Chapter 97: You're a Woman?!
"Ahem..."
Otonashi Chiya faked a cough, his expression turning serious. "Aren't you the eldest daughter of the Loffiel family? You're supposed to be an unmarried young lady. How can you do something like that to a guy you just met and have a normal relationship with...?"
He was channeling Arai from the original series—the pure-hearted, straight-laced Arai was the perfect persona for the role he needed to play. In the original story, Arai had said something very similar to Himeno.
"What do you mean, 'normal relationship'? You're clearly my Master!"
Reze countered, "Besides... I'm only temporarily unmarried. If I marry you in the future, wouldn't all the problems be solved?"
Immediately after, she added with a panicked, bashful tone, "Ah, of course, I only said if..."
Having said her piece, she shyly looked away, seemingly too embarrassed to meet Chiya's eyes. Chiya, in turn, lightly scratched his cheek with a finger, acting as though he were feeling awkward and put on the spot.
The staff member leading the way felt like he was being force-fed a display of romantic affection. His heart was filled with envy and spite! Chiya and Reze were putting on a performance for each other, and in the process, they were inadvertently dealing collateral damage to innocent bystanders.
Especially to Shingetsu, who was following behind. At that moment, she was biting her lower lip, a bitter feeling swelling in her heart.
A moment later, with the help of the staff, Chiya and Reze rented a set of men's and women's swimwear. Noticing that Shingetsu had followed them all this way, Chiya turned and asked, "Do you want to rent a swimsuit too?"
Though he was in the middle of a play with Reze, he figured he actually could go for a swim to relax.
"There's probably no need. Maybe Mr. Shingetsu is a 'land duck' who's afraid to get in the water?" Reze suddenly said with a playful tone.
This wasn't actually part of her plan; she was just teasing Shingetsu out of a sense of mischief. Since she knew Shingetsu's true gender—and according to her intel, Shingetsu didn't want anyone to know she was a woman—it was highly likely she wouldn't dare get in the pool. Wouldn't getting in the water expose her?
"Is that so... well, if you don't like swimming, then forget it," Chiya said.
Because he guessed that Reze had researched him and Shingetsu before starting her mission, he took her words as truth, assuming Shingetsu really couldn't swim. His response was even a bit face-saving for Shingetsu, avoiding the "land duck" (non-swimmer) insult.
However, Shingetsu's expression didn't flicker. In a cold voice, she said, "Please rent a women's swimsuit for me."
Hearing this, Chiya didn't process it immediately. A second later, he realized something was very wrong.
"Huh? A women's swimsuit?" Chiya asked, bewildered.
The staff member on the side was also dazed. He naturally recognized the Captain of Special Operations Unit 1, the strongest warrior codenamed "Tsar." But wasn't the "Tsar" a man? Why would he want a women's swimsuit?
Even a flash of surprise crossed Reze's emerald eyes. Doesn't this Shingetsu want to keep her gender a secret? She hadn't expected Shingetsu to reveal her true gender so casually. Was it because her teasing just now had made Shingetsu angry enough to get serious? Or... did this woman actually have feelings for Otonashi Chiya?
Intelligence, of course, wasn't omnipotent. Chiya had only been in contact with Shingetsu for a few days, and the Soviet military hadn't been constantly monitoring him.
The military had paired Shingetsu with Otonashi Chiya so that they could reasonably assign them high-difficulty missions together, thereby forcing Chiya to reveal his true strength more quickly. They never anticipated that Shingetsu would actually develop feelings for him.
Consequently, Reze hadn't considered that Shingetsu might have a crush on Chiya until this very moment, when a sliver of suspicion finally began to take root.
Seeing Chiya's stunned expression, Shingetsu felt a sudden surge of pleasure, and the corners of her mouth curved upward slightly. She casually removed her military cap, allowing her smooth, long hair to cascade over her shoulders, and gave it a gentle toss.
"I've been a girl since the day I was born. If I don't wear a women's swimsuit, what else would I wear?"
Shingetsu had come to terms with it. Let him find out she was jealous; let her pride take a hit. This time, she refused to lose to some Reze who had appeared out of nowhere, and she certainly didn't want to live with regret.
"You... you're a girl...?"
This wasn't Chiya's acting anymore; he was genuinely shocked. After spending so many days with Shingetsu, he had never imagined she was a girl—especially since her usual behavior was anything but feminine.
Suddenly, it all clicked. All that strange behavior before really was because she was jealous! But there was still one thing Chiya found hard to wrap his head around: Could Shingetsu really get jealous over Ian, who was clearly a guy, too?! All he could say was... terrifying.
The staff member was also in disbelief. The famous "Tsar" was actually a girl in disguise!
"..."
Reze remained silent, a sense of unease growing in her heart. If Shingetsu started making proactive moves on Chiya, it would definitely interfere with her plan. She couldn't let this woman get the jump on her...
"As you can see."
Watching Chiya stand there looking dazed, Shingetsu's mood improved even further. Having said her piece, she turned her gaze toward Reze, her cold eyes looking as if she were declaring war.
Reze immediately acted frightened and turned to Chiya as if filing a complaint. "Master, she's being mean to me!"
Internally, Reze felt things were going south. This woman was truly intending to go head-to-head with her, and the main issue was that this could potentially sabotage the entire mission.
Chiya could only offer a slightly awkward smile. Faced with such an unforeseen turn of events, he momentarily forgot how he was supposed to be acting.
Shortly after, Shingetsu picked out a women's swimsuit that looked decent and went to the locker room to change. When she emerged, Chiya—who had long since changed into his trunks—witnessed a startling sight.
The slender Shingetsu was no longer the "flat-chest" he remembered. The curves weren't exaggerated, but they were definitely there! Had she been using a chest binder this whole time? Combined with the thick, warm military uniform, it wouldn't have been hard to hide.
Seeing Chiya staring so directly, Shingetsu felt a rare trace of shyness. She held one arm across her ribs somewhat unnaturally, gripping her other arm. It had been years since she had worn female clothing; suddenly wearing a swimsuit felt awkward, and she wasn't sure if it even suited her.
Deep down, she found herself hoping Chiya would offer a compliment. She leaned in a bit closer to him, waiting for his reaction.
AN-
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