Among Kaito’s group as they headed toward the Forest Castle, the first to perceive them were, naturally, Alice and Fate. More accurately, they had perceived them even before the group started moving. Alice simply found it amusing, while Fate wasn’t interested enough to bother mentioning it, so neither of them brought it up.
As for who noticed next, it was Lilia, whose abilities ranked just below Alice and Fate’s…… The instant she perceived them, her face turned pale, and Eris and Cornelia were the first to react to her expression.
(Duchess Lilia!?)
(……Both of you, steel yourselves. They’re ahead of us.)
Using nothing more than eye contact, a mysterious exchange made possible by the fact that they all understood the same kind of suffering, Lilia silently warned Eris and Cornelia to stay on guard.
Of course, it was only eye contact, so there was no way to convey detailed information. Even so, from Lilia’s demeanor, the direction of her gaze, and the color draining from her face, it didn’t take Eris and Cornelia long to realize that a world-renowned figure was somewhere ahead along their path.
(U- Up ahead!? W- Who could it possibly be……? I’m not very skilled in Detection Magic, so I can’t tell…… But for Duchess Lilia to make that face…… Awawa……)
(Considering Duchess Lilia’s expression, the current situation, and the people likely invited to this amusement park…… the most probable candidates are either the Death King, the World King, the War King, or the Dragon King. The World King normally doesn’t attend events like these though. I’ve heard the Death King has recently gained new subordinates and expanded her activities, so she’s certainly a possibility. The War King and the Dragon King are also entirely possible…… Or perhaps more than one of them……)
Realizing that someone capable of making Lilia go pale was waiting ahead, Cornelia began panicking internally…… Meanwhile, Eris quickly sorted through the possibilities and concluded that whoever was ahead was most likely one of the Six Kings.
Her deduction was correct, but in a sense, her own knowledge worked against her. She had always assumed Lillywood never attended events like this, so she had eliminated Lillywood from consideration almost immediately.
She realized that assumption had been wrong only after a bright, cheerful voice called out.
[Kaitokun-san! It’s Kaitokun-san!!! Waaah~~ I can’t believe I get to see you here! Tir is sooo happy!]
[Tir-san? Well, what a coincidence.]
The one who came flying toward them at full speed with a delighted smile was the Fairy Princess, Tirtania. She had apparently spotted Kaito and rushed over to greet him.
However, Lilia, Eris, and Cornelia’s eyes were fixed not on Tirtania…… but on the place she had flown from.
There stood not only the World King, Lillywood…… but all Seven Princesses, Lillywood’s Executives, gathered together in one place. The three of them instinctively stopped breathing for a moment.
(……Huh? The World King and the Seven Princesses…… all of them? Eh? All of them?)
The sight was shocking enough that even Eris’s thoughts came to a plete standstill. Every one of them was an unimaginably famous figure…… and what was worse was that “they were already acquainted with more than half of them”.
Naturally, if they were acquaintances, greetings would be in order. And given the circumstances, it seemed almost inevitable that Lillywood would be introduced to them.
(Abababa…… T- T- The World King and the Seven Princesses……)
Ironically, Cornelia, who looked as though she was about to faint, was still in the safer position. After all, she had never met either Lillywood or the Seven Princesses before. It was possible that Kaito would introduce her to them, but with so many people present and everyone in the middle of heading toward an attraction, there was still a good chance that there simply wouldn’t be enough time for introductions.
(See? I knew this would happen…… My stomach really hurts. I know he’s not doing it on purpose, but why is Kaito-san always like this!?)
And of course, Lilia had already met not only Lillywood, but all Seven Princesses as well during the White God Festival, the cruise party, and other occasions. It was all but certain that she’d be the next one addressed after Kaito, and she stared off into the distance with an expression that was almost one of resignation.
[So Lillywood-san and the others are here too.]
[Yep! We all came together! Everyone~~ it’s Kaitokun-san!]
At Tirtania’s excited wave, Lillywood and the Seven Princesses approached with wry smiles on their faces.
“Good afternoon, Kaito-san, everyone. What a coincidence meeting you here.”
[Good afternoon. Were you all invited by Kuro and Alice too, Lillywood-san?]
“Yes. Since this is said to be the largest amusement facility ever built in the Demon Realm, I felt it was something I ought to be familiar with given my position…… Well, that’s only the official reason. The truth is, I was simply curious, so I decided to e and see it for myself.”
After exchanging brief greetings and bows, Kaito and Lillywood began chatting. Naturally, none of the Seven Princesses would interrupt a conversation involving their king.
However, that conversation would soon e to an end, and the greetings would move on to everyone else. Lilia would almost certainly be first, but Eris had to quietly steel herself for what was ing next…… while Cornelia silently prayed that the conversation would never be directed toward her.
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