CH 43

Satis swam a short distance from where Seto was fishing.

She would occasionally dive down and pick up shells from the bottom of the sea with a cheerful expression on her face.

Seto, who was absentmindedly gazing at her, was quietly spending his time clutching his fishing rod, which had not moved at all since that last tug.

As she soaked her whole body in the ocean water without hiding her joy, she seemed like a woman who had never even seen blood or dirt.

Her smile looked so pure it was hard to believe that she was someone who lived in a world so far removed from this paradise.

Seeing her with such a happy face, Seto once again thought from the bottom of his heart that he was glad to be walking through life with her.

He could not help but feel grateful to Satis for the emotional fulfillment he had right now.

Being in such a quiet place with Satis is not so bad, I guess. (Seto)

When he finally regained his composure from his initial bewilderment, Satis swam over to him.

[Come on, Seto. You’ve been sitting still all this time. …Let’s swim together.] (Satis)

[N-No, thanks. I’m good!] (Seto)

[Aww, why not? Could it be that you can’t swim?] (Satis)

Satis beautifully climbed up the seashore and examined Seto’s expression from behind.

The confusion he had shaken off with difficulty was now back with a vengeance.

She looked so provocative at close range that Seto’s body felt restless.

[No, it’s not that I can’t swim, but… Now’s just not the right time!] (Seto)

[Why?] (Satis)

[No reason!] (Seto)

Satis smiled mischievously at Seto, who did not turn to face her at all.

[C’moooon. You know what happens to bad boys who say mean things? …Gotcha!] (Satis)

She hugged Seto’s back, wrapped her long thin arms in front of his body, and brought herself close to him.

[W-W-W-W-WHA…!!?] (Seto)

Seto’s tension reached its peak due to him feeling her womanly softness on his back and her breathing at close range.

Having sensed his rising body temperature and urges while feeling his neck and flanks, Satis said something even more provocative.

[Fufufu~! Remember that touching me is banned~! So no doing anything naughty, okay?] (Satis)

[Y-You say it’s banned… yet you do it to me…!?] (Seto)

[Nobody ever said I couldn’t. If you keep being a baaaad boy who won’t listen to his big sister, I’m going to punish you even worse, you know? …Like this!] (Satis)

[W-Whooaaaaahhh?!] (Seto)

Satis swiftly slipped her hands into Seto’s clothes and started tickling him.

As if she knew all of his sensitive spots, she ran her fingers right over them.

The sensation he felt on his skin made him twist, but Satis gave him no chance to escape.

[O-Okay, fine! I give up! So please…! Quit tha- Hahahahaha!] (Seto)

[Okay, then.] (Satis)

Seto was finally released, and hung his head in exhaustion.

This was the first time in his life that he had ever been subjected to a tickle attack.

His clothes were soaked in sweat, and a clammy sensation enveloped him.

[Even if I agreed to swim, I don’t have any swimwear on me.] (Seto)

[Hmm… Maybe you could just take off your top. And I can easily use magic to dry your clothes, anyway.] (Satis)

For someone who insisted that they swam together, her answer to his problem was rather half-hearted.

However, figuring that it would not be so inconvenient as long as she could dry his clothes properly, he took off his jacket and lightened himself up.

After doing some warm-up exercises to loosen his body, he decided to enjoy swimming in the sea with her.

Under the blue ocean, Seto was fascinated by the scenery so different from that on land.

On the surface of the sea shaken by the waves, the light shimmered accordingly, and underwater, shades of color so gentle that you would not feel the heat of the season, were pouring down to the bottom.

Small fish were swimming, and crab-like animals were walking on the bottom.

There was a moment of peace and order unique to the ocean.

It was a magnificent scenery drifting on the boundary line between land and sea.

After catching his breath, he dove back down to watch the scenery, and Satis was picking up another seashell from the bottom.

It was a kind of spiral shell that was empty.

A lovely shell with a pale pink color and an elongated silhouette.

Like all the shells she had collected so far, it was small enough to fit in her palm.

Satis gestured for Seto to swim back to the surface.

The boy nodded and emerged from the water with her.

[Haaah! What’s wrong, Satis?] (Seto)

[Phew! Isn’t this pretty? I was thinking of joining it with the other seashells I’ve collected to make an accessory.] (Satis)

[An accessory? Good idea. I’m sure anything would look good on you.] (Seto)

[It won’t be for me. I’ll make it for you, Seto.] (Satis)

[For me? …Are you sure an accessory would suit me?] (Seto)

Up until now, Seto had only ever adorned himself with weapons, so he was sort of reluctant to the idea of equipping himself with something for the purpose of fashion in his daily life.

He believed that fashion was meaningless in battle, and even now that he was no longer a soldier, this belief was still rooted in Seto’s mind as a residue.

When he was facing Osiris, his eyes were sparkling because he thought that he looked cool from a military standpoint, but he was basically ignorant of fashion in everyday life.

However, since it was Satis who suggested he wear it, he did not show any such reluctance.

[Geez…! You should show a bit more interest in fashion. I already like you the way you are now, but I would love it if you were fashionable and took care of your appearance.] (Satis)

[I-Is that so? …Well, you went out of your way to gather them, so I’ll wear it when it’s done.] (Seto)

[That’s what I wanted to hear. Then let’s go back to the beach at once and take a break. Swimming for extended periods is dangerous for humans.] (Satis)

Satis seemed very pleased at the opportunity to make an accessory for Seto.

Although he was not interested in fashion, Seto chuckled in secret, happy to see Satis smile.

They both went back to the beach and sat side by side on the sheet, under the parasol.

While Seto was taking a breather while sipping some water, Satis quickly took out her tools from her dimensional pocket, and started working on it.

She really can stuff anything in there… (Seto)

As he thought that, Seto laid down beside her.

The wind felt as gentle as usual, but it carried the heat of the sunlight, and wrapped itself around the soaked bodies of our protagonists.

[Fufufu! You swam a lot, after all. Do get some rest.] (Satis)

[Okay…] (Seto)

Saying that, Seto closed his eyelids for the time being.

He did not fall asleep, but doing so helped him relax.

Even if his field of vision was now pitch-black, he knew Satis was right next to him.

He tried to picture her in his mind, but stopped.

All things considered, she looked way too arousing for him to imagine.

The truth was that all the outfits she had worn so far had left quite an impression on him.

That swimsuit really caught me off guard. It’s like that time we took a bath in the village… Urgh, I can’t get any of those thoughts out of my head… I really am a lost cause. (Seto)

As Seto closed his eyes and was secretly disappointed in himself, Satis stopped her hands and looked at the boy.

Then she smiled with delight at the changes in his emotions compared to when they first met.

You still have a long way to go, Seto. …But once you’re a little older, I’m sure you’ll feel on an even deeper level than you do now. When that time comes, I’ll be sure to do something really nice for you. But for now, this will do, okay? (Satis)

What she was making would serve as a good luck charm for the days to come.

Satis worked on that pendant while praying for it to grant a “long and healthy life” to its owner.