The Water Magician

In the office above the conference room where Abel and the Naitorei Kingdom delegation were led, Chief Marta and Minister of Ports Nonta were holding an emergency meeting.

In contrast to the relatively calm atmosphere of the conference room, the air in this minister's office was heavy.

Extremely heavy.

"This is a terrible situation..."

Marta was trembling.

After leading the Naitorei Kingdom delegation into the conference room and thinking it through calmly, he realized just how dire their situation was.

An assault on a foreign king who visited for the sake of friendship.

Such an event was unprecedented.

Moreover, it happened in front of a crowd… right before his eyes as chief.

If only this could be attributed to some foreign conspiracy… or if it were all just a dream, it would be so much easier.

Although he had led this country for over a decade, Marta struggled to recall a time he felt so cornered.

Fundamentally, he had enjoyed high popularity among the citizens.

However, this time was different.

"What about Mozzare?"

Marta inquired about the 'monster' Mozzare.

"He seems to be in the corner of the room, holding his head."

"His fighting instincts are high, but he’s even more sensitive to threats. He likely perceives King Abel as a threat… and has been driven by fear."

Chief Marta did not blame Mozzare, but regretted his own poor judgment in bringing him out to that situation.

It was all because of that female captain… her presence had distorted his judgment.

"I want to apologize to King Abel..."

"Chief..."

That was Marta's honest feeling. Nonta completely understood.

However, he also understood why that was not possible.

The leader of a nation cannot easily bow their head to the leader of another country.

It is for the sake of their own citizens.

In the position of representing their nation, if such an act were to occur in public, it could trigger an uproar among the more extreme citizens.

To avoid this, an apology could be made in a private setting…

"We just met a moment ago, exchanged greetings and shook hands… and now, the subordinate who attacked him… would he really agree to meet one-on-one?"

Even Marta understood that much.

For instance, even the leader of the neighboring Banban Kingdom would not meet one-on-one, unless an extremely personal bond of trust had been established.

"Chief, how about limiting the number of subordinates… yes, meeting with just one subordinate each in a room next door… there’s a small conference room there, so we could do it there. If anything happens, they could immediately call for support."

"I see. In that case, he might agree."

With Nonta's suggestion, a hint of color finally returned to Marta's face.

Until now, he had looked pale, like a corpse.

The pressure of the dire situation was what had caused that.

In the small conference room next to the main one.

From the Pishkan Kingdom side were Chief Marta and Minister of Ports Nonta.

From the Naitorei Kingdom side were Abel and Ryo.

A meeting involving the four had begun.

Of course, when this proposal was made by the Pishkan Kingdom side, Scotty, who was effectively in charge of the guards, expressed concern.

It was naturally frightening to have their master meet a person with whom trust had not yet been established, especially in a confined space.

But Abel spoke up, as if it were only the most natural thing in the world.

"Just bring Ryo as a guard, right? This time, he should be able to protect me before I get attacked."

"Of course! Leave it to me! I’ll make sure to encase Abel in perfect ice before any enemy's blade reaches him!"

"If possible, I’d prefer you not to encase me in ice…"

The bold hero king, Abel the First, seemed to be afraid of being frozen.

"Then it can’t be helped. I will bring the first unit of the garden watchers. They are non-human, so they won't count as part of the 'one subordinate' limit proposed by them."

"Isn’t that a bit underhanded?"

"Abel is quite serious. When it comes to meetings between the leaders of nations, it's akin to war. It’s a terrifying world where all sorts of traps and assassins lurk. To think one could just rush in with only two people… it may be foolish beyond mere seriousness."