NOVEL NEXT After enjoying our memorable first camping trip, our analog journey continued.
Whenever there was a village nearby, we would stay; if not, we simply walked along the road, relishing the raw wilderness, and found it surprisingly enjoyable.
Casually strolling and exchanging trivial jokes felt good. I liked the dull and ordinary journey where similar scenery repeated itself.
Even a city I was sure I had visited before appeared utterly different depending on whether I was touring it or just passing through as a mere traveler. Reaching a rural village that wasn’t even properly marked on the map was simply fascinating.
Though our pace was slower than expected due to our leisurely movement, who cares about being chased? If we want to take it easy, why not?
We had more than enough time. Getting anxious and pacing back and forth just because our travel schedule was delayed by a day or two didn’t really suit a vampire who would live nearly forever, so it seemed wise to learn to enjoy leisure from now on.
As I mumbled to myself, justifying my thoughts, a perceptive but clueless elf suddenly interjected.
“Huh? Just because you have an infinite lifespan doesn’t mean your vacation is infinite, right?”
“…How did you get so sensitive, Elf?”
“Are you blaming this on others now?”
“Aren’t we others? I’m hurt.”
“Right. Right.”
“I feel hurt.”
The sharp comments from Eleonora and Plona made me envy a million soldiers.
So just empathize with me. Sure, what does it matter if the vacation gets delayed a bit? If we can just giggle about it, what’s the big deal? Of course, vacation days are technically limited…
… If I extend my vacation unilaterally, Martini might get mad, right? If something happens while I’m away, she’ll face the wrath.
Still, since we were supposed to arrive at our destination today, maybe we’ll stay at the beach for a few days, and if it seems we can’t make it back on time, we could just sprinkle in some analog vibes and fly away. After all, with wings, a day is plenty to reach from the edge of the world to the mainland.
Yeah. This seems like the best idea. It’s a bit disappointing that I can’t maintain a consistent travel concept from start to finish, but here, we can look forward to what comes next.
As we took turns hitting the rather satisfying old Albresia sandbag and walked, the air began to smell salty.
Just a breeze made it feel heavy and humid, making it truly feel like the sea was right in front of us.
Thanks to deliberately avoiding the village, there were hardly any signs of life. I wanted to see what an fishing village felt like, but my desire to share that first moment with my three companions shone through.
Yet again, I realize this trip was filled with a lot of unreasonable demands in various ways. It was called an analog feeling, but deep down, I probably saw it as inconvenient and bothersome.
Thinking back to the three individuals who, without a wrinkle on their faces, had laughed with me by the campfire, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude.
“Oh, I think we’ve arrived.”
When we got back, I mused that I should be more considerate to Plona and Eleonora and maybe give Lavina a bit of a break as I jolted my head up at Plona’s voice.
There it was. The sea—blue waves crashing and frothing white, the edge of the world was right there.
There was no fantasy. Water didn’t spout upside down, rainbows didn’t flow on the surface, and winged fish didn’t fly around.
Here, the sea was just the sea. It didn’t differ much from the oceans I saw through photos and videos in my past life.
An utterly ordinary sight. But why did this mundane yet unremarkable scene captivate me? I couldn’t fathom.
Almost in a trance, I walked across the rocky coast and stood at the boundary between land and ocean.
Splash—a wave crashed in energetically at my feet. I took another step forward. Splash—once more, the wave hit my toes, but my sturdy hiking shoes, chosen for the trek, were no match for it.
I flung off my shoes. The sense of liberation felt wonderful. The cool sensation on my toes was incredibly freeing.
“So this is what the sea looks like.”
There were things I couldn’t have known just through photos and videos.
The damp, salty smell and the waves splashing against my bare legs were sensations I would have never grasped had I not experienced it firsthand.
In that moment, the edge of the world ceased to be the end; the boundary that I had never reached before crumbled, and I finally faced an even larger world.
“Aria, isn’t it cold?”
Turning my head, I saw Lavina standing a distance away, looking tense.
Ah, thinking about it, an elf living in the forest would hardly have seen the sea before. Eleonora probably wasn’t much different.
But Eleonora seemed the type to jump into a fire, as she squatted beside me, tapping the retreating foam with her tail.
If anyone might have had experience visiting here, it’d be Plona, who was dispatched here and there as a knight, but based on her wide-eyed wonder as she carefully took off her shoes, I didn’t even need to ask.
“Refreshing.”
The confirming response came back, and after staring at the three of them squatting by the water for about two minutes without any incident, just then, the timid elf cautiously approached.
…Was she checking if it was safe to enter the sea? After all, it was her first experience.
I suddenly felt mischievous. I jumped up from my seat and swiftly grabbed Lavina, who was carefully poking at the wet rocks with her toes, and tossed her into the sea.
“Ah, ah? Ariaaaaaa!!!”
Oh, delightful to hear.
I initially intended to toss her where the water would barely reach her ankles, but since it was all rocks and not a sandy beach, I threw her into a zone where she’d be fully submerged instead. I mean, after all, what else can you chalk this up to but immense consideration on my part.
Lavina splashed around in the water with a disturbing expression, one you’d see in a disaster movie, trying to paddle about, only realizing after about ten seconds that her feet could reach the ground if she just stood up, and turning bright red.
“Choke! Ugh, gross!!”
“10 points.”
“…Wait, really?”
Lavina blinked in surprise at the unexpectedly high score she received. I didn’t bother to tell her the shocking fact that it might even be a perfect score. After all, there are things in the world that one can be happier not knowing.
Still, I had to admit Lavina had some talent for performance art. After all, no matter what happens, experience matters; she was first-rate at physical activities.
“No! That’s not it! What were you thinking tossing me into the water!”
“Hey, hey, I trusted you.”
“Hmm…”
While she wasn’t completely dense, not believing me was a thought that crossed her mind, but the drenched Lavina reluctantly plopped down in defeat.
Had I been staring blankly at the blue sea for a while, Plona quietly spoke up.
“This is nice.”
“Yeah, right.”
The sea, which was no longer a mystery, wasn’t anything special to me anymore, yet I still had a certainty that this very moment remained special.
“Thank you, everyone. You’ve helped me fulfill a wish.”
So, I expressed my gratitude honestly. It was a bit embarrassing, but there are things in life that can’t be conveyed without words, and sometimes it’s better to say it aloud even if it could be communicated some other way.
Sensing my remark might have been a bit out of place, Plona, Eleonora, and Lavina briefly looked surprised before they all smiled playfully, as if they had an unspoken agreement.
“Huh? They say people do things they wouldn’t normally do before they die, right—”
“I actually had fun on this trip.”
“Wait, we definitely laughed together, though? If Plona says that, doesn’t it make me sound like trash?!”
With the silly squabbling behind me, I found myself staring at the horizon, when suddenly Eleonora, who had slipped into the space beside me amidst the confusion, quietly asked,
“Master, what will you do next?”
“Next? Let’s see. Next…”
As I had wished at the start, the more time flowed, the fewer obligations I would have as the Emperor.
I had traveled with those I could call friends and had seen the sea. My world, which had previously taken on a clear shape, had expanded a little more.
Right then, like Eleonora said, I needed to seek out what I wanted to do next. Time was abundant, and I would continue to live just the same tomorrow and the day after.
What would be good this time? I thought it might be okay to pick up a hobby too.
As I drafted a bucket list in my mind, it suddenly struck me that it would be wonderful if I could preserve the specialness of this moment in some form.
That was when Sophia, who had sketched my image countless times in my memories, came to mind.
“When I get back, maybe I’ll learn to paint.”
This could be a good idea. To retain the extraordinary in this ordinariness and remember the touch of emotion when facing an even greater world as the edge crumbled away, there could hardly be a better way.
It was a delightful realization that, where once I couldn’t guarantee tomorrow, now I could naturally dream of what comes next. I felt a surge of motivation bubbling up inside.
Great. From now on, if something I want to try emerges, I’ll challenge myself to do it. Starting with painting.
While I had never truly held a brush in both lives, I felt no fear of not having a knack for it.
So, what if I lack talent? After all, you can’t beat the passing years; if I dig deep into one thing for two hundred years, a talent that didn’t exist will surely sprout.
In my future life, there would always be another tomorrow. As I took each step forward with my precious people, the ones I must protect, I believed I could reach wherever I needed to go.
I wished for tomorrow, holding the specialness of today close to my heart. Or rather, perhaps it was more of a promise I made to myself than a prayer.
May every moment bathed in the sunlight and moonlight of tomorrow be both remarkably ordinary and extraordinarily special.
Naturally, amidst the crashing waves, I found no answers to what I sought.
Yet, there was no anxiety. Shaping the tomorrow version of myself was now entirely up to me, and not the gods or fate.
-The Vampire’s Paradise, Afterword Complete-