Chapter 54: The Hot Spring Incident
[You leisurely enjoy the hot spring water, your whole body soaking to the point of melting, your bones turning completely soft.]
[But your mind is still occupied with the events that happened today — from Sesshouin Kiara to Lancelot — all of it weighs heavily on your heart.]
[The influence of Sesshouin Kiara is growing stronger. Even teachers have become victims at her hands. As for her, she has always been hiding in the shadows, seemingly waiting for the right moment to strike at you. Every move she makes carries a huge impact, even interrupting exams and altering your entire schedule.]
[As for Lancelot, he remains full of suspicion, but you still don't know where to begin to clarify it.]
[For now, you set aside all your doubts and focus on enjoying the hot spring at Enma-tei.]
In the outdoor bath area, steam surged endlessly.
The surface of the water was covered with a hazy mist so thick it wouldn't dissipate, like a dense fog in the night sky, even the moonlight at the horizon was obscured by the veil of steam.
Eikou lazily soaked in the open-air hot spring at Enma-tei, gazing at the moon while enjoying the burning sensation spreading across his skin, his mind gradually becoming drowsy.
Today, Enma-tei didn't have many guests; the entire large bath was occupied only by Eikou and two Knights of the Round Table, almost like they had reserved the whole place.
"This feels amazing!"
The three young men exclaimed in unison as they soaked in the hot water.
"This really is paradise on earth," Eikou said. "If Lancelot hadn't run off so fast, he could have enjoyed this soak with us too."
"It's better this way," Gawain said. "It would've cost you even more otherwise."
"It's fine. Indulging once in a while isn't wrong."
Eikou stretched his body. The heat from the mineral water made him feel completely limp, as if all the fatigue from the day had melted away, leaving him relaxed and sleepy.
He yawned, looked up at the night sky, and thought it was already quite late.
"Honestly, we've been soaking for more than an hour now. Maybe it's time to get out."
"No way!"
Tristan suddenly popped up from under the water like a seal, his wet hair plastered to his face.
"It's rare to be treated by Sir Eikou. I've decided to soak for two more hours to make this ticket worth it!"
"You…" Eikou shot him a glare. "There'll be plenty of chances in the future. Come autumn this year, we can come back here again."
"I know that."
Tristan revealed his signature "Sadness" expression.
"But chances to mooch off you are rare. Shouldn't we seize the opportunity to enjoy? From the party to the outdoor class, even the haunted house, you've always used me as a tool. And that promise of introducing me to married women never came true."
"And the kite flying thing too. You promised, then ditched us to join Baobhan Sith's group," Gawain added.
"…That… yeah, that was my fault."
Eikou looked a bit embarrassed.
Ah, now that he thought about it, that was true…
He really did owe these two Knights of the Round Table quite a few favors.
"It's fine. I'll have a chance to repay you guys later."
Eikou shifted into a more comfortable position, lying in the hot water.
"Then let's soak for another half an hour. Luckily, Enma-tei has no other guests today, so let's just pretend this place is ours. Relaxing a bit more won't hurt, plus…"
His eyes suddenly sharpened.
"Today I confirmed it: Enma-tei is only opening this one hot spring for guests, and it's a mixed-gender alternating bath. So theoretically, if we stay here long enough, midway through our soak, a girl will come in to bathe."
"Seriously?" Tristan asked.
"I'm kidding, of course not," Eikou said. "Even though this hot spring really is gender-alternating, when the time's up, the staff will kick us out. There's no way something that good would happen. It could happen, but with your Luck E, there's zero chance."
"No, only unlucky people encounter that. Because instead of calling it a chance encounter, it's better to call it a death socially devastating embarrassment," Gawain added.
But just at that moment—
Eikou, who was leaning back against a rock, suddenly heard the sound of a door opening from the entrance.
"Whoa~"
From the entrance came the voice of a girl.
"The hot spring is huge, and there's no one here," the sweet, cute voice of the girl echoed, "It's like we have it all to ourselves. This is so exciting!"
Eikou's eyes widened in horror.
That voice sounded like…
Sakamoto Maaya!
No, that's wrong, he misheard. It was Jeanne d'Arc of Orléans.
"Seriously, it feels so much better without those eyesores around."
Another girl's voice rang out from the entrance.
Judging by the tone and way of speaking, could that be Marie Antoinette Alter?
"Splash!"
It seemed someone had just jumped straight into the hot spring.
"Bradamante, don't just leap straight into the hot spring like that. You need to test the water temperature first…" Jeanne's voice echoed.
Shit, there were at least three girls appearing at once.
Jeanne d'Arc, the Queen of France Marie, and Bradamante the Paladin of the White Feather?
And they were all from the rival class, the France class!
Could it be… just a coincidence in timing? Did the girls from the France class come to relax at the hot springs before the monthly exams?
Although the hot spring was warm, the blood in Eikou's body instantly turned cold.
This was bad—this was truly the most embarrassing hot spring accident imaginable.
Maybe the girls misread the alternating schedule… or the mixed-gender time had ended, but the staff forgot to kick the boys out.
This had to be that idiot Tristan's fault. His Luck E had brought this disaster upon them.
"What do we do?"
His heart pounding wildly in panic, Eikou glanced at the two Knights of the Round Table and lowered his voice: "Girls really came in. What should we do?!"
"What?!"
Tristan was utterly shocked.
"Let me volunteer to check the situation first… glug glug glug glug!"
He hadn't even taken a few steps before Gawain and Eikou shoved him underwater.
"Calm down, Sir Tristan! If you peek at girls bathing, the honor of the Knights of the Round Table will be ruined!" Gawain said immediately.
"Tristan Aho-baka, for fuck's sake, get a grip! Has your brain fermented from soaking in the hot spring too long? In this situation, you still dare to step out and look?!"
Eikou spoke in a low voice.
"But if we want to leave here, sooner or later we'll have to face them…"
Tristan surfaced, his head above the water.
"Before things blow up, how about we quickly explain to the Ladies that this was an accident, then ask them to let us leave?" Gawain suggested.
Eikou pondered for a long moment.
"That could work. Jeanne and Bradamante are both reasonable people. If we explain clearly, they'll understand."
"But the problem is Marie!"