Marine Biology Research (2)

And so, on the morning when the actual Marine Biology Research class began the next day…

As if to reveal who the owner of the carriage that had subtly followed us yesterday was, this class included one unexpected uninvited guest.

“Ah, Prince Blackwood and Lady Rosewood are here too. It’s been a while for both of you.”

“…Prince Antonio?”

“…It’s been a long time, Your Highness.”

Casually approaching where the hero party had gathered, the 5th Prince Antonio had somehow subtly squeezed himself near them.

His manner of naturally greeting them as if he’d been part of the hero party from the start made me wonder, so I discreetly asked Agnes why the prince had appeared.

“Did Agnes-nim invite you?”

“Are you crazy? Who do you think I am?”

“…Never mind then.”

“He followed on his own. I only mentioned that we were going to the Pliana Coast for the Marine Biology Research class.”

“So Agnes-nim did say something about it.”

“I said I didn’t invite him.”

…Well, Agnes certainly didn’t invite him. But realistically, if Agnes had mentioned it to Antonio, it was entirely predictable that he’d tag along like this.

After all, the Marine Biology Research class is held in the final week of the first semester, so some lectures might have already ended or be in their final sessions.

Still, even considering that, casually following along to the Pliana Coast-a full day’s journey from the academy-wasn’t exactly normal behavior.

“I only found out last night. A royal carriage was just naturally following us, so I assumed it was Seraphine, but then he suddenly got out and smoothly wormed his way into our party’s lodging.”

For that reason, the current occupants of the beach villa lodging now include the original hero party plus Prince Antonio as an extra.

If Ethan and I had squeezed in too, even that spacious house would’ve felt cramped, so booking a room at a slightly distant inn was a brilliant decision.

‘Having an extra available combatant for the Marine Biology Research class’s boss battle isn’t exactly bad news…’

The biggest variable is that I still can’t accurately gauge Prince Antonio’s strength.

If he’s at the level I saw in the Witch’s Forest, he’d be more of a hindrance than help, but based on Harold’s recent stories, he seemed to have passable skills.

So I cautiously assume he’s at least competent enough not to drag us down.

“Alright, everyone~! I need to explain the class, so could you all gather over here~?”

Meanwhile, a blonde, voluptuous female professor had appeared at the center of the beach.

Dressed in a revealing slingshot bikini, some of the male students taking the Marine Biology Research class stared at her as if entranced.

“……”

“…Hm? What’s wrong, Lillith?”

“…Nothing, it’s nothing.”

Well, it’s not like Ethan would gawk at another woman’s body at this point. I just checked out of curiosity, just in case.

Similarly, Thomas, who already has a crush on Natalie, and Antonio, who has no interest in women other than Agnes, were the same.

Even Gyeotmwa seemed momentarily entranced by the provocative outfit before snapping out of it and hastily suppressing his instincts.

‘By the way, it’s definitely a popular class-there are quite a few students.’

From what I remember, Marine Biology Research was the most popular elective in the first semester. In truth, this class was just masquerading as a research course while being an outright recreational event.

Even the orientation was something like, “Play at the beach for five days, and if monsters show up, work together to defeat them~.”

If no monsters appeared, you’d just spend five days playing in swimsuits with the opposite sex and get your credits-no wonder it was popular.

“I won’t mind if you spend your time freely~, but if I catch you doing anything lewd in the shade of rocks or trees, I’ll fail you~!”

“”Yes!!!””

By the way, “fail” here meant failing the class, so students who underestimated the warning due to her looks and chest often ended up flunking.

“Everyone brought swimsuits, right~? I’ll be watching to see if you’re playing hard~! Since this is the last class of the first semester, let’s all have fun…”

After listening to the professor’s superficial orientation, Ethan and I dispersed to our respective changing rooms.

Spotting Natalie and Agnes waiting in line at the crowded women’s changing room, I quickly joined them.

“Lady Natalie and Lady Agnes, are you here to change into swimsuits too?”

“Yes, Lady Lillith!”

“What swimsuit did you bring? You didn’t bring a different one from the one I picked, did you?”

“N-No! I brought the white bikini swimsuit you chose for me!”

“…What, did you come just to check that?”

“Well, we went through the trouble of picking swimsuits together-it’d be pointless if we didn’t wear the ones we chose for each other, right? Don’t tell me you brought a different swimsuit from the one I picked, Lady Agnes?”

“…I brought the one you picked, so don’t worry.”

Of course, that’s how it should be. We spent two hours trying on different swimsuits-it’d be a waste not to wear the ones we liked.

Plus, with Thomas around for Natalie and, though unintentional, Agnes had a great chance to show off her swimsuit to Antonio.

“So, what about you? Are you really wearing that swimsuit?”

“Huh? Isn’t that obvious? We all picked it together-of course I’m wearing it.”

“R-Really, Lady Lillith?! B-But the swimsuit you wore that time was a bit too daring, wasn’t it…?”

“If you’re going to wear that, you might as well go naked. How stupid can you be?”

“Huh? What do you two mean by…?”

I thought the swimsuit Lizzie picked for me had a pretty nice design, but the sudden criticism from the two made me realize they were referring to the first swimsuit I had tried on that day.

“N-No, it’s a different one! You two were dozing off back then, so you didn’t see it properly, but I picked a proper swimsuit for the beach!”

“O-Oh, I-I see! W-Well, that swimsuit did seem a bit too bold!”

“…Whatever you picked can’t be much different. You pervert.”

“It’s not something weird!”

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Though there was a bit of an argument outside the changing room, we soon entered one by one as the line shortened and changed into our swimsuits.

After changing into the maid-style swimsuit Lizzie had picked and stepping outside, I could confirm that Agnes and Natalie were indeed wearing the swimsuits I had chosen for them.

A simple white string bikini that perfectly accentuated their well-toned, healthy figures.

A fresh pink frilly one-piece swimsuit that enhanced Agnes’s petite frame with cuteness.

Even in the store, I thought they looked great, but against the backdrop of the beach, it really drove home that both of them had main heroine-level looks in 『Luminor Academy』.

“Lady Natalie, your swimsuit suits you well.”

“Ah, Lady Lillith! You’ve come out! Your swimsuit suits you wonderfully too!”

“Lady Agnes looks great as well. You must have been tired from picking it, but now that you’re wearing it, it’s not bad, right?”

“…I don’t know. I don’t care what I wear. I only wore this because you made such a fuss about it, so don’t think anything weird.”

Agnes’s usual brusque tone actually sounded kind of cute in that swimsuit. Clothes really do make the person, huh?

After glancing at Agnes and then at my swimsuit, she finally gave her delayed opinion-something she hadn’t done at the store.

“But why are you wearing a maid outfit again? Aren’t you tired of it?”

“What do you mean a maid outfit, Lady Agnes? This is a maid-style bikini swimsuit.”

“Same difference. And you’re still wearing the headdress even here?”

“Isn’t that obvious? You’re still wearing your hair tie even after changing into a swimsuit, aren’t you?”

“……”

Agnes gave me a dumbfounded look but couldn’t refute my logic.

Meanwhile, Natalie, after giving a brief comment on my swimsuit, was enthusiastically swinging around a wooden stick she’d gotten from somewhere.

-Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

“…Lady Natalie? What are you doing?”

“Ah, Lady Lillith! Sword practice! Even though I couldn’t bring a sword, I can’t neglect training even here!”

“…Please stop swinging that. Moving around like that in that outfit is a bit dangerous.”

“Huh? N-No! I’m always careful when swinging, so I won’t hit anyone or anything…”

“…That’s not the kind of danger I meant.”

Every time she swung the wooden stick up and down, her chest bounced, and the strings of her white bikini loosened slightly.

Thankfully, the men’s changing room was far away, but if left unchecked, Natalie would have suffered a wardrobe malfunction in front of many male students-something I had to prevent for her and Thomas’s sake.

“Your swimsuit straps are loosening from all that movement. Let me tie them properly so they don’t come undone. Stay still.”

“Ah, thank you!”

“And let’s skip the wooden sword practice. Since we’re at the beach, why not try a sport you can only do here?”

“…A sport only at the beach? Do you mean swimming?”

“That’s not bad, but…”

If we’re at the beach, we should do something symbolic of the beach.

Especially with 『Luminor Academy』’s cast of beautiful girls, all the more so.

“Instead of swimming, how about beach volleyball?”