The grand beach party had officially begun. Felix leaned back in his deck chair and closed his eyes to rest. The accumulation of work and trivial matters from before had given him a headache, and now he finally had a chance to relax.
A burst of lively cheers rose from the distance. Felix peeked through his sunglasses and saw that the beach volleyball players had been replaced by Asuna, Yukino, and other members of the Melira race. Their powerful attacks made one wonder what exactly lay beneath their skin. Felix could only conclude that these Meliras were holding back and had not activated their core functions. Otherwise, the volleyball would probably have been smashed apart.
Ines and Avdotya, who was not particularly athletic, were in charge of the grill, while Ifrit handled temperature control. From time to time, they sprinkled chili powder onto skewers and ate them themselves, loudly proclaiming how delicious they were.
Felix picked up a skewer and chewed slowly. Even though this was supposed to be a vacation, he felt more like a spectator watching a play unfold.
Having already realized that Herman's departure was a deliberate ploy to lure enemies into the open, Felix chose to shift from being a participant to an observer. After all, neither Herman nor Siesta was qualified to treat Tomorrow's Developments as a weapon, and it was clear that Herman had not considered this point carefully. Perhaps he believed he could simply pay a generous compensation afterward.
From the perspective of an individual and from the perspective of Tomorrow's Developments, Felix would naturally choose to uphold justice, stop the schemes lurking in the shadows, and restore Siesta to its former tranquility.
However, as the leader of Tomorrow's Developments, he could not act on impulse. Every word and action he took affected all of its operators, and he had to bear responsibility for them. Under these circumstances, Felix did not want to step into such murky waters. Instead, he almost wanted to praise Herman for daring to involve both him and Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals.
If this continued, Tomorrow's Developments might be dragged into similar situations in the future, possibly becoming entangled in trouble or even war. Felix did not want that outcome. After meeting Arturia, he realized that he had not changed at all, just like the Felix of the past. Protecting those around him, protecting those important to him. Those people had gradually expanded from Mostima, Senomi, and others into the present Tomorrow's Developments and Kazdel, accompanied by the loyal gazes of operators and civilians alike. Protecting one's people was a king's duty.
As for other countries, Felix had always followed a simple principle: cooperate if possible; if not, then forget it; if they crossed the line, wipe them out in one sweep. He had once held such thoughts about Ursus. He had even asked Talulah about Ursus's strength. Most of their military power was concentrated in the north, fighting demons, and the Emperor's Blades were undoubtedly Ursus's trump card.
Regardless of whether Felix himself possessed trump cards, his firepower was far greater. If Ursus truly could not endure it, he would not mind dealing with them after Victoria.
'Victoria… it was almost time.' Felix closed his eyes, feeling the sea breeze against his face.
"What dreadful thing are you thinking about right now, Your Highness? You really haven't changed in that regard."
A mature voice sounded by his ear. Felix turned his head and saw Margaret shaking water droplets from her hair, wiping seawater from her face with a towel. It was obvious she had just come back from a swim. Since this was an inland sea, there were no sea creatures to worry about.
"What can you tell?" Felix asked.
"You had the same distracted expression when you chased me out of the Kawalerielki," Margaret replied. "I was too willful back then and caused you a lot of trouble."
"The old man and Młynar entrusted you to me," Felix replied lazily. "Naturally, I had to take responsibility."
Then, as if recalling something, he added, "Maria really is your sister. She's been unstoppable in the tournament and has a very high chance of entering the main competition."
Margaret pursed her lips. "The Chamber of Commerce wouldn't want to see another member of the Nearl family rise."
"We'll go to Kazimierz in October," Felix said. "The decision then will be up to you."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Margaret coughed lightly. "Um, Your Highness."
"What is it?"
"The sun is quite strong. Do you need me to apply some sunscreen?"
"?"
Felix glanced at Margaret's favorability rating through his sunglasses. Eighty-five… no, wait, what?
When had it reached eighty-five? He clearly remembered that the last time he checked, Margaret's favorability rating had only been in the low seventies, firmly within the range of close friends. Moreover, they had once shared a guardian and ward relationship. Back then, Felix had only assumed that she saw him as an older brother.
After all, the Nearl family lacked a reliable elder brother to guide Margaret and Maria. Moreover, when sparring with old man Kirill, the latter had once hinted at his hopes as well.
For Margaret and Maria, their goal… had it always been their brother?
Felix rarely used the affinity system anymore. Aside from gauging someone's thoughts during a first meeting and preparing an appropriate response, there was little need for it now, especially during Tomorrow's Developments' large-scale activities. Everyone was simply an operator following orders. There was no real need to distinguish between liking and disliking.
'Wait a minute.'
Felix's heart skipped a beat. He turned his gaze toward the four people grilling meat nearby.
Ines's favorability was 78, Avdotya's was 97, Ifrit's was 57, and Nian's was 74. That was fine. Ines and Nian were clearly within the realm of close friends. Crossing the 80 mark would be… complicated.
Sensing his gaze, Ines, dressed in her swimsuit, stepped forward, handed him a skewer of grilled meat, and calmly returned to the grill.
Ines's favorability rose to 79.
No. That could not be right.
Ines was his dependable right-hand woman. He had never thought of her in that way. Felix firmly believed her favorability would stop at 80 and go no further.
His eyes swept over the people playing around nearby, checking them one by one.
Siege was at 68, Lappland at 72, Natalya at 81, and Sonya at 77.
Angelina was at 60, Shining at 71, Ling at 63, and Shu at 58. These were all within the bounds of friendship. The three above, however, were a bit dangerous.
Felix's lips twitched slightly. He had barely exchanged a few words with the noble young lady Natalya, and the same was true for Sonya. He had not interacted much with those Ursus girls either.
He turned to Margaret, who wore a calm expression, and nodded slowly. "Then I'll leave it to you."
"Alright."
Felix turned around. To his surprise, Margaret's technique did not resemble that of someone doing this for the first time. After a brief moment of thought, he understood.
"You usually take care of Nightingale like this, don't you? You and Shining must be exhausted."
"Nightingale has such a comfortable place to rest thanks to His Highness. All we need to do is stay by her side…" Margaret paused briefly. "As for this technique, I learned it from Miss Loughshinny."
No wonder it felt so familiar.
Just as Margaret was carefully applying the sunscreen, W, who had been having a water fight with Lappland in the distance, glanced toward the shore and immediately exploded in anger. "Hey, hey, hey! There's a sneaky horse over there!"
Lappland looked over, saw that it was just a normal application of sunscreen, and snorted.
"What are you laughing at?" W glared at her.
Lappland stuck out her tongue and licked the corner of her mouth. "If it were me, I'd take off His Highness's pants and take advantage of him."
W's face instantly flushed red. She splashed water at Lappland and shouted, "What are you saying?!"
Lappland's figure seemed to grow distant for a moment before she burst into laughter. "You've already given yourself to His Highness. Why are you still so stiff about it?"
"Aaaaaah!"
A fierce battle erupted in the sea, drawing the attention of the others. Amused, the girls joined in, and what followed was something close to a small tsunami.
Margaret finished applying the sunscreen, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and let out a quiet sigh of relief. Seeing Felix close his eyes again, she could not help but smile faintly. She knew that her brother Felix had been exhausted. At the very least, this small act would let him relax and rest for a while.
"Ku… there are just too many competitors."
Sonya and Lada were building sandcastles nearby. Lada was fully immersed in the task, while Sonya took the chance to glance at the women around them. A gathering of beauties, each with her own distinct charm, filled her with an undeniable sense of pressure.
"Do you like His Highness?" Lada asked curiously.
Sonya nodded without hesitation, then asked in return, "What about you, Lada?"
"Me?" Lada grinned and clapped her hands together. "I think His Highness is gentle, like an older brother. As for liking someone in that way… I'm not really sure yet." She paused, then added cheerfully, "Oh, right. I already made plans with Rafaela to cook for everyone later. Sonya, want to help?"
"…Alright."
Sonya brushed the sand from her clothes and stood up. Not far away, Anna, still wearing her old school-era one-piece swimsuit, was asleep under a parasol, books clutched to her chest. Leto was splashing about in a water fight, while Natalya was busy helping out at the barbecue.
Angelina remained curled up under the parasol, her toes slightly drawn in. Although she had been invited by Yelena, she had only recently recovered from a severe illness and had been undergoing Originium Arts training ever since. Having once worked as a messenger, this was her first time seriously confronting the very power that had caused her condition. Only in the past month had she begun joining missions again, occasionally resuming her former messenger duties.
"If you want to go, then go have fun," Yelena said as she sipped her cold drink. Though her Originium Arts had not reduced the Originium particles in her blood, at least they had not worsened. More importantly, her body temperature was now fully under control. Once, she would have been like a walking block of ice in this environment, but after her Oripathy was stabilized, she could finally live like an ordinary person.
Although a complete cure for Oripathy was still far away, Yelena knew that Felix personally presided over every meeting with the Rhodes Island Medical Department. He was eager to develop an antidote as soon as possible, and she understood that well. She was content with her life now. There was no looming threat of death, the Yeti Squad could still go on missions with her, and most importantly, he was by her side.
"Then… then I'll go talk to them."
Angelina set her sights on Adele and Ceobe. Adele's parents were still working at the Kazdel Research Institute. When they departed this time, they brought Adele, also known as Eyjafjalla, aboard the Venus. Her studies were nearly complete, and now she needed to see the world beyond textbooks. Eyjafjalla was delighted to reunite with old friends like Senomi and Mandragora, and the group often gathered together.
As for the latter, Ceobe had been brought back by the Mountain's Squad last month after completing diplomatic work in Leithanien. At the time, the squad had just left the mobile city with supplies exchanged from the nobles and was preparing to return to the Venus for some rest when a wild-looking Perro figure suddenly appeared and charged straight at their cargo without a word.
The squad members were stunned by her ferocity. To their surprise, she climbed onto the wagon, pulled out a frozen pizza, and devoured it while commenting, "Not bad. Tasty!"
The team exchanged glances. Mountain was left speechless, but considering she was infected, he still responsibly brought her back to the landship, where she spent a full month in the infirmary.
Felix naturally recognized this infamous cafeteria destroyer. In his previous life, she had been a notorious glutton from Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. In this life, she was brought aboard by the Mountain's Squad. Fortunately, Felix had more than enough resources to feed even a bottomless pit.
Now, four empty plates lay in front of Ceobe. When she heard that all the food and drinks here were free, her eyes gleamed with frightening intensity. Dishes from downtown Siesta were packaged and delivered to the private villa by drone, only to vanish into Ceobe's stomach moments later.
Even though everything was free, Lada and the others still preferred to prepare some warm, home-style dishes for everyone. As Lada and the Ursus girls began exploring the luxury villa's kitchen, Rafaela took out the bartending tools she had brought from the Venus. After ordering the free drinks, she started mixing cocktails on the spot for everyone to enjoy.
Felix took another skewer of grilled food and walked over to Rafaela's bar. "Ella, I'd like something a bit sweeter."
"Oh, it's Brother Felix." Rafaela smiled innocently, standing on her toes to grab the bottles behind her. She poured the liquor into the shaker in careful measures, shaking it slowly, then quickly.
"Ella, make me one too."
"Wow, it's Ines!" Rafaela beamed at her regular customer. "Okay, Ines, what flavor would you like?"
"Something sweet as well," Ines replied.
"Got it."
As dusk deepened, brilliant fireworks bloomed across the distant sky. Felix looked out through the window. The Obsidian Festival had only just begun.