats me as myself, but everyone knows she still thinks that way inwardly.

Even though I felt burdened by such feelings, I accepted them gracefully. Unlike Kate, she didn’t openly worship me.

“That’s an excessive question, Princess Cecily. My body is only permitted for Lord Luminous and Sir Isaac. No one else can defile it.”

“Lord Luminous aside, why Isaac?”

“Because he is the one who will spread light in this world, a saint blessed not only by Lord Luminous but also by the gods.”

Kate answered with a crumpled expression, seemingly offended. She frowned as if she didn’t even want to imagine it.

Now that I think about it, didn’t she make me touch her cheek with my hand during the identity announcement? At that time, Kate had a look as if something dirty was being washed away.

Cecily thought for a moment after hearing Kate’s answer, then nodded and asked her next question.

“Then, what if, by some chance, another saint who accomplishes feats similar to Isaac appears? What would you do then? Surely…”

“Princess Cecily, when do you think a saint like Sir Isaac will appear again?”

“······”

For once, Kate presented a highly persuasive argument. Cecily’s mouth shut like a clam at that single point.

And rightly so, since my achievements have changed the entire world and made it safe from the dangers of the demon war.

Kate glared coldly at her for a moment, then turned her gaze back to me.

As soon as our eyes met, the cold expression vanished. Only the flushed face of a maiden awaiting her first night remained.

Then she placed her hand on her chest and, with a mixture of anticipation and excitement, declared.

“I swear to Sir Isaac. My body is entirely yours.”

“······”

“You don’t have to give me your seed right away. I can wait. However, I judge that we need to perform the act to make it easier to receive your seed, so I request once again.”

“Sigh……”

How did she end up like this? I rubbed my face dryly in frustration.

It’s so typical of Kate to make such a request out of the blue. She hasn’t changed at all.

The problem is that she has awakened too late. My first thought is to reject her.

“…I’m sorry, Kate. Not yet.”

“When you say ‘not yet’…”

“There are others besides you…”

I was embarrassed to say this, but I had no choice because it was Kate. It’s better to tell her to wait for her turn rather than making various excuses.

Kate, upon hearing my answer, seemed disappointed but nodded in understanding.

“I see. If only I had known a little earlier… It’s a bit regretful.”

If you had known a little earlier, I would have already withered away. As soon as I thought of that, I felt a chill run down my spine.

Now that I think about it, Kate is a cardinal. She is a cleric with the strongest influence and favored by Luminous.

She has possessed a high level of divine power since birth. What would happen if I had intercourse with such a person?

It’s not an exaggeration to say that it would be like doing it with someone who possesses the stamina of both Adelia and Cecily at her peak during her cycle.

Moreover, she has strong recovery abilities based on her immense divine power…

‘…I’m really screwed, aren’t I?’

I glanced at Kate while seriously pondering. She was still waiting quietly, her face flushed with anticipation.

In erotic novels or light novels, most of the saints depicted quickly fall into corruption. Afterward, their saintly image completely disappears, and they are reborn as succubi.

Could Kate be one of those cases? And she even wants it herself, not being forced.

‘But what kind of teaching method led her to become so unhinged like this?’

So I asked Luminous directly. What kind of teachings turned Kate into a saint in a different sense?

I had Kate stay at the mansion for a while and went to the temple alone.

‘Lord Luminous.’

[I’m sorry.]

‘Is “sorry” enough for this?’

After hearing the whole story, I had to argue. If you’re going to teach, teach properly. I don’t understand why you made it even worse.

Of course, Luminous also felt a bit of unfairness in this. The direct cause of Kate’s condition lies with the church.

If the church had taught her in more detail and restrained her piety a bit more, her beliefs wouldn’t have become so twisted.

‘Let’s say I loaded the bullet… no, drew the bowstring. At the very least, Lord Luminous, you should have adjusted it to hit the target accurately.’

[That’s right.]

‘But the arrow flew in a completely wrong direction, and now you’ve even passed the bow onto me?’

[······]

Luminous couldn’t respond to my detailed grievances. Honestly, it’s okay that the arrow flew in the wrong direction.

The act of passing the bow to me, in other words, dumping the already tainted Kate onto me, was the main point here.

At the very least, if they had taught her what not to do, it would have been different. But they handed her over because it was too troublesome to explain everything in detail.

That’s why I’m so irritated. Though I do have some responsibility in this, and Luminous also has some unfairness in the situation, that’s why I only argued. Otherwise, I would have been much angrier.

‘Sigh… Lord Luminous.’

[Speak.]

‘Honestly, if Kate and I were to be together, it would benefit you as well, wouldn’t it?’

[I can’t deny that.]

A child born between Kate and me would grow up to be a wonderful clergyman. Becoming a cardinal would be a given.

If the number of clergy increases and their quality improves, it would significantly impact the gods. And the gods could bestow even greater divine power upon them.

It’s practically a virtuous cycle. That’s why Kate was so insistent on getting the seed from the beginning.

I sighed deeply, then ran my hand down my face and quietly spoke.

‘…Since things have already turned out this way, I won’t say much. But please give me as much divine power as possible, because I might really wither away.’

[Speaking of which…]

‘What? Don’t tell me you can’t give it to me?’

If so, I would really die. Not just Kate, but Leona and Arwen are also scheduled.

Especially Leona, who has robust hardware as a beastman, and if it coincides with her mating season, who knows what will happen.

[It’s quite the opposite. I can give you much more divine power than before. This applies not only to me but also to Mora.]

‘Why?’

Luminous answered my question with a voice filled with inexplicable satisfaction.

[It’s also thanks to your book. The population is expected to increase. This means there will be more children for us to bless.]

‘Was it really true? I couldn’t believe it.’

[Of course. Just following it increases satisfaction, and naturally, the bond between lovers and married couples would strengthen. You don’t have to look far, you can see it around you.]

‘……Seriously?’

Two people come to mind when thinking about who might be nearby. The ones who were most passionate when Marie and I had our first night.

[You might see another sibling soon. I won’t say more.]

‘Aigoo…’

I could only genuinely sigh. No wonder Father looked more exhausted.

So, after finishing my conversation with Luminous and returning to the mansion, it happened.

“So, the confirmed ones so far are me, Cecily, Adelia, Arwen, and Kate. Five people, right?”

“What about Leona?”

“She isn’t completely confirmed yet. Let’s include her as a maybe. So then…”

“Include Cherry as well. So the remaining ones are Leona, Rina, and Cherry.”

“Even if we do it once a day, the cycle is too long. We wouldn’t even do it once a week?”

The women, except for Kate, were huddled together, making a plan that wasn’t quite a plan.

It seemed like they were arranging the schedule for nights with me, including those who hadn’t been confirmed yet.

“This won’t work. Exclude me. Since I’m the main wife, I can do as I please, right?”

“Wow… You’re only saying you’re the main wife at times like this. Isn’t that too much?”

“If you’re upset, you should have confessed to Isaac first.”

“Tch.”

“Uh… Aren’t you going to ask for my opinion?”

When I asked timidly,

“The guilty public good should stay out of it. Just focus on exercising if you don’t want to wither away.”

“Yes.”

I only got a counterattack from Marie.

This is quite sad.

“Don’t pretend to be sad. It’s your own fault, isn’t it?”

It was truly my own fault, so I had nothing to say.

Translators note: