Making the original accessories with Amel went smoothly, largely thanks to Alice’s creation kit. We eventually selected several pieces to showcase in our shop.
"They turned out pretty well. Now that the products are ready, all we have to do is wait for the actual Founding Anniversary Festival."
"Indeed. Thanks to my Sworn Friend, these Gleaming Masterpieces of Chaos have been summoned to this mortal plane. Now, we simply await the appointed hour."
"By the way, I left the application to you, Amel-san, but how did the location turn out?"
"There is no issue. For this Festival where the Stars Gather, the aurora does not only grace the stage. Truth also resides at the end of a single ray of light filtering through the trees."
"I see. Personally, I prefer a quiet spot over a busy main street. It feels more like a hidden gem."
"...A hidden gem... I like that."
According to Amel, she had applied for a spot that wasn't a bustling plaza but rather a location with relatively little foot traffic. It sounded like a similar setup to the Founding Anniversary Festival in the Kingdom of Sinfonia.
Since neither Amel nor I were doing this for profit, that was actually ideal. Unlike the festival in the Kingdom of Sinfonia, the only staff members would be the two of us, so I wanted to avoid being overwhelmed by a massive crowd.
Besides, unlike our time in the Kingdom of Sinfonia, we were selling general goods rather than food, so it probably wouldn't get that busy anyway.
"Well then, let’s have a brief meeting about the schedule for the day."
"Yes, I have no objections. To prepare for the festival, we must synchronize the wavelengths of our respective carved times. Shall we survey the Promised Land now, or shall we designate this place as our Promised Land for the time being...?"
"That’s a tough choice. I’d like to scout the actual site a day or so before the event. Since the stall itself can be transported in a Magic Box, there's no need to set it up early, but if we visit the location in advance, we can register it in our teleportation magic tools. That way, we can just meet up on-site."
"I see, preparation is indeed vital. Let us survey the Promised Land once... We shall proceed with that plan."
After discussing the details with Amel, we settled on a plan: we would scout the stall location together before the anniversary festival to register the coordinates in our teleportation magic tools, and then simply meet up at the site on the day of the event.
While a Teleportation Interference Barrier would be active near the Central Square for the ceremony, the location where Amel and I would be setting up was outside its range, meaning we could move there freely using teleportation magic.
With preparations finally complete, I decided to send a letter to Chris to keep her in the loop—including the fact that we had successfully created original accessories.
In the office within the royal castle of the Arclesia Empire, Chris stared at the letter from Kaito with a look of pure trepidation. It was rare for her to hesitate like this; she seemed genuinely afraid, unable to even break the seal on the envelope.
The news that the three Supreme Gods had declared their attendance was already enough to make Chris feel simultaneously grateful for the prestige and forced to chug stomach medicine. For her, the contents of this letter from Kaito were far too significant to ignore.
After agonizing over it for a while, she finally steeled her resolve and opened it. As she carefully read through the text, Chris’s expression went blank, and she stared into the void as if she had been reduced to ash.
Seeing her look as though she had given up on the world, her aide standing nearby hurriedly called out to her.
"Y-Your Majesty? Are you all right?"
"...It's over... The Hellish Carnival is about to begin."
"N-No way..."
"He made them—Original Accessories. And he says he's only putting a few of them on display..."
Kaito's letter mentioned his success in crafting original accessories and noted that only a handful would be available in the shop. Chris could already see the outcome: a bloody struggle where collectors fought to the death for the limited stock.
As Chris wore a look of utter despair, her aide turned pale... or rather, they didn't. Instead, the aide spoke with a small, knowing smile.
"Ah, please rest easy."
"What!?"
Immediately after the aide spoke, their form blurred and transformed into Alice.
"Alice-sama!? When did you... No, I see... You had already swapped places with my aide when you delivered the letter, hadn't you?"
"Yes. I gave your aide another task in your name, Chris-san, so they'll be back in about fifteen minutes. As for why I’m here... well, please rest easy. As far as Kaito-san's Handmade Accessories are concerned, almost no information has leaked out to the public. I told Amel and Kaito-san beforehand to keep it quiet, and I've already covered up things like Kuro-san's necklace. The only ones who know about the accessories Kaito-san made are Kaito-san, Amel, me, you, Chris-san... and the World-creation Gods."
"...Is that supposed to make me feel better?"
"For now, regarding the World-creation Gods, it seems they've agreed that neither of them will attend the Founding Festival personally after keeping each other in check. As for Shallow Vernal-sama, Kaito-san will probably find a way to manage her."
Hearing Alice’s words, Chris thought for a moment and then let out a long sigh of relief. Her greatest fears, Shallow Vernal and Eden, would not be making a move, and Alice had blocked information from reaching the other Six Kings.
If that were the case, there was a high possibility that the dreaded struggle for items would be averted, and the risk of the Six Kings descending upon the festival en masse just for Kaito would be mitigated.
"Well, I won't say the secret is absolute, so you should stay on your toes. But you can breathe a little easier now, right?"
"T-Thank you. I... I was truly in despair. My stomach was in knots."
"No, no. I have to provide at least this much support. Now then, I'll be off..."
With that, Alice vanished. The remaining Chris breathed a sigh of relief... however, even excluding Kaito’s accessories, a founding festival with three Supreme Gods and two of the Six Kings confirmed to attend was still a monumental undertaking. Realizing her days of stomach pain would continue regardless, she reached into her desk drawer for her medicine.
Serious-senpai: "That was a nice save. Alice is actually quite... Wait? Wasn't the reason the original accessories were finished in the first place because that jerk gave him that weird kit? Then this is just a match-pump!"