In a room in the royal palace of the Hydra Kingdom that is used for the most extensive and important purposes.
This room, with a huge round table in the center, is where the council meeting, which plays a large part in the government of the country, is held.
The Hydra Kingdom has a parliamentary system, and the members elected by the people are assembled here by vote.
Eight members are from the nobility, eight from the merchants and commoners, and with the addition of the king, there were 17 people within this room that are discussing various national issues on a daily basis.
The people’s vote lasts until the Festival of Heroes, which means that the members present here have been in office for at least nine years.
Even though the members of the parliament are accustomed to this kind of situation, they looked very nervous today.
The reason for this is obvious…… It was because the Supreme God, Fate, who rarely visits the Human Realm is sitting next to the King…… or even just the fact that she’s here in this place.
[……Well then, how about we get started?]
[Yes.]
[If possible, I would be glad if we could move forward with the matters involving the God Realm first?]
[I respectfully obey…… In regards to the events that will take place in various places with the incoming Light month……]
With Shea and Heart behind her, Fate’s eyes were cold to the point that chills ran down the spines of those who participated in the council meeting, and her nonchalant voice holds no emotion at all.
Sweating under the tremendous pressure, King Hydra spoke the first item on the agenda, and the King’s subordinates, who were waiting on standby in the room, handed out the materials to Fate and the council members.
The first thing that came up on the agenda was the events for the incoming Light month…… The festivals within Hydra Kingdom that would take place before the Festival of Heroes.
In the year of the Festival of Heroes, festivals are held in many parts of the world, and even in the Hydra Kingdom, the number of festivals is huge if you include the ones in small villages.
And the organizers of those festivals…… to put it simply, they want to invite the Gods to their festivals. Just their participation is enough to make the name of their festival glitter in gold, so almost all of the organizers of the festivals were asking if the Gods could attend theirs.
Originally, it was delivered to the low-ranking Gods who stayed in various parts of the Hydra Kingdom, and after being checked by the high-ranking Gods, the Supreme God, Fate, would make the final decision.
However, since Fate has personally come to this place now, she will give her responses to these requests here and now.
Fate slowly picks up the materials placed in front of her, and with the eyes of the senators focused on her, she slightly lifts the stack of paper, which must have been composed of a hundred sheets, with one hand and releases her grip.
The material that fell from Fate’s hand mysteriously returns to the table, dropped straight down on the table, without a single piece of paper disrupted from its order.
[……I give my approval for the 4th, 9th, 13th, 25th, 41st, from number 52 to 56, 76th, and 92nd request. God of Disasters, assign people to each respective places.]
[Hahh……]
[Other than that, I don’t feel that it is necessary for the Gods to participate. If they really want to invite the Gods that much, tell them to rework their proposals and submit it again…… However, regarding #66 and #80, their outlines are too unrealistic. Tell them to review it from scratch.]
[……Y- Yes. Thank you very much. We will do as you will.]
Fate had looked over all the documents in the few seconds just now, and in response to the festivals that she would grant permission for, she pulled out a form and gave it to the high-ranking God, Shea.
Moreover, the forms were already signed by Fate and it was already completed as a document.
[……Then, next. Show me a list of all the citizens of the Hydra Kingdom who have been blessed by anyone other than the low-ranking Gods residing in the Hydra Kingdom.]
[Y- Yes!]
[……God of Disasters, give me the reports that you were about to submit to me in the God Realm.]
[Here.]
As if to say she wasn’t going to waste her time, Fate immediately moved on to the next case…… Supplementing the report about the people who received blessings, she compared the report she received from the Kingdom with the report to the God Realm.
[……There are three cases that were omitted from the list here. Two were received in the Symphonia Kingdom, while the other was received in the Archlesia Empire.]
[T- That is… Please excuse our incompetence.]
[It’s fine, it’s not like it’s that bad…… I’ve already checked these, so you should validate and revise these by tomorrow…… Can you do that?]
[Y- Yes! By all means!!!]
The senators and the King were silent as if completely overwhelmed by the sigh of Fate’s figure, who was dealing with one job after another with terrifying speed.
This sight before them was a true testament to how out of the norm the Supreme Gods are……
[…..Well then, regarding the Festival of Heroes…… About the rotation of the Gods staying in the Hydra Kingdom. Where’s the draft?]
[Omnomnom…… Pfuaahhh~~ That was quite sumptuous!]
[T- That’s great then.]
What’s left in front of me now is what’s left over after Alice finishes eating…… Piles of skewers and wooden plates stacked up like towers…… This woman seriously ate all of it.
N- No matter how I look at it, isn’t that strange? The volume of the food she ate obviously outweighs the size of Alice’s body…… W- Well, we’re talking about Alice here, so I guess it can’t be helped?
[W- Well, anyway, with this…… I guess we’ll go on a date right after we get back to the Symphonia Kingdom?]
[Okey-dokey~~! Well~~ It’s been a long time since I ate lots of food~~ Alice-chan is satisfied.]
[I- I see…… Wait, oi, oi, Alice.]
[……Ehh?]
Just when I was wryly smiling, looking at Alice with a satisfied smile on her face, I saw that the corners of Alice’s mouth were a bit dirty.
Well, if she’s that greedy in devouring all the food earlier, her mouth will certainly get dirty too. She’s really a troublesome fellow.
Thinking about this, I took out a handkerchief and wiped Alice’s mouth.
[Fuehh!? Mnguuh!?]
[Come on, stay still.]
[Nyaahhh!? K- K- K- Kaito-san!?]
[No, like I said, don’t move……]
[I- I can wipe it myself! I said I can wipe it myseeeelllfff!?]
As I wipe her mouth, Alice flaps her hands around in an unusually flustered manner.
When I put away my hand after overcoming her resistance, Alice looks at me with her face bright red.
[……W- W- W- Well then, I will be g- g- going back to guarding you!!!]
[Ahh, wait!?]
And thus, she disappeared in the blink of an eye, and even when I called out to her, she didn’t respond.
Eh? Arehh? Could it be that she felt embarrassed? It might be the first time I’ve seen Alice act like that other than that time she took off her mask.
How should I say this…… Seeing Alice’s unexpected side, or rather, her adorable side, I suddenly felt a smile leak out of my lips.
After that, I started walking again to head towards the inn.
As I go through the busy street, the scenery gradually changes to a shopping street with a calm atmosphere.
It seems that there are many clothing stores around here, as I could see many show windows like things here and there, where beautiful dresses and high-quality clothing are displayed.
Come to think of it, I remembered Alice once said that the clothing culture is developing in the Hydra Kingdom, so perhaps, there are many shops like that around this area.
As I walked around, peeking into a few shops, slowly heading towards the inn……
[……Arehh? Could it be…… If it isn’t Miyama-san!?]
[……Eh?]
When I heard my name being called, I turned around to see a young man with black hair a short distance away, waving his hand at me.
The young man, who was wearing glasses and had a refreshing smile on his face, has a well-groomed face that seems to be a combination of childishness and maturity. It feels as if I’ve seen him somewhere though…… Though it also feels like I didn’t……
[……Hello, it’s quite unexpected that I would meet you here. Do you remember me?]
[……E- Errr……]
The young man runs up to me with a bright smile on his face and lightly bows his head to greet me.
If I were asked if I’m familiar with him…… I feel like he is. I feel like he’s familiar but…… I can connect his appearance with anyone I know.
He had his face, but I don’t know if I could say it like the atmosphere around him is different…… Or perhaps, like a child who has become an adult…… But anyway, this young man is……
[……C- Could you be “Mitsunaga-kun”?]
[Yes! It’s been a while!]
[E- Eeeehhhh!?]
I was right!? He’s Mitsunaga-kun!? Didn’t he change too much since the last time I saw him!?
I- I mean, this might be a bad way of saying this, but the Mitsunaga-kun I know was one of those people who study liberal arts, with their backs always hunched over…… Just like a good boy you can find among the typical high schoolers…… but when I saw him again, he had changed into a refreshing, sporty ikemen.
N- No, no, it isn’t just on the level of how boys apparently change if you don’t see them for three days, you know!? Eh? Is he really Mitsunaga-kun? This ikemen whose existence screams out riajuu? He’s Mitsunaga-kun!? Seriously!?
……W- What the heck happened…… in these last 5+ months?
Dear Mom, Dad———- In the Hydra Kingdom, I was reunited with Mitsunaga-kun, who happened to be summoned to this world with me. No, it’s true that I was worried about Mitsunaga-kun, and meeting him like this was a nice coincidence but….. When we met again, Mitsunaga-kun——- had turned into a far greater ikemen than before.
<Afterword>
Seigi-kun, it’s been 264 chapters since you last appeared.
T/N: 7/146