The Council — an assembly of nations surrounding the Great Forest of Jura.
Representatives were elected from each country and held monthly meetings in the Kingdom of Ingrasia. In essence, it served as a forum for overarching interest arbitration, separate from the direct governance of individual nations.
Those interests centered primarily on damage prevention, including countermeasures against monsters.
Coordinating the import and export of each nation's specialty products proved far more difficult, since the competing agendas of individual countries' policies were constantly at odds.
Instead, the Council focused on coordinating responses to crises: providing support when famine struck, dispatching aid when massive monster outbreaks occurred, and so on.
Issuing subjugation requests to the Free Guild to minimize monster damage was also part of the Council's responsibilities.
Operating funds were contributed by each member nation, with the amount scaled to the size of each country.
These contributions also determined the number of elected representatives a nation could send. More representatives meant greater influence. Major powers sometimes contributed more than three times the standard amount and sent several delegates. It was, in effect, a way to flex the muscle of a great nation — even though the Council had no direct bearing on domestic governance.
Greater voting power on agenda items also allowed a nation to leverage favorable treatment for its interests abroad. Even without direct profit, it was possible to funnel benefits back to one's home country.
Furthermore, there was a minimum contribution threshold. Nations unable to pay it were expelled from the Council entirely.
That, in turn, meant losing access to mutual aid in times of crisis — a matter of life and death for smaller countries. Decisions on expulsion were made by majority vote among Council representatives, so it was only natural that nations with more representatives held the real power.
That said, contributions didn't come cheap, and even the Farmus Kingdom — which had held the largest delegation — had been destroyed…
And now the Free Guild had collapsed, throwing the Council into turmoil.
To make matters worse, the worst possible intelligence had reached the Council.
The Eastern Empire was on the move!
This information plunged the Council into chaos.
In truth, the Council itself was on the verge of disintegration, with nations threatening to withdraw as the cohesion between member states crumbled.
It was delegates from the Kingdom of Ingrasia's faction who pulled the situation together.
Losing unity at a time when the Eastern Empire was rumored to be mobilizing would be catastrophic — that much was obvious even before fighting began. The royalty and delegates of every member nation understood this.
If even one small nation succumbed to the Empire's machinations and fell in line, others would follow. Once that happened, the remaining nations' defeat would be certain.
For the past three years, nations with foresight had begun preparing for the Empire's movements. But no single country's military was strong enough to face the Empire head-on.
Thus, the formation of a grand anti-Imperial alliance was placed on the agenda.
That day's session was heated.
Among the attendees was none other than Sakaguchi Hinata, in her capacity as Chairwoman of the Mediation Committee.
Major powers with standing armies could manage on their own, but smaller nations couldn't afford to maintain a military force during peacetime.
Hiring mercenaries during wartime had become the norm, but once every nation simultaneously began stockpiling military strength, manpower shortages were inevitable.
It was in this climate that a proposal emerged: pooled forces from each Council member state, combined to form a direct Council army.
"In other words, we shouldn't rely solely on the current Council security guards — the Council itself should field its own military!
During peacetime, they could conduct patrols, which would help with monster suppression.
Now that the Free Guild is gone and the Mediation Committee has taken its place, it should be possible to hire the Committee's adventurers as soldiers. What does everyone think?"
The proposal put forward by one delegate was apparently something that had already been discussed in various national parliaments.
A momentary silence fell over the assembly. As part of its monster suppression efforts, the Council had always paid a fixed sum to the Free Guild. Even now that the organization had changed its name to the Committee, that arrangement remained.
The Western Holy Church provided its blessing and donations, while the Council supplied funding. Together, these formed the Committee's operating budget.
In return for the Council's subsidies, the Committee conducted voluntary patrols and subjugated monsters. Thanks to this, monster-related damage had decreased dramatically compared to before.
The delegate was essentially saying: convert those patrol forces into permanent soldiers under the Council's command.
Hinata stared at the delegate with exasperation and let out a soft sigh.
"So you're suggesting that the Mediation Committee's adventurers be conscripted outright as soldiers and subordinated to the Council?"
Hinata kept the weariness out of her voice as she posed the question back to the speaker.
It was true that the Council provided funding. But the amount was hardly generous.
Previously, the arrangement had included separate bonuses based on the rank of monsters subjugated. Since the organization's transition to the Mediation Committee, however, monster subjugation aligned with the Western Holy Church's doctrine, and no additional rewards were paid.
The money from the Council was purely aid — not even enough to feed the people stationed in various countries. To expect them to trade their freedom for the status of leashed dogs over such a pittance was completely unacceptable.
The Free Guild had been an organization unconstrained by national borders. In exchange for paying a reasonable tax, they held the right to reside in any member nation.
Naturally, their position was strictly neutral.
In the event of natural disasters like massive monster outbreaks, a joint mobilization agreement between the nation and the Free Guild could be invoked, temporarily placing the Guild under national authority. But there was no standing obligation or duty to follow a nation at all times.
War was not a natural disaster. There was no reason whatsoever to be dragged into conflicts between nations.
The organization had been restructured into the Mediation Committee, but its actual situation hadn't changed from Free Guild days. If anything, incorporating the Western Holy Church had only strengthened its organizational capacity, bringing it to a position of parity with the coalition of nations.
A demand like the one the delegate had made — hand over your soldiers to the Council — was so absurd it wasn't even worth entertaining.
However, this time things were slightly different.
Nations alarmed by the Eastern Empire's threat had been quietly joining forces, and they had set their sights on the Mediation Committee's military strength.
Hinata was well aware of the situation.
Fuse of Blumund Kingdom possessed extraordinary intelligence-gathering capabilities, and he had already researched the internal dynamics of each nation in advance and reported his findings to Hinata.
That was precisely why she hadn't bluntly rejected the proposal outright. Instead, she was watching how the other side would play their hand.
When Hinata opened the door by inviting further comment, several delegates nodded vigorously and rose to their feet.
"Indeed. As Delegate Gavan states, it is only natural to unite in the face of an unprecedented crisis.
We trust the Committee will reach the same judgment — won't you?"
"A splendid proposal. Surely the Mediation Committee cannot overlook this crisis?
For all humanity to cooperate in this endeavor is only proper. Surely you'll lend your support?"
And so on.
These were clearly pre-arranged talking points. One after another, delegates began voicing their agreement in unison.
Not every single delegate, but even those who remained silent had no counterproposal. Every nation was struggling with wartime conscription.
The general mood seemed to be: it probably won't work, but if it does, that's a windfall — so let's see how it plays out.
Everything unfolded exactly as Hinata had predicted based on her intelligence.
Now then — what to do? Hinata deliberated. Or rather, the answer was already clear.
Accept, or refuse.
Rejecting this proposal would be easy. Fundamentally, the two sides were equals, and there was no obligation to comply.
It was true that the Committee benefited from having its interests protected by each nation, but that was a give-and-take relationship. They were not in a weak position of one-sided submission.
Moreover, no nation could expel non-combatant Guild members simply because the Committee rejected this proposal. The taxes paid by those members were a reliable source of revenue, vital to national governance.
The Committee's existence — curbing illegal labor and reducing unlawful elements — was indispensable.
The real leverage lay with the Committee's side: if conditions weren't agreeable, they could simply relocate to another country.
However, rejecting this proposal would inevitably sour relations between the Council and the Committee.
Simply saying "We decline" and having the Council accept it gracefully was not a realistic outcome.
Most importantly, there was the hard reality that without the Committee's cooperation, the divided Council would be unable to stand against the Eastern Empire.
Being bluntly ordered to submit was irritating, but flatly refusing was equally problematic. It was a thorny situation.
Then should they accept?
That too would undermine the Committee's authority. The Committee had been established less than a year ago — accepting would make them look weak and invite contempt.
That was absolutely something to avoid. In terms of future relations with the member nations, maintaining an equal footing was essential.
It was certainly galling, but even from the standpoint of preserving their position, they couldn't simply accept.
Neither accepting nor refusing — that was the answer.
And so, Hinata offered a single proposal.
The proposal was as follows: −−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−− In response to the Council's request, I traveled to the Kingdom of Ingrasia.
I received guest-of-honor treatment — they put me up in the finest inn in the city. I took the opportunity to sightsee in the capital for the first time in a while.
The ones I brought along were
He could come back whenever I called, and there wasn't anything specific I needed him for, so I gave him permission to do as he pleased.
And so the four of us arrived in the Kingdom of Ingrasia.
Shuna browsed through the shops with great interest, gazing at the latest fashions displayed in the windows.
Benimaru stood guard over me with unwavering vigilance.
Souei was somewhere in the shadows, receiving reports in hushed whispers.
Speaking of shadows — I missed the sight of
Apparently, Gobta had invited him to train under
Knowing Ranga, he probably enjoyed Gobta's company more than he let on.
Good relationships were a good thing.
We enjoyed a leisurely lunch in the Kingdom of Ingrasia, and discussed our thoughts on the meeting scheduled for the next day.
Shuna cradled the bundle of clothes I'd bought for her, a soft smile on her face. Unlike the perpetually reliable Shion, Shuna was usually composed, so the gap was endearing.
She seemed to be barely listening to our conversation, but that was fine.
Honestly, the content of the meeting didn't matter much. Part of the purpose of this trip was to give Benimaru and Shuna — both perpetually overworked — a break.
Unlike Souei, who was constantly traveling on missions, Benimaru and Shuna rarely got to leave the country. I wanted them to enjoy themselves.
So we casually discussed the next day's agenda in a relaxed mood.
"Hey, Souei. Did you find out what the meeting's about?"
I asked Souei, who had been gathering intelligence since earlier.
Instead of entertaining our idiotic guesses about rampaging dragons or a mysterious Demon Lord appearing, Souei had his shadow subordinates investigate properly.
As reliable as always.
He'd trained a type of monster called a shadow demon and incorporated it into his unit, so apparently he'd been able to gather quite a bit of information lately. Which meant Souei already knew why we'd been summoned.
I'd grown so accustomed to relying on my subordinates that I simply assumed they'd know things before I did.
"Yes, I've secured the intelligence. What remains is understanding the intentions of each nation's royalty and the thoughts of their subordinates…"
"Yeah, don't worry about the details. Why were we summoned?
We're foreign dignitaries — they must want to request something from us.
Is it about the train? Did that invention get leaked to the other nations?
The railway route has a set order, you know… We couldn't comply even if they asked."
"Probably something like 'war's about to break out, so please help us,' right?
The only country we're obligated to help is Blumund. Isn't that right?"
"Ah, the Empire. Right, that's coming up soon too."
Benimaru and I chatted about weighty matters with complete nonchalance.
Shuna, who should have been stopping us, was elsewhere in her thoughts. There was nobody around to rein in a conversation that practically constituted state secrets being held in a corner of a café in the royal capital.
Of course, we had a barrier in place to prevent our voices from leaking, so nobody could overhear us.
"Benimaru's right on the money.
The train is generating some buzz, but those who haven't seen it in person don't find it very convincing.
The shrewd ones have been reaching out to Myormail, but he's been politely deflecting them.
This time, it's about wanting to draw our nation into their preparations against the Eastern Empire."
"Too bad. I was hoping it was something else. Well, we're going to clash with the Empire eventually, so we might as well accept.
Is there some kind of problem, though?"
"As I suspected. In truth, my intelligence confirms that the Empire's military strength is formidable.
In a straight-up war, the gap in national power puts us at a disadvantage.
It'd be a different story if we could forcibly conscript every tribe in the Great Forest of Jura, though."
"Yeah, exactly.
We've been making decent progress on strengthening our forces, but it's tough going up against a nation that's been militarizing for centuries…
Ideally, we'd not only rally our own forces but also get the cooperation of the countries on this side."
And so my conversation with Benimaru continued.
In truth, avoiding war would be ideal, but with Yuuki still out there, I didn't think it was possible.
Whether it was Shion or Diablo, both had been secretly building up their forces — they were clearly itching for a proper war.
Even without my direct involvement, every one of my top executives had independently begun strengthening our military capability. Even Gobta was up to something secretive.
So if this summoning was about the war with the Eastern Empire, I'd already accepted that we'd be dragged into it whether we were asked or not.
"I see. Then there shouldn't be a problem.
Over here, the Council and the Committee have split into two power blocs.
The Council reflects the will of each nation's nobility, while the Committee positions itself as the guardian of the common people…
Apparently, the Council pushed an agenda item to bring the Committee's military forces under its umbrella.
The proposal Hinata put forward was to utilize the military strength of the Monster Nation."
"What's that about? Are we being used?"
"Yes, we would be used. But in return, our nation would be officially recognized, and we'd be entrusted with significant military authority.
In other words…"
"Oh-ho. I see — so that's the deal. Sounds good to me, doesn't it? Let's get used, shall we?"
"You've got a nasty look on your face…
Well, I suppose what's irksome is that they think they're the ones using us."
We exchanged a nod and dropped the subject.
A server arrived with post-meal cake.
Cake.
That most alluring of foods.
We'd managed to produce sweeteners to some extent, but sugar was still a precious commodity.
And cake of this caliber was a luxury item even in Tempest.
Ah, the nostalgia of this flavor.
I could come here every day, but I'd feel a little guilty doing that alone.
The real reason I'd brought Shuna here — this was it.
I intended to have Shuna taste this and recreate it. My own repertoire of recipes was far too limited. That was why I'd brought her to this upscale establishment.
"Shuna, this is seriously delicious.
While we're staying here, eat as much as you want. I need you to memorize the flavors as best you can."
Shuna hesitated at my words, then took a bite of the cake.
First up, a shortcake. Classic and straightforward — but if this one was good, everything else would follow. If this tasted wrong, nothing here would work.
Shuna placed the cake in her mouth.
Then she looked me in the eye with a firm expression and nodded. After that, she devoted herself entirely to the cake with single-minded focus.
No further words were necessary. She understood my intentions perfectly, and Shuna would see it through. If she could even replicate ice cream, a cake would be child's play.
We dove into the delicious cake as if the entire previous conversation had never happened.
The next day, we arrived at the venue for the meeting.
It went exactly as I'd predicted. Hinata had come by the night before and briefed me.
Just as Souei's intelligence had indicated, the Council's real objective was to leverage our military strength under the guise of military cooperation.
But we wanted to use them right back.
And so, the battle of wits between fox and tanuki began.