A rest stop meant only for me had appeared out of nowhere. I wondered why Domanna-sensei was here, but the reason became clear right away.
The wooden window of the carriage popped open, and there were the girls, like marguerites at a windowsill.
"Leo-kun!" "Master!"
"Don't tell me you two asked for this?"
"Yes! I got worried about you, Leo-kun, so I went to Domanna-sensei for advice!"
"And then Domanna-sensei brought out a carriage for us!"
Monaka and Kotone looked relieved to see me again. We had only been apart for about two hours.
"Leo-kun, you must be tired! Please come up here!"
"Yes! We have prepared a place for you to rest!"
The two of them had been smiling the whole time, but then they seemed to remember something and looked down, shy.
"Sorry. We really wanted to get down and welcome you, Leo-kun, but..."
"Indeed. In these clothes, we are a little hesitant to step outside..."
Looking closely, the two of them leaning out the window were dressed differently than usual. Not white robes and hakama, but flashy short-sleeved outfits.
I wondered what that was about, opened the door at the back of the carriage, and stepped inside.
"Ah. Cheerleader outfits."
The moment I said it, shocked voices rose outside the carriage.
"No way. Lady Monaka and Lady Kotone are wearing cheerleader outfits?"
"You're kidding. A saintess and a shrine maiden, dressed like that?"
"Damn it, and all we've got in here is the vice principal in an apron!"
"I want to see! I really want to see!"
Monaka and Kotone flushed red, one arm across their chests, tugging at their short skirts. Knees pressed together, they rubbed their thighs, fidgeting.
"Um, th-this is the first time I've worn a skirt this short..."
"A-and this is the first time I have worn clothing from the western country..."
"If it embarrasses you that much, you didn't have to force yourselves."
The two of them shook their heads at the same time.
"But Domanna-sensei said so. If we were going to cheer, we had to dress like this."
"Indeed. These cheerleaders are said to have the effect of lifting a gentleman's spirits. For the master's sake, we put them on ready to leap from Kiyomizu stage."
"Leo-kun..." "Master..."
They turned those cherry-pink upturned eyes on me.
"D-did it... make you feel better?"
Before I could answer, Domanna-sensei, watching from the driver's seat, cut in.
"Of course it did! You perked right up, didn't you? If not, you're no man! Right, Leopin-kun!"
I nodded. "Yes, sensei." Then I looked at Monaka and Kotone.
"Thank you. I feel a lot better because of you."
I had raised my Endurance ahead of time, so I was not tired at all. Even so, their concern made me happier than anything.
Until then, Monaka and Kotone had worn a mix of shame and worry. The moment they heard my thanks, their faces opened into bright smiles.
Then, delighted, they started looking after me.
"Th-thank goodness...! Th-then, Leo-kun, please sit in this chair! I'll wipe your sweat!"
"Master, have some water! Allow me to send you a cool breeze!"
Monaka wiped my sweat with a handkerchief, and Kotone fanned me with a big uchiwa. I wanted to say I could do that much myself, but one look at their faces and I could not get the words out.
Voices stirred outside the carriage.
"H-hey! I just caught a glimpse of Lady Kotone through the window!"
"What are they doing in there? She's fanning someone!"
"D-don't tell me she's fanning that trash..."
"No way! A shrine maiden of Lady Kotone's rank would never fan someone else!"
"R-right, right! If anything, that trash should be the one doing the fanning!"
"And that would be insanely enviable too! Lady Kotone is so far above us that an ordinary guy can't even get close!"
I stayed quiet and let Monaka and Kotone do as they liked, and the service only got more excessive.
"Leo-kun, next I'll recline the chair! I'll rub your shoulders!"
"I shall massage your legs!"
In perfect sync, the two of them started kneading my body. I wanted to say I was not that tired, but in front of those smiling faces I had no choice but to let it go.
The voices outside were turning into wails.
"Wh-what are they doing!? What is going on in there!?"
"Just now Lady Monaka said something about rubbing! Don't tell me it's a massage!?"
"No way! A saintess of Lady Monaka's rank would never give someone a massage!"
"R-right, right! If anything, that trash should be the one doing it!"
"And that would be insanely enviable too! Lady Monaka is so divine that an ordinary guy isn't even allowed to touch her!"
Outside, angry shouts and cries were flying, and the boys had started thrashing and rolling on the ground. When my rest was over and I stepped out of the carriage, seen off by the two girls, I found them waiting.
The boys were covered in dust and leaves. Their eyes were bloodshot, and they were heaving for breath.
A moment ago they had called that tent heaven. Now they wore the faces of men who had crawled out of hell.
"U-unforgivable...! You piece of trash...!"
"You took the flowers on the high peak and made them flowers in both hands...!"
"There's no way an unemployed dropout could do that...!"
"Weiss must have been right. You've got something on both of them...!"
"We've got to save them...! With our own strength...!"
"We'll drag you around...! Until you never feel like doing that again...!"
"We'll teach you what happens when you make us serious... down to the marrow...!"