And so... the first day of the demon realm frontier development came to a close.
Rest returned to his tent with the appropriate gains in hand and settled in to rest.
Though to call it a tent was a bit misleading... the one provided to him as a count was roughly the size of a small studio apartment. Inside, it had a bed, a table, and more.
This was less camping and more glamping.
"But... there's only one bed, huh?"
"Um... Rest-sama, is it too small?"
"No... it's not small."
Hearing Primula's voice from right beside him, Rest answered reflexively.
It was a bed large enough that even with arms spread wide there was room to spare, but... naturally, it was cramped with four people lying on it.
On that bed were not only Rest, but also Viola and Primula who had come to support him, and Yuri who had tumbled in as well.
Pressed together, he could feel their body warmth transfer to him. The scent of what seemed like floral perfume, and even the smell of sweat.
And then... though he was trying his best not to be conscious of it, the sensation of soft limbs.
(Even though we're all the same species... why are a man's and a woman's bodies so different to the touch?)
That women's bodies might be made of marshmallows—even such a ridiculous thought floated at the edge of his mind with a strange sense of truth.
"...It's been a while since we slept cuddled up like this, Rest. Somehow, it feels fresh."
From his right side, Viola spoke.
Her heartbeat, pressed against his arm, was a bit fast, and he could sense her excitement at this rare situation.
"It's... it's a strange feeling. We're outside, but it doesn't feel like outside... My heart's pounding..."
From his left, Primula felt the same.
Her heartbeat was just a little faster than Viola's. Her body temperature was slightly elevated too, and the sensation against his chest…
"Cough, cough-cough…!"
"Are you okay, Rest?"
"Did something happen all of a sudden, Lord Rest?"
"No… it's nothing. Maybe the air is just a little dry…"
Rest banished the impure thoughts and resorted to the classic trick of counting prime numbers in his head.
"There was a water pitcher, wasn't there? Shall I grab it if you'd like?"
And then… from Viola's other side, Yuri's voice called out to him as well.
Since there was one person between him and Yuri, at the very least their bodies weren't pressed together.
He wanted to say it was a relief, but… unlike the two who were his fiancées, she was just a classmate. Just a friend. The fact that he was sharing a bed with a girl who was nothing more than that carried quite the sense of impropriety.
(If the Marquis of House Cattleya were to find out about this situation… haha, I can't even laugh. He'd kill me…)
His excited mind cooled down just a little.
If he so much as touched Yuri's body, the Grim Reaper's scythe would be pressed against Rest's neck.
The doting father of the Rosemary sisters was one thing, but the Marquis of House Cattleya was a different breed entirely.
From what he'd heard, the man doted on his daughter so much that he kept her confined within the estate, practically under house arrest.
If word of this situation reached his ears, there was no telling what he might do.
"Hehehe… somehow, this is really fun. My heart is racing. It feels so naughty even though I'm just sleeping alongside friends."
Yuri, too, was in high spirits, her voice bright with excitement.
At her words, Viola let out a soft sigh.
"Yuri… please, I'm begging you, don't go climbing into some man's bed where we can't see you. There are plenty of bad men out there."
"Yuri, you're so careless, you know... I'm worried you might do something to give men the wrong impression..."
Primula also echoed her sister.
"I know you're very strong, Yuri, but there are people out there who will trick you and do terrible things to women. You mustn't trust men so easily, okay?"
"Yeah... you're right. I'll be careful."
At the Rosemary sisters' words, Yuri agreed with uncharacteristic meekness.
"I was just tricked and locked up by my father and brother the other day... So I'll be careful not to trust people's words too lightly."
"Oh... something like that really happened?"
"Yeah. A woman who used to be my wet nurse fell suddenly ill, so they told me I had to go back... But when I got there, she was perfectly fine. I ended up locked in a room, and had to half-kill both the soldiers and my brother to escape."
"I-Is that so..."
"What an incredible family... My mother is bad enough, too."
"The House Cattleya is a distinguished military family, after all... Their circumstances must be quite unique."
At the sheer extremity of the Cattleya family's situation, Rest and the Rosemary sisters all fell silent, their voices dying in their throats.
"I've already decided no matter what happens, I'm never going back to House Cattleya! Absolutely not, if only to fulfill my mother's dying wish!"
"Your mother's dying wish... what's that about?"
It was the first Rest had heard of it.
Rest asked in puzzlement, but Yuri's only reply was silence.
"...Yuri?"
"...It's a secret. Someday, I'll tell you, Rest."
"............?"
From the darkness, Yuri's voice carried a hint of a luster unlike her usual self.
Though Rest found it strange... he did his best not to be aware of the presence and touch of the three girls, and somehow managed to fall asleep.