Chapter 91

Chapter 91. Trust Me, I Got This. (1)

Icarus, bound by a quest, remained silent and still.

As they suggested holding a 1-2 hour meeting, they glanced at her.

From him, through some gacha (···?), four superhumans popped out.

Ignis, Belial, Pashtira, and Gryanarr decided to discuss how to resolve this matter.

They entered the meeting room, which Icarus had previously considered mere “decoration,” and began exchanging opinions.

However, despite the formal appearance of a “meeting,”

once they actually entered the meeting room…

—

“In the end, our Commander has been suffering so much alone that they’ve become mentally exhausted to the point of asking for our opinions.”

“Hmm… I guess that’s the case.”

“I agree. Sometimes, even after waking up, they still look tired and often doze off.”

“It’s truly heartbreaking…♡”

—

The four, not wanting to see the Commander suffer as described in Icarus’s quest,

quickly reached a conclusion on the main premise of the meeting.

—

“First, regarding the topic the Commander mentioned…”

“It’s about dealing with the suspicions from the Monster Force, right?”

“In my opinion, it might be better to just lay it all out openly.”

—

They suggested openly revealing what Icarus had previously thought should be kept hidden.

If Icarus had seen this, they would have probably burst into tears.

Unfortunately, due to the quest, Icarus couldn’t interfere with the meeting, no matter what.

In fact, they couldn’t even see what was going on.

The superhumans, with their superhuman brains, were putting in their utmost effort to reach the optimal conclusion.

—

“Honestly, is there really a need to hide this?”

“Pashtira is right. From the monsters’ perspective, it would actually make more sense if the Commander had the ‘Pirate Alliance’ under their command.”

“I agree with Gryanarr.”

“Glad we’re all on the same page.”

—

As the three nodded in agreement, Belial adjusted her black leather gloves and continued.

—

“As Gryanarr said, for some reason, the fact that our Commander, Icarus, has the Pirate Alliance—specifically, the Pirate Empress Marian—under their command alone should dispel any doubts they have.”

“But wouldn’t saying that outright make the other side distrustful?”

—

Of course, in response to Belial’s words, Ignis raised a reasonable question.

—

“Well, if it really comes to it, we can just have Marian show complete submission in front of the Commander…♡”

“…Huh?”

—

At Pashtira’s somewhat ambiguous answer, Ignis looked confused.

At the same time, Belial also threw a question at Pashtira, as if asking if she had some method in mind.

—

“Just asking, but do you have some kind of plan for that, Pashtira?”

“Of course, but I’d like to hear your opinion first, Belial♡”

—

At Pashtira’s response, a vein popped on Belial’s forehead, hidden under her hat.

Barely holding back her anger, Belial nodded and replied.

—

“Is there really a need to do anything? Just show the pirates the numerous requests they’ve brought to the Commander and the scenes we’ve been witnessing. That should be enough.”

“But I thought that alone might not be sufficient, which is why they asked us for input, right?”

“…You’re not wrong, but then what’s your solution?”

—

With a blank expression, Belial listened as Pashtira chuckled and presented her “plan.”

—

“There’s nothing else. Before she grew up like this, I made sure to give her proper ‘education’ in advance.”

“…”

“…”

“Ah, that thing.”

—

Upon hearing Pashtira’s words, the three women each showed different reactions, realizing what she meant.

Regardless, Pashtira continued to elaborate on her “plan.”

—

“Fortunately, Marian has always had a great affection for our Commander…♡”

“Hmm.”

“During her growth period, she made efforts to serve the Commander, and I gave her a little help…”

“I gave it to you♡”

“And when I came back here, I often helped out by injecting various drugs. Hmm.”

“…”

“So if Oxianor and the Monster don’t believe us…”

“…Are you saying that the ‘Pirate Empress’ will bow in submission in front of the Commander, or something like that?”

At Belial’s sudden interruption, Pashtira and Gryanarr reacted as if they already knew everything and wondered why she was making a fuss.

Thanks to that, the two women—no, the combination of one mad scientist and one crazy girl—made Belial shake her head in disbelief.

And with that, let’s wrap up the discussion about ‘proof.’

Their meeting was nothing short of smooth sailing.

“This could actually be an opportunity to form a secret alliance between the pirates and the monsters.”

“That’s right… It’s sneaky, but the idea of cooperating behind the scenes to keep the other two factions in check seems pretty good♡”

“I agree. Especially if we want to counter the Earth Federation, the monsters and pirates will have to team up.”

“Exactly. Just the number of Commanders affiliated with the Earth Federation alone exceeds 35,000, doesn’t it?”

Even simple calculations flowed effortlessly among the four, and they quickly came up with solutions.

Ignis, who is practically a ‘warrior’ specialized in close combat.

And Pashtra, a long-range firepower-focused character who uses 90% of her intelligence for her love for the Commander and her passion for firepower.

Even if these two struggled to articulate certain points.

The combination of Belial, who is versatile in all aspects, and Gryanarr, who is sharp-minded.

Quickly filled in the gaps and pushed the meeting forward without hesitation.

As a result.

Excluding various miscellaneous details, the original purpose of the meeting—’How do we persuade the Monster and resolve the trust debuff?’—was.

After presenting additional opinions and combining them to continue the discussion.

It was no surprise that they were superhumans, as it was faster than anyone could have imagined…

“Then let’s finalize the opinion we’ll present to the Commander.”

“Hmm, that sounds good.”

“I’m all for it.”

“Me too♡”

“Well then, let’s see… It’s been about 20 minutes.”

After reaching a conclusion and checking the clock, they realized only 20 minutes had passed.

“Oh my, it ended earlier than expected?”

“Impressive♡”

“Since it ended quickly, the Commander will be pleased!”

“True, then we should go report to the Commander right away…”

Belial, after checking the time, immediately headed out of the meeting room to inform her Commander, Icarus, of the meeting’s results.

But right at that moment.

“Wait, Belial, are you planning to go tell the Commander right now?”

“Of course? The sooner we explain, the better.”

Belial stood up and casually responded to Gryanarr, who called out to her.

She turned her back and headed for the meeting room entrance, but…

“But if you leave like this, how do you think the Commander will view us?”

“…What do you mean?”

Gryanarr, leaning back in her chair with her feet propped up on the table.

Her fingers interlocked as she spoke, causing Belial to pause mid-step and look puzzled.

Gryanarr, who had been petting a ‘pet tentacle’ cultivated with Oxianor’s permission.

Not only stopped her actions.

But turned her body around from the position she was about to leave in.

And looked directly at Belial, who was frozen in place.

Calmly, she opened her mouth.

“I can assure you, if you leave now, the Commander will be very disappointed.”

“…Explain in more detail, Gryanarr.”