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Had I been dreaming without realizing it?
It felt as if the warmth of her presence lingered on my chest, only to vanish as I awoke.

"Wait a moment."
Slightly irritated by the rough voice that made me forget that warmth, Coai sat up.
After getting up, she checked to make sure her clothes weren't in disarray... and approached the bedroom door to open it.

"Good morning, Your Majesty... or something like that."
"Ah...? What do you want?"
From beyond the opened door came a line unfitting for the familiar, deep voice.
Coai felt a slight sense of unease, but composed herself and asked his business.

"I was thinking of having you, Your Majesty, investigate that place today, but..."
"That's right."
The reason they had come to this town... Shattaru... was to gather information about the southernmost village in the territory, which would serve as a foothold for exploring the great southern forest.
The plan was for Akudo to go into town to gather information yesterday, and for Coai to go today.

"But, I was thinking the same until a little while ago... but I figured it'd be faster if I went again today."
However, Akudo suggested changing the plan, saying he would go gather information himself, just like yesterday.

"You're better suited for it, is that it?"
Coai spoke her thoughts plainly.
Indeed, Coai herself didn't much like talking to strangers, and she considered herself poor at asking others for information.

"W-well, there's that, but... on second thought, I figured it'd be easier to continue the conversation from what I heard yesterday."
Akudo didn't deny the implication that Coai wasn't well-suited for investigative interviews. It might have been a somewhat rude way of putting it, but Coai didn't particularly mind.

"I see... In that case, may I just go back to sleep?"
"You could do that, but since you have the chance, why not go shopping in town?"
"Shopping... Does this town have any goods worth seeking out?"
Just as Coai was about to resign herself to staying cooped up in the inn again, Akudo's suggestion stopped her.