It had been a few days since the various goings-on in the Church District, as well as the capture of the bandits hiding within the capital and their supporters and collaborators.

Due to my condition still not having recovered, and also being prohibited from using Blessings and Blessed Items, I’ve been lazing around in Seriana’s room.

The fatigue and internal bleeding in my arm haven’t healed yet, but since I haven’t used any magic power at all, no symptoms of magic element intoxication have appeared.

I can’t use my dominant right arm much, so there’s not a lot I can do, but I’ve been lying in bed reading books or taking naps—well… it’s pretty much the usual.

Meanwhile, Seriana, who’s been more or less forced to take a break by everyone, spends her time reading and such, but maybe because she’s still not used to it, she seems a little restless.

If it were just the usual rainy season, she’d probably kill time however she wanted, but even though things are running fine without her, the fact that she has to rest despite there being work to do must not sit right with her.

Technically, she’s on vacation, but there are still documents that require Seriana’s signature. Elena and Teresa bring those over at night along with their reports. When that happens, she always looks a little relieved…

Well, at least she’s getting proper sleep now, which is probably a good thing.

Until now, she would always go to bed after I’d already fallen asleep, and be awake before I got up, but today we woke up at the same time.

That’s a good thing. A very good thing.

It’s only been a few days since her break started, but I’m honestly glad to see real changes in her lifestyle…

“…So hey.”

“Hm?”

“Why are you swinging a wooden sword in the room?”

I raised my body from the sofa I’d been lying on and couldn’t help but comment on one of the changes I noticed in Seriana.

◇

After lunch today, we were relaxing in Seriana’s office when, all of a sudden, she headed to my room and came back holding a wooden sword.

My room is usually cluttered not just with my clothes, but all kinds of personal items and junk.

Right now especially, a bunch of stuff has been brought in, including things I don’t even recognize.

The wooden sword is one of those things.

When Seriana walked out of my room holding it, I seriously wondered what was going on… but apparently, she had been the one who brought it in.

When did she bring it in, I wonder?

We’re together most of the time, so the fact I didn’t notice must mean it happened within the last few days?

Either way, she’s now been swinging that wooden sword for about 30 minutes.

Dressed in loungewear, single-mindedly slashing away indoors with a sword… watching Seriana do that nonstop was just too weird not to ask.

“It’s just to clear my head,” she replied briefly, without stopping her swings.

“…I see.”

“Exactly.”

If she wanted to move her body, she could just go to the training grounds… is what I thought, but right now, the number of soldiers in the city is a bit low.

Elena and Teresa are probably busy covering for her while she’s on break too…

If I were in perfect condition, I could accompany her as a guard and get in some exercise too, but not only can I not use Blessings or Blessed Items right now, I’m also not in good enough shape for any physical activity.

Seriana can’t go wandering around alone, so if she wants to move her body, this room’s the only option.

With that thought, I returned to my book… but in the end, Seriana kept swinging her sword for another 30 minutes.

◇

“Your appetite doesn’t seem to be a problem.”

“Yeah. Up until yesterday it was a bit less than usual, but today seems fine.”

Evening came, and it was time for dinner.

Tonight, it wasn’t just me and Seriana—Elena, Teresa, and Fiora were with us too.

Fiora comes to check in on me every morning, but the other two have been too busy to come by for anything other than work. However, it seems one big task was just wrapped up, so they decided to have dinner with us while reporting on it.

Apparently, the events in the Church District have begun spreading among the townsfolk, centered around members of the Commercial Guild. Now, most of the population knows about it.

You’d think people wouldn’t be out and about during the rainy season, but rumors sure do spread fast.

Some bandits teamed up with certain townspeople and tried to put the city in danger, but thanks to the lord detecting the plot ahead of time and preparing accordingly, everything was resolved without issue.

That’s the general story going around.

It’s not exactly accurate, but not totally wrong either. They’re managing the information and limiting details so things don’t get chaotic.

Once the rainy season ends, they’re planning major excavation work in the Church District to dig a hole leading underground, something far too large-scale to keep secret. But with these rumors already out there, the townsfolk probably won’t feel anxious.

Apparently, the whole operation was led by Klaus.

To get results in just a few days—that’s impressive.

I didn’t know much about Klaus before, but hearing this made me admire him. The women, on the other hand, acted like of course he should be capable of that much.

They accepted the report, but didn’t show much interest, quickly shifting back into chatting.

The topic turned to my appetite—or rather, my overall health—and that conversation was much more lively.

…Hmph.

I, for one, properly recognize Klaus’ accomplishments.

I probably won’t have much to do with the Commercial Guild, but I’ll be sure to remember him.

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

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 ・【Area Detection】・【】・0 cards

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

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