Tatsuya floated on the sea, the gentle waves lulling him into a calm reverie. A minor mishap had occurred earlier, but nothing significant followed. Honoka's admission that she couldn't swim lingered faintly in his mind, though he wasn't overly concerned. He could sense her presence, along with Miyuki, Shizuka, and the others, as clearly as if they were right beside him. If anything went wrong, he'd know instantly and could rush to their aid.
"(Leo and Mikihiko are swimming pretty far out there,)" he thought, noting their distant figures, barely visible on the horizon.
Leo, itching for action, and Mikihiko, tasked with keeping an eye on him, had ventured far enough to be mere specks.
"(Mikihiko must be training hard to keep up with Leo's stamina,)" Tatsuya mused, floating idly.
A sudden scream pierced his thoughts. The girls—minus Mizuki—were supposed to be playing on a boat, but it seemed to have capsized. Logically, a boat shouldn't just flip, but Honoka's earlier words about not swimming flashed in his mind. Without hesitation, Tatsuya sprinted across the water's surface, each step powered by Flash Cast's "Water Spider" spell. To an ordinary onlooker, the sight would've been jaw-dropping.
Reaching Honoka, he ceased the spell, wrapped an arm around her waist, and hoisted her upward.
"Wait, Tatsuya-san, please! Just wait!" she pleaded, her voice frantic.
Ignoring her, Tatsuya lifted her onto the boat. As he did, gravity pulled him under the waves. Unbeknownst to him, Honoka's bikini top had slipped, exposing her entirely. Though he'd closed his eyes instantly and sunk beneath the surface, not seeing much, Honoka's scream—this time for a different reason—echoed across the water.
"Wow, Honoka, not just big but perfectly shaped too!" Erika teased.
"Erika, now's not the time for jokes," Miyuki chided.
"Well, sure, but Miyuki's got an even prettier shape," Erika shot back.
"Hic…" Honoka sobbed.
Shizuka watched her friend, her expression a mix of sympathy and complexity. Unbeknownst to the others, she and Honoka had orchestrated the boat's capsize. The wardrobe malfunction was an unexpected twist, leaving Honoka flustered and Shizuka quietly jealous, her mind swirling with darker thoughts.
"(Honoka, getting seen was unplanned, but this is your chance,)" Shizuka whispered.
"(Chance for what?)" Honoka replied, bewildered.
"(To be alone with Tatsuya-san… Besides, with your figure, it's not a big deal, right?)"
"(That's beside the point!)"
Egged on by Shizuka's mix of encouragement and envy, Honoka resolved to spend the rest of the day with Tatsuya.
Leo, returning from his long swim, tilted his head at Tatsuya's absence. Despite the gaggle of bikini-clad girls before him, his focus remained elsewhere.
"Where's Tatsuya?" he asked.
"Over there," someone pointed.
"Is that… Honoka?" Leo squinted.
At that moment, Ms. Kurosawa, exuding mature allure in an apron over her swimsuit, arrived with drinks. Even her charm failed to sway Leo.
"What's going on over there?" he pressed.
"Huff… Leo, what kind of stamina do you have?" Mikihiko panted, catching up.
"Just normal, I guess. So, Mikihiko, what do you make of that?" Leo gestured toward Tatsuya and Honoka.
"Tatsuya and Honoka-san? They look good together," Mikihiko said casually.
"Hey!" Erika interjected.
Mikihiko turned, only to see Miyuki taking out her frustration on a pile of fruit at the table.
"Yoshida-kun, how about a chilled orange?" Ms. Kurosawa offered, handing him one with a sherbet spoon.
Mikihiko accepted mechanically and began eating. Miyuki, meanwhile, shifted her wrath to a mango, thrusting it toward Leo.
"Saijo-kun, want one?" she asked, her tone sharp.
"Uh, thanks…" Leo took it, glancing at the spoon Ms. Kurosawa handed him before digging in.
Miyuki, apparently done with her fruit-based rampage, stood abruptly. "I'm heading back to my room."
"Ms. Kurosawa, please escort her," Shizuka requested.
"Of course, Lady Shizuka," Ms. Kurosawa replied.
As Miyuki left, Shizuka and the others sighed on the terrace.
"What's going on?" Leo asked.
"Miki, your big mouth got us all in trouble!" Erika snapped.
"My name's Mikihiko!" he retorted. "Anyway, how'd Tatsuya and Honoka end up like that?"
"Just a little accident. Nothing for you two to worry about," Shizuka said coolly.
Leo and Mikihiko exchanged puzzled glances, still unsure.
Dinner was a barbecue, and Leo and Mikihiko ate voraciously, seemingly in competition. Their earlier swim had sparked a challenge, though Mikihiko already looked strained.
"Miki, show some grit!" Erika goaded.
"My name's Mikihiko!" he snapped.
"Leo-kun, you're not full yet?" Honoka asked.
"Nah, I could eat double this," Leo bragged.
Tatsuya ate at his own pace, flanked closely by Honoka and Miyuki. Shizuka and Ms. Kurosawa sat a bit apart.
"Lady Shizuka, is this fair?" Ms. Kurosawa asked.
"What do you mean?" Shizuka replied.
"Giving Lady Honoka all the chances with Tatsuya-sama."
"I think of Honoka as my best friend. I don't want to compete."
"But haven't you and Lady Honoka always rivaled each other in magic? Now it's just about… being women."
Shizuka hesitated, glancing at Tatsuya. Ms. Kurosawa gently patted her head, like an older sister.
"Don't worry. Lady Honoka surely knows your feelings. And you both know your rivals aren't just each other."
"Yeah… Tatsuya-san's got a lot of admirers," Shizuka admitted, thinking of Mayumi, Erika, and, most formidably, Miyuki.
"Even Master Ushio seems to respect Tatsuya-sama. If you don't act, Lady Shizuka, I might," Ms. Kurosawa teased, shrugging as she began grilling more meat for Leo and Mikihiko.
"No way… even Ms. Kurosawa?" Shizuka muttered, stunned.
Though she doubted Ms. Kurosawa's mature charm would sway Tatsuya, the woman was undeniably a formidable rival. Shizuka wavered, torn between executing her plan for Honoka's sake or reconsidering her own feelings.
Next time: Vacation Arc Finale
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