Ch.199Umee’s Date

After a long kiss, our lips parted.

“Oh my. A young couple? How fresh and sweet.”

“We were like that when we were young too.”

Some warm sentiments floated our way, but Umi and I were already immersed in our own world.

“Honey, when are you going to divorce your wife?”

“Ah… just wait a little longer.”

As a bonus, we overheard a conversation laden with adult circumstances.

“Hmph. Didn’t you say it was your wedding anniversary? Is this okay?”

“Mm-hmm. I want to be with you today. That husband of mine is always just working…”

“Ohoho. What a bad girl.”

Yes, adult circumstances can sometimes be quite dirty.

Anyway, not wanting to break the mood, I decided to just enjoy my time alone with Umi.

Please let me continue this beautiful love with Umi. Though I don’t believe in God, this once I prayed.

After we’d played with each other’s lips for quite some time, Umi suddenly came to her senses.

“Ah!! That’s right!!! We should have eaten dessert or something fragrant before kissing…”

Umi made a sad face.

“Did my breath… smell bad?” Umi asked.

“No. It smelled nice,” I shook my head.

“Ohoho. I see.” Umi looked relieved.

“It tasted like delicious garlic steak,” I elaborated.

“Hey!! That’s not a good smell. What should I do… the mood is ruined.”

Umi sighed.

“Mood? It’s not ruined at all. Right now, you look the most beautiful in the world.”

I embraced Umi.

“Oh my…”

Umi’s cheeks turned pink.

I wanted to eat everything in this buffet to get my money’s worth, but there’s a limit to what a human stomach can hold.

“I knew this would happen, so I brought emetics.”

Umi immediately held up something.

“No! Why would you bring something like that?!”

I objected right away.

“Huh? If you empty your stomach, you can eat more.”

Umi tilted her head. This girl… is she a Roman noble?

Wait… Rome. Maybe later I should have Umi wear a Roman toga. She’d definitely look like a goddess. That would be hot too. Where could I get one?

Anyway.

“Doing that will upset your stomach. Even the Romans suffered from it.”

That’s what I said.

They say there wasn’t a noble who didn’t suffer from stomach ailments. The Romans who lived long lives were those who, rare for that era, practiced moderation in eating.

“Mmm… but it’s such a waste.”

Umi said. She’s quite frugal. None of my girlfriends had wasteful habits. I was relieved about that.

“We’ve already gotten our money’s worth.”

That’s what I said. Calculating roughly by the price of one steak, we’d made about 40,000 won in profit.

“And we have more plans.”

I stood up and extended my hand to Umi.

“Come, miss. Let’s go together.”

I said with a smile.

“Hehehe. Okay.”

Umi and I left the buffet right away. Since we’d paid in advance, we had a free pass. It was strangely uncomfortable when the waiter bowed at a 90-degree angle as we left.

———

Umi had relatively ordinary tastes. Along with Eri, she gave off the impression of being a textbook gyaru. Well… she’d become a bit eccentric lately, but still, tastes don’t change completely overnight.

“Wow…!!”

Umi looked around with sparkling eyes.

Even in the rural town of Emoshita, there were some youthful attractions.

There was an aquarium called ‘Manta Aquarium.’ It also functioned as a café where you could enjoy coffee while watching the aquarium.

‘Japan has also been invaded by café monsters…’

I closed my eyes tightly.

The custom of combining everything with cafés existed in Korea too. Escape room cafés, board game cafés, and so on.

True to its name “Manta,” the only things on display were stingrays. It was a small aquarium-cum-café where stingrays of all shapes and colors swam. Right. Don’t expect the quality of a famous attraction. This is rural Emoshita after all.

However, the dreamlike scenery of the aquarium with tanks all around was enough to make Umi’s eyes sparkle.

“Wow!! So pretty!!!”

But soon, Umi made a dumbfounded expression.

“But… they’re all stingrays.”

Umi muttered.

“Well… it would be nice if there were some pretty tropical fish or something…”

I sighed as I spoke.

“What are you saying!! That’s what makes it great!!”

At that moment, a man walked over. He was wearing a stingray costume.

Ah… I know this pattern…

“I am the protagonist of this place. Kimoshita Manta. It’s not a pseudonym. It’s my real registered name, which means stingray.”

He quietly raised his crazed eyes to look at me.

“Shota… isn’t this the same pattern as that giraffe man we saw at the amusement park last time?”

Umi asked.

“………”

Huh. I had the exact same thought.

“I’m the chairman of the Stingray Lovers Association. Although I’m the only member…”

He scratched his head.

“I knew it!!”

Umi exclaimed in a mournful tone.

“When I was young, I was often teased for having the name Manta, meaning stingray. I was also told my face resembled a stingray.”

He said, looking at the aquarium.

“Uh… I see.”

Shit!! This guy is ruining our date…!!

“With my stingray-like appearance and slow, stingray-like demeanor, I graduated from school without enjoying my youth and lived a gray life. Then… I received a revelation.”

“Excuse me… our order…!”

I tried to cut off the story somehow.

“The order is not important right now!!”

Manta immediately rebuked me. You crazy bastard!! This is a café. If the owner doesn’t take orders, what are we supposed to do?!

“Actually, I… wondered if I might have been born from a stingray. A prophet sent to Earth by the Stingray God, that was me!! Then everything became clear!! Having received the revelation that I must spread the good qualities of stingrays to the world, I saved money tenaciously. I grew a seafood distribution business and achieved considerable success. And now I run this café as a side business and a place to spread the stingray faith.”

That’s what Manta said.

That was quite impressive, honestly. Running even a small aquarium must cost a lot of money.

“And… I got married too.”

He said somewhat shyly.

“Oh my…”

At those words, Umi made a warm expression. Right. So the ending is heartwarming. Good! Please give us a sweet conclusion!!

“Ah. Let me introduce my wife. My wife is… Manko.”

Manta pointed to a small tank behind the counter.

“………”

“………”

A stingray was swimming leisurely. Given the context… it must be female.

“Well anyway!! Looking at stingrays makes you happy!! Welcome to this place of happiness!!! What would you like to order?”

Manta finally started acting like a proper owner.

“Umi, what do you want to eat?”

“I’ll have a café latte!!”

“Then one hot coffee and one café latte, please.”

“Yes sir!!”

After receiving our drinks, we headed to a cozy spot.

Watching the stingrays swimming leisurely, Umi smiled brightly.

“Heh. Shota really does take me to funny places every time.”

Umi said, staring at me.

“I’m… sorry about that.”

I apologized for that. But honestly, it was an act of God. I never dreamed we’d meet such a weirdo.

“Puhehehehe!!”

Suddenly, Umi burst into laughter.

“Really… there’s never a dull moment with you, Shota.”

Umi said, looking at the stingrays.

“You always surprise me with new things… show me interesting things. You give me lots of new experiences.”

After saying that, Umi looked straight at me.

“I’ve had so many guys hit on me that I went on a few dates. But… they weren’t fun at all. Always the same predictable places, trying to have the same predictable conversations.”

After saying that, Umi smiled at me.

“I like you several times more than when we first started dating. I want to be with Shota forever.”

Umi expressed her sincere feelings toward me.

“I think I like Umi several times more than before too.”

That’s what I said.

Honestly, although our relationship started with Umi and Eri half-forcing themselves on me, I’m quite happy now.

“Let’s… be happy together. And solve this shadow world thing or whatever it is.”

Umi interlaced her fingers with mine.

Afterward, the two of us spent an intimate time at the stingray café.

———

Eventually, our date reached its final stage. I had already told everyone I would be staying out overnight.

“Here.”

I pointed to a self-service hotel on the outskirts of Emoshita. This place… doesn’t check IDs. I had obtained that information beforehand.

“You’re good at finding places like this.”

Umi said with a smile.

“You can find anything if you research.”

I said in a proud tone.

“Well then… let’s go.”

Umi took my hand.

“I also prepared some super sexy lingerie that I thought Shota would like.”

Umi said with a giggle.

“Whoa…!”

That was something to look forward to.

“Let’s go, Umi!”

I immediately embraced Umi and pulled her along. My body was so heated up I couldn’t stand it.

“Shota!! You’re so impatient!”

Umi giggled as she followed me.

——–

In the hotel, Umi and I thoroughly intertwined our bodies.

By the way, the lingerie Umi wore was a wedding dress arranged like a night gown. The coexistence of elegance and sexiness made it hard to hold back in many ways.

“Haah… so happy.”

Umi smiled and snuggled tightly in my arms.

“Me too.”

I smiled and looked out the window.

Emoshita was a rural town, but it had its advantages. It got extremely dark at night, so the stars were clearly visible. Plus, it was summer now, the perfect time to see stars.

Umi and I leaned against each other, gazing at the night sky.

At that moment, something like a spaceship quickly flew across the night sky.

Swoosh-!!!

Yes, it was a UFO. And the direction it flew was… toward our house.

“Must be the Kirtanians.”

I muttered.

“Really… to think we’d see a UFO from a love hotel… that’s too much impact.”

Umi smiled broadly.

And so, my date with Umi concluded quite successfully. It was quite a memorable experience.