After finishing the Divine Power Summon and the subsequent discussion on the 8th Floor, Kousuke was slumped on the sofa in the Lounge Space.
Nana, miniaturized, was lying on Kousuke’s stomach, and Kousuke’s right hand was stroking Nana’s back.
Perhaps finding Kousuke’s hand comforting, Nana yawned widely on Kousuke’s stomach.
“If you’re sleepy, you can sleep. Actually, I’m sleepy too…”
Kousuke, who was already more than halfway towards falling asleep, closed his eyes while saying this to Nana.
Seeing Kousuke, Nana also lowered her head, rested it against Kousuke’s body, and assumed a sleeping posture.
Floria watched the scene of the person and the animal from a short distance away.
Kousuke usually sleeps like this, so for Floria, it was a familiar sight.
However, even though it was a familiar scene, it always brought a warm feeling to watch.
Then, averting her gaze from Kousuke and the others, Floria returned her attention to the book in her hands.
While Kousuke and Nana were fast asleep, Silvia entered the Lounge Space.
The sofa where Kousuke and the others were sleeping was placed in a conspicuous spot in the room, so Silvia’s gaze immediately fell upon the person and animal.
Silvia narrowed her eyes for a moment, smiled, and then quickly approached the sofa where Floria was sitting.
“…Are you tired?”
To Silvia’s softly spoken question, Floria looked up from her book and tilted her head.
“How can I tell? They look as usual, but perhaps they’re tired from the Divine Power Summon?”
“It’s probably the Divine Power Summon, but there was also the discussion afterwards,” Silvia replied.
Besides the adjustments with Razek Amamiya and Crown, for the past few days, they had also been discussing with Eris and the others about summoning the other goddesses.
It wasn’t that they were disgusted, but both of them had noticed that Kousuke seemed subtly tired.
Silvia looked at Kousuke with a worried gaze, and Floria smiled reassuringly.
“Don’t worry. If they were really tired, they would say so. Besides, Kouhi or Mitsuki wouldn’t miss it.”
As she said this, Floria glanced towards Mitsuki.
Mitsuki, who was sitting with her legs crossed in front of the sofa where Kousuke was sleeping, gave a small shrug of her shoulders upon meeting Floria’s gaze.
Seeing Mitsuki’s expression, Silvia also let out a small sigh of relief.
In situations like these, their judgment was still unmatched.
While there was a hint of regret, it was also true that there was a sense of security in leaving things to them.
“…That’s right.”
Silvia murmured, filled with various thoughts, and just like Floria before her, picked up the book she had brought and began to read.
Kousuke eventually woke up from his nap in the Lounge Space only when Kouhi shook him just before dinner.
“…Mm? Huh, Kouhi? What’s up?”
“It’s almost time for dinner.”
“What!? No way!? It’s already dinner?”
Kousuke had planned to sleep for about an hour and then spend the rest of his time reading a book, so he never expected that so much time had passed.
By the way, while Kousuke was surprised by the elapsed time and quickly sat up, Nana, who had been on top of him, calmly landed on the carpet.
No one noticed Mia, who was casually watching the scene, being inwardly impressed.
Kousuke’s face contorted with a look of regret on the sofa.
“I failed. I wanted to read a book.”
He had intended to use his newfound free time to read books related to magic circles, but his plans had been thrown into disarray.
Of course, Kousuke was not so foolish as to blame others when he was the one who had fallen asleep without a word, so he resignedly sighed and shook his head.
“Well, it can’t be helped. I slept well, at least.”
He didn’t particularly feel tired, but he decided that the fact he had slept without realizing it must have had its reasons.
Kousuke stretched his body on the sofa, loosening it after being stiff from sleeping, and then his stomach rumbled. He stood up with a wry smile.
“Well, well. How can my stomach clock be so accurate even when I’m sleeping?”
To Kousuke’s muttered words, the other members in the Lounge Space reacted with wry smiles, covered mouths, and other expressions of their own.
Upon arriving at the dining hall, Kousuke’s eyes widened as he saw something on the table.
“Huh? That’s unusual. Are you drinking alcohol?”
“What? I thought it might be nice for a change.”
Floria had prepared it for Kousuke, who hadn’t shown any signs of waking up, as a nightcap, but she had no intention of announcing it.
Mitsuki, sensing Floria’s intention, had also prepared a late-night snack that paired well with alcohol, but unfortunately, Kousuke didn’t notice any of this.
Since both Mitsuki and Floria had prepared it so that Kousuke wouldn’t notice, they had no intention of saying anything about it.
In fact, they hoped he would continue to not notice.
Therefore, the members who were aware of their intentions had already been briefed beforehand to avoid any unnecessary interference.
Unaware of such behind-the-scenes dealings (?), Kousuke took his seat and began to eat the food.
“…Mmm. It’s delicious, as always.”
“Really? Thank you,” Mitsuki replied with an indifferent expression to Kousuke’s sincere, unembellished compliment.
Inwardly, however, she was pounding with excitement from being praised by Kousuke, though Kousuke, as usual, was oblivious.
However, it wasn’t just Kousuke who was oblivious; most of the others, except for Kouhi, were also unaware, so Kousuke couldn’t be blamed solely.
Furthermore, Kouhi, who had observed Mitsuki being praised by Kousuke, was inwardly feeling a sense of regret, but similarly, no one other than Mitsuki noticed.
It was likely that neither of them would ever notice this exchange, but neither Kouhi nor Mitsuki would bother to reveal it themselves.
After enjoying the prepared dishes for the day, they tidied up the table to some extent and then began their evening drinks.
While it felt more like a second round following the late-night snack, none of the members in the Management Layer drank enough to be overcome by alcohol.
They proceeded at their own pace, with casual chat being the main focus.
Everyone present knew how Kousuke had been earlier in the day, so they were careful not to bring up any difficult topics.
However, even among Kousuke and the others, they didn’t discuss important matters every single day.
It was their usual practice to have such casual conversations.
This was true whether they were drinking alcohol or not, just like today.
The “Thank you for your hard work” gathering (?) proceeded without Kousuke’s awareness, and eventually, as usual, came to a close.
This was the typical pattern when alcoholic beverages were served in the Management Layer at night.
Since things had been quite busy lately, I felt like writing something about a bit of idle chatter.
Perhaps it’s a brief moment of rest for Kousuke, who has decided to summon the other goddesses.
