"What's wrong?"
Sato noticed that Hirasawa Ui's behavior seemed a little strange. Her eyes looking at him appeared to tremble faintly.
"N-Nothing!"
Hirasawa Ui hurriedly lowered her head, though a blush had already spread to the tips of her ears.
...
One hour later.
In the mountains not too far from Chiba City, a hot spring street had formed due to the abundance of nearby hot spring resources.
After getting off the bus, everyone excitedly looked around at the surroundings.
To the left of the road was a broad, crystal-clear stream. Water flowed gently along the riverbed, shallow enough for many smooth stones, polished by the current, to remain exposed above the surface.
A little farther ahead stood an old-looking bridge. Crossing it would take one to the opposite side of the stream, where another street had been built alongside the flowing water.
Likewise, along the foot of the mountain on the right side of the road was another street lined with signs bearing the word "hot spring," including restaurants, convenience stores, souvenir shops, and more.
All of it was embraced by rolling green mountains.
The girls gathered together with pamphlets in hand, chattering noisily while occasionally looking up to search for directions.
After surveying the hot spring street, Sato suddenly felt something and looked toward the distant mountain on the left.
The peak towered high, with a mountain path stretching upward. Near the mountainside sat a cluster of buildings. From afar, the climbing trail looked overgrown with weeds, and through the thick tree branches, one could vaguely make out a dark red torii gate.
An abandoned shrine?
Sato frowned thoughtfully.
But why had his attention suddenly been drawn there?
Very quickly, his thoughts were interrupted by the noisy girls.
"Ritsu, can you actually read that thing or not?"
"I-I totally can, okay?! Don't panic, I'm about to understand this map!"
"Ahh, all these twisty little lines... looking at them makes me so... dizzy..."
"Is Hirasawa-san okay?"
"Onee-chan!"
Suddenly cries of alarm came from the Light Music Club girls' side, followed by the sight of Yui wobbling dizzily while being supported by Hirasawa Ui.
Sato: "..."
His expression turned strange.
So your only purpose really is being cute, huh?
Among the four members of the Service Club group, the cool and composed Yukinoshita Yukino looked at the pamphlet in her hand, then unexpectedly pointed somewhere.
"Doesn't it say right here that we can call them once we arrive?"
"Eh?!"
The Light Music Club girls looked up at her blankly.
Sato walked over helplessly and took the pamphlet from them. After glancing at the terribly drawn route map, he noticed the note in the bottom-right corner.
"How did you all miss such obvious words?"
He rolled his eyes at the girls and pointed at the line on the pamphlet.
The girls stared at the pamphlet wide-eyed, then looked at one another.
"This..."
"Hiss, this child possesses terrifying insight. We cannot allow him to live..."
Thunk!
Sato expressionlessly chopped Ritsu on the head with a hand strike, then frowned at her whining self.
"Where did you even learn phrases like that?"
Holding her head, Ritsu puffed out her cheeks.
"Online."
Online?
That kind of thing could actually drift across the ocean all the way here too?
Soon, Sato stopped thinking about such pointless matters. He took out his phone and called the number written on the pamphlet. The other side quickly answered.
"Moshi moshi! This is Kaizan Hot Springs!"
"Hello, I'm..."
After a brief conversation, Sato hung up.
"Well? Well?"
Everyone asked curiously.
Sato looked around and said, "The owner said they have a reception area on the hot spring street. Someone should be coming out soon... oh, there they are."
Not far away, someone walked out of a shop. After glancing around, they quickly ran toward the group.
...
The group struggled up the mountain path.
The hot spring inn was not actually located on the hot spring street. That area only served as a reception point for tourists. The various inns and springs were scattered across different locations on the mountain.
Originally, Sato had planned to help the young lady carry her luggage, but she had refused.
After quietly observing for a while, Sato discovered that Kotobuki Tsumugi carried the suitcase without even breathing heavily. He could only sigh inwardly at how absurdly strong the young lady was.
The person leading them was the hot spring inn's owner, a remarkably talkative middle-aged man.
Ritsu was getting along with him extremely well.
"So all the actual hot springs are up in the mountains?"
"That's right. The hot spring street at the bottom is just a commercial district. There are a few small spring sources there too, but they haven't been developed."
"A hot spring has to have atmosphere!"
The owner spoke passionately, practically overflowing with praise whenever the topic of hot springs came up.
He gestured enthusiastically with his hands, vividly describing everything to the group, his eyes filled with almost fanatical obsession.
"Just imagine it. Your body soaking in warm spring water, rising steam surrounding you like a heavenly realm. The only thing worthy of matching it is breathtaking mountain scenery!"
"Especially now, in autumn. This is absolutely the best season to admire the mountains! Verdant peaks painted in brilliant colors, fiery red leaves, dazzling golden leaves, mysterious enchanting purple leaves... it feels like stepping into a painting itself!"
"Of course, nighttime is wonderful too!"
"Lying in the hot spring while looking up at the deep night sky, countless stars gathering like grains of sand into a vast and mysterious Milky Way, silver moonlight shining brightly. And if at that moment..."
The owner suddenly paused. He turned back to glance at everyone, then let out a suggestive chuckle.
"If someone said to you, 'The moon is beautiful tonight,' that would be even better..."
"The moon is beautiful tonight" originated from Natsume Soseki.
Back when he worked as an English teacher, he once assigned students a translation exercise. In the passage, the male lead said "Aishitemasu" while walking beneath the moon with the heroine, and one student translated it directly as "I love you."
Natsume Soseki said Japanese people would never say it so directly. It should be more subtle and reserved, and translating it as "The moon is beautiful tonight" would be sufficient.
Suddenly.
Sato spoke expressionlessly.
"I personally think that if someone said that while another person was soaking in a hot spring, they'd probably just get mistaken for a pervert."
"..."