Novel Catchup
Chapter 340: [The Job Of A Goodwill Ambassador!]
Chapter 340: [The Job Of A Goodwill Ambassador!]
A sudden call.
The voice I heard after pressing the answer button was…
[It's been a while, Iroha-san. Thank you for always taking care of my daughter.]
《E-e-e-eh!? Ogu-Mom… No, Madam President!?》
The person on the other end of the line was none other than the leader of this country… or rather, the world.
Stammering with surprise and nervousness, I asked…
《Wh-what’s going on!? I mean, is it even okay!? For you to call me directly like this!?》
Surely, someone in her position shouldn’t be casually reaching out to a mere citizen.
In fact, ever since she became president, this was the first time we'd exchanged words like this.
[Oh, there's no need to worry. This is simply work-related.]《Work-related, you say?》
I had a bad feeling about this.
If it were just a simple request, surely someone else could have handled it, instead of the president herself.
《So, um, what exactly is it?》
[You will soon be visiting a certain country, Iroha-san.]
It sounded like a request, but in reality, it was more of a notice.
Wait, uh… where?
After hearing the name of the country, I tilted my head and typed it into the search bar to check the location.
To put it simply, it was a small, unfamiliar country.
《Th-this place is pretty far, isn’t it!? Um, is there any chance I could decline…?》
My schedule is already packed with lessons and recordings.
If possible, I'd like to pass on this one…
[Well, if you really must, it can't be helped.]
Surprisingly, she backed down quite easily.
As I was about to hang up, thinking "Well then,"…
[By the way, I heard your collection has grown quite a bit, Iroha-san.]
《~~~~! cough cough! Ah, no!? That is!?》
[But… what a shame. Oh well, I suppose.]
《Eek~!?》
The meaning of "Oh well" had taken a complete 180.
Panicked, I hurriedly tried to stop Ogu’s mother from hanging up.
《I-I’m sorry! I’ll do it! I’ll do it, okay!?》
[Oh, but if you don’t want to, feel free to decline.]
《N-no! I’d love to! I want to do it!》
[Very well.]
Scary!? Ogu’s mother is as terrifying as ever!
The only reason I was able to recover my past-life collection was thanks to her pulling some strings behind the scenes.
Bringing that up now feels like nothing short of a threat!?
How could I refuse after that!?
[Besides, this matter is important not just to me, but to you as well. —As a goodwill ambassador.]
《Ugh…》
I had heard that, as part of my duties as a goodwill ambassador, I would have to visit foreign countries.
But of all times, why now?
《So, when am I supposed to go to this country?》
[Somewhere between mid to late December.]
《Eh?》
[Don't worry. You'll be back in time for Christmas Eve.]
《Phew······》
[I wouldn’t want my daughter to hate me, after all.]
《Guh!? Ah, no!? That’s not what I meant!?》
[Oh? Isn’t it?]
《…It’s… not.》
How does she know everything!?
Ah, of course—it’s the Secret Service!
When I went to buy the ring, I made sure to ask Ogu and the others to keep quiet, but I forgot about anyone else.
Well, it’s their job, so expecting them not to report it was probably a lost cause anyway.
《Still, I wish you’d given me a bit more notice. I have to check the route, figure out how many days it’ll take, and adjust my schedule.》
[There's no need for that. Depending on the situation, it'll likely be a day trip.]
《What?》
No, no. The fewer major airports a country has, the more layovers you have to deal with.
It’s not the kind of place you can just pop over to…
[We'll be using my private jet.]
《Ah, I see.》
So that’s how it is. Her perspective, or rather, her sense of scale is just too different from mine…
But she is the president, after all.
I guess that makes sense.
Still, it feels like every escape route has been cut off.
There’s no choice but to do it.
Well, to be honest, I wasn’t really planning to refuse in the first place.
[I’ll send more details later. On the day, just follow my people’s lead. See you on site.]
《You’ll be there too, Madam? Got it.》
[Yes. And let’s take that time to thoroughly discuss your relationship with my daughter, and your future. Until then.]
《OXX▲~~~~~✩!?》
I let out a scream that didn’t even sound like words.
After the call ended, I sat there in a daze.
Maybe… no, definitely, the real purpose of this “job” is that last part.
She only called because of that, didn’t she…?
《Fii~ I'm back~! Just got home from recording. What's wrong, Iroha!?》
《O-o-ohgu!》
《O-oh!? There, there. I don’t know what happened, but did something scare you?》
I nodded furiously and spilled everything to Ogu.
Her cheeks puffed up angrily.
《Mom didn’t even consider your schedule again! And now we’ll have even less time to spend together…》n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Seriously, this year-end is going to be chaotic.
If that’s the case, then the only time I’ll have left to do anything freely is…
《About a week, I guess.》
If there’s anything I haven’t done yet, this might really be my last chance.
For some reason, that’s how it feels――.