When I came back inside from the balcony and checked the clock, I saw that it had already gotten quite late. We had spent more time out there than I’d realized, but I felt like we had managed plenty of flirting—whether or not it had gone exactly as Alice’s "script" intended.
Alice still looked embarrassed, but she wasn't as rigid as she had been a while ago. She seemed to have adjusted to the situation... or rather, she had resigned herself to it.
"So, if I remember your plan correctly, the bath is next?"
"……W-Well, that is correct, but…… hmm. I’m not going to say I’ll back out now because I’m shy after coming this far, but…… I have many unpleasant memories regarding baths……"
"Ah……"
Seeing Alice make a face as if she had just chewed on a bitter bug, it occurred to me that she had a point. I’d had several opportunities to bathe with her before, and she frequently ended up suffering for it.
Actually, it wasn't so much that things happened to her as it was that she self-destructed. Regardless, the troubles in the bathhouse had become a minor trauma for her, and those memories were clearly resurfacing against her will.
"After all, at the hands of the fiendish Kaito-san, I have suffered all sorts of humiliations and been reduced to tears in the bathhouse before. Those memories of terror and embarrassment are all flooding back."
"Hey, don't go fabricating outrageous memories. Almost all of that was just you self-destructing……"
I wasn't about to deny that she’d had an embarrassing time, but the accident during our first mixed bath happened because Alice kicked the stool I was sitting on. And when we bathed with Kuro and the others, she had gotten cocky after changing her appearance with transformation magic, which resulted in Shiro-san's Blessing performing a forced cancellation on her magic.
Of course, I knew Alice hadn't done those things on purpose, but it certainly wasn't my fault.
"No, no. Kaito-san, you might be a Mixed Bathing Master with experience bathing with numerous women, but I am an amateur. In such situations, the professional should lead and provide proper support. Therefore, it’s Kaito-san’s fault-ssu."
"That is the height of absurdity…… and besides, who are you calling a Mixed Bathing Master? I’m nothing of the—"
"Is there even one of your lovers you haven't shared a mixed bath with?"
"…………At least stop calling me a 'Master.' It makes me sound like a pervert."
I had been thoroughly refuted. I couldn't offer a single word of protest. It was true that I’d shared a bath with all of them at least once. Beyond that, I’d even ended up in the water with people like Life-san, Chronoa-san, and Ein-san, even though they weren't my lovers. There really was no arguing.
I truly had a strange affinity for mixed bathing. Sometimes I honestly wondered if I was cursed by the bathhouse myself.
"……W-Well, it’s fine to do that with your lovers, isn't it?"
"Aren't there people you bathed with even before they became your lovers?"
"……A-Anyway, shall we head to the bath? Oh, I wonder if the water is ready."
"You totally dodged the question! Wait! Ah, hold on, Kaito-san. This is the flow where we’re going right now, isn't it? I'm not mentally prepared yet—ah, wait, don't pull my hand…… T-This, I might have said too much……"
The awkwardness was becoming overwhelming, so I grabbed Alice's hand and practically hauled her toward the bathroom.
Machina: "Now, which one will Serious-senpai choose? I shall respect your choice, Serious-senpai!"
Serious-senpai: "Forget the fact that it's practically only one choice…… Your options aren't even answering what I said!"
Machina: "Why not? They certainly do."
Serious-senpai: "They do not! I asked you 'How can I avoid sugar developments'!"
Machina: "Yes. That’s why I presented the options as: 'Since you cannot avoid sugar developments no matter what, just give up and dote on my beloved child,' right?"
Serious-senpai: "……Ah…… I see…… so…… it’s like that……"