“Well then… I look forward to working with you today.”

“We are the ones who should say that, looking forward to working with you.”

Just before the meeting started, a multitude of people exchanged greetings and maintained their manners.

Among them, I was feeling a little excited, getting lost in admiring the ‘named’ individuals gathered here.

“Wow.. That person is definitely Prime Minister Richelieu. He’s much better looking than I expected! And that must be Duke Buckingham… Well, he definitely looks like a schemer, just as described in the original work… Honestly, I never thought he’d represent this meeting.”

As a reader of the original work, seeing these characters in real life was a mixed bag of emotions.

Of course, I had seen quite a few familiar faces already, including my father, Count Turun, but encountering new ones was quite intriguing.

While I was exchanging greetings with those around me, feeling somewhat like I was meeting celebrities, it happened.

“Oh… Could they be…?”

The next moment, people began entering through the conference room door.

Even though I’d never seen them before, I could recognize who they were at a glance.

A middle-aged man confidently walked forward, flanked to his left by a paladin and a witch in a pristine white robe.

Upon spotting them, I began to feel as though I was meeting a famous person I had always admired.

At that moment, three people began to approach me.

I suddenly found myself gripped by a deep tension, and when the person at the front politely greeted me, I felt a wave of emotion wash over me.

“Nice to meet you, are you the one and only Count Santana Andreas?”

“Y-Yes! That’s correct. And you must be General Valenshtein?”

“Indeed, I am Valenshtein. I have heard of your reputation, Count Santana. I truly look forward to today’s meeting.”

“Yes! Thank you very much.”

Valenshtein regarded me as an equal, greeting me warmly.

It was hard not to feel joyful meeting this character, the leader of the protagonist’s party in the original work.

Sure, he might have been the final boss I would have to face, but meeting a favorite character like this was undeniably delightful.

Then, Valenshtein began introducing the two people standing behind him.

“This is Hestia Playmer, who is in charge of my security, and this is Paladin Otto Kaiser, my aide.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Hestia.”

“I’m Otto. Let’s have a fruitful meeting today.”

Hestia, another ally of the protagonist, and Paladin Otto, the character I had originally wanted to save before his banishment.

Looking at them, I couldn’t help but smile brightly in genuine happiness.

“It’s truly a pleasure to meet you both. I have heard about your exploits for a long time. Meeting heroes of the battlefield like this is an immense joy.”

“The honor is ours, Mr. Santana.”

The two of them respectfully returned my greeting.

Watching them bow with such grace, at that moment, I felt like a father-in-law watching over children about to get married.

Valenshtein, at this point, had no idea, but as a reader of the original work, I knew that already… in their hearts, Hestia and Otto were harboring warm feelings for each other.

Despite Otto’s status as a paladin preventing them from openly declaring their love, they had already recognized each other’s feelings.

Yet, regardless of their emotions, in the original work, they underwent various trials and ultimately could not be together.

After Valenshtein’s assassination and the Emperor’s immediate purge order, they found themselves in a life-or-death crisis.

As a result, Hestia died protecting injured Otto during a fight, and left alone, he roamed in despair, eventually attempting to assassinate the Emperor for revenge.

It barely failed.

In the end, Otto cursed the god he had served with all his might before being beheaded, and that was how the story ended.

Knowing this, I couldn’t help but feel delighted watching the three of them—who would not fall to the wretched fate of being used by the Emperor, but rather turn the tables and drag him down from his throne.

“I hope many good things happen from now on. At the very least, if I can be rewarded for the events of the original work in some way…”

Just then, as I was gazing at them with a honey-dripping gaze, I suddenly realized I needed to introduce my aide standing behind me.

“Ah… um… This is my secretary and maid, Polena.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Polena.”

Polena stepped forward, greeting politely at my introduction.

Her warm smile, like always, started to unveil the sparkling beauty I had come to appreciate.

But then…

“Huff!…?”

The next moment, a soft groan suddenly echoed.

I instinctively turned my head toward the sound.

What I saw next was a scene that left me filled with questions.

“Huh? Why does Hestia look like…?”

Her expression seemed as if she had just faced something she did not want to see.

I couldn’t help but question it.

Not merely questioning why she had such a face in this situation, but rather from the perspective of someone aware of the more specific circumstances.

“Is there any reason for Hestia to wear such a face right now? Nothing comes to mind…!”

In that moment, one fact began to spring into my memory reflexively, as I recalled Hestia’s background.

Though it was merely a possibility, at this stage in the story, I couldn’t help but think that this might be an unexpectedly crucial variable.

“Could it be…? Honestly, in the original work, this was just a loose end because the character died, and it wasn’t considered important. But now that Hestia is alive and attending the Westphalia meeting… could it be…?”

With those thoughts swirling in my head, I decided to conclude my greetings with Valenshtein and moved to a corner of the conference room with Polena.

“…What’s going on, Master?”

“Uhmm…”

Polena began to show concern over my sudden actions.

I spoke to her in a careful tone.

“…Polena, I need a favor. Go outside immediately and have Vicer Andreas and Freddy wait near the conference room. Also, try to bring in as many other forces as possible.”

“Wha…? What’s this all of a sudden…”

Polena asked in confusion and slight bewilderment.

To that, I replied seriously.

“Just trust me and do as I say. Understood? I’m counting on you.”

“…O-Okay. Understood, Master.”

Polena answered with a slightly awkward tone.

She promptly left to carry out my instructions, and as I watched her go, I sat down, feeling incredibly anxious.

“…Hestia Playmer. According to the original work, she committed a grave sin against someone who was not precisely described, and she’s being chased by assassins. The reason she came under Valenshtein’s protection was to escape from those assassins.”

The original work never depicted any direct danger related to this.

However, due to it, Hestia had often shown signs of anxiety and always kept related facts in mind when encountering unknown enemies.

And now. Here she was, looking uneasy while directing her gaze somewhere.

At the end of her line of sight, aside from Polena, I saw no one of particular note, but it wasn’t difficult for me to deduce the reason.

“The enemy… there must be someone here trying to assassinate Hestia. Probably an enemy using some kind of invisible magic that only she can sense. I don’t know when they’ll make a move, but we must be prepared for any eventuality.”