Chapter 52: The Two People Alone in the Room
“W-where are we…”
After being dragged by Ling to the big bathing area, Kanade found himself walking down the corridor of the ship, feeling somewhat lost and looking around.
He had intended to go directly back to his room.
But he had been so preoccupied with thoughts of how to apologize to Nagi that he had lost focus. In a moment of distraction, he realized he was now lost on the second floor of the cruise ship.
Additionally, Kanade’s phone had run out of battery during the playful antics with Ling.
Now he couldn’t even contact the cruise staff via LINE.
He wandered around for a bit on the second floor.
Yet he still couldn’t find his way.
“Kanade…kun?” A familiar voice called out from behind him, causing him to stop in his tracks.
Turning around, he saw Nagi standing behind him, dressed in a white athletic outfit and just returned from her bath.
Her clear and bright eyes were filled with confusion, and her adorable and beautiful cheeks glowed with a tempting shade of peach, as if touched by a thin layer of rosy light.
Her skin, slightly flushed from the steam, was translucent, radiating a moist shine under the light, as delicate and smooth as a freshly peeled egg, almost breaking under the slightest touch.
Her damp long black hair cascaded down her shoulders, the tips still glistening with a few droplets of water.
She wore a loose white athletic outfit that lightly clung to her slender and graceful figure, the fabric slightly transparent due to her still-damp body, subtly outlining the alluring curves, exuding an inexplicable sensuality.
Kanade couldn’t help but stare in disbelief.
“Kanade-kun, are you standing at my door… is there something you need?” Nagi asked, her expression shy.
“Eh?!” Kanade was taken aback. Was it really a coincidence that he was standing right in front of Nagi’s room!?
Just as he panicked and tried to explain that it was all just a misunderstanding, the words he intended to say were caught in his throat by Nagi’s next question—
“Kanade-kun, would you like to come in my room for a bit?”
Nagi shyly hid her blushing cheeks behind the towel around her neck, her moist eyes gazing softly at Kanade.
Her skin, freshly bathed, was pink and charming, radiating a fatal allure.
Faced with this enticing invitation—
Every cell in Kanade’s body resisted.
He absolutely couldn’t go in.
This cabin beside him was a den of temptation.
If he stepped inside…
He had no confidence that he could walk out unscathed.
Just then, a conversation from the teachers coming from the other side of the corridor made both Nagi and Kanade involuntarily shudder.
According to the rules of the study trip, boys were not allowed in the girls’ area.
If Kanade was discovered, he would definitely face severe criticism and lecturing.
“J-just come in, Kanade-kun!” Nagi hurriedly walked towards him.
She opened the door with her boarding card and without a moment’s hesitation, pushed Kanade inside.
……
……
The air was filled with the scent of shampoo and body wash that the girl had just used.
Kanade felt dizzy.
He was now in the cabin assigned to Nagi and Mana.
The layout and decor inside were exactly the same as the room he was in.
“So the boys’ and girls’ rooms are the same…” Kanade thought to himself with a soft sigh.
But this was merely him escaping reality.
Avoiding the fact that standing in front of him was a beautiful childhood friend with an alluring body who had just taken a bath, exuding an irresistible charm.
Otherwise…
His rationality would be wiped clean in an instant.
This is the vulnerability of a boy in his puberty.
“Kanade-kun, did you come to find me for something?” Nagi, leading Kanade towards the sofa area in the corner of the room, continued the conversation they had in the corridor.
The blush on her face had yet to fade, seeming to reflect her lingering shyness about what had happened in the dining room.
But Kanade was entirely oblivious to this.
His eyes and attention were captivated by Nagi’s peach-like, shapely backside as she walked in front of him.
The loose athletic pants stretched tightly over her rounded, voluptuous buttocks, even outlining a triangular shape on the thin fabric.
“Childbearing body type.” The term flashed through Kanade’s mind for some reason.
Thump, thump.
All he could hear was the sound of his heart beating increasingly faster.
“Kanade-kun?”
“Ah!? W-what?!” After finally regaining his sense of reason, Kanade panickedly responded.
Nagi seemed unaware that Kanade was lost in staring at her lower body.
She assumed it was the thought of them nearly being caught by the teacher that left him so flustered.
“Did you just finish showering too, Kanade-kun?” Nagi noticed he was also wearing a white athletic outfit.
“Uh, yeah… actually, I got lost by accident…” Kanade finally found an opportunity to hurriedly explain why he was there.
Sitting on the sofa, Kanade faced Nagi.
But his gaze remained fixed on the coffee table, not daring to look at Nagi.
“I see. I thought you might have come to find me… or maybe Mana-chan…” Nagi shyly giggled, then seemed to remember something—
“By the way, I have something… I want Kanade-kun to see…”
Nagi’s voice grew quieter.
“Something you want me to see?”
“Yeah, so if possible, Kanade-kun, can you just sit here and wait a moment… no peeking, okay?”
???
Kanade was left with a head full of question marks, but he didn’t dare turn his head.
Change… change what? Is she going to put something on for me to see?
A newly bought skirt? Is she going to change here? In a room alone with a guy like this, under these circumstances?!
What on earth is going through your mind, Miss Nagi!?
For a moment,
Kanade felt like he was experiencing one of the three major illusions of life.
But looking at Nagi now,
He didn’t sense that “emotional” vibe from her.
Whether it was the previous Nagi or the current Nagi.
Even if her attitude toward him was ambiguous and lacking distance,
Kanade could still feel that there was “no emotion” involved.
Perhaps, from a behavioral and rational standpoint, he could vaguely judge that Nagi had a crush on him.
But his intuition told him.
There was no “real emotion” there.
Except for that time right after they returned to school in the second year when she fled from his confession at the aquarium, where he could feel the “emotion” from her.
That was why he mistakenly thought she liked him… no, perhaps he shouldn’t call it a “misunderstanding.”
If, on that day at the aquarium, Nagi ran away from his confession due to the curse, then perhaps…
“U-um, I’m back….” Nagi’s voice interrupted Kanade’s thoughts.
He reflexively turned his head to look at her.
He saw Nagi shyly peeping her adorable head from the bathroom.
Her waist-length black straight hair was now tied into a refreshing high ponytail, exposing her fair neck.
Her body still remained hidden within the bathroom.
Kanade felt a sense of foreboding.
His rationality told him that it would be best to immediately avert his gaze.
