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Chapter 2100: Intermission: The One Preparing at the Shop
Chapter 2100: Intermission: The One Preparing at the Shop
Chapter 2100: Intermission: The One Preparing at the Shop
At the high-end chocolate shop Dia Royale Chocolate…… in the owner's room at the back, Eris had been waiting since early morning.
The reason was simple: Kaito was scheduled to visit the shop today. When Kaito had visited previously, he had mentioned his plan to come to this city next month, but through subsequent correspondence, Eris learned the exact date. As a result, she had cleared her schedule and was waiting at the shop from early morning.
(Even though his visit isn’t guaranteed, if there’s a possibility that Kaito-sama might come, it’s only natural for me, as the owner, to attend to him personally. I’ve informed all the staff, and they’ve all been shown his portrait to ensure they recognize him. If Kaito-sama does come, I’ll certainly be notified right away. For now, I’ll occupy myself with sorting letters and documents while I wait.)
Putting aside how Kaito himself recognizes it, Eris was already rumored among the nobility to have a close relationship with him. If Kaito were to visit her shop and she didn’t attend to him personally, it might give ammunition to those nobles who are only skilled at undermining others, claiming that Eris was disregarding Kaito.
Even setting that aside, Kaito’s very presence was a singularity in the world. The chance of special circumstances arising, like when he previously visited accompanied by Jutia, was high. For this reason, Eris felt it was best for her to handle things personally.
(This time, he mentioned bringing an otherworlder friend. To my knowledge, the current otherworlders present in Trinia are Miyama Kaito-sama, Kusunoki Aoi-sama, Yuzuki Hina-sama, and Viscount Seigi M. Neverlight…… I know the faces of these five individuals, so I’ll recognize them immediately. There’s also talk of Kaito-sama’s parents being here, but if that’s the case, he likely wouldn’t refer to them as friends, so we can rule them out.)
Of course, Eris had thoroughly memorized all the key information about the World's Singularity, Kaito. Regarding the three summoned alongside him, Aoi, Hina, and Seigi, she knew their names and faces. While she hadn’t seen Kaito’s parents, as they hadn’t participated in public events, she was confident they could be excluded from consideration in this scenario.
Moreover, after learning last month that Kaito might bring “an otherworlder friend” she had investigated past Hero Actors who had emigrated to this world. However, her understanding of this group wasn’t flawless.
(If he brings a past Hero Actor, I might not be able to identify them immediately. Currently, the past Hero Actors who have emigrated and are still alive are Mizuhara Kaori-sama, Mikumo Akane-sama, and Okura Shigenobu-sama…… As for Tomioka Ayako-sama…… She was a Hero Actor 15 generations ago, so as expected, it's almost certain she's no longer alive. That narrows the possibilities to these three. If he brings a man other than Viscount Neverlight, it would likely be Okura Shigenobu-sama, but the remaining two are trickier. I might not be able to judge by appearance alone. That said, in such a case, I can guide the conversation toward introductions, so…… there shouldn’t be any issues.)
Eris knew the names of Kaori and Akane, and she had learned that Akane was the head of the Mikumo Trading Company. However, since Mikumo Trading Company rarely interacted with nobility or the wealthy, she hadn’t been able to obtain a portrait of Akane in the short time available. As for Kaori, as she had chosen to live as an ordinary citizen, there was little information about her beyond the fact that she lived in Friendship City.(……The biggest issue is the "one more person" Kaito-sama mentioned. If they were simply another otherworlder, things would be straightforward enough…… But in that case, he would have referred to them as two otherworlder friends. From his phrasing, it felt as though he was deliberately withholding details about this individual. Considering there were other customers eavesdropping at the time, perhaps he refrained from revealing specifics out of consideration for privacy…… I suppose that person must be someone significant huh?)
Since Eris couldn’t confirm whether or not they would visit, she hadn’t pried too deeply into who Kaito planned to bring along on the city tour. As such, she still had no concrete information about this one other person.
(That said, the possibilities of who they may be can be narrowed down somewhat. If this other friend is visiting together with Kaito-sama's otherworlder friend, then it’s highly likely that they also know the otherworlder friend. Of course, under the assumption that Kaito made the introduction, every individual associated with Kaito-sama becomes a candidate…… However, the most probable choice would be the Underworld King, Kuromueina-sama? Kuromueina-sama is famously close to otherworlders so…… For now, there’s time, and I’ll prepare for as many scenarios as possible.)
Eris was exceptionally intelligent, and with the advance information she had this time, she had made thorough preparations and felt confident in her ability to handle the situation.
Even so…… the idea that Kaito might bring the Founder———— someone completely outside of her expectations, "whose very presence outside the Friendly City could be considered an anomaly", was something that not even Eris could foresee.
<Afterword>
Serious-senpai : [Ah~~ I see. During Archlesia Empire's Founding Festival, Kaori and Akane made an appearance at the ceremony itself, but Eris, not being the head of their household, didn't attend directly. And during the party afterward, those two were waiting in a separate room, so no wonder she doesn’t know their faces……]
? ? ? : [Quite the careful setup for a gut-punching prelude. And come the next chapter, she’s gonna get decked……]