"Oooh.

Today is the day Ken is staying over~"

Raphne hummed a cheerful tune as she prepared dinner, seemingly in a great mood.

It was a relief that she didn’t seem to mind me staying over.

She’s always been overly affectionate with me.

Maybe she doesn’t see me as a man at all?

'Well, to someone like her, a chubby guy like me probably seems more like a pet.'

It hurt a little to think that my favourite character didn’t see me as a man, but I tried not to dwell on it.

The important thing right now was repairing the Thunder Spear.

In front of me lay the broken Thunder Spear, Aspetra.

Before I could start increasing my repair skill proficiency, I needed to check the required materials.

I quickly opened the skill menu.

[Unique Skill: Item Creation.

Proficiency:

Dexterity LV 3

Weapon Crafting LV 3

Potion Making LV 1

Magic Tool Crafting LV 2

Repair LV 1

Material Analysis LV 1]

Fortunately, I had recently acquired the necessary repair skills.

Among them, Material Analysis was what I needed now.

I picked up the Thunder Spear in front of me.

'Let’s see... Material Analysis.'

With a focused will, magic flowed from my fingertips into the broken blade.

The magic coursed through every part of the blade and then returned to my fingertips.

Soon, the materials used in this blade began to emerge in my mind.

'As expected, an S-rank item is made of extraordinary materials.'

I swallowed nervously as I confirmed the types of materials that came to mind.

This blade, an event item so rare that it was almost never seen in use, was an S-rank legendary weapon.

The materials used in such a weapon were not something you could find in a regular market.

Fortunately, Anette had agreed to provide all the necessary materials for the repair.

'Dragon bone... and Orichalcum. Are those even obtainable right now?'

These were materials that could be easily acquired in the later stages of the game, but they were all found on the demon infested Karab Continent.

Obtaining them in the Lillias Kingdom would cost a fortune.

'Well, she’s from a wealthy family, so it’s not my concern.'

This was a rare opportunity to acquire such high-grade materials, so I decided to request a bit more than needed.

After writing down the list of repair materials, I pulled out a small flute from my dimensional pocket.

It was a familiar summoning flute that Anette had given me earlier.

Tweet~

A sound like that of a grass whistle echoed, and soon, a familiar in the form of a bird, made of magic, appeared before me.

"Please take care of this."

"Caw."

The familiar, holding the letter in its beak, immediately took off into the sky.

As it flew farther away, it gradually turned transparent and disappeared.

'Now, let’s get to work before the materials arrive.'

Anette had given me two days, so she would send the materials soon.

In the meantime, I had a clear task: grind my repair skill proficiency!

Fortunately, I had prepared plenty of weapons to smash when I was making Siegfried’s black blade.

A moment of silence for the test subjects that would become sacrifices to my skill.

I then grabbed a hammer and struck the weapons boldly.

Clang! Clang!

The sound of metal clashing echoed as the weapons soon became dull or had their handles broken, turning into pitiful shapes.

"Ken, are you still not done?"

After repeatedly smashing and repairing weapons, I took a break to have the dinner that Raphne had prepared for me.

Then I resumed the process. My repair skill level was now 2.

While I didn’t expect to reach level 4 through grinding, I hoped to at least reach level 3.

"Yeah, I still have some more to do. You should go to bed, Raphne. Can you use Silence magic?"

Since it would be hard for her to sleep with the noise of my repairs, I asked her to use a silence barrier just for tonight.

But Raphne shook her head and approached me.

"Oh, no. I’ll wait until you’re done, Ken!"

"Huh? You don’t have to do that! You must be tired; it’s okay to sleep first!"

"No, it’s fine. I want to help too. Is there anything I can do?"

Raphne replied cheerfully and sat down beside me. 'Looks like I need to finish quickly.'

She wasn’t trying to be a burden, but I felt guilty keeping her awake because of me.

"Okay, can you change the water in that bucket for me?"

"Sure! Just tell me what to do!"

With a spirited response, Raphne grabbed the bucket and moved away.

Watching her, I refocused and resumed hammering.

[System: Item Creation proficiency has reached its maximum. Related skill levels have increased.]

[Item Creation – Repair LV 3]

'...It’s done.'

I stared at the status screen with bleary eyes, holding yet another dagger that I had repaired, though I’d lost count of how many I’d done.

It was already dark outside, late into the night.

"Raphne, go sleep in your bed now."

Raphne, who had insisted on staying by my side to help, had eventually fallen asleep with her head resting on my lap.

She had done well to help until she couldn’t stay awake any longer.

I hadn’t expected her to sleep so soundly even with all the noise from the repairs.

"Raphne...

Raphne, wake up. I’m finished."

"Mmmnyaaa..."

There was no sign of her waking up.

'Guess I have no choice.'

As a thank you for letting me stay the night, I’ll give her the special delivery service to her bed.

I carefully lifted Raphne, making sure not to wake her.

In a princess carry, her head leaned against my chest.

'She really is out like a light.'

Raphne, still fast asleep, seemed more at peace than usual. Normally, she looked tense and anxious, but now her face was completely serene, free of any worry.

"…Ken… heh."

'What kind of dream is she having?'

Whatever it was, if it helped her relax, it was a good dream.

I carried her to her bed, carefully laying her down so she wouldn’t wake.

I gently placed her head on a soft pillow and slowly pulled my hand away.

Then, I pulled the blanket up to her chest.

'Now, I guess it’s time for me to sleep.'

Of course, we weren’t sharing the bed.

No matter how much I adore her as a character, I wouldn’t take advantage of her while she’s defenceless.

'Let’s see what tomorrow brings when the materials arrive.'

I spread out a blanket on the floor a little distance away from her bed and lay down.

As a Korean, there’s something uniquely comforting about lying on the floor, it brings a calming sense of peace.

I let my thoughts drift to tomorrow's plans as I let my weary body relax.

"…Ken… Mmm… Ken…"

But just as I was about to drift off...

"…No… no, Ken… don’t go."

‘…What’s going on?’

In that drowsy state between waking and sleeping, I heard my name being called.

If I were alone in my dorm room, it would’ve been a terrifying experience, but here, there was only one person who would urgently call my name.

"…Raphne?"

I sat up and looked toward the bed.

"Ken… no… I’m sorry… please don’t go."

"Raphne, are you okay?"

Hearing Raphne’s tearful voice, I quickly got up and went to her side.

She was in the grip of a nightmare, tears forming in her eyes. And then...

"Ke—Ken!"

"Waaah!"

Raphne suddenly bolted upright, calling out my name, her eyes wide with tears.

Her sudden shout startled me, and my own scream echoed through the room.

"…Oh, Ken… where…?"

Raphne looked around, seeming to realize she had just woken from a dream. Our eyes met.

"…Uuu… hic."

And then, she burst into tears again.

"…Hwaaaah, Ken…!"

"R-Raphne? What’s wrong?

What happened?"

Tears streaming down her face, Raphne crawled toward me and clung to my waist.

"Ken, don’t go… I’m sorry… hic… it’s all my fault… hic."

‘She must have been really scared.’

Even after realizing she was awake, Raphne couldn’t stop crying.

She buried her face in my chest, continuing to sob.

‘I can pretty much guess what her dream was about...’

"Hic… it’s just… you, hic, Ken said you didn’t like me anymore, that you didn’t want to see me… hic… and then you left…."

It was exactly what I expected. I stroked Raphne’s hair to calm her down. She snuggled closer into my embrace.

"It was just a nightmare, Raphne.

It was only a dream, so don’t worry too much. I’m not going anywhere."

"Sniff, I-I know that… but it was so scary…."

Seeing her so clingy and unwilling to let go, I wondered if she often had dreams like this.

If she had been alone when she had one of these nightmares, how would she have coped?

‘She must have been so scared.’

The thought of Raphne waking up alone from a nightmare, with no one around, made my heart ache. I gently guided her back to her pillow and laid her down.

"Hic… Uuu."

Even as she lay down, she continued to cry softly. If she kept crying like this, she’d end up with a headache.

I pulled the blanket up over her again, making sure she was tucked in.

"Ken…"

At that moment, Raphne grabbed the sleeve of my shirt.

"Uh, yeah?"

Her tear-filled red eyes looked up at me, like a little chick searching for its mother.

"I’m scared…

Can we sleep together?"

Whoa, what did she just say?

"R-Raphne, I’m still a guy, you know!"

"But!

If I fall asleep like this, I’m afraid I’ll have the same dream again…

If you’re next to me, I think I’ll be able to sleep peacefully. Hic."

Her words reminded me of how peacefully she had slept earlier.

Maybe it was because she had fallen asleep next to me.

Could it be that she’s always so anxious and tense even in her sleep?

The thought of it made my heart ache.

But still, I’m a guy. As a gentleman, there’s a line I won’t cross!

"Hehe… thank you, Ken."

"Um, just this once."

Raphne wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me tightly like a body pillow.

She closed her eyes with a calm, steady breath.

"…When I smell your scent, Ken… it makes me feel safe."

"…Um."

I’m glad she feels safe, but I really wish she wouldn’t whisper that right into my ear.

Her soft breaths were definitely hitting a sensitive spot.

"Mmm, Ken…."

With her head resting on my chest and her arm draped over my shoulder, Raphne soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

'...This is going to be a problem.'

But as for me, with all the softness pressed up against me, I found it impossible to fall asleep.

Raphne’s warm body heat and the scent of her hair filled my senses.

It looks like tonight is going to be a long one…

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