One question remained.
“Kachiya, how exactly did you get here?”
I didn't remember giving her permission. How had she managed to make it all the way to the Empire?
“I stowed away on a warship!”
“Is that so, de gozaru ka.”
Yeah, she was a lost cause.
As a result, we were stuck at the Nakajima Main House. With no work to do, I wondered if I should just find some way to kill time. If I was going to play anyway, I wished I were on Claire’s planet instead! There were places to play here, but…
Well, they existed, all right. Bars, adult entertainment, gambling dens, and a massive suburban shopping mall. If I went to any of the first three, I’d be a dead man. That left the suburban shopping mall as the only option.
For starters, I headed to the discount store, Cervantes. Since it was a Kamishiro Group company, it felt a bit like a snake eating its own tail.
I bought a massive stash of fireworks. There was also a Count One-Two-Three nearby. That was also part of the Kamishiro Group. The udon shop and the family restaurant? Both Kamishiro Group. Even the cafe turned out to be a place that used my recipes. Every single one of them was an affiliate!
Kawagon… I just wanted to go play in the ocean, or the mountains, or by a river.
Just as the thought crossed my mind, departure permission was granted. Apparently, they had finished copying the recipes. And so, we held a strategy meeting.
“Alright! Who’s next? Eddie’s place?”
“Yeah, my home. The whole clan is gathering for a wedding bash.”
It seemed Eddie had officially registered his marriage to Minerva-chan. The reason they were in such a rush was that he had achieved a few too many military feats. The logic was that staying merely engaged would lead to anxiety. Not for the couple themselves, but for their parents and relatives. They were terrified that he might end up marrying a daughter from a more prestigious house. Specifically, they were worried about Wifey’s sisters back in the Inner Palace.
From our perspective, knowing the reality of things, it was a resounding “No way.” Those women, whose lives had been ruined by Maro, had no interest in men. None of us had the confidence to heal them, anyway. We couldn't take on that kind of responsibility.
And so, we set off for Eddie’s planet. It was the height of summer there. That said, the temperature was roughly the same as autumn back home. Since it had been winter the last time Eddie visited, we could actually enjoy ourselves this time.
At the spaceport, we were greeted by Eddie’s family and his Retainers. …Whew. Compared to Isono’s or Nakajima’s families, Eddie’s relatives were so normal—positively refreshing. His father was a gentle-looking man. They were a family of swordsmen, so they all had large builds, but they didn't project that overwhelming pressure like the Isono or Nakajima households.
Eddie’s father spoke up the moment we met. “The preparations for the seaside resort and the hot springs are complete.”
Wifey and I reflexively gave him a thumbs-up. In fact, everyone present followed suit. They understood perfectly. It was time to play outdoors with everything we had.
However, our hopes were crushed in the very next breath.
“There is also something I wish to bring to the Emperor’s attention… After waiting for the end of winter to investigate, ruins were discovered.”
“It’s the Duke Association again!”
They used to just be a bunch of clowns! Why did a cleanup event for those guys have to pop up every single time?!
“Give up, Lord Groom. It is your destiny to battle the Duke Association for all eternity.”
“But they’ve already been destroyed!”
“They were a collection of incompetents holding power. I imagine they were quite easy to manipulate.”
Consequently, it was decided that we would investigate the ruins until the wedding. I really hoped it wasn't the Zen God Race again.
A ruins investigation team had already been dispatched. We quickly changed, donning mountain equipment over our combat suits, and began the trek up the mountain. Patches of snow remained. My body felt heavy.
“Everyone! Please, hang in there—!!”
Suematsu-san was the one riding in the continuous track transport vehicle. Since he was hauling all our luggage, I couldn't find a single thing to complain about!
Wifey, Shiyun, Tatiana, and One-oh-one stayed behind. They were currently playing at the beach with Minerva-chan. We, on the other hand, were challenging a winter mountain in the middle of summer… the description itself felt like a glitch.
A road for vehicles existed up to an altitude of two thousand meters. There had been a plan to HALO jump from above, but since we couldn't guarantee a pinpoint landing, it turned into a standard mountain climb. Waaaaah! I did say I wanted to go to the mountains to catch bugs, but I never said I wanted to do winter mountaineering!
We hiked up at a steady pace. The suggestion to force our way up the slope in vehicles had been rejected with the very reasonable argument: “Where would we even park them?” Even Suematsu-san’s vehicle could only go as far as the mountain hut.
We climbed a bit further. There was no such thing as a maintained mountain path here. We pushed through the primeval forest.
“Leo-kun! Wild animals approaching!!”
Kevin raised his voice in warning. Wild animals. Suddenly, we found ourselves face-to-face with a bear that seemed to slide out from the brush. Our eyes met. It was a truly massive bear.
“Gyain!!”
The moment it saw me, the bear let out a yelp, its body trembling as it backed away. It quickly dug into the ground and pulled out some nuts.
“G-Guu.”
“I'm giving you these nuts, so please forgive me.”
“Melissa, stop the voice-over. I don't need nuts! Alright, everyone disperse!”
When I gave the order, the bear fled at top speed. Did it actually understand me?
“Leo was just talking to that bear, wasn't he…”
Claire spoke in an exasperated tone.
“It’s not my fault, right?”
“Extorting nuts from a bear, of all things… Unbelievable.”
That bastard Isono, always noticing the most unnecessary things! We continued the climb after that bizarre encounter. A wild bird landed on my head.
“Pi-pi-pi-pi-pi!”
It offered me a nut.
“Boss! Here’s this month’s tribute, see!”
“I told you to stop, Melissa!”
After that, we ran into deer, weasels, and various other creatures. They all tried to present me with offerings, which I resolutely refused.
“He’s being treated like a king by the local wildlife…”
Claire looked on in disbelief.
“I don't think I'll ever understand Leo’s ecology…”
Kevin was equally exasperated.
“He is the Husband, after all. Even the Beast Race all swear loyalty to him voluntarily.”
Ren was in a fantastic mood.
“I guess at this point, the only explanation is ‘because it’s Leo’…”
Even Claire was giving up! Since everyone was being so mean, I grumbled to myself until we reached the tree line. After moving a bit further, we arrived at the target cave. Apparently, the ruins were located inside.
We stepped into the cave. The interior walls were covered in carvings. At first, I thought they might be Buddhist statues, but they were figures I didn't recognize.
“This is the Zen God Race style, intended for praying for the well-being of their kin.”
Professor Berger was examining them with great interest.
“Kachiya, take a look.”
“Okay… Yeah, this spiteful vibe definitely feels like the Zen God Race.”
She was quite harsh. Was it possible the Zen God Race were actually disliked by their peers?
Inside, we found a worn-out device. It was almost completely decayed, likely from being left untouched for a vast amount of time.
“It appears they were conducting some kind of experiment here.”
The lands associated with the Duke Association really were nothing but trouble! It was the same old pattern: they had betrayed the Empire to perform some idiotic experiment! And here I was, wanting to play in the cool ocean!!
Why does my workload just keep growing?!