Kousuke was lounging in the Lounge Space when Nana casually wandered in.
Nana, who had shrunk to the size of a small dog, trotted over to the sofa where Kousuke was lying down. She hopped onto him, walked across Kousuke’s stomach, and settled there.
Kousuke, who had been dozing off, noticed Nana’s presence and opened his eyes slightly. He gently stroked Nana’s back as she rested on his stomach.
Nana, enjoying the petting, wagged her tail busily. Kousuke closed his eyes again, resuming his nap.
Seeing this, Nana lowered her head from Kousuke’s chest and closed her eyes, as if to sleep.
This was the usual, unremarkable scene in the Lounge Space.
Floria, who had been watching this series of fluid events, looked at Silvia, who was sitting
next to her, with a wry smile.
“As usual, it all flowed very naturally,” Floria commented.
“Few would think Nana isn’t a pet dog seeing this,” Silvia replied.
Agreing with Floria, Silvia also let out a small, wry smile.
From any perspective, Nana now looked like nothing more than a pet animal, bred for companionship.
No one would suspect that this creature was capable of defeating even an A Rank adventurer.
“How many do you think could see past the cozy nap on a lazy person’s stomach to realize she’s actually the ultimate guard?” Floria remarked, her face serious as she analyzed Nana. Silvia chuckled at her words.
“Probably no one. If she had that much strength, we would have heard about it by now.”
“Well, that is true,” Silvia agreed with a nod.
Nana’s current strength surpassed that of an A Rank Monster, reaching S Rank, and was even approaching SS Rank.
S Rank and above Monsters were considered mythical, with only Dragons being confirmed to exist in such numbers currently.
Although, higher floors of the Tower were practically teeming with such Monsters, at most S Rank.
However, on the 98th and 99th floors of Amamiya Tower, SS Class Monsters existed, akin to area bosses.
Considering Nana was approaching these ranks, one could understand how extraordinary she was.
However, her current appearance gave no hint of this, and she lacked the pressure usually exuded by high-ranking Monsters. This led to the conversation between the two.
As Silvia and Floria relaxed, Shurein entered the Lounge Space.
“What is it? Kousuke is in his usual state?” Shurein asked.
“Indeed. As always, he looks so comfortable sleeping,” Floria replied, her tone half-astonished, yet her gaze was gentle.
Seeing Floria’s expression, Shurein’s face briefly lit up with amusement before turning serious.
She then directed her gaze at Silvia.
“Lately, he seems to be napping more often than usual, don’t you think?”
Floria was about to reply that there was no need to worry, but a thought suddenly struck her, and her expression mirrored Shurein’s.
“…Ever since the ritual?” Silvia murmured.
Silvia’s hushed words were clearly heard by both Shurein and Floria.
Floria, hearing Silvia’s seemingly solitary thought, conveyed her query to the other two with a glance.
Silvia shook her head, and Shurein gestured towards the entrance/exit.
They implied that since Kousuke was sleeping, it was not the place to discuss it.
Sensing this, Silvia and Floria nodded and quietly left the room.
Nana, of course, noticed them leave and twitched her ears, but Kousuke himself continued to sleep soundly, seemingly oblivious.
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The three left the Lounge Space and gathered in Floria’s private room.
The meeting room was easily accessible to Towa and Riku, so a private room was the best place for a secret conversation.
If anyone visited, the Maid Golem would guide them to the room and knock.
Floria’s private room, like the others, was equipped with soundproofing Magic Tools, ensuring no voices would escape.
“So, what is it?” Floria asked Shurein after confirming Silvia had closed the door.
However, Shurein shook her head.
“I don’t clearly understand it myself. I’ve just felt a vague sense of unease seeing Kousuke sleeping these past few days.”
“I’m the same. In fact, I didn’t notice until you pointed it out. I just felt that his demeanor after returning from the ritual was different from before.”
Floria nodded in understanding at their replies.
“I see. Now that you mention it, I’ve also had a similar feeling.”
Floria had specifically brought Shurein and Silvia to her private room because she herself had felt something was amiss.
After the ritual, Kousuke had indeed been napping more.
Furthermore, he wasn’t just dozing; he seemed to be in a deep sleep.
With all these conditions met, no one in the Management Layer would argue it was mere coincidence.
Floria nodded several times but then remembered something and looked at Shurein and Silvia.
“But Kouhi and Mitsuki don’t seem worried at all?”
The reason Silvia and Floria hadn’t noticed Kousuke’s anomaly(?) until Shurein mentioned it stemmed from this very fact.
If something dangerous were happening to Kousuke, Kouhi or Mitsuki surely would have taken action.
But neither of them seemed to be acting.
“If those two were truly acting in secret, we certainly wouldn’t notice,” Shurein pointed out.
“That’s true, but conversely, it means either they can resolve it without our intervention, or our intervention would be meaningless,” Silvia replied.
Both of Silvia’s points were undeniable facts.
Either way, it meant there was no point in Shurein and the others getting involved.
The three fell into a troubled silence, which was broken by a knock at the door.
When Floria, the room’s owner, opened the door, Mitsuki was standing there.
“About what you were just discussing… may I come in?”
“Ah, yes. Of course.”
It was rare for only Mitsuki to come to this room. Floria, slightly surprised, invited her in.
After surveying the room and confirming Shurein and Floria were present, Mitsuki got straight to the point.
“Apologies for the sudden intrusion. We were also a bit curious about what you were discussing, so we wanted to join the conversation.”
Upon hearing Mitsuki’s words, the other three exchanged glances.
They had suspected something was happening to Kousuke.
Seeing their reaction, Mitsuki waved her right hand.
“Please don’t misunderstand. It’s not that anything critical is happening to Kousuke… I think. Probably.”
Shurein and the others exchanged glances again at Mitsuki’s uncharacteristically vague statement.
At the very least, Mitsuki would never speak so ambiguously unless something truly extraordinary was occurring.
Mitsuki’s ambiguous words clearly indicated that this extraordinary something was indeed happening to Kousuke at this very moment.
This has ended on a rather suggestive note.
The continuation will be in the next chapter.
