We arrived at the lounge on the first floor of the South Wing and waited for Teresa and the others to arrive.

“It really takes time with a carriage, huh.”

“Yes, indeed. You can’t go too fast on that road. Even Liesel and the others probably ride horses instead of using carriages when they’re in a hurry, right?”

“Now that you mention it… yeah.”

As I was chatting with Seriana to pass the time…

“They’re here.”

She pointed at the door as she spoke.

“Alright, alright.”

When I went to open the door, Teresa and a female soldier were standing right in front of it.

For Teresa, this was a usual occurrence, but the female soldier looked surprised that the door was opened before they even knocked.

Well… yeah, that reaction is normal.

Though I could tell because of Seriana’s blessing this time, in this world, there are plenty of people who can naturally sense things like this without any special ability.

Anyway, once we let them into the room, Teresa first greeted Seriana.

She was always polite and treated Seriana with respect, but today, she was being even more formal than usual.

It wasn’t just because she was in front of her subordinates.

I had seen this female soldier at the underground training grounds before… was it because of the gacha?

Perhaps because she witnessed this exchange, the female soldier looked more and more nervous… poor girl.

She was clutching a small pouch on her lap… that probably contained Holy Coins.

…It seemed like the greetings were done, and everyone took their seats.

On the table, there was a sacred image and the documents Seriana had brought. Were they starting already?

This was my first time witnessing someone else’s gacha, so even I was feeling nervous.

Wait, am I even supposed to be here?

“Why are you acting so suspicious…?”

I hadn’t meant to, but apparently, my behavior showed it, and Seriana called me out.

“Well… I just feel uneasy. Are you starting now?”

“No… first, tell me your name.”

Seriana let out a small sigh before turning to the female soldier and speaking.

She had probably already heard it during Teresa’s greeting, but she wanted the woman to introduce herself properly.

“Y-yes! My name is Monica!”

She answered clearly, despite her nervousness.

She was one of the original members of the female soldier unit.

Her father was an adventurer and had been a commander of the warrior corps responsible for the southern battlefield during the raid.

He had been an adventurer since this city was still called Lortle and was well-connected with the local adventurers and merchants.

Because of that, his status and background were solid, making her a fitting choice for the initial recruits.

So, were they going to start the gacha right away?

“Before we proceed, let me confirm something. Your father is aware of this as well, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Very well… But you are truly fine with using these Holy Coins? I will check them one by one, but you will likely end up using all ten. Ten Holy Coins… that alone is quite a fortune.”

Seriana spoke to Monica with a gentle expression—one she rarely showed me.

“I don’t mind.”

Monica looked straight into Seriana’s eyes as she answered firmly.

But Seriana pressed further.

“The rewards from using Holy Coins are divided into three categories: Blessed Items, Divine Protection, and Materials. The first two are considered hits, while the last one is a miss. The probabilities are said to be equal, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get a hit. If you decided to use them because of Sera, you should know that she was just lucky. Are you truly okay with that?”

“My father originally saved them for his children to use one day. He obtained the tenth one during the recent monster attack. Fortunately, my father earns enough from his work in this territory, and I also earn enough as a soldier to live comfortably. I have a younger brother, but he works in the Merchant Guild, so after discussing it with my family, we decided that I should be the one to use them.”

I see…

Since her brother worked in the Merchant Guild, they weren’t in dire straits financially.

The mansion’s security wasn’t likely to face serious issues, but if she got a particularly good result, it could lead to even greater opportunities.

Given the possibility of getting a miss, exchanging the coins for money would be the safer bet, but her family seemed to have some financial flexibility.

Her father had probably earned a good amount from dealing with the recent monster attack as well.

Since they had been saving these coins with the intention of using them eventually, it wasn’t just a spur-of-the-moment decision.

Taking the gamble wasn’t a bad choice.

Still, Seriana was being very thorough in her confirmation… was this the usual procedure?

And she even used me as an example… but in the end, seeing Monica’s firm resolve, Seriana reached for the documents.

What were those, I wonder? I had never seen them before either…

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

Sera・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind 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】【Red Sword】・19 cards

Seriana・【Area Identification】・【】・34 cards

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

Alec・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・9 cards