I Was Deemed a Worthless Saint Without a Level-Up Blessing and Was Sent Off to Marry a Neighboring Country, but It Turns Out My Blessing Was Actually Level Cap Removal - Episode 9

“……Na, Ferulina”

“Ha…?”

A low voice that resonates pleasantly in my ears is calling my name right next to me.

At the same time, gently shaken by the shoulder, Ferulina, who had just surfaced from her drowsiness, let out a faint voice.

“Ferulina. I’m sorry, but it would make me happy if you could wake up…”

At the sound of the desperate voice, I slowly opened my eyelids. Suddenly, a rugged face with a scar running across the left cheek appeared before me, and Ferulina let out a small scream.

“Sorry!”

Suddenly, as if burned, Alvent releases his grip on Ferulina’s shoulder.

“Alvent, sir…?”

In a half-dream state, I remember what happened before I fell asleep.

After the carriage had been moving for a while, feeling uncomfortable and hesitant in front of the dignified Alvent, I was told that if I was tired, I should lean against the cushion and close my eyes.

If I block my vision, I can avoid seeing Alvent, so I obediently follow through――.

I have no memory of what happened after that.

“Ex-ex-excuse me! I… um…!”

How much time had I actually been asleep?

I jumped up from the cushion I had been lying on, and as I hurriedly tried to stand, I was stopped by Alvent, who was kneeling in front of the seat.

“You don’t need to rush so much. I woke you up because we arrived at tonight’s inn… Can you walk?”

“Already at the inn…!?”

We should have left the royal castle in the early afternoon, but it’s already dusk. It seems I must have been asleep for quite a long time.

“I’m so sorry…! I can’t believe I’m the only one sleeping so soundly…!”

When I bowed my head in apology, a gentle voice responded.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s only natural after coming back from a hunt. More importantly, I’m sorry for pushing you even though you were tired.”

“N-no! It is I who has been rude, falling asleep right in front of you, Lord Alvent…!”

“I told you there’s no need to worry, didn’t I?”

To the flustered Ferulina, Alvent’s hand, which had just broken into a fleeting smile, suddenly reaches for her left temple.

“Stay still. My hairpin…”

It seems to have gotten messy while I was sleeping. Alvent adjusts the position of the hair ornament with the flower filigree that Chelsea had placed when she styled my hair.

“Alright, it’s okay.”

At Alvent’s smile, which nodded in satisfaction, my heart skipped a beat once again.

“Thank you very much…”

“If you’re that tired, you should take it easy at the inn. I’ll have Nanette and Chelsea accompany you, so please relax.”

Just like when I got on, I get off the carriage escorted by Alvent.

What stood before her was a magnificent inn that Ferulina had never set foot in before.

“Hey! Nanette, Chelsea!”

At Alvent’s voice, the two who were by the horses handed the reins to their colleague and rushed over.

“Please take care of Ferulina. She just returned this morning from subduing a monster. She must be tired, so let her rest!”

“Understood!”

“Lady Ferulina~. Let’s go~.”

Handed over from Alvent to Nanette and Chelsea, before I knew it, I was led to the assigned room.

The opulence of the room made Ferulina feel faint.

“Um, um, Nanette-san, Chelsea-san…! Are you in the wrong room…!?”

“You’re not mistaken, are you?”

“As expected of a luxury inn! They say they’ll prepare the hot spring bath right away. Of course, you’ll be using it, right?”

“Uh, um…!?”

It’s just like when I changed into a dress during the day. While I’m flustered by the two who are pushing me along, the bathtub placed behind the screen in the corner of the room is filled with water by the inn’s maid, Nanette prepares my change of clothes, and Chelsea takes off my hair ornaments.

“I’m, I’m fine! I can take it off by myself…! Nanette-san and Chelsea-san must be tired too, right!? I’ll be fine from here on my own…!”

When I was stripped of my dress and left in my underwear, my sense of shame reached its limit, and I screamed.

However, what came back from Nanette and Chelsea were words of complete rejection.

“Since it’s the captain’s orders, we can’t take our eyes off Lady Ferulina!”

“If you wish, I can wash you thoroughly~?”

“I-I’ll be fine! Please refrain!”

I sincerely hold back in the face of Chelsea, who is moving her hands cheerfully and energetically. As a result of our back-and-forth, the two of them ended up waiting behind the partition.

Feeling sorry for being the only one allowed to use the bath first, I gently step into the ample hot water poured into the smooth bathtub.

“Hahh~”

The moment I sank into the bathtub, the warmth of the water made me involuntarily let out a sound of comfort.

I thought I had recovered somewhat from my fatigue since I slept in the carriage, but it seems that I haven’t fully recovered, possibly because I was jolted around in the carriage for a long time.

In the warm water filling the bathtub, I feel my fatigue melting away.

When it comes to subduing monsters, it’s always just enough to cleanse the body with a bucket of water at best, and sometimes, if things go poorly, you might not even get that for several days. Considering that, what a luxury this is.

I can only be grateful to Alvent for preparing such a room for me.

As I thoroughly enjoyed the pleasure of the bath, I heard Nanette and Chelsea’s voices from the other side of the partition.

“Lady Ferulina, do you really not need any help?”

“If you need anything, feel free to ask anytime! Today is an important day after all!”

“Important…? Is there anything else besides the meal later?”
I thought all that was left was to have a meal and rest.

“Oh, are you here to greet the knights?”

If that’s the case, I need to think of a greeting. First impressions are important.

What reached Ferulina’s ears, pursed lips and all, were the cheerful laughter of Nanette and Chelsea.

“Geez! Lady Ferulina, that’s not right!”

“When it comes to the important things on the night of the wedding, it has to be the wedding night, right?!”

“Fuh!?”

The moment I screamed from the unexpected ambush I never saw coming, I lost my balance in the bathtub. My hand slipped off the edge.

With a loud splash, my head plunges into the hot water.

“Lady Ferulina!?”

“What happened!?”

Immediately, Nanette and Chelsea, who had circled around to this side of the partition, grabbed my arm and pulled me up.

“…cough, cough!”

Water dripped from Ferulina’s hair as she leaned over the edge of the bathtub, gripping it tightly.

It seems I accidentally drank some water when I sank. I feel like I should respond to the two of them, but all I can do is cough, and no words come out at all.

“Are you okay, Lady Ferulina!?”

“Please do it properly!”

“Y-yeah, I’m… fine…”

I somehow manage to tell the two who are flustered just that.

My head is spinning. But whether it’s because of coughing, the heat of the bath, or Chelsea’s bombshell remark, I can’t tell.

Finally, as her breathing calmed down, Ferulina timidly looked up at the two.

“Um… that earlier…! Is it really true…?”

Until Chelsea mentioned it, I hadn’t thought about our wedding night at all, not even a little bit.

But, as the two of them said, it is indeed the night of the day we got married.

But…

“I-I’m not mentally prepared for this…”

Even the marriage was a bolt from the blue, so the wedding night is beyond my imagination.

As I looked up at the two from the bathtub, half in tears, Nanette and Chelsea groaned, “Ugh.”

“Lady Ferulina! That has too high an attack power for the captain…!”

“The captain’s sanity is going to fly out the window!”

“……?”

Kyoto tilted her head slightly, and the two of them groaned together once more, “Guh!”

“After all, let’s wash our entire bodies thoroughly!”

“My hair got wet too, so let’s wash it properly while we’re at it! I’ll help out too!”

“Uh, um…!?”

I feel like I’ve experienced this flow a few hours ago.

As a result, Ferulina got so overheated from the long bath that she couldn’t even attend dinner.