Chapter 122: The Once And Future King

On the way to Shima Onsen, Igarashi and Mashiba were chatting cheerfully in the car. However, Mashiba felt something strange. Or rather, something was clearly wrong. How should I put it, looking at the way she was responding to Papa Igarashi just now? Yes, she is so savage. That's what I thought. We arrived at the inn and checked in.

"No way! Wow! There's a hot spring in the room? Kyaaa!"

Igarashi is excited to see the bathroom installed on the balcony of the room. Mashiba, on the other hand, stared at me.

"Aiming for a mixed bath in the midst of the confusion. You cheat like this too, huh."

"What do you mean? It's just that the room we got happened to have a hot spring inside."

"I don't blame you. I think it's okay for a man to do this. Yeah, I think so."

Huh? She's pretty straightforward! That's funny. Where's the usual wet, low-boiling mackerel?

"Hey, hey! Can I go swimming? Can I swim in that bath, right!"

Igarashi is acting like a child. Well, I don't mind if she's this selfish.

"Well, I don't mind, but let's go to the hot springs in the room at night. We'll go to the hot springs town first."

"I want to eat a bun!"

Igarashi's interest changed suddenly. This is the kind of thing I never get tired of seeing. I suddenly noticed Mashiba, and when I turned my head toward her, she was looking at Igarashi with a kind smile. It's strange. It seems the opposite of usual. I feel out of sorts. Well, this is a hot spring to wash away that kind of thing. Let's take our time and heal our fatigue.








Speaking of hot spring resorts, yukata (summer kimonos) are the most common attire. Igarashi and I changed into yukata. But Mashiba didn't wear it. I asked her why.

"It's too much trouble to tie an obi."

How brisk, huh? But today she was not wearing her usual shorts, but a garish one-piece. I guess it's a holiday style, but it's different from her usual style.

"Hey, hey, Tokiwa-kun? Why are there so many steps in a hot spring resort?"

Igarashi is relaxed as she hugs my left hand.

"Well? Come to think of it, why is that? That's strange."

"Eh? Where's your usual knowledge? Running out of material? Ufufu. I was going to shove a bun in your mouth if you started machine gun talking."

Igarashi holds out a manjuu toward my mouth. I take a bite of it. The sweetness of the bean paste feels gentle on my feet, which are a little tired from the stairway.

"Let's eat manjuu too, Tomoe."

Mashiba, walking behind me and Igarashi, shook her head.

"Not at our place. Dry sake doesn't go well with sweet things."

Mashiba is gulping down a mini bottle of sake she bought at the gift shop. Oh no! Aren't you a little too wild!?

"It's rare, isn't it? It's rare to see Tomoe drinking from noon."

"It's good to have a day like this once in a while."

She was smiling, but she looked somewhat lonely. Maybe that's why. Igarashi let go of my hand and hugged Mashiba's right arm. She then beckoned to me.

"Tokiwa0, you're on Tomoe's left! It's like a tripod!"

"Eh? It's fine for me, but not for Mashiba---?"

Mashiba cowered her shoulders. Then she floated her right arm a little. Apparently, it's okay if we partner up. So I joined Mashiba's right arm.

"It's so hot. It's really summer already..."

Mashiba, sandwiched between me and Igarashi, had a slight blush on her cheeks. But her voice sounded somewhat lonely.








In tripod style, we plodded through the hot spring resort area. We saw some unusual things, enjoyed the local delicacies, and took a dip in the hot springs. But since it was a mixed bath, I was only relieved of my fatigue. I mean, I'm so lonely, right? What about the girls? Are they cackling? I hope so. Then I got out of the hot spring and joined them, and I picked up a cab.

"I heard there's a lake near here. Let's go there."

There is a lake near this Shima Onsen. It too was a tourist attraction. We got out of the cab and looked at the lake from the lakeside.

"Amazing ... beautiful..."

Igarashi, who was hugging my left hand, was impressed with her watery eyes. The lake was that beautiful. The cobalt blue water and the green of the forest were in vivid harmony.

"Tomoe! It's so beautiful!"

"Yes it is. It's like ... well ... like a lake with a sword in it ... sparkling..."

Mashiba also seems to be impressed by the spectacular view of the lake and the shimmering blue. We walked along the walking path by the lake.

"The azure of this lake is different from the blue sea of the southern islands, isn't it? Yes, it is. Tokiwa. Next time, draw a picture of this lake. I'm sure it will be a wonderful picture."

"Yes, I'm sure it will. That sounds fun."

Making a picture of what I saw on my trip. It sounds like an elementary school student's summer homework assignment, but I bet it would be a lot of fun. We walk down the road, making idle chit-chat. We arrive at a sandy spot that looks like a beach. The contrast between the lake water and the white sand was vivid.

"Wow, it's lovely!"

Igarashi quickly walked towards the lake from there. Lifting the hem of her yukata, she puts her feet in the lake water.

"Kya! It's cold! Ahahaha."

I felt a kind of mysteriousness along with cuteness at the sight of Igarashi playing with the water. It was as if Igarashi was the master of this lake. Igarashi smiled as I approached her.

"Ei!"

"Hey! You did it!"

Igarashi kicked the water and sent it flying toward me. But I'm not a man to be intimidated by that. I walked up to her, put my hands around her waist, and held her close. We stood together looking out over the lake. The lake water reflects the sun's rays in shimmering blue. The breeze blowing from the lake was cool and pleasant. The sweet time was lovely.

"What is that? I can't do it. I left Tomoe alone..."

We were indeed doing our own world. This was not a trip for just the two of us. We looked around to find Mashiba. Mashiba was nearby. She was near a building that looked like an information center. We saw her walking toward a canoe attached to a wooden deck, being guided by a staff member.

"Tokiwa. Let's follow Tomoe."

"Igarashi?"

"Please. Please go after her!"

Igarashi, with a worried look on her face, pushed me back. So I nodded and ran toward Mashiba. The canoe was already paddling out into the lake. I ran and jumped as fast as I could on the wooden deck.

"Kyaaa! Heh! What? You...? What are you doing?!"

I landed on the canoe Mashiba was paddling. The impact shook the canoe, but it didn't tip over. I sat down in front of Mashiba. I saw a pair of pink, frilly pants from the hem of Mashiba's onesie as she was sitting on the ground. What the hell? Her pants are not at all flabby.

"Give them to me."

"Eh? What?"

"Just give me your oars. Unless you want me to keep seeing your pants."

Mashiba noticed that her legs were wide open, and she closed them while holding her skirt down. Her face was red with embarrassment, like a girl her age. I was a little relieved to see her face. I took the oars from Mashiba and started paddling. The canoe we were in was moving like a leaf on the cobalt blue water of the lake.

"Riri told you to come here, didn't she?"

"Well, yes. But I'm also worried about you. I can at least imagine how bad it would be if you rowed out to the lake when you were depressed. I'm worried about you."

"Worry? Me? You're worried about me?"

"Yes, I'm worried about you."

If I had to choose whether I like her or not, there are still some elements I don't like, but I owe her a favor and we usually talk to each other. I do worry about Hagiri, though.

"Hey. In times like this, it's okay to say I'm sorry for worrying you, right?"

"You ask a weird question. Why don't you just say whatever you want? Like, "I don't need you to worry about me!""

"What's the...? There is no such thing between me and anyone else."

"Isn't it like that with Hagiri? He's your man, right?"

I said this casually, but Mashiba's face fell sadly.

"Did something happen between you and Hagiri?"

"No. Umm, yes. No, no. It's not that something happened ... it's just..."

"Yeah? What's wrong? Do you want to talk about it?" I don't know if I should say something like that. But I don't think I can get her true feelings out of her with such light words. I owe this woman a debt of gratitude. So I'm going to trust her and wait. I'll wait and see what she has to say.

"Hagiri helped me."

"Oh, I heard so."

"But you know. I want to ask you. What do you think about when a boy helps a girl?"

"Well, you know, when I did that, my body moves instantly. And after that, I hope they'll like me."

"That's right. That's how it is. But I think it's good. I think it's good to win their her, or to make her fell in love with you, or to get physical with her. It's okay, no matter what the reason behind this. It's normal to want something from a girl in return for helping her."

Unless you're a germaphobe, that's probably how it is. I'm old enough that I don't think anything of that sort of thing.

"Well, Hagiri is a guy too, and I'm sure he wanted to be liked by you, or maybe he was trying to help you for your body. No matter how much I dislike that guy, I don't even think that's wrong."

Personally, I think it's safe to say that he wanted to be liked, but if it was purely for her body, I think it's out.

"I'm actually ... didn't like it..."

Does it mean that he was aiming for her body or something? Was Mashiba tied up to ingratiate herself after being rescued? I thought it was possible, and I became angry. That is a line I cannot tolerate as a man.

"I wanted to be saved."

One girl was stuck in hell, and then a prince appeared and saved her. Mashiba had no choice but to love him. I think that is unreasonable.

"That's why I was happy when he saved me. I was very happy when Hagiri asked me for my body and my talent. I was very, very happy to be with Hagiri."

Mashiba began to shed tears. I thought the emotion was too heavy.

"But I knew. I was really looking away. Because the truth is, the truth is..."

It's hard to speak up and say you don't want her. Especially for girls.

"Because. Because the truth is! It wasn't Hagiri who wanted to save me! It was Riri!

Eh? What? What do you mean? I tilted my head blankly. I don't know what she's talking about.

"Hagiri helped me. But you know what? That's what Riri asked Hagiri to do. Hagiri helped me because Riri asked him to. He only helped me because Riri asked him to. Hagiri didn't have any feelings for me. Ugh ... aaah ... gusu..."

I felt sorry for Mashiba as she sniffled and shed tears.

"Riri told me that she loves me. Riri was always worried about me. So Riri asked Hagiri to help me. ...Hagiri was always looking at my faces, so even though he didn't care about me, he helped me until I was falling apart. It's not that he wants to be liked by me. It's not that he want my bodies. It's not that he wants my talent. I thought it was a lie. I thought I was needed. I thought he wanted my talent and my body. But it was all a lie."

I couldn't understand. I thought Hagiri was helping Mashiba with full of ulterior motives. I thought he helped Mashiba to use her and tied her up with affection and sex. Are all those reasons an afterthought?

"Hagiri held me and used me because Riri wanted me to be there for her. I knew it all along. But I was able to pretend to turn a blind eye. Before you came...!"

Mashiba pulled something out of her bag. It was a small hatchet. The blade was a simple one made of stone. It looked much like a stone age axe. And more than that...

"If it weren't for you ... I could have turned away for a long, long time! You made me aware of it! Riri wouldn't be happy anymore without you!"

My heart tingled. I remembered the last pain I had experienced in my previous life. I also remembered the last thing I saw. Oh, yeah. It was Mashiba who killed me then.

"I want Riri to be happy. But right now, the person by her side is you, not Hagiri. I already know that. Hagiri is not a king. He is only a knight. The goddess has already chosen the king, so she can only ask for an opening. I don't want to see such a miserable future."

Saying this, Mashiba struck the bottom of the canoe with a stone axe. A crack appeared there, and the water gradually filled the bottom of the canoe.

"I don't know who you are, but I'm convinced that you are the 'king of the past' and the 'king of the future'. I can no longer go against this intuition."

The canoe was losing its balance. At this rate, it would sink. Mashiba closed her eyes.

"If I'm gone, Hagiri's plan will be delayed a lot. I don't want to betray him, even if it's the wrong relationship. But I don't want to drag your feet for Riri's sake either."

The canoe then sank to the bottom of the lake. Mashiba and I are thrown into the lake. I reached out my hand toward Mashiba. But Mashiba brushes my hand away.

"With the time I've earned, you lead everyone to a happy ending. Goodbye, your majesty."

If Mashiba died, Hagiri's plan would be delayed. I'll get a reprieve and beat him. And everyone gets a happy ending. I think that's rationally possible. But the voice in my heart that cries out that I can't make such a choice is louder. Mashiba has disappeared from the surface.

"Fuuuuuuuuu!"

I take off the yukata I was wearing, inhale as hard as I can, and dive into the lake. I see Mashiba sinking in the clear lake water, holding her axe. I frantically kicked the water to get closer to her. I catch up to her and hug her shoulder. Mashiba, who was almost lost consciousness, seemed to have already exhaled all of her breath. At this rate, she would suffocate in less than ten minutes. I kissed Mashiba on the mouth. And then, I sent in my breath as much as I could. Mashiba opened her eyes. Then she tried to push me away with her right hand. But I grabbed her hand and kicked the water to rise to the surface. But Mashiba's body felt very heavy. The water-soaked clothes and the axe in my left hand were in the way. I took the axe from Mashiba's left hand, cut the dress she was cutting with it, and threw it away. Holding her in my arms, I climbed up to the surface of the water.

"Puhah!"

"Goho! Goho! Why! Why are you helping me?!"

"Shut up! I'd be crazy not to help you!"

"Because that's what Riri wants?"

"No, it's because I want to! Because I wanted to!"

I owe Mashiba a debt of gratitude. I don't want to disappear from this world without repaying her. I also didn't want anyone to take its life in front of me ever again.

"What do you want from me?"

"Leave Hagiri and choose me!"

I had various principles of honor and the aesthetics of a man. But I had already seen Mashiba's suffering. Then I can't turn my eyes away.

"I can't do that."

"Yes, you can! Because I'll be a very, very much better man than Hagiri! So you'll only be able to choose me as a woman because I'm super cool! That's the instinct of men and women, right? I'll let you choose! Me more than Hagiri! I'll do my best so you can choose from the bottom of your heart!"

Holding Mashiba in my arms, I swim toward the lakeside. Swimming with one person in my arms is pretty tough. But if I don't do my best here, I won't be a man who can be chosen by a woman.

"......Sorry ... thanks ...Tokiwa..."

Mashiba hugs my neck. My posture became a little more stable and it became easier to swim. Then we reached the lakeside.

"I might not be that strong to choose."

"I'll believe in you. You're strong."

We lay down in the sandbox.

"It's strange. The sky is much prettier than the blue of the lake."

My hands naturally overlapped with Mashiba's.

"That's true. By the way, I was thinking, you're surprisingly big."

"Pervert, idiot, scum ... kehahaha."

Mashiba laughed. I laughed along with her. We kept laughing until Igarashi arrived.









[T-shirt Short Stories]

Kanata "I didn't think my clothes would get washed into the lake and I'd have to buy clothes at the gift shop."

Tomoe "Right. But why do the clothes at the souvenir shop only have printed shirts with weird designs like this?"

Kanata "You're right. But if you're a woman, wouldn't it look cute like a dress?"

Tomoe  "Ah. ...Thanks."

Kanata "No problem."

Ririse "No! First of all, you two should thank me! I'm the one who bought those clothes! Thanks to you, my wallet is empty!"

Kanata "I'm sorry. Please forgive me, I'll replace it as soon as I get back to my room."

Ririse "Boo! I mean, you both smell like some kind of algae! It's soooo smelly! Let's go back to our room quickly! And then take a shower right away, right? Now! Punpun."

Kanata "Ah. I forgot there's a bath in the room. Finally!"





Next time!

Onsen in your room! The sake bottle on the tray breathes fire!











***Author's musings***

There are various motifs hidden in this work, which may be interesting to look for. For example, Tokiwa has a hook of meaning like "Tokiwa" -> "Tokiwa". In fact, there is another meaning hidden in the surname Tokiwa, so please try to find the meaning behind the surname Tokiwa.

Incidentally, in the Arthurian legend, a sword is thrown into a lake, but I dared to use an axe this time because it has its own meaning.





The name "Arthur" is famously derived from the Roman "Artorius," but the Celtic word "art-" in Arthur actually means "stone" or "bear".

A man with the name "stone" who draws a sword stuck in a stone. What does that mean? Is it a coincidence?

Furthermore, Arthur is a former king and a future king. He is a hero whose resurrection is predicted in the future.

This is also a metaphor for the hibernation of the bear. The bear was a symbol of warriors among the Celtic peoples.

It is aptly said that the name represents the body, isn't it?

Please enjoy the legend of King Arthur by paying attention to these points.

I can't help but be surprised that Hagiri-kun's stock has still dropped.