“Look at this!”

What she brought was a sample of bedding to be used in the orphanage.

“It may not be a very luxurious fabric, but it’s a soft cotton, so I think it would be good for the children to use! The merchant said he adjusted the price well since he’s buying in bulk!”

“I see. Indeed, the texture touching the skin is soft.”

Fellio, while feeling a slight sense of disappointment watching Ermeldine being captivated by the bedding brought by Velest, was secretly relieved.

If it weren’t for Velest, Ermeldine’s attention would have been scattered due to the embarrassing incident a while ago.

“Gongja! How about Gongja? This should fit the budget, right?”

“Yes. Well, it’s not bad.”

But praising Velest openly made Ermeldine, who shared her attention with him, irritated.

“Not bad? If it were you, wouldn’t you have been fooled by some strange merchant and bought shoddy bedding at an exorbitant price? It’s obvious even without looking.”

Fellio wanted to respond to Velest’s words, but in truth, he closed his mouth and just glanced at her, acknowledging that to some extent, she was right.

He had no talent for business transactions, and he had lived completely immersed in delicate areas like interior decoration.

Afterwards, Ermeldine spent a long time examining the samples and various furnishings brought by the maids.

“Please process the approved items for payment as soon as possible. It’s your responsibility for the documents, right?”

Ermeldine smiled and resisted Velest’s words.

“Gongja seems tired these days, so how about giving him a break?”

“A break?”

The maids’ bewildered gaze focused on Fellio.

“I’m fine! Really fine!”

Suddenly, the embarrassing incident from earlier came to mind, and Fellio’s face started to blush again.

“It’s fine. How tired could he be…”

Ermeldine, who was about to ask if he had fallen behind due to fatigue, thought about Fellio’s position and refrained from speaking.

But Luni, who had no consideration for Fellio, bluntly revealed the truth with a calm face.

“Gongja fell backward while dozing off a while ago.”

“What?”

‘Ah, I want to disappear.’

Fellio covered his face with his large hands, bowing his head in shame.

It was truly a rare sight.

The misunderstanding that he had fallen asleep was embarrassing enough, but he was even more ashamed because he knew the real reason for the fall.

‘What am I doing? Was I such a ominous person?’

As Fellio was immersed in self-disgust and couldn’t escape, Ermeldine’s incredibly kind voice reached him.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. You’ve been tired for the past few months, handling the tasks I requested. It’s embarrassing for me not to have realized how tired you were until now. I’m sorry, Gongja.”

‘Please don’t apologize!’

Fellio’s conscience screamed internally, but it was in vain as Ermeldine continued.

“If you’re that tired, speak up. We may not be as skilled as you, but we can help with basic reviews and such.”

Concerned about Fellio’s unusual attitude, even Velest advised him with a worried tone.

“It’s not because I was busy and tired! It’s just that I’ve been lost in thought for a few days, so that’s why. I’ll be more careful in the future!”

To prove his usual vigor, Fellio stood up abruptly and shouted loudly.

However, Ermeldine and the others looked at him with a somewhat puzzled gaze.

Feeling awkward, he tried to sit back down as naturally as possible, but due to the stiffness in his entire body, he couldn’t find the chair properly and stumbled. At that moment, Velest, who had been watching silently, offered him the chair.

“T-Thank you.”

As soon as he sat down, Fellio concentrated on the documents again. Ermeldine and the maids looked at him with somewhat anxious eyes, wondering if they had relied too much on him.
Solely one person, Luni, continued to gaze at Fellio’s blushing ears with a suspicious look.

Though it was the empress’s procession, the number of attendants was minimal due to the event being a prayer to the gods.

With Ermeldine, two maids, and the use of a magic circle for direct transportation to the temple, it seemed they didn’t need additional personnel for protection.

“It’s considered the safest place in the empire, but…”

However, as they headed to the temple, Ermeldine found herself more concerned about the temple attendants inside than about the potential threats of assassins.

“But they are temple attendants; what mischief could they possibly cause? Louise, on the other hand, would worry about me if she were here and injured.”

Even as the magic circle began to emit a gentle light, Ermeldine’s mind was already elsewhere.

Just before the magic circle activated, she locked eyes with Fellio, who had come to see her off.

“Well, what was that?”

Fellio mumbled something with his mouth, but it happened so quickly that Ermeldine couldn’t catch exactly what he said.

“It’s probably not important. If it were important, he would have written it down.”

Before Ermeldine’s curiosity could fully settle, the scenery before her eyes had completely changed.