After leaving the White Wolf Forest, we were able to get back to Green Hollow without much trouble.

　The weather was even chilly as we drove the carriage up the well-maintained mountain road, but as we reached the entrance of the town, the warm air was wafting through the air.

　With the nostalgic atmosphere of the hot spring area filling my heart, I got out of the carriage and stepped on the soil of Green Hollow for the first time in a long time.

'Looks like it's no different over here either,'
You want to go to Sylvia's and ask her about the time we were gone? You should get some rest.

　The second half of Garnett's statement was not directed at me, but at your man.

　Driving a carriage for a long time accumulates considerable fatigue and strain on the body.

　Since we've come to the spa town, it would be better to have our bodies rested before we leave.

The shop is closed on this day. I've been away for a while and my senses are starting to feel a bit off.
'If I hadn't made a decision to change it on site, yes. I'm going to work harder tomorrow because I've left it up to everyone else.

　First of all, we'll go to Spring's Wakaba Tei, where Sylvia is supposed to be, as planned.

　Since the White Wolf Store is closed, there's a chance that no one is there, and since most of the staff live in a rented room at the Spring Wakaba-Tei, going there should be the most reliable way to go.

　Even if Sylvia wasn't there, at least one of the staff members would still be relaxing in the common area.

　With that thought in mind, when I walked through the front door of the Spring Wakabatei, I was first greeted by Sylvia's cheerful voice.

''Welcome!　...... Oh!　Mr. Luke and Ms. Garnett!　Welcome back!

　Sylvia stops working and runs up to me with a big smile on her face.

'I'm back. Has anything changed in our absence?
'Hmmm, I don't think it was anything special, but ...... yes!　We're going to take an early break, so why don't we talk at leisure?　And I'd like to hear the story of King's Landing, too!
Let's do that. We hadn't even had lunch yet.

　First, I move to the dining room space and ask Garnett to take my order.

　Garnett sits down next to me in a chair for two, and with a very natural movement, he refills the distance between us by about a fistful.

　A few moments later, Sylvia brought lunch for three and sat down across from me.

''Here you go. It might not be at all as good as the food in the royal capital, though.''
What's the matter with you? You're going to miss it.

　While eating Sylvia's food for the first time in a while, we talk to each other about the events of our time in King's Landing.

　Of course, I'm not in a position to tell you everything just yet.

　I need to keep things regarding the knighthood and the new order of knights under wraps until the official announcement, and the matter of the night party and the relationship with 'Alma' is not yet in its timing.

　The Night Ripper (Night Ripper) incident is too bloody to talk about, and it would only embarrass Sylvia to talk about the automatic doll thing.

　So the topics of conversation here were mainly about tourism in the royal capital and the Sun Dial Chamber of Commerce - strictly speaking, Silvia's grandmother, Dorothea, the chairman of the board.

I'm glad to hear that your grandmother is doing well. I think I'm going to go there too, after all.
Speaking of which, did Chairman Dorothea invite you to come to King's Landing to visit her?
'Yes. I was thinking of inviting Erica and Marida to join us. If I asked Sakura to join them as an escort too, she might be able to join us without hesitation, right?

　Not only do we get to talk about souvenirs one way or the other, but we also get to hear from Sylvia about Green Hollow.

　Although it was touched upon a little earlier, at least nothing that could be called a major incident occurred.

　As expected, there were a few minor incidents, but they were settled without causing a tailspin, and the town seems to have continued to live in peace.

　The management of the Hollow Bottom Store is also doing well itself, as far as Sylvia can tell.

　It's a good thing that the opening of the branch and the increase in staff seemed to work, and the customers were distributed just right, so there was no excessive burden on either store.

　--However, this is just a basic(ish) book(ish).

　There were times when the timing of specialized work coincided with unfortunate coincidences, making it necessary for a small group of people to run the shop, and they became so busy that they were dizzying.

　In particular, there was a day when Noir and Alexia, who were both sought after as experts in magic and finesse, left the shop at the same time, and that was probably the hardest day of all.

　At that time, Erica and Leila worked hard, and not only Sylvia and Sakura, but also Nagi and Melissa came around to help out, so they were able to keep the store running until it closed without a temporary closure.

I need to thank everyone again for their help. In the meantime, I'll ask everyone at the head office to take a leave of absence in turn to go home: ......
''Erica's parents live in the next town over, and they don't have a very good relationship, so maybe we can invite her to travel to the royal capital for a vacation.
That might be a good idea.

　The name of my trip to King's Landing was a business trip related to a major deal with the Sundial Chamber of Commerce, but Garnett's name was a return trip to King's Landing.

　It would be unfair if the rest of the staff couldn't take a break for the same reason.

　The black wizard Noir's hometown was, as I recall, in some city, and the crafty engineer Alexia was in Springfield, the same multi-level city as the brave Falcon.

　Both are so far from Green Hollow that it's difficult to even return home without a long, coherent vacation.

　But Erica, the potion maker, is from Walnut Town, a city that's within walking distance, and she's the one who flew out of the city after a confrontation with her parents, so she has nowhere to go back to even if she got a long vacation.

　It would be a good idea, then, to spend the trip with her childhood friend Sylvia and her friends.

...... By the way, that's a different story.

　Sylvia looked at me, who was slowly drinking her after-dinner tea, and Garnett, who was eating a cake set for dessert, in turn, and then changed the subject in a tone of voice as if she were asking a casual question.

　I didn't expect him to realize that our relationship had changed, but the rest of the statement was completely unrelated.

'It seems that the Adventurer's Guild is moving to explore deeper into the dungeon. Perhaps Luke-san and Garnett-san will be asked to join us.
What exactly are we talking about here?
'I think you know a bit more about the details ...... than I do.

　That's true. If it's between adventurers, it's obviously better to ask Sakura and other active adventurers than the average person Sylvia.

''Exploring a realm even deeper than the 'Demon King's Castle Realm' or ...... you can usually guess who will be the leader.

　There were two leading candidates, and they both knew me.

　I tipped my cup of hot tea, thinking that I would definitely be approached, but I made up my mind to relax until then.