Draped in a bathrobe and gently towel-drying my damp hair, I stepped out of the bathroom. Immediately, all eyes in the room turned towards me.
Phew.
“Huh?”
Turning my head towards the teacher, who made a strange sound, I noticed he was averting his gaze. How odd. I mean, wearing just a bathrobe doesn’t seem too scandalous for a face-to-face chat, right?
Let’s face it, even a bunny girl outfit or a regular school swimsuit would reveal more skin than this.
“…Mika, please hand over the towel and take a seat in front of me. Also, I’d appreciate it if you could fasten your robe properly.”
“But I thought I had it on snug enough…”
“Not even close.”
…Is that all it takes?
In the end, stubbornly influenced by Nagisa, I finally adjusted my robe until I got an okay sign.
Then it hit me; have I become too desensitized to exposure lately? I used to be super embarrassed just by wearing a swimsuit that showed my arms and legs, but now I feel like I could even pull off a bikini.
After putting my hair in Nagisa’s capable hands, I kind of understood where she was coming from. If I were in Nagisa’s position, I’d definitely want to cover up if I found myself exposed like I’d just been; why would it be any different the other way around? There’s absolutely no way that’s not the case.
“First, let me briefly explain what we talked about while you were away.”
With Nagisa’s gentle voice coming from behind and her soft touch on my head slowly lulling me, I felt my eyelids getting heavy. But we weren’t alone, so I had to hold it together.
“It seems you four infiltrated this ship in search of that girl Koyuki we met previously. Personally, I wouldn’t call that surprising…”
“Ah. It’s not the first time someone’s been tailing her. Still, most of that was resolved within the Millennium Autonomous District. But that guy! Now he’s gone and made a nuisance of himself by running away to a place like this. Ugh, if I catch him…”
As Nagisa trailed off, Neru erupted in anger.
Well, given the identity of C&C, I could understand why Neru was so fed up. As a special task force directly under Rio, they’d been burdened with all sorts of annoying tasks, so having to deal with a clueless first-year brat must feel ridiculous.
Ugh. If I were in her shoes, I might’ve turned Koyuki into a coat rack by now.
“By the way, you.”
“Huh? Me?”
“Yes, you! So, you’re in that… kind of relationship with the seminar’s secretary. I don’t expect you to catch him, but can you seriously be completely silent after running into that annoying brat?!”
“…Well, it’s not my duty, is it? If Noa asked, I would’ve helped her, but that’s not the case. Just to be clear, Neru, we’re here to enjoy a vacation, okay?”
“Ugh… damn it! But, hey, I’m saying this as a fellow member of the same group.”
Oh wow, it’s the first time I’ve seen Neru pull the “we’re friends, help me out” card like that.
“Yeah, yeah. Blooming Buds or whatever. That’s practically on hold at this point, huh?”
But too bad, no one can stop me from enjoying my vacation with my beloved Nagisa. Not even the teacher!
“Ugh?! Hey, you jerk! Do you know how much I’ve had to endure doing all this clowning around for you? You can’t just bail now!”
“Let’s see… that’s probably karma coming back to bite you! Hahaha! Maybe you shouldn’t have challenged someone important from another school, huh, Neru?”
“…”
Well, if I push any further, it feels like Neru will blow her top, so I should give it a rest.
“Alright, let’s wrap this conversation up. So, how the heck did you end up breaking into our room? And how did you even get in?”
“Uh, Mika. The door was just open.”
“…Eh? Nagisa, is that for real?”
But my surprise was palpable after hearing the teacher’s remark. Wait, why was the door open? Isn’t it supposed to be opened with a card key?
“As crazy as it sounds… it’s the truth. Maybe Mika forgot to properly close the door when she came in?”
“…Nagisa, why are you naturally shifting the blame onto me? Hmph. It stings my heart a little, you know? Not that I’m particularly sensitive or anything, but you’re an exception.”
“That’s a lovely thing to say! But I didn’t mean to imply you were at fault. I was just stating the facts. You did receive room service, didn’t you?”
“Ah.”
Did I…? Could that happen?
Who knows. Anyway, the fact that uninvited guests barged into our room is already done and over with, so it feels pointless to assign blame now.
“So, what did you do to end up in our room? And, wait a second. What’s wrong with that guard?”
I blinked in surprise at seeing the Bunny Girl Guard tied up tightly, an eye mask and tape on her mouth.
That bunny outfit’s explicit nature combined with the ropes only intensified the situation, and it felt like a crime was brewing just by looking at her. It wouldn’t be strange for me to think of human trafficking in this scenario.
“…Ugh, sen-nam-chung.”
“Sensha-munch…? What’s that?”
“Nothing!”
Well, since I vaguely remembered this event story from before, I knew that was the doing of C&C. But who could argue if I called my teacher sen-nam-chung?
Thanks to hearing the situation from the C&C folks, my memories finally started kicking in. I could roughly recall how things were going down.
In summary, they had barged in to catch Koyuki but were caught by the guards, meaning their original operation was basically out the window. In the chaos, they had hastily fled and ended up in our room, and any guard who witnessed them was dragged back as a gag.
Lastly, while I was away, the teacher’s group was likely planning an operation to take control of the Golden Fleece’s system room before heading out to find Koyuki… that’s how I could summarize the situation, right?
“Anyway, after successfully infiltrating…”
Not at all a successful infiltration considering the circumstances.
“And now they’ve set up a stronghold.”
And whose idea was it to use our room as a base? I didn’t give permission for that!
“I think we need to take special measures to blend in without oddity on this ship before we resume the operation. Judging by the guards’ comments, it seems our maid outfits stick out around here.”
I really knew what Akane’s words were hinting at more than anyone else. It was the moment the ever-famous Bunny Girl Karin, who had spawned countless fan parodies in the Blue Archive community, was about to be born.
And Asuna, who attracted public attention alongside Karin, would likely stroll in wearing a bunny girl outfit all by herself.
“Since regular passengers are likely in uniforms like the president of Trinity here, it seems guards have adopted this unusual attire… So, to operate smoothly, we have to fit in with that.”
“But whether we can acquire those outfits is another story, right?”
“Hehe. I anticipated that and brought a few with me on the way here. Here, I think the sizes will roughly fit. I’ve seen them before.”
“Haha! That’s our Akane, super handy!”
Neru laughed heartily as she picked up a bunny girl outfit from Akane. Meanwhile, Karin, who also grabbed one, hesitated.
“…? Wait a second. Akane? Where did you get all these? Don’t tell me you stripped them off the guards we just knocked out? And what do you mean by ‘seen before’? Don’t tell me you’ve scanned our body sizes…?”
Only then did I realize why Akane’s earlier gaze had left me uneasy.
There’s no way she could have finished scanning my body size in that short time, right…? I mean, it wasn’t something I hid, and apart from my height, I was quite proud of my princess-like body size…
But thinking someone could judge it just by looking felt perverse in a way…
“Okay, okay. Let’s overlook the minor details. It’s strictly for the mission. Anyway, let’s see if they fit, shall we?”
Even while saying that, it seemed Akane wasn’t at all worried that her bunny girl outfits wouldn’t fit her or Neru and Karin.
After all, there have been exceptions where even among the Bunny Girl Guards, you could find women with stunning figures. Akane and Karin would likely find clothes that fit well enough. Neru was a no-brainer.
“President, please come over. I’ll help you get dressed since you probably don’t know how.”
“What? Now you’re treating me like a kid?”
“Oh dear… I’m sorry. Do you know how to wear it?”
“Uh, nope.”
“Hehe. Then I’ll assist you.”
“Okay.”
While watching Neru and Akane banter, the family dynamics vibe started creeping in. It might not just be my imagination.
…Wait a second.
“Heueng… Uh, Akane?”
“Yes? What is it?”
“How do you know how to wear that?”
“…Let’s not dwell on the little things.”
“…Uh, Akane? I’d appreciate an answer to my question…”
Akane smiled sweetly. Then she shot a strangely ominous look in my and Karin’s direction.
“I mentioned it’s a little thing to overlook… didn’t I?”
“…Got it. Right. The mission comes first. I can agree on that.”
It didn’t affect me at all, but it seemed like Akane’s piercing gaze was more than enough to subtly pressure Karin.
With an expression that didn’t quite agree, Karin still said she agreed, and somehow she looked pitiful…
“Once we’re done changing, let’s head to the system room and jump straight into the next operation.”
But hearing Akane bring up the system room made me think something was about to happen… Ah.
I distinctly recalled some big mishap planned to occur in that system room. Perhaps it involved Akane, the explosion enthusiast, setting something off, or maybe it was Neru herself blowing up?
I’m not sure, but I really hope they catch Koyuki and get outta here quickly. I don’t want our last night on this ship to be too raucous…!
“Hey, you guys. I’d recommend checking out the player lounge instead of the system room. Last I heard, Koyuki basically lives there.”
“What?! Mika, did you know where the player lounge was all along?!”
“Yeah. It just hit me, so I told you, didn’t I, Neru? Aren’t you supposed to thank me?”
“That’s true. Thanks.”
That’s our Neru; she’s quick to recognize when it matters.
So, all I’m saying is, I sincerely hope they wrap this whole thing up soon. I’ve gotta claim what I’m owed from Nagisa!
