"A test... of courage!?"
At Elena’s words, the color drained instantly from the previously excited Fee’s face.
Elena, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he looked like he might actually faint, continued with a beaming smile.
"That's right! I mean, it’s not like we’ve set up any tricks to startle you or that there will be scary stories, but we will be walking along dark paths at night. So, who knows? Maybe a ghost will show up!"
"A-A ghost...!?"
In stark contrast to Elena’s cheerful tone, Fee’s complexion grew increasingly pale.
While the rest of the group watched his reaction—which made it painfully obvious just how much he hated ghosts—Yugo spoke up to his younger brother.
"What’s wrong, Fee? Are you really that afraid of ghosts?"
"I-I-I-I'm not afraid! I-I'm just concerned about the possibility of a vengeful spirit possessing a monster and turning it into a Magic Armor Beast. It’s not like I’m actually afraid of the specter itself or anything..."
"Hahaha! Well, don't worry. I’ll be right there with you. You'll be safe then, right?"
"Y-yeah... if Big Bro is with me, I think I'll be okay..."
Fee’s expression relaxed slightly at his brother’s words as Yugo patted him on the shoulder.
Having listened to the brothers' conversation, Elena made a suggestion to the rest of the group.
"Well then, let's decide on groups now! Since it doubles as a test of courage, it'll be more fun if the groups are as small as possible!"
"A test of courage while touring the island at night...!?"
"Small... groups...!?"
"Which means, in other words...!"
The moment Elena made her proposal, a strange tension shot through the girls.
Thinking it over, they realized that this situation was a golden opportunity.
Even though Fee would be with them, if they could join Yugo's group, they could spend a considerable amount of time with him without being interrupted by their rivals.
If they pretended to be scared of ghosts alongside Fee, the kindhearted Yugo would probably hold their hand. In a situation like this, they could even cling to him under the guise of an accidental fright and it wouldn't feel out of place at all.
They couldn't let this chance slip away. More importantly, they couldn't allow a rival to seize such a perfect scenario.
While Melt, Anhel, Setsuna, and Sakura each fired themselves up, Ryuga—who stood a step away from their fierce clash of rock-paper-scissors—spoke to Elena.
"If Yugo is going with Fee-kun, I'll go with my sister. Yui, that's fine with you, right?"
"Yes! I don't mind!"
"In that case, should the four of us just form a group? Fee, you'd prefer having Yui-chan with us too, right?"
"Hey! What do you think you're saying!?"
"Yugo! That's wrong! Absolutely not!"
"Read the room, Yugo. And accept your situation."
"For now, the rock-paper-scissors continues! Please wait a moment until a winner is decided!!"
Reacting to Yugo's oblivious suggestion, Melt and the others whipped their bodies around to snap at him in unison.
After doing so, they resumed their intense battle. While the members not participating in the struggle watched them with wry smiles, Horon stepped in with a suggestion.
"In that case, how about we add Elena and Porulu and make four groups of three? That should work out perfectly for the number of people we have, don't you think?"
"Hmm... well, that seems reasonable. One person from those four will join Yugo and Fee's group, and the three who lose will form another group. That leaves—"
"...Marcos, do you want to come with us? If you're there, Yui can feel safe—Ouch!?"
Taking Horon's suggestion, everyone agreed to form groups of three and began working out the details.
Ryuga tried to invite Marcos into their group, but Yui hit her brother's knee with a slipper to rebuke him and shut him down.
"Dear Brother? Could you try to read the room for a second?"
"She's right, Partner. It's obvious Marcos is going to be paired with Elena and Porulu, isn't it? Even I can see that."
"......"
Ryuga made a sour face at the comments from his sister and his partner.
On the other hand, Elena was overjoyed to be paired with the boy and her pet.
"Yay! Then Porulu and I will be with Marcos! Nice to meet you!"
"Kani-kani-ka~ni~!"
"...Thinking about it again, can we really count Porulu as a person?"
"Um, since three groups are finished now, the one left is—"
Fee began to think about who was left over at the end. That person then timidly spoke up to Ryuga and the others.
"U-um... I look forward to... working with you..."
"Yes! We look forward to working with you too, Raiha-san!"
"......"
As Raiha, who had been left out of the main competition, offered her greetings while glancing nervously at Ryuga, an awkward atmosphere began to flow between the two.
However, Ryuga seemed to be accepting the situation with a sense of half-resignation. Since Yui was welcoming Raiha with a smile, it didn't look like any major misunderstanding was occurring yet.
"Alright, alright! The groups are decided! Now, please spend your time relaxing, eating, and taking a bath until the night tour begins! I have to get ready for the tour, so I’ll be going now! See you later!"
"Thank you very much! All right! Let's take them up on their offer and relax then!"
Thus, the groups were finalized, leaving the girls behind to finish their fierce rock-paper-scissors duel.
Yugo and the others spent their time as they pleased, looking forward to the night on Shandia Island and the tour to observe the monsters.
Though they had various thoughts on their minds, they believed that the time spent with their comrades would be a pleasant one—but?