The day after I had sneaked back to the inn soaked from head to toe, I explained the situation to Mr. Murasame and went to sleep.
First thing the next morning, I was out on the beach, maintaining contact with Mr. Murasame.
"I’ll explain the plan."
"Yes."
"You and the spirit [Berserk]—in other words, the Yamai sisters—will spend today’s free time over there at the private beach."
The reason I was able to be at the beach so early during the school trip was simple: today, the second day, was entirely free time.
And the reason I was contacting Mr. Murasame now was to hear the strategy for winning over the Yamai girls.
Mr. Murasame’s plan was this:
While they spent their free time with me at the private beach, I would receive instructions through the intercom she had provided.
If they followed those instructions, I would pretend to be won over, making them believe that Mr. Murasame’s directions were helping. This would allow me to keep their behavior under some level of control.
Then, apparently, there was a chance of sealing both of them at once.
"There’s a chance of sealing both of them at once...?"
"If only one of them is sealed now, we don’t know what will happen to the other."
Hearing Mr. Murasame’s words brought back yesterday’s memory.
I remembered her saying that only one of them could keep their personality and survive.
Feeling conflicted, I decided that today, at least, I wouldn’t reject their advances.
"We still can’t communicate with [Fraxinus]. If we miss this chance, the sealing might fail."
"...I’ll do my best."
"Good. I’m counting on you. They’re coming out now, so I’m going to cut the line to avoid any confusion. Just act naturally."
"Huh? Wait, what am I supposed to—she hung up?!"
Left behind by Mr. Murasame, who had given me a vague instruction and unilaterally cut the communication, I turned my focus to Kaguya and Yuzuru, who were visible in the distance.
"So you were here, Hieta."
"Found you. I found Hieta."
The two of them were walking toward me in bikinis.
As they approached, I felt my face grow a little hot.
It seemed the training I’d endured at the swimsuit store last time had given me at least some resistance to this sort of thing.
If I hadn’t built up that tolerance, I would have simply blushed and stared straight at the ground.
"Ah, Kaguya and Yuzuru. You’re both beautiful, and in those swimsuits, you look like goddesses."
I started with a compliment.
When a girl shows up in a swimsuit or a new outfit, it’s only polite to compliment her—unless it’s a truly catastrophic fashion disaster.
"R-right?! You really do have good taste!"
"...Thanks. Thank you."
Their faces were slightly flushed, whether from the heat or something else.
"Well, it is summer, so it's naturally hot."
While I was thinking that, the two of them, following Mr. Murasame’s instructions, produced something.
"Now then, Hieta! I permit you to bestow upon my body the blessing of a miasma that blocks the light!"
"Request. Please apply sunscreen."
"...Where did you even get that?"
I may have an inventory, but where on earth had they pulled out that sunscreen from?
"That is a woman’s secret!"
"Secret. We cannot tell you."
Then they promptly laid out mats on the beach and flopped down on them, which made my head ache slightly.
They had already removed the top halves of their swimsuits.
"Now, Hieta. I leave our backs to you."
"Request. Please."
"Haa... Fine."
Honestly, I was so embarrassed I felt like I might die, but I had promised to listen to whatever they asked today. Without another word, I squeezed the sunscreen into my hand.
The slick, oily feel was a bit unpleasant, but I forced myself to endure it, rubbed my palms together, and began applying it to their backs.
"Hah...!"
"Hng, ngh...!"
The moment I spread the lotion, they let out soft moans. I panicked for a second and jerked my hands back.
"A-are you all right?"
"I-I’m fine... Keep going!"
"Affirmative. I-I’m fine."
Since they insisted they were okay, I pushed the discomfort aside and placed my hands back on their skin.
swish swish
"Haaah...!"
"Haaah...!"
Their voices echoed across the beach as I continued applying the oil.
Boom
Once I finished, a scene of utter ruin lay before my eyes.
"Haaah..."
"Uuugh..."
The two women were still lying face-down, letting out soft sighs. The sight triggered all sorts of strange thoughts in my head, so I quickly turned my gaze toward the sea and asked, "A-are you both all right...?"
"To think it would be this much without even realizing it...!"
"Thrilling. It is the hand of a god. Incredible skill."
"......"
I was at a loss for words. They were saying things that would be seriously misunderstood by anyone listening.
As I stood there silently staring at the ocean, I noticed a huge splash in the water.
"Hmm... what is that?"
Wondering what it was, I pulled a telescope from my inventory and checked, only to see Tohka swimming this way.
"What the?!"
My face went pale, and cold sweat ran down my forehead.
It felt like I’d witnessed something I shouldn’t have—something that should never have happened.
What I saw was...
"I-Itsuka-kun?!!! Rinne?!!!"
Tohka was swimming toward us in a human chain, holding Shido’s hand, while Rinne held Shido’s other hand.
Even worse, Rinne and Shido were both unconscious, their eyes rolled back.
"Ooh!!! Hieta!!!!"
She called out happily as soon as she spotted me and swam over. Honestly, it felt like I was watching a horror movie.
"Pwah! I came because I sensed Hieta’s presence here!"
That’s what Tohka exclaimed when she reached the beach. But then—
"Tohka! We need to save Itsuka-kun and Rinne first!"
"Huh? What are you talking abou—Shido?! Rinne?!"
"I’ll take Itsuka-kun!"
"Th-then I’ll..."
"I’ll take Rinne."
At some point, Origami had arrived as well, but I didn’t have time to worry about that.
And honestly, I felt a lot safer with Origami than with Tohka.
So, we started chest compressions.
"Cough! Cough!"
"Rinne woke up."
Rinne came to thanks to Origami.
"Khah! Hieta! I’m up!"
"Compress! Compress! Compress!"
"I-I’m awake alre—ghk!"
"Itsuka-kun! Snap out of it!"
"N-no!"
"Phew! You’re awake!"
It took a lot of effort, but I managed to wake Shido up.
"What do you mean, ‘a lot of effort’?!"
"So, why are you here?"
"Ignoring me?!"
"Well... Tohka said she sensed your presence, so she dragged us over here."
No wonder they’d arrived unconscious. If Tohka sensed my presence and simply dragged the two of them through the water while swimming, it made perfect sense that they’d arrive passed out.
"What were the three of you doing here?"
"We got lost."
As I spoke, I used my eyes to signal the situation to Shido.
This is for the strategy.
Ah, I see. Got it.
After receiving my look, Shido whispered something to Rinne. Rinne seemed to understand the situation as well, as she gave me a thumbs-up to cheer me on.
"I see! So Hieta, Kaguya, and Yuzuru got lost in a place like this!"
"Mm! Running to your master’s side like that—yes, that’s my retainer Tohka!"
"Retainer?"
"How admirable. I never expected Master Origami to come to a place like this."
"Master?"
From what I could gather, Kaguya had apparently seen Tohka’s potential and taken her as a retainer, while Yuzuru had been moved by Origami’s seductive skills and become her disciple.
"By the way, what were the three of you doing?"
"Uh, well..."
Just as I was failing to answer Tohka’s question—
"We were going to play beach volleyball."
Mr. Murasame appeared.
"That makes the numbers uneven. What do we do?"
"I’ll sit out."
Rinne stepped aside, and the teams were decided: me and the Yamai girls versus Shido, Tohka, and Origami.
"Is this really okay?"
I asked Mr. Murasame carefully, since the situation had suddenly shifted.
"It can’t be helped. Now that those four have shown up, we have no choice but to change the plan."
"But will the other side even agree to participate?"
"Don’t worry about that. I told them if the gods win, they’ll be told one secret about the gods, and if your side wins, they’ll be told one secret about your side."
"What?!"
"Now, begin."
Before I could object, the beach volleyball match had already started.
Tohka served.
Crash!
"Wah!"
She hit the ball so hard it sounded like an explosion, and it buried itself deep in the sand.
"God team. Point."
"...This isn’t going to be easy."
If that ball had hit me, I felt like one of my arms would have been blown off.
Still, since losing meant revealing one of my secrets, I couldn’t afford to fail. I was just about to put in some effort when the ball came flying straight at my head.
"You cra—"
"Nice one, Hieta!"
The ball smashed into my head and bounced up, and Kaguya slammed it down for the point.
"Ha, haha... So that’s how it is, huh...?"
I hadn’t planned on getting serious, but it looked like I’d have to after all.
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