Chapter 176

Thanks to Lady Kisea’s fuss, I found Roka just in time. Seeing Roka collapsed, I was startled too, but I felt relieved after touching her forehead. She was just tired and sleeping.

“Can you fix her? It’s not an incurable disease, right?”

I can fix her, but it’s better to let her sleep. It’s much more natural to relieve fatigue through sleep than by using Divine Power. Just let her sleep deeply and wake up on her own.

‘For now, just the wounds and bruises…’

Perhaps because the child’s healing ability is good, only traces remain now. Almost everything has healed on its own, but the traces still show how badly she was hurt.

I turned my gaze to Lady Kisea. She said she went to seek revenge, and it seems she really went all out on Roka.

“Why, why are you looking at me like that?”

“Did Lady Kisea do this?”

“I didn’t do anything! This morning, I woke up and wanted to spar, but she was in the middle of training and doing all sorts of strange things…”

She protested, pounding her chest. My one question got ten, twenty answers. Thanks to that, I easily understood the whole story. Sigh, I couldn’t help but sigh.

Is there anything to gain by pushing yourself to this point? Looking at Roka’s expression, it seems she did gain something.

I gently stroked the sleeping child and tried to pull my arm away, but it wouldn’t budge. In her sleep, she tossed and turned, grabbing my arm and not letting go.

“Hmm…”

Then she rubbed her face against my arm. If she hadn’t been drooling, I would have thought she was already awake. Since I can’t wake Roka, I guess I’ll just have to stay like this.

“Hey, can you do me a favor?”

Because of this, I had to entrust the task I originally planned to do. I reached out my left hand to Lady Kisea, who was staring blankly at Roka. Beyond the outstretched hand, a seedling-like shape appeared.

“Ah, one more time?!”

“Now that I’ve used up all my karma, I can’t do that.”

Lady Kisea eagerly grabbed the seedling, but there’s no way there’s any karma left after using it just yesterday. Soon, she looked disappointed and let her tail droop. She must have thought it recharged every day.

“Please take this to the Empire’s Masters who are going to subdue the Death God. It should be usable about five times. I’m sorry I can’t deliver it myself, so please convey my apologies as well.”

“I’m not an errand boy, I’m a noble. But well, since I owe you, I’ll do it as a special favor. I’m a noble and a mercenary, after all!”

She said she’d take payment later and disappeared with the seedling. I actually felt more at ease because of that. That’s the Lady Kisea I know.

If she, of all people, had taken on the task for free, I would have had to worry about where she might sell the seedling. Not taking an upfront fee means there’s a place to squeeze money out of elsewhere.

“Good?”

Seeing Roka smiling in her sleep made me smile too. It feels like just yesterday I met this child, and now she’s grown so much.

I gave my arm to Roka and plopped down beside the bed. Back then, I thought days like this would continue forever, and even if the day came when I had to part with this child, it would still be far off.

Now, I really don’t know.

I just hope my thoughts are excessive.

“You’re awake! Did you sleep well last night?”

“I slept well. This child is still sleeping.”

Princess came to find us a bit late. She seemed to have just woken up, looking a bit dazed. Seeing Roka sleeping while tightly holding my arm, she made an awkward expression.

“Roka must have been very tired from yesterday’s sparring. I just woke up too.”

Princess briefly explained what happened yesterday. I finally found out how many people she sparred with yesterday. No wonder she’s exhausted.

Even if you’re a Master, your stamina isn’t infinite. Of course, she would be tired.

That aside, so Princess only did one round of sparring and the rest was just watching? No, for Princess’s honor, let’s not think about it further.

“Can we leave today?”

Looking at Roka’s completely drained complexion, Princess awkwardly smiled.

[It doesn’t seem possible. By the time she wakes up, it’ll be evening.]

I agree. Should we just rest today and leave tomorrow?

Princess seemed to want that too, but one person strongly opposed it.

“No. I can’t. I want to leave today.”

Lady Kisea, who had returned after delivering the seedling, heard our conversation and sat down with her arms crossed. Determination flashed in her eyes. There was no room for compromise.

“Your Highness. I want to see my family again as soon as possible. I can’t wait any longer.”

“Then, let’s leave in the evening.”

So we decided to do that. It’s common sense to sleep at night and move during the day when traveling, but when we were with the Hero Party, we often moved at night instead of during the day.

The reason was that nocturnal beasts and monsters were no longer a threat. Everyone had good night vision. Our current party isn’t any less capable than back then.

Whether we leave tonight or tomorrow morning doesn’t make much difference, so since it’s like that, it’s not bad to accommodate Lady Kisea’s feelings.

[I think it’s not bad.]

The dragon in the Dragon’s Sword agreed.

[It’s hot under the sun. It’s cooler and better to go at night.]

We parted ways with the Hero Party in winter, and I met Roka between winter and spring.

After meeting Princess and starting this journey, we passed through spring and summer, and now we’re at the beginning of autumn.

It’s almost harvest season, but I’m not sure if we’ll be able to harvest. I’m worried that everyone might have abandoned their farmland and fled due to the Death God’s rampage.

‘Originally, around this time, ash from the Calderan volcano would have blocked the sun.’

If that had happened, the already bad situation would have gotten even worse. Fortunately, when we collected the volcanic ash from the Citadel with the Bell of Command, the Lord also took away the ash flying elsewhere.

The weather now is the last stretch of heat. Before the cold truly sets in, it’s making one last desperate attempt.

Even though it’s early autumn, it’s still hot, so I understood Azahadaka’s words. Princess didn’t seem to have any objections either.

“Then, shall both of you pack your things? When Roka wakes up, we’ll leave immediately.”

Both nodded and disappeared to pack. We’ll probably meet again after lunch.

As for me, I’ll just have to keep giving my arm to Roka. Well, it’s nice to see her smiling. She’s so happy with just my arm, should I say thank you?

*****

“I knew you’d be here.”

The child, who had slept deeply and now had a glossy tail, opened her eyes and immediately looked at me. She smiled brightly, as if pleased. Her tail wagged happily, as if greeting me.

“I was right.”

Looking out the window, the sun was already setting. She had slept deeply without even eating lunch and only just woke up.

I had already packed everything, and Lady Kisea and Princess, who had been waiting here, got tired of waiting and left to do their own things. Now that Roka is awake, we can leave.

So, can you let go of my arm now…

“No. I want to hold it a little longer.”

Even though she said that, her grip loosened. She gave me the option to pull my arm away if I wanted to. That made it even harder to pull away.

If I pulled my arm out, I felt like Roka would look at me with teary eyes.

“Yawn!”

Earlier, Azahadaka had set an alarm spell. It wasn’t anything grand, just a spell that would send a signal when Roka opened her eyes.

Receiving the signal, Lady Kisea walked in yawning. She seemed tired now.

“Awake? Then let’s go. First, wash up, pack, and have a quick meal…”

“Unnie.”

Roka, who had slept well, finally let go of my arm. She glared at Lady Kisea and suddenly lunged at her. She reached out to the uniform Lady Kisea was still wearing.

“Give it.”

“What, what?! Wait, where are you touching! Where are you touching?!”

Lady Kisea reflexively raised her left hand to push Roka’s face away. Roka also grabbed Lady Kisea’s face with her right hand. The wolf, proud of her title, shouted.

“It’s dirty! If you’re going to touch, wash your hands first! This is a uniform I got from the noble academy. Hey, hey! Ah, no! Please!”

Squeak!

Roka grabbed Lady Kisea’s pocket with her left hand and tore it off. Lady Kisea, with her ruined clothes, stared blankly at the torn pocket.

“Why do you have this?”

I wondered why she was doing that, but a familiar handkerchief came out of the pocket. It was made by the villagers when we left our hometown, so it’s not something you can buy, and there’s no way there’s another one like it.

‘When did she take that?’

It was definitely the handkerchief I used to wipe her tears yesterday. I didn’t even know it was gone.

It left my hand without a sound, and I thought it was just in some pocket, but that pocket was Lady Kisea’s.

That thing isn’t a treasure, and Lady Kisea seemed to have taken it almost instinctively. In fact, she looked at the handkerchief as if wondering why it was there.

“This, this is an expensive outfit…”

“Explain.”

Lady Kisea, who was about to argue, lowered her tail. A sunset-like light flashed in Roka’s eyes.

“I’m still your unnie, so I’ll give you a special chance.”

I’m sorry. Our child sometimes acts like this…

It doesn’t seem like something to get so angry about, but Roka was unusually furious. I need to calm her down first.