278 That's why I got energy.

It's been a week since the battle ended. As for my current situation, I'm in Serende's treatment facility.

Normally, being cut by a sword wouldn't heal completely in a week, right? And yet, they're all out of the hospital, and it makes me sad that I feel like an idiot for continuing to rest.

"Shishou, I peeled the fruit!

Thanks a lot.

I heard that Harkdock was almost bleeding to death after being decapitated by Ritual, but he came to visit me yesterday with a fresh face. And he has the best taste in choosing fruits. I also heard that Murasaki's arm was badly injured, but he was the same as usual, and for some reason, he left a small scar on his chest for me to see.

"Why don't you eat a little too, Wolfe. If I let you eat this much by yourself, you won't be able to fit in your regular meals.

"Right. Wolfe, eat up.

Yes, sir! I'll take that!

Since everyone was out of the hospital, there were more and more visits from fruit. The room is filled with the smell of fruit, and even Prince Washekht has sent some. I'm glad I don't have durian, really.

To be honest, I'm in the mood to be discharged.

As long as I don't moan when I change my clothes alone.

It's important to use your voice when you're in pain, you know.

Marito has also nailed you to come back when you have recovered enough to not be hurt by the carriage ride. It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

"Shishou, let's rest until Lakra and the others come back. Wolfe will help you pass the time!

"Oh, thanks a lot. But it would be nice to enjoy the streets of Serende once in a while.

No problem, I'll enjoy it with Shisho!

While I'm in the hospital, the others are on their way back to Mejis and Kuama. The ones in Serende now are Ilias, Wolfe, Mikus, and Kheir. Cale was not present at the time of the departure, but he joined the knights who were sent to support him. He was probably walking the streets of Serende now, taking in the sights.

Marya is on her way to Mejis with Lakra and the others, and Masetta is on her way to the Quama Realm with Harkdok. There is no one to watch over the Mejis side, but of course there are substitutes.

So, you want some too?

Yeah, let's have some. Lilitha, can you pass me some of these?

Yeah, you like these, don't you?

I'm sharing this room with another patient. That patient is Yox, the leader of the Holy Order of Medicine. He was in a critical condition until a few days ago when he was defeated by Ark Real. Even so, he was still in a debilitated state, so he continued minimal treatment and finally regained consciousness the day before yesterday.

However, his recovery from that was still otherworldly. We are waiting for him to recover enough strength to suppress the aftereffects before resuming treatment, but he seems to be more energetic than us.

He even got up and tried to leave with the other holy knights in the first place. At the moment, she is being blamed by Lilisa who rushed from Mejis, and is accepting her life in the hospital.

That is why Ms. Lilisa, the caretaker of Pope Eupharo, is now in charge of monitoring Mejisu. Marya and Masetha have been ordered to take a leave of absence for a while.

"Yes, but isn't it a bit much? And isn't it peeling too fast?

"Yes, sir.

...... Ahhh. That's good. I've never tasted fruit peeled by you before.

I'm not sure I like the idea of two lovers making out, but I can't complain because there are people who do the same thing to me. In fact, I've been able to avoid being attacked thanks to the fact that Yox is in the room with me.

"...... Shishou.

You don't have to do that. If you allow it, the mix won't be able to hold its own.

...... It's a tough world.

I don't mind. You're quite the hard man, aren't you?

If it's just your face and dignity, you look hundreds of times more hardcore than I do.

The leader of the Holy Knights is eating fruit while being hugged by Lilisa. I wonder what kind of face Marya will have when she sees it: ....... I'm not sure if I'd even want to do the same thing to Ecdysium.

But I'm surprised you were able to get that Arcreal to leave. Ilias-Ratzel, your sword is truly the best in the world, no exaggeration.

I think that's an exaggeration. ....... I was only on the receiving end, and you had to challenge me. If the conditions had been the same, there would have been no difference at all.

That's a poor attempt at humility. If the conditions had been the same to defeat Arcturial, the result might have been the same. However, it would have been difficult for Yokus to keep up with Arreal's attack. Yokus smiled bitterly, as if he understood this.

You're still not very good at humility. It's a compliment from the strongest knight of another country. I'm sure you can take it in stride.

Of course I'm flattered. But I'm most pleased to have served as his sword here.

"I see. That's much better than my compliments. I'm sorry for sending you such a poor gift.

"No, not for shoddy work. ......

It's fun to watch Iliad flail about. I mean, he's having fun, isn't he, Jox?

"Stop teasing me, Yox! "I'm sorry, but Yox is secretly jealous.

"Not secretly. Iliad-Ratzel. Ever since the Purple Demon King, I've been thinking of you as a knight. I got nothing, and you got a lot. Why don't you just let me be honest and sarcastically jealous?

That's .......

This is the part where I laugh and inspire. Then next time you'll do better than me. And I'll tell you what, next time I'll make you jealous.

When Yox laughed, Ilias laughed with him. They're both stubborn people by nature, and their personalities are well-matched. But in terms of romance, he seems to be far ahead of Ilias, extending his lead to other dimensions.

But, what about smiling at other women in front of me?

I'm sorry about that. I'm sorry about that. To make up for it, I'm going to keep smiling at you.

You have a beautiful face when you're not smiling, so why don't you just look at me?

As Yox and the others began to flirt again, I closed the curtain. The sweet sight of them eating the fruit was giving me heartburn. I want something salty.

By the way, wasn't Raheit going to say something to you at the end?

"By the way, wasn't Raheit trying to tell you something at the end?" "He wanted me to bury the body Raheit used to infiltrate Mejlis. Because if we don't do anything, it's going to keep being sealed up in the Mejis facility again.

Yeah, ......, but it's going to be difficult.

It's not that difficult, in fact, I've had Exoik retrieve the body. Rahite attacked the middle layer by blowing up the corpse, you can blame it for the loss of a body or two.

A promise is a promise, even if you hate the enemy. I'll bury the corpse of a good man who accepted him as a friend.

You're a shrewd one, aren't you? But that's you.

The only remaining concern is Ritual. ...... I'm sure they'll contact you later, so we'll see.

The blue stone that recorded the construction of the resuscitation spell was found and destroyed by the blue. Now Ritual has no way to get the method of constructing resurrection magic from Nektokhar. However, he may have received a certain amount of knowledge as a report of the process.

If he can find someone who is familiar with magic like Balastus, it is quite possible for him to obtain resurrection magic again.

However, the strength for this battle was something that Ritual had spent many years preparing. It is unlikely that Ritual will be able to provide any more strength. Then, rather than preventing us from interfering, Ritual will choose the path of negotiation.

Will they really come?

Maybe. I've been giving Morali and Jastet a bit of a hard time about it.

That's the ...... sight of you convincing someone with that much enthusiasm, that's the ...... act.

It's not like you can't convince people with your tone. It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

The performance was so passionate that it could have appeared in a sports drama. At first, both Morari and Jastet were reluctant, but by the end, they had fire in their eyes, yes.

I don't have a problem with it, because I know you mean it.

"I know you're a hothead. I know you've always had a hot temper, but there was something different about you.

You know, there's more to a public face than just a smile.

Lytiar felt guilty about Morari, Jastet, and the other bastards he had brought into the fold. If he were to be persuaded by them with enthusiasm, he would be moved in some way. Even if this is what we want, the feelings of Morari and Jastet are real.

"Hmm, I thought you were asleep since the partition was closed, but I see you're having some fun with a woman.

That would be the patient next door. You've come to visit me, Prince Washekht.

The partition was opened to reveal Prince Washekht. In his hand he holds something like a basket, but I'm sure it's not extra fruit.

"Washekht is fine. I don't care if it's Washekht. You'll be a small thing if you act like a hero who defeated a demon king.

I'll do it then. If you change your mind, I'm always open to change.

I've received many gifts from Washect, but this is the first time he's come to me in person. There must be something to talk about.

The gift, by the way, is a stone statue that was found in the ruins that seems to give you some kind of energy.

A palm-sized stone statue placed in front of me. I'm not sure what the pose is, but it certainly looks invigorating.

It's a better choice than fruit in this situation.

"That's a lot of fruit. Since I was giving fruit, why didn't the rest of you bring something else? Shall we bring some back?

Please do. I don't want them to spoil.

Washekht picked up a piece of fruit and bit into it. He nodded his head, satisfied with his choice. The best was Harkdock's choice, though.

By the way, you are planning to stay in Serende for a while, right?

Did the King of Celende tell you that?

Yes. I've given it a lot of thought, and today I'm here to find out why.

"If you're going to check your answers, tell me first.

"What if I'm wrong? You want me to be embarrassed?

He's got a pretty good personality, too. He doesn't hold back when it comes to his close friends. But he seems to have many good friends.

It's okay to be vague.

Yeah. Father, King Selende has ordered me to aid in your cause. That is, he wants someone from outside the country to work within the country. In other words, he wants you to solve some problem here in Serende.

"That's a very good answer that is not worth negotiating with.

It seems that King Selende has anticipated our future plans. I'm glad to see that being a king isn't all it's cracked up to be. King Zenotta's been through a lot too.

So what's the answer?

We need to find out who Nektohar and the others are working with. As well as the organization known as Rhaetys, but there were no elves among them. There were no elves among them.

"It would have been conspicuous if there had been someone to supply them with food. I see, so there are sub-humans, elves and dwarves from Serende who can help.

In Turrin, Solide had terrorized the town's thugs and was based in the mercantile house of a merchant who was indebted to Ritual. So it's no surprise that the Selende side has at least one local collaborator.

The reason why the King of Celende wants to leave it to us is because he smells the intervention of someone with a certain amount of power.

"And I'm the only one he trusts to be free of that possibility, and the only one he's chosen to help him. You're right, father, you've seen through my innocent ways.

"Well, no, I don't think so. Not unless you pretend to be something you're not.

King Selende's criterion was that there was already a certain amount of contact between me and Washekht. It is extremely unlikely that the Washect, who cooperated so smoothly and without interference, is a collaborator of Nektohar's group.

As for the King of Celende, he might have said, "I think you can trust him a little bit, and I'll lend him to you to take care of the domestic pus. It may seem like he's leaving it to others, but it's an efficient decision based on his understanding of our objectives.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're going to be doing and how you're going to do it.

I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that. How stinky is your family, guys?

Excuse me. My sister and I are the light of Serendipity, the epitome of royalty.

I know you love your sister. But you'll have to wait until I'm out of here to gather that information.

Then what am I supposed to do to pass the time until then?

Get a normal job? You're a prince.

He's a perfect collaborator, but I'm tempted to think that there's someone better out there.