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Swish.

The Bride Ship pushes forward once again today.

It’s already been a week since we set sail.

As we’ve become accustomed to life beneath the waves, the longing to set foot on dry land is starting to grow, and our party is enjoying a blissful morning beyond compare.

“Hehehe.”

Sitting across from me, Lucius beams as he dips his bread into the soup.

His leisurely movements while soaking the bread in the soup make him resemble a noble pondering how to eat the pre-meal bread, almost playing with his food.

And the other three women seated around Lucius also pick up their bread with faces beaming with joy, a far cry from before.

“Lucius, do you want some jam?”

“No, that’s alright. Rosmas, do you need pepper?”

“I’ll try it once. It’s a bit challenging, but… it’s what Lucius recommends.”

One high elf struggles to suppress her taste preferences as she bites into the bread and meat, adjusting to human dining culture.

“Lucius, let me have that. I’ll debone it for you.”

“No, I’m fine.”

“I just want to do it. It’s something I can help with, right? Just between childhood friends.”

“Then let me do yours. Hand it over.”

Though the bone was removed during cooking, making it easy to chew, one childhood friend insists on taking the plate to prepare it for him.

“Let us thank the Goddess of the Blue Moon for our daily bread.”

“Thank you.”

“Lucius, you really don’t have to pray. You can’t force someone to pray before a meal.”

“I do it because I want to. You don’t need to feel burdened by it.”

“Thank you, Lucius.”

One saintess quietly tries to influence the hero into becoming a believer of her faith, like water seeping into cloth.

And here we have…

One wise sage-cum-chef-cum-guide wrestling with an oven to whip up dessert.

‘Everyone’s mood has definitely improved.’

The combination of Lucius and the three women has elevated the atmosphere to unimaginable heights.

That’s to be expected.

The four have grown so close that they’ve shared stories late into the night before falling asleep together and waking up as one in the morning.

Huh? How did they get so close, you ask?

There are various ways for men and women to become closer, but we used the most classic and reliable method.

Of course, the path leading there was arduous and for some, it might have felt impossible or only left them scarred, but Lucius and the three women managed to pass through it and live in harmony.

One hero and several women.

Without any of them sneaking around at night with a knife or poisoning the food to eliminate competitors.

” Droniel, please pass that to me. I’ll do the dishes.”

“No, no. I’ll do it.”

“I’ll take care of the fruits.”

With this, the relationships among the harem members are strengthening, leading them to regard one another as true companions in various ways. Where else can you find such a perfect hero party scenario?

‘This is the model of a proper hero party.’

Was it always like this before?

No.

Before, they would eye one another suspiciously, hustling to get ahead and subtly showing disdain for each other.

But it’s different now.

They’ve realized they need to hold hands and together make Lucius happy.

And if there’s something slightly different from a little while ago…

“Wow, Witch. What is this?”

“Macaron.”

“Is it… bread?”

“It is bread. Just a sweet snack. It has cream inside.”

“Cream…”

The warm atmosphere among them even extends to me, as the one in an exceptional position in this harem party, treated with goodwill.

“Witch, could you teach me to make this later?”

“I can teach you, but we’re out of eggs right now. I’ll show you next time.”

“Wow, really? Thank you!”

“Witch, I also…”

Before, those who had shown overt hostility toward me, now have a gracious demeanor around me.

‘They’ve stopped seeing me as a rival.’

They already crossed the finish line, and see me still at the starting line, and they’re relieved.

It almost feels like the rabbit looking back at the tortoise in a race and feeling complacent, doesn’t it?

‘I’m a cheetah, though.’

Just a cheetah sleeping inside the tortoise’s shell.

I have zero interest in the rabbit’s competition, instead thinking about using my wings to fly through the sky while they run.

‘Well, whatever.’

Good is good.

No matter what they think among themselves, I am immensely satisfied with the current relationships within this party.

“Master, is it okay to eat this?”

“Yep. It’s so sweet; eating just two or three is like having a full meal.”

“…Is it that filling?”

“Yep. But it’s not the healthiest food. It’s just a dessert meant to experience extreme sweetness. However…”

I pointed to a tray filled with macarons I made for my companions, all in bright colors.

“Besides the joy of eating, there should also be joy in viewing it, right? Hehehe. Eat as much as you want. No matter how much you eat, we can burn it off with exercise, right?”

“…That’s true.”

Lucius scratched his cheek, and the three of them picked up macarons with flushed faces.

Ahh.

They love to work out so much that they end up drenched in sweat after exercising every night.

“I might have to exercise until I’m gasping for air, but it’s so delicious. It’s okay, right? You’re not taking a break from working out today, are you?”

“Yes…! We’re working hard even at night with the exercises the witch taught us!”

“Right, right. It’s important to remember to do your upper and lower body exercises repeatedly every day.”

“Yes!”

Yeah, right.

What good would it do if I taught them squats?

They aren’t doing squats; they’re doing something else with their upper and lower body repeatedly.

‘They’ve gotten way too close.’

I’m just glad the soundproofing in the private room prevents their workout noise from being heard outside.

‘Still, working out every day is crucial.’

Working out ensures we can maintain our healthy physical bodies, and we can quickly shed weight despite consuming so many macarons.

…Though I really do need to work out a lot.

“Master.”

Lucius frowned while holding a blue macaron.

“How did this color come about? Is it magic?”

“I used the powder while applying the batter. It’s not colored with magic; I use ingredients from nature that can produce similar colors. Mainly dried fruit powder and such.”

“That’s fascinating. Such a color. It’s like…”

Lucius looked at me closely with a slight smirk.

“It’s remarkably similar to Marine’s color.”

Indeed, the blue macaron closely resembled Marine’s color, just as Lucius said.

Slurp.

Lucius gently licked the cream from the macaron.

As he licked the cake and cream simultaneously, he continued to savor the macaron.

“…You don’t lick it, you bite into it.”

I took a pink macaron and bit into it in one go.

“Like this. Got it?”

“…I apologize. I thought it was meant to be melted like ice cream.”

“Well, I had baked it and put it in the freezer yesterday, but it’s still not like ice cream. You chew it.”

Though the relationships among our party have improved, Lucius remains kind, simple, and with a bit of foolishness still intact.

‘Stay a dimwit, Lucius.’

So that I can use him at my leisure.

“Um… Witch. How much do I need to exercise after eating this?”

Rosmas picked up a maroon macaron.

This one had a lot of cream inside compared to the others and was what people call a ‘thick macaron.’

“I think if you eat two, you should skip dinner.”

“…Then, I could just exercise for as long as it would take to eat a meal?”

“…That might be the case?”

Nutritionally speaking, that’s insane, but I raised both my hands at Rosmas’s determination to exercise hard.

“Feel free to exercise as much as you want. However, there’s one thing I won’t compromise on.”

I set the rule for the companions holding macarons.

“Lucius’s early morning training is a must. Got it?”

Early morning training.

A time that allows Lucius to play the role of the only man in the hero party convincingly.

While the other companions are asleep, Lucius gets up earlier than the rest to start his training and daily routine.

To become a splendid man.

“Master, don’t worry about that. If morning training interferes, then I can skip exercising at night.”

And this is something Lucius actively wants.

Lucius has a genuine fondness for the early morning exercises they do in the captain’s quarters and gym, and since he began his morning workouts aboard the Bride Ship, he hasn’t missed a single day.

“Lucius. Is exercising in the morning… really that enjoyable?”

“Yeah. It is. I can start my day with a clear mind. Want to join?”

Lucius reached out to the three while pretending to lift a barbell, but they shook their heads slowly.

Well, I guess.

Though they call it ‘early morning exercise,’ getting up at four in the morning to work out is honestly something only heroes like Lucius could manage.

“I felt so refreshed after exercising before breakfast today. Hehe, every early morning….”

Slurp.

Lucius lightly licked the white cream from his macaron and smiled.

“Thanks to you, Master, I can really kickstart my day with so much energy.”

 

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