Great O’Browns ⓪
The morning of the “Great O’Browns.”
When I woke up, I noticed the bed felt strangely soft.
“Ngh… Ah… Good morning, Master.”
“G-Good morning.”
It wasn’t the bed, but Munieca-san. She was in black lingerie, and for some reason, she was beneath me.
Ah, right.
Due to a mix-up, there were only four beds, so I ended up having to share a bed with the other four.
And last night was Munieca-san’s turn.
Munieca-san told me she’s the type to sleep in her underwear.
For the tall and stunningly proportioned Munieca-san, her black lingerie was… incredible. That one word says it all.
Moreover, when she sleeps, she lets her hair down and removes her hair ornament.
Munieca-san, with her hair down, her purple eyes glinting, in her black lingerie, inviting me to bed.
No, we were just sharing a bed, so nothing strange happened.
But still, it’s strange. She was sleeping next to me, so why is Munieca-san underneath me?
She was warm, perfectly soft, smelled nice, and it felt absolutely wonderful.
But isn’t this a bit bad? For now, I should probably get up.
I slowly moved away from Munieca-san.
When I moved, Munieca-san also sat up.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she gathered her hair with a practiced hand and put on her hair ornament.
Seeing her sit on the bed in her lingerie, performing that casual action, made my heart skip a beat.
Why is that? Even though nothing happened, it feels like the aftermath of something.
“Is something wrong?”
“N-No, um, where is everyone?”
“They probably went for breakfast. I shall go take a bath, so Master, please go ahead… Or would you like to join me? If so, I shall wash every inch of your body, Master. Please leave it to me. I’m quite good at it.”
“N-No, I’m fine! I’ll go get breakfast.”
“Is that so? Please take care.”
I got changed and went to breakfast.
What is the “Great O’Browns”?
It’s held once every five years.
Tier I Seekers active all over the world gather in one place.
It’s a conference that can last up to a week.
Inside one of the large, medium, or small conference rooms of the Hydrangea Grand Hall.
There’s a table of moderate length and chairs in a room of moderate size.
“Has everyone gathered? In that case, I declare the ‘Great O’Browns’ open.”
Alhazardo Abramelin stood up and declared so.
There was no reaction. He sat down and announced the duration and schedule for this time.
This time, it’s for four days.
The daily schedule is: conference in the morning, lunch, and an Exhibition Match in the arena in the afternoon.
However, the first day will have the opening ceremony and the Tier I Seeker promotion ceremony.
After that, it’s the Exhibition Match.
The crucial conference itself only lasts about two hours. The main topics are revisions and repeals of Seeker Guild laws.
Individual reports from Tier I Seekers. Selection and rejection of requests from Seekers.
Well, it’s a conference.
Still… it’s rather surreal, isn’t it?
The seating isn’t assigned. However, the Grand Guild Master sits at the head of the table.
The most conspicuous ones are probably the clown and the pink sphere.
Then there’s “Thousand Faces” in the plague mask and the fish-headed Gymnema Sylvester.
There are a few others I don’t recognize. Ah, that purple hair and eyes… that must be Narcissus.
“…”
“Generous’ Reappearance”… that’s exactly right.
Next to him sat a muscular, well-built macho man, bare-chested. Whoa.
Narcissus, who had his arms crossed, looked somewhat displeased.
No, maybe it’s just my imagination. As if he’s scared? It must be my imagination.
That Fairial. Is that Mineha-san’s mother?
And though not near me, Mineha-san is also properly here.
Today, she was in her Fairial form, sitting on a chair.
Also, “Sword of Swords” isn’t in his seat.
He’s by the wall, same as us, not sitting in a chair but lying down.
Celeste-san is in “Sword of Swords'” seat. Well, he can’t speak, after all.
Mr. Agaro and the others aren’t here. It’s probably because they’re not Tier I yet.
“Now, the first agenda item, continuing from last time, is about the threat level of Monsters: whether to introduce an Iron Tier or a Steel Tier.”
Continuing from last time? So they’ve been carrying this over for five years?
Let’s see, the Monster threat levels were, if I recall, “Copper Rank,” “Silver Rank,” “Gold Rank,” “Jewel-Class,” and “Treasure-Class.”
“Furthermore, if we were to add it, it would be placed between ‘Copper Rank’ and ‘Silver Rank.’ The point of discussion is whether a Monster merely using a Relic should be considered a Silver Rank threat. Many Monsters aren’t that threatening even if they can use Relics. Isn’t a distinction necessary for them? That’s the gist of it.”
I see. So that’s the “Iron Tier” or “Steel Tier.”
The Witch was the first to smoothly raise her hand.
“I’ve been saying this persistently every time, but I don’t think we need it, Kon, you see. The reason is the same as before. How any Monster handles a Relic differs. A Relic can become a threat depending on who wields it. Therefore, if it has a Relic, it’s fine to keep it as Silver Rank. If we create an ‘Iron’ distinction, some Seekers might underestimate them, you see.”
That’s true. Previously, a Hobgoblin got its hands on OOPArts and wielded atrocious power.
That threat was undoubtedly Silver Rank.
Several people nodded at the Witch’s opinion. They’re probably in the “don’t need it” faction.
“Hmm, I’m for it, y’know~”
Chive-san raised their hand.
“Sometimes, when you post a Copper Rank subjugation request~ and it turns out the Monster had a Relic~ you have to pay the Silver Rank request fee, y’know~”
“Ah, that certainly does happen.”
“The problem is~ when it goes up to Silver Rank~ the request fee jumps up, y’know~ Well, with [Appraisal], no one can cheat or do anything shady, though~”
I see. When it goes from Copper to Silver, the request fee increases.
So, if there’s an intermediate Iron Tier, it would be helpful for the clients, huh.
“My, my, even though you’re a Seeker, you’re taking the client’s side, aren’t you?”
“‘Cause Seekers exist thanks to their clients, y’know~”
It’s a difficult problem.
I can understand both arguments.
After that, opinions flew one after another from the “for it” faction and the “against it” faction.
A conclusion… is impossible, I guess.
The biggest problem is that even the weakest Monster can possess a Relic.
This has been proven by military experiments found in the Lab’s database.
As long as it has a vessel for a soul, it can possess a Relic.
And all living beings possess a vessel for a soul.
Therefore, it’s not like they are completely devoid of Relics.
This discussion will probably be carried over to next time as well.
And that’s exactly what happened.
“The next discussion is about whether to apply the Titles currently used for Tier II and Tier I to Tier III and Tier IV as well. Also, let’s discuss whether to unify the extension of Title rights from the current per-species basis.”
Whoa, the former might be okay, but the latter looks like it’ll get heated.
Right away, Kaede Akima, the Elf known as “The One-Stroke Severing Master,” raised her hand.