Nirvana was experiencing a rare, temporary population surge. Not only were key figures and their escorts arriving from various countries, but a swarm of journalists who had caught wind of the situation had also flooded in. Amid this chaos, the Musou Iron Cavalry was reuniting.

“It hasn’t been that long, yet it feels like ages,” said Lynne Carlo as she observed the familiar faces of the Musou Iron Cavalry members she hadn’t seen in a while.

“Well, first things first—drinks! We’ve all gathered after a long time, so let’s have a party!” The old man seemed more excited about the party than the meeting, suggesting it eagerly.

“Father, while a party is nice, exchanging information takes priority now. Yuta and the others have been through quite a bit, so let’s focus on the meeting,” she replied.

The old man countered her sound argument with a bit of stubborn reasoning.

“We can have a meeting while drinking, can’t we? Let’s kill two birds with one stone.”

“You know, there’s a saying that if you chase two hares, you’ll lose both. This is an important meeting where we’re deciding our future actions. It’s not something to discuss while drinking.”

Even the old man couldn’t argue with his daughter Seion’s reasoning. Unable to refute further, he started wandering aimlessly.

Ignoring his antics, the meeting soon commenced. The agenda focused on rescuing the two heroes and Princess Yukiha, who had been captured by the Rafishal organization, and on addressing the Raddle Axis Alliance. After Jean explained the background, Lynne Carlo immediately commented.

“The mastermind behind the upheaval in the Kingdom of Meltaria was also a member of the organization. It seems like rats have infiltrated every country, causing trouble.”

Seion nodded in agreement and added, “It’s the same in the Western nations. Thanks to cooperation among nations, we managed to get rid of most of the pests, but the internal conflicts have severely affected them.”

“In any case, the countries with grudges against the organization have now gathered in Nirvana. We have no choice but to unite them against the Raddle Axis Alliance.”

While the Raddle Axis Alliance was indeed an important issue, I was more interested in the other agenda item.

“Honestly, I just want to go and rescue Yukiha as soon as possible. We know where she is, right?”

“Yes, but it’s in the worst possible location—the very heart of the Raddle Axis Alliance’s territory. The Musou Iron Cavalry can’t manage a rescue on its own. We’ll need to establish a military alliance here first to gain support.”

“Isn’t it more accurate to say we’re using them? Aside from the president of the Amuria Federation, none of these countries’ representatives seem to care about the hostages or the heroes,” remarked Alyuna.

Jean responded, “Well, if you want to call it ‘using’ them, that might be true. But they don’t have much of a choice; the weak will inevitably band together under a significant threat.”

He had a point. Many countries had already approached the Musou Iron Cavalry for mediation. Establishing a forum for such talks might be enough to form the military alliance we needed.