I found myself on a plane bound for Hawaii, all to fulfill Kuro’s sudden desire to visit the islands.
Naturally, we were flying first class. While I was an ordinary guy through and through, Kuro was effectively the ruler of the Otherworld; I felt she deserved to experience the best, so I decided to splurge on the tickets.
Even so, the price was staggering. If Eden-san hadn’t provided me with a small fortune, I never would have dreamed of booking these seats.
I tilted my glass, savoring the champagne and the fleeting sensation of wealth, then glanced at Kuro. She sat beside me with a look of intense concentration, buried in a Japanese-English dictionary and a stack of conversation guides.
“...All right, I’ve got it!”
“Wait, already? You only started reading those a few minutes ago!”
“Mhm. Well, I’ll need to practice the pronunciation by actually speaking, but I’ve memorized everything in these books for now.”
Kuro had mastered English conversation... in about ten minutes. Her abilities truly were on another level—practically a cheat code.
I sat there stunned, but eventually, the thought Well, it’s Kuro crossed my mind. I realized I’d become quite accustomed to her extraordinary nature.
She stowed the books away and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, produced some baby castella and began snacking.
“Mmm! Eating baby castella in such a fancy setting... it feels so decadent!”
“...No, that’s... something’s not quite right about that.”
“...Maybe I should add some caviar to make it a ‘First Class’ baby castella.”
“Please don’t. Stop desecrating one of the world’s greatest delicacies.”
I gave her a wry smile, enjoying the fact that she hadn’t changed one bit, and took another sip of champagne.
“By the way, what made you want to come to Hawaii in the first place?”
“Hmm... It’s a secret! You’ll have to wait until we get there!”
“...I see.”
She clearly had no intention of revealing her motive just yet.
However, I wasn't entirely in the dark. I’d known Kuro for a long time, and I had a nagging suspicion about what she was after.
I looked down at the magazine in my lap—the one she’d been reading when the idea first struck her. If I was right, she’d been looking at this specific page.
If I was wrong, I’d be mortified, but if I was right... I might just be able to pull off a surprise of my own.
We landed in Honolulu and made our way out of the airport without a hitch. The midday sun was intense, and despite a touch of jet lag, I navigated the roads and boarded a bus headed for our destination.
Hawaii was incredibly accommodating to Japanese tourists, with many staff members fluent in the language. Of course, for me, it was even easier; translation magic handled everything automatically, allowing me to converse as I normally would.
Since it was still a bit early for dinner, we checked into our hotel first. We were staying at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, a massive resort boasting seven different towers, a shopping mall, and direct beach access.
I’d followed an online recommendation that claimed this was the best spot for sightseeing, and seeing the sheer scale of the grounds and the variety of shops, I was glad I did.
With time to kill before our meal, we decided to take a dip in the ocean at Waikiki Beach.
“Kaito-kun! Let’s go for a swim!”
Kuro, dressed in a pale blue swimsuit and matching pareo, grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the water.
The hotel’s private beach was situated right next to the pool area, making the transition from the resort to the sand incredibly convenient.
“Sure, but let’s do some warm-up stretches before we dive in—”
“Hah!”
“Gah—!? K-Kuro?!”
“Ahaha! Caught you off guard!”
A spray of seawater smacked me right in the face before I could even start. Quite the preemptive strike. Fine, then. If that was how she wanted to play...
“Take this!”
“Too slow!”
“Wait, that’s huge—! Sploosh!”
I attempted to retaliate, but our difference in power was simply too vast. My meager splash was instantly swallowed by a literal wall of water that Kuro sent crashing back into my face.
Damn it, a head-on confrontation was a losing battle. Kuro’s reaction time was so fast she probably saw my attacks in slow motion. If that was the case, I’d have to use a different tactic...
“Wait, what?! E-Eden-san?! What are you doing here?!”
“Huh? Seriously?!”
“Gotcha!”
“Eek?!”
I doused Kuro the moment she spun around in a panic. Mwahaha! Victory is all that matters, regardless of the method!
“Ka-i-to-kun... Now you’ve done it!”
“Wait! Kuro, hold on, let’s be reasonable! That’s not a splash, that’s a tidal wave—!”
We spent the rest of the afternoon playing like children, and just like that, our first day in Hawaii drew to a close.
Tomorrow, we were scheduled to visit the area where I suspected her true objective lay. If my prediction was correct, that was when she would finally make her move. Heh... I really hoped I could pull off my counter-surprise.