Chapter 11. Summer and the Sea (6)

Actually, no matter how much it’s Ria and I, it’s a bit much to play separately from the others who came with us.

It would look like I have some kind of superiority complex.

Especially since Han Yu-ri seemed to view us quite favorably, she soon grabbed our hands and led us to play together.

She doesn’t seem to feel any particular rivalry towards Ria and me.

If I had to pick the top two most amazing people among us, Ria would be first, and I would be a close second. Han Yu-ri and Gloria would be tied for third.

And- well.

I’m not sure about the figure of the elf standing far away.

Frankly, she’s someone I’m a little curious about. Although that person, who seemed a few years older than us, was also beautiful, she never played with us despite following us. She’s not someone who appeared in the main story, yet she’s always subtly close to us. It’s impossible not to be curious.

I didn’t think she was evil. If she were, she wouldn’t have tried to save Gloria while ending up in a similar situation to Gloria, nor would she have followed us to the Dwarf Kingdom to stay by Gloria’s side.

“What’s wrong?”

Perhaps sensing my gaze, Gloria approached me and asked.

Gloria was wearing a sky-blue swimsuit. Did she match it to her eye color?

While she chose a one-piece swimsuit, possibly because the bikini design was too revealing for the common sense of that world, it wasn’t entirely devoid of exposure. The front was a relatively normal one-piece swimsuit, but the back was quite exposed.

The back looked even more bare than a bikini with even one strap.

While eating meat yesterday-while held in Ria’s arms- I casually asked, and for Gloria, that level of exposure was apparently similar to the exposure of trendy dresses. That design, which gathers at the nape of the neck and hangs down, revealing the back, certainly looks like a dress.

Then why can’t she wear a bikini? Is it a bit much to expose her stomach as well? Well, before bikinis came out, it seemed that was the case.

“I was wondering if she has no intention of playing.”

“Ah.”

Gloria nodded.

“Dabi seems to find me a little uncomfortable.”

“Dabi?”

“That’s her name.”

I nodded at Gloria’s words. Dabi. So that’s her name.

“She saved my life, and in this world, it’s not very useful to distinguish status, so even though I told her to relax- she’s always like this. It seems she thinks she must protect me wherever I am.”

“Is that so?”

If that’s the case, then it can’t be helped.

Frankly, if a company commander came and asked soldiers to play together, the soldiers would find it incredibly uncomfortable. Even if they had a somewhat casual relationship, it would be the same. There’s an age difference, and regardless, there’s also the matter of hierarchy.

…It’s even more so if it’s a princess and her attendant.

“Actually, if you ask me what kind of person Dabi is, I don’t think I can answer properly.”

Gloria said, gazing at Dabi.

Dabi seemed to realize Gloria was looking at her and was turning her head back and forth. It looked like she was shifting her gaze, and somehow it seemed like she was relaxing her head as she turned it.

Either way, she seemed to be looking away in slight embarrassment.

Hmm.

It doesn’t seem to be just out of obligation.

As someone who didn’t even read the original to the end, I don’t know what kind of past Gloria has with that person named Dabi, but it feels like there might be some backstory to it. Or perhaps she was a character resisting alive when she returned to the world of elves. The story didn’t progress that far, though.

“It seems uncommon to see someone showing that much loyalty, doesn’t it?”

“There’s only one life. Loyalty is something that is only displayed when money and life are at stake. There are some who fight solely for honor… but, well. Those people are usually the first to become victims of political strife.”

That’s a rather bitter statement.

Hearing Gloria’s words, I felt like there was more to it. Perhaps a very cliché situation where Gloria owed her life to Dabi in the past, but Dabi considered it a trivial matter and didn’t remember it well.

Am I imagining things that are too much like a novel?

“Anna!”

I heard a call from far away. Turning my head, I saw Ria waving her hand at me.

Even from this distance, Ria’s red hair was noticeable.

…

Ah, right.

Perhaps I’m not just imagining things that are like a novel.

Rather, I might have been thinking about the relationship between Ria and me.

In a sense, I don’t really know how we ended up trusting each other this much.

Well, if you think about it, our relationship could be said to be similar.

*

Although we only played on the beach the first day, we had quite a lot of time from the morning on the second day.

Do you remember the motorcycle we used last time when we flew over the mana-contaminated land?

That motorcycle, powered by mana, was a vehicle that floated and flew over any surface.

In other words, it could be used for flying over water without major problems. Of course, if the waves were too high, it wouldn’t be usable, but that’s not the case now.

Instead of just floating on the water, it could fly to some extent, which made it even more stable.

Although the water splashed violently from below.

I had my arms wrapped around Ria’s waist and my mouth shut, unable to even scream.

Both of us were wearing life jackets, so it wasn’t incredibly embarrassing, but it was still a bit scary.

Flying over the sea, while more stable, is no less frightening. Rather, the concepts of ‘falling’ and ‘sinking’ merged, making the fear even more intense.

“I’ll trust you.”

I said that before riding!

Well, it’s not like I wanted her to ride too slowly. If she rode slowly, it would be meaningless and there would be no fun at all.

I had intended to fly over the sea and enjoy the scenery, but in the end, I couldn’t properly enjoy the surrounding scenery and just clung tightly to Ria’s back until the end.

“…I almost died…”

“Hmm? I thought I was driving quite safely.”

Hearing Ria say that, I frowned and looked up at her. Ria was smirking with one side of her lip raised.

Oh ho.

So, this is revenge for the morning.

“…”

Well, what can I do? I teased her first.

“You got drunk and clung to me first…”

“…”

“All night long-“

“Hey, hey, okay, okay. I’m sorry.”

Ria said that and then grabbed my arm to help me up.

As I stood up, I saw Gloria and Han Yu-ri whispering.

“As expected, from the nunnery-“

“That’s not it!”

As if Ria had heard their whispering, she huffed and pointed her finger at Gloria.

The children all laughed at the sight. Except for Dabi.

Ria turned to me with an angry expression, so I showed her the ‘Saint’s smile’ again.

Ria’s face turned red again.

Honestly, she’s only emotional when it comes to things like this.

If she acted like she does when fighting, she would have won long ago. Well, from my perspective, I prefer Ria like this.

…

Uh, well, that is to say, the expression ‘prefer’…

It means I don’t dislike it.

Anyway, that’s how it is.

*

Because we bickered all the time, in a sense, Gloria seemed to be closer to Han Yu-ri than to Lee Si-yoon.

After all, liking someone and being close to them are separate issues. Admiration is a feeling that can be felt more deeply when you don’t know the other person well.

Although Lee Si-yoon wasn’t the type of person whose feelings would be hurt or admiration would fade just by getting to know him better.

After we ate plenty of grilled meat and snacks, we went back to our rooms.

As expected, the other girls who were in the ‘girls’ room’ all left the room with various excuses and didn’t return. By the way, Dabi also slipped out with Gloria like a shadow when she left the room.

If she had returned last night, everyone would have seen Ria like that. Ria was lucky.

“…Hey. Are you okay?”

“What do you mean, okay?”

“Uh, even when we’re out like this, being alone with me.”

“I’m more comfortable that way.”

“…”

“Why, do you want me to be with Si-yoon? Even though I look like this, I’m a nun, and a Saint candidate.”

“…”

Ria thought for a moment,

“No. Being with him is a bit…”

She answered softly.

“As expected, right?”

Well, there would be various reasons. If I, a Saint candidate and a nun, got into trouble with Lee Si-yoon, then both of us would have a lot of headaches. Also- I don’t know how much favor Ria still feels towards Lee Si-yoon. Although it wasn’t apparent from the outside, I can’t be sure of the reality.

“…Do you trust me even after what I did yesterday?”

“If you acted only on instinct while drunk but didn’t cause any harm, then yes, I trust you.”

Ria didn’t answer at all.

Is she embarrassed?

I turned to face Ria.

Ria, beyond the bed, was just staring at the ceiling.

“Are you perhaps trying to hand me over to someone else?”

“…No.”

Ria’s answer was quite firm.

I liked that.

*

After sleeping soundly like that, I thought I should wake up the next day and go back to the church.

“Anna?”

Someone called me.

“Ugh?”

“…Anna.”

The person waking me up with a whisper was-

“…Ria?”

I blinked and answered.

As I sat up, everyone was in our room. Even Lee Si-yoon.

With a sleepy expression.

Except for Dabi. Dabi’s eyes were wide open.

“Anna. Listen carefully.”

Ria said with a very serious expression.

“Someone seems to have broken in here.”

That was enough to shake off all my sleepiness.