Elena’s 【Mira’s Blessing】 was completed in less than two hours.

The 【Prayer】 activated during the treatment had ended after three uses, just as planned.

Ordinarily, that would have concluded the treatment, but today, the main event started from here.

“It hurts?! Ouch, ouch, ouch…”

“Hey, don’t move!”

“N-no, wait, Sera, it really hurts! It hurts!!”

Elena, usually so composed, was squirming and raising her voice. I was perched on her leg, but with my light weight, I was in danger of being thrown off.

Should I wrap my tail around her at this point…?

“Sera.”

“Hmm?”

Seated in the chair beside the bed, Alec, who had only occasionally asked about the treatment’s progress, finally spoke up.

“She’s in considerable pain. Is this alright? The effects of 【Prayer】 are gone, aren’t they? For her to feel such pain from your efforts…”

“Ah… yeah, it’s fine, totally fine. I’m not putting much strength into it, and this isn’t pain from bones or muscles being damaged. Here, give me your hand.”

I understood his concern.

The pain Elena was feeling wasn’t from strain or injury to her bones, muscles, or tendons. He likely worried about that, considering I was the one performing the treatment.

Explaining this verbally would be difficult, so I figured it was best to let him experience it for himself.

“My hand?”

Though suspicious, he held out his hand. I took it and then…

“Ow?!”

I gently pressed a pressure point near the base of his thumb with a massage stick. He flinched, pulling his hand back with a grimace, eyes wide at the sudden pain and how quickly it dissipated.

This world has massage techniques, but as far as I know, pressure point therapy doesn’t exist here, so his surprise was understandable.

Having experienced it firsthand and realizing it wasn’t something that would cause injury, Alec nodded slightly, pressing his palm to test it himself.

“I see… You always seem to know the strangest things.”

“Yeah? I think I heard about it a long time ago. I remembered it while massaging Lady Seria. They say it’s effective for internal organs. It seems to hurt more if you’re fatigued.”

The “heard about it long ago” part wasn’t a lie—it was just before I was born.

I don’t remember the specifics of how the technique works, but ending with 【Prayer】 should prevent any adverse effects.

“Is… is it over now?”

By the time Elena had caught her breath and raised her head from where she had been slumped on the bed, she asked that question.

Despite the pain not lasting long, her exhaustion was evident. Even though she practiced martial arts, she seemed weak to physical pain.

Well, I suppose that makes sense—she doesn’t train to endure attacks. She’s different from Alec, who serves as a shield on the battlefield.

At any rate, I should answer her question.

“Not yet.”

With that single word, Elena dropped her face into the pillow with a groan.

◇

Another ten minutes went into massaging her legs. Afterward, I moved on to her waist, back, and shoulders, pressing with the massage stick.

Compared to the soles of her feet, these areas were no big deal.

Initially wary, Elena gradually relaxed upon realizing this.

The entire session took about 20 minutes, making the total treatment around three hours.

Physically, it wasn’t a problem, but it was time-consuming—probably not practical to do elsewhere. However, the results were worth the effort.

When Elena stood up, Alec was the first to react with surprise. Seeing his expression, Elena checked her reflection in a small mirror, then decided it wasn’t enough and moved to the lounge with a full-length mirror.

◇

Before heading to the lounge, I called Elena’s maid, Meira, to the room to inform her.

Compared to Alec and Elena, Meira had an even stronger reaction—she seemed completely astonished.

Though she had heard of my blessings, seeing the results firsthand seemed to overwhelm her.

Eventually, we moved to the lounge, where Meira prepared tea.

“Haha… hahaha!”

The room echoed with my laughter.

“Ahaha… Stop it, stop—!”

Laughing too much, I finally choked, causing Elena to halt the massage she’d been performing on my feet.

Phew… that was rough.

Twisting my body to sit up on the sofa, I saw Elena glaring at the massage stick in her hand, looking dissatisfied.

Considering how much pain she had endured earlier, I could somewhat understand her feelings.

But it wasn’t my fault, right?

Thanks to 【Prayer】 and 【Mira’s Blessing】, I was likely one of the healthiest people in this world.

Even having my feet massaged only tickled.

Realizing this, Elena sighed and gave up, setting the stick down.

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

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

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

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

Alec ・【Power Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・8 cards