Chapter 107

“Well, okay then.”

Since the weird story about a nun wearing a bikini came up first, let’s move on to something that’s a little less important than that.

First, I should explain how it happened that the number of people for our trip to the beach with Ria suddenly grew—

“So, does that mean we should bring other Knight Orders along?”

That’s right. That was the reason.

I’m a Saint Candidate.

Even on Earth, my reputation isn’t quite up to par compared to other races. Within the Church, it seems almost certain that I will ascend to the position of the next Saint, but ironically, most of those who have seen me in action in this world are professionals.

Hunters? Of course, they think highly of me. There are quite a few who owe me their lives. Some soldiers have seen me fight in the lab.

But I almost never got the chance to shine before ordinary people.

I haven’t fought off giant monsters invading this world, nor have I swooped down to rescue people like other heroes. It’s pretty strange when I think about it; I haven’t publicly done as much as I have elsewhere on Earth.

That’s fortunate, but… the problem is that the Church people all know about my exploits.

Wherever I go, the Church’s Knight Order seems to follow me around like it’s a given.

Before, it was enough if Ria was around as my personal escort, and nobody paid much attention, but it seems her status has risen a bit now.

…Yeah, I can understand. Seeing me in action in the Dwarf Kingdom must have prompted a report to the Church.

“We can’t wear swimsuits in front of the Knight Order.”

“…….”

Hearing Ria say that, I briefly thought about just leading the Knight Order here.

It was just a fleeting thought. Ria was looking forward to going to the beach, and I didn’t want to do anything that would mess that up.

As a result, we had excellent skills for our escort, but at the same time, we needed to find an escorting subject that would allow us to wear swimsuits without any complaints.

That would be Lee Si-yoon and his friends.

Well, I don’t quite get how it ended up being Si-yoon’s group, considering Glaria and the maid clearly live in our church, but anyway, that’s how it is.

“…If the Sister Warden finds out I’m in this kind of outfit in front of other guys, she’ll probably faint.”

“She might come back quickly. If she finds out you were wearing a veil, she might faint in her sleep again.”

“……”

I wanted to be mad at Ria, but unfortunately, I was currently in a position where I couldn’t look her in the eye. The swimsuit I picked for her looked great, but it was also a troublesome outfit for someone like me who isn’t used to this kind of thing.

“Come on, don’t just stand there, let’s go.”

Ria said that as she grabbed my hand.

If it were any other time, I would have taken that for granted. Ria always liked dragging me around, and it was natural for her to hold my hand or wrist during those times.

But the sight of Ria leading the way like that—well, let’s just say she was exuding an objectively appealing charm, and I couldn’t bear to lift my gaze.

*

The swimming lessons I learned from Ria turned out to be pretty pointless.

At best, I managed to grasp the basics, but that doesn’t mean we practiced our swimming lessons every day or set aside time a few times a week to do them.

Moreover, the waves were more disruptive than I expected. I couldn’t even get far into the sea, and the spots that were less affected by the waves were surprisingly deep.

In the end, what I chose was to sit on a tube and just enjoy the waves.

Splash.

“……”

While I was blankly gazing up at the sky, the sound made me lower my head again.

The tube tilted slightly to one side. It wasn’t completely tipped over, but still.

Splash.

After a wave splashed water in my face, I wiped it away with my hand.

And then I looked at Ria.

“…What are you doing right now?”

Ria was hanging off one side of the tube, grinning at me.

Since she was half-sitting in the huge tube with her lower body in the water, water kept flowing in and out of the middle, and she was purposely splashing it all over me.

“Oh, I was just getting a little bored playing in the waves.”

“……”

Ria had her elbows resting on the tube.

If she had simply been leaning over like she was at a desk, I wouldn’t have found myself in such an awkward situation about where to look. Most of her body would have been submerged in water.

But since one side of the tube was submerged, it meant she was pushing down enough from the top. Ria was lifting her body with her elbows.

She was inevitably giving me a clear view of her chest above the water. Of all places, it had to be where the swimsuit didn’t cover.

“Are you just going to keep lounging like that? Everyone over there is having a blast.”

I turned my gaze toward Si-yoon and his friends.

Over there was pure youth. Lee Si-yoon, Han Yu-ri, and Glaria.

By the way, Glaria originally had a pretty negative view of swimsuits. Being a princess, she seemed to struggle with showing her skin in front of others.

Once Han Yu-ri insisted on picking a bikini, Glaria ended up choosing a more reasonable one-piece swimsuit.

As a result, it seemed like Si-yoon was blushing a bit more in front of his childhood friend, Han Yu-ri.

But if you took a step back from that, he was just a guy we could be jealous of.

Well, whatever.

Once I started playing, I was sure Ria would follow along, and then two heroines would be right next to Si-yoon.

In that case, it would be more beneficial for both of us to keep one of them here instead.

…

It’s absolutely not out of embarrassment.

It’s just I didn’t want Ria hanging around Si-yoon… well, that’s true, but it’s definitely not jealousy. It can’t be. Probably.

But how Ria interpreted my complicated expression, she tightened her grip on my arm with a sly smile.

“Don’t.”

I warned her.

“Huh? What would you do if I did?”

….

Ah, right.

What would I do?

I’m weaker, and unfortunately, not very experienced with girls.

Well, I’ve tried hugging and things like that. I even held Ria in my arms once and patted her head.

But the atmosphere right now is completely different from then. At least now, both of us had completely calm faces.

The one teasing wasn’t even me; it was Ria.

“I said don’t.”

I warned again, trying to act tough, but it looked like Ria had made up her mind.

In the end, Ria completely shoved the side of the tube she was holding underwater.

I couldn’t even scream, I just sank with a glug. Ria quickly grabbed me and pulled me back up—

“Phew!?”

I sprang back up to the surface and took a big breath.

“What are you doing!?”

As I shouted after tasting the sour, salty seawater in my mouth—

Splash!

A wave hit my side, causing me to sway to the side unintentionally.

Without meaning to, I reached out my hands and touched something smooth and soft. It didn’t take long to realize that it was Ria’s waist.

Panicked, I pulled my hands back, but as the wave receded, it took a handful of sand from under my feet, leaving me off-balance like I was on a treadmill.

“Oops.”

Seeing me like that, Ria said it as if she was feeling sorry for me and grabbed hold of me.

Of all places, firmly around the waist.

As I was about to fall, she shoved her hand behind my waist and held me tightly while grabbing my flailing right hand with her other hand.

Thanks to that, I was held far more securely than if she had just held my hand or arm, ensuring I wouldn’t fall.

“……”

Even though I was being held tight by Ria, it was kind of awkward. When I glared at Ria, she smirked and replied,

“What’s wrong? I caught you from falling over in the waves, and you’re glaring at me? That hurts my feelings.”

She herself was turning red, looking ridiculously embarrassed.

No, more than that, do most girls allow this? I can’t imagine that they would. Maybe if they were just hugging each other while fully clothed.

But, well, we’ve already been through a dance, and we’re both wearing rings on the same hand, so…

Could it be that she wants me to feel offended even more?

“You were the one who pushed me down!”

As I shouted, Ria burst into laughter.

More than that, could you please let go of me?

If this continues, people might misunderstand.

Including me.

Before long, Ria let go of me with a playful smile.

Stepping back a bit, I glared at Ria once more.

My heart was pounding. Damn it.

Seeing her smile, it was clear she was enjoying my flustered state.

How on earth do I get back at her for this? Embarrassment doesn’t just disappear in a moment.