Today was the seventh day since we had left Lamprog territory.

　I sat in the carriage, Yifa rubbing my back as I gazed out the window.

Seika-kun, are you still feeling bad?
I'm sorry.

　I forgot all about it.
　I can't ride in a carriage.

　I rode in a prehistoric western and that was just as bad.
　We were going way too fast for the bulls. My ass hurts and I'm sure I'd get drunk.


Yeah, yeah. But I'm a little tired, I guess.

　But he looks a hundred times healthier than me.
　I'm starting to feel miserable.

You'll see. We're almost there.

　I silently watched the carriage's path.
　In the distance, I could see a city surrounded by a long wall.

　The academic city of Rodnea.

　A large city formed by a group of scholars.
　That was where we were headed.


****


　After saying goodbye to the driver, I arrived at the inn where I was going to stay and collapsed on the bed as soon as I entered the room.

　Oh, I don't feel so good.

Seika-kun, are you okay?

　Yifa, who had put her bags down, says, sitting on the edge of the bed.

'Yeah ...'
'Seika-kun had a weakness too, didn't he? Unexpected.

　Yifa laughs a little.
　What do you think I am?

I'm human. And she's next door to me.
'Oh, yeah. Hmmm...
What's the matter...?
I'm going to have my own room.
'Of course we have... in the small towns along the way, we had no choice but to have a big room or one room... but we're going to stay here for days... ...
Uh-huh.

　Yifa says while squirming.

''Let's see........my current master is Seika-kun, right?
Yeah, yeah I guess so... and I got a deed-like thing from my dad...

　It seemed that there were a lot of things to get the lord's slaves out of his domain. There's some legal stuff........no, I'm too sick to think well of it.

''Well, you see, Seika-kun.

　Yifa says as if she had her mind made up.

Do you want me to come over tonight?

　I reply hollowly, my face down.

"What? Why did you...
....
Oh, you're talking about food?　I'm not very hungry.... Yifa, go ahead and help yourself.

　Yifa was silent for a while, and then sighed with a sigh.

''I'll get some fruit for you to eat when you're hungry.
Please....

　Yifa left the room, saying she was going to put her things down.
　The sound of the door closing with a bang.

''Hmph!　Huh, totally!

　Yuki is annoying above my head.

'What's the matter with you.......'
You're in way over your head, that girl!
What...?
"I will not curry favor with you, Seika!　I'm only a squire!
'What...?　Oh, is that what you meant?　That was it.

　Come to think of it, Yifa is fourteen this year.
　She's a bit young in this world, but in a previous life, she would have been married by now.

　I lay on my back on the bed, and said to myself, "Yifa, you're really conscious of your status.

Yifa, you seem to be very conscious of your identity. I hope you don't mind me saying so.
That's not true, Seika!
What?
She's in love with you, Seika. I'm in love with her!　He's just trying to take advantage of his servant status to be embraced if he can!
Yeah, you're kidding.

　I mean, Yuki's guy can say all he wants.

'It's true!　Yuki can see that.
What?　What does a bewitched taste know about the human heart?
At least I think I know better than Seika-sama. Like a woman's heart.

　Don't tell him. You've only read about it in court novels or something.
　I tried to argue with him, but I realized I couldn't say anything.

　As I recall, I was not so fortunate in a previous life.
　After I perfected the Elixir of Immortality, I found that decent people are few and far between.

'....I don't know what's in a woman's heart anyway.
Please don't sulk, Seika. You'll have a hard time if you don't study hard.

　Give me a break.