While things hadn’t exactly gone off without a hitch... we’d managed to settle on the pairings for the time being. We agreed to regroup at the beach once everyone had finished changing into their swimwear.
We headed toward a sturdy-looking building that housed the changing rooms. Naturally, the men and women split up, but as per usual, I finished far faster than the others. I stepped out to wait for everyone at our designated meeting spot.
...Or so I had expected.
"You’re early, Shiro-san."
"There was no need for me to use the changing room in the first place."
"Oh... right. I suppose that's true."
Shiro-san was already there, waiting for me. She wore a white swimsuit similar to the one she’d worn during our previous trip to the ocean, complete with a floral-patterned pareo. She had even tied her hair back in a ponytail.
This was the second time I’d seen her in a swimsuit, but her beauty was still breathtaking. She looked less like a person and more like the literal incarnation of beauty.
"Um, Shiro-san... Your swimsuit is beautiful. And that hairstyle really suits you, too."
"Thank you. You’re welcome to praise me more, you know? It makes me happy."
"Ahaha..."
Her typical response put me at ease, but I couldn't help but let out a dry laugh as I considered what lay ahead. To be perfectly honest, I was getting a little nervous.
One by one, the rest of my lovers would be arriving here soon. I didn't need a crystal ball to know they would all be stunningly cute.
As their boyfriend, it was my job to give them the praise they deserved. If I had any dignity at all, I needed to make sure each compliment was sincere and—if possible—unique.
The problem was my vocabulary. I seriously doubted whether I had enough adjectives in my repertoire to properly extol seven more women...
Since this was the second time I’d seen Shiro-san’s suit, I’d managed to keep my cool, but the rest would be a total surprise. I had to stay focused.
Just as I was steeling my resolve, I heard Kuro’s bright voice.
"Sorry to keep you wait—... Huh?"
I turned around to see Kuro walking toward us with a beaming smile.
Her swimsuit was a black, two-piece bikini that seemed simple at first glance, paired with a floral pareo in a sophisticated, dark tone. Wait... this combination...
Kuro walked up to us, but the moment she caught sight of Shiro-san, her expression morphed into one of pure shock. She looked away, then looked back, as if she couldn't believe her eyes. Then, she slumped to her knees.
"We... We’re matching!?"
It was true. Kuro’s ensemble was a near-perfect color-swapped version of Shiro-san’s. Even their hairstyles were the same; though Kuro’s hair wasn't quite as long as Shiro’s, she’d tied it into a short ponytail.
I mean, with eight of them, I figured at least a little overlap was inevitable...
"C-Calm down, Kuro. With eight people, someone was bound to have the same idea. Besides, it looks great on you. The darker colors give you a cool, mature vibe."
"Kaito-kun... Ehehe, thanks."
She had seemed genuinely distressed, but my attempt at damage control seemed to work. She stood back up with a bashful, rosy-cheeked smile.
Unfortunately, there was one person present who seemed to lack a "read the room" function by default.
"I win."
"Um... Win? At what?"
Kuro tilted her head, looking utterly perplexed by Shiro-san’s sudden declaration of victory.
"This is the second time I have worn this swimsuit. This is the first time Kuro has worn that one. Therefore, I was first."
"Right...?"
"Which makes Kuro a mere imitation of me. Thus, my victory."
".........What?"
Oh boy. The air suddenly grew heavy. Kuro’s expression froze, and a moment later, a dark, mist-like aura began to seep from her body.
"I... I don't even know what to say. I don't care about the matching swimsuits anymore, but the way Shiro is acting so smug about it... it's really starting to grate on my nerves."
"Smug."
"..."
I swear I heard something snap. I’d known this for a while, but Shiro-san is oddly competitive when it comes to Kuro. Conversely, Kuro is surprisingly relentless when dealing with Shiro-san. I’d even heard that while Kuro is usually the soul of kindness, the two of them get into regular spats.
I suppose it’s proof of how close they are, but in this specific situation...
"Shiro... How about we get a little exercise in before we go swimming? Just the two of us?"
"Do you wish to add another defeat to your record? I have no objections."
"I never lost in the first place. I guess your thick skull just couldn't process that, huh? Fine. I’ll beat the lesson into you."
"Challenge accepted."
Kuro spoke with a strained smile while Shiro-san remained expressionless, yet clearly filled with a competitive fire. The two of them vanished an instant later. They’d likely gone off to settle their score somewhere else.
Well, they at least had enough restraint not to start a fight right here on the beach. I figured they’d be back by the time the actual swimming started.
I was left standing alone on the sand, surrounded by a lingering, awkward tension, when a lovely voice called out to heal my soul.
"Kaito... Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Isis-san."
"How... do I look?"
Looking slightly bashful, Isis-san stepped onto the beach. She wore a darling, light-blue swimsuit adorned with plenty of frills.
She’d gathered her long hair into a single ponytail at the nape of her neck. Her translucent white skin was on full display, and the sight of her was almost unfairly cute. Just looking at her felt like my soul was being cleansed... She was a literal angel.
"The swimsuit is adorable and suits you perfectly. And that hairstyle—it's fresh, and it looks wonderful on you."
"Thank you... I'm so happy."
It really felt like a mistake to give someone this precious a title as terrifying as the Death King. Though I suppose the person responsible for that was a close acquaintance of mine...
"Kai-cha~n! Sorry I'm late!"
"Ah, Fate-san—!?"
The next arrival hit me like a physical shock. Fate-san appeared in a swimsuit that had such an overwhelming impact, I almost blurted out "They're massive" the second I saw her.
If I remembered correctly, her top was a cross-halter style. The fabric crossed over her chest and tied behind her neck, leaving her cleavage prominently on display.
The combination of white, purple, and black suited her perfectly, but all I could focus on was the sheer volume of her bust, which looked like it was on the verge of spilling over.
Among all my lovers, Fate-san definitely had the largest chest, and seeing her in a swimsuit was staggering. Since she was walking on her own two feet instead of floating on a cushion today, I couldn't help but track the way her breasts swayed with every step.
Seeing her like this really hammered home the appeal of what people called "transistor glamour."
"Fate-san... You look quite different in a swimsuit compared to your usual clothes. It’s a nice change of pace. You look really cute."
"Ahaha, thanks! But you know, this is the first time I've ever worn one of these. It's... a little cramped."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. It feels like there's a lot of pressure on my chest. It's a weird feeling."
"I-I see..."
She said it so casually, but I was struggling to keep my cool. If she was saying that... then it meant that Fate-san usually... didn't wear a bra. No, no, stay calm. Don't go there! I was in my trunks, too; if I let my imagination run wild, I was going to be in a lot of trouble.
I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. There were still four more people to go. Honestly, now that I thought about it, I was about to be surrounded by eight beautiful women in swimsuits. Was I really going to be able to keep my composure until the end of the day?
Bonus: Depressed Machina-chan ①
Machina-chan: "To make such a pathetic blunder in front of my beloved child... And here I was, doing so well at maintaining my image as a dignified, kind, motherly woman everyone could rely on..."
Alice-chan: "There are so many things wrong with that sentence that I don't even know where to start. Besides, Machina, it's not like your clumsiness is a new development. You were just using your terrifying personality and the authority of an Otherworld God to mask it. You’ve been a total mess this whole time."
Machina-chan: "I am not a mess! The person who calls someone a mess is the real mess! Alice is mean! You're so mean!"
Alice-chan: "Look, setting aside your 'takes one to know one' logic, can you just pull yourself together? We can't move on with the training like this."
Machina-chan: "Comfort me."
Alice-chan: "Excuse me?"
Machina-chan: "I want you to comfort me. Gently."
Alice-chan: "God, she’s such a pain..."