"Uhhh... Wait a sec!"
I snapped my fingers, using up almost all of what remained of my energy to expand a fog made of dark energy, completely hiding the two of us from view.
Under the cover, I quickly opened my [Spatial Storage] and pulled out a bedsheet, wrapping Igni in it. I also took out new pants to wear and slid them on without any wasted movements.
When the fog vanished, I and Igni were now, at least, not completely exposed. Although I fell to the desk, pinning Igni again as I ran out of strength completely,
"Master!"
Ember rushed to my side as she pulled a large towel from her own [Spatial Storage] and covered me with it. She gently supported me as I slowly sat down in my office chair.
Igni, on the other hand, was still out of sorts. During the evolution that she underwent, her energy overload and the continuous draining of her energy both completely stopped. Seeing that she was totally fine now, I heaved a sigh of relief before turning to the rest.
Except for Ember, who had a worried expression on her face, and Julia, whose mouth was curved in a wide grin, the rest of the girls had red faces. Fang seemed to be slightly downhearted, while Fina was wearing a pensive look.
Wan Li and Wan Er were staring at the walls, trying to avoid looking in my direction, while Ying Yue looked vexed as she was slightly tearing up. They really had various expressions.
"So? Weren't you all supposed to wait on the first floor?"
I turned to Julia once again and asked. She didn't look remorseful at all, as she acted like she was thinking hard about something.
"Huh? Did I say that~?"
This girl... She knew what would happen after giving me the two potions and didn't leave but watched everything in secrecy... Even dragging the rest together with her! Although I felt like I was tricked, I guess she was partly the reason that Igni was safe now. I'll let it go for now.
Well, within this group, only Fina and Julia were the only ones whom I haven't laid my hands on (yet), so I don't really lose out on anything.
I turned to Fang, who seemed to be feeling sad for some reason. I remember promising that it would be her turn next. I guess I'd have to apologize to her later.
"Anyway, right! What's the situation of the other frontlines?!"
Feeling that the air was getting a bit weird in the room, I tried to change the topic. As if guessing my intentions, Ember quickly nodded her head and replied.
"After Master left, God Zeshion sent all of his god-level tamed monsters to clean up everything. It only took them ten hours to completely eliminate all the demons."
"God Zeshion did?"
"Yes. Also, Alpha left a message for you when they passed by about three hours ago. She said that [It was easier to see the future while you're away]..."
"..."
After spending time with my five previous regressors, I also somewhat realized how much of an anomaly I was, at least with regard to this world's timeline. It's like my every action is a wrecking ball, smashing the foundations of the skyscraper called the future.
If those five were able to see what was happening right now, then they'd probably nod their heads in complete agreement with Alpha's message. Unfortunately, they all spent their usable energy training me inside the mind space, so right now, they're all in hibernation mode.
"So the country is already safe now...?"
"Yes, Master."
As I was trying to internalize that the danger was already gone, Ying Yue chimed in from the side.
"Mother also came here earlier to report. Both the Seimei and Luo suffered no casualties in the last battle. About half of our forces were injured or incapacitated but managed to hang on with their lives."
Well, the danger back then was almost already cleared by us before heading off after all. If some of our tamers still died after all that, then they'd either be really incompetent or completely let their guard down.
For those who were extremely injured... I think I should visit Goddess Blanc later and ask for her help. I already heard from Tres regarding how to make her agree to my requests immediately, and I want to try it out too to see if it really works.
"Ah, right! Will, take this!"
As if recalling something, Julia suddenly raised her voice and pulled something out of her storage ring. It was a roll of paper that was sealed with red wax and stamped with some sort of symbol.
As it was offered to me, I reached out and inspected it by reflex.
"This is...?"
"A love letter from the Royal Palace."
"..."
Hearing her words, obviously a joke, I stared at her with a blank expression. Julia just clicked her tongue and muttered, "So you don't buy it, huh?"
"Just kidding. It's a letter of invitation for you to visit the Royal Palace."
However, even after hearing what it really was from her, I can't help but tilt my head in doubt.
"This... What will I do with it? Rather, why did they call me?"
I can't think of any reason that would necessitate them to call someone as insignificant as me...
"What are you talking about?"
Ying Yue snorted from the side.
"You still haven't greeted the King after your succession ceremony ended. Of course, they would call you."
"... Ah."
Right! That did happen a few days ago!
After the ceremony ended, I was kidnapped by Noir, then we fought with the Succubus Lord Namia, then returned here before facing an all-out invasion from the 9th-stage demons. It hadn't been three days since then!
Time sure flies when there's always something happening around...
I looked around and scanned everyone's face, then realized that someone was missing.
"Where's Namia?"
She should have been with Fang in the Sealed Space before. Since Fang is already here, she should be around too.
"You mean that little girl?"
Julia pointed behind us, somewhere a little higher. I followed her fingers and found a small girl lying on top of one of the bookshelves, one hand supporting her cheeks, with a bucket of popcorn beside her. She was munching on it as she watched over everyone in the room.
"..."
How long had she been there?
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