“By the way, did you know you’re getting married to a princess?” The sadistic look in my cousin’s eyes made it clear why she would say something like that. She licked her lips and added. “Congratulations. I will finally accomplish my dream of becoming a bridesmaid.”

Me? Married? My mind shut down for a couple of seconds. After coming back to my senses, I said. “I didn’t think you would lie about something like this just to get a rise out of me.”

A princess? Who the hell was she talking about?

“I’m not lying,” she said, and as if she had prepared beforehand, she pulled out some letters with her father’s signature. It was communication between him and the king. “I was the messenger for this whole deal. After all, who could a father trust more than his daughter?”

I got up from my rocking chair and thoughtfully stroked Carpy’s scales “So, Carpy, how about we go on an adventure?”

“Of course, master,” said the fish.

Delia looked spooked that the fish spoke, but she quickly frowned. But by then, I had already jumped over the clan walls. The mist surrounded us, and it was so thick I couldn’t even see my hands; this was the clan’s defensive barrier.

“Carpy, you lead the way,” I grabbed onto his tail, and he led us out of the maze of mist.

Once we were away from the clan compound, I took a deep breath and felt my heart beating wildly. All the worrying thoughts in my mind melted away.

After taking a breath of fresh air, I picked up a stick and threw it in the air, and it landed with the thinner side pointing south. “Well, we’re going south.”

Ever since coming into this world, this was the first time I had no plans, schemes, or tricks. I was just letting fate decide my next route.

But before I could even take the first step on my journey, Delia caught up to me. “You can’t run away from your problems, Kon.”

“Watch me,” I was going to do just that. Since I had shown my strength, some freedom came with it. People would not fuck with the guy who could throw hands with what was the most notorious exorcist.

“Where are you even going?” She followed along, and with her Warrior affinity, she could easily keep up with me.

Unless I incapacitated Delia, we wouldn’t be able to escape her. But I didn’t wanna fight my cousin.

She was an annoying, psychopathic, and sadistic bitch. But she was also strong, and my cousin.

As much as I hated to admit it, she had also saved my ass in the Colosseum.

“Anywhere the road takes me.”

“We’re walking on grass. There's no road in sight,” Delia couldn’t stop herself from adding snide comments.

But this was her usual behavior. The strange thing was how I wasn’t disturbed by her weirdness. It was as if this were just another day dealing with my serial killer relative.

"It’s more of a metaphysical road. Until now, I always assumed you only looked like a bimbo and never thought you actually were one," We got close to a forest and then changed passes from running to tree hopping.

Delia frowned at my insults and halted. “Just remember, you rock-brained cousin! Whenever you feel like coming back, we will be waiting. The blood of the Dark Sword Clan runs through your veins.”

That was corny as hell. I puckered my lips and kept a straight face. Delia wouldn’t take well to me laughing in her face.

At least she no longer followed us, and it was just Carpy and me. The last time it was just the two of us, he was just a (possibly sentient) fish; now he was a powerful middle-class demon.

Carpy wasn’t much of a talker. The only noises I had to distract me from my thoughts were the rustling leaves.

I started thinking back to the fight against the Demonic Exorcist. Even before the death battle had started, I had been excited to see more special abilities.

Since I came from a normal world, I have always had a fascination with this world’s Ord and special abilities. They were a magical power I couldn’t get enough of!

But there was a fine distinction between liking Ord, and getting excited at seeing new special abilities while a death battle was approaching.

It was weird; I was an average schmuck working in an office not even a year ago. But everything has been a bit too much since coming to this world.

Was I going crazy? Was this my mind 'adapting' to the craziness and twisting my excitement of special magical abilities into something more twisted?

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I didn't know, and I wasn’t a psychiatrist. It wasn't like I could go to professionals in this world and spill the beans.

Loving battles wasn't even that weird for an exorcist. But it felt like I barely knew my previous self from before.

Scenes of the battle between the Demonic Exorcist and I played in my mind. My hands shook, and it wasn't because of fear.

I clenched my palms into fists and sighed.

This wasn't me; I wasn't a battle freak. Yet, the thought of fighting against a new special ability excited me.

It wasn't just the special abilities either. Outsmarting opponents, clashing fists, forcing them back, pushing myself to the limit, and winning!

In my last life, each day felt lethargic, doing boring and endless tasks. Nothing would have changed about me in that world whether death came today or tomorrow. I would be stuck in that exact routine, wasting time on the internet and doing nothing!

But it was different here!

Every battle to the death made me feel like I was truly alive! It confirmed that I wasn't just some dumb schmuck from the middle of nowhere!

There weren't a thousand others like me out there! I was Kon, and had the special ability Perfect Me!

I wasn't just some nobody who was a product of my environment! My environment was a product of me!

I changed the world, not because of some hero complex, but because I wanted to!

Boom!... My Ord roared as if my spirit itself was challenging the world to a fistfight.

Ord was an energy of emotion, belief, and ambition. Because of that mechanic, people like the Demonic Exorcist could become so monstrously strong. They were enacting their will into the world.

That was also why dangerous restrictions could be so powerful. It was, in a way, humans’ showing their willpower and guts.

A fight between two exorcists was a fight between two unique minds, two souls, and two ambitions.

"Master, are you okay? Ord is leaking out of you," Carpy looked at me. Because of his fishy looks, I couldn’t tell if he was worried or just stating a fact.

"Don't worry about it," I reassured my worrywart demon.

Carpy stared at me with his dark eyes that looked like they were peering into my soul. "Your Ord is becoming denser and stronger. Did you manifest a new special ability?"

"No, I just came to an understanding with myself. I'm not so average after all," I smiled.

No, I had been average. But during the course of my stay here, things changed.

Carpy tilted his head as if confused. "That's obvious. Master fought against one of the strongest exorcists of his time and held his own at fifteen. There's no one else like you out there, and there has never been. You're an unparalleled genius, master."

Genius? Me? I knew that wasn't the case. But hearing someone say it like that gave me some confidence.

Maybe this road I was walking down wouldn't lead to an untimely death. All my efforts could lead to some kind of victory after all. It was a refreshing thought to think about.

At the end of the day, I was still myself. I just needed a break from what felt like a non-stop battle.

If I were to go by manga analogy, this would be the beach arc. Except there wasn't any beach South, and I wasn’t a dense harem protagonist.

Perhaps calling it a slice-of-life arc would be more appropriate. "Carpy, if I ever die, write our story down. Steal quotes from other books if you do that, and make me look smart."

Carpy stared at me with his black soulless eyes. "That would be the last of worries if that happened, Master. But I will keep in mind what you said."

Despite our contract, it was hard to tell what my fishy friend thought most of the time.

...

We continued going South, and it was mostly just green lands and passing towns.

I had bought a loose dark cloak that could fit me and Carpy, who had wrapped himself around my body.

This was one of the many towns here, and it wasn't in any way special. Whether or not I should continue South was always a question that plagued my mind.

I saw some interesting things on my journey, including a species of rabbit with a horn that I called a Unicorn Rabbit. Some other animals were normal in this world.

There were rumors that there was a fire-breather in the next town over, and in the city after that was a painter who could bring his art to life. Whether those were rumors or Ord abilities, I didn't know and was excited to find out!

Just as I was thinking of that, I caught sight of an old man with a hunched back. He looked to be in his mid-fifties.

Normally I would not have given this a second thought, as there were better and more important things to do. This wasn't a life-threatening event I needed to get involved with.

But this was my vacation, and I could do whatever I wanted with it. So I approached the older man. "Excuse me, sir. You seem in trouble. How can I help you?"

"Ah, young man," he panted, wiping the sweat off his brow with a calloused hand. "My carriage had one of his wheels pop off and break."

I looked at the donkey who was supposed to be dragging the carriage; even the animal seemed old. "Can't you ask someone to repair it?"

"I have no money on me."

Well, I had a lot of money on me. Actually, I only had pocket change as I didn't bother grabbing money when I ran off. But that was still more money than a farmer could earn in a year.

If people thought wealth inequality was a thing in my last world, they should come and see this one. Exorcists were so rich that it was gross.

Now the question was whether this guy was some kind of conman who worked with the wheel-repairer guy to drum up some business from charitable rich people. Or he could be a bandit for all I knew.

Well, this was going to be a pleasant mystery to find out.

I hoped he was an old master like in those Xianxia stories!