"Lu-el!—We’re right here!"

Following the voice calling out his name, Lu-el spotted Weed along with the other young hunters of Daifuku Village among the crowd of participants being organized into multiple groups for the beginning of the Goddess’s Trial opening ceremony.

"So you really didn’t sit this one out," Weed said as Lu-el approached to join their group.

"I told you, I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t intend to win," Lu-el replied, maintaining his mock confidence—only to be caught off guard by Weed’s next remark.

"Even though you already have Ms. Kaori and that seductive red-haired girl as your lovers, you still want to claim the Duchess’s daughter as your next lover," Weed teased, grinning like the other young hunters who had seen Lu-el kissing Sera in public—or so Lu-el assumed.

Lu-el swiftly resumed his confidence, this time with real intent as he threatened Weed and his friends.

"Don’t you ever dare talk about what you think you just saw, ever again."

"Don’t tell me you’re actually cheating—Ouch!"

"Don’t you dare. Ever again," Lu-el repeated his threat. His remark was shorter now, but his actions emphasized it as he grabbed Weed’s shoulder and gripped it hard enough to make him groan in pain.

"Ouch—Argh!"

[Poru@Ghost: He was right though.]

[Poru@Astronaut: You were indeed cheating with Kaori by kissing Sera.]

[Poru@Sage: So lewd and naughty enough to make her orgasm.]

[Poru@Knight: It’s a shame she didn’t let you climax.]

[Poru@Beast: I feel your pain, my fellow beast.]

You can’t blame me when you’re the ones who voted for a quest to tame Sera, Lu-el thought, silently retorting back at his loyal viewers.

Still, he wouldn’t deny that he would also try to capture Sera on his own accord.

After all, a yandere villainess was also one of his types.

[Poru@Undead: Anyway, I wonder if you can kill NPCs like Weed in this game? Just in case they don’t shut their mouths.]

[Luvira@Goddess: Of course he can, only if our dear Livestreamer wants to.]

And don’t taunt them into voting for a hideous quest, you stalker goddess!

Lu-el continued his demonstration with Weed, with no intention of killing him—even if he actually told Kaori. Unlike how he would usually take a bounty hunter role where he hunted and killed NPCs, both guilty and innocent, during his previous livestream in exchange for gifts and rewards from viewers.

"Argh!—I understand. It’s not like Ms. Kaori will believe me anyway."

At Weed’s surrender, Lu-el finally let him go, then glared daggers at the other young hunters.

"Do you all still need more demonstration of what will happen if you don’t shut your mouths?" he said with a threatening grin.

The other young hunters could only shake their heads, knowing they wouldn’t be able to beat Lu-el in a fight since he had already received the blessing of intimacy from his two lovers, which strengthened his body and physical abilities.

Or so Lu-el thought.

"Don’t get overconfident just because you already have two—" Weed said, retorting, only to cut himself off as Lu-el turned his glare back at him, reminding him not to mention what he had seen.

Regaining his composure—and not wanting to look pathetic in front of his friends—Weed continued.

"What I mean is that your enhanced strength won’t matter during the Goddess’s Trial, Lu-el."

"Care to explain what you mean?" Lu-el replied, toning down his intimidation now that the issue of his so-called cheating had been settled.

Weed then explained that during each stage of the Goddess’s Trial ritual, all participants would be required to wear a magic item—a bracelet with a spell cast by a Priestess to temporarily nullify the blessing of intimacy that those with lovers already had.

"Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a fair fight," Weed added, finishing his brief explanation.

"I guess that’s also the reason why we’re all wearing simple casual clothes," Lu-el said, realizing it wouldn’t be fair if nobles could wear high-quality armor. The same applied to their weapons, since everyone was only carrying one.

Right then;

CLANG~!

The bell of the beacon tower at the center of the town square rang.

The soothing sound echoed throughout the entire town, indicating that it was already six in the morning and signaling the beginning of the opening ceremony for the Goddess’s Trial. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The moment the sound ended and the town square fell into deep silence;

WARGHH~!

Three beautiful girls stepped onto the makeshift stage, drawing loud cheers from the crowd. They were escorted by dozens of soldiers, maids, and butlers.

The first girl, standing at the center of the stage, wore a shrine maiden outfit consisting of a white yukata and a red long skirt that matched her long wavy pink-blonde hair styled in a ponytail. Her sweet and gentle smile was the kind men would die protecting—or so Lu-el vowed.

The second girl, standing on the right, wore a blue mini-dress paired with silver-white armor that matched her long blonde hair. Her cheerful and bright smile was like a ray of light that could guide men through their darkest moments—or so Lu-el believed.

The third girl, standing on the left, wore a white mini-dress that matched her pristine skin and a black robe paired with her elegant long black hair styled in a ponytail. Her sharp gaze and flustered expression were the source of many fantasies all men dreamed of at night—or so Lu-el was currently daydreaming.

[Luvira@Goddess: Does this still look like a scam to you, my dear Livestreamer?]

Dammit, you stalker goddess. How are all these girls exactly my type?

While all the participants were lost in their own fantasies like Lu-el, the first girl stepped forward toward a magic item resembling a microphone and began to introduce herself.

"I’m Mio von Fleur, heir of the Duchess of the East, daughter of the Night of Fleur. I welcome all of you to Florescence Town."

Seeing that the other two girls would not be introducing themselves—since a handmaid had taken over the microphone to present the visiting nobles like Daichi, Mikoto, and Manami—Lu-el interrupted Weed’s daydream to ask about them.

"What, you didn’t know them?"

"I wouldn’t have asked if I did, right?"

While half of his consciousness was still in his fantasy, Weed explained that the second and third girls were Mio von Fleur’s twin stepsisters. The blonde girl was named Hanae, while the other was named Kanae.

"Lady Mio has two more stepsisters aside from Lady Hanae and Lady Kanae, but they are infamous for never making any public appearances."

"So it was like that..." Lu-el murmured, piecing together more than what Weed had explained.

***

[LU-EL@LIVESTREAMER - GODDESS’S VESSEL]

Poru@Beast: Heck yeah! I told you fools, Kaori isn’t the Duchess’s daughter. Now send each of your 100 dollars into my account!

Poru@Ghost: Does that actually count as a win?

Poru@Undead: Right, Kaori was obviously the Duchess’s stepdaughter.

Poru@Astronaut: SHUT IT!—you spoilers, and give us your money!

Poru@Knight: WAIT!—doesn’t Hanae look like Marin cosplaying Saber?!

Poru@Sage: And Kanae is Komi wearing Fern’s mage outfit!

Poru@Knight: Mio... AHH!—that’s Waguri, they just turned her hair pink!

Poru@Sage: This game is literally stealing heroines!

Luvira@Goddess: SHUSH IT, you fools!—or I will smite all of you!