His whole body felt like it was cramping up, almost like he had spent the entire previous day hauling cargo. The aching soreness throughout him now had a strangely pleasant tinge.
And so, right now, Yazuki was lying face-down on a bench, thoroughly enjoying a pair of hands working on his legs and arms—basically giving him a relaxing full-body massage.
The one doing all this was none other than the blonde girl who had just teamed up with him. S
he seemed a little overly energetic and carefree, with a somewhat cutesy vibe.
Her name was Smithy A. Hasaka, likely a mixed-race girl, which explained why she sometimes seemed to struggle with the local language.
At first, Yazuki had declined her offer, but in the end, he was half-forced to accept her goodwill. She was the type who, once she decided to help someone, wouldn't take no for an answer.
He had to admit, though—Hasaka's massage skills were surprisingly on point. Clearly, she had undergone some serious training in this field.
It felt amazing—this must be one of the few true pleasures only humans can experience.
Now she was working on his back, using her elbows to press and knead. Not bad at all. Her technique was definitely master-level.
"Okay, time to turn over. Front side next," she said.
"Alright."
He flipped over without thinking and closed his eyes, ready to indulge in that masterful massage again—when his body suddenly felt a shift in weight, forcing him to open his eyes in surprise.
Wait, what?! Hasaka was now straddling him. That's definitely not okay! This position could easily be misunderstood!
Sure, there was no one else around, but if anyone did happen to see them like this, they'd think they were shamelessly engaging in mankind's most primal act in broad daylight.
Actually… had she been sitting on his back just now too? He must've been too zoned out from the soreness and massage pleasure to notice.
Now that his body was more relaxed and alert, he was picking up on a lot more.
Even through the clothes, he could clearly feel the warmth and softness of her weight—though not a cottony softness, but rather the firm elasticity of someone who trained regularly. Like pudding.
At the same time, a faint, sweet scent from Hasaka was tickling Yazuki's brain, already vulnerable from being a normal teenage boy.
His peripheral vision caught sight of her toned, parted legs—white, smooth, and tight-skinned.
And beneath her skirt, he could faintly glimpse a black colored pantie.
The next second, her fingers interlocked tightly with his.
Whoa, whoa, this definitely looks bad!
But before he could react further, she suddenly squeezed his fingers hard, making it feel like he had his hand caught in a bear trap.
The sudden pain extended all the way up to his arm, almost like a dislocation, before she gave it a good shake.
Huh? That felt… good? The cramping sensation in his hand vanished, replaced by a strangely pleasant soreness.
Must be some kind of specialized technique.
Seeing how seriously she was doing this, he decided not to overthink it. Better to distract himself with some anime thoughts instead.
"Ahem."
A cough rang out, followed by a heavy, cold stare pressing down from behind.
Behind?
He tilted his head back slightly… and saw a finely sculpted, expressionless face looking down at him.
It was none other than Yukino—the self-proclaimed flawless beauty, ranked number one in the school's cryogenics department.
Great, no doubt she was about to unleash her usual biting sarcasm.
Her sudden, unannounced appearance caused Hasaka to freeze mid-massage. She looked startled but didn't seem embarrassed at all by how their position might be misunderstood by others.
"A teacher is about to walk by here," came Yukino's frosty warning.
"Huh?"
Hasaka blinked, looking like she didn't get what that had to do with her. She really seemed like a slightly airheaded girl.
Of course, Yazuki knew exactly what Yukino meant. If they were seen like this, there'd be no explaining it.
"…Um, that's enough, please get off, Hasaka-san."
"Your body's okay now?"
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"Hehe, bet you feel a lot more relaxed now, huh? These are techniques I developed myself after years of caring for wealthy young ladies."
Standing up with a smile, Hasaka looked proud, clearly happy her skills had been useful.
As she stood up, her leg swung gracefully over him and her skirt fluttered. If Yazuki had wanted to peek, he could've easily seen the color underneath—but he didn't dare, he had seen it already.
Yukinoshita's sharp gaze was practically drilling a hole in his skull.
"Wealthy young ladies? You worked as a maid?"
No wonder—if she had to take care of upper-class young ladies, she'd definitely need serious skills.
"Yup! I worked for the girls at Shuchiin Academy. It was tough!"
She said it with a tired voice, clearly still carrying some trauma from the experience.
"Shuchiin Academy?"
That surprised Yazuki.
The young ladies at that school were notoriously high-maintenance. But if Hasaka had served them and even earned their trust, that spoke volumes about her maid skills.
Though it did raise a question.
Usually, maids serving at Shuchiin Academy would also attend the school themselves. Why was she at Chiba Sobu High instead?
As if reading his mind, Hasaka smiled sheepishly.
"You're wondering why I came to Chiba Sobu High, right? Well… someone's been targeting me lately, so I had to lay low and hide out here."
Yazuki frowned slightly. From the way she said it, the person targeting her might be someone he knew?
"The reason I chose this place—"
She paused, tapping her cheek as if unsure whether to say more, then seemed to make up her mind.
"Actually… the young lady told me that if anything happened, I could use you as a shield, Yazuki-san. So she sent me here and asked me to gather some intel on you."
"Someone's collecting intel on me?"
Yazuki raised an eyebrow. Immediately, a certain image came to mind.
Flowing pink hair. Big, sapphire-like eyes. A cute, slightly dopey face. A petite but elegantly curved body with an impressive bust. To most people, she would be the very definition of a super-beauty.
But to Yazuki, she was a super unlucky beauty.
"As for which young lady it was… I can't say. Sorry~"
Hasaka pressed her palms together by her cheek, giving him an apologetic smile that was honestly a little cute.
But Yazuki figured she'd already said more than enough.