Under the scorching sun that fueled the melanin pigments, Shisae ran through the station square planted with large-leafed subtropical plants, shouting her love for Okinawa at the top of her voice.
They must be tourists like us.
People with auto-tracking travel bags were conspicuous.
“We really got to Okinawa in a blink of an eye. Honey-kun, your teleportation is so convenient.”
“I did relay a few times, though.”
Miina was impressed, but my teleportation range did not allow me to get from Tokyo to Okinawa.
So we arrived at the station in Okinawa after several teleports with a relay point in between.
“But it’s not as hot as I thought it would be. Okinawa is the southernmost point of Japan, right?”
The sun’s rays were twice as strong as in Tokyo.
The SPF 50 sunscreen I had applied before departure seemed unreliable.
And yet, the heat on my skin felt like early summer at best.
Kiriha explained to me in a teacher’s tone.
“Okinawa is the southernmost prefecture, but it is an island surrounded by the sea. In Tokyo, the summer temperature is 38 degrees Celsius, but in Okinawa, the maximum temperature is 33 degrees Celsius. The record for the highest temperature in the prefectural capital is lower than that of Hokkaido.”
“Lower than Hokkaido?”
“That’s right. The hottest summers in Japan are Kanto, Shikoku, and Kyushu. By the way, [prefectural capitals] are the southernmost, but Japan’s southernmost island, Okinotorishima, belongs to Tokyo, so the southernmost [prefecture] is Tokyo. This is a common quiz question, so be careful.”
“Did the middle school Kiriha was in, study that?”
“? No, it was in my elementary school geography resource book, though?”
As one might expect, she was the most well-educated high school student in Japan. Her memory was no joke.
“Fuyaa…It’s still hot. Kiriha looks cool…”
“You don’t like the heat, do you Maiko? I’m a bee, I can handle 40 degrees.”
“Then why are you wearing such revealing clothes?”
“It’s a service for Honey♪”
“D-don’t show your cleavage, and don’t pull your breasts up.”
“Uuh, I’m melting…”
When Maiko, still wearing her hat and with a wobbly face, whimpered, Kiriha pressed a chilled plastic bottle against her neck.
“It’s because you’re dressed like that. Everyone else is sleeveless, but only Maiko is wearing short sleeves.”
“Uuun, but……it’s embarrassing.”
Maiko looked away, holding the Shikuwasa juice she had received from Kiriha.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Matsumi with her crossed arms raised and her back straightened.
“Well, then, let’s get to the beach right away, hmm, what’s wrong?”
Maiko was flustered by Matsumi, who had her hands clasped behind her head, showing off her bare shoulders and armpits in an airy manner.
“Fuyaa!? It’s nothing!”
While Matsumi wore a tight sleeveless dress, Maiko wore a loose-fitting short-sleeved one-piece.
—I see, so she doesn’t want to show her armpits while keeping the size of her breasts inconspicuous.
I was impressed by Maiko’s girl power, as she was our number one in the sense of shame.
—In exchange for that.
“Shisa has been found! Ride on to the Guardian God of Okinawa!”
Shisae landed on her bottom on the back of the Shisa statue in front of the station, and waved at me, oblivious to the people around her.
“Now, Honey-chan! Shisae must be photographed! After conquering Hokkaido and Okinawa, Shisae will be the Lydon Queen!”
“You’ll be punished.”
I retorted with a jittery look.
Miina and Matsumi were doing their best to pretend to be strangers.
And Maya was talking to a banyan tree. And she then mimes patting a child on the head and shaking hands with him.
What kind of play is that?
*****
“Hey, we’ve arrived. This is the hole that Vice Minister Sayuri told me about.”
We teleported from the station plaza to the beach, which was not a tourist beach.
We teleported to the beach of a small island several kilometers away from the beach.
“According to Vice-Minister Sayuri, the island is owned by the prefecture, but it’s not off-limits, but you have to take a boat to get there, but there’s no one here. So it’s like a private beach.”
“We’ve searched, but there’s no one on the island but us”
“Well, that’s good to know. So, Maya, what are you holding?”
“A little red-haired girl gave it to me a while ago.”
Maya had what looked like old, old money.
Kiriha looked at it curiously and seriously.
“Taise Tsūhō, that’s money that circulated when Okinawa was the Ryukyu Kingdom.”
“She must have liked you very much to give it to you on your first meeting.”
“I will treasure it.”
Saying this, Maya took a ribbon from her pocket, threaded it through the hole in her money, and tied it to her hair.
In that way, it didn’t look like a fashionable accessory.
“Wait, wait, what are you doing? It’s swimsuit time! So, everyone has their swimsuits on underneath, right?”
Shisae, who was more excited than usual, looked like she was already excited.
I teleported out of my clothes and was instantly dressed in my sea pants.
“So, Shisae will start first!”
As soon as she said it, Shisae deftly removed her camisole and hot pants and was dressed in a white bikini.
It was a different design from the one she had shown in the living room before.
Shisae was a beautiful girl on the outside and had a great style, not to mention her personality, so I was unexpectedly surprised to see her.
“Eh, don’t people usually change their clothes somewhere before coming out?”
“Hmph, you don’t understand, Honey-chan.”
With a critical look on her face, Shisae quickly walked around next to me and sat down with her hands on my shoulders. I had no idea what she meant, but I did as she urged me and sat down on the beach.
The sand, seared by the sun, was hot even through my sea pants.
“Hey, my bottom is hot.”
“Sit on your undressed clothes like Shisae.”
After giving advice in a whisper, Shisae raised her voice like a moderator.
“Okay, one by one, we’re going to go out in front of Honey-chan and show him our swimsuits♪”
“Ok. Look, Honey. This is the swimsuit I chose.
As she said this, Kiriha began to undress, and my eyes widened at the sight of her.