(...Huh?)

　Suddenly I woke up.

　Immediately in front of me, Illtimina's beautiful face, with her eyelids closed, was surprisingly close to me. Apparently, she had fallen asleep in her embrace and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

(Pavlov's dog, or am I?)

　I'm a little embarrassed for myself, like I'm going to fall asleep on conditional reflexes when she's hugging me or something.

　Then I am careful not to wake her up and sit up.

　The room is already completely dark.

　The light on the wall illuminates the room in a pale orange color. I wonder who turned it on?
　I looked around and saw Solstice lying on the bed next to me.

''Kuka~, kuka~''

　She was snoring happily, her soft purple hair scattered across the sheets. Her belly, lying on her back, was puffy. Yeah, you ate a lot, didn't you?
　I kind of want to stroke that belly.

　I hold it back and look at the other bed.

'....Mr. Quilt, you're not here, are you?

　Is he still in the bar?
　There was no clock in this room, so I couldn't tell the time.
　I stood at the window.

　The city of Medis was beautifully decorated by the lights of houses and street lamps.
　The houses that look like black shadows have a unique shape that is different from that of Japan, and they look somewhat fantastic. Especially, St. Julian's Church seems to be lit up, and even from a distance, I could honestly think that it was beautiful.

　Looking up at the sky, two moons, one red and one white, were shining among the stars.

(When the red moon is that high.......it's about 10pm now?)

　I could tell the time even without a clock - I, too, seemed to be getting used to living in another world.

　I look back at the room.
　Illtimina-san and Solstice are both sleeping soundly. The beautiful sister's eyes were a little red from crying, but she didn't look distressed anymore, and her sleeping face looked somewhat relieved.

(Yes, thank goodness.)

　And I couldn't help but laugh.
　And then I left the room where the two of them were sleeping to look for Quilt-san--.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


Oh, there she is.

　Downstairs, the silver-haired beauty was still in the bar, after all.

　But there's a stranger sitting next to her at the counter. He's blonde haired, blue-eyed, and as handsome as a foreign movie star. His white teeth shine whenever he smiles.

'...........

　Am I interrupting?
　As I was hesitating to call out to her, Mr. Kilt suddenly turned to me and noticed me.
　Her beauty shines brightly, in a flash. Eh?

Oh, Merle?　I'm glad you came!
..........
What are you doing? Come with me now. --Here comes your friend. You're gonna have to get out of here.

　A sissy, white hand waved at him.　
　The handsome man cowered lightly and got up from his chair. He continues to walk back to the table where his fellow adventurers seem to be. He's getting patted on the shoulder and laughed at by his fellow adventurers.

　I sat down next to Kirt, as if to swap places with her.
　The moment she sighs, she sighs.

Oh dear. I can't compete with the many men who come to talk to me. I can't even enjoy a drink by myself.
Oh, were you being picked up?

　Kilt, you're a beautiful woman.
　She chuckled and patted me on the head.

'Thank goodness you're here,'
Am I my bug repellent?
Phew, forgive me.

　The smile that tells you so is so beautiful and cool.

(Yes, I get to talk to a lot of guys, this one.)

　Even I was a little fawned over.

　Kilt-san gulped down the mug of alcohol in his hand. He exhales deliciously with a puff and leans one elbow on the counter table, looking at me with those golden eyes.

'So?　How's Irna doing?
Yeah, he's settled in.
Well, that's good. Well, good for you. --It took a lot of work, Merle.
Nope.

　And it was probably my fault, originally.
　When I remembered, I felt bad and depressed.

　Looking at me, Kirt-san said unexpectedly.

"Maybe it's for the best that Irna has met Marle.
...What?

　I look up.
　Mr. Kilts said somewhat sadly, looking into the distance.

For the past three years, he's been a bit emotionally unstable. Sometimes he can be reckless in his desperation. That's also the reason why the Red Dragon split us up this time.
..........
But Irna is very stable with you. I have you to thank for that.

　Ms. Kilt smiles serenely.
　I asked her fearfully.

Do you know about Illtimina's body?　You know, the kid's....

　She looks surprised.

'You heard from Irna?'
Yes.
You're so into this, Irna, aren't you?

　He gives a difficult look, and then a sigh.

"Be careful, Merle. She's got a lot on her plate. Especially since this incident, she has kept her distance from men. Maybe it's a reaction to that.
..........
She seems so calm, but inside, she has more passion than anyone else. What if she's a target?

　I'm kind of overreacting.
　She laughed, annoyed at my lack of sense of urgency.

"Well, well. It may be too early for you to know.
..........
But this is the kind of younger man Irna likes. You really never know.

　Then he gulped down his mug.
　The mug is empty.
　I reach for the liquor bottle on the table and pour it into it.

"Oh, you're cute, huh?

　Ms. Kilt laughs, surprised and amused.
　I ask her.

'Kirt-san, have you known Illtimina-san for a long time?'
Hmm?　Seven years or so.

　Seven years ago, that's when Illtimina's village was attacked.

"I found those sisters covered in wounds, and I took them to the Adventurer's Guild. "I found the wounded sister and took her to the Adventurers' Guild. And we were friends ever since.
Oh, yeah?
'The last time we had a party was three years ago, I think. When Irna became emotionally unstable, I was worried about her and Solstice became an adventurer. I knew I had to be there for her.
'Solstice, did you become an adventurer because you were worried about your sister?'

　I ask, remembering that young bespectacled girl and her image as an adventurer wielding a large staff.
　Mr. Kilt nodded, 'Mm.

'That was a difficult girl to deal with,' She lives in a state of gratitude to her sister, but she feels indebted to her sister.
..........
I'm sure you're not the only one who's studied magic, but I'm sure you're not the only one who's studied it. ....Therefore, Sol may not know what to do with you.
..........
But that's why I think it was a good thing for Sol to meet Marle. Selfishly speaking.

'Forgive me,' she said, smiling apologetically.

　I say honestly.

'I like you, Illtimina, and I don't hate Solstice, okay?
Okay.
I think Mr. Kilt is a cool guy, too.
''..........Kuhahaha, I see. Did this kind of part tug at Irna's heartstrings?

　She slapped her knee and seemed to enjoy it for some reason.

'Hmm. I thought the sooner we pulled away from her, the less damage it would cause, but as I suspected, Warawa was wrong in his judgment.
?
No, it's nothing. --It's Merle. Please keep up the good work with them.

　I didn't need to be told.
　I nodded widely.

　Seeing that, Mr. Kilt laughed in relief.
　And then she tried to refill her mug again.

　I said to her what I was thinking.

You're kind of like a mother to them, aren't you?

　Gof.........

　Mr. Kilt, you're suddenly seething.
　What?

You okay?
No, no, I'm fine. I'm just a little surprised.

　She wipes her mouth with her arm and giggles.

"But just like your mother..... I'm getting old.
The years...　

　Mr. Kilt, you're so young, you're so weird.
　I was stunned, and she asked me.

'How old do you look, my dear?
What's it look like, 25?

　From the bedroom story, I found out that Ms. Illtimina is 20, so I added about 5 years more from that. Personally, I think she's a bit younger, about 22 or 23....

　But Mr. Kilt laughed hilariously and

It's 30 this year!
.......... Oh, no!

　With all my might, I look into Mr. Kilt's beauty.

　Her white skin is shiny and taut, with no blemishes or wrinkles. Even her silvery hair is beautiful. If it were only for looks, I'd believe it even if someone called me a mature teenager, right?

(I said more years because of the way he speaks and the mood he's in, but...)

　I didn't expect to be 30 years old....

　I was surprised, and Kirto-san's cheeks relaxed happily.

"You know how to please a woman," he says. You know how to please a woman.

　........no, it's an honest reaction.

　Kirt-san crumples up and strokes my dumbfounded head.
　And then, just like that, he pulled me closer to him with a giggle.

(Wha?)

　Our foreheads collided with each other with a clunk.
　A voice, smelling sweetly of alcohol, whispered sweetly to me.

I'm going to be traveling with these women for some time to come. -- please take good care of them, Merle.　

　Her face left, and then she laughed.

　It was a bold, bright, sunny smile.

(Ah ... that smile must be helping those sisters too.)

　Or so I thought.

　Mr. Kilt laughed happily and drank another mug of alcohol. He said, "Today's sake is so good!" and drank several cups.
　So I tipped the bottle back and forth into the empty mug.

　I'm not sure I'll ever be able to do that again.

　--The first and last night I spent at the Medis was like that.