I Was Caught up in a Hero Summoning, but That World Is at Peace (WN)

Chapter 2471 - Movie Watching with Kaori ⑦

This must be what they meant for one’s blood to drain from a person’s face. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Chris Dia Archlesia, Emperor of Archlesia Empire, was now facing a terrifying situation.

[……Errr, well, it’s a personal thing, something on a small scale, but I was thinking of organizing a tea party…… I’m just at the stage of reaching out to people I thought of.]

First of all, Chris, renowned as the Wise Emperor and possessing extraordinarily high intelligence-gathering capabilities, was already fully aware of the exchange that had taken place during the tea party with Eris.

She therefore knew that Kaito had made remarks at that gathering about possibly organizing a tea party if the opportunity arose. However, his current words indicated that the situation had changed drastically.

(……At the tea party with Lady Eris, it sounded like nothing more than “I might plan one if I get the chance”, but if he’s already at the stage of inviting participants…… that suggests there’s a high possibility that, in Miyama-sama’s mind, the decision to actually hold the tea party has already been finalized. Since it’s strictly Miyama-sama’s personal tea party and not an official event, there’s no need to consider the balance between the Three Realms or the Three Nations……)

Though shaken, Chris’ thoughts began racing at extraordinary speed. More than the fact that the tea party would be held at all, what truly mattered was who would attend, and that was precisely the point Chris cared about most.

[I’ve only just started inviting people, but for now, the ones who are confirmed are Shiro-san, Eris-san, and Olivia-san. Of course, there’s no pressure, but Chris-san, would you like to join as well?]

For a brief instant after hearing the confirmed participants, the thought crossed her mind that “Eris has been thrown alone into hell”, but there was something far more important that needed to take priority.

(Shallow Vernal-sama and Founder-sama alone already make this overwhelming, and I highly doubt it will end there. Miyama-sama is envisioning this as a small-scale tea party…… most likely with fewer than 20 participants. And though this is only speculation, at this stage Miyama-sama probably isn’t selecting participants based on any deep considerations, he’s simply inviting people he happens to meet or think of. That makes the randomness of the attendees extremely high. My guess is that once it exceeds around 10 people, he’ll start thinking about who else he should invite.)

Chris’ reading of the situation was remarkably accurate. At present, Kaito wasn’t extending invitations based on specific reasons or logic like “this person should be invited alongside that one”. The reason he had invited Chris now was simply because he happened to meet her at this moment and remembered the tea party.

And for Chris, this invitation was like having heaven and hell spread out before her eyes at the same time. Speaking frankly from her personal feelings, she had no desire whatsoever to attend a tea party that was all but guaranteed to give her a stomachache.

However, as the head of a nation…… as an Emperor…… the benefits to be gained were simply too enormous for her to even consider declining.

Even with only the confirmed participants, Shallow Vernal and Olivia were figures with whom it would normally be difficult to maintain even proper diplomatic contact. Considering that the nature of a tea party would allow for at least some degree of conversation…… the gains to be had in exchange for a stomachache were nothing short of tremendous.

(If this is merely a spur-of-the-moment, casually planned event in Miyama-sama’s mind, then the randomness of who gets invited is high, but even so, there are certain individuals we can reasonably predict. First, Duchess Lilia’s attendance is practically guaranteed. Given her position, there’s no way she could skip a tea party being held next door with so many notable figures in attendance.)

Regardless of Lilia’s own will, or the damage it might do to her stomach, her participation could be considered virtually certain. Even setting aside such reasoning, it was difficult to imagine Lilia not getting dragged into a situation like this, so Chris judged her attendance as almost assured.

(Considering her relationship with Miyama-sama, her past participation in Lady Eris’ tea party, and the fact that she heard about the plan to organize one, the likelihood of Kuromu-sama attending is also high. And if it’s a tea party hosted by Miyama-sama, then Eden-sama or Makina-sama…… I don’t know which one would come, but there’s a strong chance that that individual would want to participate as well. And if Eden-sama does attend, then Phantasmal King-sama would likely join as a stopper.)

The individuals Chris immediately thought of as having a high probability of attending were Lilia, Kuromueina, Makina, and Alice, four people…… Adding the three already confirmed participants and Chris herself brought the total to 8. By her estimation, there were only about two remaining slots left in the high-randomness participant pool, but predicting who those might be was difficult.

(This is a terrifying prospect. No matter how you look at it, the participants are all extraordinary figures, and accordingly, the benefits to be gained from interacting with them would also be extraordinary……)

What lay ahead was both hell and heaven. Not hell “or” heaven, hell and heaven existed simultaneously. In exchange for an unimaginable stomachache, one would obtain overwhelming rewards.

In other words, the choice before Chris now was between a 0 or 100…… Reject the invitation like Kaori and gain a momentary peace, or accept the stomachache in exchange for profit…… In a sense, there was practically no choice at all.

[……It’s truly an honor. Since this is such a rare opportunity, I’ll gratefully accept the invitation.]

[Got it. Then I’ll contact you once the detailed schedule is decided.]

Smiling towards Kaori, who looked at her with a worried expression, Chris conveyed her decision to participate in the tea party to Kaito. As she did, she silently vowed that once the two of them left, she would immediately brew and drink the tea she’d been given, said to be effective against stomachaches……

<Afterword>

Serious-senpai : [Even knowing that hell awaits her ahead, as the head of a nation, she simply can’t choose not to participate, given the lineup involved…… how terribly pitiful.]

? ? ? : [Kaito-san really is still at the stage of inviting people on a whim, so being invited at all is something rare…… you could even say it’s good luck, in a way. Also, can everyone please stop naturally recognizing me…… Alice-chan as Makina’s handler?]