Walking leisurely down the corridor while chatting along the way, we soon arrived in front of Elena’s room.

“It’s the furthest one down, huh.”

Elena’s room was located at the very back of the second floor.

There was another room directly across from it. Whose room could that be?

“Ah, that’s my room,” Luick said. “We couldn’t separate buildings by gender like in the upper mansion… so this setup had to do. …Ah.”

As we spoke by the door, it opened from the inside.

The person who appeared was a sharp-eyed woman, seemingly in her late twenties.

“Madam is expecting you. Please, come inside…”

She had quite an imposing presence.

Were we being too noisy?

I glanced over at Alec, and he returned my look with a wry smile.

She must be someone like Gina, the maid from Zelkis’s mansion, or perhaps similar to Hannah, the head maid there. Essentially, someone responsible for keeping the household disciplined.

I got that same vibe from her.

Did we have anyone like that back at our own lord’s manor? Maybe Liesel’s maid, Rose?

But no… I never got that impression from her. Perhaps everyone at our place was surprisingly well-disciplined on their own.

With those thoughts in mind, I stepped inside the room, where Elena was waiting, dressed casually like Alec.

The interior was spacious, reminiscent of the room Seriana used back in the royal capital.

There was a simple reception set in the room, and Elena sat there, waiting.

There was another door at the back of the room. Perhaps it led to her bedroom?

It was my first time entering Elena’s room, but it was quite simple and lacked any extravagant decorations.

Seriana’s room had a similar atmosphere. They must be alike in that regard.

There was no sign of little Luca or his nanny.

Usually, they stayed with Elena in the upper mansion, but since both Elena and Alec were off-duty today, they must be here. Yet there were no signs of children’s items in the room. Perhaps this mansion had a separate room for children?

“Welcome, Sera. We’re good now, so you may leave.”

“…Understood. Excuse me.”

The woman hesitated for a brief moment before bowing and leaving the room. However, I felt her gaze lingering on me.

Was she being cautious?

As I kept my gaze on the door after she left, Elena spoke up.

“She’s excellent at what she does, but she can be a bit rigid… You’ll get used to her eventually. Until then, bear with it.”

Elena stood up from the sofa and began walking toward the door at the back of the room.

◇

It was the first month of autumn.

This month had two consecutive personal events to celebrate — Elena and Seriana’s birthdays.

In our group, my position had settled as Seriana’s direct subordinate. Though, there wasn’t much of a strict hierarchy among us.

Our relationships were pretty loose.

That said, I was undoubtedly the youngest, so I often received gifts and attention from the others.

As a form of gratitude, I made a point to give gifts on their birthdays.

It seemed that lower-ranked individuals typically didn’t give gifts to those above them. But, since I occupied a rather unique position, it worked out.

Last year, I wasn’t able to prepare gifts due to the hectic schedule around the time of Luca’s birth. However, this year, I intended to do it properly.

It’s important to repay kindness, after all.

…However.

I was running out of ideas.

I’ll admit, my creativity is limited. But even beyond that, both Seriana and Elena are in positions where they can obtain anything they need or want in this territory at any time.

Back in my previous life, it would have been easier to find something unique, given the abundance of goods and entertainment.

Although more and more items from various regions were making their way here recently, it still wasn’t the same.

Looking into how noble families typically celebrate birthdays, I learned that gifts were often accompanied by parties or elaborate presentations.

That kind of thing wasn’t my style. Plus, I doubted they would appreciate such grand gestures.

That’s when I had an idea — to perform the real 【Mira’s Blessing】 ceremony.

I had done it before for both Fiora and Zighart, and the effects had been immediately noticeable.

Back then, though, I had only just learned how to perform it.

Years had passed since then.

Having used it regularly, I could now confidently say that my proficiency with 【Mira’s Blessing】 had reached its peak.

I couldn’t imagine myself getting any better at it than I was now.

While I used to spend hours performing the ritual, I had refined the process so that it now took under two hours.

Naturally, I put more effort into it for special occasions, which did drain me somewhat. However, I could compensate for that by activating 【Prayer】.

…It felt like I was becoming self-sufficient in strange ways.

“You even bless each finger individually, huh…”

Alec, who was observing the ritual, voiced his curiosity.

He must have only ever seen me bless hands or arms as a whole.

This was probably his first time seeing me perform blessings on such a detailed, part-by-part basis.

…Honestly.

“Yeah! This is my first time doing it this way, too!”

While mentally rehearsing last night, it occurred to me that this method might yield better results.

Since I could hold a finger within my grasp, I figured it would be more effective.

And it didn’t take any longer than before.

At the very least, I doubted it would have any negative effects.

Now, let’s see how it turns out.

——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Sera: 【Hideout】+1, 【Prayer】, 【Mira’s Blessing】, 【Wind’s Garment】, 【Floating Orb】+1, 【Shadow Sword】, 【Scarlet Bee Needle】, 【Fairy’s Eye】, 【Dragon’s Lung】, 【Amber Sword】, 【Danrem’s Thread】, 【Serpent’s Tail】, 【Ankle Bracelet】, 【Amber Shield】, 【Purple Wings】 ・ 13 cards

Seriana: 【Area Identification】, 【】 ・ 28 cards

Elena: 【】, 【Green Fang】, 【Amber Sword】 ・ 4 cards

Alec: 【Strong Strike】, 【Red Shield】, 【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 ・ 8 cards