The Suspicious Sister and the Brazen Gyaru Princess
The auditorium where SoroR and I sat. The seats reserved for the honored guests. Nobles who had heard the rumors stood quietly along the outer edges. Only the invited representatives of each nation could speak during the Q&A session. SoroR answered the questions posed by the guests, while the spectators lining the walls had no right to speak. There was no need to explain what would happen if anyone opened their mouth without permission.
"Th-then, Great Spirit, you don't know where the gods went either?!"
"SoroR was asleep for hundreds of years~! I did wander around looking for them at first, but I never caught a glimpse! Everything from when I lost my power and fled, up to settling down with the Cornelius family, is exactly as I explained!"
"Hmm..."
"In that case, do you also know about our ancestors from hundreds of years ago?"
"Which noble lived on which land and what achievements they accomplished—questions like that, I can't answer~! But I might remember what kind of clothes people wore back then and how they lived~?"
"This is important information...!"
"Aah, every history nerd is going to go wild!"
"You called it a Spirit Council~? There are other spirits besides SoroR. Didn't they have anything to say?"
"Old spirits have a habit of their memories degrading... Even so, it's remarkable that the Great Spirit has maintained hers."
"Even if they do, their intelligence is generally around that of a seven-year-old child... It's everyday life for them to play around and end up killing people..."
"Their bodies are mostly made of mana, so unlike SoroR, the part that forms memories is probably shallow~?"
Fortunately, the Q&A itself proceeded peacefully. The majority of the questions came from the clergy of the Spirit Council, dressed in white robes and wearing large simplex crowns. Among them, one woman with a particularly arrogant expression stood out as their representative.
"Then this side will ask a question too~!"
"...And you are?"
"A nun affiliated with the Spirit Council. In charge of spirit childcare. Isabel Berry."
"Childcare, you say?"
"Oh my, your sugar daddy doesn't know~? The Spirit Council has a system that provides childcare for spirits with low mental intelligence. Since spirits generally have childlike personalities, 'childcare' means soothing and educating them."
'No matter how I look at it, that outfit doesn't look like a childcare worker's.'
Her black spandex gloves and stockings clung tightly to her arms and legs. The nun's habit she wore had been excessively modified, the skirt so short that her string panties were completely visible. She even exposed her armpits and the sides of her breasts—far too sexual an appearance for someone claiming to be a nun.
"Where are you looking~?"
Finally, her face. A sadistic smile and snake-like narrow eyes. Long, wavy blonde hair. Her figure was just as voluptuous, and her makeup carried a distinctly sexual vibe. She looked more like the mistress of an SM club than a childcare worker or nun.
"No, please ask your question."
"Then I'll ask without holding back~."
She crossed her legs. She was wearing high heels.
"The Great Spirit's sense of beauty is similar to that of us human women, right?"
"Isabel."
"I warned you to watch your mouth...!"
"No no, old men, this is an important question, isn't it~? Everyone's trying not to offend the Great Spirit's mood by ignoring it, but no matter how you look at it, she has that kind of fetish, right~? So for everyone else's sake, it's only natural that I ask, isn't it~?"
Her confidence wasn't just in her appearance. She was arrogantly asking, "So, what's the answer?" SoroR glanced at me, so I nodded.
"You said Isabel? Since you asked bravely, I'll answer. Yes, that's right. I don't know about other spirits, but SoroR is aware that she's female. She's a pervert who feels immense joy following the big brother here, which is why she's dressed like this."
"So you have a sense of shame too~?"
"As you can see, she's been well trained to feel shame as pleasure. Want to see? This piercing is SoroR's pride~♡"
"Heeeh..."
SoroR, seated in her chair, slightly spread her legs to reveal the piercing on her clit and the family emblem. The hall stirred. Someone muttered "blasphemy," but without speaking rights, making a scene was forbidden.
"Th-then... did Lord Roman also give SoroR her name...?"
"Yeah. Giving a name to a spirit is an act of granting subordination and identity. Originally she wasn't even in sword form, but after being pounded into the ground she ended up like this. It hurt at first, but somehow it started feeling good and I ended up following him~? Ah... I wasn't threatened or anything, so stop looking at me like that, okay? SoroR's boiling point is really low. Human lives all look pretty much the same to me, so I might accidentally do something if you keep it up."
"......My apologies."
"Mmm..."
"Even though she's been masochistically trained, she's still looking down from above~! In the end, no matter what, she's a Great Spirit who only follows her master~♪"
"Isabel!"
"Eeeh... but I asked a good question, didn't I~?"
Thanks to that, everyone now saw me as a dangerous man. All the elders of the Spirit Council looked uncomfortable.
"Then, taking this opportunity, we would also like to ask... Does Lady SoroR have any intention of coming to Britannia?"
"I already said before this seat was prepared that there would be no such thing~?"
"However! If the issue is her sense of beauty or her fetishes, we are confident we can prepare high-quality offerings...!"
"Heeh... So you're saying you can prepare a man better than our big brother right now, and use him to seduce me? After telling the nun next to you to watch her mouth, you're the one crossing the line without realizing it~?"
"But Lord Roman's actions are far too blasphemous... We of the Spirit Council cannot possibly accept them..."
"This isn't a seat made for you to accept anything, is it? No matter what you say, SoroR has already decided to stay by big brother's side. In the first place, big brother is above my head, so if you want to borrow me, it makes sense to get his permission first."
"That is......"
The bishops revered SoroR as the Great Spirit, yet above her stood a mere human—me. Of course that was uncomfortable~! Yet it sent a pleasant chill down my spine. As expected, I was fundamentally a small-minded person who couldn't tolerate such gazes. But if I left it any longer, someone might stake their life on shouting something big...
"Does Princess Sunho not have a question?"
—Toss!
I turned my gaze toward the black-haired beauty, hoping she would ask something soon. A petite princess who looked good in a qipao. The monocle gave her an intellectual air that made me want to poke her.
"The Spirit Council will ask what they need anyway. It's not like we're short on time, so if necessary, I will ask."
Her answer matched her appearance perfectly. Just as she said, ninety percent of today's Q&A had come from the Spirit Council. They talked too much. SoroR seemed fed up with their momentum as well, probably wanting to maintain the Great Spirit's favor.
"Princess Sunho. Then may this one ask a question?"
"...I suppose so. Permission granted."
"Hah! Thank you!"
With that, the female general standing beside Sunho stepped forward. Her crimson eyes were filled with loyalty, reminding me of Sigrid. Unlike her liege, she wore a black qipao embroidered with golden dragons and had long black hair slicked back completely. To finish it off, a red spear she clearly had no intention of letting go of... Yep, pure China!
"And you are?"
"General of the Chang Kingdom, Liu Yawen. This one has a question for Lord Roman."
"To me, you mean."
"The Great Spirit just mentioned... If we have Lord Roman's permission, may we interpret that as being able to take both of you with us?"
"If you're telling us to betray our country and come over, that would cause international problems..."
"Aaaah~! Not like that—as guests!"
"If that's the case, there's no reason to be offended."
"Princess Sunho!"
"This is not the place to bring that up. Shut your mouth and sit down."
"U-understood..."
She obeys really well... I heard the academy has very strict conditions for accepting knight-class students, but the fact that Sunho brought her anyway suggests she's trusted that much.
"Then I... the Tebere side also has a question."
"Yes, Princess Servilia."
This side had been permitted to participate, so she brazenly thrust her face forward. She didn't seem particularly angry, but it was amusing to see her slightly intimidated even though she had raised her hand to ask a question.
"What happens to the land that Satisfaction defiled? We've heard various stories so far, but in the end, the main point was to ask Lady SoroR to purify the land, wasn't it?"
"I'll answer this as well. From our own experiments, it doesn't purify that easily. Even if it does, it takes years for the soil's fertility to return, so for now we can't switch to a Tuntian system—that's the judgment of the Cornelius family and SoroR."
"—What?! N-no way, you're joking! With the purifying light we felt back then, it should be much faster!"
"We never granted the bishops speaking rights..."
"But it's the truth, isn't it?!"
"Lord Roman! You're not lying right now, are you?!"
Lying, huh... I looked at SoroR.
"It's not a lie. It's true that she showed that much power back then, but that's only possible because SoroR is bound to the Cornelius territory. As I said earlier, it's a sanctuary where she has taken root as a Great Spirit, so her power is amplified there."
"A sanctuary?!"
"Then can't that sanctuary be moved?!"
"Moving it is possible. The place it moves to will definitely be purified and crops will grow. But if we do that, big brother's family's golden farmland will all be ruined, so it's impossible, right? And if I move the sanctuary again in a short time, the land we just purified will be cursed again... Once it settles, it shouldn't move for at least a few years."
"Lady SoroR! Then all the more reason to give your blessing to us of the Spirit Council!"
"That's right! Instead of staying there, you should come here where you belong!"
"There are so many people who have contributed to the spirits until now!"
"Why don't you understand that Britannia is the most suitable place to be called a sanctuary?!"
"No matter how much you shout, it's impossible! I don't know your circumstances, after all? SoroR betraying big brother is something that can never happen~!"
"L-Lord Roman! You say something too!"
"No, I can't possibly persuade them when it would destroy our family..."
"This is all for the sake of humanity!"
Humanity my ass—only Britannia stands to gain.
"How about being satisfied with SoroR going there personally to purify once whenever needed, so crops can grow that year~?"
"Uuuuugh...!"
"But... the sanctuary..."
SoroR offered a compromise, but the Spirit Council didn't look satisfied. The word "sanctuary" was too tempting for religious people to resist.
"Ah ah~! Are the grandpas done talking? Then Tania will ask a question too~!"
In the strangely tense atmosphere, the Chapel side raised their hand. They hadn't said anything until now—what kind of question were they going to ask?
"We'll accept questions from the Chapel side."
"Then then then~! Thinking about it the other way around~!"
Huh... Her tension was way too high. She was one step away from ending every sentence with a star.
"Lady Tania?"
"Wait, please give us advance notice of what question you're about to ask..."
Even the Chapel retainers who had come with her seemed to sense she was about to do something, but they couldn't stop her.
"Thinking about it the other way around?"
"Yeah! So basically~! Tania is asking if it's okay to nominate herself as Roman's marriage candidate~☆"
"............"
......Huh?
"L-Lady Tania?"
"Excuse me!"
"This is the time to ask questions to the Great Spirit, you know?!"
"No no no~☆ If I get Roman, the Great Spirit comes along too! So aiming for this side is actually the best~! Lady SoroR also said Roman is above her head, so this is the perfect time to aim for the jockey~☆"
『—Aah!』
The retainers looked shocked. More than that, I was impressed by the sheer audacity of reaching that conclusion right here. Princess Sunho's general had only gone as far as a subtle invitation, but this woman had immediately slammed down the power word "engagement."
"That blonde idiot..."
"As expected of Lady Tania... Our princess really does things no one else would..."
Sure enough, the other side was also letting out exclamations of admiration. The fool whose position had become awkward suddenly stood up.
"W-wait! Tania! Roman was my fiancé! So why are you──"
"That engagement got destroyed~☆ The Tebere royal family has the worst relationship with the Cornelius family even among their own nobles~! So there's no reason for you to butt in~☆"
"Uuuuuuu~?!"
She knocked down Servilia, who had tackled her from the side, in one hit. Strong... Not caring about other people's opinions really is an advantage sometimes...
"So, what's Roman's answer~?"
Princess Sunho was silent, Servilia was retired, and the Spirit Council couldn't interfere. All eyes turned to me. But unfortunately for them—
"Chapel side, if that's your only question, we'll move on to the next."
"Mhya?! Romaaaaan~!"
"Moving on?"
"I mustered up all that courage to say it~!"
It was fine that she'd pushed forward riding the momentum, but there was no need to play along. Naturally brushing off Tania's engagement bomb and moving on to the next question marked the end of that topic. In the end, the atmosphere never improved until the Q&A session was over.