48. A New Place to Belong

The next morning.
I woke up feeling better than I ever had before.

I slowly opened my eyes.

An unfamiliar ceiling.
The morning sun streaming in.

For a brief moment, I was confused, wondering, "Where am I?"

"...That's right."

I had moved into the dormitory yesterday.
I sat up, letting out an involuntary wry smile.

Inside the futon, Phoenix was still curled up, sleeping soundly.

"Time to wake up."

When I called out to it gently, its small body stirred.

"Kee..."

It seemed to rub its eyes as if sleepy, then immediately hopped onto my shoulder.
I couldn't help but smile at the sight.

I got dressed and slipped my arms into the newly issued black long coat.
The hem fluttered in the morning breeze blowing in from the window.

I looked at myself in the mirror.

I looked just a little bit different than I had yesterday.

"...Today is going to be a good day."

Phoenix chirped softly, as if in agreement.

"Kee!"

***

When I entered the Belford Company headquarters, Lizeria-san was waiting near the entrance.
She smiled softly when she noticed me.

"Good morning."
"Good morning."

When I returned the greeting, Lizeria-san smiled as if she were a little troubled.

"You don't have to be so stiff. We're in the same party starting today. You don't need to use formal language, okay?"

Her words made me choke up unexpectedly.
It was true that I wouldn't be able to close the distance between us if I kept using formal language just because she was someone I admired.
Now that we were teammates, I had to change, even if only a little.

"Umm..."

I scratched my head, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"...O-okay."

My reply was awkward.
Even so, Lizeria-san nodded as if satisfied.

"Yeah. That's good."

Saying that, she began to walk with a light step.
I followed after her.

"Everyone in the party is free today. I thought it would be a good opportunity for us to meet up."
"...I'm a little nervous."

My true feelings slipped out before I could stop them.

"Haha, it's alright. Everyone is kind."

We turned the corner in the hallway.
Then, the scenery changed completely.

Giant bookshelves lined the entire wall.
They were packed tightly with grimoires and reference materials.

I stopped in my tracks without thinking.

"Whoa..."

There were clearly more books here than in the archives of the Silver Lamp.
As I found myself staring at them, I heard a small laugh from beside me.

"W-what?"
"No, it's nothing."

Lizeria-san laughed, her shoulders shaking.

"It's just that it's funny to see Ren, who was complaining at the tavern back then, looking so surprised with a face like a child now."

The moment I heard those words, the memories of that night came back vividly.

"……A genius like you could never understand how hard someone as weak as me has been struggling just to hold on!!"

I couldn't help but wince.

"I'm truly sorry about that time. I had been drinking, and more than anything…… I didn't have any room to spare."

Rizeria-san shook her head.

"I don't mind. Ren, you had just lost your place to belong at that time."
"…"
"It must have been painful, right?"

Her gentle voice made the depths of my heart feel a little warmer.

"……Thank you."

After I gave a short word of thanks, Rizeria-san looked ahead as if to hide her embarrassment.

"Well, we've arrived."

Before me stood a single wooden door.
Next to it, these words were written in gold letters.

《Trajectory of the Azure Heavens》

Rizeria-san placed her hand on the knob.

"We usually hold strategy meetings and take breaks here."

I could hear someone's laughter from inside.

"……It seems everyone is here."

Saying that, Rizeria-san slowly opened the door.