Chapter 406 - Strategic My-Pace
"—It's not that special."
As was now tradition, we were having lunch side by side.
In response to my 'confirmation' after returning from the inquisition hosted by my friends, a certain princess gave a flat reaction, as if to say, "Is that all?"
Ignoring the one adult who, also as usual, was watching us with amusement while serving our food... the person in question, Ashe-san, was operating as normally as ever.
"I was asked in an interview 'What does your family call you?' and my answer took on a life of its own. I never said anything about allowing it or not; people around me just arbitrarily turned it into a taboo."
"Aah..."
So she says—and, well, yeah, that sounds plausible.
She's a person who's practically deified around the world, far beyond any mere idol. It seems entirely plausible that her fans would make a huge fuss over a single anecdote or piece of private information and create some weird, unofficial rule.
"...But."
Her continuing tone drew my eyes to her... and from our locked gazes, I read the future a few seconds from now. I immediately erected a makeshift mental barrier and braced for impact.
"You are the only person in the world I've ever asked to call me that. So... when you say it, it is, without a doubt, special."
It seems my flimsy protective barrier was effortlessly pierced. The fact that it came with a sidelong glance and a smile proved, beyond any need for deliberation, that this was one hundred percent intentional.
"—Well, no matter what you do, it's going to cause a stir."
It was hardly the face of someone throwing me a lifeline after I'd fallen silent from a fatal blow, but Chitose-san, who had approached with a tray of after-dinner coffee, spoke up.
"In terms of timing for this to get out, I think now was for the best. It's a situation where an unprecedented number of 'scandals' are about to erupt."
"That's, well..."
"Although, there's no doubt that the attention on you two will blow everything else out of the water."
"..................That's also, well..."
The [Sword Queen]'s fame and the level of attention she commands are, without question, the highest in the world. There's plenty of other news competing for the spotlight—the subjugation of the 'White Throne', the sending off of the pillars, the unlocking of a world event, a mysterious countdown, a super rookie—but honestly, the outcome is obvious.
The truth of my more-than-ordinary relationship with Ashe will undoubtedly attract a special level of attention and interest, even among the chaotic storm of news to come.
"...I'm not going to get stabbed, am I? I'm being pretty serious."
"You don't have to worry. I'll protect you."
Her instant reply was so cool, and it filled me with an incomprehensible sense of reassurance and trust, but is that really the issue here?
"Let me give you a serious answer as well: you can leave anything concerning your personal safety to us, no problem. Even if a hitman were sent after you, it would be resolved before you ever knew a thing."
"Seriously, what kind of organization is Yotsuya Development?"
This is supposed to be the real world, but I can't wrap my head around it any more than I can the virtual one.
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"—And that's the gist of it. Looks like it's gonna be another huge mess, which is a real pain."
"......Haru, you're starting to get used to all this, one way or another, aren't you?"
And so, after a drive, we were back in the virtual world of Arcadia.
When I finished reporting everything to my partner, whom I was meeting in the clan home for the first time since yesterday, she gave me a complex reaction that was a mix of exasperation and admiration.
Well, of course. The past few months have been packed with one dense event after another, one incident after another, to the point where it feels like I've lived a whole other life.
It's only natural that I'd develop a strange sort of courage, or rather, that a 'whatever happens, happens' attitude would start to take root.
That said, I'm still a far cry from having a will of steel like Ashe. It's not that I don't have worries and so on; more than half of it is just me pretending not to see it, acting tough.
"Well, right now, this is more about you than me, Sora-san. To be honest, I have no idea how big of a 'festival' this will turn into."
"......I don't suppose there's a chance the archive footage conveniently doesn't show me?"
The fact that her usual polite speech was gone suggested it was probably a thought she was muttering to herself. I gave a wry smile at my partner, who was staring off into space with a distant look, thinking, No way that's happening.
Every ranker who participated... well, I can't predict what Lux will do, but in addition to them, many of the general participants are sure to upload their footage today or tomorrow.
One of the conditions for participating in a 'Colored Monster' raid was agreeing to this. Since she went into the subjugation battle with her privacy settings turned off, it was a foregone conclusion that her 'appearance' would be exposed to the entire world.
The saving grace was that while Sora's facial structure was the same as her real self, she had drastically changed her hair and eye color, and her hairstyle was completely different. At a glance, she looked like a different person.
Thinking about it calmly, the fact that I was able to recognize her without a doubt when we first met in the real world puts me in the slightly odd category. Even if [Sora]'s face becomes known to the world, the risk of her real identity being exposed probably isn't that high.
In the worst-case scenario, that mysterious organization, Yotsuya Development, would handle it somehow.
The fact that the doting chairman, who adores his daughter, didn't stop Sora from joining the raid makes it easy to imagine that they can, in fact, handle anything.
"Well, let's just try to be chill about it, like it's half someone else's problem. If you worry about every little glance and comment from the public, you'll just give yourself a stomachache, seriously."
"......Spoken from experience, is it?"
"Exactly. Which is why I've decided on a policy of escaping reality by focusing on housing for the clan home for a while."
I offered some deliberately over-the-top support, and while she herself showed some weakness and anxiety, I wasn't actually that worried.
When it comes to real-world problems, her 'guardians' will do everything in their power with their extraordinary security, so there's truly no 'need to worry'—
"—Then I'll join you."
"Alright, sounds good! We've got plenty of funds. For starters, let's make the common area so sparkly it'll make that shut-in, Tetra, recoil in disgust."
"That's fine, but... um, like what, for example?"
"Hmm... Let's see. A disco ball, for starters."
"Haru is hereby forbidden from buying furniture on his own."
"Whoa, hold on! I was just kidding, I swear! Forgive me!"
Because my amazing partner is more than reliable enough, mentally speaking.
She just seems less so because she's surrounded by people with monstrous mental fortitude. Hey, that includes you, protagonist.