Don't panic, don't panic, it's no big deal. Let's just calmly light a cigarette and chill…
…LIKE HELL I CAN!
This might very well be the first genuinely familiar face Zero had encountered since crossing worlds—and it wasn't even someone from the Digimon series, but from the goddamn Pokémon set next door!
Miss, you are absolutely crashing the wrong franchise here!
Theoretically, seeing a familiar face should've made him happy, but right now, Zero could only feel tears streaming down his face.
Lillie—daughter of the Aether Foundation's chairwoman, the heroine from the neighboring Pokémon Sun and Moon set, and a genuine Ojou-sama. According to what Rina said earlier, this Aether Foundation was precisely the organization cooperating with the Kamishiro Group.
The Aether Foundation was, in short, a worldwide charitable organization holding numerous biotechnology-related patents, having already rescued nearly triple-digit endangered species from extinction.
Under its umbrella were orphanages, shelters, and various animal welfare and environmental groups scattered across the globe. And leading the Aether Foundation was none other than Lillie's mother—a tremendously capable businesswoman.
After all, which celebrity nowadays didn't dabble in charity? Even if one were so stingy that paying a bit of cash for good publicity felt like a loss, at the very least, you still had to launder money somehow, right?
Though the Aether Foundation's headquarters was, at least in theory, a genuinely respectable charitable institution, whether or not there was shady business going on within its numerous subordinate welfare and environmental organizations… Well, one didn't really need to think hard about that.
So, the Aether Foundation having become a massive organization reaping both fame and profit from technology patents and questionable sources of income wasn't exactly surprising.
At any rate, Zero was still standing there, blown away by shock, while Lillie and Rina cheerfully chatted away.
Lillie's personality wasn't as outwardly bubbly as Rina's, nor did she have the same aloof, untouchable aura of Yuuko's ice-queen persona.
Instead, she felt… exactly like an ordinary girl next door.
"Yuuko hasn't arrived yet?"
Lillie asked curiously, prompting Rina to wave her hand lightly. "She should be here soon. After all, she's basically tonight's main attraction, so naturally, she'd take a bit longer to prepare~"
The leader of the Kamishiro Group—Yuuko's father—couldn't attend in person tonight, although he'd participate remotely via video.
He'd originally planned to attend personally, but Kamishiro was recently tangled in a major financial dispute. The company president had to remain behind to deal with the media frenzy, leaving no opportunity for him to slip away.
So, tonight's gathering would instead have the head of Kamishiro's tech department attending, accompanied by his daughter.
On the other side, the Aether Foundation's chairwoman—Lillie's mother—was usually incredibly busy, but this time, she'd specially cleared her schedule to personally attend alongside her daughter. In a sense, it could be considered a clear show of sincerity toward this collaboration.
Lillie herself seemed unconcerned by the deeper business politics. Given that her mother was usually too busy to spend much time with her, just going out together this once was already the most important thing for her.
As for the collaboration with Kamishiro Group, she knew it was a major event but seemed to have no particular thoughts or feelings about it.
That put her and Rina on pretty similar terms; neither girl appeared particularly conscious or deeply aware of the issue. Perhaps only Yuuko, who was directly involved, truly understood the gravity of the situation.
What exactly was the technical issue Kamishiro faced? Why were they seeking cooperation not from a major player in the information or electronics industry, but rather from the Aether Foundation—a biotechnology-focused organization dealing mostly with rare flora and fauna?
Clearly, neither of the two girls fully understood the specifics of this puzzle.
They obviously weren't chatting about anything that complex either, instead just exchanging small talk and trivial observations from their lives.
Throughout their conversation, Zero and Hajime naturally had to endure boredom by pretending to be dolls. With Lillie present, they certainly couldn't move carelessly.
Perhaps Rina realized this might've been too much for them, so she casually held Zero and Hajime close to her. While deep in conversation, whenever Lillie wasn't paying attention, Rina discreetly passed them some snacks as "feed."
Having girls softly pat him, feed him snacks, and overhear their private conversations at least somewhat relieved Zero's boredom.
Zero's attention was mainly on the conversation between the two girls, because—based on his limited memories as a human—he'd rarely, if ever, talked with an appropriately-aged girl for more than twenty minutes straight before crossing worlds.
As for Hajime, she was utterly uninterested in any conversation, completely fixated on the snacks Rina offered. These fancy treats were something she'd never tried back in the Digital World, and overall, she appeared pretty content.
Rina's casual movements naturally drew Lillie's attention to Zero and Hajime. The girl looked over curiously and softly murmured:
"Oh, how mysterious…"
Rina smiled, proudly hugging Zero to her chest as if showing off. "What do you think? Super cute, right? They're my precious friends. This one here is Zero-kun… and this one is Hajime-chan~"
…According to Zero's understanding, many girls hugged stuffed animals and squealed "kawaii," not because they actually found the dolls cute—but because doing so made the girls themselves appear cuter.
Of course, this logic didn't apply at all to Rina, while Lillie continued looking at them with genuine curiosity.
"Didn't you usually prefer giant monster or tokusatsu-style dolls, Rina? I recall you weren't too interested in the cute-style plushies before."
"…"
Zero raised both feet in agreement. Indeed, Rina's sense of aesthetics was quite different from ordinary girls. After all, the first time they met, he'd been an Agumon, and Rina's first impression was to call him cute.
Afterward, when he evolved into GeoGreymon, Rina had completely fallen for him. In comparison, Koromon—arguably the form genuinely deserving of being called "cute"—had actually appeared in front of her last.
And probably, due to having already spent so long loving the previous two dinosaur forms and using him as a pillow, she'd grown fond of him purely by association.
"Haha, tastes can change over time, right~?"
Lillie nodded thoughtfully, her eyes gently lingering on Zero and Hajime. Her expression, however, suddenly froze for a split second.
…Hm?
At that moment, Lillie's grip unconsciously tightened on the strap of the shoulder bag she carried. The bag—seemingly stuffed to bursting with something—shook slightly in response to her sudden movement.
"What's wrong, Lillie?"
Rina noticed the subtle change in Lillie's expression. But Lillie merely shook her head lightly.
"No… it's nothing. Although…"
She seemed about to say something else, but just then, a knock came from outside.
The gathering was about to begin, and the servants had come to remind Rina and Lillie to prepare.
"Ah, got it~" Rina cheerfully replied, and the earlier conversation was immediately dropped. She didn't want to leave Zero and Hajime alone in the room, so she decisively carried them along with her.
As Rina stood and got ready to head to the gathering, Lillie also slowly rose. And as she did, her shoulder bag trembled slightly once again—and a soft, nearly imperceptible sound drifted out from inside…
"…Gurururu…guru?"
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