The limousine pulled up in front of a tower mansion. Or was it a luxury hotel?
The top floor was so high it was a mere speck in the sky. Was this the Tower of Babel?
Naturally, it was a property that a mere Marquis’s household couldn't dream of affording. Actually, if I were back in my own territory, I could buy as many as I wanted, but here in the city—the seat of the Imperial Officer Academy—it was strictly out of reach. Besides, back home, there was no need for buildings to reach for the heavens. Every lord’s manor was sprawling and wide; it was simply more practical that way.
Uniformed staff stood at the reception. The entire perimeter was sealed, making any unauthorized entry impossible. Even from the outside, I could see thick, plush carpets lining the floors. What appeared to be glass at first glance was likely a high-grade bulletproof composite resistant to both live ammunition and beam fire. The top floor undoubtedly boasted a pool and a private helipad.
"We are here," Veronica announced.
"Um... which floor are we on?" I asked. It was a safe bet it would be the top one.
"What a silly question. This is a mansion. There is no way I would share such a cramped property with other people."
Oh... As expected, her sense of finances was on a completely different planet.
"By any chance, is the top floor a pool?"
"You say the strangest things. Pools belong in the gym. The top floor is a VTOL landing pad."
A vertical take-off and landing pad. Right. Of course it was.
"Now, come."
"Imperial Princess Veronica. Welcome home," a line of men and women who appeared to be staff greeted her in unison.
"Umu. You may ease yourselves."
Her greeting was incredibly casual—too casual, really.
"Now, Lord Groom. We shall take your luggage."
A butler who looked like he belonged in a high-stakes action movie stepped forward, and a maid took my bags.
...The maids. Weren't they a little too beautiful?
"Looking for a mistress already?" Veronica teased. "Fine, go ahead."
"That’s—not—it! It’s just that the uniforms are incredibly cute, and the maids look like idols... Where did you even find them?"
"Where? They are the daughters of nobles who have come to the capital to work. It is the same for you, Leo, entering the Imperial Officer Academy."
There were a million Marquis Houses listed in the Peerage Registry alone. When you factored in Earls, Viscounts, and Barons, the numbers became as vast as the stars. Those who merely claimed nobility were thousands or tens of thousands of times more numerous. Most children born into noble families were expected to find work and send money back to their ancestral homes. After all, salaries in the capital, on major planetary hubs, or on artificial stations were hundreds of times higher than in the rural territories! Owning a planet didn't automatically mean the coffers were full.
That was likely just the balance setting of the game world. Don't bring that logic into reality! Damn it all!
We boarded the elevator. A maid pressed the button for us.
"The top floor is the living space for us as a couple," Veronica explained.
"I... I don't even know what to say anymore."
The top floor turned out to be a ridiculously spacious suite. We entered through a foyer and moved toward the living room. It was the kind of place where you were expected to take off your shoes. Perhaps Veronica had some Japanese blood in her ancestry.
The walls were floor-to-ceiling glass, offering a view so breathtaking it made me want to swirl a wine glass and laugh like a villain.
"First, we shall register the marriage. Call for a lawyer."
A maid operated an interface in augmented reality. A window popped up in front of me—the contract document. The lawyer’s field was being updated in real-time. Since I was a minor, my parents’ names were listed in the guardian column, alongside the Emperor and Empress.
"Sign it."
"Sure, sure."
As soon as I signed, an [Approved] stamp slammed down on the digital parchment.
"With this, the marriage is official."
"What about a wedding ceremony?"
"We will not have one. It is a hassle. Besides, a lower-ranking princess does not get a budget for such things."
"That’s pretty bleak."
"If you ever climb the ranks, I’ll hold you to a proper one. Now, I’m going to go change."
"Change?"
"Into my house clothes. You should change too, Groom."
"This way, please," a maid whispered, guiding me to my private room.
I changed into my Officer Academy Tracksuit. I had another set, but I’d been wearing that one in the hospital. I’d have to wash it later. I never imagined I’d actually need casual private clothes; they hadn't been part of my plan. I’d have to go shopping eventually.
When I returned to the living room, my "wife" was there, dressed in a delinquent-style tracksuit. She wore no makeup, but thanks to the Larval Fixation, her skin was flawless and glowing. The tracksuit pants had "Best Regards" embroidered in gold thread across the back. However, her top was a black hoodie with bunny ears, and even her slippers had matching ears.
Oh no. She’s cute.
"...You look quite adorable."
"Hmph. Does it not put you off?"
"Actually, it's very much to my taste."
Likely thanks to the maids’ upkeep, there wasn't a single pill of lint on the fabric. But for the Princess to show me such a relaxed side... it finally sank in. I really was married.
I sat down next to Veronica on an incredibly luxurious sofa. I waited for her to say something.
Silence.
The transition from her constant talking to this sudden quiet made the atmosphere unbearably awkward.
"...Um, Your Highness."
"How boring! Let's play a game! Nyahahaha!"
Don't get shy all of a sudden! It makes me feel embarrassed too!
A virtual reality interface opened, and a game booted up. It was a co-op FPS where the goal was to mow down waves of zombies. My wife had surprisingly good taste.
I took the frontline with a chainsaw while she provided cover as a sniper. When the chainsaw ran out of fuel, I picked up an axe and went on a rampage. Guhahaha! Annihilate the zombies!
Suddenly, she muttered something.
"...As I thought."
"As you thought what?"
"This game is based on a Space Marines simulator. It links directly with the player's physical abilities. It cannot reproduce movements that the player is incapable of performing themselves."
"Heh, then I should have stuck with being a gunner too. I've always been bad at close combat."
"What are you saying, Groom? You have been fighting like a demon for the last ten minutes."
"Huh?"
Now that she mentioned it, I had been scattering groups of zombies with an axe like they were made of paper. In fact, I didn't even need the axe. I could handle them with my bare hands. I’d just assumed the game was satisfyingly tuned.
"Isn't the game just designed to feel like this?"
"No. Normally, a melee character can't even play without a sniper’s constant support. More importantly, what is with that reaction speed?"
Come to think of it, I had been moving in ways that were clearly beyond human capability. It was as if the zombies were standing still. This wasn't the game; the cause was me.
Wait... has my 'Level' actually gone up?
"Stop. We are going, Groom."
"Where?"
"To the hospital."
"Um... I'm feeling perfectly fine?"
"No! We are going to test for the awakening of ESP!"
ESP was essentially the "magic" of this world. Unlike RPG magic, however, it wasn't something you could study; it was entirely dependent on innate talent. It couldn't be trained from scratch. It was mostly a matter of genetics, which was why the vast majority of ESP users were of high noble blood. Even if both parents were Espers, the manifestation rate was only about ten percent. If both parents were non-Espers, a child would almost never be born with the talent.
Espers were popular research subjects, but ESP users were so rare that they weren't relied upon as a primary military force. If I recalled correctly, the protagonist of the game was an Esper.
As for me, my health checkup upon entering the academy had been negative for the ESP factor. I shouldn't have been an Esper. At least, that was the setting so far, but those were supposed to increase as the plot progressed.
"Highness, I was checked at the academy. I’m negative. Besides, neither of my parents are ESP users."
It would be terrifying if that idiot couple were Espers! Did they lose their humanity as a price for their power? No way. Absolutely not. And there was no way I, who inherited the genes of those fools, could be one either.
But Veronica looked at me with a deadly serious expression.
"This is classified information... but it is said that even non-Espers can awaken after crossing the line between life and death."
"There was a hidden mechanic like that!?"
Even as a player, I hadn't known that. I’d never heard of such a thing. Was it a side effect of reality trying to reconcile itself with game logic?
And so, just as I was, I was whisked away to the hospital—specifically, the one reserved for the Imperial family. Oh, right. Since I was her husband, I was now technically royalty. Veronica stayed in her "convenience store delinquent" tracksuit. She was surprisingly down-to-earth.
I was put through machines that made high-pitched whirring sounds as they scanned my brain. I had X-rays and CT scans, and before I knew it, it was late at night. Veronica spent the entire time playing VR games in the hallway. Even so, despite her status, she stayed with me. She was clearly making an effort to act like a family. I was grateful for that.
As I was killing time playing a game with her, a nurse came running toward us, looking pale.
"This way, please."
"Was there an anomaly?" Veronica asked, sounding genuinely worried. We’d become close enough that she’d dropped the formality.
"Um... well... the doctor will explain everything in a private room."
We were led away. The only "family" present was my wife. My own parents at the Marquis House had likely been notified but chose to ignore it. Once I gain enough power, I’m definitely purging them, I thought.
In the room, a row of doctors sat waiting. What is this, a high-pressure interview? In the center, a man participated remotely via an augmented reality window. He spoke with great gravity.
"I am James Inoue, the Chief of Neurosurgery at the National Imperial Capital University Hospital. To Her Highness..."
"Skip the greetings and get to the point. What is the state of my husband?"
She really was arrogant. Normally, you’d show respect to a master of their craft, even if just for show. But then again, in her case, she wasn't just acting important—she was the Princess.
"Well... it is difficult to put into words. For an awakening from a non-Esper, his abilities show abnormal values."
The screen shifted to a chart of my test results.
"Hm? Abnormal? What happened to him?"
"Specifically, this value. It indicates a capacity for Pyrokinesis capable of generating flames on the level of napalm bombs."
...That... was a mid-tier ESP in the game. Wait a minute. Isn't it incredibly dangerous to have that kind of output while my level is still low?
"I see... and what does that mean in practical terms?"
"It means there is a possibility he will become the strongest ESP user in history."
"Umu. Groom, it is a duty of the Imperial family. You must aim for the strongest."
"Oh, a duty, huh..."
That was basically the same as saying "Go die." I thought I might be able to coast by on my Imperial status, but it seemed I had been naive.
"Once I graduate, will you let me be your aide?" I asked.
"My Personal Guard is composed only of warriors who are each worth a thousand men. There is no way I can make a mere student an aide. You will start as an errand boy. If you are my husband, prove you can crawl up from the very bottom."
I figured. My wife would definitely say that.
"That's how it is, Doctor," I said.
"The spouse has chosen the Path of the Rakshasa, I see..." the doctor muttered.
At this stage, joining the "Frontline or bust! We are the Veronica Personal Guard!" sounded like a nightmare scenario. But in reality, it wasn't. Because I knew that a total war between the Zork and humanity was coming. Student officers were going to die in droves. My survival rate was actually much higher as an underdog in Veronica’s unit.
"Groom. You will be busy starting tomorrow."
"Eh?"
"Numbers are power. Starting tomorrow, we shall recruit anyone at the academy who looks useful. I had no interest in the throne before, but my husband says he will aim for the strongest. Then I, too, must aim for the strongest ideal I can envision, must I not?"
If she was going that far, I had no choice but to follow.
"I look forward to it."
"That composure of yours... it is truly pleasing."
The "strongest or die" situation was looming before the war. I had no choice but to be defiant. There was no turning back now.
The two of us bumped fists. There was no love between us yet. Naturally—we had only just met. But even so, we were reaching out to one another. On this day, I think we became something more like comrades.
Finally, the doctor spoke.
"We will transmit the results of the specific ESP attribute test at a later date."
For some reason, that only made me feel more uneasy.