“If it’s something I can do.”

Kana left some room to maneuver to avoid overstepping her bounds. Even with the ambiguous answer, Letie’s complexion brightened considerably.

“Thank you. I’ll make sure to repay you later.”

“Please do.”

The two shared a small smile.

While Kana was chatting casually with the young ladies, the participants began to appear in the distance. She pointed them out.

“Wow, everyone, look over there. The participants are returning after hunting the monsters.”

“Right.”

The young ladies widened their eyes in admiration. The participants, who had stored their spirit stones and other monster byproducts in subspace pouches, were returning to the starting point with only their main weapons.

But the protagonist was nowhere to be seen. Letie’s eyes narrowed.

“Miss Kana, I don’t see the Second Prince… Is it just me?”

“No, I don’t see him either.”

Kana agreed with her and carefully scanned the participants.

Among the supporting characters, she spotted her industry friend who exuded a leader-like aura, the imposing sub male lead, the Northern Duke, and the villainous First Prince smiling pleasantly.

The participants poured out their collected spoils. A northern noble standing on the platform clapped his hands.

“Alright, everyone, it’s time to announce the rankings.”

“Wait a moment!”

Letie’s voice cooled the heated atmosphere. All eyes turned to her. Letie, living up to her role as the female protagonist, spoke confidently.

“The Second Prince has not returned yet.”

“Lady Letie, are you worried about Richard?”

The First Prince, Riden, sneered openly. Kana quietly observed the situation. Letie did not avoid his gaze.

“Of course.”

“Maybe he’s delayed because he lost his way. Or perhaps he was attacked by monsters and is recovering.”

The monster hunting festival held in the north limited the number of escorts to exclude excessive interference from the imperial family. Riden, who had set a trap using this, remained relaxed.

Even as the protagonist and villain clashed, Kana calmly summoned Celia and fed her a top-grade spirit stone she received from Kiriel.

[Kana, I think I’ve become top-grade.]

‘Really? Congratulations!’

[So, should I reveal myself as a mid-grade spirit now? It’s tricky to compress my energy more.]

‘Of course. You’ve been consistently eating spirit stones, so it’s plausible.’

Whenever she had the chance, Kana would discreetly gather and feed Celia small amounts of spirit stones. The fact that Celia had advanced in grade even before the story concluded was a good sign.

Celia, who had secretly upgraded from low-grade to mid-grade, now had a much stronger presence. While the tension among the novel’s characters grew, Kana quietly felt elated.

If she had been alone at the mansion, she might have danced with joy.

In the tense atmosphere, Cordelia pretended to be concerned and intervened.

“That’s right, sister. Shouldn’t we send someone first?”

“Yes.”

Letie, not wanting to engage further, turned her head and walked straight to Ethan. Ethan blinked as he saw her approaching.

“Lady Serade?”

“Duke Cardium, excuse me, but could I borrow your horse?”

Ethan nodded in bewilderment. Letie mounted the horse. At that moment, Kana took a sword out of her subspace ring and threw it to her.

“Lady Letie, take this!”

“Thank you, Miss Kana.”

Letie took the sword and rode into the forest. Soon, she disappeared from view.

“Oh no, Lady Serade!”

Everyone was stunned by the sudden turn of events. Kana quickly dispatched Celia.

‘Celia, follow Letie and assess the situation.’

[Leave it to me.]

The wind spirit swiftly flew after Letie.

Ethan spoke to the knights of the Cardium family.

“I didn’t want to get involved in the imperial disputes, but it seems someone from the north has made a move. Follow Lady Serade.”

“Yes!”

As expected of the elite knights of the Cardium family, they executed his orders promptly. Other northern nobles, who were friendly with Ethan and neutral towards the imperial family, also dispatched knights.

With the situation unfolding this way, the overall atmosphere became chaotic. Olivia’s face was filled with worry.

“Will Lady Letie be alright?”

“She’s too reckless! What if she runs into monsters while rushing out like that…”

Evie, her face pale, trembled. Della glanced at Kana’s calm face.

“Miss Kana, about the sword you threw earlier…”

“It’s better to have a weapon than to go empty-handed. And I’ve attached my spirit to her.”

Kana blinked slowly. Celia was safely accompanying Letie. For someone experienced in using spirit magic, reconnaissance and remote support were not difficult tasks.

Evie’s eyebrows drooped.

“Will Lady Letie and the Second Prince return safely?”

“They will. The Cardium family and other brave northern knights have followed.”

Kana knew that the protagonists would return safely even if they faced danger in this episode. The young ladies, who had initially been anxious and trembling, gradually calmed down at her composed voice.

Evie looked at her with admiration.

“Miss Kana, you’re so calm.”

“I trust them. Even if someone gets hurt, Lady Letie’s healing abilities will ensure they all return safely.”

“Yes!”

They huddled close to Kana. She smiled faintly at her fellow supporting characters. No matter how much she told herself not to get attached to characters, it was unavoidable in such situations.

* * *

As she rode aimlessly, Letie felt a cool breeze wrap around her sword and arm.

The wind felt different from the one she encountered while riding. She stopped and looked closely, seeing a faint, cloud-like spirit.

‘…Oh, it’s Miss Kana’s wind spirit.’

Despite her initial reluctance, Kana had kept her promise, even at a loss to herself. Though the situation was urgent, Letie’s heart felt warm. Thinking of her friend’s face, Letie’s lips curved into a smile.

The wind spirit naturally led the way.

‘A sword and a spirit… I owe her a lot. I must repay her.’

Grateful to Kana, Letie showed the spirit the ring-shaped magical tool she shared with Richard. She intended to use it to search for him. The spirit blinked its round eyes as if understanding her intentions.

Letie rode towards where Richard was likely to be with the spirit. Along the way, she encountered low-level monsters but managed to fend them off with her spirit-infused sword.

Though she had brought magical tools for protection, it would have been difficult if she went empty-handed. She marveled at Kana’s preparedness.

Eventually, she found Richard and his escort knights surrounded by a mountain of monster corpses.

No matter how skilled he was, Richard couldn’t avoid getting injured.

She quickly dismounted and rushed to him.

“Lord Richard!”

“Lady Letie? How did you get here?”

“I came to find Your Highness. The magical tool we shared and the spirit helped in the search.”

“…A spirit?”

Richard’s gaze turned to the translucent, sky-blue wind hovering around her.

Letie wasn’t a spirit summoner. When he recalled that, Richard looked puzzled. Letie answered nonchalantly.

“Oh, the wind spirit’s contractor is my friend, Miss Kana. But first, you need healing.”

Letie used her healing abilities on him and his escort knights. The wind spirit continued to hover around them.

While the escort knights expressed their gratitude, Richard smiled faintly.

“Thank you, Lady Letie.”

“Don’t mention it. We joined forces for our own goals, so if anything happened to Your Highness, it would be troublesome for me.”

When Letie gave him a sharp look, Richard laughed comfortably for the first time in a while.

“Alright.”

“I’m not joking, so don’t laugh. Oh, other knights will arrive soon, so please wait a bit.”

Letie knew that knights were following her. She supported Richard with the escort knights while waiting for the others to join.

* * *

The northern noble, who had barely managed to calm the chaotic atmosphere, announced the rankings.

“Ahem, despite the unfortunate incident, we still have procedures to follow. The winner is Duke Cardium.”

A thunderous applause erupted. The rankings continued, with Riden in second place and Alderaan in third.

“What? My brother is in third place?”

Olivia gaped in shock. Unlike her, Kana watched the situation with a pleased smile.

‘Alderaan, you did well.’

She could tell that her industry friend had restrained himself from excessive combat and tried not to stand out while taking care of the necessary people.

Being placed third was likely because he encountered many monsters on his way, being categorized as part of the protagonist’s faction.

Next came the time to give return gifts to the young ladies who had given handkerchiefs. It was optional to give a return gift for the handkerchiefs.

It was a matter of courtesy to reciprocate the gesture of giving a handkerchief and waiting. Therefore, those who received handkerchiefs from only one person would definitely give a return gift, while those who received from many might give to a few or none at all.

Conversely, participants sometimes offered gifts to those who hadn’t given them handkerchiefs, but these were still called return gifts.

The return gifts were mainly spirit stones, though sometimes they included monster byproducts that weren’t repulsive.

As the young ladies received spirit stones from the participants, Alderaan approached the group of young ladies where his industry friend was.

Everyone was curious about who Alderaan, who had placed third, would repay with a gift.