We're Definitely Not Swimming / She Has Way Too Many Ways to Play

While unconsciously squinting her eyes to enjoy the close physical contact between Kitagawa Ryo and her, Amasawa Ichika slightly withdrew her left thumb from between their interlocked fingers and gently drew the number three in his palm.

It's just exercise.

Chapter 248: I wasn't swimming

Kitagawa Ryo and Amasawa Ichika hadn't gone far when the students from Class D who were waiting for Kushida Kikyo arrived one after another on time. Perhaps because they had caught a glimpse Matoba Amasawa Ichika and Kushida Kikyo entangled on the way, Nishikawa Ryoko from Class D asked curiously:

"Are you two close Kushida Kikyo and that Amasawa from Class B, Tenze? I think I saw you talking together just now."

As a student who stood out in this Uninhabited Island Special Exam, and a member and main scorer of the group that ranked third, Amasawa Ichika has received a lot of attention since the exam ended, especially among the students in Class D, who have undoubtedly left a deeper impression on her.

"They were just waiting for someone here, so we chatted casually for a bit."

Kushida Kikyo never spoke ill of others in front of them, replied with a smile. Facing a familiar classmate, her acting instantly became much more natural. Perhaps realizing that her previous answer implied a complaint about the other person being late, she quickly added a consolation:

"Everyone arrived earlier than I expected. Let's relax today, after all, everyone has worked hard since the Uninhabited Island Special Exam."

Under the infectious gentle smile of Kushida Kikyo, the seven or eight boys and girls gathered there unconsciously raised the corners of their mouths. In this atmosphere, the only girl on the edge who still looked rather dejected was naturally highlighted.

Social butterfly Kushida Kikyo immediately noticed the girl named Motodoi Chikako, and after a moment's thought, she figured out the reason.

The fact that the other girl Hashimoto Masayoshi on Hashimoto Masayoshi wasn't exactly a secret among the small group of girls in the class. So, during the Uninhabited Island Special Exam, she told Kitagawa Ryo about it as one of the leakable pieces of information. Eventually, Ishizaki Daichi's propaganda offensive turned it into a widely known fact.

Actually, there's nothing wrong with this. If the crush is going to be made public, then why not just go for it and Confessions? Especially since Hashimoto Masayoshi himself was injured in the latter half of the Uninhabited Island Special Exam and needs someone to take care of him, both physically and mentally.

In fact, encouraged by her friends, Motodoi Chikako had already prepared to formally Confessions after the exams were over and everyone returned to the cruise ship.

But in just one day, things took a completely unexpected turn.

Hashimoto Masayoshi, who was quite popular in his class and even the entire grade but had always remained Hashimoto Masayoshi, suddenly confirmed his relationship with a girl in Class A right after the exams. Although it was somewhat in line with her usual blond, frivolous image, it was almost a bolt from the blue for Motodoi Chikako, who had finally mustered up the courage to be with him. She was still in shock and her absent-mindedness almost made her a suspect in Katsuragi Kohei's list of spies.

The thought of entangled with the mole Kushida Kikyo speechless. She had even prepared herself to reveal secrets about her interpersonal relationships within the class to threaten the other party if her identity was discovered. However, the upright Katsuragi Kohei remained as rigid as ever when investigating spies, taking turns talking to each student in the class one-on-one, reasoning with them and appealing to their emotions. This made Kushida Kikyo, who had easily gotten away with it, almost burst out laughing.

Conversely, it was precisely because of Katsuragi Kohei's sincere attitude that most of the class members were too embarrassed to blame him entirely for the failure of the Uninhabited Island Special Exam. However, such a serious failure as dropping from Class A to Class D always required someone to take the blame. Public opinion went around in circles, and in the end, half of the blame was placed on the mole who had not yet been investigated, and the other half was thrown at Totsuka Yahiko.

After all, 200 of the 300 Class Points they lost were due to the punishment for being the second to last in Totsuka Yahiko's group. In addition, Totsuka Yahiko was always disliked in the class, so pushing him out to take the blame would put no pressure on anyone and would also give Katsuragi Kohei a slight warning. He was the perfect scapegoat.

In short, after this Uninhabited Island Special Exam, Kushida Kikyo is still the beloved Tian of her class and grade, and no one would suspect her.

Thinking of this, Kushida Kikyo went over and gently comforted the Motodoi Chikako. Then, she led seven or eight students from her class to the school staff in charge of the private swimming pool facilities and inquired about the relevant matters.

The swimming pools on this Luxury Cruise Ship are divided into public and private pools. As the names suggest, the former is open to everyone free of charge, while the latter requires a certain amount of Private Points to reserve.

Although the cost of renting out the entire pool for one hour with 20,000 Private Points sounds staggering, for Kushida Kikyo and her friends who really didn't want to crowd into the public pool with students from other classes, renting out the private pool was actually a better option. After all, if they split the cost equally, each person would only need to pay about 2,000 Private Points.

Although the Uninhabited Island Special Exam ended in failure due to Kitagawa Ryo's contract, they had still been in Class A for a semester, so they could afford to pay for it.

But Kushida Kikyo's smile quickly froze on her face, because after a brief search of relevant information on the computer, the staff member in charge of the project replied somewhat apologetically:

"I'm sorry, our private pool number one is already booked for this time slot. If you'd like, you can check out pool number two."

Because private pool number one is significantly larger than private pool number two, and their group is quite large, Kushida Kikyo couldn't help but ask again, her lips pursed:

"Excuse me, how long have you booked the private pool number one? If it's for an hour, we can wait a bit."

"I'm sorry, this venue has been booked for three hours. We also need to clean up afterwards, and it's already 8 o'clock. If you're going to wait, it will be at least until the afternoon. Are you sure about this?"

"... Then forget it."

Unable to resist, Kushida Kikyo could only shake her head in resignation, glancing briefly at the pool entrance marked "Privately Booked," and muttering to herself with a hint of resentment:

"Three hours... why didn't they just swim to their deaths in there...?"

Meanwhile, in the men's changing room of the private pool.

"... So there really are things like this sold at school?"

"Yeah, the school rules only prohibit sexual behavior that is inappropriate for high school students. Besides, there are already a lot of couples in school who are openly flirting and behaving, so it's easy to spot them if you just ask around at the stores. At first, I wondered if these shops were exclusively for adult staff of the school, but when I actually tried buying something, the shop assistants completely turned a blind eye."

"It's actually quite understandable. After all, if we don't offer this kind of product, we're basically gambling that students like Ryo and I can stay calm and not lose control in a situation like this... But what if we accidentally want to be more comfortable and end up getting pregnant? That would be a big problem."

Watching Amasawa Ichika casually pull a whole box of condoms out of her pocket, Kitagawa Ryo felt a pang of jealousy. If he had known earlier that the school would actually sell such products openly, he wouldn't have had to rely on his strong willpower and body control to escape and then explode at the last minute every time last night.

"In short, although the school officially prohibits it, it is actually a kind of unspoken rule: 'If you're going to do it, never expose it and always use contraception.'"

As she spoke, Amasawa Ichika, as if she had come up with a good idea, half-huddled her breasts—which were barely covered by the two pieces of fabric of her swimsuit top—and walked smilingly to Kitagawa Ryo. Then, she turned her almost bare back to him, her tone carrying a clear hint of coquetry and teasing:

"Liang, please help me tie the back."

"OK."

Having undergone rigorous training the previous night, Kitagawa Ryo unceremoniously reached out and took the two ribbons fluttering in mid-air from either side. Without any instruction, he began to tie them up, until the fabric and ribbons, which were not particularly large, gently sank into the other person's snow-white skin and were firmly secured to that area of whiteness. Only then did he nod in satisfaction.

But Amasawa Ichika didn't seem to be satisfied yet. She immediately sat on his lap again, tilted her head back slightly, and handed the two hair ribbons she was holding to Kitagawa Ryo from above, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons with a smile.

"Liang, please tie my hair up again--"

Unlike her usual twin ponytail hairstyle, Amasawa Ichika had her long hair down when she met him today, and her temperament was also different from usual. However, considering that she was going to go swimming in the pool later, it would be better to tie her hair up a little.

Unlike the Matoba seen in anime, in reality, someone with long, flowing hair reaching their waist going straight into the water... it feels like she'd turn into a drowning ghost with her hair tied to her head in no time.

After securing the swim cap, you should also wear it to prevent ear congestion and protect your head, preventing your hair from being completely submerged in chlorinated water. This effectively protects your hair, reduces damage from the pool water, and also reduces resistance, allowing you to swim faster.

"Good."

Kitagawa Ryo nodded in agreement. Among the girls he knew, Amasawa Ichika was probably the only one who had enjoyed him combing and tying her hair multiple times. That was one of the few warm-toned memories he had of her in the White Room during Sakayanagi Arisu's second simulation.

After simply tying and pinning up Amasawa Ichika's hair, Kitagawa Ryo also pointed to the swimming cap he had brought:

"Should I put it on now?"

"No need, I'll wear it myself when I start swimming."

Seemingly having no intention of leaving for the outdoor pool, Kitagawa Ryo could clearly see Amasawa Ichika, sitting in his lap, happily swinging her little legs from side to side through the floor mirror opposite him.

By slightly lowering his head, Kitagawa Ryo could take advantage of the subtle height difference between the two to have a panoramic view of Amasawa Ichika's entire northern hemisphere from top to bottom.

The only slight pity is that, due to the sheer amount of capital involved, it's not possible to directly see the other person's ankles and feet from this angle. If it were Arisu, that would have been more than enough.

Despite this, Kitagawa Ryo noticed that a certain part of her body was starting to stir. Holding onto the simple thought that she should give it a rest and that she should at least swim in the pool before wasting her points, Kitagawa Ryo resolutely stood up at the moment the hard seat was being switched to a power outlet.

"Let's go outside and play for a while. I checked when we came in, and there are quite a few water facilities here."

"Yeah, I want to play on the slide too!"

As Amasawa Ichika spoke, she also made a somewhat unseemly rubbing motion. Compared to the sparse fabric of her upper body, the lower body of this swimsuit featured a double-layered sheer design around her hips, which, in a hazy and alluring way, added a touch of tantalizing mystery, making one want to explore further.

"A slide..."

So, just three minutes later, Amasawa Ichika blinked her fluorescent yellow eyes once again, rightfully sitting in Kitagawa Ryo's lap, her two fair legs stretched straight forward, and turned to him earnestly saying:

"Keep me tight, Liang."

"Okay, I definitely won't let you fly away halfway."

Kitagawa Ryo reluctantly agreed, then reached out and wrapped his arms around the girl's slender waist. When their overlapping palms touched the girl's lower abdomen and navel, he could clearly feel the girl's body tremble slightly involuntarily. But immediately, with a push of their feet, they plunged straight down the water slide, which was more than ten meters high.

"Ooh ooh ooh ooh--"

Just as Kitagawa Ryo was feeling the relative motion and centrifugal force between his body and the slide wall under the lubrication of the water, as well as the softness of the girl's body in his arms, Amasawa Ichika raised her arms high, showing no fear whatsoever, and simply screamed excitedly in front of Kitagawa Ryo, as if she had completely become a child visiting an amusement park for the first time.

Amidst the splashing water, his playful antics with Amasawa Ichika began.

Chapter 249: She Has Too Many Ways to Play (4k5)

After enjoying the water slides several times, Amasawa Ichika set her sights on the water balloons on the shelf by the pool. She excitedly grabbed one and threw it at Kitagawa Ryo in a sneak attack, but he caught it steadily at the last moment.

After playing two more rounds of a volleyball-like tossing and catching game with Amasawa Ichika, Kitagawa Ryo, who had to observe the irregular movements of three balls simultaneously, finally gave up and chose to surrender. He followed the handrail by the pool to the ground, wiped the water off his body with a dry towel from the rack, and then lazily lay down on the chair next to him, preparing to rest for a while.

A moment later, Amasawa Ichika followed him out of the pool, casually grabbed the half-dry towel Kitagawa Ryo had used to wipe herself, and then grabbed his arm:

"Only half an hour has passed—Liang, get up quickly and keep playing with me!"

Feeling that he might hear those words again in a different context later, Kitagawa Ryo straightened up, reached for the menu on the small round table next to his chair, and casually made up an excuse:

"I was just feeling a bit thirsty, so I came up to see what drinks I could order. Anything you'd like to drink, Ichika?"

"Oh, let me see."

Upon hearing this, Amasawa Ichika leaned her little head closer. Her hair, which wasn't completely dry, was still damp, and her exposed skin, which had lost some of its warmth from playing in the water, felt cool against her skin, creating a noticeable temperature difference.

"So expensive..."

After glancing at it briefly, Amasawa Ichika subconsciously sighed.

"It is indeed a bit expensive. Perhaps the school thinks that students who can afford to book the entire venue wouldn't care about the price."

Kitagawa Ryo nodded in agreement. The shops on the cruise ship and the stalls near the public pool were already selling overpriced drinks and snacks, but he didn't expect that the special drinks at the private pool were more than twice as expensive as outside. Recalling the "No outside food allowed" sign they saw before entering, Kitagawa Ryo couldn't help but sigh at the school's profiteering nature.

However, since he was already there, Kitagawa Ryo decided to order two fruit drinks on his phone. Then, after being coaxed by Amasawa Ichika, he ordered an extra large cup of sparkling water, a special treat for couples. The service was faster than he expected. The two fruit drinks he ordered were brought in on a tray by a female staff member shortly afterward.

"Speaking of which, while I was waiting for the cool breeze this morning, I kept feeling like someone was watching me, but it didn't feel like they were stalking or monitoring me. The only person who could do that without me noticing would be Ayanokoji."

Holding a cold drink and biting the straw, Amasawa Ichika sipped her plum juice from the glass while chatting with Kitagawa Ryo about what had happened that morning.

"Yes, it's Ayanokoji."

Kitagawa Ryo was too lazy to use a straw, so he just sipped from the glass and drank almost half of it before placing the glass on the table next to him with a satisfied look, and casually answered Amasawa Ichika's question.

But perhaps because his conversation with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka that morning was far from pleasant, Kitagawa Ryo didn't want to continue the conversation and immediately changed the subject:

"After this cruise vacation ends and we return to school, we'll have almost two weeks of summer vacation left. I'm planning to take the Drama Club out again under the pretext of participating in a competition. Ichika, do you want to come along?"

Summer vacation is indeed a time when various club competitions are concentrated. Kitagawa Ryo had heard from Sudo that their Basketball Club would also be going out of school to participate in a competition this summer, so he felt no guilt at all when he asked for leave under this pretext.

In fact, before the Student Council president in charge of handling such matters was replaced by Minami Miyabi instead of Horikita Manabu Miyabi Nagumo, there was little risk in him leaving the school, and he didn't have to worry much about being Malice rejected.

As for the reason he left school this time, it was naturally to fulfill the promise he made to Ichinose Honami during the Uninhabited Island Special Exam, to start from the most basic source—family—and completely liberate Honami.

But the reason he asked Amasawa Ichika again now is that Kitagawa Ryo also plans to take this opportunity to leave school to see Yuki again.

After all, Miyabi Nagumo will become the new Student Council President of Tokyo Advanced Nurturing High School this October. Considering that the two of them do not have a very friendly relationship, it will probably not be as easy for him to sneak out of Drama Club under the guise of participating in various competitions outside the school as it was in the first semester.

Therefore, before the Cultural Festival officially arrived in November, Kitagawa Ryo decided to make the most of every opportunity to leave school and see Yuki as many times as possible.

That's why he's asking this question to Amasawa Ichika, who also comes from the White Room and has a good relationship with him in the simulation.

"Is Ryo planning to visit Yuki? If so, I'd like to go with Ryo."

Just as Kitagawa Ryo had predicted, Amasawa Ichika quickly and obediently nodded in agreement. In a sense, her fate and the other person's Fate had actually been reversed. Just thinking about the Matoba Yuki, who should have been Fourth Generation, had to enter the school a year later than her, a Fifth Generation, and had to call her senior, Amasawa Ichika couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth, and a feeling of joy welled up in her heart.

Moreover, the reversal of their circumstances didn't stop there. In the past simulations, Amasawa Ichika clearly remembered that Kitagawa Ryo and Yuki had been living together for a considerable period of time, but now...

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but put down her drink, rolled to the left, and lay completely on Kitagawa Ryo's chest. Her legs were slightly curled up and together, and then she unreasonably wedged herself between his legs. After rubbing up a little, her pretty face and the strands of hair that fell down because of this action successfully occupied Kitagawa Ryo's entire field of vision.

"Hey, hey, our food hasn't all arrived yet, someone might be here soon..."

"It's okay, it's a good opportunity to prove to them that we are a real couple."

Kitagawa Ryo's subconscious struggle was quickly silenced by physical force. Amasawa Ichika hummed mischievously as she lowered her head and kissed his lips from above.

It wasn't until a while later, when the female staff member who came in to deliver the drinks again, blushing slightly, that she placed their drinks on the small table next to them and softly said, "All the drinks are served." Only then did Amasawa Ichika finally lift her head, ending the somewhat lengthy kiss, and raise her chin at the staff member as if showing off:

"Knew--"

"Then, I won't bother you any longer."

Seemingly realizing their incongruity and Amasawa Ichika's intentions, the staff quickly turned around and fled, restoring the pool to a space just for the two of them.

"... How about we go swimming first?"

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Kitagawa Ryo also offered his own suggestions.

"Okay, then Liang, teach me how to swim."

"I remember taking swimming lessons with you in the White Room, Ichika."

"Hmm? Is that how it is? But I seem to have forgotten everything."

Amasawa Ichika tilted her head slightly, placed her right fist against her temple, and playfully stuck out her tongue in an attempt to get away with it.

"If Ryo doesn't teach me, I won't dare go into the water—so why don't we just stay here and drink our beverages?"

As she spoke, she enthusiastically picked up the large two-person drink that had just been delivered from the table next to her, but she didn't seem to intend to drink it at all. Instead, she placed it directly in front of her chest and tilted the rim of the glass slightly...

"Then let me teach Ichika how to swim!"

Kitagawa Ryo, sensing that his rationality would evaporate once he actually did this, quickly reached out to stop Amasawa Ichika, who had somehow learned so many ways to play, and grabbed the swimming cap that was placed next to him:

"Set off!"

Three hours later.

"Thank you both for coming. If you enjoyed the private event, could you please leave a positive review here?"