World's Strongest Became the Game's Weakest Villain

I was patted awake.

"Student Eugene, what are you doing?"

With the soft hands on my cheeks, I slowly pushed open my eyes and looked ahead. Standing there with her blue hair fluttering was the only person who would call me student.

"Miss Rio, very fine morning."

"Indeed," Miss Rio nodded. "It was a fine night too. Is that why you slept outside?"

I rubbed my eyelids and nodded. My head still slightly hurt, but it was much better than yesterday night. As my vision cleared up, I noticed three small blobs of green dancing around in the air behind Miss Rio who stood right in front of me.

The sun seemed to have barely risen as just some of the light poured in from the merciless canopy.

"I get it. You were training here and you fell asleep. How ever sincere of you, Eugene."

"That’s—"

"No need to hide it. I can tell because I am your teacher."

"Sure," I said and pushed myself up. Titania was still sleeping on the top of my head, so I made sure to not move too much.

Miss Rio watched me stand and gestured at me to follow along.

"Let’s go eat some pasta."

"Oh, they have pasta?"

"Imported."

We passed by the lines of trees once more. Though I was in the back lanes, the main streets too were filled with roots and jagged paths with establishments being erected around the trees yet more. Some held tables and chairs in the shade of the trees while others let one sit near the streams passing through.

In one such establishment, all the members of our, pretty much a caravan at this point, sat around while watching the streams. Miss Rio and I were the last to arrive as the staff were already placing some pasta and tea on the table.

Pasta and tea was a very strange combination.

I just took some tea for the morning and leaned against the chair while watching the streams race down the incline.

On the sides, Lily, Maria, and Meryl were eating each other’s three different styles of pasta while Noa, Albert and… Keith, were getting lectured by Irina.

I was lucky to not have been noticed as she went on and on about how one shouldn’t just fall over in times of fear, and Keith was being scolded for… what was he being scolded for?

I wondered what had happened, but Keith was truly no better than any of the kids here.

Miss Rio and Marcin too indulged in just tea while watching the stream next to me.

"Is that a shiner?"

"Looks like one."

"It is shining, alright. Pretty blue too."

"I believe you’re mistaken, it’s not blue, Eugene Hall."

"Shiners are not blue, student Eugene."

I meant the spirit.

I had started seeing many more of them since the morning. The rare one or two had now become a rather frequent three or four. If I had to live while seeing them all the time like yesterday… I could understand why Titania called it annoying.

Not long after, the thing I was fearing came around as the sounds of a distant carriage rolling in filled my ears, and then soon.

"Ah-ha, all of you are already here!" Striding in from the back was Vienna, and along with her came Billy and Sophia. Behind the three was Sir Alec who immediately hid behind Sir Buhini when he saw Maria.

"Sir Buhini," I called out. "Long time no see!"

"It has been forever, lord Eugene. I must say, it was quite nice to see Don Chiik once more."

"We never did get a chance to talk. I am surprised you saw that."

Right then, two hands landed on the side of my head. "Now there, dear brother, are you just going to ignore your sister?"

"Ah, you’re hurting him, big sis."

Billy pulled her back while Vienna tried to grind my head, only hurting her own fists in the process. Greetings passed by, Billy and Buhini joined the tea gang while Alec and Vienna joined the being scolded gang, and Sophia, in a grand twist, joined the scolding gang that was only Irina a while back.

Was she similar to her? I hoped not, I wouldn’t like to not talk to Sophia again. Irina was insufferable, anyone who sympathized with her was by extension insufferable too.

Breakfast fast passed and we set off once more.

This time after thankfully dividing the crowd by a large amount into the other two carriages, with me were my usual three, Noa and Albert. Marcin and Meryl decided to along with Sophia and the two teachers finally left our tails and went over to Vienna and Billy.

We launched toward the Schwarz kingdom in a single go…

Or were going to.

Until…

Right outside the city in the confederacy and on the path that led toward the Schwarz kingdom, we saw a carriage with the royal insignia of Schwarz and a weird object behind them.

"Aren’t those guys from our class?" Noa muttered, and they noticed us too.

"AH!"

"Oh my! Lord Eugene, fancy seeing you here."

"U-uh, yo, dusk…"

"…"

"UMNG!! EUGENE HALL GET ME OUT OF THIS BOX!"

Until we met yet another group. A scaredy eyepatch, Princess Hoya, my dear friend Dawn, her irrelevant regressor friend, and a talking box.

"Oh, are all of you heading toward Apollon too?"

And of course, Vienna had to ruin it for me.

"All of Eugene’s friends are welcome. Even if he won’t let you in Apollon, we can have you in Dienin."

At least she was self-aware.

And with that, I was now traveling with an entire circus troupe.

Fuck.

***

Bartholomew barged into the study of Marquis Hall without knocking. The head butler and steward heaved as he spoke to his lord.

"Sir! Young master Vienna, Billy, and Eugene are back!"

The Marquis flinched slightly, his eyes with deep bags from all the work.

"What? What’s urgent about that?"

"Lord Eugene has brought a lot of friends!"

"Friends?!"

Now that was more shocking. Billy, he could understand, to some extent even Vienna, but Eugene? Friends? Was his son sick?

"Amongst them, is the princess of Schwarz and the Empire… the prince of Pinot kingdom… and also two teachers from the academy. He also brought along a strange talking box!"

The Marquis removed his spectacles and pressed the end of their temples against the inner edge of both his eyes.

"Seat them in a good place. I’ll be right there," he said. He couldn’t present himself to them in his current outfit. "What a troublesome kid—"

"I already did that. They are not the issue, my lord."

The Marquis looked up, he might be in need of a change of butlers.

"What then?"

"J-just now, another carriage has come in… from the Acacia duchy."

The Marquis stood up.

"It seems the Lady of Acacia is here too."

"Let’s go, right now!!"