The reason for Minea-san’s visit was to act as Seriana’s proxy while she left the territory to go to the royal capital.

Of course, that wasn’t the only reason—she also wanted to see her grandchild’s face, and get to know the members of Riana better. There were plenty of motives behind it…

As for work, Elena and Teresa would remain, and Alec and the others were still around to maintain the territory’s security, so… it’s unlikely anything too overwhelming would happen.

Even so, having someone you can entrust your child to really is a big deal.

I don’t know how other households do it, but the Reseria family began with Seriana and her group.

In terms of the larger clan, I hear there are a few relatives in the territory, but there’s still no one closely related.

The neighbors just west and south of here are technically relatives too, but I guess that’s one of the growing pains of being newly established?

In any case, this means Seriana can now head to the royal capital without reservation.

◇

After the conversation ended, everyone returned to their rooms.

Dinner had been served early, and while it wasn’t exactly late, Minea-san had only just arrived at the estate today.

She spent a night on the ship, then came straight here by carriage after arriving in the village of Luban this morning. She wouldn’t recover properly unless she took a good rest.

I could use my 【Prayer】 or 【Blessing of Mira】 to heal her, but ideally, she should recover on her own to some extent first.

We can save the actual treatment for tomorrow or later.

“Hey.”

I called out to Seriana as I sat on the bed stretching.

She was seated on the sofa, reading a book.

There were only a few days left until the scheduled departure for the royal capital, but everything felt normal, without any changes.

…Well, she’s not the one making the travel preparations, so I guess that’s to be expected.

More importantly…

“What?”

“I was planning to fly there using the 【Floating Orb】, but Seria-sama, you’re coming too, right? What’s the plan? Are we going separately?”

When it was just me, or when I traveled with Teresa, it took less than a week to get to the royal capital even without rushing.

But that was thanks to flying almost nonstop all day long—I couldn’t imagine Seriana doing that.

So, what’s she planning?

“Of course we’ll take the ship. You’re coming too.”

“I see… so I’m taking the ship too…”

It’s a long time ago now, but Seriana used to get seasick.

I’m not sure if the seas are rough this season, but having a 【Small Orb】 might be helpful.

The 【Floating Orb】 belongs to me.

Without it, I’d just tumble around… so I’m not giving it up.

“You’ve got things on your end too, and while flying wouldn’t be bad just for getting there, I can’t exactly go around doing that, can I? We’ll be using a carriage and ship. We depart in four days. Be ready.”

“Okay…”

I’d been told in advance about the luggage, and I already had everything ready in the 【Hideout】.

I was ready to leave at any time, but since I’d planned to go alone using the 【Floating Orb】…

If we’re taking a carriage, maybe I should bring that out too?

Still, traveling by official routes using regular means of transport… it’s been a while.

Unlike me, who can move around freely, if Seriana suddenly showed up in the royal capital—especially just the two of us—it’d be a big deal.

When I think about that, well… it can’t be helped.

“Anything else you want to ask? Since we’re at it, I’ll answer.”

“Eh…?”

She’s asking if there’s anything I want to ask…

Seriana’s not exactly secretive, but she’s not the type to speak openly about what she’s thinking either.

I didn’t even know she was planning to go to the royal capital until today.

Of course, she always tells me what I need to know, and I don’t really have any complaints about that… but even so, I almost blurted out, “That’s rare.”

Maybe she’s just feeling relaxed after seeing Minea-san again?

But even though this is a rare opportunity… nothing really comes to mind.

“Let’s see… Is there anything else you’re hiding?”

I hesitated for a moment, but nothing serious came to mind, so I ended up asking something weird like that.

Seriana looked at me, snorted lightly, and opened her mouth.

“There’s nothing. Well, I suppose I could say that the reason I’m going to the royal capital isn’t just about your matter—I also wanted to report directly on the incident that happened in Riana this autumn. I could’ve sent Teresa, but… back then, we couldn’t be sure when Alec and the others would return, and I didn’t want to move Teresa too much. The timing worked out well, so I had already decided I would go.”

“I see…”

That incident at the church was certainly a serious one.

And since Seriana was on-site, she could give a direct account.

Leaving Teresa in the territory… I guess that’s because August isn’t around.

Alec and Luick could manage their own units, but mobilizing the entire Knight Order would be tough.

“If you’ve got nothing else to ask, then go to bed. Starting tomorrow, you’ll be accompanying my mother.”

“Ugh, got it.”

I understood why Seriana herself was going to the royal capital, and I didn’t get the sense she was hiding anything else… probably.

From tomorrow on, I’d likely be spending more time with Minea-san, so I probably wouldn’t be able to slack off like usual.

Better sleep now and get in good condition!

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

Sera ・Blessing・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind’s Garment】

Blessed Item ・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】+1【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】【Monkey’s Arm】・13 cards

Seriana ・【Area Recognition】・【】・0 cards

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

Alec ・【Power Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards