After speaking with Elaina through their telepathic link, time started flowing the same way in both worlds.
He kept her company, chatting with her until she fell asleep, and only then did he finally relax.
Elaina kept talking to him mostly because she was still scared and lonely in a strange world.
She was all alone now, after all.
No matter how curious, mature, or strong-willed she was, she was still a girl. There was no way she could be completely unaffected.
Still, she adapted quickly. She would probably get used to it before long.
Frieren and the others were still making slow progress in the dungeon. They were even planning to sleep there.
There was no time limit for the second round. As long as you weren't eliminated from the labyrinth, you could keep going.
At Frieren's pace, it might take another two or three days.
Without Frieren, no one else would be able to clear the maze.
At this point, aside from Serie and Flamme, no one in this world could compare to her.
With Frieren there, Fern and the others didn't have to worry about being ambushed. Her barriers were still impossible for anyone to break.
That night passed quietly.
Serie never woke up, so Shichen just slept with her in his arms.
The next morning, it was Elaina who woke him.
"Hey, are you awake yet, Shichen?"
"...I'm awake, I'm awake," he answered helplessly.
Elaina's voice was lively and playful, but even a pleasant voice could feel noisy first thing in the morning.
Especially when he'd been woken up by it.
Mostly, though, he'd already grown used to the girls' presence.
If he'd met Elaina and gotten a wake-up call like this back at the start, he probably would've been thrilled beyond reason.
Then again, that would've been true for any girl he knew.
But he wasn't that impulsive young version of himself anymore.
"Did I wake you?" Elaina sounded a little embarrassed.
"So you know that?"
"Well, I was bored all by myself~" Elaina whined.
"I'm not blaming you. Waking me up is fine. Keeping an eye on you matters."
"Tch, you really don't trust me," Elaina said, sounding displeased—but there was a trace of happiness in her voice too.
"What are you doing? I can hear rustling."
"I'm getting dressed."
"Oh..."
"Hm? Don't tell me you're trying to peek. No peeking!"
"...I'm not that powerful yet."
Until he recovered all the divine fragments, he still couldn't do that. Looking into another world through another world was already on the level of the world itself.
Like how the bacteria inside one body can't see the bacteria in another body, but a human can see another human.
"Good. I'm putting on underwear right now," Elaina said, sounding relieved.
"...You're doing that on purpose, aren't you?" Shichen asked dryly.
"Doing what on purpose?" Elaina answered in an innocent tone.
"Careful, or you'll get burned."
"Hehe~" Elaina didn't sound worried at all.
They chatted like that for a while. Once Elaina had finished changing, she went to wash up.
At some point she cut off the telepathic connection on her own.
She was probably using the toilet.
Sure enough, not long after, she reconnected.
Shichen didn't comment on it. Better not to embarrass her and trigger a whole scene.
Once Elaina was done with everything, he went over.
"You came?"
"To have breakfast with you."
"Oh~ pretty thoughtful." Elaina smiled brightly.
Shichen made a simple breakfast: fried eggs, sandwiches, hot milk, plus sausage and bacon.
He still had plenty of premium seafood stored away too, but there was no need to bring that out yet.
They could eat breakfast together every day. He could show her new things little by little.
Ideally, something different every day.
He didn't need to be with Elaina all day. Just this—talking to her every morning and evening, keeping her company, answering her questions, hearing her wake him up—was enough.
Elaina was in an unfamiliar world, and this kind of companionship was enough to help her feel safe.
After breakfast, Shichen saw her off and returned to Frieren's world.
Elaina picked up her journey from the same spot as yesterday.
In truth, she hadn't even made it out of one neighborhood the day before. She'd spent the whole time either eating or on her way to eat.
At this rate, getting out of one city might take her months.
Compared to her world, this one was completely different. Here, there were people everywhere, food everywhere.
In her own world, you could fly half a day and still not find anything but empty wilderness.
When Shichen returned to Serie, she was still asleep. He didn't wake her.
Instead, he kept answering Elaina's endless questions while watching Frieren and the others work through the dungeon.
Honestly, Elaina might not travel the whole world for years—if ever.
Modern food had already completely won her over.
She wanted to try everything she saw. That wasn't really traveling anymore.
But that was fine. Since she'd come to this world, she should enjoy it properly.
That said, he'd have to keep an eye on her weight. He didn't want her showing up a month later rounder than before.
It wasn't that he disliked chubby girls. The problem was that Elaina herself definitely wouldn't be able to accept it.
No girl wanted to gain weight.
He could slim her down quickly if needed, but that would still cause trouble.
And she'd probably end up blaming him for not stopping her sooner.
Avoiding unnecessary hassle was important.
About an hour later, Serie finally woke up.
She'd slept for a very long time—over a day and a half, by Shichen's count.
Had he been a little too rough yesterday?
After all, the entire bed had been soaked.
"You're awake. You really slept a long time." He rubbed her head.
"Haaah..." Serie yawned lazily. "How long did I sleep?"
"Not that long. About a day and a half."
"?" Serie stared at him blankly.
"I'm not lying."
"That long? Then the exam must be over already?"
"You're worried about the exam? You're not even curious why you slept that much?"
"Whose fault do you think that is? You didn't show me a shred of mercy." Serie shot him a look.
"You're not exactly delicate jade. You're more like a brat."
"Hmph." Serie immediately put on a cold expression.
"Don't make that face!" Shichen grabbed her cheeks and pulled them outward.
"Mmph..." Serie couldn't talk and couldn't struggle either.
"Know what you did wrong yet?" he asked.
Serie just glared at him stubbornly, clearly refusing to give in.
Shichen already knew what she was like, so he didn't keep bullying her. He let go and rubbed her cheeks instead.
"Can't you be more like a normal girl?"
"If I were more like a normal girl, you wouldn't like it." Serie retorted.
"Is that so?"
"Hmph. Don't think I don't know—you like me exactly like this." Serie said smugly.
"You do know me pretty well." Shichen smiled, pulled her into his arms, and kissed her forehead.
Serie didn't resist. She sat in his lap, letting him hold her.
He could feel the bounce of her little hips. And she still wasn't wearing anything.
"Wait, you..." Serie suddenly blurted out.
"What?" Shichen asked, fully aware of what she meant.
"How are you already..." Serie could obviously feel it, sitting on him like that while completely bare.
"Doesn't that just prove how charming you are?" Shichen wrapped an arm around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder.
Her skin was pale and smooth as jade.
"But yesterday, didn't we spend the whole day..." Serie looked uneasy.
Just remembering yesterday made her legs feel weak again.
"You know how strong I am," Shichen said proudly.
That wasn't the full story, of course. The real reason was that, for him, several days had already passed.
Serie didn't know that, though—and she was already getting nervous.
"So... since Frieren and the others still won't finish the exam for a while, how about we keep training and sweating together?"
"N-no, that's probably not necessary..." Serie's voice trembled.
"What do you mean, not necessary? Weren't you always complaining that I never spent enough time with you? I'll keep you company until you're satisfied."
"Wait—!"
Her protest did nothing. Shichen pinned her down and started teasing her all over again.
It didn't take long before Serie was crying once more.