Nomily kept her head down, the blush on her face still not fading.
Listening to the surrounding classmates’ discussions, she stammered for a moment before finally squeezing out a sentence:
“My Elder Sister is definitely more amazing!”
The two classmates already knew Nomily’s personality well. They chuckled and went along with her.
“Yes, yes, Olesia is the best—”
“But Ruri suddenly became so assertive earlier, and that princess carry she used to take Nomily away was actually quite handsome!”
Hearing her classmate say that, Nomily reflexively retorted, “How was that handsome? I clearly told her I didn’t need help, yet she took it upon herself to do those things…”
“Is that so? But I saw that your face was beet red at the time.”
“That was from anger!”
—
Yuriko had already returned to the field.
As soon as she arrived, she was surrounded by her classmates again, who began chatting with her about what had just happened.
“Ruri, you even know healing magic! It looked like you were very skilled with it!”
“It’s because my younger brothers and sisters get hurt often, so I studied it very hard.”
“Do you have younger siblings, Ruri?”
“They aren’t biological; just very close friends. But to me, they are just like younger brothers and sisters.”
She chatted with her classmates like this until the bell rang to end class, at which point the students began to disperse.
However, two classmates were still following Yuriko.
They were the ones who had been chatting most enthusiastically with her, so they hadn’t left yet.
“You guys were so into the conversation that I couldn’t get a word in at all.”
Carmilla, who had been staying by Yuriko’s side, scratched her chin and gave a somewhat awkward smile.
That was the downside of having such a soft personality.
She didn’t have the heart to interrupt when others were speaking and didn’t want to steal the spotlight, so she ended up unable to join in.
“Oh, ah, I’m sorry. I forgot to consider your feelings.”
Yuriko pressed her hands together in a deeply apologetic gesture.
Carmilla immediately waved her hands dismissively.
“I didn’t mean to blame you, Ruri. I just wondered if I’m being a bit too weak. Everyone says I’m gentle, but could it be because my personality is just too spineless?”
Carmilla seemed to be truly reflecting on herself. Seeing her think so seriously about the issue, Yuriko felt she was overthinking it.
“I don’t think you’re weak at all, Carmilla. I’ve seen plenty of cowards, but a girl as beautiful and gentle as you is a first for me. You probably just stayed quiet because you care too much about how others feel, right?”
“Is that so? So that’s how I look in your eyes, Ruri.”
Yuriko’s answer seemed to make Carmilla very happy. She covered her mouth as she chuckled, then said to Yuriko, “Maybe you’re mistaken, Ruri. I might just be acting this way because I’m afraid of being hated—”
“Nobody who is actually afraid of being hated would just say it out loud.”
Yuriko took Carmilla’s words as a joke. She prepared to go to her locker to change her clothes, but she saw the other students walking toward the back of the locker room.
There was a curtain there, and the sound of running water drifted out from behind it, causing Yuriko to daze for a moment.
“Carmilla, what’s back there?”
“Hmm?”
Carmilla looked toward the back and said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, “Those are the showers. We worked up such a sweat, so we have to wash up before we can continue with the rest of our classes.”
“Showers?”
You could take a shower after Physical Education Class before continuing with school?
Please forgive Yuriko’s ignorance. The mere fact that there was a private locker room had already exceeded her expectations, let alone a dedicated shower room.
In her entire life, she had never heard of a school like this.
“Is that how it is? I’ve never been to school before, so I didn’t know about these things at all.”
Hearing Yuriko say that, Carmilla understood her previous confusion.
After all, a person cannot understand things outside their own experience. It was normal for Yuriko, who had never attended school, not to know.
But it didn’t matter. She would make sure to teach her new classmate, Yuriko, all about these things.
“It’s better for girls to stay clean and tidy. Let’s head in quickly—”
Carmilla pulled Yuriko into the shower room.
The space here was no smaller than the locker room, and it contained many individual stalls, each with a curtain to block the view from outside.
Seeing that they were small stalls rather than a large, open communal bath, Yuriko visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
‘It looks like I don’t have to worry about the tattoo on my shoulder being exposed.’
“My, Yuriko, your performance earlier was really brilliant. You completely crushed Nomily—”
A playful voice came from behind her. Yuriko turned around to find Yuri standing right there.
“It’s only because I do a lot of physical labor, so my stamina is a bit better than Kipling’s.”
“How humble.”
After their brief chat, Yuriko chose an empty stall. She pulled the curtain shut and began to shower.
The fact that she could rinse off after exercising instead of having to sit through the rest of the day covered in sweat improved Yuriko’s mood significantly.
She unconsciously began to hum a little tune.
Just as she turned the shower knob and was getting ready for a lovely rinse, the curtain of her stall was suddenly pulled back a crack, and a blue-haired head poked inside.
“What song are you humming? It actually sounds pretty good.”
“Waaah!”
Yuri’s sudden appearance startled Yuriko.
She immediately acted panicked, covering her body with her hands and using the opportunity to hide the tattoo on her shoulder.
It wasn’t that she was afraid of being seen, but rather that it would be bad if the tattoo on her shoulder was discovered.
At a time like this, the only thing she could do was pretend to be shy and chase Yuri out.
Yuriko looked back at Yuri, her eyes full of reproach.
“Yuri!”
“Hee-hee, we’re all girls, why are you being so shy? Be a good girl and let me see!”
“Get out!”
Yuriko gave Yuri a firm push, then yanked the curtain shut again.
“How stingy.”
Yuri grumbled after being kicked out, but then her gaze turned toward the stall next to Yuriko’s.
“Huh? Yuri, why did you suddenly come in?!”
Carmilla’s voice suddenly reached Yuriko’s ears through the partition.
Did that girl Yuri go to harass Carmilla after being chased away?
Was she picking on her because she looked like an easy target?
“Whoa, they really are magnificent! Quickly, tell me, what do you eat to grow them so big?”
“Don’t do that, it tickles—”
Hearing the sounds from next door, Yuriko couldn’t help but visualize the two girls squeezed into a tiny stall.
“Have they gotten bigger again? Be honest, how big are they exactly?!”
“Ugh, I didn’t want this either… I’m already almost a G-cup…”
Though she had already suspected as much, hearing Carmilla admit it with her own ears still left Yuriko feeling shocked.
“Damn, is this some kind of humble brag? I think Yuriko is a decent size too—she’s gotta be at least an E-cup!”
How did the topic shift back to her?
Nomily, who had just finished showering and was passing by the stall, overheard the conversation between Yuri and Carmilla.
She looked down at her own barren chest.
She reached out and felt it, only to find a negligible curve.
“Dammit!”
Nomily suddenly cried out and ran away.
—