As I nodded thoughtfully, my eyes met Seriana’s.

She wore a satisfied expression, so it seemed I had successfully conveyed that I understood the story clearly.

Well, yeah?

I did understand the story so far, but it was just organizing the situation.

There must be more to come.

“Well, I get it up to here. Even though I didn’t participate, and was somewhat involved behind the scenes, it’s strange for things to end so stupidly like this, right?”

“Exactly. Even if the Empire didn’t directly take part, they know that losing so disgracefully would make the East look down on them.”

“…Could it have been a slip-up?”

Since so many people were involved, and plenty of time was taken, it wasn’t an impulsive decision.

Surely something like that couldn’t have happened. But still, could there have been some miscommunication between the countries… or something like that?

“No.”

“None, huh…”

She said it decisively.

Well, I thought it was unlikely too, but then what is it?

“I think the Empire will completely withdraw from the East for a while. Also, the Allied Nations and the Holy Nation. If either of those two tries to maintain relations with the East, I doubt they would accept such a humiliating loss.”

“Hmm, hmm.”

Between the strong powers of the West, there must be some connection.

Everyone seemed to think that the Empire’s recent actions were tacitly approved by those two powers.

“I can’t say for sure, but it won’t be just for a few years. Maybe a decade or more… or even several decades. Until the Western countries go through a generational change, I think they will focus on reorganizing their powers.”

“I see. That’s quite a long-term plan. …What about us?”

Indeed, if it takes that long, most countries would have shifted to the next generation or even the one after that.

But then, we would change too.

Is that okay?

“The current leadership of each country is used to underestimating the East. It’s more efficient to educate the younger generation than to try to change each individual’s mindset. Besides, by then, we will have developed even more. So, for now, they want to reorganize the West, even if it means cutting ties with the East. Of course, this is just speculation because information is limited here, and it’s unclear how reliable the reports from the capital are. Still, it shouldn’t be far off.”

“I see. They’ve thought through a lot…”

I said that and flopped down on the bed I’d been sitting on.

For now, I think I roughly understand what everyone was worried about earlier today.

I’ve only been under Seriana for about six years, but even in that time, the West has often come up.

But now it seems they’re seriously thinking of withdrawing from the East…

Of course, it might be temporary, but still, it’s quite newsworthy.

But, you know…

For example, in my previous life, knowledge of world maps and history was easy to get from newspapers and news, so even distant lands felt somewhat familiar.

But in this world…

I can learn about the Eastern Great Forest Alliance from books circulating here, and I have some grasp of the countries allied with them.

But the West…

I know a little about major countries like the Empire, but I barely know the names of their emperors, kings, or key nobles.

Even those countries that occasionally come into contact are like that.

Most other countries I don’t even know where they are or their names, so to me, the whole West is a mysterious place.

I vaguely remember hearing at some point that it’s nearly impossible for the West to develop through monster-related means anymore.

Holy Coins and monster materials are only cleanly obtained through dungeons.

Meanwhile, the East is still, still, still… They don’t even know how far the monster-infested wilds stretch.

As time passes, the gap in monster-related development becomes clearer.

Eventually, the West will catch up culturally and intellectually, and the East will no longer need the West at all…

That’s why the West is reorganizing—to counter that.

I get it.

They want to reorganize while they still have the strength before it’s too late.

Smart.

It seems like we don’t have to worry about intervention from the East anymore, but Seriana and the others reacted as they did because there’s still a need to be cautious…

To me, it just felt like some unknown countries were causing a fuss.

Of course, I was somewhat aware of the Holy Nation involved with the Church, but that will probably become unnecessary soon.

“I thought they’d keep quiet for a few years… but it’s more than I imagined. Thanks to that, we’ll probably be able to focus on our own territory.”

Sitting beside me as I lay down, Seriana muttered that.

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

Sera・Blessed Item・【Hideout】+1【Prayer】【Mira’s Blessing】【Water’s Garment】

Blessed Items・【Floating Orb】+1【Shadow Sword】+1【Scarlet Bee Needle】【Fairy’s Eye】【Dragon’s Lung】【Amber Sword】【Danrem’s Thread】【Serpent’s Tail】【Ankle Bracelet】【Amber Shield】【Purple Wings】【Red Sword】【Monkey’s Arm】・8 cards

Seriana・【Area Identification】・【】・0 cards

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

Alec・【Strong Strike】・【Red Shield】【Fierce Horned Trumpet】・10 cards