The first exploration of the dungeon by the lord was successfully completed, and on the afternoon of the day their group returned—

As I was spending my time as usual after finishing lunch, a messenger from Liesel arrived, instructing me to bring the relevant members to the Third Conference Room.

The fact that no specific personnel or agenda were mentioned was very much like him.

“Oh…? Looks like I kept you waiting.”

Leading Elena and the other three inside, we found that the men had already gathered.

Liesel, August, Alec, Zighart, Luban, Luick, and Yusef, along with his adjutant and the branch chief of the Adventurers’ Guild… Considering what was likely to be discussed, this was an appropriate lineup.

“No, it’s fine. I see Sera isn’t here… Is she taking a nap?”

Liesel confirmed Sera’s absence among us and teasingly remarked—

“You figured it out well. She woke up early, so after lunch, she went to sleep. That won’t be a problem, will it?”

When I replied to Liesel, he momentarily looked taken aback.

It seemed he had only meant it as a joke.

I could have woken her up, but if I did, we might end up gathering again in the evening.

Since the same people would be meeting again anyway, it was better to settle everything in one go.

“…That makes sense. Understood. Now, take your seats. Let’s begin the discussion.”

◇

At Liesel’s cue, the meeting began.

This gathering wasn’t meant for keeping minutes or anything formal—everyone was free to speak as they pleased.

That said, Luick and the branch chief remained silent, seemingly not used to such discussions.

It was a rare opportunity for them to make an impression on Liesel… how disappointing.

Well, those two aside, the real topic here was the dungeon.

I hadn’t ventured inside yet, but from what I’d heard from Elena and Teresa, the shallows seemed to be the biggest challenge.

It was a forest-mimicking area where adapting to the environment was more critical than the strength of the monsters.

For foreign adventurers, this might be a serious hurdle, but for the adventurers of Riana and Zelkis, who had ample combat experience in dangerous regions, handling it wouldn’t be too difficult.

This wasn’t just my opinion—it was the consensus among Riana’s leadership.

And now, after this exploration, even Yusef and the central side shared the same view.

With this, the information would be formally communicated to adventurers’ guilds across the country.

Yusef and the other captains had also realized that what they had been transporting wasn’t holy currency.

Of course, they hadn’t traced it back to Sera yet, but—like my father—they likely assumed the waterways had been used.

Not just the shallows, but a considerable portion ahead had already been investigated, and they had accepted it as such.

They weren’t prying into unnecessary details, and their quick comprehension made things much easier.

Now, with that, the topics scheduled for this time were essentially concluded.

But the real discussion was just about to begin.

“Liesel.”

I called his name, and instead of a reply, he simply shrugged his shoulders with a wry smile.

“Yusef. How does the central region view the situation in the western continent?”

“Hah. An invasion next year is almost certain. The timing will likely be just before the autumn rainy season… roughly one year from now. In a way, it’s as expected. However, the number of forces in motion is clearly smaller, and the two major powers in the west don’t seem to be involved.”

Hearing Yusef’s report, Liesel nodded in satisfaction.

The two major western forces—he was referring to the Empire and the Allied Nations.

If neither of them were involved, then as expected, we were looking at an invasion of at most three or four countries.

Their population was larger than ours, and they would likely recruit mercenaries, meaning their troop numbers would be more than double ours—but that wasn’t much of a concern.

Since modern times, we had occasionally lagged behind in political negotiations, but in actual combat, we had always dominated.

And yet, they still persisted in throwing away their lives like this…

For the west, war was about territorial disputes—so long as they didn’t lose land, they could claim they hadn’t lost the war.

On the other hand, for us in the Great Forest Alliance, the west was never the real enemy.

All we did was drive away the annoying intruders.

We had no need for western lands, and we demanded reparations in the form of holy currency or treasures instead.

Because of this, even if they were effectively defeated, the western nations could continue to proclaim to their people that they had not truly lost.

And so, the cycle repeated.

The top leaders of the major western nations had started to realize the difference in military power.

While they still waged territorial wars against non-affiliated nations, they had limited their engagements with the Great Forest Alliance to minor skirmishes at the borders.

The only exception was when a new dungeon appeared.

By launching simultaneous attacks at the dungeon’s location and the borders, they could force us to divide our forces, creating an opening for victory—or at least enough chaos to justify intervention.

But this time, Riana had already shut down that possibility.

That was likely why the two major powers were staying quiet.

Of course, we weren’t letting our guard down—there were still some forces left in Riana, and there was always the possibility of betrayal.

Even if Riana’s main forces moved elsewhere, those who remained could hold the line.

In that sense, before the war had even begun, our victory was already secured.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————

Sera ・【Hideout】+1 【Prayer】 【Mira’s Blessing】 【Wind’s Garment】 ・【Floating Orb】+1 【Shadow Sword】 【Scarlet Bee Needle】 【Fairy’s Eye】 【Dragon’s Lung】 【Amber Sword】 【Danrem’s Thread】 【Serpent’s Tail】 【Ankle Bracelet】 【Amber Shield】 【Purple Wings】 ・15 cards

Seriana ・【Area Identification】・【】・28 cards

Elena ・【】・【Green Fang】 【Amber Sword】 ・4 cards

Alec ・【Heavy Strike】・【Red Shield】 【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 ・8 cards