Ten days pass, and the group is still on their way to the capital. Mui starts to wonder how much farther they have to travel. Dagas reassures her that they should be arriving at a town soon, where they can finally rest. That town happens to be famous for its hot springs, so Yui excitedly asks Clare if she wants to visit one. Clare admits that she’s never actually experienced a hot spring before, which shocks Yui, who insists she’s been missing out big time.
Meanwhile, the others rest under a tree and chat about how friendly Yui has been with Clare throughout the trip. Part of it is just Yui’s personality, but it also helps keep the tension down, since the group is constantly reminded that they’re technically on the run from demons.
When they finally arrive at the town, the first thing they do is follow Yui’s suggestion and head straight for the hot springs. Yui and Silica waste no time soaking in the bath, barely noticing how unusual it is that there are no other patrons around. Clare, however, is nervous about undressing in front of others and keeps her towel wrapped tightly around her. Silica and Yui reassure her that there’s nothing to be embarrassed about since they’re all girls, and eventually Clare agrees to join them—but only if they promise not to stare at her.
A few minutes later, Yui finds herself staring at Clare anyway. Just as Clare begins to feel uncomfortable, Yui compliments her slim figure, saying it’s fitting for a princess. Even so, Clare feels insecure because she doesn’t have curves as large as Silica’s. Yui’s chest is also fairly large, but Silica teases that it’s only because Yui has been overeating sweets and meat recently. Yui jumps up to argue, but quickly realizes Silica has a point, which annoys her even more.
On the other side of the wall, Dagas, Cross, and Lloyd wash each other’s backs, overhearing the entire conversation. While Dagas and Cross do their best to block out the embarrassing chatter, Lloyd’s mind is elsewhere. He’s worried that since the demons want to recapture Clare, they’ll likely make a move soon. A large-scale attack within the kingdom seems unlikely, but a smaller elite strike force is very possible. Lloyd begins thinking of countermeasures.
Originally, the plan was to stay in the town for just one night before continuing their journey. However, Lloyd calls a meeting and suggests staying for a few days so he can make preparations. Dagas agrees, saying he wants to upgrade his gear, and Silica adds that she could use some time to experiment with her magic. Cross says he doesn’t really care either way, leaving the decision to Yui. With most of the group in favor of staying, Yui agrees to put their departure on hold.
The next morning, Dagas heads out to browse the local weapon shops. He spends the morning searching but still can’t find what he’s looking for. While walking down the street, he spots Yui and Clare near a boat, looking as though they’re about to go sightseeing.
Yui asks Dagas what he’s doing. Dagas explains that he has been meaning to get a new shield since his current one is getting old, but he hasn’t had much luck finding a replacement, even after checking all the weapon shops in the city. Clare recalls seeing a weapon store in one of the back alleys, though it looked pretty run-down, so she isn’t sure if Dagas will find anything useful there.
Dagas makes his way to the store. Inside, he finds no one around and wonders if the place is abandoned—until he notices the high-quality weapons hanging on the walls, confirming he’s in the right place. Just then, the owner comes out and immediately starts yelling, thinking Dagas is one of the Julians who often cause trouble in his shop. Dagas, confused, explains that he’s only here to browse for weapons. The old man apologizes for the misunderstanding and lets him look around.
While Dagas is checking the shield selection, a group of men barges in. Their leader, Karen, starts yelling for the old man to come out. Noticing Dagas, Karen is surprised that the store even has a customer, and obnoxiously asks if he’s really here to shop. Dagas confirms that he’s looking to buy a weapon, which makes the group burst into laughter. They assume he must be a low-ranked adventurer for shopping in such a shabby place.
The owner comes out again, clearly angry. Karen smirks smugly and asks how business has been lately, though he already knows the answer—since he has been deliberately interfering with the shop. From this, Dagas realizes that Karen and his gang have been harassing the old man.
Dagas steps in, but Karen’s buddies warn him to back off, boasting that Karen is an A-rank adventurer and the strongest in town. Of course, that would only be true if there weren’t an S-rank shieldbearer standing right in front of them. Unaware of Dagas’s true rank, Karen continues to brag.
Dagas challenges him, asking why an A-rank adventurer is wasting his time harassing an old man. Karen explains that he’s after an artifact in the shop. The owner refuses to sell it to him, saying Karen isn’t worthy and wouldn’t be able to use it to its full potential. But Karen insists he’ll simply beat the old man until he hands it over.
Hearing this, Dagas steps forward and calls him a disgrace to all adventurers for even thinking that way. One of Karen’s men angrily throws a punch, but it’s too weak to faze him. Dagas grabs the man’s arm, twists it behind his back, then pulls his shield out of storage and rams the entire group out of the shop.
Karen is left stunned, realizing he completely underestimated Dagas. Calmly, Dagas pulls out his adventurer’s ID and informs them that he’s S-rank. He explains that he didn’t mention it earlier because bragging about rank is lame, and he refuses to stoop to their level.
After everything that just happened, the old man makes up his mind and calls for Dagas, saying he has a favor to ask of him.
Meanwhile, back at the inn, Lloyd is busy working on his magic when Yui and Clare return from their sightseeing. Yui asks what he’s doing, and Lloyd explains that he’s trying to improve his support spells. He’s also considering learning some new magic but isn’t sure what direction to take. Yui suggests he try attack spells, but Lloyd doubts it would help much—he’s certain Silica’s attack magic is far superior to anything he could manage. For once, Yui actually understands his insecurity, since finding a mage on Silica’s level is practically impossible.
Out in the forest, Silica is training her magic. She reflects that, during their last battle, if Lloyd and Clare hadn’t shown up when they did, she and the others would likely have died. She can’t keep depending on Lloyd to save the day, so she’s determined to grow stronger by upgrading her spells. She spends hours working on a high-level fire spell, but every attempt so far has exploded in her face. Still, she refuses to give up—failure is just part of the process.
Back at the inn, Lloyd and the others sip tea. Yui tells him it’s no exaggeration to call Silica a genius with magic. But what truly makes her special isn’t raw talent—it’s her relentless drive. She never quits until she masters a spell, no matter how tough or how long it takes.
That persistence is on full display in the forest. Silica finally manages to control the new fire spell without it blowing up, and she’s thrilled by the progress. Unfortunately, her excitement gets the better of her—she slips on the rock she’s standing on, loses control, and the spell detonates in a huge explosion.
Luckily, Silica survives with only minor scrapes and is relieved she didn’t accidentally set the whole forest ablaze. Still, she’s embarrassed by such a silly mistake. In public, she always keeps her guard up, but when she’s alone, she tends to relax too much. With her clothes ruined and her energy drained, she decides to call it a day.
Just as she’s about to leave, she hears rustling in the bushes. Her first thought is that it’s a monster—and if so, she’s in trouble since she’s already used up most of her magic reserves. But thankfully, it’s only Dagas.
They’re both surprised to see each other, so Silica asks Dagas what he’s doing in the forest. He explains it’s a bit of a long story.
Earlier, when the old man asked a favor of him, he revealed a legendary shield forged by one of the best blacksmiths in Ryans. The shield, called Aegis, is said to block any attack and is practically indestructible. Karen had been desperate to get his hands on it, but the old man refused. Not only because Karen couldn’t wield something so heavy properly, but also because he simply didn’t want such a work of art wasted on someone that annoying.
With Dagas, however, it was different. The old man offered to give him the shield—but on one condition. Since that morning, people in town had been hearing strange explosions in the forest, and no one dared to investigate. If Dagas would look into it, the shield would be his.
Silica is embarrassed to realize that her training was the cause of all the commotion. Dagas points to the massive crater she created, telling her it’s no wonder the townsfolk were terrified. He then takes her back to the old man, where she apologizes profusely. The man forgives her since she fixed the crater, and insists Dagas accept the shield anyway, respecting him as a true adventurer.
Back at the inn, Dagas and Silica tell the others what happened. Everyone is impressed that Dagas obtained such a legendary shield and equally amazed that Silica already mastered a new spell. Yui even asks her to demonstrate it later.
Seeing both Dagas and Silica improve so much in a single day makes Lloyd eager to grow stronger too, while Cross feels a little left out since he didn’t accomplish much. Yui reassures them there’s no need to rush—they’ll all continue to grow. For now, she declares it’s time to eat and drags Clare off to a restaurant.
