Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Episode 247
============================================================
Opportunity in the Game Becomes Reality Episode 247
55. Expected Scenario (1)
Someone once said.
Even amidst a world crisis or a battlefield, children are still born.
I quite like that saying.
"It's starting to show now."
The lord's residence of the Marquisate of Lawrence.
Mother, holding my younger sister whose wrinkled newborn features had sharpened into distinct facial features, said that while looking at Arcia.
Naturally, my gaze followed Mother's to Arcia, and soon I saw her protruding belly.
It was slightly amusing, like a frog's belly, but also cute enough that I couldn't help but smile.
"What week are you on now?"
"14 weeks."
Over four months into the pregnancy.
A little over 20 weeks remained until birth.
Now we could even confirm the gender of the child that would be born between us.
"Our granddaughter will be so pretty. Both father and mother are strikingly good-looking."
The gender of our first child, born between me and Arcia, is a girl.
A girl of the same sex who is barely a year apart from Emilia, my younger sister who will become my child's aunt.
Thanks to that, the family tree feels a bit tangled, but I hope the child will follow Emilia like an older sister and grow up together with her.
I said, stroking the head of the silver-haired child in Mother's arms, whose cuteness was beginning to show.
"Emilia here is also incredibly cute because she takes after Mother. If she'd taken after Father, I'd have felt sorry for her."
At those words, loaded with various meanings, Father, who had been standing nearby and gotten caught in the crossfire, furrowed his brows.
It wasn't that Father's looks were bad, but he couldn't compare to Mother, who could be called a peerless beauty.
"Quite the joker, aren't you?"
Looks aren't everything in life, but there's nothing bad about being outstanding.
In that regard, my younger sister Emilia has a very promising future.
She's only just turned one, but her beauty is already starting to surface.
Father couldn't outright deny my joke and let out a hollow laugh.
"Isn't it about time you stopped dragging Arcia around with you?"
It seemed that was exactly why Mother had asked Arcia how many weeks along she was upon seeing her belly.
She was certainly right.
If anything, having her accompany me this long was already a lack of consideration.
However, Arcia adamantly refused against Mother's words.
"My place is at my husband's side."
"But it could be a burden on the child."
"Rather, staying close to him, a 9th-circle Mage, is the safest option."
Since Arcia rarely insisted on anything, Mother looked at me with a troubled expression.
In response, I shrugged.
"What Arcia says makes sense. I think it's actually better for me to stay close and take care of her. Besides, since she's also a Grandmaster, I believe the chance of anything going wrong with the child is very low."
"Hoo... "
At that, Mother let out a small sigh and nodded as if there was no helping it.
"Well, you two have always handled your own affairs well. I'll trust you."
Mother's judgment becomes Father's judgment.
Just as the conversation about the child was wrapping up.
I brought up a matter I had forgotten about to Arcia.
"Tell me anytime."
"About what?"
"There's no need to keep it in your womb we could raise the child in a cultivation facility..."
That day, I was slapped by Arcia for the first time.
Additionally, Mother scolded me, asking who I took after to have such a dry way of thinking.
Then, while having a cozy meal with the family, Father suddenly asked me.
"So, what is it you want to say?"
"Huh?"
"You clearly have something you want to say."
Perhaps it was because he, like me, had grown up reading the room.
It felt as though he could see right through my thoughts.
I made an awkward expression.
But that was only for a moment.
Soon, I brought up the matter with a serious face.
"Please leave the estate management to us, and have the two of you and Emilia move into the ducal palace."
Having never expected such words, both of them expressed confusion.
"Why all of a sudden?"
I spoke of what I had been putting off until now.
About the threat of the Great Catastrophe, not yet revealed to the world.
The story was not long.
But the shock brought by that short story was immense.
Enough to shake the eyes of the two, devout believers of the Sepia Order.
"I see, so that's why you suddenly had the Bringham Empire and our Rainhatz Empire join hands to create an international organization..."
"Yes, it is to prepare for this."
I carefully speculated that if the two worlds merged, Earth's continents might be carved into the location where Rondel's Sea of Silence sits.
In that case, earthquakes, tidal waves, and abnormal climate across the entire planet would be a given.
However, that was only a predictable natural phenomenon there was also the possibility that special phenomena like the poisoned lands or plagues that spread on Earth might follow.
"If you're putting effort into stabilizing the world, wouldn't it be fine even if we stay to guard the Marquis's domain?"
"Since we can't know the future, perfect preparation is impossible. I judged this to be the best option for the safety of the family."
I will do my best to ensure no damage occurs to Rondel.
But it's not possible to perfectly protect everyone.
That's why I'm trying to look after even those close to me.
Even if this behavior of mine seems selfish, I can't help it.
The reason I obtained such powerful strength was never for world peace, but for the well-being of me and my family.
"But who would trust a Lord who abandoned his domain's people and fled?"
"I'll manage the Marquis's domain as best I can. I am, after all, a member of House Lawrence. What's wrong with a son stepping up in his father's place?"
"Still..."
Isn't it natural for a family to be together when disaster strikes?
But Father was stubborn.
"No, that won't do. Have your mother and your younger sibling stay at the ducal palace. I will protect the domain."
"Dear?"
"Go with Adrian. That way I'll have peace of mind too."
Father wished to fulfill his duty as Lord.
He judged that it was the choice that would benefit his younger sibling Emilia, who would later become the Lord of the Marquis's domain.
In the end, I could not persuade Father.
So I provided Father with various artifacts along with an Aegis-class subspace-type Heaven-Piercing Fortress created by Grand Duke Lucas, preparing for any contingency.
"By that time, the safest place will probably be the Heaven-Piercing Fortress floating in the sky."
"I'll keep that in mind."
No one knows when the merger of the two worlds will occur.
That's why I tried to take care of my family first, before making any major moves.
But because of Father's convictions, I could only bring Mother and my younger sibling Emilia to the ducal palace.
* * *
"Huh?"
"What? What's wrong?"
At Arc Scarlet suddenly tilting her head and looking around, Bug narrowed her brow and asked.
Arc Scarlet answered with a puzzled expression.
"No, it's just I feel like someone called me."
At Arc Scarlet's unusual answer, Bug, for some reason, linked her arm through hers.
Then Maryang, who was beside them, also linked her arm through Arc Scarlet's other arm, making it look like the two were restraining her.
"Trying to make a run for it, are you?"
"Not on my watch! If you're gone, the three of us splitting the attention becomes just the two of us taking it all!"
At Bug and Maryang's words, Arc Scarlet tried to free both her arms, insisting that wasn't the case... but.
"Ah, you all just get along so well."
As Diana Anne Rhinehearts, the former princess of the Kingdom of Rhinehearts who had been sent off to Adrian as if being foisted on him, said that with a composed face, Arc Scarlet had no choice but to sigh.
As the current head of the Prius Republic branch under the Lawrence Mage Tower, she was in a relationship with the Republic's President.
She had been spending her days busily with work and romance, but suddenly received a peculiar request from Adrian, her benefactor, and came to look after Arc Scarlet, Bug, and Maryang.
Her position was that of Agnyang's manager.
Agnyang was the name given to the three of them as a group, and the manager's role was to keep watch so they wouldn't slack off on their assigned work.
"Does this look good to you?"
"Your eyes are crossed."
"Now, now, let's not do that let's fight on. A lot of people gathered to see you all."
The "work" of the three mentioned here was closely tied to the outfits they were currently wearing.
They were currently dressed in attire reminiscent of Korean school uniforms, and each wore a choker-style artifact around her neck that amplified sound.
Their job was to sing and dance.
Their job was to perform as blood donation promotion ambassadors for the large-scale blood collection Adrian was planning.
-Waaaaaah!
The three standing backstage had to click their tongues at the roar of the crowd outside.
As a result of Adrian actively leveraging the Hollywood System to manipulate and agitate public sentiment, they had become the hottest rookie singers in Rondel within just a few days.
By now, the number of dedicated fans following them to every performance had surpassed four digits.
Yet no one found that popularity more grating than they did.
'I really want to run away.'
Arc Scarlet wished she could leave this place right that instant, but she had received a direct order through a master-servant contract from Adrian to obey former Princess Diana's words, so escape was impossible.
And so she became the most obedient member of all.
"Agnyang, please stand by."
When the three's turn to perform came, Bug and Maryang released the arms of Arc Scarlet, whom they had been restraining, and trudged onto the stage.
-Uwaaaah!
-Aska! Aska! (Arc Scarlet's stage name)
-Maryang! Maryang!
-Bug! Bug!
Yet even though this was a stage they'd been forced onto, whenever they received the cheers of the massive crowd, they oddly felt strength well up and their hearts race.
No matter how much they denied it, they had the blood of attention-seekers running through their veins.
As if they'd never shown signs of reluctance, smiles rose on all three of their faces.
-Ta-dan!
They began to dance to the melody.
Their genre was pure and innocent idols.
With looks as outstanding as theirs, any concept suited them well.
"Wha what is that bastard doing?"
And so the members of the group Agnyang went on to deliver a performance that would later be called legendary...
The problem was that there was someone in the audience staring at Arc Scarlet in utter shock.
A young man who seemed to embody pitch-black darkness itself.
He was the Demon King Dark Square, who had manifested on Earth following Arc Scarlet, bound by countless restrictions.
* * *
"...."
Amid a situation where many people, myself included, were busily moving to prepare for the coming Great Catastrophe...
Lord Exceed followed me around as if keeping watch.
As the reincarnation of Grand Duke Lucas, he must have countless memories in Rondel too, yet for some reason he kept casting glances that seemed to demand a choice, as if he had no interest in anything but Earth's affairs.
"Lord Exceed-nim seems to be a separate personality who merely possesses Grand Duke Lucas's memories."
"What do you mean by that?"
"With the way you show such indifference toward Rondel, that's the only conclusion one can draw, isn't it?"
Ahead of a joint conference with the Prius Republic, the Elysian Coalition, and the Kingdom of Lucias, I said that to Lord Exceed in a tone of protest.
At my words, he shook his head.
"Doesn't Adrian-nim also hold the mindset that as long as you take care of your kin and acquaintances on Earth, that's all that matters?"
Answering a question with a question is something I hate most, but strangely, I couldn't deny his words.
"Perhaps so."
I owed Grand Duke Lucas a great debt.
I would live my whole life with gratitude toward him, yet oddly enough, his reincarnation, Lord Exceed, just didn't mesh well with me, and things felt strained between us.
And the feeling seemed mutual, as a cold current flowed between us.
"Aren't you afraid? That I might take your Opportunity away again."
Lord Exceed asked me provocatively, but it was a pointless effort.
"It's fine. I've made ample preparations for that contingency."
At my calm reaction, he let out a hollow laugh and said, "Is that so."
And just like that, the conversation between us died.
After a long while, I rose from my seat for the meeting and said to him.
"I'll find a way."
"Pardon?"
"A way for both sides to be satisfied. And if possible, I'd like to face you with a smile."
It sounded like empty flattery, but it was sincere.
At my words, his eyes widened.
But only for a moment for whatever reason, Lord Exceed let out a small sigh, and I joined Arsi, who was waiting outside the door, and made my way to the meeting venue.
-Thud. Thud.
How long did we walk down that quiet corridor?
-Rumble rumble rumble!
"Wh what?"
An abrupt tremor shook the ground, and the mana in the atmosphere surged as if to shake the world itself.
It was an anomaly occurring without any warning.