Hello, Mr. Shroud.

　I visited the Adventurer's Guild in the royal capital.
　Nanari-san greets me with a smile.

　But her face immediately clouds over.
　I bow my head as it is.

''I am truly sorry about this matter. Not only did I falsely arrest Shroud-san, but I also turned my blade on him afterwards.......It may not be a good idea to say it, but our guild and all adventurers deeply regret it. Later on, I, the guild master, will be issuing a formal apology.
'Well don't worry about it so much. It's not Nanny's fault....
'No, that's not how it works. As a member of the guild, I have a responsibility to you. I will do all I can to help.
'Then I hope you don't mind too much. It's Arios who's to blame, because, to put it bluntly, everyone else is a victim.
''You are really kind, aren't you, Mr. Shroud? He's just like my sister said he was. Oops, this was a secret.

　I don't know what they say about me...?

I mean, wait a minute.

　I flushed it out, but didn't it contain a surprising line of dialogue?

'Didn't you say that Nunnery-san is the guild master or something...?
'Oh, yes. That's right.
...why?
''Well, I'm puzzled as well, but due to the recent incident, the higher-ups, including the former guild master, were made responsible for the resignation and for some reason I was appointed to replace them. .....

　Mr. Nunnery said with a troubled look on his face.

　I was surprised.
　I never thought the aftermath of that incident would appear in this way....
　But I might be able to rely on Nunnery-san as the guild master.
　He's someone who can do the job in any way.

''As such.......as a guild, we intend to do everything, so if there's anything we can do, please don't hesitate to tell us.
'Well okay. I'll indulge you then.
First of all, please take a good night's rest. There are many tourist facilities in the capital, so you can relax. Of course, we'll hold the cost for you. At the very least, as an apology........
I'll do that. So, what's the business you called me out on?

　Nanalee told me that she had something important to tell me, so I visited the guild.

'Oh, yes, of course. I almost forgot about it without thinking. I would be very angry if I forgot to tell you something very important.

　You look a lot like Natalie, but....
　Is there something somewhat careless about it?

Mr. Shroud, do you have your adventurer's card?
I do.

　Natalie has told me once that it's best to keep it under your skin, so I try to carry it with me except when I'm sleeping and bathing.

'Then could I borrow that one?'
Your card?　Um ... yes, go ahead.

　I handed the adventurer card to Mr. Nunnery as he told me.

　Then Nunnally held a magic pen.
　It's a special magic tool that uses magic to write letters.
　I used it to write something on my adventurer's card.

Good, that's it. Here you go.

　I receive an adventurer's card from Nanalee-san.
　

''This is........''
'Congratulations, Mr. Shroud. Mr. Shroud's promotion to the rank of A has been granted.

　'Snap, snap, snap, snap,' said Nunnery, smiling and clapping her hands.

''The results of the promotion exam are not particularly problematic. Therefore, Shroud-san's promotion to the A-rank was unanimously approved. I don't think this is enough of an apology, but...''
Oh, I see...

　To tell you the truth....
　I had forgotten all about the promotion exam.

　I fell into Arios' trap...
　We've been separated from everyone else.
　With Sarya's help

　Really, it was an intense day.
　So intense that I'd forgotten all about what had happened before the incident and the examination.

　But........I see.
　I was able to get promoted to A-rank?

　It was oddly nostalgic when I became an adventurer and started with an F-rank.
　It feels like a long time ago, like years ago.

　I met Kanade.
　Meeting Tania.
　Meeting Sora and Luna.
　We met Nina.
　I met Tina.

　I was in good company.
　I think that's why I've been able to make it to this point in my life.

　Because I fell into Arios' trap and was separated from everyone else for a time, I understand the importance of friends.
　Once again........thank you.
　First of all, I murmured in my mind.
　I'll be able to speak directly to him later.

　By the way, I'm separated from everyone else right now.
　Everyone was undergoing a health check now.

　They put me in jail for a week....
　On top of that, they had some kind of magic lock on him.
　It's not surprising that they are in poor health.

　That's why I asked Sarya to give me a health checkup.
　Sarya kindly agreed to let me have a health checkup.
　I am grateful to her.

　She has always been a great help to me, hasn't she?
　The man is a princess, but that's not the point.
　I wanted to thank you for something soon.
　What kind of thing could I do that would make Sarya-sama happy?

Mr. Shroud?　What's going on?　You seem to be spaced out.
Oh, sorry, sorry. I've been thinking about a lot of things.
''Huh, that can't be helped. From what I've heard, it sounds like there's really a lot going on. But now, please listen to me properly, okay?　Even though I'll send you some materials later, it wouldn't hurt to listen to the explanation about A-ranked adventurers, you know.
I know. I'm not dawdling. I'm listening.
''Yes, please. Now, first of all, the authority of an A-ranked adventurer........

　After that, Nunnery explained to me for half an hour....
　I left the guild.



----------



　The next day.
　I went to a room in the royal castle and found everyone there.

　The health examination was held at the royal castle and........
　By the time they finished, it was late at night and they stayed in the castle as it was.

　Lately, I've been staying at the castle because I've been in Sarya-sama's care for a while now....
　Of course, we're in separate rooms from everyone else, so we haven't seen each other in a day.

　I've been too busy to talk to them properly since the case was solved...
　It's going to be a long time since we've been able to talk slowly.

''Ah........Rain.....''

　The little Nina noticed us and gave me a poofy hug.
　I take Nina firmly in my arms and stroke her head.

'How was your health test?'
I'm fine....　Problem ... none. Ehem.

　For some reason, Nina looks like she's good at it.
　I felt like Luna had been influencing me lately.

'I see. I hope it's not a problem...'

　Nina has been transformed into an adult by the mysterious power of The Awakening, but...
　After that fight, he quickly reverted to his original form.

　Under what conditions did he change into his adult form?
　Why did he return to his original form?
　Many parts of it are a mystery.

　It seems that Luna doesn't know the details either, and they can't even determine if it's harmful to her body or not.
　That's why I was most worried about Nina during this health inspection, but.......
　I'm glad to hear it's all OK.

'What about everyone else?　Are you okay?
"Ugh ... Rain, I'm screwed ... I've discovered that I have the incurable disease of 'eat something sweet or you'll die'. Now a cake ... or a cookie if you don't have one?
'As you can see, Luna is well enough to utter her usual crap like this, so don't worry about her. Oh, and of course, Sora is fine, too.

　The twins were the same as usual.
　It was really the same as usual, which was both reassuring and a little funny at the same time.

'No problem for us either!　However, we're a ghost, so we don't have any physical problems.
'Sure, maybe, but you might be at risk of getting a mental illness, right?　Are you okay?
It's okay. We have a thick heart. I don't have time to suffer from that kind of disease.
Yeah. I'm glad to see you're doing well.

　Tina was moving her doll's body around seldom, as if to show that she was fine.
　I know she's fine, so I want her to calm down a bit.
　Even though she's a doll, if she moves boldly like that.......she's going to see a lot of things.

'What about Kanade and Tania?'
Nyan. I'm good to go, too. I'm full of energy and full of food!
'You've been eating a pile of bread all morning, haven't you? How can you eat that much you don't know if you're getting fat?
'Meow!　
Do you think so?　I think you can pinch the side here.　You knobbly cat.
Pinched Cat!

　Apparently, they are both in good spirits.
　They are full of smiles and seem to be happy and healthy.

　Now I know that none of them are in trouble.
　I'm relieved.

　If something were to happen to all of us....
　I'm not going to be able to forgive Arios ... and myself.

'By the way, what was Rain doing?'
Oh, yeah. Would you listen to me?　Actually, in the Adventurer's Guild....

　I'm gonna tell everyone that I got promoted to grade A and...
　We also talked about a lot of things.
　We talked a lot to fill the time we had been pulled apart.

　It was so warm...
　It was a tender time.

'....Yeah?

　How long have we been talking?
　A few moments later, there was a knock on the door with a bang.

'Excuse me,'

　Somewhat later, the door opened, revealing Lady Sarya.

'Please excuse me while I talk to you. Mr. Rayne, do you have a moment to spare?
Well... yes. I do, but what is it?
'My father ... wants the King to talk to Mr. Lane.