The Afterparty (4)
Renias remained securely in Junon’s arms as he carried her all the way to the sandy shore, his strides hurried, desperate to reach dry land before she could manage to cause any further mischief.
Neither of them uttered a single word the entire way. Or rather, neither of them could.
W-What do I do? Should I apologize to Renias first? But there’s no way in hell I can bring up… where my hand touched…!
Hwaaaah…! D-Did Sunbae notice…?! And I must’ve looked like such a total klutz… What if he thinks I’m completely bizarre…?!
With their minds spinning in such chaotic turmoil, coherent speech was entirely out of the question. Between the searing embarrassment of the situation and the tangled layers of awkward misunderstanding, neither of them could even bring themselves to meet the other’s gaze.
Engulfed in their private agonies, they reached dry ground before long. Junon gently set Renias down on the sand.
He knew all too well that someone had to speak up to break the suffocating tension. Picking up the coat he had tossed aside earlier, he held it out toward her.
“You’ll catch a cold if you stay in soaked clothes. Here, take this…”
Yet an entirely new trial awaited him.
The sodden fabric of Renias’s dress clung fast to her skin, boldly accentuating every gentle curve of her figure. Worse still was its color. Though technically a soft lilac, it was so pale it bordered on sheer white—and drenched with seawater, it turned virtually translucent, exposing the tender flush of her flesh beneath.
And clearly visible beneath the wet dress was the sheerest, softest layer of fabric imaginable—the kind meant solely for intimate comfort, never to be displayed in public.
“I’m really not that cold…”
“J-Just throw it on anyway!”
“Huh? Sunbae…?”
Junon snapped his head away in an instant.
Deeply flustered though he might be, he was, at his core, an extraordinarily considerate person. Under normal circumstances, he would have draped the garment over her shoulders himself. Instead, he simply thrust the coat forward with one stiff arm, keeping his eyes firmly averted.
Renias tilted her head, wondering why on earth he was acting so bizarrely.
The only thing Sunbae saw earlier was me… Is there something on me?
Absently, Renias glanced down at herself.
A sharp gasp caught in her throat.
Her dress was drooping, plastered against her body, its pale hue turned completely see-through against her skin. The daring swimsuit that Maria and the boutique tailor had practically forced her into was mortifying enough on its own.
And yet…
Sunbae… is looking away because he’s embarrassed, isn’t he?
There was no real reason for him to be ashamed on her behalf. Risqué though it might be, what she wore underneath was still a swimsuit, not lingerie.
Ah. Of course!
The realization struck her like a flash. From his perspective, it was all too easy to mistake it for underwear.
A swimsuit versus private undergarments.
He was offering his coat out of chivalry, but since she had claimed she wasn't cold, his frantic insistence made his assumption glaringly obvious.
A sly, mischievous spark began to stir deep within Renias’s chest.
“I told you, I’m really fine. If anything, Sunbae, you look colder. Why don't you wear it~?”
“Renias… stop playing around and put it on.”
That sealed it.
His refusal to drape the coat over her himself, the awkward way he stood offering it with an outstretched arm while staring stubbornly at empty air—it was all born from this glorious misunderstanding.
Hehehe. Is that how it is?
Opportunities to tease Junon were rare treasures. Adopting an air of delicate petulance, she turned him down flat.
“I don’t wanna.”
“What? Then you’re planning to walk all the way back dressed like that?”
“I never said I was going back right now. It’ll dry after a little while. Can’t we just wait here?”
Junon let out an incredulous scoff.
“How long do you think it’ll take to dry out here in the night air? Water doesn't evaporate that fast.”
“Mmm. Is that so? Maybe I could manage something with fire magic?”
As if that were possible. She knew full well it wasn't.
Though her voice carried the tone of someone pondering a serious dilemma, a bright, suppressed smirk tugged at her lips. In stark contrast to her amusement, Junon scratched vigorously at his head, looking thoroughly cornered.
Reluctantly, he decided to cut their stroll short.
“Our walk is officially over. We’re heading back right now, so hurry up and put this on.”
“Ehh? But we’ve barely walked for a few minutes. No way.”
With that, she reached out and snatched the wrist holding the coat. The instant her fingers made contact, she felt Junon flinch visibly.
“I want to walk a little longer. The view here is so pretty.”
It was an Oscar-worthy performance.
She was dying to see the expression on his face just over his shoulder, her cheek muscles twitching wildly from the effort of suppressing her giggles. She pressed her lips tight, holding it in, but her composure was already teetering on the edge.
It was time to wind down the trick and deliver the finishing blow. She cast her hook.
“Fine. Let go of my arm and put the coat on. If you do, I’ll walk with you a bit longer.”
“Really? You’re not lying to me, are you?”
“I’m not lying. I promise.”
And just like that, the unsuspecting upperclassman took the bait hook, line, and sinker.
“You promised, right? Then… give me just a second.”
“…Alright.”
Rustle. Swish.
Slowly. Exceedingly slowly.
Renias began peeling off the wet dress, deliberately exaggerating every whisper of fabric so the sound carried crisp and clear through the night. To Junon, standing rigidly with his back turned, the agonizing wait felt long enough to silently recite every verse of the national anthem twice over.
Yet once that excruciating stretch of time finally elapsed, a far greater trial ambushed him.
“All done~.”
“Haah. Look, since you’re finally finished, I have to ask: Renias, why on earth are you being so—GAAAH!”
“Oh my?”
A second? No, he snapped his neck away far faster than that.
The instant he turned around, he whipped his head right back in sheer panic.
“R-Renias! What are you doing without the coat on?!”
“I only said I finished taking off my dress. I never said I put the coat on.”
“Wait… but…”
The glimpse had been enough to make his head spin, yet Junon found himself utterly stripped of a retort. Renias had, in absolute truth, only taken off her dress. The sole mistake was his own foolish assumption that 'all done' meant she was fully clothed.
Ugh… damn it. What is wrong with me tonight…?
For now, only one response seemed proper.
“I… I’m sorry, Renias. I misunderstood and thought you’d put it on…”
He babbled incoherently, barely aware of the words tumbling past his lips. Seeing Junon flustered to such an unprecedented degree, Renias clamped a hand over her mouth, desperately fighting off her laughter.
He truly had no idea. Not until she laid out the truth.
“Sunbae.”
“Huh? Y-Yeah. What is it?”
“Turn around and look at me first.”
“S-Sure… okay… UWAAAH!”
The exact same reaction exploded from him once more. Nothing had changed; Renias still had not donned the coat he offered. Like a man who had caught sight of a banshee rather than a maiden in her intimates, Junon whipped his face away with lightning speed.
Watching him scramble, Renias finally lost the battle and burst into peals of laughter.
“Ahahaha…! S-Sunbae! Pffft!”
“Renias, I don’t know if it’s my place to lecture you, but…! This kind of prank isn't funny!”
Junon fought desperately to claw back his dignity, his voice tight.
He knew she had a playful streak, but there were lines one simply didn't cross.
“If you pull a stunt like that one more time, our deal from earlier is officially off…?!”
“Ahaha, oh, my stomach hurts. Sunbae, this isn't underwear.”
“…What?”
“It might look like it, but it’s actually a swimsuit.”
Was this another trick? Knowing Renias, it was entirely within the realm of possibility. But before he could question it, she stepped right into his line of sight.
“The cut might look like lingerie, but I swear it’s a real swimsuit.”
“…Seriously?”
“Cross my heart!”
It was impossible to dismiss it as a lie or a continuation of the joke. Renias, who had just been laughing so hard tears welled in her eyes, was now standing before him with utter, casual sincerity.
Even so, with so much delicate skin bare to the night air, it wasn't an image easily digested, and Junon kept his eyes tilted slightly away.
“…Haah. Why would you pull such a wicked prank on me?”
The memory of Junon stammering and averting his gaze in total disarray remained vivid in Renias's mind. Still, she had teased him to her heart’s content. She took a seat on the sand right beside Junon, who was currently covering his eyes with both palms.
“Hehe. But seeing you so startled was so much fun, Sunbae.”
“Don’t ever do that again. Do you have any idea how much you panicked me?”
“Ehh~? Panicked? Just what kind of thoughts were running through your head~?”
“There you go pushing your luck again.”
“Eep.”
Tap.
“Sigh. I don't even have the strength left to flick you properly. What a mess.”
A light knock to her forehead was nowhere near enough to repay the humiliation he had endured, but he was so thoroughly drained that he couldn't even put weight behind the gesture. Renias beamed radiantly, throwing both arms into the air in triumph. Having spent so much of her time on the receiving end of his lectures, this counterattack had landed with magnificent precision.
“Still, Renias… does this mean you were planning to swim during the day as well?”
“Huh? Why do you ask?”
“You wore a swimsuit under there. I figured you wouldn't have put one on unless you meant to get in the water.”
“…Ah.”
A swimsuit was, after all, an outfit designed with the functional purpose of entering the sea. Wearing it beneath her clothes naturally implied an intent to take a dip at some point.
“Well, that’s…”
Renias lightly scratched her cheek, suddenly hesitant. The design of the suit was undeniably embarrassing, and she had never been fond of showing off her bare skin to others. In that sense, she shouldn't have worn it in the first place.
Yet, in the end, she had put it on.
“Just like with that dress… to be honest, I never really liked clothes that showed a lot of skin, just like you said before.”
“Really? I just said that earlier as an excuse…”
“I used to feel that way. But not anymore. Because now, I can tease you like this… and… I can show you, too.”
Shedding her usual bubbly, buoyant demeanor, she shrank inward for a brief moment, looking like an ordinary, bashful girl. Slowly straightening her curled posture, she asked with careful hesitation:
“You’re the very first person… I’ve ever shown this to. My swimsuit, I mean. Does it… look okay?”
“Renias…”
Junon was caught completely off guard. A girl who despised showing skin had reserved this sight for his eyes alone, and was now quietly asking for his judgment. The teasing glint had vanished without a trace, replaced by a faint, charming blush as she stole nervous, upward glances at his face.
He had to answer honestly. It took immense courage for her to ask.
“I think it suits you. Very much.”
“…Really?”
“It matches the shade of your hair and the color of your eyes perfectly. And… even if it is a bit revealing, I thought you looked beautiful.”
He wondered if he should have chosen more elaborate phrasing, but in the end, Junon believed a direct, honest pitch was best. Clean. Concise. Given the relentless stares and flattery she had endured all her life, simple and unvarnished words were the ones she could accept most comfortably.
“What a relief.”
The girl smiled.
Her breathless, side-splitting laughter had been lovely, and the mischievous grin she wore when teasing him was charming in its own right, but the smile gracing her lips now was fundamentally different from both.
And because of that, it was infinitely more beautiful.
“Sunbae. You were wearing your swimwear underneath too, right?”
“Hm? Oh, yeah. Aside from my coat, I was already dressed for the water.”
“Then let’s walk a little more and talk about what’s on your mind. That’s what I came out here for in the first place.”
Pulling her knees together, Renias brushed the loose grains of sand from her legs as she rose.
It was a strange sensation.
Whenever Renias was by his side, the tangled, suffocating knot of thoughts in his mind seemed to quietly unravel, slipping out of reach for a little while.
I’ve felt this way before, haven't I?
Back when he trained alone in the gymnasium, he operated strictly on rigid objectives. Meal times were calculated to the minute, his days governed by an inflexible mold where even the slightest error was forbidden.
Yet how had things changed once Renias began training beside him?
He remembered watching her wheeze and groan in exhaustion at the start, chuckling so much that his training session ran far over schedule. There were days he had to abandon his own routine entirely to fix a machine she had tampered with out of curiosity, asking, 'What does this do?' And more times than he could count, he had spent his allocated workout hours simply helping her massage away severe muscle cramps.
Meal times fell out of order, and his meticulously crafted plans were shattered without mercy.
Yet strangely enough, despite seeing his schedule dismantled, he had never resented the disruption.
It cleared his head. It was as simple as that.
“Sunbae, Sunbae. So what brought you all the way out here by yourself?”
Holding her shoes in one hand with her arms clasped behind her back, Renias asked in a cheerful, lilting voice.
How should I frame this?
Confiding the truth about his past regression was out of the question—not just with Renias, but with anyone. Yet outright lying was something he refused to do.
Just as he had done before, weaving half-truths into a theoretical tale seemed the best path forward.
“Well… let’s treat this as a hypothetical scenario. It doesn't matter what angle you look at it from. Do you mind if I ask for your opinion on something?”
Renias nodded with a soft smile, and Junon carefully shaped his burdens, twisting and veiling the details until they formed a single, cohesive narrative.
“Mmm…”
Renias sank into deep contemplation. With every wave that washed over the shore, erasing their footprints in the wet sand, the humming note of her concentration grew deeper.
“Sunbae. Could you come with me for a second?”
Midway through her thoughts, she took Junon firmly by the arm, tugging him back toward the shallows where they had fallen earlier.
And then…
“Huh?”
“Take that!”
Splash!
Throwing her weight into the pull with both arms, she dragged Junon straight into the seawater. Both of them broke the surface a second later, completely drenched from head to toe.
“Puh-hah! W-What was that for all of a sudden?!”
For a fleeting moment, Junon thought she was simply pulling another prank. But it wasn't a joke.
This was Renias’s answer.
“Your head is always so full of complicated worries, Sunbae. When we’re out here having fun, isn't it okay to forget about them, just for a little while?”
To forget? That was impossible. The future of the Principality and countless human lives rested on the choices ahead—not to mention his own survival.
And yet… why was it?
“I’m going to splash you until that overheated brain of yours cools right down! Take this! And this!”
Splash! Swish!
Those heavy, suffocating anxieties scattered like dust in the wind as salty droplets spattered against his face. Just like every time before, the pattern held true.
Normally, Junon might have wiped the brine from his eyes, grumbled an excuse, and insisted on turning back. Instead, a challenging smirk spread across his lips.
“Oh? You’ve gone and done it now. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
“Kyaaa! Aren’t you splashing a little too hard?!”
“Look who’s talking! You’re sneakily weaving water magic into your waves!”
“Well, considering the difference in our physical strength, using magic is only fair!”
Caught up in the flurry of splashing waves, all heavy thoughts evaporated from his mind, replaced only by a stubborn, competitive fire.
“Puh-ha! Renias, don’t you dare run away! Tripping me with magic is totally cheating!”
“Kyaaha! Like I’d ever just stand still!”
It was a water fight indulged far too late into the night, yet for the two of them, the hours spent under the moon were nothing short of pure delight.