Chapter 73

During the day, when I sensed a biological reaction in the garden, I went to check.

"Hey, are you still alive?"

"..."

In front of Hestia's hut, Dianea was lying unconscious.

"Why is she passed out in such a place?"

"Well, when I came out, she was like this. Did she get caught up in a monster attack?"

No, I didn't do anything today.

I don't think I involved her in fighting any monsters.

"Signs of vitality decline are visible."

"Even if I look, she doesn't seem to be injured."

Dianea's face is pale, but there's no sign of bleeding.

"Probably from overwork. When I kept making staves, I ended up like this too."

"You should get proper rest. But, so it's from overwork, huh."

She's completely face-down on the ground.

"S-Sorry, I got relaxed approaching this house..."

"Hey, you're awake?"

But she doesn't get up.

"Ugh... With the festival preparations and the city repairs, I've exhausted my magic and physical strength..."

She must have been really busy. But it's troublesome for her to collapse here.

At least, it would be better if she collapsed after getting home.

The entrance is actually quite comfortable to sleep in.

"..."

No response.

"Should I let her sleep here?"

"No, if I leave her here, she might catch a cold."

I thought about taking her to my house or Hestia's hut,

"How about giving her an apple?"

Hestia's words reminded me.

Right, our apples have some restorative power.

"Come to think of it, I gave her an apple last time. If that kept her alive, giving her another one should be fine."

"Hmm"

Freshly picked ones can be dangerous, but fortunately, we have a decent stock of apples. So I brought one, cut it, and placed it in front of Dianea.

"Here, eat it."

"Ugh..."

Ah, this won't work.

She can open her mouth, but she can't chew.

"You really push yourself, don't you?"

"Yeah, she can't eat this... How about this? --Golem!"

I summoned a golem and had it hold the apple.

Since one won't be enough, I placed about twenty in its palm,

"Squeeze it."

I compressed them and extracted the juice into a wooden container.

The liquid from twenty apples was quickly squeezed out, filling the container.

"Making juice, the hard way."

"If it comes out as juice, it's the same, right?"

I considered using a blender, but it's not worth making one just for this.

"Here, can you drink this?"

I brought the wooden container to Dianea's mouth, and she started gulping it down.

Hmm, this might work.

She should recover a bit. Just as I thought,

"Ah!? What is this!?"

"Wow, you're suddenly full of energy."

Dianea suddenly stood up and grabbed my body.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"N-No, D-Daiichi-sama! My body is incredibly hot! Could you have spiked me with an aphrodisiac?! If you did, I'm ready to accept it immediately!"

"Wait a minute. Calm down, Dianea."

She's gripping my shoulder with a strength that doesn't seem to match her slender arms.

Her eyes are bloodshot, what's going on with her?

"Over-recovery?"

"Seems like it."

It feels like someone who's taken an energy booster for the first time, but much worse.

I didn't know our apples had this effect.

"Because I put in twenty..."

"Yeah, maybe that was too many..."

They must be too nutrient-rich.

"D-Daiichi-sama! I'm taking off my clothes now, is it okay to accept you after that!?"

"Ah... Dianea..."

"What?!"

"Calm down. You're a princess, you know."

"Ugh!?"

Since she was about to attack me, I tied her up with tree ropes.

"Whoa, whoa, let me go!"

The binding is loose, but she shouldn't be able to move.

She won't make a mistake in a fit of energy.

She's a princess, after all. Her chastity is important.

"Hmm, but you're way too energetic."

"Should I have diluted it?"

I didn't expect Dianea to react like this.

I thought people with a lot of magic would be fine eating apples.

"Does Hestia get like this when she eats an apple?"

"Well, when she's tired or craving magic, I might become a little... you know, because she's female."

Seriously?

"Did I unknowingly spread an energy booster..."

I underestimated the effect of the apples a bit.

"Well, unless you're really exhausted, it won't be like this. This time, she drank too much of the concentrate. Normally, just consider it a nutritional supplement."

Hestia looked at the apple intently and said that.

I should be more careful in the future.

At least when giving it to someone, I should reduce the number or dilute it.