Chapter 91 - Prefect Summer - Epilogue
...
Coming down to the beach with the two Prefect Team girls and the rest of their forces, we find... the Gourmet Research Society? And why do they have a bunch of corn with them?
Izumi has on a revealing red and black bikini, along with matching sandals and bracelets, and a large straw hat decorated with flowers. Her hair is no longer done in pigtails, instead flowing freely.
Junko has on a school swimsuit, complete with her name in katakana on the chest. She also has on brown sandals.
Akari has on a VERY revealing black bikini and matching sandals. Her hair is done up in a high ponytail.
Haruna- elegant as always- has on a white, one-piece swimsuit that's cut low, revealing much of her chest, and has a diamond pattern cut into the side. She also has on white sandals and her hair is done up into a bun, though she still keeps that braid on the side of her head.
"What are you troublemakers DOING here?! Are you trying to cause a scene?" Iori asks, clearly fed up with everything that's happened today.
"Oh. We're not here to cause trouble." Haruna innocently says.
"I take it why you're here has somethin' to do with that pile of corn?" I ask, pointing to the dozen or so giant sacks of corn.
"Correct!" Junko chirps. "We're entrepreneurs! Proprietors! We came to sell corn!"
Iori and Chinatsu blink in confusion. "Corn?" The latter asks.
"Haven't you ever wondered why grilled corn is much more delicious when you eat it on the beach with friends?" The silver haired gourmet asks. Hang on, has that always been a thing? Corn on the beach? But she continues, "Don't you want to find the answer as to why? It's no different than grilled corn anywhere else, and yet..." She smiles. "That's why we've spent some time recently conducting several investigations on the topic. We came to the conclusion that the only way to know is to come to the beach ourselves! That's why we came here to sell delicious grilled corn and collect data."
"That's right." Akari chirps. "We heard about the war between the Fubar Beach Thugs and Splashy Helmet Gang. Talk about a perfect market!"
"Delinquents gotta eat, right?" Junko adds. "Not to mention all the spectators. It's free corn real estate!"
"And best of all, we get to eat all the leftovers!" Izumi happily admits.
"You idiot! We have to sell every last one of them." The redhead stresses, whirling around towards the shameless grayette. "Do you realize hwo much this corn cost us?!"
"That sums up the plan." Haruna sighs. "However, why is the beach deserted?"
"Tryin' to give Hina a vacation, a gang war would disrupt that, thus we kicked the thugs outta the beach." I summarize.
"The Head Prefect?" Haruna blinks, looking over to the hotel for a moment. "Ah."
Iori finally snaps. "I don't care why you came here! The show's over. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here!"
Haruna giggles as Akari taunts the tan girl. "Oh? You want us to leave?"
"The Gourmet Research Society never runs away from a challenge when in search for the pinnacle of taste." The Gourmet leader grins.
"That's right~" Akari adds. "And... the Head Prefect isn't with you all, remember?"
Iori flinches. Chinatsu lets out a deep sigh.
"Since we're all together, how about we show you how steely our determination is?" Haruna asks with a giggle, her and her group readying their guns.
"Exactly! Let's eat the corn already!" Izumi whines.
"It's one thing after another today." Iori groans. "Do you think we're going to let you ruin that? Everyone, prepare for combat!"
"YES, MA'AM!" The identical Prefect Team girls shout, all readying their guns. Chinatsu sighs.
"Hang on a sec." I interject, stopping the tension. "This is all about y'all selling that corn to see if people like it on the beach, yeah?"
"That's correct, Sensei." Haruna nods.
"And getting our money back!" Junk adds.
"Well, I've never had corn on the beach, so why don't I buy your stock?" I suggest.
""Eh?"" Multiple girls blink at that. I can't count how many.
"Sensei?" Chinatsu asks. "Why would you...?"
I shrug at my elven girlfriend. "Plus, y'all have been running around all day. You deserve a reward of some sort and I KNOW I can't eat that much corn." I say, pointing at the large sacks. "So long as I can save some for Hina and Arona, we all can have some."
"Really? Even us?!" Izumi asks, clearly very hungry.
"Yes, I'll share some with y'all too." I grin, eliciting a happy cheer from the grayette.
"Well..." Haruna smiles, lowering her gun. "This isn't how I saw this going... but you won't hear me complaining."
After buying a truck-load of corn, I ate some while leaving most of the rest for the Prefect Team and Gourmet Research Society girls. I came back to the hotel and gave the rest I saved to Arona, Hina, and Problem Solver, who all happily ate them up. Especially Arona, damn gluttonous AI. The corn was pretty good, admittedly.
...Yuuka's gonna have my ass for spending that much money, though.
By the time night fell, we all went back to our separate rooms. Ako had called to check in on us before the sun completely set, with no new news from either of us.
As I laid down in bed, tired from the long day, I got a text. From Hina?
Would you mind spending time with me for a little bit, Sensei?
Sure.
I came out to the moonlit beach to find Hina there, looking out at the calm, rolling tide.
"Yo." I smile, walking up to her.
Hina smiles in response. "Do you mind if we walked for a little bit?"
I shake my head as we start to walk along the beach. We walked for quite a while, neither of us saying a word. It wasn't awkward, though, the scenery around us was pretty calming. Eventually, Hina does speak up.
"It's not very fun hanging out with someone like me, is it, Sensei?" The whitette asks.
"Where's this comin' from?" I ask, looking down at her, confused.
"You've been running around all day." She says.
"Yeah, to make sure nothing interrupts your vacation." I remind. "I figured something would happen, which is why I asked Problem Solver if they wanted to come along. Not to mention Arona, that sweetheart."
Hina smiles warmly at the reminder, but forces her face to be neutral. "Still... I would want to stay and chat with you all day if it were my choice, but that's just me being selfish."
"Knowing how hard you work and all you do, it's fine to be selfish every now and again." I say, causing her purple eyes to widen for a moment. "And besides, where'd you get the idea I don't like hangin' out with you?"
Hina looks away. "Thank you, Sensei, but you don't have to comfort me like that."
"The hell are you saying? I'm being serious here!" I snap, a touch upset by her denial.
"Really?" She blinks.
"Yes!"
She stays silent for a moment, looking at me silently for a long while.
"Pfft."
Then, she snorts, a small smile appearing on her face. Then, it blossoms into the biggest smile I've ever seen from the small girl as she laughs, "Haha! Your face looked like you were about to cry."
The fuck, Hina?
Still... it's nice to hear her laugh. She really needs to be able to act her age more.
"I'm only kidding." She admits, calming down her laughter. "I know better than anyone that you wouldn't lie about something like that. I just felt like getting back at you."
I sigh tiredly. "Well you got me damn good."
"You were really busy today." She begins. "I'm surprised you cared enough to run back and forth like you did. Not to mention going along with the ruse to give me a break, even going so far as to invite other students to help me have fun..." She smiles again, before looking up at me with a big smile. "Thank you, Sensei. I appreciate you always looking out for us."
Looking at Hina like this, her eyes boring into mine, her cute face smiling, her long hair blowing in the gentle wind, the moonlit sea behind her... Fuckin' hell, I might be in love or something, haha!
I hide those emotions with a smile. "You're welcome, Hina. You know I'll always look out for my students, no matter what."
The small Head Prefect smiles wider, before it fades away again. "Still, I'm glad Ako offered to take responsibility, and I'm sure she's been doing a good job, but knowing how hard everyone else is working only makes me more restless to be cooped up in my room."
"You didn't have fun with the others?" I ask.
"I mean... I suppose I did, but..." She says, struggling to find the words. "Staying inside all day makes me restless. Yes, my work keeps me extremely busy, but... Don't misunderstand. Leaving training in Ako's hands was my decision, and I'm not saying that I regret it. However, despite the company, I suppose I was... a bit bored, if I had to put my finger on it."
I blink. Does she do work so much that it feels wrong for her to NOT have any work to do? The girl's only seventeen and has the mentality of a fucking forty year old salary man. I HAVE to do something to help her.
"Well..." I look at the water. "...we ARE at the beach, yeah? Is there anything you wanted to do? Somethin' the two of us could do?"
"Something we could do at the beach...?" She hums, thinking deeply. "Yes. If you're offering, Sensei, there is something I want to do." I raise an eyebrow. "...Learn how to swim."
"Oh?" I ask, curious.
Hina looks away, bashful. "I've, um... never really had the opportunity to swim. I know it's a skill that I'm lacking, so I'd like to make up for it and get better." She quickly says, trying to rationalize it, bringing a smile to my face. "I'll be on standby all morning tomorrow according to the schedule that Ako gave me. So..." She takes a step closer to me, a genuine smile on her face. "How about it, Sensei? Could you give me swimming lessons tomorrow morning?"
...That love feeling is coming back.
"Do ya hafta ask?" I smile. "I'd love to."
Hina's smile widens somehow. Good lord, it's like looking into a solar eclipse- rare, but blinding. "Good. I'll see you then."
She then turns around and walks back to the hotel.
"...That smile is dangerous."
"And that's all that happened." I finish my explanation of my walk with Hina as I sit in a couch in the control room.
Ako's eyes are wide, clear to see even in the hologram.
"H-Hey, Ako...? You all right?" Iori asks, concerned.
Suddenly, the normally stoic- and sometimes manic- administrator squeals. "My heart is touched! I can't believe the head prefect of all people would request swimming lessons! This can only mean that she's finally accepted that she's on a vacation!"
The tan girl sighs. "I have to admit that it does seem out of character, even if she's only seeing swimming as a skill..."
"I'm so impressed that you managed to make yourself useful, Sensei!" Ako chirps.
"And I'm shocked you managed to get anything done from over there." I shoot back.
Ako ignores my retort. "The plan is coming along smoothly thanks to everyone's hard work. So let's not just stand around and do nothing. We have a goal for tomorrow, so that means we have to prepare ourselves. We'll stop at nothing to ensure the president has peaceful swimming lessons!"
At Ako's declaration, Iori sighs yet again. As does Chinatsu.
"We can't let anything interrupt her, am I clear?" Ako retorts. "Even if it means sacrificing our bodies to the watery depths!" Then, she gets those crazy eyes again. "Prepare to put your lives on the line once more tomorrow! Dismissed!" Then, the call ends.
The two girls are left stunned silent, clearly completely and utterly exhausted.
"I'm going to bed." Iori says, leaving the room.
Once the tan girl closes the door behind her, I turn to Chinatsu. "I'm goin' to sleep too."
Chinatsu opens her mouth, but stops herself from saying something, instead opting for. "Good night, Josh."
"Night, Chinatsu." I smile, heading to my bedroom.
"There you are!" Mutsuki's voice is the first thing I hear upon entering my hotel room. I'm surprised to see her and Haruka sat on my bed, the latter looking sleepy and shy, a big blush on her face. They're both only clad in their underwear- Mutsuki in a black bra and matching panties, Haruka in the same but dark purple.
I stare at them, bewildered by their boldness. Oh, who am I kidding? This is Mutsuki's doing.
"W-W-We were waiting for y-you, Josh." My shy, purple haired girlfriend stammers, clearly incredibly embarrassed.
My blonde, imp-like girlfriend, on the other hand, is calm and collected. "You hear that? You made poor Haruka wait all day for you. You'd better make it up to us, Josh."
I chuckle, breaking out of my surprise. "Fine, you two can sleep here and snuggle up against me as tight as ya want all night. How's that sound?"
"R-Really?!" Haruka shouts, excited.
"Kufufu~ Sounds good to me!" Mutsuki grins.
"Lemme change first." I say, going into the bathroom. Once I come back out, changed into my sleep clothes, I hop into bed. Mutsuki latches onto me like she did that one time in Abydos- God, that feels like forever ago. Haruka also latches onto me, albeit with some hesitation, before smiling brightly as she lays her head on my chest.
"Isn't she adorable?" Mutsuki grins, looking at her happy friend.
"Yeah." I smile. "Though I'm surprised you swapped out of your swimsuits."
"We were wearing them all day." Mutsuki deadpans.
"Yeah, but y'all looked sexy." I grin.
"EEP!" Haruka squeaks, stiffening around me.
"BWAHAHAHA!" Mutsuki laughs uproariously despite her red face. "I didn't think you'd be that honest, Josh." She chuckles a bit more before grinning. "What did you think about the other two?"
"Aru looked hot too, but Kayoko... that shirt was a damn good choice." I say.
"I know right?" The imp grins. "We're the rest of the Prefect Team wearing them too?"
I nod. "I think I'm just weak to swimsuits."
"Even Hina's?" Mutsuki asks.
"Yeah. It's hard to tell normally, but Hina's chest ain't flat." I say. That swimsuit being tight reveals it, and... "The same thing goes for Haruka."
"EEP!" The purplette squeals again. "J-Josh!"
"Aw, don't worry." I say, patting the shy girl's head. "We tease ya because we love ya."
That seems to placate her as she snuggles against me again, relaxing her grip on me.
Mutsuki titters, snuggling against me too. "Well, tomorrow's a new day. You can see us in those again in the morning."
"I suppose so." I smile, feeling sleepy. "Though I'll be helpin' Hina swim in the morning."
"She can't swim?" Haruka asks. I shake my head. "Ne-Neither can I."
"Then why don't we come along and help?" Mutsuki suggests. "Kayoko and I can swim, though I'm not sure about Aru."
"And Arona definitely can't." I add. "If Hina's fine with it, y'all can come."
"Nice." The imp grins as the purplette smles.
I close my eyes as the girls get comfortable around me. "Sweet dreams, Mutsuki, Haruka."
"Swe-Sweet dreams, Josh."
"Don't let the bedbugs bite!"
"If I find one, I'll crush 'em with the force of a thousand suns."
"Hahaha!" "Bwahaha!"
The next day, after waking up sandwiched between two of my girlfriends, I went and checked on Hina. I knocked on her door.
"Come in." Hina's soft voice called out, prompting me to go inside her room. "Ah, Sensei. Are you ready to go?"
"Yup. Ako called and said there's no problems, so we've got the all-clear." I say. "Though, Haruka asked if she could join."
"Oh?" Hina blinks. "She doesn't know how to swim either?"
"Nope. Neither does Arona." I add. "Mutsuki thinks Aru might be the same too."
She hums. "I can understand that. Arona mentioned she's only had her body a short while. I don't mind if they come."
"Great. I'll text 'em." I say, pulling out my phone.
Sensei: Y'all can come with. Get ready.
Mutsuki: Be down in a sec!
"They'll meet us outside." I say, placing my phone back into my swimming trunks' pocket.
Hina nods as we leave the hotel room and make our way downstairs, but not before grabbing a big, grey pool ring with a duck's head, and a larger version of the Prefect Team's armband around it. It's nearly as big as her.
Hina and I come outside of the building, along with Arona, who pops out of the Shittim Chest in her swimsuit, ready to learn alongside the other small girls. Well, them and Aru.
Arona and Hina smile at each other, the latter a bit shy from the former's beaming smile.
"Here we are!" Mutsuki shouts, coming outside along with her friends, all clad in their swimsuits again. "Haruka's all ready to learn."
"I-I'm here, Sensei." Said purplette stammers, earning a smile from me.
"Glad to see you're raring to go." I say, before turning to the redhead. "And what about you, Aru?"
"Wha-? Me?" Aru asks, wide eyed. "I-I can swim just fine, Sensei!"
"Oh?" I challenge.
"Yeah! I bet I can swim better than you!" Aru doubles down.
"She can't swim at all." Kayoko deadpans.
"Kayoko!" Aru shouts, aghast at the betrayal.
"What happened on that one job at Trinity's harbor?" The monochrome girl reminds, causing her boss to freeze. "You fell in the water and started flailing around. Then Haurka jumped in to help, knowing she can't swim either." Both Aru and Haruka look away, ashamed.
"I wasn't any help at all... I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry-" The purplette's self-deprecation is stopped by Kayoko placing a hand on her shoulder. She has to do that a lot, huh?
"Hahaha! We all ended up soaking wet after that." Mutsuki laughs.
"Well, so long as I'm here, y'all won't have to go through that again." I say, determined. "I'll make sure-"
"GAH!"
A sudden shout causes us all to stop and look towards the source.
"Was that...?" Kayoko asks.
"Ako...?" Hina finishes.
"Let's go see what's goin' on before we get to swimming." I suggest. Earning nods from the girls.
"Good idea, Sensei." Arona says. "I hope she isn't in trouble."
"Those thugs from yesterday oughta left." I say, as we all begin to walk down the beach towards the shout. "I doubt it's them, but..."
Soon, we reach our destination. Iori and Chinatsu are there, looking worried. Ako is there, via hologram call, looking absolutely manic. This is proven when she starts shouting.
"I don't know what to do! How the hell am I supposed to handle all of this Scheiße by myself?!" The bluette yells, curing in German.
"Looks like she's at her wits end." Mutsuki blinks.
"H-How can you tell?" Haruka asks.
"Ako never curses unless she's worn thin. Same with her swapping to Gehennan." Kayoko explains, further increasing my curiosity towards their history. Hina's the same, eyeing Kayoko.
Gehennan? I knew this place was German, but still... Didn't Yuuka mention something about Trinity using different measurements once? American stuff like pounds and inches?
"It's one thing after another!" Ako yells, grabbing her hair, causing further concern for the two Prefect Team girls next to her. "We stomp out one fire, and two more take its place!"
"Ako, you need to calm down..." Iori cautiously advises.
"Wie soll ich mich beruhigen?!" Ako yells in German- er, Gehennan again, roughly meaning 'How am I supposed to calm down?!'.
"We need to devise a strategy." Chinatsu adds.
"Strategie?! Welche Strategie?! Das ist unmöglich!" Ako continues, yelling 'Strategy?! What strategy?! It's impossible!'. But she continues normally, "I thought this was supposed to be the most quiet beach in all of Gehenna! More like it's the raging fires of Gehenna! It's hot! Too hot!"
"Ugh, did the thugs band together?" I groan, guessing what's got her so upset.
Hina makes a small smirk as she steps forward. "So we've gone from the frying pan to the fire, have we?"
"Yes, Head Prefect. You understand!" Ako cheers as the other two visibly relax. "Sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves isn't going to resolve this situation. If only we could counter..."
Hina, guessing it's the thugs again, continues, "Each faction is large, but their alliance is totally makeshift. They have no central chain of command."
"That's their weakness." Ako says, having an 'ah-ha!' moment. "They'll become completely disorganized if we manage to break through their line of defense!"
"Agreed." Hina nods. "Imagine concentric circles approaching us with the hotel at the center. All it takes is one broken formation for us to advance." Impressive. I don't think I've seen Hina do this kinda thing.
"Masterfully done, Head Prefect! You came up with that so easily!" Ako praises. "Now we just have to carry out the operation without..." She trails off. "...ruining your..."
Iori and Chinatsu sigh. All three of them whirl around- even Ako on the hologram- to see all of us standing there.
"...vacation." Ako finishes, wide-eyed. "H-HEAD PREFECT?!"
"We heard you from the other side of the beach, Ako." I deadpan.
"Ako." Hina says.
"U-Um, yes...?" Ako asks, cringing.
"It's fine. I already know about your plan."
"You do?!" Ako asks, shocked by Hina's words.
"I ain't the type to lie, Ako." I say, solemnly. "I've had to deal with too many problems because of them."
The trio blink, surprised by my words. Chinatsu, however, seems to understand what I mean.
"Regardless, prepare for battle." Hina orders.
"E-Even us?" Haruka stammers.
"I don't see why we should sit back and let them have all the fun!" Mutsuki grins, earning a sigh from Kayoko. Aru nods along with the imp.
"Might as well." I say, turning to Arona, who nods and disappears back into the Shittim Chest.
Hina smiles at me, before turning serious. "Everyone, let's finish this quickly!"
"R-Roger!" Iori stutters.
"Yes!" Chinatsu says.
First things first, Hina and I went to the heart of the thugs' group, everyone else handling all of the others.
"Are you sure you want to join me, Sensei? I'll be facing most of them." Hina asks.
"That's exactly why I came with you. I'm no stranger to overwhelming numbers." I grin.
Her purple eyes blink, before she nods.
Soon, we come to their main regiment.
"Oh? And what are you idiots doing here? This is OUR turf!" One helmeted gangster yells.
"Hang on. Isn't that...?" A swimsuit-clad thug asks.
"Oh shit, it is! It's the Head Prefect!" Another yells.
"Wh-What's the Head Prefect doing here?! You said she was out of commission!" One yells.
"Stop thinking and shoot! Even if its her and Sensei, we still outnumber them!" Another snaps. "Mow 'em down!"
"Are you stupid?! We're no match for the Head Prefect! And Sensei's with her too!" One helmeted girl yells.
"You're right about that!" I yell. "Surrender and leave or we kick your asses!"
"Not a chance!" A brave one yells.
I look down at Hina, a grin on my face. "You heard 'em."
Hina nods. "Commencing assault." She says, readying her massive gun.
Leagues of gangsters begin concentrating fire on Hina, who just shrugs them all off. Some shoot at me, but I bob and weave between shots as I pull a pair of pistols from the Shittim Chest. Channeling my inner Devil Hunter, I leap right into a crowd of thugs.
One thing that's important is that students who attend school are good at shooting, but thugs and those who skip suck at it. This is why most of them miss me, despite surrounding me and firing all at once. Using a combination of melee with my body and guns, along with bullets, I begin to thin out the herd of gangsters. To my side, I see Hina doing the same, smacking and shooting girls with her massive machine gun. This pattern continues for a while until a rumbling sound appears, many of the gangsters retreating towards the sound.
A moment later, two tanks come from around a building.
"Hahaha! You're done for now!" One of the thugs shouts.
Hina and I look at each other, before sharing a grin.
"I'll take left!" I shout, blurring forward. My pistols go back into the Chest in favor of my AR. The left tank fires at me, but I dodge and use the explosion's force to propel me forwards. Once I reach the tank, I rush on top of it, before bringing the butt of my rifle down on the tank's hatch. The lock breaks easily, allowing me to hop inside. Multiple impacts can be heard as I knock out the drivers, before climbing right back out.
BOOM
As I do, I see the other tank explode, Hina's gun aimed at it. Damn, she really IS tough, huh?
"She took out a heavy tank all by herself?!" One helmet-glad girl yells.
"E-Everyone retreat! This wasn't how things were supposed to go down!" A swimsuit-clad girl yells.
"Ah! Our hot springs! Our deep underwater hot springs!" Yells... Megu?! When did she get here? I thought I recognized the outfit of some of those girls, but they all just kinda blended together there.
Quick as a whip, Hina shoots all of them before they can escape, knocking them out instantly.
I hop down from the tank, a smile on my face. "Damn, you really are strong, Hina."
The small girl blushes at my praise. "This is nothing."
"You just blew up a tank with just your gun, Hina." I deadpan.
"I... suppose that's fair." She admits, shyly.
Chuckling, I pat the small girl on her head, feeling her soft, white hair. She pouts, grumbling at me, which only makes me smile wider. "C'mon, let's get the rest of 'em." I say, pulling my hand away.
Hina nods, ready and raring to go.
"Reporting that the Fubar Beach Thugs and Splashy Helmet Gang have also been defeated!" I hear a Prefect Team grunt report as Hina and I return to the beach. Problem Solver and the rest of the Prefect Team leaders are all there. They've clearly been fighting, but don't look any worse for wear.
"A few managed to flee, but we're in pursit of them now." Another reports over the comms. "They should be caught shortly."
"Crisis averted, well done, President!" Another praises.
"It was nothing." Hina deflects. "Good work, Iori, Chinatsu."
Iori recoils.
"President..." Chinatsu mutters.
"Great job, everyone." I smile.
"Well, it's only natural that Problem Solver would do anything to complete their job!" Aru preens.
"They were nothing." Kayoko says calmly.
"Yeah, it was a piece of cake!" Mutsuki adds.
"The-They went down quick." Haruka smiles, clutching her shotgun to her chest.
Hina nods. "Let's return to the hotel, shall we? Oh, and..." She eyes her subordinates. "We're going to have a reflection meeting once we've all gathered. Everyone will participate."
Iori sighs while Chinatsu says, "Yes..."
"Especially you, Ako." Hina adds.
"Y-Yes, ma'am." Ako stiffens.
Problem Solver and Arona went back to a room to hang out while I watched Ako explain everything to Hina.
"P-Please forgive me, Head Prefect! I merely wanted to resolve the issue before it got out of hand!" The bluette bows at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
"And yet that's exactly what happened, isn't it?" Hina ruthlessly points out.
"I thought we could handle it on our own..." Ako says.
"I don't understand why you were trying to keep it from me in the first place." Hina sighs. "It would have been much easier to resolve had you simply told me."
"But if we did that, then..." Ako begins. "If we did that, you wouldn't have been able to enjoy your vacation!"
Hina's eyes widen. I've already explained it to her, but it must be surprising for Ako to confirm it.
"All I wanted was for you to take a well-earned break from work!" The administrator bemoans.
"...It was one thing to hear it from Sensei, but you really did all of this to let me have a break." The small girl says, surprised. "But, why would you do this, Ako?"
"She told us that you've been very stressed out lately." Chinatsu explains.
"Stressed? Why would I be stressed?" Hina blinks.
"Because the other day you said the coffee I made was exquisite. You would never say such a thing..." Ako says.
"I still think that's a stupid reasoning." I groan.
"Coffee? Do you mean the cup you made when we were discussing cooperating with Schale?" Hina asks, before sighing. "I think there's been a misunderstanding, Ako."
"Huh?" Blue eyes blink.
"I didn't call the coffee exquisite because I was stressed. Rather, it was because I was in a good mood..." Hina explains, before pausing, remembering I'm here too. Her face reddens. "What I mean to say was-"
"Don't worry about it, Hina." I cut her off. Hina looks at me, before averting her gaze, clearly embarrassed.
"Ba-Back to the matter at hand." Hina calms herself. "I understand you meant well, but there must have been other ways to go about giving me time off."
"Yes, I apologize." Ako says.
"However, it's true I was able to rest more these past few days. That was a new experience for me." Hina admits. "However, that is a separate matter entirely from my well being. I learned that I'd much rather have something to keep me busy than sit around doing nothing."
"I'm still of the opinion that one teenager shouldn't have this much fucking work thrust upon her." I growl, much to the four girls' surprise. "Give me the word and I'll see if I can find someone to help you out, if need be."
"Sensei, you don't have to do that." Hina argues.
"But I do." I stress. "I still remember when I came by and you'd been up for days working." The small girl stiffens at that reminder. "I've found that plenty of students are willing to help me out with paperwork and shit. I'll ask 'em for a favor so they can help you with your work, I'm sure they won't mind."
Hina's purple eyes widen, before she sighs, relenting. "Fine. I can't argue with you when you get like this, Sensei." She says, causing the other three's eyes to widen. "Anyway, this training camp has been a disaster thanks to this mess. I can't imagine the other members received much valuable training. There's no telling how the Pandemonium Society would react if we returned with no tangible results... I don't believe we have any other choice." She furrows her brows. "The real training camp will begin starting now."
"H-Hold up, Head Prefect!" Iori shouts. "Wouldn't that mean...?"
"Yes. No one is allowed near the beach from this moment forward, unless allowed." Hina declares. "We're to start the grueling training schedule I had originally planned."
Iori and Chinatsu sigh. Ako looks away.
"You all had your fun, but the real training begins now, and since we're so short on time, we'll be working overnight as well." Hina adds. "Even the Pandemonium Society will be impressed by your results once I'm through with you."
"This has got to be some sick joke!" Iori bemoans.
"We're already exhausted, but I don't think she's going to take no for an answer." Chinatsu sighs.
"Y-Yes, ma'am. Understood..." Ako says, sadly.
"What about you, Sensei? Any objections?" Hina asks.
"Just one." I smile. "Don't work yourself too hard, Hina."
The Head Prefect blushes faintly, but smiles and nods. She then walks over and whispers, "We can continue those swimming lessons later, okay?", with a smile- one I return with a nod.
HEAD PREFECT HINA'S SUMMER BREAK!: END
AN
I used DeepL for Ako's German shouts. Sorry if it didn't translate right, I don't speak but the one language.
This isn't the end of the event though! Next time is Swimsuit Down Time!
Also, the bit with the bedbugs was personal. My dad got them on him when he was in the hospital about a year ago. They're still here. FUCK BEDBUGS.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next!