“–Working is obligatory, but taking a rest is also obligatory.”
Narugoa-san said, as I was struggling to figure out how to eat some kind of food that looked like a black cannonball – black bread, they call it.
“Rest is obligatory?” (Sakura)
I was bewildered by this statement, which seemed to overturn my existing sense of value.
Isn’t that a strange thing to say?
Rest is an indulgence, and how much of it you omit and how much you dedicate to work should determine whether you are a good or bad worker.
At least, that’s what I was instructed, and that’s what I’ve been doing.
However, Narugoa-san’s opinion was different.
“ For example, a day consists of twenty-four hours, but what do you think is the limit of time in which you can make a sound judgment?”
The question came out of nowhere, and I decided to put down my black bread and think about it.
“ Well, our average sleep time is three hours, so I’d say about twenty hours at the most. Oh, but Nekomata-san said she could stay up to three nights without napping, so that would be about seventy hours.? “
For some reason, the dining table was wrapped in silence.
A mysterious chill crawled on my spine, so when I looked sideways, Kyuuketsu-san was glaring at me intensely.
Narugoa sighed and replied.
“…It is said that it is limited to twelve hours at most because activities beyond that will result in the loss of proper judgment and significantly decrease work efficiency.”
“W-why is it so short!?” (Sakura)
“ Well, this may not be the case for some races, but at any rate, working longer than this is extremely inefficient.”
“No, I can’t get any work done in twelve hours…” (Sakura)
“If that doesn’t work, there is a problem with management. Working in a state of sleep deprivation, working backward and forwards, that’s called drudgery.”
After saying so much, Narugoa-san whispered, “…no, I can’t say that to Sakura.”
“ In short, it’s all about balance. If you have only a limited number of hours in a day, you should focus on the quality of your work. “
“……in short?” (Sakura)
“—In other words, when you need to rest, you need to rest hard!”
Kyuuketsu-san leaned forward from the table and spoke.
The terrifying expression from before is replaced with eyes are shining like a child’s.
“What do you do on your days off, Sakura-chan?” (Kyuuketsu)
“ Well… I sleep most of the time, take care of my sword in my spare time, and then I think about my work schedule…” (Sakura)
“That still works!!” (Kyuuketsu)
“Hiiii!? I’m sorry, please don’t be mad!” (Sakura)
“Kyuu-chan, Sakura is scared.”
“I’m not angry! We as her seniors should be mentoring her!” (Kyuuketsu)
“Yeah, I agree with you. It’s just too much.”
“I will do my best too!” (Alraune)
“I’m not so sure about me.” (Sergeant)
“What are you going to teach me…?” (Sakura)
I fearfully asked the four of them, who seemed to be convinced of something I didn’t understand.
Then, Kyuuketsu-san says with a radiant smile like the usual Kyuuketsu-san.
“-Of course! The right way to spend a day off!” (Kyuuketsu)
“—First of all, my turn, the standard day off is shopping.” (Alraune)
Said the “Magician Al,” a role played by Alraune-san.
Our location is different, this is the inside of an unusual store on the main street of the town of Canal.
“Kyuu-chan, the warrior” who was also in disguise, had her cheeks puffed up.
“Well, I wanted to teach her first…” (Kyuuketsu)
“You shouldn’t complain because it was decided by lottery, by the way, is there anything Sakura likes?” (Alraune)
“Huh…?” (Sakura)
I was at a loss for an answer.
What I want …… there is nothing like that.
I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to think about it.
“I’m sorry, I can’t think of anything…” (Sakura)
“Well, then…” (Alraune)
Alraune doesn’t seem to care about my answer and picks up one of the ornaments on display.
It was a ring with a jade-colored gem embedded in it.
She placed it on my finger.
“How about this?” (Alraune)
“Hey, Alraune-san!?” (Sakura)
I hurry and withdraw my hand.
“ I can’t… wear something that looks that expensive…!” (Sakura)
“Why don’t you just try it on and call me Al.” (Alraune)
“Oh, Al-san… but it doesn’t look good on me… with these fingers…” (Sakura)
I looked down at my misshapen fingers.
Swinging the sword every morning until night, the blisters came and were healed, and what’s left are rough calloused fingers.
Compared to Al’s smooth and slender fingers, mine’s…
“You care so much about trivial things, don’t you, Sakura?” (Alraune)
As I was ruminating, Al-san snorted and held my hand.
“Huh…?” (Sakura)
There was something damp in the air.
At the same time, an indescribably gorgeous scent softly reached my nostrils.
Is this…?
“—My special hand cream, with solid effects.” (Alraune)
“Hand cream…?” (Sakura)
“Yeah, so you could know it as… ointment? Anyway, it’s a medicine that makes your hands smooth.” (Alraune)
Al-san politely smeared it on my dry and rough hands.
I couldn’t refuse, so I just looked at it as she did.
That’s because her gentle hands felt so good, that I couldn’t say anything about it.
“ This is the finger of someone who has worked harder than anyone else, there’s no need to be ashamed.” (Alraune)
“Al… san…?” (Sakura)
“I’d feel rather sorry for you if I didn’t give you a little reward… yes.” (Alraune)
Al-san’s hands let go.
I let out an involuntary gasp.
My dry and rough fingers seemed to regain their moisture and shine.
“ I knew your fingers were beautiful “
Al-san gently smiled at me, who could only freeze as I stared at my hands.
“… Well, this didn’t seem to suit Sakura’s likes, so let’s look for something else, because we still have plenty of time.” (Alraune)
“Wait, Alraune, can you give me that ring over here?”
Suddenly, Narugoa-san, who had been searching for miscellaneous goods in the store, said this.
Al-san looks suspicious but hands it to Narugoa-san.
“Excuse me.”
“What Narugoa, have you always been interested in accessories? Also this is a woman’s.” (Alraune)
“No, there is no problem.”
Narugoa-san handed a few silver coins to the shopkeeper with a pasted-on smile, in exchange for which he formally purchased the ring.
And when he turns to Al-san again–
“I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you, but this is my way of saying thank you.”
“Huh…?” (Alraune)
He handed the ring to Al-san.
As expected, she was also at a loss for words. Moreover, Kyuuketsu-san who was watching this situation from behind, and Poison Slime-san who was hiding in the backpack carried by Narugoa-san whistled “Whoot!”.
“Why are you giving me this…?” (Alraune)
“Yeah? You seemed somewhat reluctant to give it up, so I thought you might like it… if not…”
“—No, I’ll take it, thank you.” (Alraune)
Al-san turned her back on me and Narugoa-san.
From Narugoa-san’s point of view, it might have seemed to be rather rude behavior.
…But it was not.
She just didn’t want to show him.
“(Sakura, what should I do? I can’t get my face back to normal?)” (Alraune)
She had a wide grin.
“…Al-san, if you don’t mind, could you give me another one of those hand cream you gave me earlier, I’d like to share it with my sister Momiji.” (Sakura)
I smiled and immediately sent her a helping hand.
“–Working is obligatory, but taking a rest is also obligatory.”
Narugoa-san said, as I was struggling to figure out how to eat some kind of food that looked like a black cannonball – black bread, they call it.
“Rest is obligatory?” (Sakura)
I was bewildered by this statement, which seemed to overturn my existing sense of value.
Isn’t that a strange thing to say?
Rest is an indulgence, and how much of it you omit and how much you dedicate to work should determine whether you are a good or bad worker.
At least, that’s what I was instructed, and that’s what I’ve been doing.
However, Narugoa-san’s opinion was different.
“ For example, a day consists of twenty-four hours, but what do you think is the limit of time in which you can make a sound judgment?”
The question came out of nowhere, and I decided to put down my black bread and think about it.
“ Well, our average sleep time is three hours, so I’d say about twenty hours at the most. Oh, but Nekomata-san said she could stay up to three nights without napping, so that would be about seventy hours.? “
For some reason, the dining table was wrapped in silence.
A mysterious chill crawled on my spine, so when I looked sideways, Kyuuketsu-san was glaring at me intensely.
Narugoa sighed and replied.
“…It is said that it is limited to twelve hours at most because activities beyond that will result in the loss of proper judgment and significantly decrease work efficiency.”
“W-why is it so short!?” (Sakura)
“ Well, this may not be the case for some races, but at any rate, working longer than this is extremely inefficient.”
“No, I can’t get any work done in twelve hours…” (Sakura)
“If that doesn’t work, there is a problem with management. Working in a state of sleep deprivation, working backward and forwards, that’s called drudgery.”
After saying so much, Narugoa-san whispered, “…no, I can’t say that to Sakura.”
“ In short, it’s all about balance. If you have only a limited number of hours in a day, you should focus on the quality of your work. “
“……in short?” (Sakura)
“—In other words, when you need to rest, you need to rest hard!”
Kyuuketsu-san leaned forward from the table and spoke.
The terrifying expression from before is replaced with eyes are shining like a child’s.
“What do you do on your days off, Sakura-chan?” (Kyuuketsu)
“ Well… I sleep most of the time, take care of my sword in my spare time, and then I think about my work schedule…” (Sakura)
“That still works!!” (Kyuuketsu)
“Hiiii!? I’m sorry, please don’t be mad!” (Sakura)
“Kyuu-chan, Sakura is scared.”
“I’m not angry! We as her seniors should be mentoring her!” (Kyuuketsu)
“Yeah, I agree with you. It’s just too much.”
“I will do my best too!” (Alraune)
“I’m not so sure about me.” (Sergeant)
“What are you going to teach me…?” (Sakura)
I fearfully asked the four of them, who seemed to be convinced of something I didn’t understand.
Then, Kyuuketsu-san says with a radiant smile like the usual Kyuuketsu-san.
“-Of course! The right way to spend a day off!” (Kyuuketsu)
“—First of all, my turn, the standard day off is shopping.” (Alraune)
Said the “Magician Al,” a role played by Alraune-san.
Our location is different, this is the inside of an unusual store on the main street of the town of Canal.
“Kyuu-chan, the warrior” who was also in disguise, had her cheeks puffed up.
“Well, I wanted to teach her first…” (Kyuuketsu)
“You shouldn’t complain because it was decided by lottery, by the way, is there anything Sakura likes?” (Alraune)
“Huh…?” (Sakura)
I was at a loss for an answer.
What I want …… there is nothing like that.
I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t had time to think about it.
“I’m sorry, I can’t think of anything…” (Sakura)
“Well, then…” (Alraune)
Alraune doesn’t seem to care about my answer and picks up one of the ornaments on display.
It was a ring with a jade-colored gem embedded in it.
She placed it on my finger.
“How about this?” (Alraune)
“Hey, Alraune-san!?” (Sakura)
I hurry and withdraw my hand.
“ I can’t… wear something that looks that expensive…!” (Sakura)
“Why don’t you just try it on and call me Al.” (Alraune)
“Oh, Al-san… but it doesn’t look good on me… with these fingers…” (Sakura)
I looked down at my misshapen fingers.
Swinging the sword every morning until night, the blisters came and were healed, and what’s left are rough calloused fingers.
Compared to Al’s smooth and slender fingers, mine’s…
“You care so much about trivial things, don’t you, Sakura?” (Alraune)
As I was ruminating, Al-san snorted and held my hand.
“Huh…?” (Sakura)
There was something damp in the air.
At the same time, an indescribably gorgeous scent softly reached my nostrils.
Is this…?
“—My special hand cream, with solid effects.” (Alraune)
“Hand cream…?” (Sakura)
“Yeah, so you could know it as… ointment? Anyway, it’s a medicine that makes your hands smooth.” (Alraune)
Al-san politely smeared it on my dry and rough hands.
I couldn’t refuse, so I just looked at it as she did.
That’s because her gentle hands felt so good, that I couldn’t say anything about it.
“ This is the finger of someone who has worked harder than anyone else, there’s no need to be ashamed.” (Alraune)
“Al… san…?” (Sakura)
“I’d feel rather sorry for you if I didn’t give you a little reward… yes.” (Alraune)
Al-san’s hands let go.
I let out an involuntary gasp.
My dry and rough fingers seemed to regain their moisture and shine.
“ I knew your fingers were beautiful “
Al-san gently smiled at me, who could only freeze as I stared at my hands.
“… Well, this didn’t seem to suit Sakura’s likes, so let’s look for something else, because we still have plenty of time.” (Alraune)
“Wait, Alraune, can you give me that ring over here?”
Suddenly, Narugoa-san, who had been searching for miscellaneous goods in the store, said this.
Al-san looks suspicious but hands it to Narugoa-san.
“Excuse me.”
“What Narugoa, have you always been interested in accessories? Also this is a woman’s.” (Alraune)
“No, there is no problem.”
Narugoa-san handed a few silver coins to the shopkeeper with a pasted-on smile, in exchange for which he formally purchased the ring.
And when he turns to Al-san again–
“I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused you, but this is my way of saying thank you.”
“Huh…?” (Alraune)
He handed the ring to Al-san.
As expected, she was also at a loss for words. Moreover, Kyuuketsu-san who was watching this situation from behind, and Poison Slime-san who was hiding in the backpack carried by Narugoa-san whistled “Whoot!”.
“Why are you giving me this…?” (Alraune)
“Yeah? You seemed somewhat reluctant to give it up, so I thought you might like it… if not…”
“—No, I’ll take it, thank you.” (Alraune)
Al-san turned her back on me and Narugoa-san.
From Narugoa-san’s point of view, it might have seemed to be rather rude behavior.
…But it was not.
She just didn’t want to show him.
“(Sakura, what should I do? I can’t get my face back to normal?)” (Alraune)
She had a wide grin.
“…Al-san, if you don’t mind, could you give me another one of those hand cream you gave me earlier, I’d like to share it with my sister Momiji.” (Sakura)
I smiled and immediately sent her a helping hand.
