The hierarchy was clear: the Six Kings were not to be equated with their executives. Even those executives were among the world's elite—figures of such staggering power, fame, and influence that even a high-ranking noble risked total social ruin through a single clumsy encounter.
Yet the Six Kings themselves occupied a different dimension entirely. While official protocol placed them on equal footing with the Three Kings of the Human Realm—a courtesy afforded by the Friendship Treaty and the gods' frequent intervention via blessings—the reality was far more lopsided. In terms of raw authority, the Six Kings sat far above any human monarch.
For Cornelia, a young woman of simple noble birth, they were figures dwelling far beyond the reach of mortals. Even the heads of great houses rarely enjoyed the privilege of a proper audience. Simply being known to have an acquaintance with the Six Kings was a status symbol of staggering proportions.
Two... Two members of the Six Kings at once? she thought, her mind reeling. And of all people, the War King and the Dragon King...
Among the Six Kings, there were those who were relatively approachable and those who were categorically not.
At the top of the "impossible" list were the Death King and the Phantasm King. In Death King Isis’s case, the reason was obvious. Until very recently, when she received a control accessory from Canaris, her death mana was so potent that no one could even approach her without peerage-class resistance. Given that there were only about four humans in existence with that level of power, meaningful interaction had been a physical impossibility.
As for the Phantasm King, her appearance before a noble usually signaled that she had marked them for execution. There was no such thing as a "casual meeting." While she had been showing herself more frequently lately due to Kaito’s influence, she had been a phantom-like enigma until his arrival in Trinia, appearing only during the Hero Festival.
The "approachable" ones were the Underworld King and the World King, both celebrated for their gentle temperaments. Underworld King Kuromueina effectively served as the representative of the Demon Realm and was a frequent fixture in public life. Between her various merchant associations and her hobby of traveling to various towns for food tours, she was undoubtedly the most accessible of the Kings.
World King Lilliwood did not visit the Human Realm as often as Kuro, but she appeared as an honored guest at human festivals far more frequently than the others. Her kind, tranquil personality made her easy to talk to.
Then there were the "difficult" ones: the War King and the Dragon King. War King Megiddo was a known quantity; he harbored a deep-seated dislike for nobles and maintained a terrifyingly consistent policy of killing anyone who annoyed him. While he visited the Human Realm often, the risks involved in approaching him were far too great for any sensible noble.
Dragon King Magnawell posed no such threat of violence, but his sheer scale was the hurdle. His body was so gargantuan that he never visited the Human Realm except for the Hero Festival. To see him, one had to trek into the southern mountain ranges—a treacherous region of the Demon Realm teeming with monsters. Direct interaction was simply a logistical nightmare.
Though he had begun visiting more frequently thanks to a special split body, he remained, alongside the War King, a figure most nobles considered beyond their reach.
"...U-Um, Nizbel-sama, Eingana-sama. Please, if I may... would it truly be acceptable for someone like me to accompany you to a place where the Six Kings will be present?"
"Yeah, it’s fine," Nizbel replied. "Besides, even if you went off on your own right now, you’d probably run into them anyway."
"Megiddo-sama is extremely fond of Miyama Kaito-san," Eingana added. "Once he realizes Kaito-san is nearby, he will undoubtedly charge over while shouting his name at the top of his lungs..."
Cornelia felt a wave of pure dread wash over her. The War King making a scene in the middle of a massive crowd while screaming Kaito’s name... the scrutiny would be unbearable. And as the person standing right next to Kaito, she would be caught in the center of that social hurricane. When she looked at it that way, a preemptive greeting almost seemed like the safer option.
Unfortunately, resolve is a double-edged sword—a mental breakwater of sorts.
Had Cornelia been blindsided by the sudden appearance of Megiddo and Magnawell, a woman of her mental fortitude would likely have fainted from the shock. But because she had been warned, she remained anchored to reality. Her stomach felt as though it had been filled with lead—heavy, cold, and agonizing—but she would remain conscious.
By gaining this foresight, she had inadvertently sealed her own escape route. Fainting was no longer an option. In that sense, being told the truth may have been her greatest misfortune of all.
Serious-senpai: "Wait! That’s it! The last chapter... it really was serious, wasn’t it?!"
???: "Eh? You're just realizing this now?"
Serious-senpai: "N-No! I had basically given up on the idea of serious developments happening while I was around... I figured they only triggered when I wasn't looking or was away! I completely missed it!"
???: "...Well, at least this debunks the theory that the story stays lighthearted just because Serious-senpai is in the afterword. It turns out your presence here has absolutely no impact on whether or not things get heavy in the main story."
Serious-senpai: ".................."