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“Ely? You don’t look so good today. Is something wrong?”

“I was debating whether to say it or not, but Selian is saying it for me.”

“Huh? Nothing’s wrong! Do I really look that bad?”

“Yes. Your dark circles are sagging, your skin seems a bit rough, and you look a bit dazed. Plus, you seem low on energy. Of course, even with that face, you’re still charming.”

…Is my condition really that bad?

“Hahaha… The novel Selian recommended was so interesting that I stayed up all night reading under the covers and didn’t get enough sleep.”

“I’m glad you found the book interesting, but I didn’t recommend it for you to lose sleep over it…”

If I were to list the books Selian recommended, I could probably fill a small bookshelf.

Of course, it’s not just Selian; I too have read enough books over the last six months.

None of the books Selian recommended were uninteresting.

“No matter how interesting a book is, you should sleep at night.”

“Eh heh… I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”

It’s true that I had stayed up all night reading under the covers.

But there’s one thing wrong with the sequence of events.

I didn’t lie to my friends; I just didn’t say unnecessary things.

I didn’t read because I couldn’t sleep; I read because I couldn’t fall asleep.

In fact, I had fallen asleep on time, but I woke up shortly after.

I couldn’t precisely recall it, but I knew enough that it was a weird dream.

Moreover, I suddenly felt a pain in my lower abdomen, where the Master-Servant Mark is located, and I briefly thought, could it be that day?

Still, there were a few days left until my period was due, and since there were no particular signs, I suspect it’s just another weird pain like last time.

I was fortunate that it wasn’t as painful as the last time, or I might have woken my friends up and worried them.

So I just tossed and turned under the blankets, waking up completely and ultimately failing to fall asleep, which led me to take out a book.

This recurring situation made me wonder if I had caught some dangerous illness, but if that were the case, Mariel or Goddess Serena would have signaled me first, so I wouldn’t need to worry too much.

-Somehow, there’s a delicious smell coming from Ely.

As I pondered meaningless thoughts, Linne, drawn in by the negative energy, came over and started sniffing around me.

What’s with the sniffing? You’re not a dog!

“Linne! D-don’t say there’s a delicious smell… Just come over here already!”

Fortunately, when Yuli intervened, Linne, still sniffing, flew over to Yuli.

“Hm? I can’t really say it smells delicious.”

However, as soon as Linne moved away, Anne stepped in and started sniffing around, circling back and forth.

Thankfully, unlike with Linne, Anne didn’t show much interest and quickly lost interest.

“Eh? What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing. If we don’t hurry, we’re going to be late. Let’s get moving.”

In the meantime, Selian was looking at me intently for some reason.

Luckily, thanks to Selian’s urging, the interrogation about last night came to an end.

*

“Hello… Huh? You’re not the usual person here?”

“Ah, the previous person has completed their disciplinary period and returned. Six months is quite long, isn’t it?”

On my way to meet Frecia, I went to greet the man at the Magic Building’s lobby, who was always at the help desk, but instead found a stranger there.

“Are you Elysia Frentz? Nice to meet you. I’m Sharon.”

The woman, who introduced herself as Sharon, extended her hand towards me.

“Ah, yes. Nice to meet you.”

I wasn’t close enough to shake hands, but to prevent the atmosphere from turning awkward when she was left hanging, I reached out and lightly shook her hand.

“Wow, the Hero’s hand is softer than I expected. I heard your swordsmanship is excellent, so I thought you’d have more calluses.”

“Um… Is this what you call a constitution?”

In reality, it wouldn’t make sense for someone who trains their body to be without calluses.

I too had plenty of calluses, and my body bore the scars from enduring torture training.

But according to the No-Magic doctrine, TS magic had cleaned all the calluses and scars from my body.

Since then, I had gained zero calluses.

The only good thing was that I felt no discomfort without calluses.

“How unfortunate. I didn’t really get to greet you properly…”

“Well, we’ll probably run into each other at least once or twice anyway. After all, the Academy is just an Academy, no matter how big it gets.”

Well… since the person apparently doing the help desk was punished, he wouldn’t have left the Academy. He’d probably just returned to his original duties.

But speaking of, considering help desk work is still something an Academy staff member does, how can it be a punishment?

“Anyway! The handover was clear, and I’ve already heard about you from Professor Frecia, so feel free to come and go without worrying about the time.”

“Oh, thank you. It seems the owner… I mean, the professor sometimes calls me in the middle of the night. Well, good luck!”

As I greeted her, Sharon lifted the hand she shook with me, waving it lightly.

“Yes, see you next time. I won’t wash the hand that shook with the Hero until then!”

“Well, that’s a bit…”

I left behind Sharon’s ambiguous comment and headed to my original destination, Room 707.

“Welcome.”

As I entered, unusually, Frecia was already up and waiting for me, even though it wasn’t evening yet.

“You’re up today? What a shame.”

Waking up Frecia while she’s sleeping is one of my little pleasures.

You might call me a pervert, but seeing a cute girl curled up like a cat while she snores is comforting for my weary mind and soul.

That’s why, whenever I visit Frecia, I often take a moment to watch her sleep a little before waking her up.

“What do you mean ‘what a shame’?”

I had been secretive about the fact that I often stared at her while she sleeps because she might feel uncomfortable knowing, but I let my true feelings slip.

She didn’t miss it and pressed me further.

“Um, well… the thing is…”

“Is it hard for you to tell me?”

In a tone that sounded somewhat hurt and sad, Frecia spoke.

There’s no way out.

If I keep my mouth shut, she’ll assume I don’t trust her. Conversely, if I confess honestly, she may look at me like a pervert.

Caught in a dilemma.

After a brief moment of agony, I finally decided to just be honest.

If I were to ruin my image anyway, it would just be better to be transparent and relieve my mind.

“Actually, I like watching you while you sleep before I wake you up.”

“…Huh?”

“Th-that’s because you’re just so cute, Frecia!”

“Eh…?”

Alright. If I keep being awkward, I’ll end up a total mess. Time to push through honestly and confidently.

“Honestly, you don’t know what you look like when you’re sleeping, but from another person’s perspective, you could easily be mistaken for a doll!”

“W-wait a minute…”

I shouldn’t give Frecia any moments to think.

“Gomtaengi, Tokki, don’t you guys think so? You know best how cute your mistress is. Isn’t she like a doll when she’s sleeping peacefully?”

An ironic twist of asking a real doll if she looks like a doll.

Fortunately, the quick-witted Gomtaengi immediately nodded along.

On the other hand, Tokki was hesitant, looking confused just like Frecia. Meanwhile, Tokki somehow seemed to be glancing at Frecia’s leg.

As Tokki hesitated, Gomtaengi discreetly tapped Tokki from unseen angles to Frecia.

Only then did Tokki seem to understand what I meant and nodded like Gomtaengi.

“See! They agree too! So I’m not wrong. If there’s a fault, it’s that the owner is just too cute!”

“W-wait… Am I really that cute…?”

“Absolutely! If someone says you’re not cute, they must be blind! No, even a blind person would still hear your voice, so they wouldn’t say that. You’re adorable even when you talk!”

“Gehehe… Ely thinks I’m cute…”

Fortunately, judging from Frecia’s satisfied reaction, it seems my secret hobby didn’t linger in her memory.

Instead, she came back, smiling warmly, and started pulling out various fancy cookies she’d kept in the cupboard, proving that my praise, tossed out unfiltered, had sunk in.

Good, that sorts one issue.

Frecia is happy, and I’m happy too as I took a bite of a cookie and sipped some tea.

…Huh? But why was I here again?