第９８５堀：新大陸の動向 (Part1)
### Chapter 985: Trends in the New Continent
**Side: Kagura**
"...And so, while it is still tentative, the issues beyond the Great Mountain Range have, for the time being, reached a conclusion."
I lifted my gaze from the report, finishing my briefing to Princess Carrie—my former superior, and the one I still serve. I had returned to our homeland, Haiden, to report on the situation in Sea-Cyph, which had finally settled down.
"I see. So, the Sea-Cyph problem has been resolved for now. It seems unlikely that Sea-Cyph will refuse to join the Intercontinental Exchange Alliance after this."
Princess Carrie looked through the report without showing any signs of anxiety or irritation. The whole affair had started when Sea-Cyph brought their military to Haiden, begging for rescue. The cause—the sea monsters—was something for which Haiden and the Haire Church could hardly deny responsibility, so it was a matter that could have easily escalated into war.
Just when we thought we had managed to put a lid on the sea monster incident, the Sea-Cyph delegation sent to the Gusdo Kingdom went silent, and we were requested by Weed and Haiden to cooperate in resolving the issue. Well, saving Aurelia Port was all well and good, but...
As my thoughts reached that point, the Princess finished reading the report and looked up.
"...Well, I still have my reservations about the military intervention in the latter half, and especially regarding the export of Magic Gear... But, leaving it be could have led to a deterioration of our relationship with Sea-Cyph, so it couldn't be helped."
"Yes. Under those circumstances, it was unavoidable."
It was clear that Sea-Cyph’s request to Weed and Haiden was intended to gauge how reliable the Intercontinental Exchange Alliance truly was, so it was difficult to refuse. However, as the ones who invited Sea-Cyph into the Alliance, Haiden also had a vested interest in avoiding being dragged into the fires of war.
"With this, Sea-Cyph should quiet down. Or rather, they must be pale with dread right now."
The Princess smiled elegantly, a look that clearly signaled she was thinking of something wicked. I could vaguely guess what was on her mind. However, Solo didn't seem to grasp the implications yet.
"Um, Princess? What do you mean by that?" he asked, with a careless question.
"...Sigh. Solo. You are now the top diplomat representing our country to Weed. The fact that Kagura and Mikos are currently supporting you is purely out of Yuki-sama’s benevolence. You must not take that for granted."
"Y-yes! I am terribly sorry!"
"Princess, Solo was a commoner, so Mikos thinks he still has a long way to go. That’s why Mikos and Kagura are here to support him."
As Mikos said, the reason we still come to the Princess for diplomatic work is to raise Solo. Normally, since Mikos and I became concubines to the Weed Consort and thus dignitaries of another nation, we shouldn't be in a position like this. However, Weed wants to maintain close contact with Haiden, and to skip over tedious procedures, they use us—who have connections to Haiden’s upper echelons—as the primary point of contact.
Well, that’s only natural. Just because we married into another family doesn't mean our ties to our homeland are severed. Acting as a bridge to protect our homeland is perfectly natural. That said, since we are officially citizens of another country, we aren't expected to handle the day-to-day duties of a diplomat; that falls to Solo. Though, once Solo gets things sorted with Eoid and Amanda, he’ll likely retire, but that’s still a while off.
So, Solo is the diplomat representing Haiden to Weed.
"I have told you both to keep the coddling and the reliance in check. You could have taught him properly before reporting to me like this. That is a sign of negligence on the part of both Kagura and Mikos."
" "We are sorry." "
I had no rebuttal to that. I really wish she would go back to the "flower-field" Princess she was before the Battle of Baide... though that version of her was incredibly troublesome in its own way.
"Sigh. I hope your heads haven't gone soft just because you’re happily married? Don't make a fool of yourselves and end up being sent back by Yuki-sama with a tag on you; that would be a true disgrace to our country."
"Yuki would never do something like that, so it’s fine."
"That’s right, Yuki-sensei is very, very kind."
"...Good grief. I am telling you not to get branded as 'unnecessary' by the other wives! I am well aware that Yuki-sama is incredibly soft on his own people! You idiots!"
*Thump, thump.* A solid sound echoed as she delivered a knuckle-rap to both my and Mikos’s heads. Surprisingly, it was quite painful, and we couldn't help but groan. Ah, right—the Princess had received training in Weed, hadn't she?
"Anyway... but we have digressed. As for why Sea-Cyph is pale with dread, Solo—why do you think Sea-Cyph used Haiden and Weed to rescue their delegation in the first place?"
"Eh? Um, I think it was to confirm if Weed and Haiden were trustworthy."
"Exactly. Sea-Cyph’s goal was never the rescue of the delegation. They wanted to confirm the strength of the Intercontinental Exchange Alliance that we are inviting them to join. An alliance that is all talk and no action is meaningless."
Indeed, the request to check on the delegation wasn't just about the rescue. While it would be troublesome if a delegation were wiped out by an accident, it wasn't exactly impossible. Furthermore, many ships had already been sunk in the sea monster incident. So, as Solo and the Princess said, even I understood that Sea-Cyph’s true goal was to see if the Alliance was worth trusting.
Though, for Weed and Haiden, it was also a new territory involving Magic Gear, and we couldn't afford a war breaking out, so we deployed the aircraft carrier. And the result...
"And when the lid was lifted, we found that the Gusdo Kingdom, Sea-Cyph’s trading partner, had been destroyed. We found the delegation captured at Aurelia Port, forced to assist in an asylum request. After rescuing them, we repelled the invading Zlabul Great Empire with a surprise attack from our carrier. Now, Solo, do you understand how Sea-Cyph should thank us for such massive results?"
The Princess stated the facts of what Weed had accomplished calmly, but anyone would be troubled by how to properly thank someone for such an outcome.
"Ah... is that what it is? The results are just too great."
"Yes, exactly. Well, Seraria-sama acted on her own initiative regarding the rescue of the delegation. No, that’s not quite right. She acted to save the people of that land and to stop the Zlabul Great Empire, and as a result, she caused an army of 80,000 to collapse in a single night. While Sea-Cyph was dithering over whether or not to grant asylum to the princess, we blew away the source of the problem, secured Aurelia Port, and even established friendly relations with the Zlabul Great Empire—the very people we had just routed. It is true that Weed acted on its own. But if they don't provide a commensurate reward, can you imagine how Sea-Cyph will be viewed in the Intercontinental Exchange Alliance from now on?"
"...They won't be looked upon favorably."
"Precisely. If they say they don't need to pay a reward because we 'acted on our own,' despite us protecting their trade and saving their fleet, their isolation within the Alliance they are about to join will be inevitable."