Striving For The Luxury Liner – Vol 10 Chapter 2

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Chapter 2 – Start

With the exception of Ines, the decision about our next destination was unanimous. Well, Ines will be uncomfortable to see her family, but it should be better to see them than not to see them later. I hope she won’t mind because they will be angry as well.

“Good morning, Master.”

“Good morning, Felicia.”

After the morning routine… hmm?

“What happened to Ines?”

Felicia’s eyes turn to the bed next to me. …In the bed was Ines, awake but groaning.

“She has a hangover?”

“It seems pretty bad.”

She seemed slightly desperate when we parted yesterday, and I’m sure she was in a straight line of despair.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning, Rimu.”

I held Rimu in my arms as he jumped on me, and stroked him from the very first morning. It’s bliss, isn’t it?

“Ines, we’re only moving today, so you can go back to sleep. Felicia, I’m sorry, but could you get room service for breakfast and take care of Ines for me? I’m going to have a meeting with Alessia-san and the others to discuss our departure.”

Well, I don’t know if Alessia-san and the others will get up since they’ve been drinking, but I promised Dorothea-san that we would have breakfast in the main dining room in the kids’ corner, so that should be fine.

“Understood.”

I leave Ines with Felicia and walk out of the room with Rimu on my head. Dorothea-san, Marina-san, Carla-san, and Claretta-san are all here because they went back to their rooms early, huh? Alessia-san and Ilma-san, who went along with Ines’ desperate drink… are probably not there.

“Good morning.”

I exchange morning greetings with the members of Girasole, who have gathered in the main dining room. As expected, Alessia-san and Ilma-san are not here.

“Are Alessia-san and Ilma-san hungover? I’m sorry they have to accompany Ines.”

“No, Alessia and Ilma just wanted to have a drink, don’t worry.”

At the urging of Dorothea-san, who was smiling bitterly, I sat down on a chair. Rimu jumped out of my head and flew off to greet Fuu-chan and Beni-chan in the morning. Even though he can fly, he doesn’t fly at times like this. Is he obsessed with something?

As we all watched them gently, the delicate atmosphere was lifted. Rimu and the others have a wonderful healing effect, don’t they?

“So, to get to Aquamarine from here, it’s closer to going around the Empire side?”

We talk over a hearty steak in the morning. Last night it was sushi, and today we’re going on a new journey. We need to eat some meat to give us strength.

“Yes, it’s two countries over from Palermo, so it’s definitely faster to go through the sea on the Empire side.

So the country is still beyond Palermo? Then it would be a long way to go on the Southern City side.

“Huh? If it’s so close to the Empire, is it okay with human supremacy?”

“Yes, the Aquamarine Kingdom is not a race supremacist. The cut-off land is surrounded by the sea, and it would be very difficult without a race associated with the sea. They are so generous to the beastmen that they even have a connection to the mermaids. In addition, the island is inhabited by many species that excel in the sea, so the empire could not touch it. Because of this advantage, the beastmen have taken refuge there.”

Well, it’s an island surrounded by the sea, with many experts in naval warfare… It’s hard for the Empire to mess with them… Huh? Did you say mermaids? I’ve heard a little bit about them, so I knew they existed, but can I finally meet them? I was actually looking forward to it, but now I’m really starting to enjoy it.

“I’m just wondering, if there are mermaids out there, wouldn’t every inch of the sunken city have been explored?”

“There are mermaids and fishmen who have explored. But even mermaids have a hard time fighting monsters in the sunken city, where there are many hidden places. It would be very difficult if they were attacked while exploring inside the building.”

I thought mermaids were invincible in the sea, but I guess not.

“I kind of get it now. I think it’s because they can move freely in the sea and are basically no different from those of us who can move freely on land.”

“It seems to be close to the situation Wataru-san described. The mermaids are few and far between even in the Aquamarine Kingdom, and it is mainly the fishmen who are active in the Aquamarine Kingdom.”

I didn’t know there were so few mermaids. It’s unfortunate. But that doesn’t mean that mermaids don’t exist, and we can find them if we look for them. What if they wear shell bikinis? I want to take a picture.

“Speaking of fishmen, what kind of people are they?”

I was so focused on the mermaids that I didn’t pay attention to them, even though I had never heard of them before.

“Fishmen? They are a race of people who, like beastmen, have the characteristics of various sea creatures. Most of them don’t look much different from us, but there are some fishmen who have strongly inherited the characteristics of sea creatures. However, it seems that such people have a hard time living in ordinary cities, so they live in many Aquamarine Kingdom where people understand them.”

Hmm? If they don’t look much different, does that mean I’ve seen fishmen too? My own relationships with people are so distant, and it seems that I am unusually ignoring them.

“The Aquamarine Kingdom sounds like an interesting place.”

“Yes, we have been interested in it for a long time. But it is also a difficult place to get to, so we are looking forward to it.”

Dorothea-san smiles. It’s a country that’s hard for Girasole to get to because it’s a long way from here through the Empire, and even going the other way to Palermo was a tough trip. It must have been frustrating because it’s a fascinating place just to hear about.

Hmm? How did Ines get through the difficult route when she was a beastman? It sounds like she’s doing something crazy.

“Wataru, eat more.”

Oops, it seems that Rimu finished eating while we were talking. I’m still interested in finding out what kind of place the Aquamarine Kingdom is, but we have to set our departure time and route first. I ordered more breakfast for Rimu and then talked to Dorothea-san and the others again.

“Then it’s okay for us to leave now, isn’t it? Then we’ll be on autopilot to the Empire, and we’ll leave right away. Please let Alessia-san and Ilma-san know as well.”

I finished my breakfast, and Rimu, Fuu, and Beni-chan had finished their rounds, so we lightly reaffirmed what we had discussed and parted ways. Well, we all had nothing special to do, so we just left on autopilot.

＊＊＊

“How did this happen?”

“Fufu, it’s because Wataru-san was talking about boat races, isn’t it?”

I muttered a few words, to which Claretta-san replied in an amused tone. There were only about two days left until the Allied base in the Empire I was at. It had been an uneventful and pleasant boat trip until lunch earlier, but it was a bad idea to talk about the boat race.

I didn’t notice that the eyes of Alessia-san, Marina-san, and Ines lit up, and as a result of our relaxed conversation, the hearts of the boat racing enthusiasts were ignited.

I just saw a racing boat for sale on the ship purchase screen, so I told them about a racing boat manga I liked.

“Yes, I talked about it, but why would they want to start racing out of the blue?”

I dismissed them because they said they wanted to race a boat, but why would they want to race a Galette? And it’s a long-distance race. Also, the fuel would be taken from the boat beforehand, and a large amount of stored fuel would be secured. Is it really worth it to have alternatives and portable rations? And by the way, for the race, they also destroyed the monsters that had gathered around the Chris, and… they are very motivated.

“I don’t know, but it would have been a fascinating story for someone who likes to maneuver boats. Look at them. They all look like they’re having a great time.”

“Yes, they do look like they’re having a good time. But they have a competitive face. And apart from Felicia, Dorothea-san, and Ilma-san are totally involved…”

Galette No. 1, Alessia-san and Dorothea-san.

Galette No.2, Marina-san and Ilma-san.

Galette No.3, Ines and Felicia.

“When Wataru-san gives the signal, we’ll start. The goal is a cove just before the Allied base in the Empire, marked by a large rock. But we don’t have a map, so don’t go to places where you can’t see land. And don’t go too fast when you can see other ships. No passing until you pull away a little too fast and are out of sight. Other than that, there are no other rules.”

Alessia-san shouted the rules in a high voice. There are two days of distance with the Chris… Even though the Galette is significantly faster than the Chris, it is still dangerous to slow down during the night. That would make the race a full day.

Since it’s their first race, I don’t understand why they think easy is no fun or make it harder for themselves when they could just do it somewhere closer.

Well, the ship isn’t going to break or sink, and we’ve decided how we’re going to meet. Besides, everyone is at a high level and physically fit, so as long as no one gets lost, they should be fine.

If one of the Ship Summoning slots hadn’t been lost because of the Castle, I would have felt even safer because I could have picked it up on the Lutto. But the reward is a date with the God of Gastronomy-sama and an ear cleaning with a lap pillow. I’ll take a little inconvenience.

Oops, Alessia-san and the others are giving me strong looks, asking me if I’m ready. I guess they want me to give them the signal to start. I raise my right hand high in the air, and with a single wave, all three power boats fly off at once.

“They’re gone, aren’t they? What do we do now?”

“I want a snack. A cake would be nice.”

Carla-san, with Fuu-chan on her head and Beni-chan in her arms, quickly made the request. Both Fuu-chan and Beni-chan are shaking their bodies with happiness, and Rimu on my head is also twitching, so I guess it’s decided to be cake.

By the way, Dorothea-san and Marina-san wanted to take Fuu-chan and Beni-chan with them, but Fuu-chan and Beni-chan, who understood the details of the race, clung to Carla-san and didn’t want to leave.

When I talked to them, they said they didn’t want to eat portable food for a whole day. Dorothea-san and Marina-san were really depressed. Well, Fuu-chan and Beni-chan like to eat, too, so I guess it can’t be helped.

“Let’s go to the cafe then, shall we? Is that okay with you, Claretta-san?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t mind going to the cafe either. Shall we go?”

If you say I’m curious about the race, I am, but I have a pretty good idea where the race is going, so we’ll just relax and enjoy the cruise. Besides, it would be a chance to get to know Carla-san and Claretta-san even better. It’s a great opportunity, so I’m going to enjoy it as well.

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