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Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? (Light Novel) - Volume 3, Chapter 2: The Beach Conspiracy
Volume 3, Chapter 2: The Beach Conspiracy
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Part 1
Monday, August 11th
Theia and Ruth had come to Earth on a large battleship called the Blue Knight.
The Blue Knight had taken several years to be built, and upon completion it had been given to Theia as her personal ship in order to assist her in her trials.
It had been in orbit ever since they had reached Earth.
This one-kilometer-long battleship had one outstanding feature.
The sky-blue hull had the shape of a person.
With its coloring and design, the name Blue Knight was truly fitting.
“H-huge!! It's huge! You could fit countless Room 106's in here! Tulip, how many tatami mats could fit in here!?”
“Pleb, isn't there anything else that surprises you!? Say 'So this is the Blue Knight Theia-sama is always talking about', or 'As expected from Theia-sama, you command such a fine ship', or something like that!”
Koutarou and the others were in the bridge of the Blue Knight.
They were on their way to the hot springs inn, so they were already wearing their summer clothes and carrying their travel bags.
“Satomi-sama, this bridge could fit about 500 tatami mats♪”
The bridge was positioned in the Blue Knight's head, but since it was the head of a kilometer long giant, it was surprisingly large.
“Ruth, there's no need to tell them that! More importantly, why do you look so happy!?”
“500!? Tulip, if you live in a place this big, why do you want Room 106!? That's unfair!”
“I keep telling you it's for the trial!”
In the large bridge, Koutarou's and Theia's voices echoed.
The bridge stretched to about 30 meters in all directions and was made from a beautiful, white material.
Inside of that large space was a seat for the operator, the driver, and various other positions. It looked similar to a military command center that one often sees in movies.
“Damn it! If you're a princess, then just settle for this huge house!”
“If you understand that I'm a princess, then watch your tongue!”
“No! I refuse!”
“In that case I refuse too! I'll stay in that room out of spite if I have to!”
A large sound rang out as Koutarou and Theia butted heads.
The situation was serious, but between Koutarou and Theia this was normal, so nobody really minded.
“Hmm, so the other side of that suspicious glowing wall looks like this.”
“I knew it was a transfer gate, but to think it's in orbit...”
If they used the glowing blue wall that Theia and Ruth used to travel between Room 106 and the Blue Knight, they could get to the inn faster than any train or bus.
“Eeeh!? We're in space!?”
“But if we are, then why aren't we floating or swimming in the air?”
“That's thanks to the artificial gravity. We're using Blue Knight’s power to create artificial gravity downwards in the bridge. We could disable it if you'd like.”
“We'll do that some other time. I feel like my hair or clothes will just get messy...”
“I see. In that case, please make yourselves comfortable for a while. Meanwhile, we'll activate the gate.”
As Ruth said that, she manipulated the operator’s panels.
The technology Theia and Ruth used to travel through the gate and summon weapons was one and the same.
So, originally, setting a gate and calling out weapons would take the same amount of time.
But in order for humans to pass through, a much higher quality of safety was required.
A weapon could be recreated, but the same could not be said for a person.
Which was why it took some time to open the gate to another place.
But once it had been opened, you could travel freely in between.
“In just a little while, we'll open a gate close to the inn.”
“Yes, good job.”
Having finished her preparations, Ruth returned as Theia thanked her.
Ruth smiled and sat down next to Theia.
Koutarou and the others were sitting at the seats intended for strategy meetings.
It was normally intended for commanders, captains, and staff officers to discuss strategies as they read star maps and enemy data, but now it was a place for the girls to chat.
There was no tension, and snacks had replaced the monitors' displaying data.
On top of that, Kiriha's haniwas had made tea and were distributing it to the others.
If the Forthorthe military officers had seen this sight, they probably would have cried.
“By the way Theia-dono, I have a question.”
Waiting for Ruth to sit down, Kiriha stopped eating her manjū[1] and opened her mouth.
“What?”
“Is it really okay for a battleship, or rather, a large structure made for combat, to have the shape of a person?”
Kiriha's question was simple.
The more complex shape a huge structure had, the lower its structural integrity would be.
Normally, the larger something was, the simpler its design would be.
Despite that, the one-kilometer long Blue Knight had the shape of a person.
This could be described as a large weak point for a weapon.
“Good question. You're absolutely correct. This shape is nothing but a weakness.”
“Then why?”
“Ruth.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Ruth took over for the more detailed explanation.
Despite her looks, Ruth was a military officer. She knew more about the ship and its functions than Theia.
“Basically, this appearance is a weakness. Its structural integrity is barely enough to support the joints, and it is next to impossible to move during combat.”
“So this ship is lacking in calcium!”
Listening to the explanation, Sanae hit the table.
“Sanae-chan, I don't think that's the problem here...”
“However, our civilization succeeded in manipulating gravity about 150 years ago. Thanks to that, the strength of the ship isn't that important. What’s really important is the output of the main energy generator.”
“I see. Since the generator creates energy barriers and controls the ship's inertial mass, the shape of the ship doesn't really matter. It's not like the physical structure of the ship can block heavy weaponry anyways.”
Forthorthe's scientific advances had reached the level of controlling the weight of objects.
So when taking hits, the ship would get heavier to absorb the impact, and when moving, it would get lighter for better maneuverability and speed.
On top of that, Forthorthe's weapons were so powerful, armor would be unable to block the attack using normal means.
No matter how strong of an alloy you made, it wouldn't be able to block a beam cannon.
Because of that, something other than the hull was required for defense.
So what was important wasn't the shape of the craft, but rather the amount of energy it had available.
The generator output was the deciding factor.
“So you make up for the calcium shortage with guts!”
“Um, I think that's slightly wrong as well...”
“That aside, since this ship is human-shaped, the generator size is slightly smaller. The surface area is larger and the efficiency of the force fields is not the best. Compared to the other princesses' ships, this ship could be called inferior.”
The size of the generator itself played a bigger part than the actual output.
But since the Blue Knight was human-shaped, it had a smaller generator compared to other ships of the same size.
“That said, I can't just look for efficiency and fly in a spherical ship.”
Theia made an unpleasant expression.
She was slightly irritated that her ideal shape didn't produce her ideal strength.
If one tried to optimize the shape of the ship to fit as large of a generator as possible, the ship would naturally become spherical.
In that example, the surface area of the ship would get smaller, making it more suited for defense as well.
However, Theia didn't want to fly in something like that.
“So the sense of beauty is the problem.”
“That's right. And it also leaves an impression when appealing to the citizens at ceremonies.”
“Really? I think a round space ship would be cute.”
Yurika made a circular shape with her thumb and forefinger and stated her opinion.
Hearing her say that, Theia lifted her eyebrows.
“Yurika, don't group me up with someone like yourself! I don't want an ugly battleship like that! All the other princesses would laugh at me!”
“B-but, but, wouldn't a round spaceship be better than losing?”
“Don't compare me to a loser like yourself! Besides, the Blue Knight is protecting this ship. I won't lose no matter who I fight!”
“...L-loser...? Ahhh~”
Shocked by the weight behind that word, Yurika lost her power and collapsed onto the desk.
“I already know, but...”
Yurika herself vaguely understood that she was emitting a loser aura.
But life after admitting that would be cruel and painful.
Her tears overflowed without stopping.
“I'm no Yurika, but I think a round spaceship would suit you too, Tulip.”
Leaving Yurika to her crying, Koutarou crossed his arms and nodded.
“Shut it, pleb! Do you want to be thrown out of the airlock!?”
“I think it would take the edge off, though...”
“Are you picking a fight with me trying to be clever!?”
“Your Highness, please calm down!”
Ruth desperately held Theia back, who looked like she was about to jump onto Koutarou and bite him.
But Koutarou's next words made Theia lose it.
“Besides, it's best not to give children pointy toys. It would be bad if they swallowed them.”
“I'll kill yooou! Sit down right there, pleb! I'll beat you to death!”
“Waaah! She's coming!?”
Koutarou had assumed it would be safe since Ruth was restraining her, but unexpectedly, Theia came flying towards him.
Theia, who had jumped up on the desk, swooped down on Koutarou like a bird of prey.
“I'll get killed!”
“Your Highness, calm down!”
“Koutarou no, don't come this way! If you're fighting do it over there!”
“At this point it can't be helped! Hissatsu Yurika Shield!”
“Kyaaaa!?”
The sound of an attack hitting flesh could be heard.
“Ah, sorry.”
“...Y-You're terrible... Ugh...”
“Nijino-san!? Nijino-san, are you okay!?”
“I-I'm not...”
“I won't forget your sacrifice, Yurika.”
“...Koutarou, you do some awful things from time to time. Well, since it's Yurika it doesn't matter.”
“Is that so?”
“Mmm, this dorayaki[2] is delicious. Yurika, would you like a bite?”
“Anything I eat right now would only taste like blood.”
The bridge was in chaos.
Because of that, it took a while before they realized the gate was ready for use.
Part 2
The inn Koutarou and the others would be staying in was an old one, established a long time ago.
Ever since the bubble economy, their customers had been stolen by a resort hotel. As a result, the inn was gradually stagnating.
Taking advantage of the inn’s situation were the ghost hunters in question.
They promised the inn a large reward in exchange for cooperating with them.
On that day, they were dressed as employees and stood by the entrance instead of the real employees.
They welcomed Koutarou and the others with oddly happy smiles and fiddling fingers.
“You've come from far away.”
“Welcome.”
The thin and tall man and the fat and short one were both quite suspicious, but staying at an inn was so unusual for Koutarou and the others that they didn't notice it at all.
“You're the Satomi party, are you not?”
“That's right. We'll be in your care for a while.”
Koutarou and Shizuka went up to the receptionist’s desk and greeted them.
“Very good. Now then, would the representative please fill in this hotel register?”
“Okay.”
“The remaining guests please follow me. I'll lead you to your room.”
“Okaaay.”
Once the two of them began working there was nothing unnatural about them.
Shortly afterwards, Koutarou and the others were shown to their room.
“They're falling for it, they're falling for it.”
“All according to plan. Let's do this, Hachi.”
“Yes!”
After leading the guests to their room, the two ghost hunters grinned at each other.
Up until then, everything had gone according to plan, and if everything continued to proceed smoothly, they would soon find themselves with a large fortune.
“That 300 million yen will be ours. Let’s do this, Hachi!”
“Yeah!”
Their eyes were sparkling with greed and hopes for the future.
Unaware of their plans, Koutarou and the others were puzzled about their room.
“S-small...”
“Koutarou, are we really staying here?”
“That should be the case, but...”
“Shouldn't my room be larger than this?”
“Shizuka, it only looks small because of the furniture.”
“I've finished measuring-ho! Its size is no different from Room 106-ho!”
“No, it's actually smaller...”
“Your Highness?”
“That's because Yurika is not in her wardrobe.”
“Subtracting that amount, this room is five and a half tatami mats large-ho!”
“I don't want to live in the wardrobe after coming all this way!”
Koutarou and the others were puzzled by the room’s small size.
When measured, it was exactly the same size as the inner part of Room 106.
With seven people carrying luggage and two haniwas, it felt extremely small.
And having been in the Blue Knights large bridge, the room felt even smaller.
“Isn't this a bit cheap for the first prize?”
“The second prize LCD TV probably cost more than this.”
“The inn has a rustic atmosphere to it~”
“I'm starting to understand why this inn is so close to shutting down.”
“If it was going to be like this, I'm not even sure why we came here to begin with.”
Everybody's dissatisfaction began showing.
They thought that they'd be able to live in a more spacious room for a while, but instead they were forced into a room that was even smaller than normal. It was only natural for them to feel that way.
“I'm truly sorry everybody. Even though I invited you... If I knew it was this small, I would have went with just Her Highness...”
Ruth felt responsible for what had happened.
She was the one who had won the lottery and invited them.
Her shoulders stooped and she lowered her head with an apologetic expression.
“T-that's not your fault, Ruth-san! Even if we hadn't come here, we wouldn't have been able to play by the beach. So we're really happy, right, Tulip!?”
“T-that's right, Ruth! It's not really that inconvenient, and being close to the beach, this place is great!”
Koutarou and Theia who normally just fought came together to cheer up Ruth.
“...Is that true?”
“O-Of course! Right, Tulip? I can't wait until we can swim!”
“Y-Yeah! I'll teach you how to elegantly swim!”
“Then all is well.”
Ruth's expression brightened up.
Koutarou and Theia were about to breathe a sigh of relief when Sanae interrupted them by saying something strange.
“But Koutarou, this room already has a guest.”
“What guest?”
Koutarou tilted his head in confusion.
It didn't look like the inn had made a mistake and double-booked the room to Koutarou.
But if that was true, they would need to change rooms, and so Koutarou pressed Sanae for more details.
“What do you mean?”
“Hmm... The spiritual energy is too weak for me to tell clearly, but I can see traces of a wrung neck, so it's probably the ghost of someone who either committed suicide or was murdered.”
Sanae furrowed her brows as she stared up into the ceiling, sort of like a shortsighted person trying to read something far away.
G-g-ghost!?”
Yurika immediately reacted to what Sanae said.
Gripped by fear, she threw away her luggage and ran towards the wardrobe.
“Nooooooo! Not ghosts!!”
Yurika threw the futons out of the wardrobe and jumped inside.
And shut the sliding door with all of her might.
“Geez Yurika calm down! Its existence is so weak it can't even make a sound!”
“Noooooo! I hate just knowing there's a ghost here!”
“You're always together with me.”
“That's just because I forgot you're a ghost! Noooooooooo!”
Sanae's persuasion failed and Yurika shook with fear in the wardrobe.
“It's no use. She must be really scared.”
As Shizuka tried to slide open the door, Yurika used all of her might to hold against her.
Shizuka was stronger than Yurika so she could force the door open, but if she did, it would break.
“Yurika-sama...”
Ruth's expression began to get darker again. Noticing that, Koutarou hurriedly took her hand.
“Well then, let's go swimming!”
“S-Satomi-sama!?”
“He's right, he's right! That's why we came here to begin with!”
Theia took Ruth's other hand.
“Satomi-sama, your highness, what happened to you all of a sudden?”
“I just felt like seeing you in your swimsuit! I bet you'll look cute!”
“She's not at my level but Ruth is cute!”
Koutarou and Theia tried to forcibly drag Ruth to the beach.
“I'm fine with not seeing Tulip's swimsuit.”
“I'll kill you, pleb. Now is not the time but I'll be sure to kill you later! Don't forget!”
“I already did♪”
“Hey!!”
“Y-Your highness? Satomi-sama?”
And as the two of them continued their odd argument, they worked together as they carried a puzzled Ruth away.
“Ah, wait up Koutarou! I'm coming too!”
“E-Everyone wait up! What about Nijino-san!?”
Sanae quickly followed after Koutarou but Shizuka wondered what they should do about Yurika who was still in the wardrobe.
“It's fine. She'll come out once she calms down, she's not a child.”
“But...”
“Don't worry. I'll leave Karama and Korama here.”
“In that case, I'll leave it to you, Karama-chan, Korama-chan.”
“Ho-!”
“Leave it to us Ho-!”
Shizuka changed her mind after Kiriha persuaded her.
Shizuka was also a healthy girl in her teens.
She actually wanted to play on the beach as well.
And with Karama and Korama keeping watch, they wouldn't irresponsibly leave Yurika on her own.
“Well then, Nijino-san we're heading to the―”
“D-D-Don't leave me alone! I don't want to be all alone in a room with a ghost!!”
But once Shizuka made up her mind, Yurika jumped out of the wardrobe.
Still shaking with fear she looked around the room.
“Satomi-san, wait! Satomi-san!”
She grabbed her swimming tools and hurriedly chased after Koutarou and the others.
“Ah... uhm...”
Suddenly finding herself left behind, Shizuka let out a sigh.
Even she couldn't help but feel amazed at Yurika's uselessness.
“...Shizuka, let's go too.”
“Yes.”
Shizuka smiled at Kiriha who was just as amazed and they followed after the group together.
Part 3
The first thing Koutarou did when he reached the beach was to wipe the sweat off his forehead with a towel.
Having entered the summer season with full force, the sunlight was scorching.
Because of that, the temperature was high and the hot sand burned Koutarou's feet.
“Hot, hot.”
During that time, Koutarou was preparing for the beach on his own.
He spread out a sheet and placed a beach parasol while tiptoeing.
Unlike the girls, Koutarou finished changing in an instant.
So, being bored, Koutarou started the preparations.
“Alright, this should be good.”
“Oh, if it isn't Satomi-kun!”
Once Koutarou finished setting up, he heard a voice calling for him.
“Eh, where!? Ah, you're right!”
“Hello Koutarou-kun!!”
“What a coincidence, Satomi-kun, you came here to play too!?”
Girls in swimsuits ran towards Koutarou.
There were a total of six of them, they were the cosplay society members.
“Hi everybody. That's right. My friend actually won some tickets to the nearby inn, so we came here to play.”
“Really... We really are bound by fate aren't we, Satomi-kun?”
“Ahahaha, that'd be nice.”
“I wouldn't mind you as my boyfriend, Koutarou-kun.”
“Me too, me too!”
“...Having a cosplayer as my girlfriend sounds like it would cost a lot of money, I'm a bit worried.”
“Uh, as expected from Koutarou-kun, you hit where it hurts.”
“Satomi-kun lives on his own after all.”
“Once I get richer and you still feel that way, then I would love too.”
“A boy who keeps you waiting won't get popular you know?”
“I'm aware of that.”
Koutarou and the cosplay society members laughed.
“By the way, why is the cosplay society here? Did you all also come here to play?”
After laughing for a while, Koutarou asked what was on his mind.
“Half of it is club activity and the other half is play. Actually, Comiha is just three days from now.”
“Now that you mention, you did say something like that last month.”
The cosplay society members were making their preparations to cosplay at the event and Koutarou had been called out to give his opinions on their outfits.
That was why Koutarou, who only had baseball on his mind knew about it.
“That's why we’re staying at this hotel that's close to the event area, and enjoying ourselves at the beach.”
“I see, that's a good plan.”
“Right? Besides, we can meet Sakuraba-san here.”
“Sakuraba-senpai you say?”
An unexpected name appeared.
Sakuraba Harumi, she was the president of the knitting society that Koutarou had joined.
Koutarou tilted his head with a confused look on his face as the cosplay society president explained.
“Actually, Sakuraba-san has a villa nearby. When I was chatting with her last month we talked about the summer break. She said she'd be spending it here, so we thought it would be good idea to do the same.”
“I see. Thanks for always keeping an eye out for Sakuraba-senpai.”
Hearing the explanation, Koutarou gently lowered his head towards the cosplay society members.
“That's nice... I want to be treated so preciously by an underclassman as well.”
“Let's put our hopes on Yurika-chan.”
“...There's not much hope there.”
Ever since Harumi and Yurika had won the sports festival, the cosplay society members had been regularly interacting with Harumi.
The biggest reason was because she connected Koutarou and Yurika, another reason was because they had noticed Harumi was always alone.
Because of that, they would often strike up conversations with Harumi.
“When I met her earlier, she said she'd show up later.”
“Thank you for taking care of both Yurika and Senpai.”
“That's fine. Sakuraba-san is cute, hopefully we can get her to join the cosclub♪”
“Ahahaha.”
“The cosclub and knitting society are both small, right? One needs to effectively use chances they've been given.”
“So when that time comes does that mean you'll join us?”
Koutarou and the others began laughing once more.
“By the way president, should we move over here too? If we're playing, the more the better.”
“That's true. Good idea, vice president.”
“You're too kind.”
After nodding to the vice president, the president turned towards Koutarou again.
“Satomi-kun, since it's like that, we'll be taking our leave for a while. We need to go get our luggage.”
“Okay, I'll be waiting.”
“Alright everyone, let's go!”
“Okaaay.”
And the cosplay society members left just as energetically as they had arrived.
A few minutes after Koutarou and the cosplay society parted, everyone from room 106 had finished changing and arrived at the beach.
“Wow... what's with these girls...”
“Are they models or something?”
“Maybe it's some kind of event or photo shoot.”
“Woah, that girl’s breasts are huge.”
“That short girl is also pretty big...”
Once the girls appeared, every man on the beach stared at them.
Along with the men, many of the women glared at them.
“Hey Koutarou, sorry for the wait!”
“Satomi-kun, you've already finished preparations? Thank you~”
“Mhm, well done for a plebeian.”
“S-Sorry for keeping you waiting, S-Satomi-sama.”
“Calm down will you, Ruth?”
“Satomi-san, you wouldn't happen to know where my underwear is would you!?”
When it came to looks they were all beautiful, so naturally everyone on the beach stared at them.
But apart from Ruth, nobody paid any mind to that.
They weren't the type to bother with that.
Ruth was the only one who worried about the glances she was getting as she nervously walked across the beach.
“How about it, Koutarou!? Did you fall for Sanae-chan's unbelievable cuteness!?”
“Either way, Kurano-san, you're breasts are so large... they look like they're about to burst out of the swimsuit... I'm so envious...”
“Shizuka, having large breasts is not that good of a thing. There aren't a lot of outfits that are appropriate for this figure and I get a lot of unwanted attention.”
“Now that you mention it, everyone's looking this way~”
“That's because they're attracted to our grace. Quite excellent.”
“S-Satomi-sama, help me! A-All the people are looking this way!!”
As Ruth tried to run away from everyone's stares, the remaining five girls approached Koutarou while showing off their swim suits.
Apart from Ruth, the five of them had various reasons for expecting Koutarou to be surprised.
“How about it? Aren't you happy, Satomi-kun? You're the target of envy for everyone on the beach, and you have six cute girls all for yourself! ― Huh?”
However, their plan splendidly collapsed.
While all of the men were staring at them, only Koutarou was looking elsewhere.
“I see, if you have such a large villa, you must be quite the upper class lady, senpai.”
“S-Satomi-kun, a lady... that's...”
“If you have a villa larger than the house I used to live in, you'd normally be called a lady. Besides your clothes fit the bill.”
“T-This is... b-because...!”
Koutarou was looking at Sakuraba Harumi who was wearing a summer dress and carrying a parasol.
She was dressed in something you'd normally expect a upper class lady to wear, and despite this heat she he had a cool atmosphere around her.
“You look great, very lady like. Nahahahaha.”
“...Satomi-kun, you tease...”
Despite the cool atmosphere, her cheeks were heating up.
“C-Curse you, Koutarou... You're completely ignoring us!?”
“Sakuraba-senpai!? Why are you here!?”
“Not you again, Sakuraba Harumi!”
“If I recall ,that girl is Satomi-kun's society―”
“Sakuraba Harumi. She's in class 2-A and the president of the knitting society. Aside from his childhood friend Matsudaira Kenji, she is the closest person to Koutarou.”
Because of this unexpected development, the five girls were extremely unhappy at Koutarou.
In this situation it was completely unjust resentment, but the five girls didn't care.
“Satomi-sama, please don't look away and save me!”
But even now Ruth was still trying to escape the glances cast on her.
“Stupid Koutarou!! You blockhead! Give us back the time we spent worrying!!”
“Uwah!? W-What!?”
“Satomi-kun!?”
Sanae thrust herself at Koutarou and knocked him down onto the sand.
And before Koutarou could feel the scorching hot sand burning him, Sanae and Theia attacked.
“Bury him! This disloyal might as well drown in the tide!!”
“I won't tell you to get excited anymore, just look this way! At least give us the standard response! Smile and say something like 'your new swimsuit is really cute'!!”
“Ahhh! W-Whaaat!?”
Taken by surprise, Theia pinned Koutarou down.
Meanwhile, Sanae began piling sand onto Koutarou.
“A-As if Tulip alone could hold me down!!”
“Ah, Ah, Wah!”
Since Theia was small, Koutarou began to forcibly stand up while she was still holding onto him.
“I won't let you, Satomi-kun!”
“Landlord-san!?”
“Sanae-chan, I'll help you out!”
“Yurika, you go dig the hole! You're good at digging grave pits, right!?”
“Fueeeeh, I really don't want too!”
“I will help too. Karama, Korama, begin digging.”
“Understood Ho-!”
“Leave it to us Ho-! Digging is our specialty!”
But because of more girls joining in, Koutarou found himself at a disadvantage.
“You'll learn what happens when you hurt a maiden’s pride!”
“Ouch, Owowowow, L-Landlord-san, don't look so happy while you're pulling off a joint lock!”
While humming, Shizuka grabbed Koutarou's legs and held him in place using several joint locks.
“Well done Shizuka! You have my praise!”
“Maybe I'll get a bit more into it, Ey♪”
Shizuka wasn't actually that angry at Koutarou, but she had joined in since it looked like fun.
Since they came here to play, she wanted to enjoy herself to her fullest before going home.
“Owowowow, too much! Too much!”
Koutarou desperately struggled as he tried to escape but he didn't stand a chance against Shizuka.
And while Theia and Shizuka held down Koutarou, the other girls had dug a large hole.
“S-Satomi-kun is being buried... w-what should I do...”
“Excuse me, your highness, it might be best not to get too rough...”
Harumi and Ruth tried to stop them.
But Harumi was still in shock due to the sudden event.
So in reality, Ruth was the only one trying to stop them.
“Ruth-san!? Save me, Ruth-san!!”
Right now, she was Koutarou's only hope.
He desperately called for her help.
“Satomi-sama, just hold on a while longer! I'll be right―”
“Ruth! What did you come here for!?”
But as Theia scolded her froze and stopped moving.
It was only at times like these that Theia was bullish.
Theia seized the initiative against Ruth who had an indecisive attitude.
“W-Well...”
“Remember what you're wearing! What did you feel when you chose that!? And what did you feel when you put it on today!? And with that in mind you'll still forgive this stupid vassal!?”
“...What I'm wearing―”
Ruth stopped mid-sentence after taking in what Theia had said.
And she looked at Theia and her own swimsuits.
Although they weren't very expensive, they were cute swimsuits that fit them well.
They were the swimsuits Koutarou had bought for them.
“He didn't need to praise me! I'm fine with him just taking a peek! But no, what did this stupid vassal do!?”
The emotions Ruth had felt when she had bought the swimsuit, and the days she had spent waiting for the day of the trip came rushing back.
And most of all, the emotion Ruth had felt when she changed into the swimsuit reappeared.
“I won't forgive him! At this rate my pride as a woman won't forgive him! What about you, Ruth!?”
“I...”
And the last thing she remembered was Koutarou not looking at her or Theia.
He had been talking to another woman without even taking a peek at them.
Since Koutarou had bought them, he could have at least showed some interest.
I...!!
And suddenly, something inside of Ruth snapped.
“...Let's bury him, your highness, thoroughly. No, just burying him would be too lax. To make sure he never crawls out, lets bind his arms and legs!”
Ruth was looking at Koutarou with a fire in her eyes.
It was almost as if Theia's anger had possessed her.
“Well said Ruth! I'll leave it to you!”
“As you wish, my princess!”
And Ruth cheerfully joined in to bury Koutarou.
She quickly bound his limbs with a rope and deprived him off his freedom.
She showed no hesitation or mercy.
“Waaaa, even Ruth-san!? Did I do something to offend you, Ruth-san!?”
“Sometimes not doing anything is a crime in itself! There's a limit to how nice you can be!”
“W-Whyyyy!?”
Koutarou desperately tried to break free, but against the united force of the six girls he stood no chance.
And thus, Koutarou soon found himself buried on the beach.
Part 4
The waves that came all the way up to Koutarou's face slowly pulled back towards the sea.
Because of the high tide, the waves gradually closed in on Koutarou.
With his body under the sand, the only thing Koutarou could move was his head.
Unable to move, Koutarou could only pull his head away from the approaching waves.
“...Why did it come to this?”
Koutarou couldn't think of a reason for why he had been buried.
To Koutarou, after he had finished preparations he had gone to talk to Harumi like always.
“Or did I do something before that...?”
Koutarou was at a loss.
Unused to women, Koutarou couldn't understand their feelings.
Even though they weren't in love, they wanted the people close to them to at least show some interest.
“...I don't get it...”
And as Koutarou was tilting his head, a shadow covered him.
“Satomi-kun.”
“Sakuraba-senpai!”
The shadow covering him was thanks to Harumi's parasol.
She had approached Koutarou without him noticing and protected him from the sunlight.
“Good timing, senpai! Please help me!”
“...Hmm... what should I do?”
Harumi squatted next to Koutarou and smiled.
“Don't tease me and please help me instead.”
“But if I let you out, you'll run off somewhere... If you'd talk with me for a while longer I wouldn't mind freeing you.”
“Senpai, you're a bigger tease than normal.”
“Fufu, it might be because we're at a seaside resort, I'm in high spirits.”
“Well, that's obvious.”
Though it might have been because of the midday sun, Harumi's smile looked brighter than ever.
Her friendship with Yurika might have been a good thing after all...
Koutarou felt like Harumi's current behavior was a positive thing.
But there were those that felt like Koutarou and Harumi chatting was a negative thing.
“C-Curse you, Sakuraba Harumi, just how much of a heroine are you!
“And what is Koutarou thinking!? Falling for that woman's obvious tricks!
“Your highness, what should we do?”
“Just burying was too naive! The plebeian needs a harsher punishment!”
Theia, Ruth and Sanae were clearly enraged.
“Then what do we do?”
And Shizuka was enjoying herself.
She was feeling a sense of freedom after coming to the beach.
“...Let's play watermelon splitting[3]!”
Although Kiriha had suggested it, it wasn't clear if she was kidding or if she was serious.
She acted like she always did and showed the large watermelon she was carrying.
“Ah, that sounds like fun!”
“I wonder what will split first, the melon or Koutarou's head.”
Kiriha smiled as she said that and pulled out a wooden sword.
“Let's do it!”
“I don't know what we're doing but let's do it.”
“No, let's stop, I feel sorry for Sakuraba-senpai~”
Yurika tried to stop the girls.
After Koutarou had been buried, Yurika noticed Harumi and had kept quiet so she wouldn't get in their way.
“Nobody asked for your opinion!”
“Hiiiih! Run away! Sakuraba-senpai, run away!”
But in the end, it was Yurika.
She lost to Theia's power and withdrew.
Not taking a stand was just like our magical girl, Rainbow Yurika.
Meanwhile, Koutarou and Harumi were completely unaware of the conspiracy forming as they happily chatted.
“Satomi-kun, you're covered in sweat. It really must be hot in the sand, right?”
“Ah, it's fine. I'll just dirty your handkerchief.”
Harumi pulled out a handkerchief out of her pocket and gently wiped the sweat from Koutarou's forehead.
“There we go, you're all clean now.”
“Senpai...”
“Fufufu, it's almost like I've become your mom, Satomi-kun.”
Koutarou was bothered by the fact that the good smelling handkerchief was ruined by his sweat, but Harumi didn't mind at all.
“Sakuraba-senpai~, let's play watermelon splitting together♪”
Theia, who was holding a large watermelon, approached them.
Because of her small body, the melon covered up half of it.
Surprised by someone suddenly calling out to her, Harumi was at a loss for words.
She was normally bad with strangers, and she had dropped her guard around Koutarou.
Because of that, she was more startled than normal.
“Sakuraba-senpai! Let's make some wonderful summer memories together♪"
“S-Sure.”
Harumi instinctively nodded.
“Who's there? Is it Tulip?”
Unable to turn his body, Koutarou couldn't turn around to look at Theia.
He had no choice but to guess based on the voice, and because Theia wasn't speaking like she normally did he wasn't sure.
“...That's right, it's me pleb.”
As Theia spoke to him, she put down the watermelon next to his head.
At that time, Koutarou got a good feel for the size and weight of the melon based on the vibrations.
The watermelon was at least three times the size of Koutarou's head.
And Theia's face peeked out from behind the it.
Theia brought her mouth next to Koutarou's ear and whispered.
“Kukuku, I'll have you make some memories with us too.”
“What are you trying to do, Tulip!?”
“Oh it's nothing, just some watermelon splitting. We're just splitting it with a chop, kukukukuku.”
Making sure Harumi isn't looking, Theia laughed as she talked to Koutarou.
She smiled even darker than ever before.
As Koutarou got involved with the small conspiracy, a little way off from them, another conspiracy began.
“Aniki, it seems like they're playing watermelon splitting.”
“Good, right now all of their attention will be focused on the watermelon. Now's a chance to capture the target.”
“Are we doing it?”
“Of course we are. If we don't we'll become homeless.”
“We did use all of our remaining money after all.”
The ringleaders of that conspiracy were none other than the ghost hunters.
They were observing Koutarou and the others through their binoculars on some rocks.
“If we manage to sell off that ghost we'll be rich.”
“We'll be able to buy a TV and bike.”
“That's right. Follow me, Hachi.”
“What are we doing?”
“It'll be a detour but we'll approach them from the sea. That way they won't notice us, and even if they did we can just hide our equipment under the water and they won't suspect a thing.”
“As expected from Aniki! Even though ghost hunters do righteous things, you always make it seem like we're doing something bad!”
“Shut it Hachi! I'm still a hero of justice! I'm not in the wrong, it's all poverty’s fault!”
The two carried their suspicious tools and machines and jumped into the sea.
Their goal was to capture Sanae.
Part 5
“Ey!”
Swinging down the wooden sword with all of her might, Harumi had missed three times up until now.
Up until now she had hit something hard all three times and bounced off.
But now she hit something soft and the tip of the sword felt like it sank in.
And she couldn't hear Koutarou's screams anymore.
“You did it, Sakuraba-senpai!”
Instead, Yurika shouted out.
Hearing that, Harumi quickly took off her blindfold.
“Satomi-kun, Satomi-kun! Are you okay!?”
Harumi had hit Koutarou's head three times.
Koutarou said not to mind, but even then there was no way Harumi wouldn't worry.
Which was why when Harumi took off her blindfold, she began looking for Koutarou.
“Ah, this is delicious.”
But Koutarou was right in front of her and eating the watermelon now split in half.
Koutarou was so absorbed in eating the watermelon that he didn't notice Harumi worrying about him.
“T-Thank god...”
Theia or Sanae would probably have been angry, but this was Harumi.
Seeing Koutarou energetically eating the watermelon, she let out a sigh of relief and sat down on the spot..
“Do you wa...chomp.. to eat...chomp... too, senpai?
“O-Once I've settled down I'll have some.”
“Tsk, she already succeeded...”
“Nyahaha, Harumi was too weak to split Koutarou's head in two.”
Displeased, Theia and Sanae showed up.
Having finished eating part of the watermelon Koutarou complained to the two.
“It's over, so let me out of here already.”
But the two of them shook their heads.
“I refuse.”
“Next up is Shizuka's turn.”
“W-What!?”
Koutarou glared at the two of them.
If Shizuka, who was well known for her combat abilities, were to grab the wooden sword, Koutarou wasn't sure what would happen to his head.
“Cheestooo!!”
Besides, Shizuka was all fired up, she repeatedly swung the wooden sword towards the sea.
Her pressure and speed were abnormal; anyone could tell Koutarou was in danger.
“S-Satomi-kun, I'll save you right now!!”
Even Harumi could tell and she began digging to save Koutarou.
But someone got in the way.
“Sakuraba-senpai, this way please~ You'll get in the way for the next watermelon splitting.”
“Kya!? But Satomi-kun is still...!!”
“It's fine, Sakuraba-senpai. Please just leave Satomi-san to us.”
“Even you, Nijino-san!?”
Theia and Yurika dragged Harumi away.
Theia aside, Yurika cooperating wasn't just because she was scared of Theia but because she also wanted to let Harumi get away.
Instead, Kiriha came in and recovered the split watermelon, and Ruth placed a new one.
“This is bad, I need to do something!”
Panicking, Koutarou tried to get out from the sand.
Thankfully, because Harumi had been digging, he managed to get his arm above the sand.
“Alright!”
“Too bad!”
“Please just wait there, Satomi-sama.”
“Waaaaaah!”
But Sanae and Ruth buried him again.
“Stop it already, Sanae!”
“No way♪”
“And why are you so angry, Ruth-san!?”
“Are you telling me to spell it out for you!? Don't make me laugh! That sort of betrayal is punishable by death!”
“Just give up, Koutarou.”
“What do you mean by betrayal!?”
As Sanae and Ruth reburied Koutarou, Theia and Yurika dragged Harumi away, Shizuka happily swung her wooden sword and Kiriha smiled before biting into the watermelon.
Everybody was so focused on what they were doing that they forgot about their surroundings.
You could say they were enjoying themselves to their fullest at the beach.
“Now Hachi!”
“Alright!”
And that was when the ghost hunters put their plan into action.
Rising up from the sea, they approached Koutarou and the rest.
They had a big insect net in each hand.
They were tools used for capturing ghosts, they were excellent for capturing ghosts in the same way you could capture insects.
They readied themselves and dashed towards Sanae.
“Hmm?”
Koutarou who was being buried into the sand again was the first to notice them.
But Koutarou couldn't imagine that they were planning on capturing Sanae with their insect nets, so at first he just stared at them thinking there are some strange people out there.
“Just wait, we'll catch you right now, our cute little kitten!”
“Money! We'll make a video and rake in the cash! Money! We'll sell her off and rake in even more!”
But as they got closer and Koutarou heard the strange things they were saying, he started getting worried.
And as their excitement increased, so did Koutarou's worries.
“Hey everyone, someone's coming from behind, calm down a little.”
Nobody except Koutarou had noticed them.
So Koutarou attempted to alert them, but the only one who believed him was Harumi.
Hearing Koutarou's words, she turned her head around.
“Ah...”
And she saw a suspicious looking pair.
As she saw them, Harumi stiffened up.
They looked like perverts, the kind of people Harumi was terrible at dealing with.
“I won't fall for that trick♪”
“You're too simple pleb! If you're going to lie at least make up something better!”
“We should punish him.”
But Sanae, Theia and Ruth, who were next to Harumi, assumed Koutarou was just trying to escape and didn't believe him at all.
Among them, Yurika was the only one to quickly turn around after noticing Harumi's expression changing.
“I wonder who they could be...”
But the simple minded Yurika didn't think the approaching ghost hunters were any danger.
“Watch out, Koutarou!”
“Everyone! Someone's coming your way!”
A little bit away, Kiriha and Shizuka had noticed the ghost hunters closing in on Koutarou and the others.
But since they were completely caught off guard, the best they could do was shout out to the others.
“What?”
“Someone as in who?”
“Did something happen?”
And Theia, Sanae and Ruth finally turned around.
“I've got youuuuu!”
“Come on, my angels!!”
But at that moment the ghost hunters swung down their insect nets with all of their might.
“Kyaaaaaa!?”
However in order to escape the net coming in from above, Sanae quickly hid under the sand.
Fighting with Koutarou on a daily basis, Sanae was accustomed to surprise attacks.
“Kya!?”
“W-What is this!?”
Since Sanae avoided the net, Harumi and Ruth were hit instead.
Unable to dodge, the nets covered their heads.
“We did it, Hachi! Catching one girl is nothing to me!”
“I caught her too! Now we can do whatever we want!”
The ghost hunters were rejoicing.
The only thing in their minds now was the luxurious life they would be living after they had sold off Sanae.
They would get so much alcohol they could swim in it, and get a new TV and bike.
The future they had ahead of them was bright...or so they thought.
“Hey Hachi, what do you mean you too?”
“Aniki, I'm the one who caught her.”
At that point they both realized they had caught one ghost(?) each.
But they had only targeted a lone ghost.
“Hmm? What does this mean?”
“Aniki, this ghost looks like a human to me.”
“Same here. Hey Hachi, we missed the target!”
“Damnit! We caught the wrong ones!”
By the time the two realized their mistake it was already too late, Sanae was long gone.
“N-Noooo! Please save me, Satomi-kuuun!”
“P-Perverts!!”
And even worse, the girls they had caught began screaming.
The suspicious group that had come from the sea had caught two girls sitting on the sand with nets.
Their eyes were bloodshot, their breathing was rough and water was dripping off their bodies.
They were the very definition of perverts.
“What the hell are you doing!?”
Hearing Ruth and Harumi screaming, Koutarou forcibly jumped out from the sand.
Koutarou's limbs had been bound with ropes by Ruth, but after forcing his way out of the sand, the ropes had been cut.
It was the superhuman strength that occurred in life and death situations.
“Senpai and Ruth are crying!”
Breaking free from the sand, Koutarou glared at the ghost hunters with eyes filled with rage.
The ghost hunters let go of the insect nets and began making excuses.
“W-Wait up young man! We're not after these girls!”
“T-That's right! We're after a different one, that small one from before!
“He's right, young man! We're only trying to capture that small girl from before so we can sell her off!”
“Please believe us! We have no interest in normal girls!”
But their excuses only fueled Koutarou's anger.
“S-So you're not just perverts, but your targeting small girls like Theia!?”
Koutarou didn't think the two of them were talking about Sanae.
That was because he didn't think they could see her.
And it wasn't just Koutarou, everyone on the beach thought the same thing.
“So they're targeting m-me!? As I thought, even blending in with the common rabble my noble aura still makes me stand out!”
So as a result nobody thought this was about anyone but Theia.
That these two are planning on kidnapping young girls and do terrible things to them, unforgivable perverts.
“Damnit you perverts! I don't give a damn who you're targeting! We have our hands filled with Yurika as the only pervert as it is!!”
“S-Satomi-san, at least call it cosplaying! A pervert is just too cruel!”
As Koutarou blurts out his true feelings, tears began streaming down on Yurika's face.
“...I see... so in Satomi-san's eyes I'm just a pervert...”
Taking a critical hit from an unexpected place, Yurika collapsed and kept crying.
“I'm starting to hate everything... Maybe I should visit home for once...
“Calm down young man! We only need that girl for the safety of society and to make a living!”
“He's right, we have no ulterior motives!”
“You make a living on it!? You're hardened criminals! On top of that you dare make Sakuraba-senpai and Ruth-san cry!? I'll kick you back into the sea and turn you into fish food!”
Enraged, Koutarou closed the distance from the ghost hunters.
At the same time, the ghost hunters started backing off.
But shortly they were unable to back up any further.
“Where do you two think you're going!?”
“Eh? From behind as well!?”
Shizuka stood behind them with the wooden sword in her hand.
Her forehead was wrinkled, her veins were showing and her eyes were filled with hatred.
“Not good! We're making a break for it, Hachi!”
“W-We can't, Aniki! We're completely surrounded!”
Apart from Yurika, Harumi and Ruth, the remaining members had surrounded the ghost hunters.
Koutarou clenched his fists, Shizuka tightened her grip on the wooden sword, Theia summoned a beam cannon from Blue Knight and Kiriha ordered her two haniwas to attack.
And Sanae appeared from under the sand, made the split watermelons float and took aim.
“What's wrong Satomi-kun, what happened!?”
More of Koutarou's allies appeared.
They were the six members of the cosplay society.
Planning to group up with Koutarou and the rest, they came carrying their luggage.
“Actually, some perverts appeared! It's dangerous so keep your distance!”
“Perverts!?”
“That type do appear from time to time.”
“Unforgivable!”
“Enemies of women!”
Hearing the situation, the girls helped surround the ghost hunters.
They were holding onto filled pet bottles and metal flasks.
If it came down to it, they were planning on throwing them.
“There's perverts.”
“Seriously?”
“Well those girls are cute...”
“I seriously can't believe it...”
On top of that, the other people on the beach began glaring at the ghost hunters, and they began encircling them to keep them from getting away.
It was no longer possible for them to retreat.
“I-It's no use...”
“It's all over.”
The two of them gave up on trying to persuade and resist.
And just like Yurika they began crying.
“By the way, we were playing watermelon splitting but, would you like to join in?”
At that point, Shizuka's refreshing smile left the two ghost hunters with some unforgettable summer memories.
Translator's Notes and References
1. ↑ A traditional Japanese confection
2. ↑ Another Japanese confection, essentially two pancakes wrapped around a red bean paste.
3. ↑ A game where you attempt to split a watermelon while blindfolded with other people guiding you
