Vol. 2 Chapter 63 – Let’s Go Buy Swimsuits (2)

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“…Hh!! Hah!!” (Reiya)

“Reiya-kun, are you okay…?” (Hikaru)

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine… Just, uh, caught up with Joel and Aerith for a bit, it’s been a while…” (Reiya)

I held up a hand to stop Hikaru, who was peering down at me in her swimsuit with a worried look. Th-That was close… The shock almost sent me halfway to the other side for real… However, that heaven (hell) wasn’t over yet. If I looked up, Asahi Hikaru (Alolan Form) was right there.

“If you’re okay, I’d like to hear your thoughts soon~…” (Hikaru)

She asked endearingly, clasping her hands behind her back.

“It looks amazing on you… I think.” (Reiya)

“Ehh~… Is that all~…? Isn’t there anything more specific, like what part you like~…?” (Hikaru)

“Even if you ask me for specifics… I don’t really know much about this stuff…” (Reiya)

“Look, your favorite stomach is showing too, Reiya-kun…?” (Hikaru)

“It’s not like it’s my favorite…” (Reiya)

That was a lie. The midpoint of the two-piece swimsuit, separated at the top and bottom. The white sanctuary nestled between the refreshingly colored pieces of fabric. Truthfully, my gaze had been glued there from the very beginning.

“Ehh~… I totally thought you picked this one because of the stomach, Reiya-kun~…” (Hikaru)

“Because of the stomach, you say? No way… What on earth do you take me f—” (Reiya)

“Hmm~… So, you don’t want to look?” (Hikaru)

Saying that, Hikaru tried to cover her stomach with both hands, a mischievous smile on her face.

“Just kidding! It’s a lie, a lie, so don’t look so sad~…” (Hikaru)

“Seriously, what do you take me for…” (Reiya)

While replying, I recomposed my expression, wondering if I had really made such an obvious face.

“Alright, I’m going to change into the next one, so wait just a little bit more!” (Hikaru)

The curtain closed with a shh sound, and once again, the sounds of her changing came from within. Th-That was dangerous… A few more seconds of taking that in, and I might have lost my mind. No, it was too early to feel relieved. I still had to go through the same thing nine more times. Keep your composure, so nothing like what happened last time in the fitting room occurs. I tried to steel my heart in preparation for the next impact, but—

“Okay, I’m opening it~” (Hikaru)

Before I could brace myself, the curtain opened again. This time, Hikaru appeared, clad in the second swimsuit she had chosen. Asahi Hikaru is, needless to say, cute on a level that requires multiple “supers” to describe. However, her usual fashion sense seems to prioritize a refreshing or sporty look over girlish cuteness. In other words, she’s the type of beauty who would appear in a Calpis Water commercial rather than a Fanta one. And now, such a girl was wearing a top with max-girliness puff sleeves and white bottoms with a lace skirt. To put it bluntly, the gap between this and her usual self caused me to die for a second time.

“This one, it might be a little too cute, I feel kind of embarrassed…” (Hikaru)

Perhaps aware of it herself, she fidgeted shyly.

“Ah, it doesn’t really suit me, does it…? I don’t usually wear things like this…” (Hikaru)

“No, it looks great on you… I think it’s incredibly cute…” (Reiya)

“Really?” (Hikaru)

“Yeah, it suits you just as much as the last one.” (Reiya)

“Ehh~… But then I really won’t be able to choose.” (Hikaru)

Hikaru spun around on the spot, smiling happily with a wide grin. The lace skirt part liftedふわっ (fuwatto – lightly/softly), and her bikini bottoms peeked out from underneath.

“Well, you can just decide at the end after trying them all on, right?” (Reiya)

“That’s true. Okay, I’ll change into the next one then!” (Hikaru)

Perhaps still embarrassed despite the praise, she quickly moved on from the second swimsuit, and the curtain was drawn shut.

The third swimsuit that came out next was a one-piece type, top and bottom connected. Including the color and design, it was the most subdued swimsuit so far. Of course, it suited her and was exceptionally cute, but perhaps because I’d gotten used to it from the previous two, the impact wasn’t enough to kill me… or so I thought for a fleeting moment. I noticed her wide-open back reflected in the fitting room mirror, and died.

Even after that, I was killed over and over again by her swimsuit figures, each with a different charm.

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“So, is that the last one?” (Reiya)

And so, after she had tried on all ten swimsuits she brought, I asked Hikaru, my mental state battered and bruised. I had somehow managed to maintain my sanity and overcome today’s greatest trial. All that was left was to choose which ones to actually buy from the ten, but honestly, they were all a perfect 100, making it difficult to rank them. Still, I couldn’t possibly buy all of them, right…? As I tried to create a tier list of Asahi Hikaru (SSR Swimsuit Ver.) burned into my mind—

“Um… Actually, there’s one more…” (Hikaru)

Hikaru stopped her hand, which was about to close the curtain, and said.

“One more?” (Reiya)

“Yeah, I found one that looked good on the way to the fitting room… Can I try that one on too?” (Hikaru)

“Of course, I don’t mind, but…” (Reiya)

At this point, there wasn’t much difference between dying ten times and dying eleven times. But why did she specifically ask for my permission to try it on? The answer to that question, which had popped into my head, was presented before my eyes immediately after.

“Actually… it’s this kind of thing…” (Hikaru)

From the gap in the half-opened curtain, the final piece Hikaru held up was revealed. A simple yet daring, pure white bikini, with all extraneous decoration eliminated from both top and bottom. Compared to the previous swimsuits, the smallness of its fabric area was obvious at a single glance, and true to its name’s origin, it delivered the greatest shock of the day to me.