In the middle of the night... Rei was with Set, who was lying down in the courtyard.
The conversations after Vihera returned, the dinner everyone shared—even dinner had been quite a commotion, but now the courtyard was quiet.
"Filled with silence" would be the most accurate way to describe it.
"Gruu."
Set let out a soft purr toward Rei, who was leaning his weight against it.
It wasn't purring with any particular meaning behind it; it was more like it just felt like doing so on a whim.
Rei understood Set's demeanor, so without saying anything, he gently stroked Set's head.
As he did so, he looked up at the night sky. There wasn't a single cloud, and moonlight poured down gently.
This courtyard was a place made extraordinarily comfortable by Marina's Spirit Magic.
In Rei's mind, it was covered in a dome shape—or perhaps some other shape—by Spirit Magic, something along those lines.
Despite that, even when looking up at the night sky like this, nothing appeared to be covering it.
He could see the night sky in its beautiful, unobstructed state.
Suddenly, breaking the silence that had filled the air moments before, the chiming of insects could be heard—rin, rin.
It was likely a sign that the season was transitioning from spring to summer, and he listened closely to the sound.
Rei had been enjoying the evening music while leaning against Set, but sensing someone approaching, he turned his gaze in that direction.
That said, the approaching presence was distinctive and belonged to someone he recognized, so he didn't feel particularly wary.
"What's wrong, Elena?"
"Umu. I could see you and Set from the window."
Rei turned his gaze toward Elena as she said that, and found himself captivated by her golden hair shimmering in the moonlight.
Elena had luxurious golden hair that looked as though sunlight itself had taken physical form, but even beneath the moonlight, that hair held more than enough attraction to steal Rei's eyes.
He had seen Elena under the moonlight countless times before.
But even so, for some reason, right now he couldn't stop his eyes from being drawn to her.
"Rei? What's wrong?"
"Ah, no. It's nothing. ...I just spaced out a little. Anyway, what was it? ...Set and I were just gazing at the night sky, so there's no need to worry about us."
"Even so. It's fine once in a while, isn't it? Lately, the time I've been able to spend with you has been scarce."
Saying that, Elena sat down next to Rei and leaned against Set.
"Haa."
Rei found himself wondering at that sound—difficult to tell whether it was a voice or a sigh—that escaped Elena's mouth after she sat beside him.
"What's wrong? You look strangely tired. You didn't seem that tired during dinner, did you?"
"Everyone was there then. Right now it's just you, Rei, so I can let my guard down like this."
"Is that how it works?"
"Umu."
What Elena meant was that she could be her natural self in front of Rei, but Rei didn't catch that at all.
...Normally, she could have been angry at him for not understanding what she was trying to say, but for some reason, Elena only smiled at his obliviousness.
She even seemed somehow at ease with his demeanor.
"If possible, I'd like to try staying at the Birth Tower with you, too. Unfortunately, given my position, that isn't possible."
"Staying overnight might be impossible, but just showing your face during the day should be fine, right? If you come, I think everyone would be happy."
The words that came from Rei's mouth were an unmistakable truth.
Elena, who held the alias of Princess General, had high name recognition within the Kingdom of Mireana, and was equally popular.
Above all, the adventurers serving as guards at the Birth Tower were all men.
Being able to see up close a beauty like Elena, someone rarely seen even in all of history—no matter how you looked at it, that was something to be happy about.
Of course, there would probably be those who directed jealous glares at Rei for bringing Elena along.
Normally, directing jealous glares at Rei would be nothing short of suicidal, and adventurers of the caliber entrusted with guarding the Birth Tower by the Guild would naturally know that.
But Elena possessed beauty that could blow away such common sense entirely.
Of course, whether Rei would even notice such jealousy was another matter entirely, and if someone were to harass him out of that jealousy, they would meet a tragic end.
"Hmm, I see. That might be interesting. ...It would be perfect for a change of pace."
"A change of pace, huh. Meeting with nobles almost every day gets tiresome, doesn't it?"
"I can't deny that. Not just the Noble Faction Nobles, but even nobles from the King's Faction and the Neutral Faction are requesting audiences. ...And not because they have any important business, but simply because they want to show their faces."
"Ah... yeah, that."
Rei could understand the reasoning behind wanting to do so.
They believed that having Elena remember their faces, given her alias as Princess General and her position as the only daughter of Duke Kerebel's House, would be an enormous advantage.
If Elena had the mentality of a typical noble, that would be correct.
But in Elena's case, true to her alias as Princess General, her true nature was closer to that of a warrior or knight than a noble.
Given her position as the daughter of Duke Kerebel's House, she wasn't exclusively that and also had the aspect of a noble, but if asked which was Elena's true nature, Rei would undoubtedly say it was Elena as the Princess General.
(Blonde drill curls and all, she gives off a completely noble-like impression. ...It's rare to see someone whose appearance and inner nature differ this much.)
Since Rei had been fond of subculture—games, anime, manga, and light novels—when he was in Japan, it was true that he felt something somewhat inconsistent about Elena's appearance and her alias as Princess General.
Of course, now that he had been acquainted with Elena for quite some time, he accepted her as she was.
"Moreover, do they think I don't notice? The number of men who direct their gazes at my body..."
Haa.
Elena looked depressed.
Those abundantly prominent twin peaks were visible even through her clothes.
Because of that, Rei couldn't entirely fail to understand why men would direct their gazes at Elena's alluring figure.
Of course, no matter how attractive Elena was, there were no would-be suicides who would try to lay a hand on her.
"It just means you're overflowing with charm as a woman, Elena."
"...Even if the masses find me charming as a woman. That sort of thing is something you want only a specific person to feel."
Saying that, Elena looked at Rei.
Even in the current situation where moonlight was the only light source, Rei, who possessed Night Vision, could see that Elena's face was dyed bright red—red all the way to the tips of her ears.
Elena was never proactive when it came to romantic matters, but even so, what she meant in this situation was something Rei could fully understand.
"Elena..."
He quietly called her name and gently put his arm around the shoulder of Elena sitting beside him.
Elena froze for a moment at Rei's action, but perhaps because she was happy to have him put his arm around her, she gently leaned her weight against him as she was.
Then, with both of them looking only at each other, the distance between their faces gradually closed...
Clatter. Suddenly, that sound reached both their ears.
"!?"
Half-reflexively, Rei and Elena pulled apart and turned their gazes toward the source of the sound.
There, Ielo—having come out through the window—was looking at Rei and Elena with a curious gaze, as if asking, "What's wrong?"
"Pfft, ahahahahaha."
Noticing Ielo, Rei and Elena, after a few seconds of silence, let out laughter they could no longer hold back.
"Gruu."
At the sight of the two of them, Set let out a purr tinged with slight dissatisfaction.
Ever since their exchange had begun, Set had devoted itself entirely to playing the role of a sofa, suppressing its presence.
It had done so to the point of maximizing its abilities as a Gryphon, all to avoid disturbing them.
And yet, at the crucial moment, Ielo had interrupted them, so it was only natural for Set to feel dissatisfied.
"Pfft, ahahahahaha."
At the sight of such a disgruntled Set, Rei and Elena laughed together once more.
Normally, it wouldn't have been strange for Set to wonder what was so funny.
But for some reason—truly for some reason—right now even such trivial things were funny.
In the courtyard that had been quiet until a short while ago, only the laughter of Rei and Elena echoed.
Amidst that, Ielo flew through the air and landed on top of Set's head.
Whether it was the kind of moment where even dropping chopsticks would be funny, at the sight of Set and Ielo like that, Rei and Elena once again burst into laughter.
Still, it was quieter than their laughter moments ago, and eventually that laughter too subsided.
"Jeez, what are we even doing?"
Rei muttered as if grumbling, but Elena floated a radiant smile at his words and spoke.
"In a way, this is very much like us, wouldn't you say?"
"Well, I won't deny that. ...Oh, right. If you really do come to the Birth Tower for a change of pace, you're welcome. I think Zozo and Gaga would be happy to see you, too."
"Gaga aside, would Zozo be happy?"
The Zozo that Elena knew was someone who had pledged loyalty to Rei, but whose personality was such that Rei came first and everything else didn't matter.
Of course, she had never shown any rude attitude toward the people in this house, including Elena, but that seemed to be only because they were close to Rei.
When she thought about whether such a Zozo would be happy to see her, she couldn't honestly nod.
But contrary to Elena's feelings, Rei nodded as if it were obvious.
"I'm pretty sure he'd be happy. Zozo has changed a lot from when he was staying at this house, too. He talks normally with other adventurers now."
"Hoh, that is a little surprising."
She said "a little," but the surprise there was by no means "a little."
Because she knew what Zozo was like when he had been staying at this house, she felt it all the more.
"You'll understand that sort of thing when you actually come, so if you're interested, come visit. Besides... playing at the lake would be a nice change of pace, wouldn't it?"
Playing at the lake should have been enjoyable for Elena, too.
Since it was heading toward summer, the temperature was gradually rising—or at least felt like it was—so playing in the water would be very appealing.
Given that it was a lake from another world, there was a very real possibility of unknown monsters attacking.
But if it were Lizardman children playing in the water, there would be various concerns; if it were Elena, there would be no need to worry.
With Elena's ability, no matter how many ordinary monsters attacked, she could effortlessly defeat them barehanded—even without her beloved Mirage.
Also, if Elena was playing in the water, that naturally meant Rei, Set, and Ara would be there too... and unless a monster on the same level as the still-burning Slime appeared, it was unimaginable they would fall into danger.
"Playing in the water... I'll try to arrange some time for it."
Perhaps triggered by Rei's words, Elena had become quite proactive about playing in the water.
Naturally, Rei was happy about that too, and the two of them together... no, Set and Ielo were playing nearby as well, so the two people and two creatures together talked about the lake, and exchanged various other small talk besides.
When Rei talked about the monsters he had encountered at the lake, Elena spoke about her meetings with nobles... and about an hour passed just like that.
Since she had come outside because she couldn't sleep in the first place, it was already well past midnight.
"Well then, considering tomorrow... it's about time I went to sleep. What will you do, Rei?"
"I should sleep soon, too. I want to let Set rest as well."
When Rei said that, Elena stood up and picked up Ielo, who had been on top of Set's head.
Then, after thinking for a moment... she suddenly took a step forward and stood in front of Rei.
She gently bent at the waist... and Elena's lips overlapped with Rei's.
Just how much time passed like that.
Was it a few seconds, ten-odd seconds, or tens of seconds?
After pulling her lips away, Elena spoke with her cheeks faintly dyed red.
"Good night."
Saying only that, Elena returned inside the house, and Rei watched her retreating back, unable to form any words.