I thought about it for a moment but ultimately decided against playing as a player myself.
If someone who stood shoulder to shoulder with a Grand Master joined the games, what would happen to the matches?
It would be better to only participate occasionally in event matches and let the others handle the rest.
I couldn’t become an ecosystem destroyer.
“Alright, you’ve memorized everything, right?”
—Hmm.
—Hmmmm!
Shugl and Feltron were groaning with serious expressions.
They were studying the rulebook and tactic manual I had written, but it seemed they didn’t understand it at all.
Well, that was to be expected.
This was their first time encountering soccer.
Moreover, they had never even seen a proper match.
Still, watching them rack their brains so earnestly was rather cute.
Is it because their own teams were created? It’s pretty funny.
Half-demons hiring humans to participate in a soccer league—this might be the first time in history.
Originally, half-demons had almost no contact with humans and were nothing more than objects of fear.
They would cause natural disasters or issue pointless threats all the time.
It was all because they lacked social skills.
Just look at Shugl and Feltron.
They were living quite normally, weren’t they?
“While I’m gone, finish forming the teams. I’ll check on the training when I get back.”
—Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry.
Shugl nodded half-heartedly, completely buried in the tactic manual that was bigger than his body.
He clearly didn’t want to lose.
On the other hand, Feltron stretched his body out like a meerkat and looked at me.
—Boss. Boss!
“What?”
—Buy some melons on your way back.
A single innocent remark.
I almost started a whack-a-mole game with him.
This guy only called me boss in name; he crossed the line every single time.
Yet strangely, I couldn’t really hate him for it.
It seemed like he had said it with pure intentions.
Feltron stared intently at the rulebook.
I shook my head and pulled my hand out of my pocket.
I’ll let it slide this once.
It was about time to leave anyway.
I soon got into the carriage.
Brandon greeted me warmly.
“It’s been a while since your last trip, Your Grace.”
“I hope this time I can rest comfortably without any incidents or accidents.”
“Haha! What could possibly happen at a resort?”
His hearty laugh sounded pleasant.
The southern part of the Empire had a sea filled with countless islands.
It was a region where small countries clustered together and pirates frequently appeared.
However, the resort area was firmly under the control of the Imperial Navy, so there would be no danger whatsoever.
That was why everyone visited the south as soon as the dry season began.
“Let’s depart.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
I lay down comfortably inside the rattling carriage.
As expected, the best way to travel is to do nothing at all.
***
Deep sea in the eastern part of the continent.
Red light from the hydrothermal vent repeatedly expanded and contracted.
Soon, something enormous emerged from it.
Rumbleeeee!
Its body was covered in barnacles and coral.
Its sinister glowing eyes instilled fear in all living creatures.
Small organisms swimming near the hydrothermal vent died instantly just from being exposed to its killing intent.
—Finally… The best prey is coming to the sea.
One of the tentacles on the monster’s head twitched and stood straight up.
It resembled an anglerfish.
It seemed to use that to detect something, though what exactly “the best prey” meant was unclear.
The creature slowly began moving forward by paddling its webbed feet.
Suddenly, a rather large being started prowling around the area.
A monster that was almost considered invincible in the ocean.
It was a Sea Serpent.
Known for its extreme ferocity, it approached without fear.
It seemed to be trying to protect its territory.
Then purple light burst from the angler monster’s eyes.
—After waking up after so long, some insignificant creature has taken up residence here.
The Sea Serpent, which had opened its mouth wide as it approached, suddenly froze.
Then a heavy explosion erupted underwater.
Booooom—!
It had only looked at it, yet the Sea Serpent’s body exploded.
Blood and flesh scattered everywhere, and hundreds of fish swarmed in.
An unexpected feast had begun, but the angler monster turned away as if uninterested.
—That kind of thing isn’t prey. The real one is coming.
The creature fixed its gaze to the west and continued paddling its webbed limbs steadily.
Its speed was slow, but its limbs never stopped moving.
***
Throughout the journey to the southern villa, I was lost in thought.
I really can’t understand it. Why would that man give me a vacation instead of work?
The Emperor was not the type to be so kind.
Even though I was his one and only cousin, he probably only saw me as a useful tool.
Yet suddenly a month-long vacation?
“There must be some ulterior motive.”
The problem was that I couldn’t read Emperor Karon’s true intentions.
I couldn’t figure it out even when speaking to him face to face, so what could I do from here?
“Your Grace.”
“What is it?”
“Don’t think too hard about it and just enjoy yourself.”
The one who suddenly offered advice was Cordell McNeil.
Normally he would be depressed about not seeing any ladies.
But today he seemed to be in an unusually good mood.
“You seem quite cheerful even though you have to be away from the ladies?”
“Well…”
Cordell opened his mouth but then let out a long sigh.
It seemed mentioning it had made him think of the woman from the beauty salon.
Of course he would be bothered.
Some of the customers who visited the shop would flirt with her.
But Cordell McNeil was far more of a lunatic than I had anticipated.
“Why did you stop talking? You’re making me curious.”
“There were so many reasons that I didn’t know which one to pick.”
“So why are you in a good mood?”
“There are many beautiful women in the south. They dress really lightly. Doesn’t just imagining it make your heart race?”
He was truly the most insane person imaginable.
There was no need to even mention what he was obsessed with.
I shook my head and turned my gaze to the scenery outside the window.
We seemed to have almost arrived in the south, as the atmosphere had changed significantly.
The coniferous trees that had been visible occasionally were gone, and the forest was now filled with tropical plants.
The temperature had risen considerably. Brandon was sweating profusely.
Having reached the pinnacle, I don’t feel the heat much.
Beast’s Heart had an incredible effect on maintaining the body’s homeostasis.
It meant I was barely affected by heat or cold.
Because of that, I was able to fully enjoy the beautiful scenery.
I could simply look at it without any other thoughts.
“A peaceful sea and insanely clear weather. It really feels like a different world.”
As I muttered that, Cordell McNeil shook his head.
He wiggled his finger as if he wanted to refute me.
“No way.”
“What are you dissatisfied with this time?”
“It’s no different from Perias. Danger always lurks everywhere.”
“It’s just the sea.”
“Marine monsters are actually much more terrifying.”
“Huh?”
The crystal-clear, shallow seawater and the endlessly stretching white sandy beach.
There seemed to be nothing but clams to eat here—what kind of monster could possibly be in a place like this?
As I was thinking that, bubbling water suddenly started churning far out at sea.
Rumble! Boom!
With an explosive sound, something enormous shot upward.
A long worm with hundreds of segments.
Its jaws spread wide open and clamped shut, biting down hard on an animal resting on a rock.
“Kuuuooooh!”
Splash!
The sea lion-like creature was dragged into the sea in an instant.
It looked well over 4 meters long and weighed at least 3 tons, yet it was finished off ridiculously easily.
“What is that?”
“It’s called a Giant Bobbit Worm. A monster that hides at the bottom of the sea. It has venom, so if you’re bitten you’ll be paralyzed. Cases of people coming back alive are almost nonexistent.”
“It looks like that thing is the reason the beach is so clean.”
A beautiful coastline like this would be perfect for building a villa.
Developing it as a tourist spot wouldn’t be bad either.
But there was always a reason why people didn’t do it.
I shook my head as I listened to Cordell’s explanation.
I almost forgot again. This damn dark fantasy world.
The Empire’s capital and the Carius Duchy were gradually becoming more livable for people.
Social infrastructure was being built one after another, and livelihood crimes had drastically decreased.
Because of that, I sometimes forgot.
That this was an extremely barbaric world.
The appearance of the Giant Bobbit Worm sent a chill down my spine for no reason.
I had a strong feeling that the Emperor hadn’t simply sent me on vacation.
There’s no way his intentions are pure. Something huge is definitely waiting for me when I arrive.
Unnecessary tension rose, making me unable to properly enjoy the trip.
So I adjusted myself into the most comfortable position possible.
This way, my mind would calm down a little.
After roughly several hours had passed.
Around the time the golden sunlight began to feel drowsy.
I suddenly heard murmuring voices.
“What is it?”
Rattle!
When I opened the window, I saw people passing by on the roadside.
We seemed to have finally arrived at Grand Cape, the main coastal city in the southern part of the Empire.
“It’s smaller than I expected?”
“The Carius Duchy is abnormally large. This size is normal for a typical regional city compared to Perias.”
“What about Delriat and Nordenark?”
“Ah, those should be excluded. They are quite special, aren’t they? Besides, Delriat used to be an independent country.”
“I suppose so.”
In truth, Grand Cape was similar in scale to the Yates Marquisate.
It just looked a bit narrower because it was located along the coastline.
If you included the fields behind us that we had passed, it actually had quite a decent area.
“Still, it’s really beautiful.”
“If you go further south to the villa island district, it’ll blow your mind.”
“How do you know the south so well, Sir McNeil?”
“I was quite active here in my younger days. Hehe!”
“Did you do some intelligence work here?”
“No.”
“But aren’t Black Agents the ones who do that kind of thing?”
“It was before I joined the Imperial Guard. I was just a wandering free knight back then.”
“So you went around dating women wherever you went?”
“Of course. Your Grace doesn’t understand romance at all. Ladies don’t like lifelong virgins, you know.”
“Who the hell told you that?”
“Huh? Aren’t you? I’ve never heard any stories about Your Grace dating anyone.”
“Wow……”
I was at a complete loss for words.
Even if I told him I had a girlfriend in my previous life, this sly bastard wouldn’t believe me.
He would only laugh at me.
I was letting out a hollow laugh when I suddenly felt the carriage stop.
“We have arrived, Your Grace.”
The person who saved me was Brandon.
Cordell McNeil was still wearing a lewd smile.
He seemed excited at the prospect of teasing me.
But that wouldn’t be possible.
I quickly got off and cut off the timing.
Then, as if waiting for it, someone suddenly spoke to me.
“Your Grace.”
“Huh? You are…?”
Surprisingly, a familiar yet unfamiliar person was standing before me.
“Who was it again?”
Of course I didn’t say I remembered.
It was just a face I had seen a few times.
The other party let out a hollow laugh and spoke.
“It’s me. Rufus Schultz.”
Ah, I finally remembered.
He was the first person who had supplied me with paper.
I heard he operated a trading company in the south, but to run into him by coincidence like this…
No way.
No matter how small the city was, it still had over a hundred thousand residents.
What were the chances of running into Count Schultz in such a crowded place?
It was far more believable that he had been waiting from the beginning.
“You didn’t have to come out to greet me. Is there something going on?”
Count Rufus Schultz answered with a rather troubled expression.
“Please save me, Your Grace!”
Thud!
He suddenly knelt, instantly drawing the attention of everyone around us.
Now it looked like I was the bad guy here!
“Stand up first. Let’s go inside and talk.”
I didn’t know what the matter was, but I had a feeling I had gotten myself into something troublesome.
Could this be the Emperor’s scheme?
Ah, damn it. I came here for a vacation!