“Swiiish!”
A foreboding wave sound echoes in the distance.
I turn my head.
There, waves even taller than before come crashing toward Eri.
“Hey, Eri. Is this alright?”
“It’s fine. It’s fine! Master will be protected by Eri-ling!”
Just then, as I pointed at the waves and Eri smiled confidently,
*SPLASH!*
The wave hits Eri directly.
“Glurp! Gurgle!”
I was on a dolphin tube that was already a bit wobbly, and in an instant, I fell off into the sea.
After flailing around, I quickly came to my senses and resurfaced.
“Phew! Ha!”
Damn it.
I’ll never ride a dolphin tube again.
While pondering this, I grimaced at the salty sea water in my mouth and spat it out.
“Master!”
She called me with a pale expression, holding her arms across her chest.
“What? What now?”
And then came the words straight out of Eri’s mouth that made my jaw drop.
“Eri-ling, my swimsuit is gone! What should I do?”
What?
This is getting ridiculous.
If it’s something physical… (with illustrations)
What? The swimsuit disappeared?
How does that even happen?
This isn’t some absurd light novel.
Ah, but it is a light novel.
It’s this damn crazy world that keeps sticking to certain tropes.
“Master, Eri-ling, what do I do? I wouldn’t mind showing you, but I really don’t want to show anyone else…”
Eri said, wrapping her arms around her chest.
Her bottoms are fine, but it seems the top vanished.
“At least the necklace is intact. Hehe.”
She giggled with a reddened face.
That damn collar shines in the summer sunlight.
Of course, that part is fine.
If only that collar disappeared instead of the swimsuit.
I sighed.
I take off the beach hoodie I was wearing and drape it over Eri.
“Master?”
Eri, who caught the hoodie, had trembling eyes.
Her body quivered.
At this rate, I might really have to carry her to the beach changing room like some second-rate rom-com.
And the other girls watching might just pretend to lose their swimsuits and cling to me.
I can’t allow that cliché to happen.
I have to break the trope myself.
“I’ll go find it, so for now, just wear this.”
“Just wear something already.”
To do that, I need to find my swimsuit.
The missing swimsuit, the root of all evil.
Unlike the translucent beach hooded cardigan that Rin is wearing, the beach hooded zip-up I’m wearing is an opaque white.
It’s soaked in seawater, but at least it can still do its job as clothing.
“Master… so kind…”
Eri mutters as she takes the clothes from me.
“I can smell my master. Hehe. Eri likes it.”
She buries her nose in the hood’s sleeve.
Eri’s earlobes are as red as ripe tomatoes.
What? What’s wrong?
It’s absurd.
I need to find that damn swimsuit quickly, even if it means I won’t have to see that sight anymore.
Splash.
I dive into the waters of Okinawa.
Who knew that the forced swimming lessons from elementary school would actually come in handy?
I swim around, scanning the ocean floor.
“Hey, Black Prince. You should help out too.”
[Oh, Partner. A true gentleman helps when a lady is in trouble, that’s it. I’ll lend my hand to help as a little compliment.]
The Black Prince tacks on a comment.
Help? What help?
If I leave Eri without a swimsuit, it might end up causing me more trouble. The rumors about the “Black Beast” are already exaggerated, and I don’t want them to evolve into bizarre tales about becoming the “Black Beast King.”
I need to nip that in the bud.
I extend my hand and use a gift.
Darkness rises from my right hand, covering the nearby seabed.
“Catch it, catch it. Please catch it.”
As I stretch the darkness thinly like a fishing line, a shape resembling a swimsuit gets caught in my senses from afar.
[Found it, Partner. It’s Eri’s swimsuit.]
Just as the Black Prince expressed his certainty, I swiftly swim towards where the response came from.
In the distance.
Eri’s swimsuit top, adorned with pink frills, is caught on a rock under the sea.
Finally found it.
I pull the swimsuit from between the rocks.
I shoot back to the surface.
“Phew!”
I spit out the salty water.
I must have been underwater for too long; I’m drenched in saltwater.
After swimming, I definitely need a shower.
See, this is why I don’t like the ocean.
I hand over the hard-won swimsuit to Eri, who’s riding a dolphin-shaped float.
“Hurry and put it on.”
“Ma-Master…”
Tears well up in Eri’s eyes.
She wipes them away.
“Thank you, Master… As a reward, Eri will rub against you!”
As she takes the swimsuit, her face turns crimson as she puffs out her chest.
Wait, rub against me? With that meager size?
Sigh.
“Just put on the swimsuit, enough with the nonsense.”
“Got it, Master!”
Rustle, rustle.
I can hear her taking off the zip-up and putting on the swimsuit behind me.
[Well done, Partner. Retrieving a girl’s swimsuit makes you quite the gentleman.]
When will this incessant talk about being a gentleman end?
“I’m ready. Here you go! Master’s clothes.”
Dressed in the swimsuit again, she clings to me and puts the beach hooded zip-up back on me.
“I’ll help you wear it.”
The moment I put the zip-up back on with her assistance…
“There you are. Junior, Nishizawa. To think you two were spending this kind of time together while we were playing in the water, Nishizawa, you’re quite bold.”
“Ah, so you were here. Junior, Nishizawa. The two of you spending time together while we were playing in the water? Nishizawa, you’re quite bold.”
A familiar voice came from beside me.
Turning my head, I saw Hoshino Kasumi.
“How dare you, the loyal maid, leave me out and conspire with him… I cannot forgive this!”
Enter stage left, Olivia, dramatically placing a hand over her chest.
“Flat chest. No matter how much you try to tempt him with that meager chest, he won’t fall for it. Give it up!”
And then there was Rin, still fixated on chest sizes.
Seeing her ample bosom, I couldn’t help but think, “Yeah, I see the discrepancy here.”
“The nerve of you, Eri-chan! Playing around with the master all alone, that’s bad. Take this!”
Finally, Makoto dove in, splashing Eri with seawater.
“Catch! It’s the Shinozaki School of Water Attack!”
“A bad boy like you playing in the sea with another girl has to be punished. Take this! Ugh!”
Splash! Whoosh!
Rin and Makoto’s water assault went for Eri, while Kasumi’s waves were crashing on me.
Before I knew it, I was drenched again.
“Eri-ling, I can’t stand this! I’m fighting back! Take this!”
Splash! Splash!
Whoosh!
The beach had turned into a fierce battlefield of flying seawater.
I sighed and turned my head away.
In the distance, I saw Ishihara and Yuji leisurely enjoying the waves.
Aren’t they the lucky ones?
“Ahhh!”
“Take that!”
“Yap! I’ll protect you, Master! Everyone else, disappear!”
Splash! Splash!
The girls were relentless with their splashing.
Taking advantage of the distraction, I made my escape from the madness.
At this point, I’d had enough beach fun.
I thought, I should just lay on a sunbed until shower time.
With that in mind, I finally slipped away from the water.
Squelch.
The feeling of sand clinging to my bare feet was not nice at all.
I had to lay down on the sunbed soon.
Just then, I heard voices next to me.
“How is it, Aris? My grand sandcastle!”
“Hmph. It’s not as impressive as yours, but my sandcastle is no slouch either!”
I briefly turned my head to see the principal and Aris competing in building ridiculously high-quality sandcastles.
Aris had crafted a Japanese-style castle, while Seira constructed a Western-style fort.
Their intricate quality had all the onlookers captivated.
Taking the chance, I quietly made my way to a sunbed.
Beneath the shade of the parasol, the hot sun still seeped through.
Doing nothing was truly the best.
Just as I was drifting into a dreamy haze, I heard someone say, “Kim Deok-Sung.”
Someone’s voice rang in my ear.
What’s going on?
My consciousness snapped back, and I half rose from my spot.
“Aha, did I interrupt your nap? If so, I’m sorry.”
There she was.
With a guilty expression and brushing her hair aside, Rin stood next to me.
Her face was flushed with a pink hue.
The beach robe clinging to her wet body revealed a striking dark blue bikini.
Her insane, almost inhumanly gorgeous figure was coming closer, and against my will, my heart raced, and blood rushed to my face.
Regardless of that, my heart races and my blood boils.
Sleep has completely vanished.
“No, not really…”
It’s true I interrupted, but saying that outright to Rin, who looks like a drenched rat, feels a bit rough.
Ever since that day we met alone at the Shinozaki Mansion, I feel like I can’t treat Rin as harshly as I used to.
‘So just wait. I’ll work hard to become an ideal wife.’
Rin’s words from that day echo in my ears.
I feel awkward for no reason.
Rin lets out a sigh of relief and places her hand over her heart.
In a solemn voice, she says:
“I’m glad to hear that, Kim Deok-Sung. Can I ask you for a favor?”
A favor?
What’s this sudden request?
“What is it?”
“Um, would it be okay if we took turns applying sun oil? I, I may look like this, but I’m confident in oil massages!”
Rin babbles with a reddened face.
Upon closer inspection, she’s holding a bottle of sun oil in her left hand.
It looks like the oil she bought while shopping.
Applying sun oil, huh?
Yeah, I was wondering why she wasn’t making a move.
Damn it, this is like a light novel world or something.
[Partner. This is an opportunity. If you’re a man, of course, you’d accept her offer, right? I trust you, partner.]
Trust, my foot.
I ignore the Black Prince’s words and look at Rin.
“…I guess it wouldn’t be okay, would it?”
Rin hides the oil bottle behind her back and looks down.
I don’t understand why this self-proclaimed top girl from a prestigious Japanese family has such low self-esteem.
I shake my head.
If she cries like she did during the Kyoto Exchange Tournament and the French Royal Ball, I’ll definitely get caught up in some Black Beast commotion again.
“What do you mean it wouldn’t be okay? Do as you wish.”
Sighing inwardly, I say to Rin.
“Are you serious?”
She asks back with slight surprise.
Thankfully, she’s not crying.
“I’m serious.”
“Great! Then I’ll apply it for you first, and next, you apply oil for me.”
Rin gives a small smile.
Yeah, a smile is definitely better than crying.
Tap, tap.
She starts patting the blanket she spread out.
“Then I’ll apply it, so lie down here.”
“Okay.”
Without any complaints, I lie on the blanket.
The scorching summer sun pours down on me.
I can still endure this for now.
“…I will now start applying the oil.”
Rin’s solemn voice rings out.
I feel weight on my back.
She must have climbed on my back.
Soon, I feel the slick oil and her soft touch.
Rin’s hands are meticulous.
It feels like Rin massages far better than Olivia did in Kyoto.
A pleasing lethargy overtakes me, and I unknowingly close my eyes.
*
Under the blazing sun, the blanket is spread out.
Kim Deok-Sung, on his stomach, with Rin perched on his back.
Her face was as red as if it had been squeezed to release red juice.
Thud, thud.
Rin’s heart races vigorously.
All she sees is Kim Deok-Sung’s bare back.
“Eep…”
The back muscles of the man she pines for.
It’s too stimulating.
Rin bites her lip.
