After settling the "slightly overheated" Yūki Chinatsu onto a reclining chair in the guest room, the now-changed Uehara Etsuki placed a towel soaked in cold water onto her forehead and asked with concern:
"Are you feeling better?"
"Mhm, much better now. My body doesn't feel as heavy anymore." Yūki Chinatsu sat up in the chair and glanced at Kumamoto Alice beside her, who had also changed clothes. With the demeanor of a victor, she quietly said in a cheerful tone, "I'll go change clothes first. Walking around in just a bath towel isn't exactly appropriate."
Both women were wearing women's yukata delivered by Busujima Murasaki. As always, Uehara Etsuki wore plain white tones, while Kumamoto Alice wore her preferred blue. Despite never having taken proper body measurements, the yukata Busujima Murasaki fit them surprisingly well.
Kumamoto Alice smiled gently, then suddenly touched her ear in confusion.
The exquisite sapphire earring that had originally been there was gone.
Her expression stiffened slightly as she murmured, "It seems I accidentally left my earring in the hot spring room."
"An earring?"
"Yes, a sapphire earring. It's not especially valuable, but it was a coming-of-age birthday gift from my mother."
"Since Chinatsu's condition has improved, I'll take care of her from here. That earring must hold special meaning to you, Miss Kumamoto. If we can't find it, I'll ask professionals to clean the hot spring tomorrow."
"Ah~ then I'll leave it in your care, Miss Uehara."
Kumamoto Alice walked over to the dumbfounded Yūki Chinatsu and affectionately kissed her forehead.
"Then please rest well for a while, Miss Yūki. Don't push your body too hard."
After changing back into a bath towel, Kumamoto Alice returned to the indoor hot spring.
Morishita Aoi, who had been preparing to go to the changing room herself, walked up and asked worriedly:
"How is Chinatsu doing now?"
"Nothing serious. She still needs a little more rest." Kumamoto Alice nodded to her before asking, "By any chance, have you seen a blue earring? I may have accidentally left it here."
"Miss Kumamoto, is it this one? I picked it up from the floor earlier." Not far away, Gogyo Ruri raised her small hand while soaking in the spring.
"Yes, I didn't expect to find it so easily." Kumamoto Alice walked over with a warm smile after nodding to Morishita Aoi. Taking the sapphire earring from Gogyo Ruri with both hands, she smiled gracefully in gratitude.
"Thank you very much, Miss Kuroneko."
"It belonged to Miss Kumamoto in the first place."
After putting the earring back on, Kumamoto Alice looked around and asked with slight disappointment:
"Where is Miss Kamiyā?"
"Sora went behind the rock formation just now."
"I see. Thank you."
Kumamoto Alice stepped back into the hot spring barefoot and smilingly walked toward the rear of the rock formation.
...
Again!?
Kamiyā Yuu could only smile bitterly in silence.
This truly was what people meant by life's dramatic ups and downs.
Beside him, Kamiyā Sora fiercely pinched his cheek, glaring at him with eyes that practically screamed:
"There absolutely cannot be a next time!"
Closer! Even closer!
Kumamoto Alice was about to pass through the rock barrier separating the hot spring.
Kamiyā Sora stood up and walked out from behind the rocks, pretending nothing had happened as she calmly asked:
"Miss Kumamoto, is something the matter?"
"No, I merely wanted one last look at the full scenery of this hot spring rock formation." Kumamoto Alice stopped in front of Kamiyā Sora.
Kamiyā Sora's eyes sharpened. Looking at Kumamoto Alice's gentle and elegant expression, her own voice turned cold.
"There's nothing worth seeing over there."
After discovering Kamiyā Yuu's presence and connecting Yūki Chinatsu's reaction with Kumamoto Alice's suspicious behavior, it was not difficult to guess what had happened.
Unlike the covert clash between Kumamoto Alice and Yūki Chinatsu, Kamiyā Sora always preferred direct methods and solving problems in the quickest, simplest way possible.
It was practically equivalent to openly saying:
"I know what you're planning, Miss Kumamoto. But you are not going over there."
Kumamoto Alice, who normally handled situations with tact and flexibility, found herself instantly cornered by Kamiyā Sora's straightforward approach. She simply could not find any opening.
Kamiyā Sora could afford to act willfully.
She could not.
That was the difference between a young girl and a mature woman.
Trying to force her way through now would simply be foolish—worse than even the worst possible strategy.
Click!?
The indoor hot spring was suddenly plunged into darkness as all the lights went out simultaneously.
"A power outage?"
Splash!
Faced with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Kamiyā Yuu immediately sprang out of the hot spring. Grabbing onto the rocks behind him, he agilely leapt through the darkness and climbed over the formation in just a few movements before dropping into the hot spring pool on the front side.
At the moment, however, it was pitch black. No one could see him.
A power outage at such a crucial moment—the odds were no different from winning the lottery.
Kamiyā Yuu, who never believed in luck, concluded that this was either Busujima Murasaki's doing or Uehara Etsuki realizing something was wrong. The former seemed more likely.
That was why he acted without hesitation.
Safe!
As he landed in the hot spring, the huge weight on Kamiyā Yuu's heart finally eased slightly.
If the lights suddenly came back on now, even jumping into the Yellow River wouldn't wash him clean.
Seizing the opportunity, he quickly moved toward the edge of the hot spring to climb out—
Only to suddenly crash into something.
That distinctive softness instantly darkened his expression.
A person!?
Why?
Judging from the voices earlier, there shouldn't have been anyone in this direction.
"Eek!?"
Caught off guard by the sudden collision and impact, the person lost balance and fell backward.
Kamiyā Yuu wrapped an arm around her slim waist to steady her, lowering his voice as much as possible in the darkness.
"Shh! It's me. There's no time to explain. Just pretend you never ran into me."
"Ka—... mm."
Gogyo Ruri answered blankly. Before she could even react, the burning-hot arm around her waist withdrew, causing her body to go limp as she fell into the hot spring.
Kamiyā Yuu quietly returned to the changing room. Feeling around in the darkness, he located his clothes in the basket, hurriedly dressed, and escaped this place of disaster as quickly as possible.
One minute later, the lights came back on.
...
"Mr. Kamiyā, this way."
Busujima Murasaki led Kamiyā Yuu into a guest room beside the indoor hot spring before closing the door.
On the low table sat a man's yukata, towels, and a hair dryer.
"Thank you for the trouble."
Busujima Murasaki knelt formally on the tatami while holding the hem of her kimono, bowing in a traditional Japanese apology posture reminiscent of a samurai offering repentance.
"I sincerely apologize. My momentary negligence placed Mr. Kamiyā in such an awkward situation."
Kamiyā Yuu walked to the table and picked up the yukata to examine it. Seeing this, he frowned and replied seriously:
"I personally dislike this kind of kneeling apology. Even when apologizing in the future, don't do this. Besides, things developing this way were also partly my own fault."
Busujima Murasaki stood up.
Her refined and elegant face carried eyes as sharp and upright as a Japanese sword. That look signified she had become serious.
After meeting Kamiyā Yuu's gaze, she lightly nodded and quietly withdrew from the guest room to wait while he changed clothes.
"So it's finally over."
Kamiyā Yuu did not actually feel angry.
From beginning to end, he only found this farce absurdly ridiculous.
He removed his clothes and prepared to dry himself and his hair with a towel—
Then his movements suddenly froze.
The expression on his face stiffened completely, his eyes filled with utter despair.
He had anticipated the possibility of being discovered.
He had anticipated the possibility of escaping unharmed.
He had thought through every possible scenario—
Except reality is teaching him a cruel lesson in this exact way.
Life really was like a roller coaster filled with violent highs and lows.
Unfortunately, Kamiyā Yuu had boarded one personally targeted by the god of death. Even if he escaped disaster once, death would eventually catch up.
Earlier, in the darkness and chaos of the changing room, all his attention had been focused on escaping unnoticed. He had paid no attention to the clothes he grabbed.
The underwear he was now wearing had somehow changed from men's briefs into a pair made from soft blue silk, decorated with lace cutwork patterns.
A very mature-looking pair of blue lace panties.
If given a choice, Kamiyā Yuu would rather have jumped out immediately during the confrontation between Kamiyā Sora and Kumamoto Alice.
He would rather have spoken up from the start, even if he missed the best timing.
He would rather never have entered this indoor hot spring in the first place.
Trembling slightly, Kamiyā Yuu removed the lace panties and hid them away. After changing into the men's yukata, he sat blankly at the table while clutching his stomach.
His stomach hurt.
His liver hurt.
His heart felt like it was bleeding.
After everything that had happened, it seemed that aside from Uehara Etsuki and Morishita Aoi, everyone already knew he had been bathing together with the girls.
If someone's panties were now missing—
Even jumping into the sea wouldn't save him.
"Calm down. There really were clothes in the basket earlier that weren't mine. This style isn't Sora's. Kuroneko and Chinatsu wouldn't wear something this mature either. Uehara-sensei was taking care of Chinatsu and had already changed."
"That leaves only Aoi and Miss Kumamoto."
"Judging from Miss Kumamoto's attitude, she probably already realized I was behind the rock formation. Why? Because she saw the clothes in the basket and realized I might be in the hot spring. Then Yūki Chinatsu's suspicious behavior confirmed it."
"That makes everything fall into place."