第５６６堀：ロガリ会談 (Part1)
### Chapter 566: The Rogari Conference
**Side: Yuki**
"Hmm. You look well."
"Indeed."
"I suppose so."
With those words, two middle-aged men—who could easily be called old geezers—and a surprisingly young woman sat around a table, leisurely sipping tea. To an outsider, the nature of their relationship would be a complete mystery.
However, their true identities were...
"We only sent word about the conference yesterday. How are you already here?"
That’s right. Selva, the King of Roschur (Selaria’s father); Rocksten, the King of Gartz (Shera’s father); and Alstaire, the Saintess of Litea (Rurua’s successor), had all gathered here. Their purpose: to hold a conference with me.
"What are you talking about? Cooperation from my son-in-law is essential for discussions with the If Continent."
"Besides, both the King of Roschur and I leave the day-to-day running of our countries to our successors."
"Furthermore, this is a major international project that will go down in history. It is only natural that participation takes priority. Though, I must say, I am curious why you haven't shown your face until now, Yuki-san."
"Litea is right. We heard it was a training period for translation and interpretation, but still..."
"Exactly. We couldn't get in touch with you at all. I’ve snuck into Weed several times over the past month, and it was clear you weren't even there, weren't you?"
*Tch.* So they figured it out, after all.
"Selaria has been incredibly on edge. She even said she couldn't let me see my granddaughter, Sakura. And it wasn't a 'won't,' it was a 'cannot.'"
"In my case, Kirue’s eyes were dead, but her killing intent was terrifying."
"Rurua-sama was also on edge. It’s hard to believe that nothing happened when everyone is this rattled."
Selaria really is the biggest loose cannon. Well, Sakura was summoned too, so I suppose it couldn't be helped.
Anyway, it’s impossible to keep hiding this. If I keep trying to cover it up, it will only breed distrust. As they said, the limit had indeed been reached.
"I’ll tell you the reason. But it’s another troublesome matter. Are you prepared to hear it?"
"...You’re being awfully insistent again."
"...I’m starting to feel like I’d rather not hear this."
"...But we cannot afford not to hear it, can we?"
As expected of the leaders of their respective nations. It’s impressive how they can intuitively sense that this is going to be an unpleasant story. But as Alstaire said, the reality is that they have no choice but to listen.
And so, before asking about their resolve, I began to speak. I told them about what happened to me about a month ago, when the Rogari Continent members were inspecting the If Continent’s Betan...
It wasn't that complicated of a story. I was summoned, I fought, I defeated everyone on the summoning and enemy sides, I heard the circumstances, and I struck at the root of the problem. I’ve just returned after finishing the aftermath.
To summarize, that’s about it. It’s actually quite easy to explain. I was thinking that this explanation might come in handy in the future, when I noticed the three heads of state holding their heads in their hands.
"...Summoning and kidnapping the Prince Consort of a nation. And my granddaughter Sakura was taken, too. No wonder Selaria was so agitated. How do you intend to handle this?"
"...Normally, this would be a cause for war. My daughter was summoned as well. I suppose that’s why you couldn't speak of it lightly."
"...More than that, we don't have the budget for a new continent. But having heard the situation, if Queen Selaria were to mobilize her army, we couldn't exactly sit by and do nothing..."
"..."
*Fuhahaha*, suffer, suffer all you want! Do you have any idea how much I struggled to bring this situation to a close?!
"And you’re saying that in just one month, you forced a ceasefire between the summoning nation and the country they were at war with, and helped resolve the issues on the summoner's side?"
"I want to say that’s ridiculous, but my son-in-law is a Dungeon Master and an apostle of a Goddess. He has a track record, so I can't exactly disbelieve him."
Could you please stop calling me an apostle of that useless, good-for-nothing Goddess? To me, that is nothing but a dishonorable title.
"...Well, it is fortunate that the problem is moving toward a resolution. I assume this matter is being handled as a problem for Weed?"
"That’s right. Rest assured, there won’t be any rampages from Selaria or my other wives, no 'conquer them' or 'destroy them' talk."
"...Well, if there’s no request for aid, we can’t exactly move."
"But still, this isn't something that should be glossed over, is it? How will you handle that aspect?"
"If we aren't careful, the Rogari Continent might be looked down upon. Yuki-san, what do you intend to do about Haiden from here on out?"
"I’m not doing anything immediately. They’re already in shambles from internal strife; there’s no profit in trying to squeeze them now. Once things settle down, maybe we’ll look into tax exemptions for trade or something."
"Is that all?"
"What else is there to gain? I can't speak their language, I can only move via Gates, and the environment is unnatural. What would I do with land like that?"
"I don't need it."
"At the very least, we should wait until my son-in-law finishes compiling information regarding the magic power depletion."
"I understand the logic, but since they involved the Prince Consort of another nation, if you don't receive appropriate reparations, it will negatively affect the relationship between both sides. The tax exemptions you’re asking for are a long-term policy for future trade, but the other side won't understand that. If they don't understand it, it’s worthless. Even if we are satisfied, if they think that’s all it takes, they might end up looking down on our Rogari Continent. If that happens, the relationship could become strained due to discord."
"Well, I understand what Alstaire is saying, but then the question becomes: what exactly are you going to strip from them? We can't manage mines or resources even if we were to take them."
There’s the option of monetary compensation paid over several years, but... if I did that, the people of Haiden would inevitably push back. They’d argue that since they weren't at war with Weed, reparations are out of the question, which could lead to the worst-case scenario: criticism directed at Princess Carrie. That would only cause more instability in Haiden, which is undesirable.
"Hmm. In that case, perhaps taking national treasures or swords as reparations..."
"National treasures, huh? Well, receiving a single item with historical value is better than taking large amounts of money. But then, it costs money to manage those treasures. What about that?"
"...I suppose they would have to manage it themselves."
"I’m not about to take reparations only to end up at a loss."
Besides, since they are national treasures, treating them poorly would invite resentment from the other country. It’s an incredibly troublesome item. It’s basically a ticking time bomb.
"Well, personally, I think it’s fine if they look down on us."
"I share that opinion."
"King of Roschur? King of Gartz?"
Alstaire tilted her head at the two kings' opinions.
"For starters, there is no way a single nation could ever defeat our Rogari Alliance."
"And besides, the entrance—the Gate—is guarded by Weed. If that were to be breached, we should be looking at surrender anyway."
"...That may be true, but what about the face of our Rogari Alliance?"
"A formal apology would suffice for that. The other side would be admitting their fault as a nation, which has the advantage of being the end of it. This would save face for Rogari and show that we have the leeway to be magnanimous."