Leaving the Sundial Forest, I return to the ground and walk through the dark streets at night to reach my home, the White Wolf Shop.

　It's the first time I've been home in half a day since I left my house in the daytime, but I feel as if I haven't been home for a long time.

　I felt as if I hadn't been home for a long time.

　It was supposed to be just about repairing the suspension bridge, but it evolved into repairing the position, and in the end, we ended up having a one-on-one fight to the death with the leaders of the Demon King's Army.

　The fact that the four of us were able to return home safely can only be described as a real blessing.

I'm home ...... and...
Welcome back. Mr. Luke, Mr. Garnett.

　When I entered the house from the kitchen door instead of the entrance to the restaurant, Sylvia pattered over to greet me.

　The smell of delicious-looking food drifted in from across the hallway.

　It's enough to make me feel tired, and it inexplicably stimulates my appetite.

'Sakura and Noir are already back, right? I told you that you could eat first. ......
Well, what do you say: ......

　Sylvia brought me and Garnett into the dining room with a troubled look on her face.

　The reason for the troubled face was immediately apparent.

　I'm sure you'll be able to see that the food is just about ready to be cooked, but neither Sakura nor Noir seemed to have the time to do so.

　First of all, Sakura is wrinkled between her shapely eyebrows and is seriously contemplating something.

　Noir, on the other hand, was hugging her knees on a chair, her long black hair hanging slackly in the air.

　It's not a very good idea, but it doesn't seem like it's in the mood to start a pleasant meal.

'Ah ...... I see, that's the kind of ......'
I was waiting for Luke and the others to come back because I'm an outsider and I thought it would be wrong to ask them why. Because, you see, I can't ask them if it would involve secret information or something.

　From Sylvia's point of view, just when I thought we had gone out with a secret request directly from the Golden Fang Knights, for some reason in the night, only Noir returned and even Sakura, who should not have been there when we went, followed us.

　Indeed, this can't help but make people think 'something's up.

' I don't think it has anything to do with secrecy or anything like that .......
It's nothing serious. Both of these guys are just depressed because they're not doing what they think they're supposed to do.

　Garnett staggered across the dining room and sat down on the couch instead of the dining table.

　I'm not going to be the only one who's been in this situation.

...... Well, I'm not in a position to say anything about other people either," he said.
Oh, there are more.

　Sylvia mumbles to herself with a straight face.

　For me, I can only say that all three of them really did a good job, but for them, it seems that the result was a result that left a great deal of frustration.

　I know how you feel.
　Regardless of what other people think, I've had many disappointing experiences when I didn't produce the results I expected for myself.

　However, I feel that the timing is not right for me right now.

　In front of the person who took the trouble to prepare the food for me, it would be bad for Sylvia to leave me to cool down without working on it.

　Just as I thought I had to say something, Sylvia began to act gallantly.

''Garnett-san!
Oh, oh?　...... Whoa!

　The cushions on her buttocks were pulled out with all her might by Sylvia, and Garnett slid off the sofa as hard as she could.

　Then, as she was about to stand up, Sylvia took her arm and pulled her straight to the dining room table and made her sit back in her chair.

'Yes!　Ladies and gentlemen, look up!

　Sylvia crisply set the food on the table and then lightly slapped Sakura between her cheeks and made her raise Noir's bangs with a large hair clip she took from somewhere, pulling everyone's attention back to the table from the inside out.

'I can tell you're hungry. I've had my stomach rumbling so many times!　Thinking about things like that can't possibly work, can it?

　Sakura blushed slightly and Noir blushed heavily at the revelation of her belly bug.

'Eat plenty of food, warm up in the hot springs, and get a good night's sleep. Your mind and body won't have enough nourishment if you don't worry about it afterwards. Green Hollow was originally a town to welcome people who wanted to rest like that. Do you understand?

　The three of them were completely pushed by Sylvia's momentum and nodded their heads in unison.

　If anything, they seemed like children being overwhelmed by their mother's swordsmanship.

　In terms of age, Sylvia was the much younger of the four, and only Garnett should have been about the same.

''Yes!　Well, then, let's have dinner!

　Sylvia's big smile was the cue for the long-awaited meal time to finally begin.

　The menu is as full of excellent food as ever.
　It's not surprising since he's the one who is in charge of the restaurant, but the food tastes just like the food served at Wakaba-Tei in spring.

　When the three of them started to eat, they seemed to be completely distracted by the food, and became engrossed in eating it.

　The food is quickly diminishing and the sake that was prepared for us is also disappearing.

　...... Or rather, for the four of us eating alone, the alcohol seems to be running out unusually fast.

............

　Noir poured the wine into the cup at hand without hesitation and tipped it up.

It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with them. I was here at ......, so of course I'm going to remember ...... and be scared.

　Noir suddenly started telling a weak story, even though no one was listening.

　That was clearly drunk.
　Or rather, isn't the way he speaks smoother than usual?

''If that's the case, you're just fine for not running away!　Those who run away really don't hesitate to run away!　Even when I was training in the Miyama (mountain), I always had my tongue in my mouth when it came to escapists!

　Sakura came on board with Noir's narrative, but this one's speech was getting suspicious in reverse.

　I've heard the myth somewhere that Easterners have a weakness for alcoholism (alcohol).
　By any chance, is it time to stop that?

''Ah!　d*mn, it's pathetic. Why couldn't I just avoid it?

　Garnett is mumbling to himself while drinking apple wine (cider) like juice.

　It's not a gloomy regret like earlier, but a self-scoring in the same atmosphere as usual.

　A positive reflection is much better than a backward-looking regret.

　In that sense, I'm now at ease with Garnett.

　...... By the way, under the laws around Green Hollow Town, weak liquors such as beer, wine and cider are allowed to be consumed from the age of fifteen, and strong liquors such as spirits are allowed to be consumed from the age of seventeen.

　All the weak liquor here is weak liquor, but Garnett was either fifteen or he was only fourteen: .......

　It wasn't that I didn't remember hearing that he was sixteen, but I'm already pretty sober, so my memory was a bit fuzzy at the moment.

''It ended up being like a remembrance party,''

　Sylvia smiled as she casually muttered her thoughts.

That's fine. The worst thing to do is to keep your worries bottled up, and if you can get them out, it's better to get rid of them. We can start thinking it over tomorrow.
There must be .......

　As expected of the innkeeper's daughter.
　She is well accustomed to handling situations like this.

　Eventually the meal was over, and Sylvia took Sakura and Noir, who were drunk, back to the Spring Wakaba-Tei.

　Sylvia also took care of all the cleanup after the meal.
　I was told that she was offering a paid meal service that included that much, but I was extremely grateful.

　I poured two cups of the herb tea I had left in the morning and put one of them in front of Garnett.

　Garnett wasn't sober, but he was lying on the dining room table, barely moving.

'Have a drink before you go to bed. Because the more you drink, the more thirsty you'll be, you know.
Ooh, ...... that's helpful. ......

　After making sure I received my cup properly, I poured my own herbal tea down my throat and casually said the words that suddenly popped into my head.

'Well, you know what? I know you've got a lot on your mind, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm going to be relying on you in the future.
............
Good luck in the future, Garnett.
............

　There was no reply from Garnett.

　He fell face down as if his arms were pillows and remained motionless, propped up on the table.