S-Class Conference: Preparations

April 24. Today was the day of the S-Class Conference.

No matter what, at this Conference, I had to secure permission to challenge Eclair and Julian.

There was the tension from having that objective, and the tension of the S-Class Conference itself.

An occasion when the S-Class Masters all gathered in one place.

At last, I could meet Aqueria and Shaina Fervey, the ones I'd been wanting to meet all along.

… Thinking that, beyond the tension, I was looking forward to it.

The Conference was set to start at noon, but, unable to settle down, I left for Lasburg, the world's capital, early in the morning.

Coming along were… well, pretty much everyone. Up to 24 were allowed, so I had Griera's group and Melvis's group stay behind, and went in with nearly the full roster. After all, who knew what might happen…

Although I say I "left," in truth Castle Ernest sat on the outskirts of Lasburg, so one step out of the estate and you were already in Lasburg.

Despite frequent back-and-forth by Teleport, I hadn't gone out into the city much until now.

Lasburg really was a great city — the very heart of the world.

The hub, the core of the world… in Earth terms, something like New York, London, and Tokyo combined into one.

The estates of all 24 S-Class Masters, the estates of their retainers, and the majority of the world's major institutions all existed here.

That was why this city was crammed with countless high-rise buildings.

But what towered above and outstripped all of them was the gigantic structure at the city's center, called the Tower of Heaven.

I'd previously seen it from afar, its form continuing as a thin line up into the sky…

But now, for the purpose of entering it, I approached for the first time.

… Far.

It was just too tall, so it could be seen from a great distance, and no matter how far I walked, it never seemed to get any closer.

And when I finally did approach… I was awed.

"… So big…!"

Huge. The height was tremendous, but the sheer girth was tremendous too. The diameter looked to be over a kilometer.

Well, for a building reaching tens of thousands of kilometers up to the stratosphere, even this might count as needle-thin.

Indeed, the silhouette from afar had looked like nothing more than a slim thread.

A radiant, magnificent tower that looked made of crystal.

In ornateness and splendor it surpassed even Earth's most cutting-edge buildings.

A material that didn't seem of this world — impossible to call metal, glass, or plastic.

… To the touch, it wasn't just hard but had a slight elasticity. Was it rubber? A material out of step with a fantasy world — something more SF-like.

… I knew this kind of overtech in this world. The existence of the System.

… I felt I could glimpse a sliver of this world's secret.

"The entrance is this way."

"R-right."

I'd inadvertently grown tense at the building itself.

The place called "entrance" had tiled patterns on the floor, but nothing on the walls. Yet, when we stood before it…

Shun!

Without even a sound, it opened.

An automatic door. And one I'd only seen in SF — the mysterious kind that opened despite having no visible seam.

"Ohh…"

Wait, what was even going on with that seam?

… As I was fixated on the automatic door, a figure approached.

I turned my eyes…

There stood a woman of unworldly beauty.

"How do you do. I am the System NPC, Tower of Heaven Administrator, Letra.

"S-Class Master Akai Naoto-sama. Welcome."

So Letra-san bowed.

Wow… beautiful…!

A girl with a translucent beauty had bowed to me. Silver hair that gleamed like a rainbow.

A beauty more machine-like than faerie-like, somehow.

Not just from this building — from her too, I felt that sense of incongruity, as if the medieval-European fantasy had suddenly turned SF.

"H-how do you do. I'm Akai Naoto. I came today to attend the S-Class Conference."

At Letra's noble beauty, I unintentionally replied in polite speech.

"… Kusu. This way, please. I'll guide you to the assembly hall."

I'd been laughed at for stiffening up.

And then, I walked alongside Letra-san.

… She was pretty… her profile was pretty too. For a moment I'd thought "machine?", but that was just another way of saying her appearance was that perfectly ordered.

Of course she was human… I thought.

Or were System NPCs something close to the System itself?

… Was it okay to ask her various things?

"Um, Letra-san, if you have time, would it be all right if I spoke with you a little?"

I tried asking.

"I'm sorry. I have preparations for the S-Class Conference to attend to.

"Please wait in your seat. If there's anything you don't understand about operations, please contact me anytime."

… Shucks, brushed off.

"… No problem. I can teach Naoto."

"Thank you, Ursula-sama."

Letra thanked Ursula.

… Hmm, I sensed a distance…

"Thou dost have thine eye on Letra too. Hast thou no rest?"

Ursula gave a wry smile.

"N-no, that's not… I mean, Letra-san can hear…"

"No matter, no need to mind. Letra is a System NPC, one of the Three Goddesses. An existence close to the System, who can see all of the world if she wishes. Consider her the System given self-awareness, and privacy is meaningless before her."

"The… System?"

I tried to ask Letra-san directly, but she only smiled, niko.

She really was somehow mechanical… like a device. But beautiful.

Hmm, whether Letra-san was machine or human, I really couldn't tell.

"Well, if thou wishest a System NPC to acknowledge thee, then thou must enter S-Class 4th or above.

"S-Class 4th and above can attend the Round Table Conference of the S-Class Highest Nobles.

"There thou canst directly meet and address a System NPC.

"… When that comes to pass, woo her to thy heart's content. For now, it is premature. Thou hast not the qualification."

"… So, sitting alone with her in a place where I could ask her all sorts of things would also be possible, if I became S-Class 4th or above?"

"Mm, presumably… Though I myself am not S-Class 4th, so I know not in truth."

… I see.

The question of whether this world was a game — a fundamental question to throw at someone — the right targets would be System NPCs like Letra-san.

And the condition for her to make eye contact and converse with me properly was S-Class 4th or above.

Then I had no choice but to aim for it.

… So now I had yet another reason I had to make S-Class 4th or above.

For today, I'd give up on wooing Letra-san. I had to focus on the S-Class Conference.

"Please relax here until the opening."

So Letra-san guided us to a certain room.

A hotel room… well, with a table in the center and plush sofas all around. A bit too oriented toward conferencing.

So this was the conference room?

No, by atmosphere it was more like a reception room…

But for a reception room, there was a fridge with drinks, and even a toilet and shower.

It felt like a hotel room…

Something kept circling in my head. A room with an unclear purpose, but seats that looked capable of seating around 24…

Was this where the S-Class Conference was held — the conference room?

"… Huh? I mean, sure, it's relatively wide, but… we're going to cram all 24 S-Class Masters in here and confer?"

I mean, as a corporate conference space, it wouldn't be bad at all. Maybe even a touch too luxurious.

The product-meeting tables I'd seen in dramas and ads had simpler chairs and desks and a whiteboard.

This was way more luxurious than that, sure…

But S-Class Masters were the most important, central figures in this world, weren't they?

I'd been picturing a UN-conference or at least National-Diet-class meeting hall, so 24 people sitting elbow-to-elbow here was, any way you sliced it, weird.

If it was sitting next to Aqueria and Shaina and Eclair, I'd be delighted, but rubbing shoulders with smelly old men and unremarkable middle-aged guys was the last thing I wanted.

"Fufu."

Hearing my reaction, Ursula laughed.

"No, my apologies. This place is indeed the S-Class Conference assembly hall, but…

"This space is not the conference hall itself. This is a private room."

"… Eh? Private room?"

"This here is the console panel. From here, you control this Pod."

Ursula had suddenly started speaking in modern language. Ah, the translation function at work.

It was being rendered in modern words so I could perceive it easily.

Pi, Ursula touched a transparent panel and the system activated.

"Simple operations can be done with the touch of a button. Complex operations are by voice recognition.

"Show me the conference hall."

Vun…

The moment Ursula said that, the wall vanished.

The wall became a transparent glass wall, and…

Pa…!

The surroundings were illuminated.

"Whoa…"

I couldn't help letting out a sound. What an SF-ish sight.

Wide… how wide? Probably 300m or more in diameter, spherical maybe? A vast space.

And in that space, drifting like soap bubbles… 23 capsules, hovering. So those were… Pods.

The room we were in now was also one of those floating Pods.

One Pod per S-Class Master. Given to them as private rooms.

In this private room you'd let out your 24 Garumon… well, with 24 out it'd feel cramped.

Setting that aside, it had space for about 20 to be comfortable.

"Haaaa… amazing…"

I couldn't help a sound of admiration.

"When the conference begins, the Pods will zip around the hall, exchanging opinions with each other.

"For some reason there's no sense of motion or floating, so you can converse without anything feeling off.

"That center is the dais. When raising an agenda item, you move this Pod to the center and explain.

"Opinions in response can be voiced from anywhere."

"Hoo…"

The future…

No use pretending otherwise — this world had clearly had the hand of an advanced scientific civilization in it somewhere.

Like, an ancient super-science civilization…? Aliens…? Well, if it's a game world, anything goes.

… Anyway, not thinking about it for now.

"… Thou art the new arrival. From now on, other S-Class Masters will arrive in succession. When thou feelest inclined, greeting them would be well."

"Yeah, that's right. I'll do that."

For the time being, until someone came, we all wandered around inside this Pod.

Waa, the sofa was so plush — everyone romping on it was cute.

"If I have all 24 out like this, the other Masters can see all of them too?"

"No, the living quarters cannot be seen from outside. What's visible from outside is only the seat room.

"Into the seat room, you should bring only the Garumon who will speak at the conference."

S-Class Conference Room: Pod

┌──────────┬──┬┼─┼┐
│ Living quarters │ Bath │      │      │
├   ┌────────┐    │      │  S   │
│   │  Table │    │ Toi- │  e   │
│   │        │    │ let  │  a   │
│   │        │    └──────┤  t   │
├   └────────┘           │      │
│                  Fridge│  R.  │
└─────────────────┴┼─┼┘

I see, the Pod was a track-shaped vessel like this. Arrange the seat rooms in a ring and you got something like a round-table conference hall.

"The door of the living quarters is the entrance, but… what about the door in the seat room?"

"That's used to link Pod to Pod when meeting with another Master. You link seat rooms together to form a reception room, and converse there.

"… The seat room is visible from outside, so it's immediately clear who is meeting with whom.

"Well, if thou wishest a secret talk, thou canst invite the other to the living quarters, but whose Pod is connected to whose remains in plain sight.

"Without bothering to link, conversation by transmission is also possible.

"For firmly stating an opinion: 'Amplified Statement.'

"For casually stating an opinion: 'Statement.'

"Murmuring to no one in particular: 'Aside.'

"Aimed at a specific someone: 'Private Talk.'

"You can switch between these to speak. The selection, even on auto, performs quite capably.

"In cases like a private talk, manual selection is safer.

"When stating an opinion, only the Master is visible.

"Or if a secretary is to give the opinion, the secretary may be visible too."

"I see…"

Pon.

At that moment, a response on the console.

… This guy.

Hmm, awkward…

I didn't think "by all means, I must rush to greet him!", but ignoring him would be rude too.

"… Greeting him is probably best, right?"

I checked with Ursula.

"Mm, presumably. Greeting them avoids friction.

"I myself never greeted any save Leonhardt-dono, but I had no agenda to push through, and no need to mind my reputation.

"Whatever sort of fellow, a vote is a vote. Sometimes a humble approach is necessary."

That was Ursula's opinion.

Yeah, even if Zeiros was called Lucky Zeiros and treated as the bottom-rung of S-Class, that was no reason a newcomer like me should take him lightly. He was an older senior. I had to treat him with proper respect, with manners.

As someone from Japan, the land of polite manners, I couldn't disgrace myself.

I calmed my nerves… all right.

"For the method of greeting, is it okay to handle it by transmission? Should I apply for a face-to-face meeting?"

Using the private talk function of the transmission, I should be able to send individual messages.

But handling a first-time greeting by transmission… that might also be looked at askance.

"… Transmission is fine, but applying for a meeting is more polite."

Ursula seemed… a little disinclined toward the meeting.

… What was going on?

A little concerning… but it was a first meeting with another S-Class Master. Greeting him properly was probably best.

"Colette, then — I wish to greet Zeiros-san. Apply for a meeting."

"Yes, understood."

Setting up an appointment in advance through one's secretary was the protocol.

"At the conference itself, addressing someone directly without going through a secretary is no problem. But it's still before the conference.

"Following normal etiquette is best. Good."

Ursula complimented me.

"From Zeiros-sama's secretary Sveria, consent to the meeting has been received."

"All right, let's link the Pods."

When Ursula worked the button, su, without sound or sway, the Pod moved through the air.

Right in front of us was Zeiros's Pod. It was glowing pale blue overall. The other Pods were unlit. So that was how each Master's presence or absence was indicated.

And then, this Pod and that Pod made contact without a sound.

"When connected like this, the wall between the seat rooms of both Pods vanishes and becomes a reception room, where you can hold talks.

"… Bringing 2 or 3 Garumon along is probably good. Basically, the secretary and a favored Garumon, I'd say."

"Then Colette, Ursula, and Kanan."

I chose without much deliberation.

"Hm… your own secretary, your representative Garumon from the yearbook, and me, who is at least acquainted with the fellow. A reasonable selection."

Fu, Ursula sighed, looking a little tired.

Hmm? What was going on? Ursula was deliberately avoiding sharing information on other Masters to spare me preconceptions, but…

Was Zeiros some kind of problematic Master?

I opened the door from the living quarters to the seat room.

Shun, the door opened soundlessly.

This was the seat room. A relatively wide space, room for 6 or 7 people in here alone.

It seemed designed on the assumption that the S-Class Master and secretary, plus a few staff members serving as brain trust, would enter with materials.

In the center was a fine table and a fine seat. With 24 of these lined up, it wouldn't lose to a UN conference seat.

This was where I would sit… it was a bit bracing.

Around it were 4 chairs, simpler than the central seat but settled and high-class-looking. These were the seats for Garumon and staff, I'd guess.

Right now, one wall of the seat room had vanished, and you could see another seat room on the other side.

That was Zeiros's Pod, then.

Shun

The door on the opposite side opened, and one young man showed himself.

S-Class 23rd Zeiros.

Not the kind of thing I, with my reputed unremarkable looks, should be saying, but he was the unremarkable type too.

In his twenties, slightly slanted eyes, somewhat fox-faced…

His attire was nice, though. Clothes set with jewels, very nouveau-riche taste.

… S-Class Upper Noble, huh.

The information Lyuka had given me on him beforehand swam through my head. Maybe I should butter him up a bit…

Now, the man himself was unremarkable, but the quality of the Garumon he'd brought was, as expected of S-Class, beautiful.

"The one on the right is the secretary Sveria. On the left, his representative Garumon, Eleine."

Out of etiquette I'd looked at Zeiros first, but the eye-catcher was Eleine.

Of course, being a Garumon brought by an S-Class Master, she was naturally UR-Class. Unquestionably very beautiful, but…

What stood out most was her outfit.

She looked almost fully nude. A reverse outfit consisting only of sleeves and leg coverings. Her nipples were barely hidden by silver nipple pasties.

And the groin…

She was a futanari. She wore condom-like rubber underwear that clearly showed the shape of her penis.

The genitals were just barely covered, so by this world's standards this didn't count as sexual attire.

Apparently there was a term "quasi-sexual attire" for erotic clothes that, while concealing the genitals, exposed the rest substantially.

This probably qualified.

… Well, the Spirit Garbs I had everyone wear in combat were also clearly quasi-sexual attire.

Sexual or quasi-sexual attire would be inappropriate for a formal venue like the S-Class Conference, but… Eleine probably also fought in that outfit.

Combat attire was a different story. Even sexual attire, if it was a combat uniform, was apparently tolerated at any official venue.

If so, this erotic outfit of hers was probably fine by this world's standards.

… These thoughts took only a moment, and within 1-2 seconds of their entrance, I was about to greet them, when…

"Oh, fair Ursula-sama! How beautiful and lovely you are today as well…! The joy of meeting you is beyond compare! Your servant, Zeiros, at your service!"

And Zeiros suddenly knelt before Ursula.

I was thrown.

… Wait, what was this person's relationship with Ursula? That was the most pressing question, but…

Also, one more point.

Well, it didn't particularly bother me, but in principle… wasn't addressing the Garumon before the Master rude?

I didn't want to make a big deal of it, but…

He'd noticed I was about to greet him and ignored it to address Ursula. That was the impression.

Hmm… that was rather off-putting. Should I be angry?

But suddenly getting angry while trying to be friendly seemed off too…

I hesitated for an instant.

"… Zeiros-dono. First address my master, that is the proper order."

But Ursula apparently couldn't leave it alone. She reprimanded Zeiros.

Or rather, if she'd left it alone he'd have just kept bowing to her, so she had no choice but to speak up.

"… My greeting is overdue. I'm the new S-Class 24th, Akai Naoto. Pleased to make your acquaintance going forward."

To him as he stood up, I greeted as politely as I could.

"… Hoh. For a commoner, you seem to know your manners. I am S-Class 23rd Master, Zeiros."

… And he addressed me in a slightly haughty, overbearing manner.

His attitude toward Ursula was completely different…

… So this was the kind of person he was. Didn't seem like we'd get along very well…

The reason Ursula had seemed disinclined was now clear, and I too felt a little gloomy.