Ryota teleported onto the bed, faceplanting himself onto the soft pillow. Synthia greeted him, "Welcome back, Ryota-sama," while Kanna added, "Welcome back, Ryota."
Noticing the tiredness in their eyes, Ryota asked, "You two look tired. What happened while I was gone?"
Synthia began tidying up the papers on the table as she replied, "Well..."
**************************************************************
Flashback to ten hours ago, Yui and Synthia set back to work immediately after Ryota and Ryuji disappeared, organizing the paperwork and cleaning up the room. It wasn't long before Kanna stumbled in, looking completely worn out and drained of energy.
"Where have you been?" Synthia inquired, tidying up the papers on the table.
"Ahhh... Ryota ordered me to go sell his manga in other cities, and I'm exhausted." Kanna collapsed onto the floor. "So, where is Ryota?" she asked, looking around.
"Ah, about that... He's currently fighting Ryuji," Synthia informed her.
"Oh, I see. Well, I'm really tired. Do you mind if I use his bed?"
"Go ahead," Synthia offered.
Kanna hopped onto the bed and rolled around, expressing her gratitude. "Ahhh, Synthia! Thank you! Ahhh~ I missed this soft sensation so much~"
Kanna then turned her attention towards Synthia and asked, "By the way, Synthia, are you going to be alright? You haven't accepted quests for a while, right? You might get demoted now."
"Really?" Synthia's concern grew.
"Yeah," Kanna confirmed.
Synthia looked up and began contemplating her options. "What about Ryota?"
"Who knows, I mean he has a connection with the top guild, so you might want to think about accepting quests right now."
"I-I see... now then, you're coming with me," she informed Kanna.
"Huh? Why?" Kanna was puzzled.
As Kanna expressed her confusion about being part of the party, her brows furrowed and her voice was laced with disbelief. "But since when?!"
Synthia, on the other hand, remained calm and collected as she revealed the truth. "Since Ryota-sama saved you while you were unconscious."
Kanna's eyes widened in surprise. "Ehhh~ But I just got back!"
Without any warning, Synthia raised her hand and pointed her palm at Kanna. She spoke with a blank expression, "Light Magic: Revitalize." In a flash, Kanna's body glowed brightly for a moment, and she felt her fatigue slip away.
"Argh, That's not how it's supposed to work. To remove fatigue, you need to rest, and resting means sleep!" Kanna exclaimed, feeling a bit disoriented.
But Synthia shrugged it off. "That's not an issue if I use that magic on you."
Kanna's frustration was palpable as she clicked her tongue. "Tsk."
Synthia raised an eyebrow. "Did you just click your tongue?"
Kanna scoffed. "Nothing. Hmph! Fine... Let's go."
Yui's pen slipped out of her hand as she jerked awake at Synthia's voice. She rubbed her eyes, clearly exhausted from the hours spent drawing.
"What have you two done to her?" Kanna asked, her voice laced with concern.
Raising an eyebrow, Synthia turned to Kanna. "Hm? Well, we've been working for these past hours."
Kanna's eyes widened in shock. "HUH? No breaks?!"
"That's right," Synthia confirmed, her expression serious.
Kanna shook her head, clearly worried. "That's scary."
Yui, still groggy from sleep, muttered a faint agreement before stretching and standing up from the table. "I think I need some fresh air," she yawned before making her way toward the door.
"Take all the time you need," Synthia called after Yui before turning back to Kanna, who looked exhausted. "So, have you sold all the manga?" Synthia asked with a hint of curiosity in her voice.
"Oh, about that..." Kanna pointed at the three leather pouches. "That's 5,300 silver total," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Oh... I see then I'll go have some breeze outside," Yui said as she left the room, giving Kanna and Synthia some privacy.
"Shall we go now?" Synthia asked, looking at Kanna with concern.
"Yeah, yeah," Kanna replied, nodding her head slowly.
After that, the two of them headed to the adventurer's head guild, where they checked the billboard for new quests. They eventually accepted an S+ Quest, which required them to kill the Light Golem and Dark Golem that were summoned by a criminal mage near the entrance of the cave in the southeast.
The two adventurers walked out of the guild, their faces tired and weary. Despite their successful completion of the S+ Quest, the effects of the intense battle were still evident in their exhausted forms.
"I swear, I didn't know light and dark magic could have an elemental reaction," Kanna said, her voice slow and tired as she shuffled along, her eyes fixed on the ground beneath her feet.
"I already knew that, but I didn't expect it to be used as an explosion," Synthia replied, her tone also heavy with exhaustion as she rubbed her temples.
"We almost got killed, you know?!" Kanna's voice rose in frustration, and she kicked a nearby pebble, sending it skittering across the ground.
The two continue walking, their steps heavy with exhaustion. Kanna, lost in thought, suddenly spoke up.
"Let's just get back to the inn and-" She pauses for a second. "Hey, now that I think about it... Why are we still living at the inn even though we have money to buy a mansion?" Kanna asked.
"Well... Ryota-sama said that he's gonna use it for something else."
"How suspicious. Do you think he's using that money to go to the succubus shop?"
Synthia stops in her tracks, her expression turning serious as her mana flares up, causing people to shy away from her.
"S-Synthia, It's just a question, y-you know... your aura is showing up, and your scaring people around us."
"Oh, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to." Synthia quickly puts on a smile, attempting to diffuse the tension.
"D-Don't give me that smile, You're making me even more tired." Kanna sighs, feeling the weight of the day's events catching up to her.
*****************************************************************
Back to the present.
"I see... then shall we go to our new home now?" Ryota asked with a smile.
The three looked at Ryota with puzzled looks "Eh!?"
"Wh-what?" Kanna asked, still confused.
"Ryota-sama, Are you for real...? So you were using the money we've been saving for a mansion!?" Synthia asked with a hint of anger in her voice.
Ryota's smile fades a little. "I know it may seem like that, but please trust me. This is for all of us."
"Ryota, I didn't know you were considering buying a new mansion since you'd rather sleep with us in the same bed!" Yui exclaimed, looking a bit shocked.
Ryota looked at her and shook his head. "No, it's not like that. I just want us to have a comfortable and spacious place to live in."
"New home..." Yui smiles as she looks at Ryota.
"That's right, there's gonna be a lot of rooms to use," Ryota said, trying to cheer them up.
"Then Ryota-sama, I'd like to go there right now!" Kanna said excitedly.
"Alright, alright..." Ryota said, chuckling a little. He then aims his palms at the ground forming a circle that surrounds the four of them. <"Teleport">.
The world around them started to blur, and suddenly they found themselves standing in front of a grand mansion.
"The land is so big!" Kanna exclaimed in amazement.
"Well, before you guys go in," Ryota said, swiping the air to open a control panel. He then entered their names one by one in the ownership panel of the house.
"You all may go in now," Ryota announced, gesturing towards the entrance.
"Really?!" Synthia gasped in disbelief.
"Wooo!" Kanna rushed inside, excited to explore every corner of the mansion. As she entered, she was greeted by fairy maids.
"Ryota-sama, I knew you'd hire those familiars," Kanna said with a grin.
"Hey, at least you don't have to clean every inch of the house," Ryota chuckled, following the rest of the group inside.
"Fufufu~ Funny..." Synthia giggled, walking in behind Ryota. Yui, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying herself immensely, taking in every detail of the mansion.
"Synthia! Yui! There's a large bath! Let's go!" Kanna called out excitedly from another room.
"C-Coming!" Yui shouted back, running in Kanna's direction with Synthia close behind.
Meanwhile, Ryota stood in the front garden, observing the three of them with a smile. "Hmmm... I guess life here isn't so bad... but I'm still wondering about my real world. I also miss my childhood friend who always takes care of me," he thought to himself, feeling a tinge of nostalgia.
"Ryota! Look! The balcony is also spacious!" Yui yelled from one of the balconies, waving at Ryota.
Ryota waved back, his smile widening. "At least I'm no longer alone," he muttered to himself before heading inside to join his friends.
Meanwhile at the goddess realm, as Athena watched the four of them from her throne in the goddess realm, a thunderous boom echoed through the room, startling her. A cloud figure appeared before her, bowing respectfully.
"You're back now. Tell me everything," Athena commanded, her interest piqued.
The cloud figure bowed again. "The god of war has started, Athena-sama. The gods and goddesses will begin sending people from another world to rule this current world."
Athena's expression grew serious. "Are you telling the truth?"
"Yes, Athena-sama," the figure replied solemnly.
Athena sighed deeply, standing up from her throne. "Light the lightning for our allies and tell them: the god of war has begun."
"As you wish, Athena-sama," the figure responded before disappearing in a flash of lightning.
As Athena sat back down on her throne, she mused to herself, "It seems that this world's fate is sealed."