We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
The next day was beautifully sunny.
“…A. …Nea, wake up. Elnea!”
“Munya. Just a little longer…”
The comfortable sensation of being shaken awake by someone.
Speaking of comfortable, last night…
Last night…
Last night?
With a jolt, I shot up.
“Last night!?”
That thing with Lyra, and this and that!… That and this?!
I frantically spun my still groggy thoughts to recall last night’s events.
That’s right. Lyra and I stayed overnight, just the two of us in a room.
And then, finally…
And then.
And then…
And then?
Why is that?
How is that?
I have no memory from that point on!?
No, it’s not that I have no memory…
I didn’t experience anything further!?
No way.
Remember.
Last night, without any interruptions, Lyra and I…
No interruptions!?
Damn it!
I finally remembered. The events just before my consciousness faded.
There’s no way there wouldn’t be interruptions for us right now.
The new overseers, Yun and Rin, couldn’t *not* be watching us when we were alone. And, Ares-chan is always with me!
“Elnea, was last night fun?”
“Well then, Elnea-kun. Please tell us how far you went with Lyra-san.”
“Fah!?”
I pulled my consciousness back to reality from my confused thoughts.
Then, sitting in front of me, having sat up on the bed, were Mistral and Ruiseine.
And next to me, Lyra, also just waking up with her eyes only half-open, was sitting up, tilting her head at the inscrutable nature of last night’s events.
“Lyra, tell us everything without holding back.”
“Lyra, we want to hear the whole thing.”
“Hahahaha!”
Lyra was being pressed by the Twin Princesses.
It seemed that Lyra and I had been caught in a last-minute disruption and had fallen asleep.
Without a doubt, Ares-chan was the one who had interfered with Lyra and me. Honestly.
I search for Ares-chan’s presence. But she doesn’t seem to be here.
She ran away!
Knowing she did something mischievous, she must have retreated to Priscilla-chan.
Instead, Yun and Rin’s presence was in the room.
They were beings like spirits. And I realized.
When I had sensed them last night, I hadn’t felt their presence. But like spirits, Yun and Rin exist even without a perceptible presence. They usually only emit a presence to let us know they are there.
I see. Lyra and I were being monitored by Yun and Rin throughout last night, and then Ares-chan intervened.
It seems I jumped to conclusions thinking it was Ares-chan’s prank.
Ares-chan saved Lyra and me.
The thought of what would have happened if we had continued “that thing and this thing” under the gaze of those two overseers made me blush with embarrassment.
Well, I didn’t have to feel embarrassed…
But I’m very, very disappointed!
Yun and Rin, sensing that we were waking up and starting to understand the situation, silently left the room.
They probably went to Priscilla-chan. That girl is surely still asleep.
First thing in the morning, Lyra and I were interrogated by Mistral, Ruiseine, Yufilia, and Nina.
However, there was no accusatory air from Mistral and the others.
After all, Lyra and I are married.
As a married couple, it’s normal to have a night alone. Well, it ended up being an attempt. So, Mistral and the others weren’t angry.
It’s just that, under the agreement to share information between us as a couple, with no secrets… or rather, they were simply asking Lyra and me with complete curiosity!
Thinking about it, maybe Yun and Rin, who are new to our family and acted as overseers, just went overboard last night. And Ares-chan sensed it and took preventative measures. She forced us to sleep…
Did she interfere because she reacted to Lyra and me being in separate rooms as “hogging time”?
Nevertheless, we were still seen by Yun and Rin up until just before we fell asleep.
Thinking about that, I blush again.
Looking beside me, Lyra’s face was also flushed red.
Lyra is shy, after all. She must be so embarrassed, knowing she was seen by Yun and Rin, even though she’d already be embarrassed by being seen by family, that she wants to hide.
“Oh my, oh my, you two. Blushing so much.”
“We are husband and wife. There’s no need to be shy.”
“Now, confess.”
“Now, make your confession.”
Good grief. Mistral and the others are also slightly flushed.
While I feel a little embarrassed about being seen by Yun and Rin, I don’t feel any shame towards my wives.
On the contrary, for me, it’s not about dealing with one person, but multiple people at once…!
“Ah, Elnea-kun’s nose is twitching.”
“Honestly. What are you imagining this early in the morning?”
“Ehehe. Well then. Instead of talking, wouldn’t it be better if you each experienced it yourselves…?”
“Elnea-kun is lustful this early in the morning!”
“Elnea-kun is a pervert this early in the morning!”
As they said that, Yufilia and Nina attacked me.
“N-no, that’s unfair!”
“Lyra-san is the one being unfair. It’s my turn next.”
“Oh my, a Miko acting so indecent, Ruiseine. Come on, you twins. Let’s decide on an order.”
“Ehh. Why is everyone so eager!?”
I said it as a joke, but Mistral and Ruiseine started snatching me away as well.
Goodness. It’s noisy this early in the morning. As I was laughing, all my wives, who couldn’t decide on an order, suddenly attacked me at once.
“…Noisy.”
“So impure first thing in the morning!”
“Ah, Yunyun and Rinrin are back!”
What silenced our morning commotion was Yun and Rin, who had manifested.
Having absorbed energy from all of us to become corporeal, Yun and Rin shrugged at the door, looking exasperated.
“…Ooh. Include Priscilla, too.”
And, the finishing touch was Priscilla-chan!
Priscilla-chan, who ran in energetically from the hallway, didn’t hesitate to pounce on us.
Damn it!
So that’s why they left the room earlier, was to wake up Princess Priscilla and bring her here!
Once children are involved, adult games are no longer possible.
While pacifying the excited Priscilla-chan, we exchanged morning greetings anew.
“It seems I caused a disturbance last night.”
“Really! It was embarrassing just watching!”
“No, no, peeking is not allowed.”
“Restrain, restrain.”
“However, it might be good for Yun and Rin to get to know our family a little better?”
“That’s right. Yun and Rin have also become family, so I think it’s better to re-explain our house rules and agreements.”
Agreements, you say? Things like no secrets, everyone getting along, and so on. But what are house rules?
“Elnea-kun is tilting his head. He must have forgotten the house rules.”
“Elnea-kun is tilting his head. He must have forgotten the agreements.”
“Elnea, you shouldn’t do that.”
“Elnea-kun also needs re-education.”
“Ehh, no!”
“Um, is it study time?”
“Priscilla-chan, you too?”
“Noooo!”
Yun quickly caught Priscilla-chan, who was hastily trying to escape.
Rin, mistaking it for the start of a game of tag, embraced the manifested Ares-chan and smiled contentedly. She seems happy to be able to interact with the Spirit Tree Spirit, a special being, as one of the Mimicho Race.
I left the care of the young girl to the two sages and got ready.
While Ruiseine explained the family agreements and house rules, Mistral untangled my bedhead. And I put on the clothes that had been prepared, though it was a rather haphazard preparation relying on others.
Lyra also adjusted her disheveled clothes from waking up and, with the help of the twins, untangled her long hair.
Well, today is going to be busy again.
I wish I could spend more time with the King and Lyra, or spend my vacation leisurely, but I can’t do that.
Even though she’s not here, Carly-san needs to be sent to the Dragon Forest quickly.
After getting ready, we headed to the breakfast meeting with the King.
We enjoyed a magnificent meal again in the morning and replenished our energy.
The journey from the capital of the Yorttenitos Kingdom to the Dragon Forest is a long one, spanning more than a day.
After breakfast, we immediately began preparations for departure and left the palace in the morning.
The King and Lyra seemed reluctant to part. But I have a promise with Friel, and I’ll definitely visit again after Risshun.
Caster-sama saw us off while holding his head, possibly suffering from a hangover. When I asked, he said he had been forced to drink by the Twin Princesses until shortly before waking Lyra and me.
It’s strange, since Yufilia and Nina, who were drinking with him, didn’t smell of alcohol.
Madeline-sama did not appear to see us off. According to the high priestess who saw us off instead, she has a mountain of overdue work and cannot leave the Great Shrine for some time.
Self-inflicted, or perhaps pitiful…
The return arrangements were almost the same as yesterday.
On Lily’s back were Ruiseine, Yufilia, and Nina. And Carly-san.
The only difference was that today, Priscilla-chan was on Revalia’s back. So, on Revalia’s back were me, Mistral, the young girls, and the manifested Yun and Rin.
Yun was cradling Priscilla-chan. Rin, as she was this morning, rode while holding Ares-chan.
“Is it alright? If you keep summoning me and Rin, your power will be continuously depleted, won’t it?”
“We’re not using our power, but isn’t it tiring to be summoned continuously from the morning?”
The two of them are spirit users, about the level of sages in the Great Forest. They know better than us how much of a burden it is to continuously summon themselves, just like spirits. That’s why they are usually just a presence, but today we had them manifest intentionally.
“Priscilla-chan practices a lot too, but we thought it would be good to let you learn and get used to the technique of consuming power efficiently by continuous summoning.”
“On days when we know it’s safe, we want you to appear as much as possible.”
“That’s right. Because there will be many things happening from now on.”
Yun and Rin weren’t just brought along to be used by us. They are earnestly trying to atone for the sins they committed. However, if they can’t even manifest properly, things won’t work out.
So, we also need to grow so that we can continue to summon them both.
“However, just summoning aimlessly isn’t efficient. So, we wanted to learn from the two of you.”
“It’s fine for Elnea and Priscilla, but this is our first time with summoning magic. It would be helpful if you could teach us various things.”
“I see. So you want to gain knowledge about summoning magic.”
“Uwah, I’m not good at my sister’s studying!”
“Rin, that’s perfect. You should study again, too.”
“No way! Besides, I already know! Help me, Ares-sama!”
“Study, study.”
“Um, Priscilla is going over there.”
“Absolutely not. You must study diligently as well.”
“Noooo!”
Priscilla-chan, who tried to escape upon hearing the word “study,” was quickly caught in Yun’s arms.
Rin, mistaking it for the start of a game of tag, embraced the manifested Ares-chan and smiled contentedly. She seems happy to be able to interact with the Spirit Tree Spirit, a special being, as one of the Mimicho Race.
I left the care of the young girl to the two sages and got ready.
While Ruiseine explained the family agreements and house rules, Mistral untangled my bedhead. And I put on the clothes that had been prepared, though it was a rather haphazard preparation relying on others.
Lyra also adjusted her disheveled clothes from waking up and, with the help of the twins, untangled her long hair.
Well, today is going to be busy again.
I wish I could spend more time with the King and Lyra, or spend my vacation leisurely, but I can’t do that.
Even though she’s not here, Carly-san needs to be sent to the Dragon Forest quickly.
After getting ready, we headed to the breakfast meeting with the King.
We enjoyed a magnificent meal again in the morning and replenished our energy.
The journey from the capital of the Yorttenitos Kingdom to the Dragon Forest is a long one, spanning more than a day.
After breakfast, we immediately began preparations for departure and left the palace in the morning.
The King and Lyra seemed reluctant to part. But I have a promise with Friel, and I’ll definitely visit again after Risshun.
Caster-sama saw us off while holding his head, possibly suffering from a hangover. When I asked, he said he had been forced to drink by the Twin Princesses until shortly before waking Lyra and me.
It’s strange, since Yufilia and Nina, who were drinking with him, didn’t smell of alcohol.
Madeline-sama did not appear to see us off. According to the high priestess who saw us off instead, she has a mountain of overdue work and cannot leave the Great Shrine for some time.
Self-inflicted, or perhaps pitiful…
The return arrangements were almost the same as yesterday.
On Lily’s back were Ruiseine, Yufilia, and Nina. And Carly-san.
The only difference was that today, Priscilla-chan was on Revalia’s back. So, on Revalia’s back were me, Mistral, the young girls, and the manifested Yun and Rin.
Yun was cradling Priscilla-chan. Rin, as she was this morning, rode while holding Ares-chan.
“Is it alright? If you keep summoning me and Rin, your power will be continuously depleted, won’t it?”
“We’re not using our power, but isn’t it tiring to be summoned continuously from the morning?”
The two of them are spirit users, about the level of sages in the Great Forest. They know better than us how much of a burden it is to continuously summon themselves, just like spirits. That’s why they are usually just a presence, but today we had them manifest intentionally.
“Priscilla-chan practices a lot too, but we thought it would be good to let you learn and get used to the technique of consuming power efficiently by continuous summoning.”
“On days when we know it’s safe, we want you to appear as much as possible.”
“That’s right. Because there will be many things happening from now on.”
Yun and Rin weren’t just brought along to be used by us. They are earnestly trying to atone for the sins they committed. However, if they can’t even manifest properly, things won’t work out.
So, we also need to grow so that we can continue to summon them both.
“However, just summoning aimlessly isn’t efficient. So, we wanted to learn from the two of you.”
“It’s fine for Elnea and Priscilla, but this is our first time with summoning magic. It would be helpful if you could teach us various things.”
“I see. So you want to gain knowledge about summoning magic.”
“Uwah, I’m not good at my sister’s studying!”
“Rin, that’s perfect. You should study again, too.”
“No way! Besides, I already know! Help me, Ares-sama!”
“Study, study.”
“Um, Priscilla is going over there.”
“Absolutely not. You must study diligently as well.”
“Noooo!”
Priscilla-chan, who tried to escape upon hearing the word “study,” was quickly caught in Yun’s arms.
Rin, mistaking it for the start of a game of tag, embraced the manifested Ares-chan and smiled contentedly. She seems happy to be able to interact with the Spirit Tree Spirit, a special being, as one of the Mimicho Race.
I left the care of the young girl to the two sages and got ready.
While Ruiseine explained the family agreements and house rules, Mistral untangled my bedhead. And I put on the clothes that had been prepared, though it was a rather haphazard preparation relying on others.
Lyra also adjusted her disheveled clothes from waking up and, with the help of the twins, untangled her long hair.
“So, what can you do?”
“If you ask what I can do, I can only say almost anything. As a half-spirit, I can no longer command spirits. However, I myself am like a spirit. If I am given power, not only can I transform into the Flame Giant and Dark Giant I showed you earlier, but I can also use the authority of a sage.”
It seems that as long as they are manifested, they can exert almost the same power they had when they were praised as sages by the Mimicho Race.
“Then, what about your range of action? Ares, for the most part, doesn’t try to stray far from Elnea or the Spirit Tree, but…”
“Except when playing with Priscilla-chan, right?”
I had told Yun and Rin about the Spirit Tree Wooden Sword sheathed at my right hip and about Ares-chan.
We are family, after all. As per the agreements, we don’t keep secrets from our kin.
“Basically, a similar understanding is fine. You can consider me and Rin to be by your side even without our presence.”
“Yeah. That’s why we were caught last night.”
“I apologize for interfering. From now on, I will close my eyes.”
“It’s good that Lan wasn’t here. She would have definitely panicked.”
“Even so, Rinrin, your face is red!”
“You, dummy!”
Rin, flushing even redder, tried to throw something at hand at me as a release of frustration.
But the nearest object is Ares-chan, whom she’s holding.
Rin, unable to throw such a great spirit, drooped her head, her face still red.
“Indeed, it’s embarrassing to think we’re being watched.”
“But it’s exciting!?”
“You’re the only pervert here.”
“Even so, Mistral, you don’t mind being seen naked.”
“That and this are different.”
“What are ‘this and that’?”
It’s not that my desires from last night are pent up, you know?
I just felt like playing a little prank on Mistral.
“You two, the conversation is straying.”
“Hah!”
Oops. That’s right. If I were alone with Mistral, I probably would have turned into a wolf.
“Let’s get back to the topic. Regarding the range of action, that is also up to you. If you give us power, we can operate at considerable distances, as long as it’s not an extreme distance. Whether we are manifested or not.”
“Oh, that’s amazing!”
While said casually, this is incredible.
Through our training and experiences so far, we have learned many techniques and arts. However, even if we have wide-ranging techniques, we don’t have any long-distance ones.
But if we can get the cooperation of Yun and Rin, we can use them even in a pseudo form.
Dispatching Yun or Rin to a distant location. Having them use spirit arts that comprehend our intentions there. That’s a proper long-distance, remote technique, isn’t it?
“Elnea. While it is certainly amazing, don’t forget that it will also place a corresponding burden on us. Besides, since it’s not your own technique, isn’t it the same as one of us using a technique from afar?”
“Hau, that’s right…”
The problem is power consumption.
Just like in the battle against the Great Yōma Baridura, while sending power to Yun and Rin, we can’t exert our full strength.
That’s a significant problem.
“We need to find a way to suppress the power consumption.”
“Or, we need to gain more power ourselves…”
I ask Yun and Rin if there’s a better method, but even they don’t have convenient answers readily available.
“Should we ask Grandpa?”
“That’s right, the Elder might know something.”
“The Guardian Dragon of the Dragon Forest. I have heard of it.”
“Be careful…”
“Hm? Careful about what?”
“Danger, danger.”
I won’t say about what.
Because that would take away Sleigsta (Old Man)’s enjoyment!
A smile plays on the lips of me and Ares-chan. Mistral offers a bitter smile.
Yun tilts his head in confusion, looking at us.
