It was only natural that preparations for Kaito’s surprise birthday party would move forward in a place far beyond his reach or knowledge.
With the venue issue resolved through the sheer brute force of creating an entirely new world—a feat made possible only by the nonsensical power of the gods—the discussion shifted to the next phase.
“The venue is settled for now,” Alice said. “There might be some bickering over who gets to do the actual world-building, but I’ll leave the creators to talk—or fight—it out among themselves. Now, we need to hammer out the specifics... but we shouldn’t be deciding everything ourselves.”
Several heads nodded in agreement. Those gathered here represented only a fraction of Kaito’s total social circle; deciding the entire content of his birthday celebration with just this group felt problematic.
Of course, considering that every person in this room was a pinnacle of existence, no one in the world would have the standing to complain even if they did decide everything themselves. However...
“But Shaltan,” Fate chimed in, “we can’t exactly invite everyone Kai-chan knows, right? Even if we use the previous shipboard party as a reference, there are simply too many people to have a proper discussion.”
“I agree. We need to limit the committee to representative figures. For the Demon Realm, Kuro-san and I are here, so we can handle communications with the Six Kings’ circles. Between Shallow Vernal-sama and Fate-san, the God Realm is sufficiently covered... which leaves the Human Realm associates.”
As the group contemplated adding more members to the committee to discuss the party’s finer details, a pensive silence fell over the room.
Finally, Shallow Vernal spoke in her characteristically flat, detached tone.
“...Lilia.”
“It has to be Lilia-chan, doesn’t it?” Fate said. “She’s Kaito-kun’s lover, she understands the customs of birthday parties, and she’s on speaking terms with everyone in this room.”
“Actually,” Machina added, “shouldn’t we have just invited Lilia from the start? I hold her in high regard, so I have no objection to her being present.”
“...Um, wouldn’t Lilia-san be completely overwhelmed by that?” Canaris interjected. “I am still somewhat unfamiliar with world affairs, but wouldn’t the Three Kings of the Human Realm be more appropriate?”
Indeed, if they were to add representatives from the Human Realm, Lilia was the most qualified candidate. While it was nothing but a disaster for her personally, Kaito’s influence had already forced her into acquaintance with every high-ranking being present.
As was customary whenever a situation this harsh on the stomach arose, several people wore looks of deep sympathy for Lilia, the inevitable first victim. Yet, no one could suggest a better alternative.
“I see your point, Canaris-san,” Alice noted, “but the area around Kaito-san’s house is a special zone that doesn’t technically belong to any nation. When it comes to coordination, Lilia-san is the most qualified candidate. Although... I am worried about her stomach. Maybe we should invite the Three Kings of the Human Realm as well to take some of the pressure off? Let’s just bring all four of them in.”
“Wait...” Machina paused. “Which meat slabs were the Three Kings again?”
“They are Ryze Rea Symphonia, Chris Dia von Alcreasia, and Laguna Dia Hydra,” Canaris answered smoothly.
“Oh, that’s right! Those were the names.”
As usual, Machina had almost zero interest in anyone who wasn't her “child,” though she had at least managed to memorize Kaito’s other lovers. The newcomer, Canaris, was significantly better informed.
Alice let out an exasperated sigh, glanced around at the gathered deities, and spoke up.
“Fine. I’ll use my Split Bodies to fetch them. This space is isolated from the normal flow of time, right?”
“Yes,” Shallow Vernal replied. “This dimension is severed from the external timeline. No matter how much time passes here, not a second will lapse outside.”
“Understood. I’ll go bring them here right away.”
Thus, the Three Kings of the Human Realm and Lilia were officially added to the birthday planning committee. It goes without saying that the four humans suffered catastrophic damage to their stomachs that day.
Serious-senpai: “Without subverting the expectations of a single reader who surely thought ‘It’s going to be Lilia...’ the moment the idea was proposed, Lilia, who firmly black-holes the stomach pain, fulfills her role perfectly...”