The sound of something being scrubbed echoed through the room with a kyu kyu kyu kyu, along with the clink clank of hard objects tapping against one another.

Amidst all that, I also heard someone call out my name, “Sera.”

“Hand me that one.”

Zighart said this without even glancing in my direction, simply extending his hand toward me.

“This? Here.”

I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly he meant… but it was probably this.
I stopped polishing the 【Floating Orb】 and picked up the brush that was right in front of me, placing it in his hand.

“Thanks.”

Zighart replied curtly and returned to his work.

“Sera, me too.”

This time, Alec, sitting across from him, also reached out his hand. But judging by his task, what he wanted probably wasn’t a brush.
Something he might use… maybe this?

“This?”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

The tool I handed him had a sharp, needle-like tip, much like an awl.
Looks like I guessed right…

“Hey, you know… when you say ‘that one’ or ‘this one,’ it’s really hard to tell what you mean. How about actually saying the name?”

We were all using the same table, but a large cloth had been spread out in front of them, and they were working on top of it.
In front of me, various tools were lined up.
So, I didn’t mind being the one to hand them tools.
Even though I didn’t know most of their proper names, they could at least add one more descriptive word.

“Hmm…? Ah, sorry, sorry.”

The two of them responded the same way as before—without even looking up, continuing their work.
Despite their words, they didn’t look the least bit sorry…

As I let out a frustrated snort, Fiora, sitting at the next table, spoke up.

“Sera, why don’t you come over here? The 【Floating Orb】 looks polished enough now, doesn’t it?”

“Hmm… Well… I suppose you’re right.”

Looking over, I saw the women enjoying tea elegantly.
Meanwhile, Alec and Zighart were silently working.
Quite the contrast.

Well, since the work here involved my Blessed Item, I shouldn’t speak ill of it.
Even though I’d been invited for tea, supporting them is still an important role…

“Sera, we’ve got this covered. You can go over there.”

“…Oh.”

Was that… a dismissal?
Am I being benched?

◇

The spring rainy season, which had lasted for about two weeks, finally came to an end yesterday.

Today, a pleasantly clear blue sky spread overhead for the first time in a while, but that didn’t mean we could just rush outside.
Except for the main roads like the noble district and central street, most of the paths weren’t paved, and the roads outside the city were completely unusable.
We’d have to wait a few more days until the ground dried.

By the way, those few days are usually used by the Knight Order to prepare for post-rainy-season investigations.
It’s the same every year, but after two weeks of heavy rain, some kind of damage is bound to occur.
Checking within the city and along the roads is the job of the 1st Unit, but the deeper areas fall under the 2nd Unit—our jurisdiction.

So today, Alec and Zighart had also gathered in the lounge to talk about that.
Captain Alec, his vice-captain Zighart, and Fiora.
Then there’s me, the sub-captain, and Teresa, my vice-captain.
Feels like a very close-knit group… but whatever.

That said, our actual task was just patrolling a designated area on the western side of the territory capital, which wasn’t all that different from our usual missions.
So today’s gathering ended up feeling more like a tea party in practice.

And yet, somehow, we ended up maintaining our Blessed Items…

Since we couldn’t go outside during the rainy season, I had asked Fiora to service my umbrella.
That thing is kind of a mystery—half weapon, half magical tool—and unless you’re a craftsman skilled in both, it’s hard to handle.
Outside of the workshop in the Zelkis Territory where it was made, Fiora’s really the only one I can trust with it.
Thankfully, I have the materials thanks to the gacha system…

So, Fiora finished the maintenance and brought it today. I mentioned it in passing, and then the two men suddenly decided to start maintaining their own Blessed Items.
Well, maybe “inspired” isn’t quite right. More likely, they just used it as an excuse to avoid a potentially boring tea party.

The Blessed Items and maintenance tools are all stored in the 【Hideout】, and I didn’t really have a reason to say no… so I agreed. And then got sidelined.

Now, those two guys are happily working over there.
Curse them…!

“I heard the madam is joining in Sera’s workouts now.”

“Yes. It wasn’t as bad as I expected. What about you? Haven’t done it lately, have you?”

“If the mood strikes me… maybe?”

I had been glaring at Alec and the others from Fiora’s lap, but the women were now talking about stretching.
Seriana had joined as well… so now the only one left is Fiora.
She walks all the way to the underground lab, so I doubt she’s lacking exercise, but that’s not the same as moving your whole body. Stretching wouldn’t hurt.
She’s done some light stretching now and then, but maybe it’s time she did a bit more?

“I’ll need to get the proper gear together… Can I have it made before summer, I wonder…?”

“It’s nothing that elaborate, so it should be fine. More importantly, we need a mat…”

Though Fiora said “if the mood strikes me,” she’s already talking about stretchwear designs, so she clearly has some motivation.
But… the yoga mat.
Mine is custom-made, and it’s not easy to find anything of equal quality.
And I’m not giving it up!

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

Sera ・【Hideout】+1 【Prayer】 【Mira’s Blessing】 【Clothing of Wind】 ・【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】 【Monkey’s Arm】 ・4 cards

Seriana ・【Range Identification】・【】・39 cards

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

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