落とし穴１２６堀：正当な？夏休み (Part1)
**Pitfall 126: A Legitimate? Summer Vacation**
**Side: Taiki**
"Are those the people from the New Continent I’ve heard rumors about?"
"That’s them."
Airi and I stood together, watching Kagura and the others as they chatted with Soel.
"So they’re mages like Soel, and they’re currently attending school?"
"Yeah. They’re students from a place called Heiden Magic Academy. Kagura over there is one of the people who kidnapped—or rather, summoned—Yuki-san."
"Ah, so they were behind that whole uproar… At the time, even your face was stiff with worry, Taiki-sama. I wasn't sure what would happen."
Yeah. To be honest, when I first heard Yuki-san had gone missing, I thought we were in deep trouble. Not only would the supply of goods from Earth be cut off, but I had no idea how his wives would react without him there to balance things out.
Fortunately, Yuki-san had instructed his wives to seek advice from me or Taizo-san if anything happened. Because of that, they reached out to us, and we were able to get in contact with him quickly. If that hadn't happened, I can't even imagine the chaos.
At first, they were talking about building an airfield and flying planes across the ocean to search for him—absolutely wild stuff. Taizo-san and I had to scramble to convince them that it was unrealistic just to get them to calm down.
"Still, she doesn't look like the type of person who would commit a kidnapping," Airi noted.
"Well, she didn't intend to kidnap him; she just wanted someone to save her country. Her reasons for calling him were the same as why I was brought here. Though, in the case of Rankus, there was a lot more greed involved."
Which led to the whole mess of the kingdom collapsing and me being forced into a leadership position…
Airi gave a wry smile at my comment. "Ahaha, true. But I personally want to thank them for bringing you to this land, Taiki-sama. After all, it allowed me to meet you."
"Yeah. I suppose I can be grateful for that much."
If nothing else, I could certainly appreciate that outcome.
"But now I see why she has that expression. She—Kagura-san—found her person of destiny that way, didn't she?"
"Expression? Destiny?"
"Yes. No matter how you look at it, the way Kagura-san looks at Yuki-sama is that of a maiden in love. The same goes for Mikos-san."
"So it looks that way to you too?"
"It does. She’s talking to Soel-san, but her attention seems to be constantly drifting toward Yuki-sama."
*Man, Yuki-san… it really looks like Kagura and Mikos are destined for your harem, doesn't it?*
It didn't seem like Airi was mistaken. Just as she said, they kept stealing glances at him. At first, Yuki-san had been quite harsh with them—treating them like enemies, even. I wonder how and when things shifted to this…
Well, whatever. This is summer vacation. Let’s just enjoy the freedom.
"Anyway, shall we go join them?"
"Yes. Let’s play with Soel-san and Kagura-san too."
I figured it would come to that.
We were currently at the beach because the plan for this morning was to play in the sea. Taizo-san and Souta-san were already off fishing by the breakwater and the rocky shore. Personally, I would have preferred to join them, but I couldn't really do that. My official reason for being here was to give Soel a tour of Weed; the only time I could really go off and do my own thing was at night.
"…I see. It sounds like things are quite eventful on the New Continent as well," Soel said as we approached.
"Yes. There’s been so much happening, it’s been exhausting," Kagura replied.
"Well, we’ve managed to stay safe thanks to Yuki-sensei," Mikos added.
"Yuki-sama seems to cause a stir wherever he goes," Soel remarked with a chuckle. "He was quite the handful back when he was at Lancer Magic Academy, but I hear he’s acting as a teacher over there."
"Oh, that reminds me," Mikos asked, "Soel-san, why don't you call Yuki 'sensei'? Is it because he told you not to, like he did with Kagura?"
"No, Mikos-san. When Yuki-sama came to Lancer Magic Academy, he was there as a student."
"A student!?" the two girls exclaimed in unison.
"Yes. It’s hard to believe now, but he arrived as a student back then. There was quite a bit of friction with Samantha-sama when she greeted him at the gates."
*Oh, I remember that.* He was turned away at the gate and just quietly turned around and left. He’d acted specifically to subvert the usual "academy story" tropes.
"Soel-san! Please stop bringing up those old stories," Samantha interjected, looking embarrassed.
"Oh, why not? It was such a dramatic meeting, and it led to you becoming close with Yuki-sama. Though, looking back, the fact that you managed to forcibly turn Yuki-sama away is actually quite an impressive feat."
"Turned him away?" Kagura and Mikos repeated, eyes wide.
"Hey! Soel-san!" Samantha barked.
"Hehe. Well, we can save the details for tonight. Kagura-sama, Mikos-sama, why don't we play together for now? Right, Taiki-sama?"
It seemed she had noticed us approaching. I suppose I should expect nothing less from her.
"Yeah, let’s play together. Is that okay with you, Yuki-san?"
"Eh?" Kagura and Mikos blinked in surprise.
"Sure," Yuki replied.
Of course, if Samantha and the others were here, Yuki-san was bound to be nearby. Since Soel had basically pulled Kagura and Mikos away from Yuki-san’s side, it was only natural he’d be keeping an eye on them. They were guests from another continent, after all. He was likely making sure there wasn't any trouble.
"Actually, I was feeling a bit left out, so I was having Yuki-dono keep me company," Samantha said. "I never had any connection to magic schools, after all."
"My apologies. That was a lack of consideration on my part," Soel said.
"No, it’s only natural for mages to have things they want to discuss. The problem is these two. Stop dawdling and let’s play, just like Taiki-dono, Yuki-dono, and Firia said. These two have been huddled up this whole time because they’re embarrassed to be seen in swimsuits."
"Oh, is that so? Well, I can understand the feeling, but it’s a waste! If you don't get out there and play, no one will see you. Look, the ocean is so beautiful here. It’s far clearer than any sea I’ve ever seen."
"Beautiful…?"
"Is there really such a difference between oceans…?"
As they spoke, the two girls finally turned their attention toward the water and stood there, speechless.
It made sense. This place had been meticulously prepared to look like a tropical paradise; it was bound to look different from the natural coastlines of the continent. The New Continent wasn't exactly a tropical region, either.
"Wow…"
"It’s incredible…"
"Surprising, isn't it? To think such a sea exists in this world," Samantha said.
"Yes," Mikos agreed. "I’ve traveled around the continent with my father’s merchant company, but I’ve never laid eyes on a sea like this. And to not have to worry about monsters… it’s like heaven."
"Well, the monsters that live here are all Yuki-sama’s subordinates," Soel explained.
"Mm. The Sahagins are working as lifeguards to keep the waters safe," Cleena added.
Incidentally, about half of those Sahagins were currently busy trying to secure food. During the last beach trip, they’d nearly been eaten themselves. Specifically, the Kraken—the squid and octopus types.
To be fair, they *are* delicious. I’d had a Kraken tentacle once, and it was amazing. Ever since then, Milly-san and Narjia-san had been chasing them around shouting, "Give us your legs! Give us your legs!" until the poor things had to hide behind Aslin-chan. Just because their limbs regrow doesn't mean they want to offer them up as snacks.
The other half of the Sahagins were, as Cleena said, patrolling the waters to prevent drowning accidents and to crack down on any idiots who tried to poach the seafood they’d grown fond of.
Today, since we were here, they were focusing their security efforts on our area.
As I was thinking about all this, Soel walked over to me…