Serafina puts her hand to her chest - I guess it's a greeting when she joins again.

'Lieutenant Serafina Edelbert, I am prepared to accept the first blow with all my might.
'Yes, thank you. We have a lot of members who are lower level than you, Seraphina, but we'll do our best not to drag you down.
'I really admire your humility, even though we've worked together a lot already... oh, and when you say admire, do you mean it's a bit over the top?
''Well Adeline, you're unnecessarily devaluing your reputation for mischief at the most important part.
''Haha, the captain is embarrassed. We've known each other for a long time, but it wasn't until I met Atobe and the others that he started to look like this.

　Adeline-san had been so much of a joke up to that point, but she suddenly made a mysterious face and put her hand on my shoulder. What's going on, the air in the place gets tense, but--

''Please take care of the captain. I'm sure Atobe-san will be able to leave it to you.
What do you mean........you're going to cause trouble for Atobe-dono if you talk like that.......
Nah, it works really well when you're serious sometimes, doesn't it? Don't you think so, Misaki?
'Huh, well, I'm sure it's true, or maybe it works for my brother...'
'Today, you know, I just wanted to say hello to the people that our captain is in charge of, and at the same time, I would like you to know this Adeline. At the same time, I'd like you to be in the know about this Adeline. It's ex post facto, but that's okay, captain.

　The momentum was indisputable - but everyone knew that.

　Adeline-san knows that she won't be able to see Seraphina-san for a while. So, I thought that he was going to spare us the remnants - I thought.

''Atobe-dono, our troops are also providing logistical support, but since we're heading to the fifth district there's no need to worry about Adeline.
'Please pull me back a bit more - I've been looking forward to the real feelings you're going to tell me and all that stuff because of times like these.
''Well brother, I just realized that you and Adeline seem to be on the same page.

　Misaki makes a statement that doesn't sound serious, but everyone seemed to agree. Adeline-san doesn't seem to be unconcerned - I'll just drop it without a hitch that a friendship can develop like this.

　◆ ◆ ◆

　The medicinal soup, a limited menu item at the Liantian Rou Restaurant, was so delicious that monks were said to jump over the walls to drink it. Because the ingredients were taken from the rare demons inhabiting each of the Seventh District's labyrinths, which had a low occurrence rate, it was said that they could only eat it once a month.

''I'm sure any saint would get burned if they were forced to eat something like that.
'Master, you were exaggerating about how one drink wasn't enough.

　Celes and Steiner were in the living room now, and everyone headed to the nearby bathhouse because there were so many of them. It's a spa to relieve the fatigue of the searchers, and I'll be going there later.

I'll have to wait for the next opportunity to see if it's too good to be true. You'll have to wait until the next time.　But if we leave tomorrow morning, we can only process a limited number of them.
''If you want to replace the magic stones and runes, it won't take long. If you want to process the materials to make equipment, I'd say two or three.''
''Then ... what can you put on Suzuna's 'Horn of the Pasture God'?'''
You can add a magic stone and a rune to it. If you've tried using the horn in a real battle, then it's probably a good idea to wear the 'Hibiki' rune.

　If it's possible to attach a magic stone as well as a rune, I'll have Suzuna's horn attached to the 'Stagnation Stone'. The addition of the power of the "stagnation" to the ranged attack by sound will have a powerful effect. There's an ice-cold stone left over, but I'll hold off on using it to load the magic gun.

　The remaining runes are the "Tumble" rune, which adds half of your magic power to your maximum strength, and the "Fight" rune dropped by the "Merciless Burialer".

　The "Tumble" rune is the one I want Seraphina to use because of its effectiveness - if we can find other equipment with a rune slot, there will be room for consideration again.

　And the 'Fighting' rune, but from my appraisal, it's an ability like this.

The Rune of Fighting ◆.
You can activate 'Lone Struggle' which increases your ability to fight in close quarters according to the number of party members who are unable to fight.

The 'Fight' rune is difficult to use when you consider the risks involved. The fact that your companions are unable to fight means that they are on the verge of death. This rune could be used to save your friends.
Well I'll give it some thought.

　If I were to wear it, it would be Elitia, who has a high level of strength, or Sion, who has a high level of strength, or Serafina-san - neither Elitia nor Sion has any armor with a rune slot. I need to ask again about Seraphina-san.

''And as for the materials that can be used for processing, my God, you have more than one fruit that can increase your ability value?
'It's hard to find a use for something as valuable as this. Can they be used for some kind of material?
It is recommended that you use this kind of tool to increase its effectiveness even among high level searchers. If you find a high level pharmacist, it would be a good idea to bring him/her to you. They can make a more effective medicine out of the fruit.
'I see ... then I'll save it for now.
'The other materials you got will be good to use for accessories.

　Candidate materials that can be used for processing
　Snowdrop x 1
　Snow Crystal x 1
　water crystals x 1
　Blue Butterfly Amber x 1

'If that's the case, I guess I'd better ask everyone what they'd like to spend it on.
Hmm. I'm sure everyone wants one of these things, and since we don't have enough for this one, it would be a good idea to give it to him or her as a gift when you find it again.
''Oh, well women like beautiful things. It wasn't delirious to think of them only as equipment.
"As expected of master, when it comes to the subtleties of human relationships, age is of the essence.....
Age is not a problem for our kind. No, Alihit.
Yes, yes....

　When I met Celes and her friends in the bathhouse, I couldn't see them clearly due to the steam, but they looked a lot more grown up than the girl they were now. But I still haven't been able to ask what that was all about.

'Well, let's meet up with everyone in the baths and ask them what they want, shall we?


　Change of equipment of magic stones and runes
　Attach the Hibiki no Rune and Stagnation Stone to the Reverberation Horn → Changed to "Reverberation of the Makishin + 1

　Equipment processing
　Kyoka obtains Snowdrop Earrings
　Suzuna obtains the Snow Crystal Pendant
　Elitia obtains the Pendant of the Water Spirit Crystal
　Theresa" gets the "Butterfly Ring".

　◆ ◆ ◆　

　I went to the spa after everyone else, and after the baths we all gathered in the lobby that had been turned into a tavern, so I got to discuss the skills there.

　◆New skills that can be acquired by Arihito ◆

　Skill Level 2
　Assist Doll: Strengthens the golems created by your allies in front of you.
　Backdoor: Enables you to acquire enemy information at all times when retreating. Required Skill: Backstand
　Escape Anchor: Activating the "Lord Commander" greatly increases your movement speed. Required Skill: "Lord Commander".

　Skill Level 1.
　- Support Front 1: Knock back an enemy when an ally in front of you is attacked.

　Remaining skill points 3 Not obtained.

　New Skills of Kyouka

　Skill Level 2
　Frost Armor: Reflects blows with the ice attribute. The effect is also given to dolls and golems created by the seeker. Required Skill: Aether Ice
　Bravely Song Improves everyone's attack power and morale. Release your allies' fear. Required skill: Brave Mist

　Skill Level 1.
　Aether Ice: Set up ice attribute ether.

　Remaining skill points 3 to 0.

　New skills that can be acquired by Theresa

　Skill Level 2
　Trap Detection 2: Gain the special vision to see through traps. Required skill: Trap Detection 1
　Anti-Body: Suppresses poison and other disabling conditions at a certain rate, and increases attack power and speed for a certain amount of time.
　Weapon Bite: Responds to enemy weapon attacks and captures their weapons on success.

　Skill Level 1
　Evasion ability increases when equipped with a specific shield.

　Remaining skill points: 3 to 2.

　Skills Melissa can acquire

　Skill Level 2
　Ikizukuri: Causes a certain percentage of fish demons that have decreased in stamina to die with a single blow.
　Cat Step: Increases your evasion rate. When you successfully evade a cat step, you may grant your opponent a charm. Required Skill: Catwalk


　Skill Level 1.
　Toxicity: Identify if the food you eat is poisonous. The effects of the poison are reduced.

　Remaining skill points: 3 to 1.

　In addition to the new skills that you can take as you level up, there are many other skills that you haven't been able to take because you don't have enough skill points to get them. Considering that I'll take it when I need it, I'll have to hold off on all but the ones that will certainly prove useful.

　I'd love to take Theresia's 'Trap Sensing 2', but I didn't take either of those now because 'Anti-Body' also requires 2 skill points. Weapon Bite" is not beneficial unless a demon with a weapon appears, but I decided to take "Passing Away" because it is a skill that suits Terezia, who uses a circular shield, and it costs 1 point.

　The Four Seasons wanted to stay the night, and there was a problem of not having enough beds, but the Four Seasons brought in a sleeping bag that they used to use, and the upstairs bedroom was like a house camp. I am.

　I was slumped on the couch amidst everyone's hushed voices, and before I knew it, I was deeply asleep. When I open my eyes again, it's still late at night, and as my eyes adjust to the dark room, I see Theresa sitting on the couch without a blanket, asleep.

　I lay Theresa back down on the couch and put the blanket over her. I thought I was going to wake her up, but she seemed to be sleeping deeply today - with a ring with a 'blue butterfly amber' on it in her hand.

''........Soooo.......''

　I could hear him breathing softly in his sleep, his chest rising and falling at fairly long intervals, but faintly. The movement is so small that at first glance it seems like he's not breathing, so I watched him for a while with concern.

(...isn't it good to watch her sleep in a dark room?)

　I left the living room so as not to make a sound and thought about taking a breath - then I went out the door and met Igarashi-san in her pajamas.

''Igarashi-san, what's up with you at this hour?''
'Rear, thank goodness you looked like you were sleeping well, so I didn't want to wake you up. I think Ellie and Suzuna are out of the house.
Elitia and Suzuna.... okay, I'll take a closer look.
Yes, please. I'd love to go with you, but I'm dressed like this.

　Igarashi-san is wearing a cardigan over her nightgown and looks a little chilly. It's summer weather during the day, but it gets a little cold at night, which is the climate in the 7th district these days.

''Well it will be a little chilly in just those clothes. Do you want to put this on?
''Ah...Igarashi-san must be cold too, so I'm fine...''

　I tried to refrain from doing so, but I was forced to put on Igarashi-san's cardigan. It smells so good, but I can't really talk about it.

''Your shoulders are pretty broad, Rear-kun... but I'm glad I made the larger size.
Oh, thank you. Well, I'm off then.
Yeah, have a safe trip.

　Igarashi-san sees me off and we walk out of the terrace house. With a license, it's easy to find out where they are - it's a park in a residential area, about a five-minute walk away.

　In a city in a labyrinthine country, there are only a few places with trees. The park seemed to have been planted and built after the fact, so that you could see as much greenery as possible in the stone city.

　The streetlights of the magician's tools only faintly illuminated the surroundings, but it was enough to find them sitting in front of a monument set up in the park.