523 - - 第五百二十三话 やきもち
On the day before the conference presentation, a small party was held in Aphrodite, the capital of the New Crimean Nation, for the participants. Although it was a buffet-style party with a standing buffet, the food, drinks, and furnishings served there were all first-rate items collected from all over the world, and Vieille's good taste was on full display.
The participants spent their time in their own way while enjoying the food. However, as time went by, the venue was divided into two large groups. Needless to say, they were the Crimiana side, centering on Vieille, and the Agartha side, centering on May. This was a true representation of the power structure of this world.
The two groups had completely opposite atmospheres.
The Crimean side, led by Vieille, all greeted the Pope and praised him for holding this conference. When Vieille began to speak, everyone stopped talking and looked at her. This was a true testimony to the solidarity around one woman, Vieille.
On the Agartha side, there was an atmosphere of, shall we say, freedom. Some, such as King Nike of Sandanj, were happy to see May and kissed her hand tenderly. Her husband, Linos, stares at her with rounded eyes. Next to him, the Great High King Ribbon is having a heated discussion with the researchers, and words like "that's not true" and "that's not true" are being exchanged.
On the other hand, his son, King Maintia, is sitting in a corner drinking and sketching the scene of the party - the woman of his choice - and Roni is eating the food served at Roni. He is popping them into his mouth one by one. There seemed to be no sense of solidarity among the group.
There was a man who was watching this scene with a cool-headed gaze. It was Rucker, the king of the Kingdom of Subcliner. He was stationed near Vieille, watching the party. He was watching the party with his left eye while catching Vieille's every move with his right eye.
As usual, Vieille, whom he worshipped as a god, was beautiful and did not seem to be anxious, which gave him a great sense of satisfaction. The security of this party was being directed by Rucker here.
This seemingly ordinary party was under his direction, and a watertight security system was in place. There is not a single armed soldier in the room, but his men, disguised as researchers, are always on the lookout. So far no one had made any disturbing movements, but his left eye was always on the Agartha camp, watching for any suspicious activity.
...... If we continue to attack them, we'll have them all. Our Crimiana could be on top of the world.
Rucker muttered to himself. It was safe to say that all the important people from Agartha and its allies were present in this room. We will never have an opportunity like this again. We should not let this opportunity pass us by if we are to truly spread the teachings of the Crimiana religion throughout the world. But Vieille has no intention to do so. As usual, he is acting in a relaxed, hawkish manner. And that's not all. She has strictly forbidden us from giving any unwanted stimulus to the Agartha side. On the contrary, she ordered us to entertain them politely.
Rucker clucks his tongue in his heart. At that moment, he saw some people coming toward him from Agartha's side. They were the Agarthan king Linos himself, his wife Meirias, Considie, and a couple of men and women following them.
"Excuse me, I'm sorry..."
Linos, the king of Agartha, entered our circle with an air of aloofness. His unexpected behavior sends the people flying away from Linos. I found myself on a straight path to Pope Vieille. Rucker casually moved in close to Vieille to protect her.
"Sorry, Vieille. We're going back to our room.
"Can I help you?"
"No, I have to get ready for tomorrow."
"We have so much more to tell you. ......"
That will have to wait for another time. By the way, the food was delicious. That's what I'm talking about, Vieille.
"I am honored by your compliments."
Vieille bows her head reverently. As soon as she looked up, she made a crazy noise.
"Well, Mr. ...... Shin! It's been a long time."
She walks briskly to a man. He was a dark-skinned young man. Behind him is a woman with a worried look on her face.
It has been a long time, Your Holiness.
The man bowed reverently.
"There's no need to be so reverent, Master Singh. We, the true Church of Crimiana and your Kingdom of Sandanji, are the same people who once buried the King of Agartha and the Kingdom of Tana. Please call me Vieille as you used to.
Saying this, Vieille quickly grabbed the hem of Singh's dress. At first glance, the two acted as if they were lovers.
"By the way, who is this?"
Vieille's gaze fell on the Dog-Beast Woman who was standing behind Shin. The woman looked flustered for a moment, but then she bowed and opened her mouth.
I apologize for the delay in greeting you. My name is Janice, and I am a researcher at the University of Agartha.
"Dear Janice, ....... My name is Vieille from the New Crimiana Nation. Are you Janice an ...... assistant of Mr. Singh or something?"
"No."
Suddenly, Shin opens his mouth while gently untangling Vieille's hand. At the sound of his voice, Vieille involuntarily turns her attention to him.
She is my colleague. She is irreplaceable.
"...... left, sir?"
"I would like to marry Miss Janice in the future."
"...... Shin!"
A woman shouts out. At the same time, Linos rolls his eyes in surprise. On the other hand, May and Sadie are smiling kindly. Vieille sees this and smiles coldly.
"King Sandanji, congratulations on the engagement of your son!
Suddenly, Vieille opened his mouth to Nique. Nichelle slowly squeezed out a few words with an indescribable expression on her face.
"We'll talk about it later.
Vieille, with a big smile on her face, turns her attention to Shin again.
"Congratulations! On behalf of the Church of Crimiana, I would like to congratulate you. The Kingdom of Sandanzi is now safe and sound with the arrival of the wonderful Dauphine.
"With all due respect, sir, I am thinking of stepping down from the position of Dauphin."
"What?"
Fortunately, I have many brothers and many talented younger brothers. I would like to leave the future of Sandanji to my brothers. I would like to work with Janice to save lives as a doctor in the city.
Vieille looked a little surprised, but eventually his usual expression returned and he slowly opened his mouth.
"Is that so? I am very glad to hear that.
At this moment, Rucker had a feeling. He knew that a feeling of anger or hatred was growing in Vieille's heart. He waited for Vieille to order him to kill the dark man. But against his expectations, she opened her mouth to Linos, the king of Agartha.
"King Agartha!"
"Yes?"
"After this conference is over, we will hold a party to celebrate. Please join us then as well.
Linos looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded his head in approval and left the room with his queens.
......So you love the king of Agartha, after all.
Rucker looks as if he is biting a bitter bug. People may not understand it, but he certainly does. Vieille's eyes clearly showed her love for Linos. Rucker knew it, but when he saw this fact, he felt a fierce jealousy burning in his heart.