Chapter 298: Guard

“Hey!” The girls practicing with bamboo swords all moved in unison, swinging their swords from above downward.

“Did you skip lunch? Your swings need more power. Do it again!” Okawa Miyami, who was responsible for instructing the first-year students, shouted loudly from the sidelines. [In ch. 270 Okawa Akemi was mentioned. Idk if it’s a mistake, but Miyami uses a different character.]

Aside from physical training, which took place outside, the members of the kendo club mostly practiced inside the gymnasium. Also training in the same gym were the gymnastics and table tennis clubs. With several clubs practicing in the same space, it could get a bit noisy, but due to the lack of extra venues, they had to make do with what they had.

After a while, when Okawa walked away, the first-year girls quickly relaxed and half-heartedly continued their practice.

Watching the gymnastics team members stretch and jump gracefully to the music, Kawaguchi Megumi sighed enviously. “Gymnastics seems so fun, and their leotards look nice too. If I had known, I would’ve joined the gymnastics team.”

Akiyoshi Masako replied irritably, “You flirtatious woman. Yesterday you were saying you wanted to join the tennis club, and now you’re saying you want to join the gymnastics team. You’re so annoying.”

“Whether it’s a gymnastics leotard or a tennis skirt, it looks so much better than the kendo armor we’re wearing. We can’t show any curves in this thing, it completely kills any feminine charm.”

Akiyoshi Masako muttered, “You don’t have any curves to show anyway. But I guess it’s not all bad. At least Rumi looks great in it.”

“That kendo fanatic is not someone to use as a reference.” While speaking, Kawaguchi Megumi subconsciously glanced at Rumi, who was practicing with her upperclassman not far away. Though she didn’t want to admit it, that girl did look great in the kendo uniform, exuding a unique balance of softness and strength.

After swinging her sword for five minutes, Akiyoshi Masako suddenly became frustrated. “How much longer do we have to practice this? Doing these basic exercises is so boring.”

Kawaguchi Megumi, puzzled, asked, “Masako, you seem a bit down today. Did something happen?”

“No,” Masako replied, “but I really am in a bad mood today.”

“Oh, tell me about it. Let me see if I can help.” Kawaguchi Megumi, bored with her own practice, eagerly pressed her for details.

“I’m not like you, always changing your mind.”

“Hey, careful. Tell me already, what’s got our lovely Masako-san so upset?”

“I’ll tell you, but you can’t tell anyone else.”

“No problem,” Kawaguchi Megumi immediately agreed without hesitation.

Akiyoshi Masako gave her a doubtful look before leaning in to whisper in her ear.

After hearing her out, Kawaguchi Megumi was surprised. “What happened? Did you see anyone last night?”

“No, lately with all the training, I’ve been going to bed early.”

“That sounds really creepy. By the way, Rumi’s in the same room as you, right? Is she experiencing the same thing?”

“Mm-hm.”

“Have you told the teacher about it?”

“No, I feel a bit embarrassed to bring it up. Plus, the training will be over in a few days, so I’ll just make sure to close the windows and doors tighter at night. It’s something I’ve heard about happening before, but I never thought it would happen to us. It’s so unlucky.”

“It really is unlucky. Ugh, this place is so exhausting and unsafe. I just want to go home.” As soon as Kawaguchi Megumi finished speaking, she realized her voice had been a bit too loud and quickly fell silent.

Unfortunately, Okawa Miyami had already heard, and she shouted from a distance, “You’re slacking off again! Get serious!”

The first-year students reluctantly resumed swinging their swords with exaggerated force.

As soon as she sat down, Kazumi winced. “I shouldn’t have played tennis with you yesterday. Now my legs hurt so much.”

“That’s because you’re out of shape. One more match, and you’ll be fine,” Lei Yin said lazily, leaning back against a tree.

“No way! If I play with you again, I might be sore for a whole week.”

Lei Yin couldn’t help but smile as he watched Amy curiously observing a ladybug. “I really want to go swimming. In weather like this, swimming would be perfect. Just immerse yourself in the water, and the summer heat will melt away.”

Kazumi said, “There should be a community swimming pool nearby, but did you bring your swim trunks?”

Lei Yin nonchalantly replied, “What does a grown man need swim trunks for? Just wear some shorts and jump into the water. But I don’t really want to swim in a pool.”

“Why?”

“Too many people. It’s like a can of sardines, and some might even pee in the water when no one’s looking, so I’d rather skip it.”

Kazumi said somewhat disapprovingly, “Mr. Gennai, please don’t talk about unsanitary things just before meal time.”

“You’re too serious, I’m just joking,” Lei Yin said, then pulled the little girl closer to him, showing her a ladybug and telling her about its habits.

Watching Amy’s focused expression, Kazumi felt that the little girl was indeed very special, quietly obedient and charming in a way that made one want to protect her.

After sitting under the shade of a tree for another half hour, they heard a slightly noisy chatter coming from the gym. Looking up, they saw many students from various clubs walking out of the gym.

“It looks like Rumi and the others are done with training,” Kazumi said as she began searching for the figure of the kendo girl in the crowd.

Before long, she spotted Rumi, who was talking with two other girls while walking.

“Brother, let’s go meet Rumi.”

“No need. She’s not a little kid from kindergarten,” Lei Yin said, sitting comfortably, not wanting to move for a while.

“Come on, get up,” Kazumi insisted as she pulled him to his feet.

“You always say I’m spoiling her, but the one who spoils her the most is you. Little one, let’s go.”

The little girl immediately stood up and took his hand.

As the three of them walked off the lawn, Kazumi suddenly noticed a boy who had just come out of the open-air tennis court heading toward Rumi and her companions.

Soon enough, Kazumi saw the boy stop in front of Rumi and her two companions. It seemed he said something to Rumi, and after he finished, Rumi responded with a few words.

Although they were too far away for Kazumi to hear their conversation, the way the boy looked at Rumi as he spoke made Kazumi have some guesses.

At that moment, she quietly glanced at her brother’s face and saw a strange, thoughtful expression in his eyes.

After Okuzawa Ryoji walked away, Kawaguchi Megumi grabbed Rumi’s arm and said, “You’re such an idiot. Why didn’t you accept his invitation? It’s rare for someone to invite you to hang out, and you passed up that opportunity. What a waste.”

Rumi shook her head and said, “I’m not familiar with him, and I don’t know his friends. What’s the point of going?”

“Exactly because you’re not familiar with him, you should spend more time with him and get to know him. Boys like him, who are athletic and good-looking, are hard to come by these days. This is a rare opportunity, and you should give him a chance to get to know you better.”

“I don’t want to. I don’t want to go out with someone I don’t know.”

Looking at her without any consideration, Kawaguchi Megumi felt like Rumi was wasting a good opportunity and almost wanted to go in her place.

At that moment, Rumi suddenly saw her senior and Kazumi walking toward her, and her heart leaped with joy. She quickly said to her two companions, “Sorry, I have to go.” Then, she hurriedly ran toward them.

“Is that the so-called ‘human weapon’ that Fujii-senpai mentioned? But he looks like just an ordinary guy. He’s not even that good-looking. Is he really that strong?” Kawaguchi Megumi said, full of doubt, as she watched the boy from a distance.

Akiyoshi Masako replied, “I don’t know if he’s really what Fujii-senpai said he is, but now I understand why Rumi turned down that Okuzawa guy so easily. It looks like Rumi really isn’t interested in Shiraishi-senpai, and now I can relax.”

“What do you mean?” Kawaguchi Megumi didn’t quite understand what she meant by that.

Akiyoshi Masako laughed and said, “People like you, who are all about appearances, won’t understand.” After saying that, she continued walking forward, smiling.

“Masako, explain yourself,” Kawaguchi Megumi shouted as she chased after her.

※※※

After coming out of the bathroom, Kazumi, dressed in a light white yukata, was slowly drying her hair with a towel.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Kazumi opened the door to find Rumi standing outside.

“Looking for me?”

Rumi nodded affirmatively.

Kazumi smiled and said, “Come in.”

Once inside, Rumi immediately asked, “Where’s Senpai?”

“He’s in Shiraishi-san’s room, playing chess with him. Hey, are you looking for my brother or me?”

Rumi replied, “Of course I’m looking for you, Kazumi. Can you come with me to buy something outside?”

Kazumi teased her, “It’s already kind of late. Isn’t it better to ask my brother to go with you?”

Rumi’s face flushed slightly, and she said, “No, I don’t want to trouble him.”

Kazumi found her expression a bit strange and asked cautiously, “What do you want to buy?”

Rumi’s face turned red again. She leaned in and whispered something into Kazumi’s ear.

After hearing what she said, Kazumi looked confused and asked, “Did you wash all of them?”

Rumi hesitated before replying, “No, it’s because…”

※※※

“What, someone stole her underwear?” Upon hearing Kazumi’s words, a flash of anger passed through Lei Yin’s eyes.

Kazumi nodded and said, “Yes, Rumi said that her and her roommate’s underwear, which they had hung on the balcony last night, disappeared by the next morning, so she asked me to go with her to buy new ones.”

Lei Yin frowned and asked, “Did she tell the teacher?”

“Rumi’s roommate felt embarrassed about it, and with the training camp ending in a few days, she told Rumi not to alert the teacher.”

“Rumi’s roommate is a fool, and so is Rumi. If next time that pervert not only steals underwear but also breaks into their room, it won’t be just embarrassing anymore.”

“So what should we do now? Should we tell their teacher?” Kazumi also felt this matter couldn’t be taken lightly.

Lei Yin didn’t respond immediately. He simply tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

At 10 PM, a figure quietly appeared behind the inn. The person walked while constantly looking around.

When they reached a balcony nearby, the person suddenly whispered in a suppressed voice, “Senpai, where are you?”

As the person was about to call again, a male voice suddenly came from the nearby bushes: “I’m here.”

Upon hearing the voice, Rumi immediately ran toward it with excitement.

Soon, she saw Lei Yin sitting on the grass in the bushes.

Upon seeing him, she immediately smiled and said, “Senpai, you’re hiding so well! You must have been great at playing hide and seek when you were a kid.”

Lei Yin said with annoyance, “Did Kazumi tell you?”

“Yeah, I wanted to find you to play cards, but I couldn’t find you anywhere. Then I heard from Kazumi that you were here. Senpai, can I join you?”

Lei Yin gave her a glare and said, “Do you think I’m playing? Go back to sleep.”

“No, I want to stay here with you, Senpai.” With that, she sat down beside him.

“Hey, don’t forget you need to wake up early tomorrow for training. Go back to sleep like a good girl.”

“Let me stay, please? I’m begging you, Senpai.” Rumi pouted as she held his hand.

Lei Yin felt a headache coming on. “Fine, you win. You can stay, but only until 11:30. Once the time’s up, you have to go back.”

“Okay, twelve o’clock, then.”

“Hey, I said 11:30, not twelve. Don’t try to fool me.”

Rumi smiled and made a face at him, then gently leaned her head on his shoulder and whispered, “Thank you, Senpai.”

She was genuinely touched. When she learned he had planned to stay up all night guarding outside to catch the underwear thief, she felt a surge of emotions and nearly cried. At that moment, all she wanted was to see him right away and stay by his side, talking with him.