“Oh, oh, oh! You're Esper, right? The legendary new Hero?”
A young black-haired man dressed in a well-tailored black suit, his hair combed meticulously, extended his hand toward her with a proper and elegant smile.
He looked to be in his early thirties, with handsome features, but his hands were constantly in motion.
His other hand was busy using a white handkerchief to wipe away non-existent sweat.
“Ahem, hello, hello. I am the Conquest Knight, Riddell, of the Church of Esperfite.”
His voice was pleasant and his smile was proper, but the speed of his sweat-wiping was only increasing.
“...Are you alright?”
“Ah? Why do you ask?”
Riddell paused for a moment, though his hand kept wiping away.
“You keep... wiping your sweat?”
And from her perspective, there wasn't a single drop of sweat on his face.
“Ah, it's nothing, nothing. I just get a little nervous in these kinds of settings... haha...”
He froze for a second, then stuffed the handkerchief back into his breast pocket with a sheepish grin.
But a moment later, he pulled it out again and resumed wiping.
“You're probably wondering what His Holiness our Pope is doing right now, aren't you? Don't worry, he's still preparing and should be entering shortly.”
“No... I wasn't going to ask...”
“Ah, I understand, haha.”
The corner of Esper's eye twitched.
“Speaking of which, the Pope of Esperfite... his name is Ann, right?”
“Yes. His Holiness Ann. Although he looks rather... well...”
Riddell carefully chose his words.
“Young.”
In the end, he settled on the safest word.
“But please rest assured, His Holiness Ann is absolutely a trustworthy leader.”
His smile was sincere as he spoke, but the speed at which he wiped his sweat only grew faster.
It felt as though he were polishing his forehead.
Was this guy under a bit too much stress...?
Then, she noticed some movement from another direction.
A head of long, platinum-blonde hair floated in from the entrance of the hall, accompanied by a fresh scent that smelled like a blend of forest flowers and grass.
Pale green eyes looked around in all directions, filled with curiosity, as if it were her first time entering such a place.
“Wow... what a huge room...”
The Elven Princess, Elanor.
She wore a green dress with a visibly shortened hemline, revealing her slender calves. A bulging pouch hung from her waist, its contents unknown.
Her gaze swept across the hall before landing on Esper.
“Ah! You're Esper, right? Lady Hero!”
She jogged over, her long platinum-blonde hair fluttering behind her.
“I've heard of you! You're that girl who's super popular with other girls!”
“...Yes, that's me... Wait, what did you say?”
“So cool! It's my first time seeing a real Hero! Can I see your sword?”
“I don't have it on me right now. Since this is a consciousness projection, I didn't bring it in.”
“Eh? Is that how it works...?”
Elanor's expression shifted from excitement to disappointment, but it lasted for only half a second before her excitement returned.
“Then can you let me see it the next time we meet!”
“...Sure, why not.”
“Awesome!”
She clapped her hands, then leaned in a bit closer, lowering her voice.
“Oh, by the way, do you know who that silver-haired person over there is? The one with the huge wings.”
Esper followed her gaze.
On the west side of the roundtable, a tall woman with short white hair and golden eyes stood there. The massive wings spread out behind her occupied almost all the space behind her.
Her expression was haughty. Even when she noticed the gazes of Elanor and Esper, she merely let out a cold snort.
The Winged Princess, Astra.
“That's the princess of the winged race. I heard she's super strong in a fight!”
“Ah, the winged race.”
Esper didn't have much interest, but Elanor kept chattering.
“Oh well, whatever! Esper, have you ever eaten the elves' Stardew Fruit?”
“...No.”
“I'll bring you some next time! They're super delicious!”
“...Okay.”
Then, another gaze weighed down on her.
Heavier, and more direct.
Esper turned her head.
On the north side of the roundtable, the representative area of the beastkin.
A young girl stood there.
The left half of her body was covered in pale blue scales, while the right half grew soft white fur.
On one side of her head was a curved goat horn, and on the other was a deer antler.
She also had two tails: one was a snake tail, and the other was a lion tail.
Her face was quite pretty, looking no different from an ordinary girl, but her heterochromatic eyes—gold on the left, blue on the right—carried an inexplicable sense of oppression.
A chimera.
The word immediately flashed through Esper's mind.
A being born from a mixture of various beast bloodlines.
Unsurprisingly, she was that Kane, the one about whom there was no information.
She was currently staring at Esper with her mismatched eyes, her gaze carrying a seriousness akin to evaluating prey.
“...Kane.”
She spoke, her voice surprisingly deep and steady.
“His Majesty the Beast King wanted me to come take a look at what humanity's Hero is like.”
“Finished looking?”
“Still looking.”
“...Alright.”
Esper decided to ignore her.
Then, she noticed a pair on the south side of the roundtable.
A girl who looked to be around twelve years old sat in a chair. Her upper body was a petite and slender human form, with long lavender hair draping down both sides of the chair back.
But below the chair, her lower body was a lavender serpent tail about three meters long, coiled up and occupying a considerable amount of space.
Naga Seraphis. The Sand King.
She was also the highest-ranking individual among everyone present.
She was currently talking to a girl standing beside her.
A high ponytail with dark brown and gold highlights swayed behind her head, her amber eyes curved into crescents, the corners of her mouth turned up, and she was twirling a bamboo flute in her hand.
“Lyla, look! This table is huge!”
“Yes, it's even bigger than the one in the palace.”
“Hmm? No way. Is it really bigger than the one in the palace?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Then shouldn't we change ours for a new one?”
“Your Majesty, that one is a national treasure...”
“Then we'll buy an even bigger one to be the new national treasure!”
“...I will convey this proposal to the Golden Council for you when we return.”
The tip of Naga's tail lightly brushed against Lyla's ankle, a very natural movement, as if subconscious.
But Lyla looked down, said nothing, and simply switched the flute to her other hand.
Indeed, they seemed to be very close personally.
Then, all sound vanished.
The clamor of the hall went quiet in Esper's ears.
Because someone had walked in through the entrance.
Jet-black hair was neatly tied back, with a stray lock hanging down on each side to brush against her ears.
Her dark red formal wear was tightly and neatly fastened at her neck, the tailoring at her shoulders and waist outlining an extremely slender curve.
A dark bat brooch was pinned beneath her right collar. Her red-bottomed high heels made no sound as they touched the black jade floor, only her hemline and cuffs swaying slightly with her steps.
Eliza Catori, the Vampire Court Head.
She walked over to the roundtable and stood before the seat labeled "Demon", not sitting down immediately.
Her gaze swept across the tabletop, over the faces of everyone present, and finally stopped on Esper.
Esper was also looking at her. Their eyes met under the soft light of the Mage Tower.
“Long time no see,”
Eliza said softly.
“...Who are you?”
“...”
The silence lasted for a good while.
Esper didn't know what she should say. Before coming, she had thought about how to handle this, but not a single word of her prepared remarks was of any use now.
So, she would just say whatever.
Speaking purely from her own resentment.
“Who am I? Have you wandered outside for so long that you've even forgotten your own family...”
“I haven't had any family for a long time, not a single one. I don't know what you're talking about.”
Eliza's body visibly trembled.
Eladia tightened her grip on Esper's hand.
The surrounding participants simultaneously quieted down a bit.
It was nothing new for enemies to cross paths in a venue like this.
But what did the Vampire Court Head have to do with the Hero?
They all sensed some juicy gossip.
At this moment, however, the two subjects of the drama remained silent.
Silent for a very long time.
Then, Eliza let out a soft sigh, her voice so faint it sounded like a mere whisper of wind escaping through her teeth.
“...Your room, I've always kept it empty.”
Esper nodded.
“Whose room is that, exactly? And what does it have to do with me?”
The corner of Eliza's eye twitched.
“...”
“...”
Esper remained silent for a moment, then took Eladia's hand and turned around.
“Wait.”
Eliza's voice drifted over once more.
“...Is there anything else?”
“...Who is she?”
Eliza pointed her finger at the blue figure.
Esper turned her head, her gaze cold.
“Someone more important than family.”
She immediately turned back around after speaking, no longer looking at Eliza's expression.
“Esper... between you and her...”
Eladia spoke with a hint of worry.
“It's nothing. I'll tell you when we go back.”
Esper took a step forward.
And Eliza did not say another word.
Not a single word.
Rate on N.U.
