Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 318, Section 4: "The Moment of Decisive Victory"

"Ah! I knew it, you jellyfish, you sneaked away again when we weren't looking."

The sound of Mio gritting her teeth echoed in the open-air hot spring.

"I really wanted to wash each other's bodies with Masumi!"

Four girls walked barefoot through the steamy air from the changing room.

The blonde beauty in the middle was quite aggressive. Haiyue, who had been hiding her body in the hot spring water, suddenly raised her head to the surface upon hearing the noise and started coughing.

"Cough cough cough..."

Masumi quickly patted her slender back.

"Tsk tsk! Masumi-kun and Umi-zuki have already started enjoying themselves! How cunning!"

Mami narrowed her eyes in displeasure and looked down at him.

"This has nothing to do with me. Anyway, it's probably just Mami pulling other people to chat about some boring things."

Masumi shrugged helplessly.

He felt calmer than ever before; of his three desires, only the desire for sleep remained unfulfilled. The hot spring water was truly incredible.

"They actually said that the top three most-rated anime of Nico Nico Douga's winter season, 'I Inherited a Hot Spring Inn and Also Inherited Five Beautiful Girl Employees, and We Lived a Shameless Life Together,' is boring..."

Mami tied a tight knot between her eyebrows.

"...Could it be that Masumi-kun did something interesting with Umi-zuki inside just now!?"

"No, it can't be described as interesting..."

Masumi avoided her gaze; it was probably similar to what happened in that anime...

Asami seemed oblivious to the implied meaning of those words. She gave up on pressing for details and instead looked around the bathtub with great interest.

Although it's called an open-air hot spring, it's actually an indoor facility, and it's a semi-open-air type where you can only look out from the horizontal windows.

The bath was surrounded on three sides by walls and murals, with only one side decorated with flowers, plants, and interestingly shaped stones. Moonlight leaked into the room through the openwork ceiling.

The building is decorated with kikuma-mata-wa (a type of tile) night lights, a style of lighting that is said to have also been used at Matsuyama Castle, the Kyoto Imperial Palace, and other locations.

"Although it looks a bit run-down on the outside, it has a unique charm once you get used to it."

"...Mami's statement is a bit too direct."

"I'm actually more likable because of my straightforward personality."

As Mami spoke leisurely as she knelt down in front of the bathtub.

The moment she bent her upper body, Masumi saw her full breasts pressed against her thighs.

Seeing it in such a completely different setting is spectacular. It's like gazing up at a star that might fall at any moment.

...Is the bulge on her chest something so poetic?

Beside her, Rinne used a wooden bucket to scoop hot water from the bath and splash it on her body to allow her to adjust to the water temperature.

The hot water droplets, reflecting the light, illuminated her curvaceous body.

"Hey!"

Asami did the same, and when she lifted the bucket to shoulder height, Masumi saw her valley, which could be considered a symbol of femininity, being lifted by her upper arm and softly flattened.

The water droplets fell along a beautiful arc that seemed to be a math problem.

"What's wrong...?"

Rinne and Asami seem to have finally noticed Masumi's reaction.

"Ugh, Masumi-kun's gaze is so lewd, he's practically staring at me like that..."

"……poor."

"That's not true!"

Masumi retorted flatly:

"We're lovers, right? That's a normal thing, isn't it?"

"...Then why isn't Masumi staring at me?"

Mio looked resentful beside her, and Chiai echoed her sentiment.

"Exactly! Masumi-nii's preference is so obvious!"

Mio turned her head and glanced at the childhood sweetheart.

"Sister Qian'ai, put the towel down first before we talk."

"Well……"

Before even soaking in the hot spring, Chiai's cheeks had already turned as red as Haiyue's.

It seems she can't completely let go of her shame anytime soon.

"...Haiyue's face is so red, is she dizzy from being in the water?"

After immersing himself in the hot spring, Rinne gently came over to check on him.

"fine."

Haiyue, who had transformed into a carefree person, tossed her wet hair from side to side, like a small animal that had been soaked in the rain.

Rinne sighed, her amethyst-like eyes reflecting the beautiful girl with wet eyelashes.

"Please let me know in advance if you feel dizzy."

"Ah."

Haiyue nodded obediently, perhaps feeling a little lonely because she had only been halfway through when she was bumped right into by a large, barking dog.

"……Mother……"

The jellyfish girl changed her position, burying her face in the heir's chest from the front, and said this with a touch of sadness.

"Meow meow?"

Rinne's eyelids twitched slightly. Upon hearing this address, she would unconsciously recall the scene where she and Haiyue had been thoroughly messed up, and then she would blush so much that she couldn't even speak.

But luckily I'm taking a bath now, so I should be able to get away with it.

"Haiyue, I've already told you I'm not you..."

Rinne, with her hair piled up, exhaled a puff of hot air.

Masumi watched silently, thinking that Rinne in this state did indeed have a maternal charm.

"But... Rinne... would treat me so gently... If only Mom were Rinne..."

When faced with Umizuki, who confided her loneliness to her, Rinne felt as if her chest was blocked.

Having personally experienced the pain of losing her mother, she could deeply empathize with Haiyue's sorrow, yet even so...

Suddenly she's a mother, and her daughter is so big, even a little taller than her... How can Rinne, who's only 20 years old, possibly handle this?!

Not to mention that Haiyue is also Masumi's lover, just like her. What kind of relationship is that? Isn't that a bit too decadent?

My mind was instantly in turmoil, and I hugged Haiyue even tighter.

"──!?"

The heiress shuddered.

There was a crash.

Water splashed everywhere.

From the clear, alkaline, simple hot spring water, a fair back, waist, and buttocks appeared—
Hey!
With her arms wrapped around her shoulders, Rinne blushed deeply with embarrassment.

"Haiyue!? You!?"

"Mom~"

"Don't do that!"

Rinne's eyes trembled, and she immediately turned her face to Masumi, who had an indifferent expression on her face.

With a sharp gaze, the heiress glared at him fiercely, then murmured with her cherry lips, "It's all your fault."

Masumi awkwardly turned her face away and saw Mami leaning against the edge of the bathtub, with the island floating in front of her like the back of a whale, only the upper half of it showing.

"Ah~ the water temperature is just right, it's truly paradise on earth..."

Mami let out a contented sigh.

"Sister Mami, you sound like an old man."

To avoid getting the towel wet, Chiai put the towel on her head, a stark contrast to the relaxed Asami, who had her entire body below the nose submerged in the water.

"It's nothing serious. Soaking in a hot spring is all about relaxing, isn't it? Is Chia being too tense?"

Mami seemed unconcerned.

"No, I'm fine like this."

Because her mouth is also submerged in water, Chiai blows bubbles like a crab when she talks.

Soaking in a hot spring like this is so comfortable and relaxing... I walked a lot today, and now that I'm in the bath, it feels like my whole body is getting a massage.

However, Dogo Onsen is an alkaline simple spring with clear and transparent water, unlike the brownish-red water of Arima Onsen in Kobe, which can help conceal the body.

I always feel a little embarrassed when people see me looking lazy and relaxed.

"Oh, okay, let's chat then."

Asami said lazily.

"Chiai, do you know? This hot spring seems to appear in the Nihon Shoki (Chronicles of Japan)."

"The Nihon Shoki? Isn't that mythology?"

"Of the thirty volumes in the Nihon Shoki, only the first two volumes describe the Age of Gods."

Rinne interjected at this moment, saying that when faced with this kind of topic, the heir often turns into a Wikipedia.

Using the terminology from a certain well-known light novel, it should be called Rinki Encyclopedia.

"...In ancient times, an injured egret recovered its health after bathing here, and thus the hot spring originated. Legend has it that during the mythological era, the gods Ōkuninushi and Ōhiko both visited this place." "I see. No wonder there was a rest area called 'The Heron Room' earlier."

Mami nodded heavily.

"In short, it's definitely a paradise on earth. Even the great... the god of longevity and the god of immortality have bathed in it..."

"They are Okuninushi and Sukunahiko."

Masumi stretched out her arms and legs in the bathtub, listening to the girls' endless chatter, while feeling the heat mixed with the steam next to her.

You were being watched with very enthusiastic eyes.

Mio had been staring at him ever since the beginning.

There's no need to think about why she did it; it's the same reason Masumi gave earlier: "We are lovers." That alone is enough.

Even so, Mio's gaze was far too intense, and she was staring intently at Masumi... looking at her.

Why are you staring at it?
It was probably because she had no choice but to look, since the spring water was so clear and completely visible.

Since that's the case, Masumi thought she could just continue soaking in the hot spring as if nothing had happened.

"..."

Masumi definitely felt that her body wasn't just covered in water droplets, but was constantly sweating, and she continued to soak in the bath.

Immersing in the hot spring water, the high temperature accelerates blood circulation.

His current mood is like that of a beast charging headlong down a path that is completely contrary to the idea of ​​"relaxation".

My body felt frozen.

He was all alone, and although he was soaking in the hot spring, he seemed frozen stiff by the cold air. He scooped up some hot water to wash his face and glanced at Mio's expression.

That was an expression filled with unwavering will and a willingness to risk everything.

◇

"Oh, soaking in a hot spring feels so good."

Asami, wrapped in a bath towel, walked into the changing room and felt the cool water droplets stimulating the soles of her feet.

It felt so good that she kept opening and closing her legs.

"Sister Mami, you'll catch a cold if you don't change your clothes soon."

Rinne reminded her from the side.

"Okay, got it."

Asami lazily walked to the locker and began rummaging through it for a change of clothes. Chiai, standing next to her, seemed frozen, motionless like an ice sculpture.

"What's wrong? Qian'ai, did you bring the wrong change of clothes?"

Asami looked at her retreating figure and asked.

"Ugh! Hmm, no..."

The childhood sweetheart answered furtively.

"Really? But your expression doesn't look right."

"No, it's really nothing, it's just..."

Qian Ai gripped the fabric tightly in her hand, her mind in turmoil.

What's going on? Because her figure has remained stable, Qian'ai doesn't often update her underwear, so she has no recollection of ever having such a set of lingerie.

Moreover, it's a very provocative transparent lace style.

What... what is this thing?! Isn't it a bit too see-through?! Doesn't that mean everything is visible...?! Its only use is probably...

"Oh~?"

The sound coming from behind made Qian'ai's shoulders tremble violently, and she turned around timidly.

Asami, with a mysterious expression that suggested she knew everything, lowered her head and looked meaningfully at the erotic lingerie in her hand.

"Chiai, you brought something really interesting!"

"No, no! This, this is..."

"What happened?"

Just as she was about to make up an excuse, Rinne also curiously came over, and then her expression froze.

"I love you a thousand times..."

"Oh my, I never knew Chia could be so bold."

Asami gave a mischievous smirk.

"Did you make this winning lingerie set yourself?"

"No, no...! You've misunderstood! I... I don't know when I snuck in!"

Qian Ai was covered in sweat and kept waving her hands in front of her face.

"Ok?"

Asami rested her chin on her hand, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"So someone else's things fell in there? This size, could it be Miss Mio...?"

"What's up?"

Hearing that she was being talked about, Mio turned her head. She had just changed her underwear and tilted her head slightly to show her confusion.

"No, it's nothing..."

Chiai turned her head to answer, taking in Mio's attire, and suddenly widened her eyes in shock.

"Mio, Mio-neechan, what's going on? You're dressed so sexily!"

"Really? I think it's quite ordinary."

Mio answered as if nothing had happened... no, she should be said to have given a very serious answer.

"Sexiness is an essential quality for mature women. You should regularly check your body shape changes by taking this almost naked pose."

Qian Ai's lips twitched:

"That's a pretty good reason... Oh well, whatever, Mio-neechan."

"Mio's body shape changes..."

Rinne, standing beside her, hesitated to speak. Although her expression remained as indifferent as ever, it conveyed a sense of nonchalance with a hint of sarcasm.

Mio's face instantly turned cold, and she froze, her expression hardening.

"Want to fight, Rinne?"

Like a large golden retriever barking and assuming an aggressive posture.

"Mio's self-confidence is far too fragile."

As usual, the two ignored everyone else and argued more and more fiercely, regardless of the occasion.

Qian Ai sighed and lowered her head, taking another look at the extravagant lingerie.

Judging from the size, it should be mine, no doubt.

But when was this thing put in there...?
Looking back into her bag, Qian'ai noticed what appeared to be a note peeking out from under the spare clothes.

Once pulled out, it was obvious who had written the familiar Spanish handwriting.

As for the content, Qian'ai didn't have the courage to read it aloud in her heart.

Before leaving, she went home to pack her things. Did her mother... sneak the things in while she was packing?
I don't need that kind of support...

I put it on anyway, even though I was reluctant.

Looking up, she saw Mami scrutinizing Chiai's entire body with a blank expression, her pupils barely moving.

"Ma, Mami-nee?"

Chiai instinctively covered her private parts, and Mami immediately broke down in her act and couldn't help but laugh.

"Not bad, it suits Chihiro quite well."

"Yes, really."

"Yes, it's very cute. Masumi-kun will definitely like it!"

"Oh, wait a minute! Asami-nee, your outfit..."

"uh-huh?"

Asami stands with one hand on her hip and her weight on one leg, striking a pose like an underwear model.

Isn't it charming?

"Ugh! I feel like I've lost..."

Qian Ai clenched her fists in resentment.

By the way, both Rinne and Mizuki's underwear is very erotic.

Rinne's black cat-themed underwear and Kaigetsu's white cat-themed underwear are probably intentionally different colors.

The two beautiful girls, who are both quiet and reserved, actually look quite similar without careful observation, almost like a mother and daughter.

"Because there isn't a single day in life when you don't need to fight or win."

Rinne spoke these words with a calm and collected tone, yet the air suddenly thickened with tension.

◇

"Ah sneeze——!"

Masumi, who had already changed her clothes and was waiting for the girls to come out of the lounge on the first floor, sneezed.

What's going on? I felt a chill run down my spine.

(End of this chapter)