The Morning After the Commotion

Someone shook me awake.

I was fairly sure I'd crawled into bed at dawn, but the sun was still bright outside.

"Master, please wake up."

A voice. That voice… Azu's.

I slowly opened my eyes and met hers.

"Good morning."

"Yeah, morning."

I returned the greeting.

Looking more closely, Azu's right eye had returned to its original blue.

Azu poured water from the pitcher into a cup and brought it over.

I accepted it and took a sip, which made me realize just how parched I was. I drained the rest in one go.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes. I'm full of energy."

She answered brightly.

She seemed considerably more cheerful than before. I could have sworn she used to be a bit more timid.

"I prepared breakfast. Please come eat before it gets cold."

"Got it."

I swung my legs off the bed.

Washed my face first, dried off with a towel.

Heading to the kitchen, I found breakfast was indeed ready.

Elza and Alexia were already seated.

Azu pulled out my chair and gestured for me to sit. Once I did, she took her own seat.

"Morning. Let's eat."

The three of them nodded at my words.

I had no intention of making them stand and wait just because they were slaves. Issuing orders for every little thing was too much of a hassle.

Breakfast was white bread with sliced cheese, thinly cut smoked meat cooked crisp, a leafy salad dressed in apple cider vinegar sauce, and soup.

Once I started eating, the other three followed suit.

The hunger hit like I hadn't eaten in a full day. I ended up grabbing extra bread without thinking.

Actually, it wasn't just me. Everyone was devouring food.

Now that I noticed, the basket had been loaded with an unusual amount of bread to begin with. We burned through the side dishes in no time and just kept eating bread with cheese.

Whenever the bread got stuck, we washed it down with soup.

"We all ended up sleeping a whole day, didn't we."

"With how much we moved around, of course. Though it wasn't quite enough to drain me completely."

"I slept so much…"

Ah, so it really had been a full day.

"I'll need to find out what happened afterward. I can't imagine the situation got any worse, though."

"I'll leave that to you, Master."

Alexia said this while licking a bread crumb off her fingertip.

The mountain of bread that had filled the basket was completely gone.

I left them to handle the dishes and went to check on the shop.

It was already open, the shelves fully restocked.

Yesterday's sales and their breakdown had been left in the safe. My employee was still following the instructions I'd given before the Spartia trip.

Honestly, there was nothing for me to do here.

The shop didn't have room for any more products as it was…

Oh, right. Now might be a good time for renovations.

The others settled into a leisurely post-meal lull. Elza brewed tea for everyone.

The aroma of tea filled the room, and I felt the tension drain away.

"So, what was that with Azu? Her right eye turned rainbow."

I asked Elza while accepting the sugar from Azu, adding a bit extra to get my brain working.

Elza gave me a look that said, "You're asking about this now?"

She took a sip of tea and set the cup back on its saucer.

"It was quite something. Cutting through armor and severing an arm is no easy feat. Especially a Temple Knight's — they have defensive power rivaling a priest's."

Alexia poured herself a refill. Azu had hers poured by Alexia as well.

"I don't really understand it myself when people say my eye did something."

"You had bigger things to worry about, after all."

"Yes… I do remember my chest feeling hot, and tears streaming from my eyes the whole time."

As she said that, Azu looked at me.

Her eyes seemed slightly moist.

Come to think of it, I'd said some pretty cool-sounding things back then.

But I hadn't lied.

"Could you not create a strange atmosphere, please?"

"It's your imagination, Alexia."

"Is it, now."

"So, about that."

Elza finally spoke up.

"Azu-chan, you met Justitia-sama in the Wind Labyrinth, remember?"

"Yes. She peered into my eyes, and then she was just… gone."

"When I said I didn't know what she did… that was a lie."

Apparently something had happened in the Wind Labyrinth. I vaguely recalled Azu mentioning it, but honestly, I'd been too preoccupied with the elemental crystal to listen carefully.

"Master, you remember the story about the Creator King's Apostles, right?"

Honestly, I didn't. My head had been entirely occupied with how much it would sell for.

"Yeah. Of course."

There are times in life when a man has to bluff.

Alexia seemed uninterested.

"Justitia-sama realized she was going to fade away, and she passed what remained of her power to Azu-chan. That's why she used up the last of her strength and vanished."

"Is that so…? Now that you mention it, when I cut the statue, it felt like there was more power behind it than I expected."

Azu stared at her right hand as she said this. It really had been remarkable.

The statue had been far larger than Azu, and she'd cleaved it clean in two.

"The tax collector knight praised you too, Azu. Said it was magnificent."

"Oh, ehehe. Is that so."

Azu started fiddling with her bangs, embarrassed.

She'd really given it her all.

I placed my hand on Azu's head, and she accepted it with a bashful smile.

"Could you please not create a strange atmosphere?"

Alexia's voice rang out. There was no strange atmosphere.

"I believe the Apostle's power was inherited, and as it gradually settled within Azu-chan, a strong emotional response brought it to the surface."

"… I see."

I didn't really get it.

"She got stronger… so isn't that a good thing?"

"The burden is significant, so she'll need to acclimate gradually. Once it's fully settled, her capacity will match an Apostle's aside from their divine authority. But we're only talking about the vessel expanding."

So she'd still need to grow stronger the hard way. The plan didn't change.

"I'll do my best. I'll be useful to you!"

"Yeah, I'm counting on you."

For now, I needed to find out what was going to happen with this town. We'd managed to keep the shop, at least, but…

Time to go ask around.