The following day, I was stationed at a security gate temporarily erected at the hotel's entrance for my training.
My task was simple: verify ID cards and inspect incoming goods. If nothing seemed suspicious, I let them through. At that moment, I was in the middle of inspecting a truck loaded with food supplies.
"Yo! You're clear to go!"
I waved my signal light, and the truck driver finally noticed me.
"Wh-what? Are you Leo Kamishiro!?"
"Hey, hey. It’s your boy, Leo-chan." I gave him a casual wave.
"I-I'm rooting for you!"
"Thanks!"
I had already gone through this exact exchange dozens of times. It seemed no one expected to find a national hero wearing a combat suit and performing manual inspections as part of his training. Honestly, I felt like I was just working a part-time gig.
Another food truck arrived. Actually, a whole line of them had formed, creating a traffic jam that overflowed from the parking lot at the loading dock. Just how many vehicles were coming? Then again, these were ingredients for the VIPs of the Inner Palace. They were top-tier in both quality and quantity.
I performed a non-destructive perspective scan on the latest arrival. There were no explosives, but...
I glanced at the weight scale out of the corner of my eye.
"The cargo seems a bit heavy. Hang on a sec while I call a forklift," I said, while simultaneously pressing the silent alarm button hidden under my table.
A moment later, a middle-aged man in work clothes—actually a member of the Imperial Guard—approached.
"Need a forklift?"
"Yup, please."
I hopped into the forklift parked by the entrance and drove toward the truck. By the time I reached it, the Imperial Guard had already drawn his pulse rifle and pointed it at the driver.
"Don't move! You're under arrest!"
The driver was restrained in the blink of an eye. As expected of the "Pirate Hunter" veterans; their anti-personnel combat skills were practically godlike.
"Lord Groom! Inspect the cargo in detail!"
"On it."
I climbed into a unit of humanoid heavy machinery for explosive ordnance disposal. It was a machine encased in thick, heavy armor designed to withstand the shock of a blast. I switched on the lights and began a visual inspection.
I found a wooden crate. Opening it revealed nothing but fruit. Then, as I moved to open the next box...
A bad feeling washed over me. I stopped my hand and contacted the Imperial Guard outside.
"I’ve found a box that gives me a bad vibe."
"A 'vibe,' huh? Then again, the Lord Groom’s hunches are never wrong..."
A squad member specializing in explosives came over to check. "Ah... yeah, that’s a bomb. Leave the rest to us."
"Much appreciated."
"It’s certainly handy having the Lord Groom around," the veteran remarked. "How many is that now? Your accuracy would put a military dog to shame."
He wasn't exaggerating. I had apparently undergone some sort of "level-up" recently, and the precision of my intuition had become downright terrifying. Bombs, poisons, straightforward assassination attempts—even crazy people who just wanted to get famous—I could distinguish them all with high precision.
Because of that, my shift had been permanently fixed as a gatekeeper. I had been checking for suspicious persons non-stop since last night. There were just way too many of them.
I opened a channel to the Imperial Guard veteran. "Do you think these are assassins sent by the other imperial successors?"
"Who knows? Maybe they want us to think that. Or maybe they’re just idiots who want to stand out."
The future felt increasingly uncertain.
"It’s about time for your break," the veteran said. "Head inside. We’ll take over from here."
"Thanks for the hard work."
I entered through the vendors' loading entrance. Inside, I found Kevin—who was still being kept in isolation—working in the freezer. He was busy inspecting the stock for poisons. Even though my intuition weeded out most of the threats, they still performed manual checks just in case.
"Ah! Leo-kun!"
"Hey. How’s it going on your end?"
"Honestly, it’s tough doing this with a girl’s physical strength."
"Sorry about that. And I know the room isn't great, either."
Kevin was being kept in a staff nap room, and even his meals were served separately from ours. I felt a bit sorry for him.
"It can't be helped," Kevin sighed. "I was a Zork spy, after all."
Suddenly, Melissa appeared from behind and began vigorously kneading Kevin's breasts.
"Man, these tits are incredible! What cup size are you!? Look, Captain! Look at these massive jugs!"
"Leave him alone!" I barked. I really did feel bad for him.
"But Captain! They're bigger than any other girl in our class! And since he used to train, they’re totally firm! Look at these rockets!" She continued to squeeze them with terrifying intensity.
"Stop it!"
"Kevin! What cup are you!? What’s your bra size!?"
"I-I don't know! I’m just wearing the underwear the court ladies picked out for me!"
"Melissa, listen to me," I pleaded. "If you keep this up, I feel like something is going to awaken inside me! So please, stop. I’ll literally pay you to stop!"
He used to be a guy; I did not want to feel lust for him. I needed this to stop while it was still a joke. Seriously, stop!
"The money-grubbing Captain is actually offering to pay?" Melissa looked shocked. "Are you really being pushed that far?"
"Melissa! What exactly do you think I am!?"
"My husband."
...Well, fair enough. I decided to change the subject. "What do the other people in our class think of me?"
"They think you’re a poor student with a reputation for being a miser—a guy who works non-stop part-time jobs despite being the young master of a Marquis House. I mean, you never joined us for fun back then. Everyone knows now that you were just sinking your salary into qualifications, though."
"I didn't have much of a choice. I had to earn money on the capital planet to send back home."
"Ahahahaha! Well, everyone knows the truth now! Right, Kevin?"
"Yeah, we all know," Kevin agreed. "Mainly because Leo-kun’s hometown... even though it’s a planet owned by a Marquis House, the only thing it has is an Agricultural Cooperative..."
A normal Marquis House planet was supposed to be an urban metropolis. One day... I was definitely going to attract an anime shop to that planet.
"So, Captain," Melissa asked, "how many people have you caught so far?"
"I stopped counting after twenty."
"Ahahahaha! You're as popular with your enemies as ever!"
It really wasn't funny.
"Ahahahaha! But you know, even though they were serious about killing you at first, the numbers are finally starting to dwindle since they keep getting caught one after another."
"I just want them to catch the mastermind soon so I can be released from this duty."
"True. By the way, did you hear? Prince Thomas has raised an army to 'liberate' the other planets."
A development that wasn't in the original scenario had arrived. I assumed he wanted to appeal to the military.
"Is that actually going to work out okay?"
"Ahahahaha! Of course not! You can't win at stuff like that unless you have a screw loose like the Captain."
"O-Oh..."
"Yeah," Kevin added. "You can't win unless your sense of fear is as paralyzed as Leo-kun's."
"Aren't you guys being a little harsh?"
"It’s an objective opinion," Melissa said. "We’re all starting to get used to it, but seriously—boarding a battleship-type Zork and shooting it down? No one has enough lives for a stunt like that."
"O-Oh..."
I realized I had to move my plans forward.
Specifically, it was time for Edge's Training Plan.