Just as Riamie was lost in thought over how the knights’ armor fit so perfectly, a voice interrupted her musings.
“Isn’t it strange how their armor fits so well? Especially considering how much their body shapes have changed since before?”
Riamie looked toward Colin, who had somehow appeared beside her. He was wearing his usual Sanctuary Armor and carrying the Sanctuary Sword. It seemed Hifuni had already used teleportation to bring them from the manor.
“So, why is that?”
Seeing that Colin was trying to steer the conversation away from what happened yesterday, Riamie decided to go along with it, as she had been wondering about the same thing herself.
“It’s simple. The Sanctuary Knights’ armor is made from a special material and crafted with unique techniques. It doesn’t require tailoring but instead adheres directly to the wearer’s body, providing maximum comfort. Just a little bit of mana is enough to maintain this state. There’s no risk of it falling off either.”
After hearing Colin’s explanation, Riamie nodded, finally understanding why this group of beautiful girls wore armor that fit them so snugly.
“That’s really practical and convenient.”
Riamie couldn’t help but sigh. If only she had a set like that too. Then she wouldn’t have to wear those strange, revealing outfits made for ease of movement during assassinations.
But then she reconsidered. Although the armor was excellent, it had many drawbacks for assassination work, so she reluctantly put that idea aside.
“It really is practical and convenient. But the price is very high. Just one set of this armor would probably cost hundreds of gold coins, not to mention the maintenance and repair costs afterward.”
Hundreds of gold coins?! Riamie, who had only tentatively considered it before, immediately decided never to think about it again once she heard the price.
Come on, she only earned twenty or thirty gold coins on average per assassination job. How many jobs would she have to do to afford that? To put things in perspective, an ordinary person only makes a few to a dozen gold coins a year. Some poor people have never even seen a gold coin. And this armor alone costs hundreds of gold coins—not including maintenance!
Riamie clicked her tongue, shaken by the terrifying price. Suddenly, those odd, revealing clothes she used to wear felt strangely familiar and reassuring. At least she didn’t have to worry about scratching the armor and paying dozens of gold coins for repairs.
No wonder the Sanctuary Knights were so prestigious. Their armor was only the standard issue, and their weapons must be just as expensive. Riamie gained a renewed respect for the Sanctuary’s immense wealth—no surprise, considering they were the kingdom’s largest religious faction and the state religion.
Riamie decided to keep her distance from the knights from now on. She felt that spending too much time with them would seriously distort her views on money.
“What are you two talking about?”
Hifuni, Eirino, and Ravinia approached together, looking ready to depart.
“Nothing much, just talking about the cost of the Sanctuary Knights’ armor.”
Colin explained casually, but Riamie noticed that after his words, the three of them visibly relaxed to varying degrees. What were they so relieved about?
Riamie felt a bit confused by their reactions. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she thought their relationships seemed a little better than before. Had something happened between them?
“The Sanctuary Knights’ armor is indeed expensive. Not just the armor, but the weapons and other equipment as well. After all, they are the Sanctuary’s most important armed force, so they definitely spend a lot on them.”
Hifuni’s explanation earned nods from Colin and Eirino. Ravinia, uninterested in the topic, stood idly by as usual. The only difference was that this time she didn’t try to tease Colin.
Seeing this, Riamie was puzzled but didn’t dwell on it. Maybe Ravinia just wasn’t in the mood to tease him today. Who could say what she was thinking every day?
“Senpai, are you all ready?”
Azerein’s voice came from nearby. Riamie hadn’t noticed when she arrived. It seemed she had come to check if they were prepared.
“We’re all set. Has Master said when we’re leaving? …Huh?”
Seeing Azerein, Colin briefly confirmed they were ready and was about to ask about the departure time. But then something caught his eye.
“Master said we’ll leave right after she finishes the rally speech… Um, Senpai, are you okay? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Colin stared fixedly at Azerein, or more precisely, at her armor. A couple of shallow scratches had appeared there since the last time he saw her.
He was puzzled. He distinctly remembered that when they met yesterday, those marks weren’t there. How could just one night’s sleep result in new scratches?
Unable to figure it out, Colin decided to ask Azerein directly. It wouldn’t be good if she was hiding something important.
“Azerein, what’s with the new scratches on your armor? They weren’t there when we met yesterday, right? Did something happen last night?”
No sooner had Colin finished speaking than Riamie’s interest was piqued as well. She was curious about the new marks on Azerein’s armor since she remembered there were none before going to sleep last night. Could some monster have appeared in the camp overnight, and Azerein went out to deal with it, which caused these scratches?
But if that were true, how did she and Colin miss it? And why did Azerein go out alone? Shouldn’t such matters be handled by Captain Larian? What actually happened last night?
Not only Riamie but Hifuni and Eirino were intrigued as well. Even Ravinia, who had just been zoning out, came over to see what was going on.
Surrounded by everyone, Azerein looked a little embarrassed, lowered her head, and nervously rubbed her hands together. She didn’t know how to explain what happened last night.
Seeing this, Colin furrowed his brow and thought, Could there really have been monsters in the camp, and he didn’t notice?
Just as Colin was about to press Azerein for details, she glanced at Riamie and hesitated before finally revealing what had happened last night.
“Last night… there were no monsters breaking in, and no battles or anything like that.”
“Then what happened?” Colin urged, eager for answers.
“…It was because of one person.”
“One person? Who?” Riamie asked curiously.
Azerein looked at Riamie again before giving an answer that shocked everyone.
“It was… because of Miss Riamie!”
Everyone: ????
Riamie: ? What the heck?! How is this my fault again?!