It's a beautiful day this morning.

　When I opened the window, I saw a blue sky outside.

　I couldn't help but smile at the comforting breeze blowing against me.

　This is my room in Illtimina's house.

　Three days have passed since I returned to the royal capital, Mulia.

　After saying goodbye to the king and Princess Reclear at the treasure room, we headed to the Adventurer's Guild, Moonlight Wind.

　It was midnight when we arrived, but the guild leader, Mumpa-san, was still awake and welcomed us back with a hug for each of us.

　...Don't tell anyone that I was a little nervous about being hugged by an adult woman.

　Then Kilt-san and Mumpa-san decided to talk together, and the four of us, me, Illtimina-san, Solstice and Poe, stayed in Kilt-san's room in the guild building.

　It was the next morning when Kilt-san came back to his room.

　When he returned, I could smell the scent of alcohol from him.

(He must have had a good time with Mumpa.)

　Then, leaving Poe with Mr. Kilt, my sisters and I went back to "Mr. Illtimina's House".

　That day we went back, we had our annual cleaning.

　The sun went down without change, and now it's the morning of the next day.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　As I left my room on the second floor, a delicious smell wafted in from downstairs.

(.....Illtimina-san, you're already awake.

　The feeling was flattering.

　I walked down the stairs with a thump.

　I walked through the living room and looked into the kitchen.

　There was the back of Iltimina-san, who looked like a young wife, with her long, glossy dark green hair pulled up into a bun, wearing an apron and preparing breakfast.

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

　The sight of her in the morning sunshine was captivating to my eyes and mind.

　And then she noticed us.

'Oh?　Good morning, Merle. You're up already.

　A gentle smile.

　I narrowed my blue eyes and then laughed.

'Yes. Good morning, Miss Illtimina.

　Illtimina-san's smile deepens as well, happily.

(Oh my goodness...)

　The soft morning air and her presence made me feel happy.

　In the Dark Continent, I've been so distracted for so long that it made the present time seem like an extraordinarily precious treasure.

　Illtimina-san looked at me like that.

"?　What's wrong, Merle?

　He smiled and nodded his head slightly.

(Wow, that gesture is cute too...)

　I shake my head, thinking, "Nope.

　Then.

I'll help you make breakfast. What do you want me to do?

　I asked.

　Ms. Illtimina laughed and said, "Well,

All right then, could you pass me that plate over there, please?
Yes, sir.
"Hmmm, thank you.　
You're welcome.

　And so we spent a happy morning laughing and laughing together.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　When breakfast was ready, Solstice arrived in the living room.

'Whew!'

　Still a big missing piece.

　Her purple hair still has a soft sleeping habit in it.

'Good morning, Solstice,'

　I called out to him with a chuckle.

'Unyu ... good morning, Merle.'

　She replied, rubbing her eyes with her hands, scrubbing them with both hands.

　Noticing her sister, Iltimina also called out to me as she cooked in the kitchen.

'Good morning, Sol,'
Mm.... good morning, sister Irna.
'Breakfast will be ready soon, so you and Merle can sit in your chairs and wait.
Oh, yeah.

　Biting down on her absent-mindedness, she did as she was told and sat down in the chair facing me.

(Good grief.)

　I stare at the girl with a wry smile.

　In fact, Solstice had turned fifteen years old.

　She celebrated her birthday right after she landed on the Albac continent.

　The months went by so fast.

　Since he couldn't celebrate it then, tomorrow, a dinner party that was also a birthday celebration for Solstice would be held at a restaurant of Kirt-san's acquaintance, which also served as a celebration of his return from the Dark Continent.

(..........15 years old, huh?)

　In the Kingdom of Shumuria, the age of 15 has a special meaning.

　So ........she became a man before I did.

　She is an adult.

　She can drink, and she's reached the age where she can get married.

(That Solstice, you know.)

　I was a bit of a cocky kid when I first met him....

　Since then, nearly two years have passed.

..........

　Looking at it again, Solstice's body had grown a lot.

　She has grown a lot taller.

　She was about the same size as me not long ago, but now she's a little taller than me.

(..................only a little bit?　(I can still pass you, yes.)

　Me, I think to myself.

　Also, my arms and legs are getting slimmer.

　Also, the lines of my body might be starting to get uneven.

　Even now, the chest of my Solstice T-shirt felt like it was being pushed up from the inside.

(............)

　Before, it was flat........

　As I was looking at it with mixed feelings, Solstice suddenly turned to me.

''Hm?　What?

　He felt my eyes on him.

　I jerked back and buzzed and shook my head.

'No, no, it's nothing!
.......... So?

　She looked at me suspiciously, but quickly turned her head back to me.

　Then she lets her long eyelashes fall down and lets out a breath.

　Maybe it's because she woke up in her sleep, but she's a bit languid.

　That makes her look more mature than usual, and I'm somewhat confused.

(.........What's wrong, me?)

　I'm a little nervous.

　Putting my hand on my own chest, I twisted my head.

(Hmm?)

　That's when I suddenly realized.

　Solstice, my hair used to be about shoulder length, but before I knew it, it had reached my chest.

'Are you growing your hair long?'

　I asked.

　Solstice said, "Hmm? And he looked at me.

Well, sort of.

　I replied.

(Hmmm?)

　She turns to the other side to avoid my gaze as she stares.

　Her soft, purple hair cascades down her back.

(...Huh?)

　I suddenly noticed the "butterfly hair ornament" holding the ends of its hair together.

(That's the hair ornament I gave you for your birthday last year, isn't it?

　The girl noticed the look of surprise on my face.

　I follow her gaze and realize what I'm looking at.

　For some reason, her lips quirk up in a sullen manner.

''....What?　It would be a shame not to use it, wouldn't it?
Uh-huh.

　I nodded.

　But I was kind of happy.

　I smiled.

Thanks, Solstice.
Hmm.

　Solstice turned away again.

　But his ears, visible through his hair, were a little red.

'Here you go, come on, breakfast is ready.

　Then Iltimina-san comes in with a plate of food.

　Wow, here it comes.

　I received my plate in a hurry.

　Solstice is about to take it too.

"...?　What's wrong with you, Sol?

　Iltimina asked her sister, curiously.

　Solstice said.

What?

　I ask back.

　Miss Illtimina stared at her sister's face for a while, but

No, it's nothing. Here you go.

　He smiled gently.

　Solstice was

Hm. Thanks, Ilna.

　I reply.

(???)

　I felt a strange air between the sisters, but I'm not sure.

　Then the three of us ate breakfast together.

　Iltimina-san's food was still delicious, Solstice smiled too, and then we all had a good time.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　In the afternoon, Illtimina-san and I decided to head into the city of Mulia, the royal capital.

　Our destination was the Benas Armor Shop.

　We had to repair the "Fairy Iron Armor" that was broken in the Dark Continent, and we had one more thing to discuss with her.

　I invited Solstice to join me.

I'm at home!

　I was rejected.

　Even at the age of 15, I'm still an indoor girl with glasses.

　So I'm alone with Illtimina for the first time in a long time.

　We leave the house together.

(............)

　I boldly grabbed Illtimina-san's right hand.

　Cuk.

　Ms. Illtimina makes a surprised face.　

　She smiled happily, though, while blushing a little shyly.

　........I'm glad.

　We laughed at each other and went down the slope towards the city of the royal capital.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇


You broke it in big time again, didn't you?

　When I arrived at the Benas Armor Shop, the one-eyed, awesome blacksmith, the dwarf Benas-san, looked at the armor I gave him and spilled his thoughts on it.

　There were large holes in the chest and back of the armor.

　Benas-san's left eye, which had some of his sight left, was looking into it.

''How could it be alive inside with such a large hole in it?''

　And look at me as if I was dumbfounded.

　Haha.....

(I died once on the inside, though.)

　I chuckled.

I couldn't have survived without you guys.

　I fooled myself.

''I thought it would be best not to talk too much about the 'Bright Stone of Life'.

　Benas-san snorted, ''Hmph.

''Well, you guys are heroes who came back from the Dark Continent for an unprecedented period of time. So the price for that was this much damage.
..........
..........

　Heroes...?

　Me and Illtimina-san look at each other.

(Is that what the world thinks of "The Fifth Pioneer Group" now?)

　It's true, the welcome he got when he made his triumphant return was amazing.

　.........Although, in person, I'm not aware of it at all.

　As I was vaguely thinking about that, Illtimina-san spoke to Benas-san, as if to return to the topic.

''So is it possible to repair it?''
Hey.

　Mr. Benas nodded.

'I still have some of the parts I had Arvinka send me last year in stock. Just replace the damaged parts and we'll have it fixed in no time.

　Wow, thank God.

　I let out a breath of relief.

　Illtimina-san smiles at me, "That was nice," she says, and strokes my hair.

　Ehehe, it feels good.

　Benas-san chuckles at the two of us.

'Why?　You said you had one more thing you wanted to discuss with me.　What's that?

　Ah, that was it.

　I remembered, and I hurriedly put my left arm in front of me.

'Here.'

　There is a 'silvery white cuirass' there.

　He loosens his belt and removes his equipment.

(Good)

　sizzling sound

　When I pulled it out, it was a bit more resistant.

''It's this palmar, but lately it's getting tighter and tighter in size.... Can't you do something about it?

　I asked.

　Actually, this has been a problem for me lately.

　I used to be fine with it, but lately the resistance has been so great that I'm having a bit of a hard time getting it on and off.

'Merle's grown up now, you know.

　And Illtimina.

(.........)

　I'm not really aware of it, but she laughed serenely and

You're a lot taller now, aren't you?　I used to be able to pick you up with one hand, but I don't think I can anymore.

　I say.

　Ta, I'm embarrassed by the analogy....

(But is it?)

　Not only was Solstice growing up, but I was also growing up properly. I'm glad.

　Benas-san said, "Huh? He received the 'White Silver Armor' with interest.

　You look at it in your hand for a while.

I'm not sure I'm up for this.

　I said.

(Huh?)

　I'm surprised.

'Impossible...?　Even Mr. Benas?
Yeah.

　The old dwarf nodded and

You can't expand your metal armor, can you? But this thing has a genie in it, right?　If you mess with it badly, you could kill that spirit.

　Yes, the genie!

　I turned pale.

I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work. It's a bit different from ordinary blacksmithing. It's hard to fix the size of a person unless they are an elven blacksmith who can use spirit magic.
Oh, really...

　I didn't know.

　Mr. Benas will give me back the "silvery white cuirass".

　I took the armor and held it carefully to my chest.

　Come to think of it, Shakra-san, the elf who gave me this silver cuirass, also gave it to me because he couldn't equip it anymore because he had grown up.

(.........What should I do?)

　The spirits have been a great help to me for a long time.

　I don't want to say goodbye to you now.

　But when I grow up more in the future, I won't be able to equip them either.

　What in the world do I do...?

　Illtimina-san looked at me with concern as I was troubled, and then looked at Benas-san.

'Do you have any idea of such an elven blacksmith?'
Hey.

　Mr. Benas, it was an immediate answer.

　He rubbed his beard.

The first thing you need to know is that elves who work as blacksmiths are quite fond of things. I'm sure there's no one in the capital city that does. If there is one, it's in the land of the elves.

　I said.

(Land of the Elves....)

　This is exactly the distant, exotic place that Mr. Colonchude is visiting right now.

　As expected, it's impossible........

　I slump my shoulders in a gulp.

　Iltimina-san pats me on the back as if to comfort me, "...............Marle".

　Benas-san also looks bummed.

I'm sorry I can't help you, man.

　I'm going to say it.

　Oh.........

I'm sorry, I'm fine.

　I even made Benas-san, who had nothing to do with it, care for me unnecessarily.

　I shouldn't, I shouldn't.

　I regained my composure.

'It's a relief to know that only an elven blacksmith can fix it. If I hadn't known, I might have let the spirit die. So, thank you so much.

　He smiled and bowed so.

　Mr. Benas said, "Really? He looked a bit complicated.

　We then asked him to sharpen and fix the blade of the 'Fairy Sword', asked him to repair the 'Fairy Iron Armor', promised to come back tomorrow to pick it up, and left the Benas Armor Shop.

　I walked with Illtimina through the crowded streets of the royal capital.

　On the way.

I'm sorry to hear that.

　Suddenly, Illtimina-san called out to me.

''Yeah........''

　I nodded, honestly.

　But I kept my eyes forward.

But I don't want to give up, so I'll start looking for you tomorrow, elven blacksmith.

　I continued.

　Iltimina looks surprised.

'I'll ask a lot of people, like Kilt-san, or the elves in the guild. Maybe Ms. Colontude will know something else to do, and I'll ask her when I get back.
..........
I'm still trying to work with the genie.

　Saying that, he stretched out his left hand with the 'Silvery White Armor' to the blue sky with a giggle.

　Geez.

　I grasped my fingers as if I were grasping something.

　Mr. Illtimina looked at me somewhat dazedly.

'Right. I'll help you with that.
Yes, thank you, Mr. Illtimina!

　I laughed.

　Illtimina laughed too.

　So we laughed and walked hand in hand down the road to our house.