Although there had been an incident that felt like the end of the world—Tanaka being hit on by elementary schoolers and the resulting suspicion that she was a shotacon—we finally managed to reach the water slide area.
"Look, look, Ryouta! On this slide, you can ride the rapids in a two-seater twin tube!"
"O-oh, cool."
My eyes involuntarily followed Airi’s breasts as they bounced up and down with her excitement before I finally turned my attention to the slides.
There were three famous slides at this pool: the High-Speed Speed Slider, the Ultra-Long Water Slider, and the River Ride Slider.
Among them, the River Ride Slider—which simulated a trip down the rapids in a specialized tube—was the most popular. A long line had already formed.
"That line is huge. We'll be waiting forever, won't we?"
"In that case, I'll wait in line here," I suggested. "You four can go check out a different slide. Even without me, as long as you stick together, people probably won't try to hit on you."
"Whaaat?! No way!"
"Exactly. Knowing you, Ryouta, the second you're alone, you’ll start gawking at every girl’s swimsuit but ours."
"Huh?! Really?! Ryouta, you lecher!"
"Fufu... Honestly, Ryouta-kun. Setting your sights on someone other than us... I think that’s very bad behavior, don't you?"
I’d said it out of consideration for them, yet for some reason, I found myself under a total assault from the Beautiful Girl Trio. Why did they have to assume I wanted to be alone just to ogle other girls? It was truly insulting.
...Or so I thought. In truth, my eyes had been glued to the pair of wild-looking tanned gals in line ahead of us. I really did want to be left alone for a bit, but that was a secret.
"Anyway, Yuria and I will wait here, so you three—"
"Fufu. Say, Yuria?"
"W-what is it, Rui?"
"I can't help but feel... that you’ve been trying awfully hard to get alone with Ryouta-kun since this morning. Is it just my imagination?"
"Huh?! N-no, it's not! I just felt like... since he's making lewd eyes twenty-four-seven, it's my job to monitor him."
What kind of job is that?! That sounds so bad I can't even laugh!
"If that’s the case, then it’s fine. I’ll take on that job too."
"R-Rui too?"
"Yes. So Ryouta-kun and I will wait here. Yuria, why don't you take Airi and Tanaka-san to go play? It would be wrong to keep putting the burden of Ryouta-kun on you."
Rui spoke to Yuria with a smile full of maternal affection, like a mother lecturing a stubborn older sister.
When exactly had I become a problem child who needed a handler? I mean, I’d certainly been getting carried away lately... but by "carried away," I only meant things like diving headfirst into Airi’s massive breasts back in the countryside, having my belly button fetish exposed by Rui, or telling Yuria to her face that I wanted to bury my head in her thighs.
"No, but it’d be bad to leave Ryouta to you, Rui."
"You're the one I've been leaving him to since the train, so I’m the one who feels bad. It's okay, I'll keep an eye on Ryouta-kun for you."
"B-but..."
While Yuria and Rui went back and forth over my fate like parents in a custody battle...
"Then!"
A high-pitched voice suddenly cut through the air. A-Airi...?
"I’ll do it! Airi will be Ryouta's monitor!"
Airi raised her hand with a snap, volunteering for the position. As she did, her enormous breasts jiggled as usual... wait, now wasn't the time for that!
What the hell was a "monitor" supposed to be, anyway!