His golden-tinted hand trembled slightly as it settled on her slender waist.

When there are severe injuries or fatigue, applying holy power directly to the injured area is more effective than the forehead. Although it was clearly a legitimate treatment, he couldn’t understand why he felt so ashamed.

At first, his honest intention was to secretly perform a little holy power on her without her knowledge and disappear.

However, due to Kasha’s innocent sleeping face and defenseless posture as she entrusted her body to him, his concentration kept faltering and impure desires boiled up.

No matter how much he tried to focus on the holy power, his breath kept catching due to the sensation of her soft skin and body heat under the thin fabric, and the afterimage of the bare white flesh he had witnessed earlier. Desires that went against God’s will danced in his stomach.

The kiss they shared in the forest during the royal picnic came to mind, and he found his gaze constantly drawn to Kasha’s lips. No, every part of her body, her very existence stimulated him.

‘I want to blame it on the aftereffects of the curse… but it’s all too clear that’s not it.’

No matter how much he recited prayers inwardly, it didn’t seem to be of any use.

Originally, the holy power should be applied directly to other injured areas such as the thighs and buttocks for maximum effect. But given his current state, he sensed that it might become molestation rather than treatment.

Leon compromised by infusing the maximum amount of holy power into the area around Kasha’s waist instead.

After a while, his face was noticeably crestfallen as he took his hand off Kasha’s waist.

Of course, he could quickly restore his stamina using holy power. The real serious blow might have been to his pride as a holy knight.

“So I can take at least this one thing without permission, right Kasha?”

Muttering to himself, Leon’s lips descended lightly onto Kasha’s forehead without hesitation this time.

‘The fact that you are here, in front of me, even in this situation, is so satisfying and joyful. Kasha. I may have really gone mad this time.’

For the first time since infiltrating the tent, a smile graced his lips.

The expedition organized to hunt down the demons was composed of the elite members of the Holy Knights. Every single one of them was a veteran who had been through thick and thin within the Holy Knights since their apprenticeship, and none of them were pushovers.

Holy Knights were different from ordinary knights. They had the differentiated weapon of holy power, and a unique transcendental aura honed through rigorous training and discipline.

Due to that immense pride, they were even said to be somewhat closed off. Today, on the fifth day of the expedition, they lined up at attention under the vast horizon of the Svarata Plains.

And standing alone in front of them was a truly frail woman.

Delicate features set in a fair and elegant face. The magical tool she struggled to hold with her thin wrists seemed to be half her size.

Yet strangely enough, she exuded an extraordinary charisma. Perhaps it was due to the unique bright pink color of her eyes, or her serene expression that was almost otherworldly.

In any case, it had only been a few days since the start of the expedition, but here was a delicate woman appearing amidst the rough atmosphere teeming with men. Everyone’s eyes gleamed with undisguised curiosity.

If it weren’t for the rumor that this calm beauty was Sir Leon’s lover, one or two of them might not have been able to resist making a pass at her, even in the Holy Knights.

However, not everyone’s face was filled with just curiosity.

For those who took pride in both their holy power and swordsmanship, the magical tool education that this noble woman was going to provide today seemed somewhat useless, in fact. Rather than enthusiasm for the education, they were satisfied that the tedious march was delayed for a while and took their places appropriately.

“Is everyone gathered?”

However, even in front of the knights’ unenthusiastic gazes, Kasha did not shrink back.

Kasha stood with her shoulders and waist straight.

Despite the relentless travel over the past five days, her body had miraculously fulfilled its role intact. She knew well that it was not thanks to any divine miracle or luck.

Leon, who entered her tent every day without her noticing, despite his position as commander. For his sake, she was determined to do her best at this moment.

“I will begin the demonstration on the use of long-range magical tools. I will take questions after the explanation is finished, so please focus for now.”

The knights’ eyes turned to the magical tool Kasha was holding without much expectation.

Laughter spread throughout the Holy Knights at someone’s joke about whether they should be the ones holding it for her instead.

Kasha deliberately avoided looking at Leon, who was watching the scene from a distance. As she maintained a calm, expressionless face, the laughter quickly died down.

Kasha, who had painstakingly shouldered the long-range magical tool, pointed to the three knights in the front row.

“You see the glass tube next to the firing mechanism I’m holding? Please gather your holy power here. As much as you can.”

At Kasha’s words, they sluggishly stepped forward and took turns applying their holy power to the glass tube.

The golden holy power that filled half the glass tube shimmered and exuded a sacred light. A proud look appeared on the faces of the three holy knights. However, Kasha’s expression was tepid upon checking the holy power they had gathered.

“Not very impressive.”

“…!”

As they were doubting their ears, Kasha called out three more from the front row.

“Try to… fill this glass tube, if possible.”

Already not expecting much from Kasha’s remark, their pride wounded, they gathered as much holy power as they could and were soon exhausted.

Some of the knights who witnessed the situation clicked their tongues.

“At this rate, they’ll exhaust all their energy before even facing the demons.”

“They’re going to use that in real combat? No, even though Sir Leon has experienced war, what is he thinking?”

Of course, they could complain because Leon was far away.

At that moment, Kasha, who was shaking the glass tube to check the gathered holy power, glanced at the complaining knight. As he shut his mouth in guilt, Kasha spoke in a dry voice.

“This is literally a long-range magical tool. In situations like ambushes, against enemies who vastly outnumber us… it’s an attack we can use. You all know the weakness of the Holy Knights, right?”

Her words were not wrong, but the knights’ expressions were not pleased.

It was true that the Holy Knights were weak to quick skirmishes or surprise attacks. They were specialized in continuously fighting and achieving victory by quickly recovering even if injured by the enemy.

The knight who had been complaining earlier spoke again with a sullen face.

“The behavior patterns of demons are usually predictable. Even if there are many, due to their nature, they tend to scatter rather than act in groups. Well, hmm. I understand what you mean, but how much it will actually help in real combat is…”

“Don’t jump to conclusions that the demons you’ve seen so far and the ones you’ll see in the future will be the same.”

Kasha, who interrupted the knight’s words, suddenly pointed the muzzle of the magical tool towards the plains.

In the middle of the plains, there was a large puddle created by rainwater. A family of bison could be seen drinking water together in the puddle.

However, on the other side of the puddle, a pride of lions that had been drinking water was eyeing them and slowly approaching.

Kasha carefully aimed the magical tool while maintaining a blank expression.

She knew all too well how important this moment would be for the future of the expedition.

Among the knights, there was a relaxed atmosphere of just watching to see what kind of plausible trick she would pull off.

That’s when it happened.

Boom!

With a sound like something being condensed and exploding, a dazzling golden mass shot out from the muzzle of the magical tool at tremendous speed.

But the truly amazing scene followed next.

The rapidly fired golden ball landed where the pride of lions was sauntering in the middle of the plains. With a slight vibration, a large golden hemisphere was created, enveloping the lion pride.

And the next moment, the entire lion pride collapsed simultaneously. Without any resistance. They didn’t even move afterward, even as a young bison approached and grazed next to them without any tension.

“…? What just happened?”

The knights stammered with their jaws dropped as if they would fall off.

Kasha took a long time to avert her gaze from the plains. Then she indifferently received the gazes of the knights focused intently on her.

“Now, take turns practicing.”

10th day of the expedition.

“Lady Kasha!”

Kasha, who had dismounted from her horse, naturally handed the reins to Karim, who came running towards her.

She had gotten used to being served by the knights who wouldn’t listen no matter how much she said she would do her own work.

“Lady Kasha. The knights in charge of the long-range magical tools have been selected from those with large holy power reserves. Shall we check on them separately later?”

Kasha lightly shook her head.

“I trust you have taken care of it well.”

“Haha, you have so much faith in me.”

Kasha blankly stared at Karim, who seemed to be in a good mood, and then started walking. Karim naturally stuck close to her and guided the way.

“The village we’re staying in today faces the desert, but it’s a transportation hub where supplies from nearby territories gather, so the food should be decent. How fortunate, right?”

The desert. So that’s why the air was so dry and gritty.

Kasha, who was nodding her head, suddenly paused.

“By the way, Sir Karim.”

“Yes?”

“You’re Sir Leon’s adjutant, aren’t you? Why does it seem like you’re only following me around these days?”

“Ah, well, that’s…”

At her point, Karim shrugged as if it was no big deal.

“Isn’t your peace of mind the peace of mind of our Holy Knights, Lady Kasha?”

“Pardon?”

“Haha. If your meal portions decrease even a little, doesn’t the entire atmosphere of our expedition become desolate the next day, Lady Kasha?”

Kasha couldn’t retort and simply moved her feet as Karim led her.

She hadn’t directly faced Leon since joining the expedition. She could only guess that Leon was deliberately keeping his distance from her, considering the impact their relationship would have on the atmosphere of the Holy Knights.

‘…Could it be that he’s angry that I arbitrarily joined the expedition?’

She had definitely been anxious thinking that way, but the anxiety didn’t last long.

The elite knights who hovered around her like bodyguards, checking on her condition.

The warm water and fresh meals that were always delivered to her tent first, no matter where they camped.

The sweet desserts left in front of her room with a knock whenever they stayed at an inn or similar place in a nearby territory every three or four days.

And above all, her good physical condition, to the extent that she had never suffered from a cold despite the arduous journey.

She couldn’t possibly not know that all of this was Leon’s invisible care.

And every time, she couldn’t help but miss him terribly. Even though she saw him leading the knights at the head of the expedition from a distance every day.

Despite all this overflowing care, she still desired something more. She realized anew how shameless she had become after regressing.

“We will depart late in the afternoon tomorrow for supplies. Please rest comfortably!”

Kasha stoically received the greetings from Karim, who was uncharacteristically cheeky for a holy knight, and entered the assigned room, closing the door.

And a little later, as she rubbed her stiff body and opened the window, she was so startled that she exclaimed.