Chapter 86

I’m not that crazy to go so far as to wear a micro bikini.

But there’s no denying that Ria’s red bikini definitely had a small coverage area. To the extent that it was smaller than the swimsuit Aida confidently wore earlier, that she ended up suggesting a draw.

At least it covered the necessary parts, but honestly, at this point, wouldn’t it be less embarrassing to just swim in underwear?

And there I was, standing alongside Ria in that cramped changing room, feeling my face might just explode from embarrassment. Maybe my face was turning redder than Ria’s.

First things first, that bikini was a very classic bikini. That’s precisely why it suited Ria so well.

Let me repeat, it was definitely not a micro bikini. At least the bottoms looked like proper women’s underwear. But come on, isn’t the upper part the one part of these swimsuits that can look the most embarrassing?

The red triangular fabric effectively covered just the part of Ria’s chest that needed to be concealed.

Thanks to that, you could see a little peek of the sides and bottom. If it had covered any more, it would have been an ‘underboob’ swimsuit, but as a classic bikini, it showed a lovely cleavage, and naturally, the sideboob was visible too.

…It actually suited her.

To make things worse, Ria had her hand confidently placed near her waist, standing tall with her chin up, making her proud chest look all the more appealing.

I was so frustrated.

I’m not even sure what I was frustrated about, but seeing someone could potentially see this made me incredibly mad.

So, I just had to point it out.

“Ria.”

“Why? You’re not seriously suggesting we end this as a draw now, are you?”

“Absolutely not.”

I growled, reaching out to grab the necklace hanging around Ria’s neck.

And then I had a realization.

The outer part of my finger brushed lightly against Ria’s chest. It was just the slightest touch, but I immediately knew what it was. It certainly wasn’t a sensation I’d call just touching her shoulder. It was a distinct feeling of soft, squishy flesh.

Suppressing the urge to let my face turn bright red, I gently tugged at the necklace and Ria tilted her head down toward me.

Our eyes were closer now.

“Why do you wear this around your neck?”

“Huh?”

“You could lose it if you’re swimming with it on.”

I tried my best to look straight at Ria, feeling like if I loosened my focus even a bit, my gaze would drop.

“It’s definitely not a cheap ring. If I want to make another one, I’d have to go all the way to the Gnome region.”

Honestly, that part also bothered me a bit.

No, whether or not to wear the friendship ring is entirely up to Ria. Given that Ria wields a sword regularly, she might just find it uncomfortable to wear.

The ring I was holding sparkled in my hand. It was the same ring hanging around Ria’s neck. Mine glowed faintly, carrying the Saint Power I had infused into it.

“……”

For some reason, Ria couldn’t find the words to respond.

I slowly moved my hand to slide the necklace off her neck. After pulling off the ring, I held Ria’s hand.

I slid the ring onto her fourth finger and looked up. Ria’s face had turned as red as ever. The calm she had earlier had long vanished.

When I smirked a little, Ria seemed to realize what had happened.

“You, you wear this too.”

With that, Ria shoved her swimsuit in my direction.

It looked a little more covering than the one I had chosen. But—

“……Uh.”

I couldn’t help but make that sound as I looked at the swimsuit.

I hadn’t noticed when I handed Ria her swimsuit earlier, but I had so many thoughts going on in my head that I hadn’t really seen what kind of swimsuit she picked.

But now seeing it—

“……What’s with this color?”

As I asked with a frown, Ria gave a little chuckle. Though her face was still incredibly flushed.

“Why? You told me to pick one that matched my hair, so I chose this.”

“…….”

I seriously pondered for a moment.

Had Ria ever watched adult films?

Oh, of course, even if she had watched adult content, it could very well be something that doesn’t align with her tastes. I mean, isn’t there a distinction between content made for men and that made for women? Naturally, the leading lady is important in male-oriented content, while the leading man is important in female-oriented content.

Daily, countless videos come pouring out, and their content can differ tremendously.

Maybe my mind was just so rotten.

But really, isn’t it a bit too much for someone to wear a golden bikini to the beach? It’s not like we’re living in some apocalyptic era.

No matter how I think about it, this just seems like cosplay attire, specifically for steamy moments between lovers. I really don’t understand why a swimsuit of that caliber exists at all.

“Usually, if you’re choosing for someone blonde, wouldn’t you pick yellow rather than gold? Honestly, this is just too… well, you know?”

“Why? Are you scared? Can’t wear it because you’re afraid?”

“…….”

I glared at Ria.

“……Fine. Who said I couldn’t wear it?”

Thinking about it, it’s just us going out to have fun—me and Ria.

That’s right. If I’m embarrassed, then obviously Ria will be too.

I snatched the swimsuit from Ria.

After changing in another dressing room and calling out to Ria, she seemed momentarily stunned by my swimsuit appearance.

Without looking too embarrassed or flushing up, she just stared blankly at me before nodding and saying,

“……Let’s just pick something else.”

I guess it took seeing it for her brain to reset.

*

It took us a little over an hour to finally choose our swimsuits. By the time we exited the store, I was a bit worn out.

But it seemed Ria had no intention of wasting this rare time out, pulling me toward some destination when all I wanted was to go back and flop onto the bed.

This was the house of Ria’s uncle, the one she had previously brought me to. Although ‘uncle’ really only meant he was close to my father.

Once again, there was nobody inside.

“Who even has a swimming pool in their home?”

“A lot of places overseas have swimming pools, right?”

Well, that’s true.

I mean, I’d also think there’d be places like that in Korea. Many upscale apartments have swimming pools for residents, and it wouldn’t be weird for a really big house to have one. Perhaps in some major mansion in our country, there might be an infinity pool or something.

However, the pool we were currently at felt entirely different.

It didn’t feel like a recreational space but rather like a community pool built for locals by the city hall.

“Why is it you weren’t surprised to see a shooting range in a house, but you’re surprised at a pool?”

“……No, I was surprised at the shooting range too.”

Seeing me say that, Ria let out a short laugh.

Then we plopped down our bags onto the floor.

As I watched her without thinking too much, Ria looked up at me and said,

“What are you doing?”

“Huh?”

“No, since we’re at the pool, you should change into your swimsuit.”

“…….”

Ah, right, of course.

Ria came here to teach me how to swim. And I didn’t even have a swimsuit… Ria had insisted that the swimsuit for swimming and the one to wear for fun aren’t the same, but that was really more about how others saw it.

I stepped closer to Ria, pulling out my swimsuit from the bag. Together, we headed to the changing room.

…Of course, Ria and I changed clothes keeping a good distance apart.

I have no clue why there were separate changing rooms for men and women inside a private residence, nor why the lockers were big enough for dozens of people to change in at once, but thankfully that meant I could change without any accidental glances.

*

The swimsuit I wore wasn’t something horrendously embarrassing.

It was a yellow bikini.

It seemed Ria indeed didn’t want to put me in a golden bikini since she ended up picking a pretty standard bikini.

After all, the bikini she had on was the one I chose for her.

That left me feeling incredibly awkward right now.

Both Ria and I were now in the pool. The water reached up to our chests.

As is typical for someone new to swimming, I started by holding onto the edge and trying to keep myself afloat.

Ria stood beside me, guiding my posture by placing her hands on my belly and waist.

“……”

Along with that touch, with the water level rising, the way Ria’s bosom danced between the splashes of water became so vividly clear.

Moreover, the sight of her wet skin outside the water felt oddly provocative.

Honestly, if she wasn’t the heroine, who knows where I’d be focusing my gaze.

Ria, who was helping me train, appeared unexpectedly serious, causing me to zone out yet again.

I felt like I was keeping my focus solely on Ria. It didn’t bother me per se, but it was still maddening.

I preferred to think I should’ve ended that pondering in my past life.

Standing in front of the transparent glass wall, I could see people on the other side, clearly visible beyond the same glass barrier.

Sometimes our eyes would meet, but I could never tell if that person was interested in me at all.

That frustration made me ultimately shut my mouth tight and dive back into my swimming practice.

I could only hope Ria would see me as solely immersed in my training.