The bus rumbled to a halt, gravel crunching beneath the wheels as it came to a soft stop. I wiped a bead of sweat from my forehead, half from the ride, half from surviving two full hours of Nao shouting trivia facts and Arisa 'accidentally' falling asleep on my shoulder four separate times. Reina hadn't said a word the whole trip, but I swear she was counting each moment Arisa touched me like she was tallying sins as if she was Light from Death Note.
And Yuki? She just stared out the window. Maybe she was silently plotting my execution. The doors hissed open, and there it was.
Kazumi Numaguchi Village.
An old-style rural retreat known for its nature trails, temples, and most importantly, absolutely no cell service. Wooden homes with curved tiled roofs sat nestled among hills of tall cedar trees. The breeze carried the faint scent of incense and miso, and cicadas droned in the background like they were trying to warn me.
Welcome to the middle of nowhere.
We stepped off the bus, and the girls immediately went full character.
"OH MY GOD! It's like a real live drama set!" Arisa practically sang, twirling in place as she adjusted her designer shades. "I hope they've got proper beds... Like, with goose feather duvets. I refuse to sleep on the floor."
"You're in a cultural heritage site, not a spa resort," Reina said flatly, though even she looked a little intrigued by the vibe, her eyes drifting over the thatched rooftops. Nao was practically bouncing. "This place is so cool! I'm gonna go pick flowers, take like 12 photos, and maybe find a frog! Wanna name one Froppy-kun!"
"Please don't I feel like the frog would lose its will to live," I said with a flat tone. Yuki finally stepped off the bus, arms folded. She looked around with that ever-present glare of low-key judgment.
"These rooms better be like ours."
"Yeah, that's not happening", Reina whispered.
Meanwhile, I was just happy to be alive, just barely; the traumas of Nao shouting "UNO" Every 5 seconds hadn't gone away just yet.
"I mean, hey. Not bad," I said, rolling my shoulder. "Could've been worse. Could've been a cold mountain cave. At least these buildings have roofs."
"Who would live in a building with no roof?" Nao replied.
I'm not even going to try and explain...
As we followed the teacher toward the main inn building, I spotted her holding a clipboard and a stack of room keys.
"Just gimme my key and let me relax, just gimme my key and let me relax", I repeated over and over again, making my way over to her. Until her eyes locked onto mine, and a small smile crept onto her face.
"SHIT!"
"Ah, Kannazuki," she said, pulling out a small envelope. "There was a special accommodation requested for you. It came with this letter from... The man named Wilhelm, I believe?"
I took it, eyebrow already twitching.
I opened the envelope.
"Dear Souta Sir,
Given your continued service to the young mistresses, and in my current absence as I attend to Miss Saki's five-star, amazing and luxurious, with the top-of-the-line spa included. I have requested that you be quartered as near to the sisters as possible. Please tend to their needs, maintain order, and discourage Miss Nao from licking frogs. And Yuki from using the cooker she's never seen or used before.
Yours sincerely,
Wilhelm."
WHY THE HELL DOES IT FEEL LIKE HE'S RUBBING SAKI'S TRIP IN MY FACE!!!
But, reading the letter again, I realised one crucial thing.
Besides the damn Saki five-star extravaganza.
The girls leaned over my shoulder.
"…Wait," I said slowly. "Does that mean…"
The teacher smiled kindly. "Yes, Kannazuki-kun, you'll be staying in Room 3B with the sisters. As their assigned aide, it's been cleared."
I blinked.
Yuki blinked.
Arisa blinked, then grinned as she'd just won the lottery.
"There's only one futon cabinet…" Reina whispered ominously.
Nao clapped. "Ooh! Like one big sleepover!"
I was still frozen.
"...Y-you mean to tell me I'm bunking with all four of you in one room?" I stammered. The teacher nodded, and the small, innocent smile still lurked on her face. I know she didn't mean it, but it really annoyed me. 'Like yeah go off having fun with FOUR WALKING TIME BOMBS IN A TIGHT SPACE!!"
"Traditional-style room. One big open space. Five futons." She continued before telling us to go check it out. My soul briefly left my body, "if only these girls were just nice to me… I would have been in heaven." I said in my muffled voice, covering my face with my hands.
We walked into Room 3B, and yep, it was exactly what I feared.
One big tatami room.
No dividers.
No bunk beds.
No escape.
Five futons.
Four girls.
One idiot (me).
Arisa stepped in, spun dramatically, then stopped when she noticed the bedding. "This feels more illegal than anything I've ever done~"
You're right, Arisa. Just toss a single guy into a room with four girls. Perfect plan. Wait... Is this some twisted scheme from the teachers and Wilhelm? Their subtle way of saying I can't get laid even in ideal conditions? THAT SON OF A-
Nao was already picking her futon spot. "I always like having a futon neighbour?"
Yuki crossed her arms. "This is your fault, dork."
I didn't even try to argue with her, so I just looked up at the ceiling. My way of retaliating.
"...I'm sleeping in the hallway," I murmured.
Reina tilted her head. "That's not sanitary."
"This whole setup's not sanitary!"
But it was too late. I couldn't just go back to my home now. My fate had been sealed.
Thanks, Wilhelm.
Wherever you are, I hope that spa towel snaps you in the ass.
*
We eventually got everything set up in the room.
Well, I did, anyway.
The others? No. For the past ten minutes, three out of the four girls were too busy arguing... About who had to sleep next to me.
Let me say that again.
Who had to!
Yeah. I know what my male readers are thinking right now.
"Yo Souta, you lucky bastard, sleeping next to four hot girls? Living the dream, bro!"
First of all: shut up.
Second of all: NO I'M NOT. Because they weren't fighting to sleep next to me. They were fighting to avoid it like I was a biohazard with abs. And as a man with already cripplingly low self-esteem, this was like watching my ego get run over by a dump truck, reversed on, then hit with the handbrake drift.
"Listen!! Arisa should sleep next to him!" Nao declared, finger pointed like she was in a courtroom drama. "You're the flirty one! You're always flashing him your boobs and stuff!"
"WHAT!?" Arisa turned redder than her hair. "Excuse me?! I do not flash, those are tasteful seduction tactics, thank you very much!" She replied as if that was anything better.
Nao crossed her arms, puffing her cheeks. "Well, I'm not doing it! I sleep like a gremlin! What if I roll over and end up… Touching him!?"
"Um, that actually hurt me…"
Arisa smirked. "That's exactly why you should be next to him; he sees you like a little sister. Nothing would happen. Safe. Harmless. Basically a fluffy body pillow."
"Yep, just ignore me, guys."
Nao's face twitched before her face dropped slightly.
"…I don't want that to be the case," she muttered under her breath.
Arisa leaned forward. "Huh? What was that?"
"N-NOTHING!"
Nao immediately spun around. "I REFUSE. One of YOU GUYS pick! Reina! Yuki! One of you!!"
She stormed off toward the hallway like a toddler who lost their turn at Mario Kart.
Did I mention that I was still in the room?
I was sitting in the corner with my arms wrapped around my knees like a background NPC in a visual novel. You know the one, the pixelated guy no one clicks on. I cleared my throat. "Umm... Guys? Just a reminder, I'm literally right here. Like, I'm in the room. Breathing oxygen and everything."
Yuki's cold stare hit me like a ninja star.
"It doesn't matter where we go. You always bring chaos."
"I-well-I mean, yeah, okay. Fair."
I scratched the back of my head in classic defeated anime protagonist fashion.
Eventually, the debate came to a close. And a very reluctant, slightly awkward, peace treaty was formed. And the lucky (or unlucky?) girl who ended up sleeping next to me was...
Reina.
Yeah. Reina.
The one girl who barely said anything this whole time, didn't pick a side, and probably just wanted to sleep without getting drawn into the Hunger Games: Futon Edition. She didn't even blink. Just rolled out her futon next to mine like it was obvious.
Honestly, kind of refreshing, at least out of all of them, she was the nicest and well, a normal girl out of the three. And when it was night, I had to make sure to stay quiet, not disturbing the beasts that I knew lived with me, and also the fact that I was still recovering from the emotional damage of being treated like a bomb no one wanted to defuse.
So yeah. That was night one of the trip:
Futon set. Room shared. Dignity? Not so much. I mean, it can't get any worse than this, could it? Like, really think about it.
Let's just hope I don't roll in my sleep.
Or worse, snore.
Thankfully, sleeping time wasn't here yet. Instead, it was time for the mandatory "Let's learn about the village before we break it" tour, courtesy of the school. I made my way down to the main lobby, still trying to shake off the last hour's worth of awkward futon placement drama…