Travel · Qiongzhou Arc (9): Pool Party (Part 1)

That afternoon, at the villa's private swimming pool.

"Lynae, pass the ball!" Aemeath called out to Lynae was not far away, as she paddled along the water and gradually approached the basketball hoop at the edge of the pool.

"OK, catch it!"

Surrounded by Dania and Sigrika, Lynae seized the opportunity and passed the ball out, which flew through the air in a beautiful parabola before landing steadily in Aemeath's hands.

"Good pass!" Aemeath quickly arrived at the poolside and easily sent the ball into the basket. "Yay! Another point!"

"Pretty Little Ai!" Lynae exclaimed excitedly, then high-fived Aemeath had arrived.

"These two are ridiculously strong..." Dania said, looking troubled.

At this moment, the Demon Orb Team and the Fruit Team are engaged in a water basketball battle in the pool, both dressed in stylish swimsuits with distinct personalities.

That said, after being comforted by her headmaster, Lynae quickly regained her spirits and honestly confessed to Dania and the others before the afternoon party started that she and Xiao Ling had gotten married.

Just as Roccia told her, Dania and the others, who had already been fed, only teased her a little before readily accepting her as a new member.

Seeing this, Lynae let go of her last bit of unease and turned away, putting the matter behind her to go have fun with her friends.

Just as the girls were excitedly preparing for the second round, they were greeted by two new groups of players.

"Looks like I've arrived just in time?" Roccia into the pool and quickly reached Dania and the other three. "Are you guys hiring for this game?"

Crimson Snow, who was standing beside her, remained as aloof as ever, but judging from her silent behavior of standing beside Roccia, she would probably gladly agree to join the game if invited now.

"Of course we need more! Water basketball is a game where the more people the better," Aemeath said with a bright smile. "Would Principal Roccia and Crimson Snow like to join us?"

"Hmm." Crimson Snow let out a cool "hmm."

"That's exactly what I was thinking," Roccia agreed with a smile. "Then there are six of us now."

"No, wait, there are eight people!"

Aemeath and the others looked in the direction from which the sound came, and saw Iuno and Augusta also paddling over to join in the fun.

"How could we not be invited to such a fun game? You agree, Augusta, right?"

"If you want to play, just say so. You don't have to drag me into it."

"Oh, don't worry about the details." Iuno waved her hand haughtily. "We're just killing time anyway, why don't we join in the fun?"

Augusta sighed helplessly, but still accepted the game invitation from the genius female oracle.

"So how should we put it? Should we pair up or have a four-on-four team battle?" Lynae suggested.

"If you ask me, wouldn't trying both methods be the same?" Dania offered a better solution, "It just depends on whether you want to pair up or do a team battle first."

After some discussion, the girls finally decided on a new way to play: first, they would pair up to get used to the game's rhythm, and then play a four-on-four team match.

"By the way, shouldn't the team that loses the match be punished?" Iuno suddenly asked, a bright idea in his mind.

"Hmm? Could it be that Iuno has some good ideas?" Roccia asked curiously.

"I do have a good idea." Iuno snapped his fingers. "Let's make it clear first, the losing team has to eat the other teams' 'disastrous' dishes, how about that?"

"Good idea," Crimson Snow nodded, as it wasn't really a punishment for her.

"That's an interesting punishment, I second it!" Aemeath agreed with a grin.

The other members also expressed no objection to the punishment, Iuno nodded smugly, seeing that no one raised any objections.

"That's settled then. Now, let the game begin!"

On the other side of the pool, Suisui was lying on a floating board on the water, the sunlight gently caressing her fair and delicate skin, and she looked very comfortable.

She traveled and traded throughout Dreamland, weaving a picture of peace and prosperity for the city's people with her exquisite craftsmanship. This unexpected time travel felt more like a sudden vacation to her, allowing her to finally escape the hustle and bustle of the merchant guild and enjoy some time to herself.

In such circumstances, personal feelings that were originally set aside for the sake of national interests now have the possibility of being rediscovered.

"Hmm... Will this work...?" Suisui quietly pondered the Xiao Ling strategy she had previously devised for Yangyang, seemingly wondering if there was anything that needed to be optimized.

Just then...

"Miss Yangyang, are you really going to do this?" Liang Yu looked at Suisui floating on the water, her expression somewhat embarrassed. "Won't Miss Suisui be angry if we prank her like this?"

"It's okay, my sister is very nice to her own family." Yangyang smiled confidently. She and Suisui were family, and she knew Suisui's personality very well. This was the source of her confidence in playing pranks.

"But at this height... it doesn't seem like it'll make much of a splash," Liang Yu asked another question.

Yangyang looked around and realized that there were indeed no high points near where Suisui was, and fell into deep thought, "That's true, this makes it impossible to launch a surprise attack."

Just as they were racking their brains to figure out how to prank Suisui, someone else, drawn by the smell, came to join in the fun.

"Hmm~ I think I smell a prank." Xiao Ling sniffed and said with a sly smile, "What mischievous ideas are you two up to now?"

"Xiao Yu, you're here?" Caught red-handed Yangyang jumped, then gave an awkward but polite smile. "You're as perceptive as ever..."

"Why the long face? Did you think I came here to expose you?" Xiao Ling grinned mischievously. "If you're going to play a prank, include me."

"You're coming too?" Liang Yu raised an eyebrow.

"Only a fool wouldn't join in the fun."

"Okay," Yangyang agreed with a smile. "Here's the thing."

After carefully listening to Yangyang and Liang Yu's plans, Xiao Ling pondered for a while and came up with an excellent attack plan.

"Let me ask you beforehand, how long can you two hold your breath underwater?"

After an unknown amount of time, Suisui, who was enjoying a pleasant sunbath on the floating platform, suddenly felt something moving back and forth underwater.

She immediately sensed something was wrong and lost all interest in sunbathing. She quickly got up and began to observe her surroundings.

Suisui cast her gaze across the entire pool and saw Aemeath and her group engaged in a fierce water basketball battle.

Could the commotion underwater have been made by them?

Just as she was thinking, three bubbles of the same size suddenly appeared around the floating platform.

"What's going on...?!"

Before Suisui could react, the floating platform beneath her was suddenly overturned by someone, causing her to slide towards the water's surface.

She was startled and was about to use her Resonance Ability to protect herself when Xiao Ling suddenly hugged her from behind, and she felt a warm touch on her cheek.

Suisui froze on the spot, her cheeks naturally flushing pink.

"Uh, isn't this a bit strange?" Liang Yu blinked a couple of times, looking at the ambiguous scene before her.

"..." Yangyang felt like she had been tricked, but she had no proof.

"Suisui, you've lost weight," Xiao Ling said, playfully pinching her tummy. "That won't do! You need to eat more so it'll be more comfortable for me to carry you!"

Yangyang and Liang Yu, who were watching from the sidelines: Is this... right?

Filled with shame and indignation, Miss Suisui had no intention of indulging her disobedient younger brother. She used her Resonance Ability to pull a slap out of the water and slapped the junior who had pinched her cheek back into the water.

"Damn it, Sister Suisui, you have no sportsmanship!"