134 3.46 Reconstruction - Part 1

There were several magic lights illuminating the part of the forest we were at. There were few guards stationed for defense, but they looked barely awake.

"Oh, it's you."

It was the same guard that stopped me when I was about to head out. Compared to the rest of the guards, he looked a lot alive.

"Yeah, it took me a little longer than expected."

"Were you able to find anything? Or was it just a waste of time?"

"Oh, I found plenty. However, I couldn't bring anything today. We will probably need to wait till tomorrow afternoon."

"Is that so? Anyways, you can go in and sleep, but be careful; most of the people are already sleeping."

The ground was dry despite the light rain last night, so sleeping in a bed made up of fallen leaves wasn't that bad. But before that, I had to find where everyone else was.

"I will. Thank you for the advice."

After the conversation, I walked towards where everyone else was before. Yoru was with them, so I could easily sense where they were.

I was also tired because of all the things I did, but unlike me, Flare looked active. I guess it was one of the advantages of having a body made up of mana.

We walked quietly since I didn't want to disturb anyone, and when I reached where everyone else was, I realized they were already asleep.

"Oh, Nara, you finally returned."

I turned towards the source of that familiar voice just to find Ronald on my left.

"Having a hard time falling asleep?" I asked as I sat on the dry leaves nearby.

"No, it's more like, my body doesn't need much sleep. Ever since I merged with the wind spirit, it has been like this."

It could be because he was practically sharing his body with the wind spirit. I was a little concerned, but since it looked like his body itself was changed to adapt to these new abilities, I decided not to overthink it.

"I guess it alright if you are okay with it."

"Yeah," he replied with a wide smile.

I responded to that with a small smile as I laid on the ground, covered in dry leaves. Flare sat near me and touched my arm with her hand. As she did that, I stopped feeling cold; instead, I could feel comfy warmth.

"Thanks, Flare," I whispered.

"Please think nothing of it," Flare replied as she laid right next to me.

She then created several orbs made up of blue flames and placed one over everyone's chest. She had always been centered around me, so I had no idea she cared that much about everyone else.

"Thanks again, Flare. That's very kind of you."

"As long as it makes you happy, master."

----

It was early morning when I opened my eyes after hearing a few noises. When I listened closely, it felt like the sound of trees falling on the ground.

I raised my head and noticed Flare sitting right next to me. It looked like I was the last one to wake up, which wasn't surprising since I was the last one to sleep as well.

"Good morning, master."

"Morning Flare. Where is everyone else?" I replied while sitting upright.

"Oh, you finally woke up. I am distributing tea, do you want some?"

Before Flare could answer me, Princess Anna interrupted us. She was holding a teapot and a few cups. That made it pretty clear that they were volunteering with the cooking today. However, I was curious about one thing.

"Yes, thank you… By the way, what is Yoru doing?"

"Hmm… I think she is helping Arica in peeling the boiled potatoes."

It looked like everyone else had already started their day, and I was the only one left. I stood up, after which she served me some tea in a cup.

"Alright then, I guess I should get started too."

"Yeah, but finish drinking the tea first," Princess Anna replied with a smile.

"Oh yeah."

I looked around while drinking my tea. I could see a lot fewer knights, which meant that they had already dispatched a group towards the destroyed city.

The knights that were here, along with the residents, were now chopping down the nearby tree. Wood was essential for construction, so I guess that's how they decided to start.

A little bit further from where we were, there was a group of knights making loud noises, so I decided to check them out.

"I guess I would head out for a while"—I turned towards Flare—"Flare, you can join the others."

"Yes, master."

I handed the cup back to Princess Anna and walked towards the group of knights. When I reached there, I noticed that they had some kind of competition going on.

"Let me show you how it's done."

A knight dressed in leather armor stepped forward. It was rare to see Knights wearing leather armors. It looked expensive and sturdy, so I could tell at a glance that he was from a noble family.

"Then, let's see what you can do."

Another knight was trying to encourage him, which made me curious about what was going on. I looked around to see if there was someone I could recognize, and I noticed Ronald among the crowd on the left side.

There were several tree trunks piled up already, so I could tell that they were doing a good job. But since I was not sure what this all was about, I decided to ask him.

"Hey Ronald, what's going on?"

"Oh, morning Nara. They are just competing on who chops the wood better."

It looked interesting, so I decided to wait and take a look at how they do it.

: Reconstruction - Part 2