“You’ll return to your original form in 12 hours from now.”

“W-Wow!”

I picked up the miniaturized Sammemmer in shock. Our Sammemmer seemed just as surprised.

Certainly, at this size, we could wrap them in a bundle and hang them in front. Not too heavy either.

Sammemmer, seemingly quite startled, looked over their own body. As I was comforting the little ones, Aspeiran spoke to me.

“It’ll be troublesome, but you should keep them with you. In unexpected situations, those guys will protect you.”

“I never thought there’d be a method like this.”

“It can’t be used often. Transformation magic affects the world formula that makes up that existence. If not careful, the existence might completely collapse.”

I see…

I scratched my head.

“That’s a shame. If we could adjust the kids’ size, we could do more things together.”

“Unless they can control their size on their own, it can’t be helped. Interfering with the world formula that makes up one’s body with one’s own magic power has almost no burden.”

I looked down at Sammemmer in my arms. The white puppies, adorable like dolls, looked up at me with bright, shining black eyes. My facial muscles melted completely.

“Our little cuties.”

Of course, it would be convenient if they were smaller, but as long as the kids are healthy, I don’t mind their size. I showered our Sammemmer with little kisses.

When the sun had fully risen and we could make out our surroundings, we officially set out on our journey.

Elkin, who had traveled this mountain path the most, took the lead, and we moved in a single file behind him, connected to a fixed rope. It was a series of steep uphill climbs.

As I was on edge trying not to misstep, Canis behind me said,

“Lady Shuria, you mentioned hiking was your hobby last time, right? Though it’s not easy, climbing a snowy mountain should be a good experience for you!”

What? Hiking as a hobby, when did I…

‘Ah.’

When I was caught by Canis shouting that I wanted to quit my job in a fit of anger, I had bluffed about hiking to cover it up.

Damn! The casual lie I told before is coming back to haunt me.

Aspeiran turned around at Canis’s innocent attempt at conversation.

“You like hiking?”

“Uh, yes…”

A true adult should take responsibility for their own words.

To become a true adult, I pretended to enjoy and be interested in crawling over a massive glacier.

As a result of climbing the mountain without a single complaint of difficulty, by the time the sunset was gradually encroaching on the blue sky, the slope became increasingly gentle.

Soon, a fairly wide area, almost like a plateau, appeared before our eyes. In the center, a sturdy-looking round gray building stood solidly.

Elkin exclaimed in an excited voice,

“We’ve arrived! That’s the 3rd Exploration Branch of the Beltraum Exploration Team!”

I slightly lifted my fur hat that had slipped down to just above my eyes. Finally, finally, our destination.

Somehow, I felt like I might cry. I hurriedly quickened my pace following Elkin’s lead.

The 3rd Exploration Branch was in the shape of a hemisphere with small square windows dotted all over.

As we headed towards the entrance, stomping through the thickly piled snow, I could see people gathered in front of the door.

The one at the very front greeted Aspeiran as a representative.

“We meet, Your Lordship.”

“Yes, Acla. Have you been well?”

“Always the same. What grand events could happen to someone cooped up in a snowy mountain?”

Acla laughed cheerfully. We followed her into the building.

The branch was two stories tall, but the ceiling of the hall we entered right away was open all the way to the second floor, allowing us to look up at the second floor from the hall.

Moreover, they must have cast a temperature control spell, as it suddenly became warm. I casually took off my hat, muffler, and gloves.

Looking around, I saw others also taking off their winter gear one by one. Their flushed faces showed a mix of relief and refreshment.

I too was slowly taking off the thick cloak I had been wearing on the outside. That’s when Aspeiran called me.

“Shuria, come over here for a moment.”

“Yes!”

I quickly approached Aspeiran’s side, with the discarded cloak carelessly draped over my left arm. In front of him stood a woman with a long scar stretching from her left forehead to above her right eye.

Judging by the fur hat in her hand, she was Acla, the one who had greeted Aspeiran as a representative earlier. She smiled, shaking her short hair.

“So this is the person. The famous monster trainer.”

“Yes. Her name is Shuria.”

“Shuria!”

Acla raised her voice slightly in admiration upon hearing my name. Why?

As I was smiling awkwardly, Aspeiran introduced her to me.

“This is Acla Rebaton. She’s in charge of the 3rd Exploration Team. You’ll be joining this exploration, so greet her.”

No wonder the atmosphere felt unusual, she was indeed the captain. Acla extended her hand towards me.

“Call me Acla. I look forward to working with you on this exploration.”

“Likewise, I look forward to working with you, Acla!”

I smiled and shook hands with her. Curious about my laughter, our Sammemmer poked their faces out of the bundle.

Acla’s eyes widened when she saw Sammemmer.

“Dogs…?”

Her voice sounded quite bewildered that we had brought dogs all the way here, so I quickly revealed the children’s identity.

“They’re Moonlight Wolf Dogs. His Lordship has just reduced their size for now.”

“Ah, I see. I heard that Lady Shuria was raising Moonlight Wolf Dogs.”

I took out the restless Sammemmer and held them in my arms. It was about time for the children’s size to return to normal.

Acla pointed to a corner of the entrance hall.

“They recently became adults, right? Fortunately, the hall is spacious, so you can let them sleep here.”

“Thank you. They’re smart kids, so they won’t cause any trouble.”

Aspeiran put up an invisible barrier in the hall. I led Sammemmer inside it.

After settling Sammemmer’s temporary accommodation, Acla briefly introduced me to the other exploration team members. There were a total of twenty-five exploration team members staying here.

“Fewer than you thought, right? That’s because the conditions to become an exploration team member are quite strict.”

Well, to explore Beltraum, one must basically be a magician or an aura user. Moreover, they need to be skilled enough to fight monsters, so of course, there wouldn’t be many.

After the introductions, I was assigned a room. This time, it wasn’t the same room as Aspeiran.

Feeling somewhat disappointed, I slapped my cheek in frustration.

After finishing dinner, today’s schedule was complete. Aspeiran ended with instructions to gather in the conference room after dinner tomorrow, then gave the order to dismiss.

As soon as I entered the cozy private room I received thanks to Acla’s consideration, I sprawled out on the bed. After hiking all day, I didn’t want to move a finger.

“Still… we’ve overcome one hurdle.”

Now all that’s left is to enter Beltraum. I need to stay focused and learn as much as possible.

With a sense of satisfaction filling my heart, I gradually drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up, it was already the afternoon of the next day.

This is the first time I’ve slept in this late since the day I finished the college entrance exam. I sat dazed on the bed, rubbing my sticky eyes.

At that moment, someone knocked on the door with a thump-thump-thump.

“Shuria, are you awake?”

Ah, it’s Aspeiran!

While I was flustered and fumbling around, As knocked on the door a few more times. As there was still no answer, he muttered to himself.

“…Did she faint or something? Should I break down the door…?”

Break down what door?

I hurriedly threw off the blanket and shouted.

“I’m up! Just a moment!”

Fortunately, there was a mirror in the corner of the room. I tidied up my appearance just enough to be presentable, then opened the door to greet Aspeiran.

Aspeiran let out a short groan as he looked at my face.

“…I didn’t know a human face could be this swollen.”

“I, I didn’t know I’d sleep this long either. I was completely knocked out.”

“You certainly had reason to be.”

Aspeiran raised his hand and ruffled my already messy hair even more. He smiled and said,

“I came to wake you up because you seemed to be sleeping too long. You must be hungry after sleeping so much. I’ll be in the dining hall, so come when you’re ready.”

“Yessir.”

Aspeiran kindly closed the door for me. I quickly changed clothes, finished showering in the communal bathroom, and went down to the dining hall.

Aspeiran had prepared light foods that would be good for an empty stomach and was waiting.

“It’s almost dinner time, so I prepared something simple.”

“Haha… I slept for almost a whole day.”

Wait, does that mean our Sammemmer went hungry all day too?

As if reading my mind, Aspeiran patted the back of my hand.

“I took care of the Moonlight Wolf Dogs’ meals.”

“That’s a relief! Thank you.”

I resumed eating with a peaceful mind. Meanwhile, Aspeiran sat across from me, drinking tea and reading reports. It was truly a pleasant sight.

As there wasn’t much food, I soon cleared my plate and put down my spoon. Aspeiran, confirming that I had finished eating, stood up from his seat.

“If you’re done, shall we go? Do you have anything else to do after this?”

Not really. It’s not like I know anyone here…

When I shook my head, Aspeiran put the report into his spatial storage.

“Then shall we look around the exploration branch? Today is the only day we’ll have time to leisurely look around.”

“Oh, will Your Lordship be guiding me?”

“Don’t you want that?”

How could I not? I jumped up and stuck close to Aspeiran’s side.

“I’d love to!”

Aspeiran extended his arm as if to escort me.

I placed my hand on his firm arm and left the dining hall. At that moment, I saw Acla walking towards the dining hall from afar.

“Ah, it’s Acla.”

Just as I was about to greet her cheerfully, Acla’s expression turned strange when she saw us. She rubbed her eyes a few times, then turned around and ran far away.

It’s one thing to not greet me, but to ignore even His Lordship? I tilted my head in confusion.

“Something big must have happened.”

“Not really. She probably just needs to use the bathroom urgently.”

Aspeiran replied indifferently. Is that so?

‘Well, I guess you can’t help it if you urgently need the bathroom.’

Quickly convinced, I matched my pace with Aspeiran and walked side by side.

But every exploration team member we encountered along the way made the same expression as Acla and ran away.

It seems today’s lunch menu must have been the kind that stimulates bowel movements.

After touring the entire exploration branch, the last place we headed was a small outpost set up on the building’s roof for outside reconnaissance.

Outside, snowflakes were fluttering down one or two at a time. Aspeiran, feeling the gently falling snowflakes on his outstretched hand, said,

“The weather is quite good.”

“But it’s snowing?”

“This much can be considered good. Blizzards often rage in this area.”

Aspeiran took me to stand in front of the railing. His finger pointed straight ahead.

“Over there, can you see it?”