After Sri fainted.


    At first, I was startled by her limp body, but she quickly regained consciousness, proving her divinity, and I was able to continue.


    She tried to run away, begging me to let her rest… but after grabbing her tail and giving her a few taps on the hips, she quickly entered mating mode again.


    We repeated this cycle throughout the night: she would wake up and try to escape, I’d catch her, pin her down beneath me, her eyes would roll back, and she’d pass out again. Who knows how many times we repeated that?


    Even Sri seemed to have her limits, as she eventually copsed, unable to get back up.


    Finally, I decided to start cleaning up andy down next to her.


    Though my body was tired, I didn’t fall asleep right away.


    I had too many things on my mind.


    Among those thoughts, the most important one was whether my wounds had healed.I let my mind sink into the darkness behind my eyes. Since I’d done this before, entering the area imprinted with my traits wasn’t too difficult.


    The bright Blessing of the God of All Things was still shining nearby, but the pure white sun was no longer there.


    However, there were no signs of any harsh tears either.


    The long scar that stretched from the boundary between my soul and body, where the Blessing of the Sun God used to reside, all the way down to the part where the divine power was torn out of my body, was now filled with a white light, like skin.


    It felt as though Sri’s divine power had glued my soul and body more tightly together.


    Ah, I see. That’s why she said she had to do the mating herself.


    This was something only a being that had existed alongside humans for millennia, granting blessings in exchange for faith, could do.


    An ordinary person wouldn’t even be able to understand the structure of a soul and body, let alone handle such pure divine power.


    However, there was one thing that bothered me… the divine power had blended into my body too smoothly.


    I knew divine power was inherently stable, but it wasn’t my own, after all.


    I should have felt at least some difort, but I didn’t feel anything like that.


    It was as if this power had been mine from the beginning.


    There’s a simple way to figure out what’s going on in situations like this.


    ‘Status Window!’


    The moment I called for the status window in my mind, a semi-transparent screen popped up.


    Since the monsters outside hadn’t been fully dealt with yet, no achievement window appeared.


    But at least the function showing my body’s condition remained active.


    <em>Ding!</em>


    [Trait Removed!]


    Trait: The Blessing of the Sun God (A+) has disappeared!


    Are you insane, human?


    What on earth have you done?!


    Ah. This must have appeared when I shot out the blessing as a mass of divine power.


    Thankfully, there was another notification afterward.


    [Trait: The Sun God''s Favor (S) Acquired!]


    You are loved by the Sun God!


    The trace of radiance deep within your body is proof of this.


    Just as the truth that the sun will rise again even after the darkest night remains unchanged.


    The Sun''s love for you will always be steadfast, no matter the time or ce.


    Her light is already within you.


    …In many ways, this is quite impressive.


    While bathed in sunlight, stamina recovery and mana recovery speed are increased by 400%.


    When not exposed to sunlight, stamina recovery and mana recovery speed are increased by 200%.


    Light attribute damage increased by 30%.


    Greatly increased favorability with the Church of Righteous Radiance.


    “???”


    What the…?


    Sri had mentioned that the treatment would include restoring the blessing I had lost.


    But this wasn’t just restoration!


    There were a lot of changes… First of all, the blessing had gone from A+ rank to S rank.


    It was just a one-rank difference, but that change was monumental. To give an example, it was like the gap between Iris, who stood at the pinnacle of high-ranking magicians, and a grand magician.


    In fact, in this field, there was nothing higher than an S-rank trait.


    Receiving an S-rank blessing meant I was now qualified to be an apostle of the Sun God, which should tell you how high that rank was.


    In addition, my recovery bonus during the day increased by 50%, and even at night, I could now recover half as fast.


    My bonus light attribute damage also increased by 5%.


    Judging by the effects, it was slightly better than the Blessing of the Sun God (S) I remember.


    Of course, that blessing’s main feature was the qualification to be an apostle, so its bonuses were rtively minorpared to other S-rank traits.


    Since I didn’t have any intention of bing an apostle, this version was actually better for me.


    But still…


    The line “The Sun’s love for you will always be steadfast, no matter the time or ce” kept catching my eye.


    This was definitely that, right?


    It seemed Sri deliberately avoided mentioning it… but after such intimate contact, I could tell whether she was sincere or not.


    Despite her attempts to escape and her words, she never rejected me. In fact, it felt like she was taking this chance to ask for more passionately.


    I wanted to hear it from Sri’s own mouth, but here I was, getting spoiled like this.


    With a bitter smile, I opened my eyes. As I did, I saw Sri, who had already regained her senses and was ncing at me before quickly closing her eyes, pretending to be asleep.


    “Sri?”


    “……”


    “Come on, I saw you open your eyes just a moment ago. Why are you pretending to sleep again?”


    “Zzzzzz…”


    “Even if you try to fake snoring, it won’t work. I’ve checked, and it seems the treatment is over, so I won’t bother you anymore. Please open your eyes.”


    “…Really?”


    “No, I was just messing with you.”


    Sri began to crack her eyes open but immediately shut them tightly again.


    The way she tensed up only made it more obvious that she was awake. Even her lion ears drooped down suddenly.


    Laughing quietly, I put my arm around her shoulder and pulled her toward me.


    The soft sensation of her body pressed against my left side.


    Sri was trembling slightly, but at the same time, she swallowed nervously, as if in anticipation.


    Adding to the humor, she was cautiously peeking at me with half-closed eyes, causing me to chuckle.


    She had always been unusually familiar for a god, but right now, she felt more like an ordinary woman.


    Perhaps it was because she had taken on a human body.


    I smiled as I yed with Sri’s twitching lion ears, which had been moving restlessly since earlier.


    “I’m joking.”


    “…Huh?”


    “The treatment is done. And naturally, the mating is over too. You’re fine now, so let’s just talk for a bit.”


    “Hm, you mean to n out what we’ll say to Helena, right?”


    “There’s nothing to n. We’ll just be honest and ask for her understanding.”


    “Well, yes, but…”


    Sri’s face briefly showed guilt and regret before she nodded uncertainly.


    However, she quickly seemed to make up her mind, and with a firm yet sorrowful smile, she spoke.


    “You’re right. It’s for the best, after all. This was just a one-time thing, anyway.”


    “Huh? No, it wasn’t. We’re going to do it again next time.”


    “…Grr?”


    Sri leaped up, making her signature beastly noise.


    I continued nonchntly.


    “Surely… you didn’t think you could just ‘eat and run,’ right?”


    “Eat and run?”


    “It means to sleep with someone and then abandon them.”


    “I know what it means! But if we’re being specific, I was the one ‘eaten’… No, I’m not thinking of abandoning you or anything like that!”


    “Then you’ll do it with me again, right?”


    “……”


    Sri pursed her lips and shifted her eyes nervously.


    “Do you not want to?”


    “Well, that’s…”


    “I enjoyed it. I’d like to share the same bed with you from now on.”


    “…!”


    Sri stammered, flustered by my straightforward words, and I turned to look at her.


    With a soft smile, I tapped my lips lightly.


    “If you feel the same way, Sri, kiss me. I’ll handle the rest of the issues, whatever they may be. But if you don’t… you can just close your eyes and go to sleep. When you wake up, everything will be back to how it was.”


    “Back to how it was…”


    “Yes. Let’s pretend like tonight never happened.”


    “……”


    Sri’s gaze wavered violently. She seemed unable to decide where to look, and her face slowly moved closer to mine.


    I could almost see theplicated thoughts running through her head: <em>Is this really okay? What about Helena and the other women? What will I say to my followers?</em>


    But despite her hesitation, she didn’t stop bringing her lips closer. When there was only half the distance left between us…


    I closed the remaining gap.


    <em>Smooch.</em>


    “Mmph?!”


    Sri was startled when I moved toward her first. Enjoying her reaction, I slipped my tongue inside her mouth.


    Though she hesitated at first, she soon epted me, and our tongues intertwined.


    Like children linking pinkies to make a promise, Sri and I intertwined our tongues, silently making a vow to one another.


    For a long while.


    “…Phew!”


    Sri finally pulled away, gasping for breath. I grinned at her as she caught her breath.


    “A severed head of an Evil God will be enough for a dowry, right?”


    “Grr?”


    Sri’s lion ears perked up, and she blinked in confusion. But soon, she seemed to understand my meaning and responded by wriggling under the nket.


    Then, I felt a warm, moist sensation below my waist.


    Lifting the nket quickly, I saw Sri holding my member in her mouth.


    Her eyes, now beautifully curved, gleamed as she gently nibbled on the shaft, seemingly to tease me.


    “You can still go, right?”


    “…Of course.”


    After all, the new trait I gained even restores stamina at night.