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Ariel, however, had something to do, so she left us in front of the temple. She waved and smiled at me until the very end, but her expression held a hint of darkness. Of course, I was also sad, but there was nothing I could do. How could a girl who was still recovering engage in acts of terror? Besides, her abilities were doubtful when it came to facing Stardus. I had never seen her abilities in action, and there was no guarantee she could take on Stardus.

Well, Ariel would understand with time.

With that thought in mind, I entered the interior of the grand temple and found Atlas and Katana waiting for me.

Inside the grand temple, on one side, stood Atlas’s cherished pottery… or something like that. He was standing in front of an exhibition with Katana, constantly talking about something.

“…Exactly! Isn’t it astonishing that this exquisite and beautiful pottery was made in the 1300s? And it maintained its luster even under the pressure of the ocean. From the moment I first saw this, I realized that I needed to revive this maritime kingdom. Sorry for the lengthy introduction. Anyway, let me explain slowly. The symbol carved on this pottery surface means…”

He was imparting some in-depth explanation about the pottery to Katana as if providing her with a crash course. She stood still with a blank, absent expression, quietly listening to Atlas’s pottery explanation, her focus clearly lost.

“….!”

At that moment, Katana noticed me approaching from behind. Her previously unfocused gaze suddenly locked onto me, her pupils dilating. Then, with a joyful expression on her face as if she had met an old friend, she urgently spoke.

“Oh… Egostic is here!”

“This is made using the blackware technique… Huh? Oh, Egostic! Haha, you’ve arrived!”

Finally, Atlas stopped talking and turned to look at me. Before he could say anything, I quickly spoke with a smile.

“Yes, I’m here. My conversation with Ariel took longer than expected, I apologize for taking up your meeting time.”

“Haha, no problem! Besides, I didn’t notice the time passing while I was introducing Katana to my pottery collection. Let’s see… Oops, it’s already time. I’ll guide you. Follow me.”

“Alright.”

With those words, Atlas led us to a small reception room he had prepared, chuckling as he guided us. Whew, mission complete. I was relieved that I initiated the meeting first; otherwise, I would have been trapped here, listening to Atlas’s pottery lecture. I had already heard everything he had to say, after all.

“….”

Meanwhile, Katana, finally freed from the clutches of pottery, let out a small sigh of relief. She expressed her gratitude to me with a thankful look. She must have been quite bored.

Sigh. I thought it was quite interesting, though. Take a look at that pottery. It’s made of glass, and although I don’t know the specifics of how they filled it with water, the surface has water inside. I still don’t understand the principle behind that.

Anyway, we sat down in the small, beautiful room with a medieval European palace vibe, where coffee and biscuits were prepared for us. I couldn’t help but think that it looked entirely different from the bandit-lookalike Atlas, though. Did Ariel decorate this place?

Our conversation mostly revolved around various topics. What’s been going on lately, how active the heroes are, and things like that. According to Atlas, strong heroes in the world are always busy, and all heroes are essentially villains of the SSS class. Of course, the stronger they are, the more invincible they seem to be, but they also don’t escape without some wounds.

Katana, on the other hand, seemed to be living well without many problems despite essentially taking over as the leader of the villain association in Japan, as long as there were no cross-national punitive actions. It was pretty much because the International Association had lost its function. It seemed that she was officially in charge of the villain association, even though she hadn’t ordered any cross-national punitive actions. I couldn’t help but feel somewhat envious, considering the circumstances with someone called Metel, or whatever, a U.S. hero who had arrived. After all, Katana was a major player now, making difficult decisions from her position as the top authority.

Of course, unlike me, Katana was the real deal now, and it was quite challenging to make various decisions in her capacity as a responsible figure. Perhaps that was why she had been in regular contact with our South Korean big shot, Lee Seola, learning a lot from her. It was quite impressive to see them warmheartedly connecting and exchanging knowledge, transcending the boundaries of heroes and villains as national authorities.

“…Well, I feel the most comfortable when talking to you, Egostic.”

And at the end, she subtly confessed her feelings with a smile. Was this the reason she had recently started contacting me more often? Well, when you’re in a high position, it can get lonely, especially when there are fewer people who can see the world from the same perspective. Every time she called, I couldn’t help but reflect on Katana’s international call expenses. But she was the leader of Japan, so it wasn’t an issue.

“I also enjoy listening to Katana’s stories. So please feel free to contact me anytime. I’ll be all ears.”

I replied with that, smiling at Katana.

“Hahaha! The two of you are getting along so well! Young people’s romances are always fun to watch. Reminds me of my wife. Haha!”

By the way, Atlas was cheerfully joking while devouring a slice of cake.

“Haha, we’re not like that. We’re friends, just friends.”

I responded with a calm face, though my cheeks and earlobes had reddened slightly. Katana, who usually maintained a cool poker face, also seemed embarrassed by this kind of banter. Let’s remember this image.

“Haha, alright, alright. Everyone starts by saying that. Well, did I perhaps make it awkward? I’ll just let it slide. Haha!”

Atlas kept joking until the end.

…It was a bit awkward, but anyway. Afterward, it was my turn to speak. Of course, Japan and Latis City are practically my allied countries concerning the Moonlight Gate. This conversation was meant for this Cathedral, but I could provide a much more direct and detailed explanation to them.

As for Atlas, he was safe, as he was deep in the sea. In the original work, you see, these monsters would just die when submerged in water. I don’t know why, as they weren’t necessarily oxygen breathers, but that’s how it was. Maybe they couldn’t move in the water?

That’s why Katana was the one who focused most on my words. I mentioned a few things a few times before, but today was the first time I explained things in such detail. I even shared some contingency plans, starting with digging more bunkers.

After talking about this and that, we realized it was time for Cathedral.

“Shall we start moving?”

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

So, we went outside to prepare for the Cathedral.

Kaboooooom.

“…?”

By the way, before heading there, there was a loud noise, and a massive water column rose from one side of the city. We could hear someone talking about a princess or something. But Atlas seemed unfazed, probably because this kind of thing happened all the time.

Anyway, after tearing up the letter, I suddenly felt a strange sensation in my body. Together with that, I arrived at the corridor of the cathedral, a place that felt as comfortable as my own home.

“Hello, Egostic.”

As always, the priest in white robes bowed in greeting, and I felt a sense of inner familiarity. This person was my contact, right? Their face was always the same, waiting in the corridor every time I came.

By the way, I was currently separated from both Atlas and Katana. We had torn apart our respective invitations and dispersed individually, each walking to our destination separately.

It was somewhat amusing to think that after parting ways, we would meet again in the meeting room if we just walked down the corridor. Maybe we should have just torn one invitation and traveled together?

Anyway, I walked down the gray corridor and arrived at the main conference room with a large round table under a chandelier.

“….”

And as soon as I arrived, there was Katana walking from the opposite end of the corridor. Somehow, it made me smile almost without knowing. What was this?

“Hello, Egostic.”

“…Hello, Katana.”

Of course, we greeted each other cheekily, as if we were seeing each other for the first time. Why? Well, it was fun.

Katana also seemed to find this situation amusing, trying to suppress her laughter. I saw many different expressions from her today.

“Hahaha! Why is everyone standing around? Have a seat!”

Just then, Atlas arrived and led us to our respective seats around the round table.

At just the right time, there were a fair number of other villains who were also sitting around. It appeared that everyone had become friendlier with each other, chatting with nearby individuals. This was probably what Celeste, the founder of these meetings, had envisioned.

“Looks like everyone is here.”

Just like that, Celeste, wearing white priestess robes and closing her eyes as if she were tired, took her seat last.

And so, the meeting, which might as well have been the umpteenth one, began.

As for me, the information presented this time was rather mundane, lacking depth compared to previous meetings. The meeting itself didn’t interest me much, as it was just about planning another portal and monster briefing.

However…

“….”

I was more interested in how to win over Li Xiaofeng, the top villain of China, who was sitting across from me.

…How could I persuade him who wants the Chinese government to collapse?