I don’t know what the current situation is in the church district, but at the very least, it’s definitely not a safe place for a picnic.

And Seriana and the others are expecting to be involved in combat themselves.

It’s not like I want to go somewhere dangerous—but still, why am I being left behind?

I mean, I’m a pretty darn useful character, if I say so myself.

When I shot a glare at Seriana in protest, she let out another heavy sigh.

“You leave, and what about the kids?”

“Huh? …Mmm.”

The three kids in the next room… If it came down to it, Seriana and Elena were supposed to carry them and escape—but now both of them would be leaving the mansion.

That would leave only the nanny to carry the children and flee… and if that’s not possible, there’s always the 【Hideout】.

I get it.

I do. But still…

“Yeah… but, but come on…”

It’s not like I’m trying to ignore the kids, but the person responsible for stirring things up should already be in custody.

More importantly, if Seriana is going somewhere potentially dangerous, I should be going with her… right?

“Lady Seriana.”

Seriana wants me to stay here. I want to go with her.

We stared each other down in silence for a moment—until Elena stepped in between us.

She put down the tool she was holding and walked over to us.

Her son, Luka, is also in the room next door. She’ll be going with Seriana too, right? So she’s going to tell me to stay here and protect the place…?

I’d better not let her talk me down too easily.

Just as I was bracing myself, she placed a hand on my shoulder and turned to Seriana.

“I’ll stay here. With Monica and me around, we’ll be able to carry the kids out if anything happens. Besides, Alec isn’t here right now, and Lady Seriana needs a shield.”

Then she turned to face me and looked me in the eye as she continued.

“Sera, can I count on you to protect Lady Seriana?”

At those words, I nodded firmly.

“…Fine. We don’t have time to argue about this. Alright. Sera, you’re coming with me.”

It’s not a full-blown emergency… but it’s not like we can afford to dawdle either.

One way or another, we’ve already spent about five minutes with this back-and-forth.

Seriana gave up on trying to convince me and decided to go with Elena’s proposal.

“Elena, I’m entrusting the children to you. And make sure you protect Luka, too, alright?”

“Of course. Absolutely.”

Once she confirmed that her message had been conveyed, Seriana turned on her heel and headed toward Teresa and the others.

I thought about following her, but before that, I had one more thing to ask Elena.

“Want to use a 【Floating Orb】?”

Monica is definitely more mobile than Elena, so wouldn’t it be better to have a 【Floating Orb】 to match her pace?

That’s what I thought, but Elena shook her head.

“No, I’ll be fine. I can’t go completely unguarded, but no one’s targeting this place anymore. Let Lady Seria and the others take it instead.”

“Gotcha… understood!”

Well… there are still guards stationed around the mansion, and Seriana probably wanted to leave me here just in case.

But still… the outside is riskier, no matter how you look at it.

I’ve got to do my best—not just for me, but for Elena too, since she gave up her role for me.

“Sera, we’re going!”

Looks like they’re ready to head out. Seriana called to me.

“Alright, I’m off!”

“Be careful, okay?”

“Got it!”

I said goodbye to Elena and rushed after Seriana and the others, who were already on their way out of the room.

◇

When Seriana herself stepped forward for the departure, it surprised the staff, but Carlos must have already discussed the possibility, because he didn’t panic. Instead, he quickly relayed what seemed like necessary information based on the intelligence he had gathered.

Apparently, those who had acted suspiciously have already been captured. Even so, a few individuals who still require attention remain, and people are being assigned to monitor them.

Because of that, we don’t have enough people to spare for escort duty in the city, and for safety, we’ve been asked to travel through the underground passage.

It’s still nighttime, and it’s raining outside. We had planned on using the underground path from the start, but from Carlos’s perspective, having the acting lord sneak through the tunnels probably doesn’t sit well with him.

He didn’t show it in front of Seriana, but he definitely looked frustrated.

“It’s a minor issue. More importantly, Elena is staying behind, but she can’t be away from the children. I’m counting on you to take care of the mansion.”

“Understood. One thing—may I send Rose to the children’s room?”

After Seriana gave a few basic instructions, Carlos suggested sending Rose—who wasn’t present here—to the children’s room.

Rose, huh… I’ve never seen her fight, but she’s definitely capable.

With her there, Elena would probably feel more reassured too.

“Alright… I permit it.”

Seriana must’ve thought the same and granted permission.

Come to think of it, she’d come over today as a messenger, but normally she never steps foot into the south wing.

Why is that, I wonder?

“Thank you. Please, take care… Sera, look after my lady.”

“Oh? Yeah. No problem.”

Snapping out of my thoughts, I responded to Carlos.

It seems like the mansion is in good hands, so like he said, I’ll focus solely on protecting Seriana.

“Let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

With renewed determination, we set out toward the church district through the underground passage.

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

Sera・Blessing・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Wind’s Garment】 Blessed Items・【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】・8 cards

Seriana・【Range Identification】・【】・0 cards

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

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