“This is a delivery for Vice Captain Sera.”

“Thank you for your hard work. Bring it in.”

“Yes, ma’am. Excuse me.”

With that, he removed his shoes and carried the items into the room.

There were four packages, and at a glance, they didn’t seem particularly heavy or large.

However… though the boxes were made of wood, they were intricately decorated, giving them an oddly elaborate appearance.

As I stared at the boxes placed on the table, I realized—this isn’t just ordinary wood… Who is this from?

“Huh!?”

I was slightly overwhelmed by the luxurious boxes, but before I could dwell on it, Seriana ignored me completely and began opening them.

“Knowing you, you were probably thinking about something pointless, right? This is from Liesel and me.”

“What!?”

It was true that I hadn’t received anything from my close companions yet… so this is it.

“Here.”

Seriana pulled out a cloth-wrapped, rectangular object from one of the boxes and placed it in front of me.

I suppose that means I should open it myself.

I unwrapped it, rummaging through the layers.

“What could it be… huh? …It’s a clock!”

Inside the wrapping was a magnificent tabletop clock, about 30 centimeters tall, with a large, prominent clock face.

Its body was made of black wood with no decorations, yet it had a solid and stable structure.

The difference between a wall clock and a tabletop clock aside, it resembled the clock that Seriana had in this room.

“It’s not portable, but it should be perfect for the back, right?”

By “the back,” she meant 【Hideout】. Those who weren’t aware of its existence looked puzzled by her words, but I understood perfectly.

It would fit nicely on the shelf in 【Hideout】’s living room.

Since I had already done some organizing during the rainy season, there was space for it… Wait, did I clean up just for this?

A clock… If I only needed to measure time, a timer would suffice, and carrying delicate equipment into battle was risky.

The only times I really need to check the time are when I go on long trips, so leaving it in 【Hideout】 wouldn’t be an issue.

But still… I had wanted a clock, and I did have enough money to buy one.

Yet, I hadn’t bought one until now for a reason.

“Was this made in this town’s workshop?”

A clock is a tool that relies on precision and accuracy.

It usually needs maintenance about once a year to adjust the time.

Mass-produced clocks don’t exist in this world, so every clock is handcrafted in a workshop.

On top of that, clocks here aren’t industrial products—they’re magic tools.

I don’t know all the details, but while the core technology remains the same, the finer aspects reflect the individuality of the workshop and craftsmen.

That’s why it’s common practice to have maintenance done by the workshop that created the clock.

This town has its own workshop, of course, but ever since it transitioned from a frontier city to the capital of a new domain, the demand for clocks has increased, leading to a backlog of orders.

Sure, if I used Seriana’s name, I could probably cut in line, but I didn’t want to do that.

That’s why, despite wanting one, I had put off buying a clock.

“It was made in this town’s workshop, but I personally worked on the core mechanism. I can handle the maintenance myself, so there’s no issue. You can rest easy.”

“Whoa… You really can do anything, huh…?”

It was Fiora who answered my unspoken question about maintenance.

She didn’t look particularly proud—just like it was the most natural thing in the world.

This woman seriously can do anything.

Regardless, I finally have my long-awaited clock.

I need to properly express my gratitude.

“Thank you, Lady Seria. I really wanted a clock.”

She didn’t reply, but Seriana looked satisfied.

Well, not that her expression changed or anything!

Lately, I’ve realized that when she doesn’t react at all to what I say, it usually means she’s in a good mood.

“I believe Liesel sent something as well. You should open it.”

“Alright, alright. You don’t know what’s inside?”

“No. I only heard he was sending something, but I don’t know what. Since it arrived at the same time, I assume he placed an order with the commercial guild in this town.”

“Hmm.”

So Seriana doesn’t know either.

Liesel’s taste… Judging by his appearance alone, he seems like the type to send flowers, but that’s probably not the case… I have no idea what to expect.

The box was a shallow rectangle… Well, let’s open it and find out.

“…Oh?”

“Clothing, perhaps?”

Inside the box was a red fabric.

When I took it out and spread it open… it looked like a long shirt?

“A gown, maybe?”

“Yes, Mio.”

“Understood…”

While I held the garment and tilted my head in confusion, Seriana, Teresa, and even Elena turned to Mio, signaling her to explain.

Mio complied, explaining where the fabric was sourced from and which craftsman had made it, going into a long-winded spiel.

I left the technical details to Teresa and the others and turned my attention to the remaining two boxes.

“They’re different colors.”

“Yeah.”

Fiora seemed more interested in the contents of the boxes than Mio’s explanation and had come up behind me.

Just as she said, the remaining items in the boxes were gowns in blue and black.

If the black one were yellow instead, they’d be the colors of a traffic light…

Regardless, I received not just the clock but also these three high-quality gowns.

It’s turning out to be a great birthday.

Though… seeing the pile of unopened gifts next to the table, I can’t help but feel a little overwhelmed about what’s coming next.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————

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】・15 cards

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

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

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