The next day, Luke and Hime were already able to stand and go about their activities as usual—except for me.
I was the only one who could do nothing but lie on this bed. Thankfully, Luke was still able to help me whenever I needed to go to the restroom.
I had no idea what kind of magic he used, but it made my body feel lighter when I walked.
According to Forn-san, I would only be able to move properly again in about three to five days. He examined me using a type of magic that could see inside my body, though I didn't really understand the details.
"Hime, Yuu-chan, what do you think about my condition right now?" I asked the two of them, who were currently in my room.
They had brought food and drinks with them. I didn't know why they had to come here together.
"You can't move, right? Yukito-sama, this condition is almost entirely your own fault. You pushed yourself too hard trying to defeat that demon," Yuu-chan replied.
A-ah… I couldn't deny it. What Yuu-chan said was true.
"Yukito-san, until you're able to move again, the three of us will help the princess and the others, so you don't need to worry," Hime answered.
—
Today, I was already able to move both of my hands to eat or drink, so I no longer needed anyone to feed me.
Hime stood up from her seat after finishing checking the sword I had used back then.
"All right, I have to help Forn-san. I promised to teach him something, so I'll see you two later," she said as she walked out of my room.
By the way, Luke had already gone out early this morning. He said he wanted to help Loki-san arrange a few things.
The two of them were still busy even after our victory. Hah… I really was completely useless right now.
Oh right, this was the perfect time, since I was alone with Yuu-chan.
"Yuu-chan, after I collapsed back then, was there someone who helped me? The last thing I remember was a spell like a giant fireball exploding into smoke."
"And the demon escaped too, right?" I asked her.
"Hm… where should I start? Should I tell you about what happened then, and what happened to Hime and me while we were fighting the demon?" Yuu-chan asked in return.
I nodded, signaling that I wanted to hear everything.
——
(Thirty minutes after her explanation…)
"I see… so that means our party this time really had a big impact, huh?" I replied.
"Yeah. The four of us did many great things in that battle. Because of that, I'm sure we'll all be remembered by Loki-san and the others," she answered.
"Oh right, I realized something last night. It felt like a huge amount of power flowed into my head. How about you open your status screen and see it for yourself?"
"I don't want to tell you directly, so you should check it yourself."
If Yuu-chan said that, then something must have changed in the statistics on my screen.
I immediately opened my status screen, and sure enough, many of my stats had changed drastically. The increase was enormous.
More than all of that, my gaze was drawn to a new skill listed under the Creation skill. However, it was still locked.
That meant I had to do something—or defeat something—to be able to use the skill called "Booster"…
Wait, wasn't that name the same as Boost? I was instantly confused and surprised by what I saw, and then I asked Yuu-chan about it.
"Yuu-chan, this—"
"Yes, just like you see. You now have a new skill called Booster. It's not very different from Boost, but—"
According to Yuu-chan, if I could use Booster, my body would feel even lighter compared to using Boost.
But the main difference was that it could also enhance my swordsmanship, which hadn't been affected when I only used Boost.
So… in that case, Booster was basically an advanced or enhanced version of Boost, wasn't it?
"Because you didn't defeat that demon, your stats only increased that much. But if you had managed to defeat it, I'm sure you would've gained many more skills and techniques you could use in the future," Yuu-chan said.
"All right… I can't stay here any longer. I have to accompany the princess. I think the only thing you can do right now is sleep, so sleep well, okay~?" she said as she closed the door to my room.
Hah… alone again in this room. But what she said was true. In that case, good night, Yukito.
——
"Yukito-san, wake up. It's already evening. If you don't wake up, I'll put this wet towel on your face."
I had been sleeping very soundly, but I immediately woke up after hearing that very clear voice so close to my ear.
Of course I was a little startled, but I also reflexively woke up after hearing the word face and that something would be placed on it—
I turned to the other side of the bed and saw Hime sitting there, her feet touching the floor as she leaned her body slightly to look at me.
She was holding a towel and drying it by folding and wringing it.
"What is it, Hime?" I asked.
"The princess and Yuu-chan are helping Forn-san in the kitchen. Luke still hasn't returned with Loki-san, so I decided to wipe your body," she said with a smile.
That was true. Even though I could go to the restroom with Luke's help when he was around, my body was usually wiped instead of me taking a bath.
Even so, the one who wiped my body yesterday… ah, right. No one had done it yesterday.
"A-ah, you don't have to go out of your way, Hime. You must still have a lot to do, right? Wiping my body like this would just be troublesome for you."
"So—"
Hime immediately wrung the small towel she was holding, the sound of dripping water becoming clearer than before.
"No, no. I don't mind at all, you know, Yukito-san~," she replied while looking at me.
If it was like this, then there was no other choice but to go along with it, right?
——
I sat on the bed and began taking off my white shirt. I didn't know where the robe I usually wore was.
When I woke up yesterday, I was already wearing this white shirt, so maybe the robe was being washed or stored somewhere.
Once my shirt was off, my upper body down to my stomach was visible to Hime. For some reason, it felt a little embarrassing.
I had never had someone wipe my body before, so this felt very unfamiliar.
Hime placed the warm towel against my back and gently wiped it.
It felt incredibly comfortable. I could feel a warmth that made me want to experience it forever.
The way Hime moved the towel was amazing, and my body relaxed more than before.
"Now the front, okay, Yukito-san. Excuse me," she said before starting to wipe my chest and stomach.
A-ah, this sensation was really unusual. I felt like someone with a fever being wiped down by another person.
After she finished wiping my upper body, Hime wiped her forehead before placing the towel into the small bucket filled with warm water.
"It's done, right? I want to put my clothes back on—" As I reached out to grab my shirt, she took it before I could.
She held the shirt and waved it up and down to keep it from wrinkling.
"Wait a moment, Yukito-san. I want to straighten this out, and I'm not done with you yet," she said, leaving me confused.
"What?" I asked, my curiosity completely filled.
After she felt the shirt was neat enough, she placed it at the edge of my bed before sitting back down beside me.
She slowly climbed onto the bed and knelt next to me.
My heart began to pound violently when I saw her actions—she had just climbed onto my bed, you know!?
How could I not be shocked? She suddenly climbed up like that without saying anything at all.
"W-what are you doing—"
Suddenly, I felt a touch on both of my shoulders. That touch made my arms feel much better.
Hime used her palms to massage my shoulders. Was she doing this on purpose to help my arms recover faster?
"Your muscles feel stiff, so I thought I should help relax them," she said.
The massage didn't stop there. She held my right arm and began massaging that area as well.
Ughh… Hime's treatment right now really made me sink into the pleasure of her touch.
"All right, finished," she said as she slowly climbed down from the bed.
I immediately grabbed my shirt and put it back on.
Hime carried the bucket of water and the towel in her hands as she left the room.
"I'll come back later at dinnertime, so wait for me, okay?"
Click.
The door to my room closed, and I could feel how calm everything was now.
My body felt much better than before, and my right hand felt lighter as well, able to move little by little.
I lay down again and began spacing out, thinking about many things.