We were enjoying ourselves at the Ski Resort.
Since we had a doctor with us who, despite being a resident, was practically guaranteed a spot in surgery, we could afford to be a little reckless.
I built up speed on my snowboard and launched into a jump!
I spun gracefully through the air.
"Fuhahahaha!"
"I'm not losing to you!"
The other guys unleashed one technique after another, too.
Their skills were high enough that they could have probably held their own in a professional competition.
Hahaha! A fighter pilot's spatial awareness truly was second to none!
Not that I had any intention of entering a competition in the first place.
For some reason, multiple media outlets from Chronos were filming us.
"Here I gooo!"
Eddy zoomed down the course on his skis. He was performing a Giant Slalom.
Apparently, skiing had been a compulsory subject for physical education on his home planet. That guy really could do anything.
I personally hadn't practiced winter sports as much as I had martial arts. On my home planet, Planet Kamishiro, even wild animals found it difficult to survive in the coldest regions—simply because there was no food. On a wilderness planet, the areas where land animals could survive were extremely limited.
Consequently, we were a far cry from having anything like a Ski Resort. What piled up there wasn't even snow; it was just ice.
The area around my family home didn't get that cold even in winter, so it was comfortable enough, but that meant we couldn't build a resort there either. Since the population was sparse, everyone lived toward the Capital City. Transportation was a nightmare in the cold regions, so nobody ever went there.
I hadn't really done much of it myself... or so I had thought until recently.
According to my brother’s periodic report, a Ski Resort had actually been built! He said they could break even because of the influx of immigrants. It was incredible! The Kamishiro Group had even built a railway line to service it. By the time I finally went back, the place would probably be so urbanized that I wouldn't even recognize my own hometown.
Then there was Melissa, whose family actually owned a ski resort! Our upbringings were on completely different levels.
Meanwhile, Ren was busy sledding. Perhaps because her neighboring planet was even hotter than ours, she was likewise a complete stranger to winter sports. However, she had her subordinates, who had essentially turned into a dogsled, pulling her along.
The optics weren't great, so I really wanted her to stop... for the sake of their human rights. Wait, did some members of the Beast Race just feel the urge to run the moment they saw snow? Was it an instinct? Well, I just hoped they'd be careful not to get injured.
Once I finished my run and felt satisfied, I found myself surrounded by a crowd of people from the Ogre God Nation. One of them jerked his chin toward a high point on the mountain.
"Oh, so we're doing that kind of deathmatch, then?"
It was a deathmatch involving about ten people, all snowboarding down from near the peak.
"Fuhahahaha! Fuhahahahaha!"
I started off at a leisurely pace, with the Warriors of the Ogre God Nation chasing after me on their boards. One tried to hit me with a Lariat from behind, but I dodged it by crouching while slowing down.
The warrior wiped out and slammed into a tree. He was fine, though. Everyone, myself included, was wearing a Combat Suit. You didn't die just from hitting a tree; at worst, you'd just break a bone. The warrior from a moment ago had also activated his Personal Shield. It definitely still hurt, though.
I accelerated.
Three pursuers were hot on my heels. The first one went for an elbow strike. I dodged it quickly, and he wiped out. Another one leaped at me.
Jump!
With a sharp zusaasasa sound, he vanished from sight in the blink of an eye. The third one jumped and tried to attack me from above.
"Hyah-hah!"
I jumped as well and stomped down on his board.
"Hahahaha!"
"As expected of Big Brother Leo! Our opponent is a monster! Everyone, get him at once!"
The remaining six warriors charged me simultaneously. But they were being far too naive! After all, the path ahead was a jump ramp effectively known as a cliff.
"Hyahhooi!"
I performed several tricks while spinning through the air. The Warriors of the Ogre God Nation just fell off the edge like normal. Don't worry, they were fine. We had a GPS tracking system, so they wouldn't get lost. Besides, for a Warrior of the Ogre God Nation, a broken bone was practically a punchline.
And so, it was my win!
I was getting tired, so I figured I’d go play with Experimental Subject-chan and the others. After that, I’d take a bath and fix a meal.
Or so I thought.
"Your Majesty, could we ask you to perform a Stunt Scene?"
"Wait, what?"
"This is the script."
It was for The Unruly Grand Duke.
What was this?!
And so, the filming began. Because of the risk of avalanches, there were no actual explosions; most of it would be added later with CGI. Apparently, I just had to slide down the mountain one more time. They were even going to use the footage of my scuffle with the warriors.
"Whenever you're ready, please!"
"Yeah, yeah, I've got it!"
I was playing the Stuntman for the filming of a drama where I was the main model. I decided to stop thinking about the logic of it all.
I slid down on my snowboard according to the script. It was easy since no one was actually attacking me this time. I added a horizontal rotation and jumped! I stuck the landing while spinning.
Hyahhooooooooooo!
I jumped once more! This time, I performed a vertical rotation and a mid-air finishing pose!
"Wheee!"
"I think His Majesty might actually be best suited to being a stuntman," came a Correspondence Course from Eddy.
I briefly wondered that myself.
"Hoho-hoi!"
I jumped one last time. Shakiin!
I showed off a bit as I crossed the finish line.
"Wheee!"
We all shared high-fives. With the filming finally wrapped up, it was time to make dinner.
Food! Food! At that fellow Nakajima’s insistent request, we were having Houtou. We prepared both a Miso Flavor and a soy sauce version.
The soy sauce version was in the style of Musashino Udon, while the Miso Flavor one featured pumpkin and noodles that were half-melted into the broth. Nakajima wailed with joy at the taste of her home. I just smiled, enjoying the Musashino Udon I hadn't had in ages.
Lou-chan, also known as Experimental Subject-chan, couldn't eat yet. Sorry about that.
"Good. Lou, talk."
She was such a good girl.
We all sat together eating the warm food. However, udon alone wasn't going to be enough. That was where Nina-san saved the day; she had prepared a batch of Seasoned Rice.
"All hail Nina-san!"
Both the guys and the girls were equally excited. We also ate the tempura Kevin had made, which used a fish similar to Pond Smelt. Truly a blessing.
After dinner, it was time to settle in for the night. Even for us, who were constantly on the verge of being crushed by work, this was a three-day, two-night trip! Both Kevin and Wifey had managed to take time off. They were both looking a bit overworked... Well, I suppose I was too. Better not to dwell on it.
I wondered what I should make tomorrow. I was told I could use whatever ingredients I wanted. It had to be meat, obviously.
A barbecue was out because it was too cold outside. But still, I wanted meat. Maybe I’d set up a portable stove and have a Yakiniku Party with everyone? We could do Takoyaki on the side, too. I’d have them bring over some gas cylinders and stoves. It would be easier for me if everyone just grilled their own food.
Plus, since we’d probably end up making a hot pot anyway, I'd increase the order of meat and vegetables. And since the number of people who could drink had increased, I'd throw in some alcohol, too. Just a little. For some reason, I was the only one forbidden from having any.
"Fairy. Can I place an order?"
"Yes, I've placed the order for you!"
I really couldn't hold a candle to Fairy. How grateful I was.
Everything was going perfectly up to that point.
That is, until the drone carrying the food and stoves was attacked and everything was stolen.
Bandits on the Capital Planet of Chronos?!
What the hell was going on?!