I like crossing the most

Chapter 1052 The Last Routine 231

Chapter 1052 The Last Routine 231

Huihui resolutely refused to hold back, as if giving her all was the only way to show the opponent enough respect. In the end, Huihui and her team rightfully won, by a large margin.

After the first match, Huihui proudly puffed out her chest and said, "Hmph, we won the first game by a score of 15 to 2. It's not impossible to surrender now!" As she said, she didn't hold back at all.

"We're happy to have won, but is Miss Rein alright?" Chris still retained some awareness, not forgetting that their main goal was to cheer Rein up, but then she added worriedly, "She seems to be getting more and more depressed..."

Kobayashi shrugged, while Aqua was still pulling Rein along to prepare tactics, earnestly telling Rein, "Listen to me, we absolutely have to turn this around! I won't give up any of the high-grade ingredients!" It had a rather forceful tone to her.

Rein lowered her head, feeling embarrassed and awkward, and apologized, saying, "I'm so sorry... I couldn't help at all..."

"Forget about what happened before! It's okay, we must win the next round!" Aqua wasn't dwelling on the recent gains or losses, and added, "These emotions are crucial!" She patted Rein's shoulder with a smile, comforting her, "Anyway, you need to rest now, have some ice cream to cool down—"

"Huh?... Alice... eat?" Rein's eyes suddenly became vacant, as if she was thinking of someone.

"No, no, no!" Kobayashi quickly waved his hands and explained, "It's not Alice, it's ice cream! Ice, ice, cream!!"

"Oh...? Which ship?" At that moment, Megumin suddenly noticed something and asked curiously. Kobayashi, also curious, asked, "What's wrong, Megumin?"

"The ships on the sea are getting closer and closer to us."

"Really?" Hearing her say that, Aqua looked over in slight surprise and asked in confusion, "It seemed like we were still far away just now... Ah, we've entered the bay, and it looks like we're going to stop on the pier on the other side."

"The bay... ship...? Alice ship...? Alice ship...!?"

"No matter what, this is too far-fetched!" Rein seemed to associate everything others said with Alice, who was still sick. Kobayashi hurriedly said, "Rein, you're not doing well either, take a rest!" He didn't know if she had used too much oil or if she had some heatstroke.

“…Eh?” Rein suddenly asked blankly, “Lady Alice…from the ship…?”

"Is she finally hallucinating!?" Kobayashi grabbed Rein's arm, making a move to lead her to rest under the parasol, while complaining, "How could Alice be in a place like this... Ah, she really is here!?"

To everyone's surprise, the princess, whom they had assumed was recuperating in the palace, actually appeared here in a boat, which was quite a shock. Alice approached the group, lowered her head apologetically, and timidly said, "I'm sorry... Rein."

"Lady Alice...!" Rein exclaimed in surprise, unsure whether she was shocked by seeing Alice or by Alice apologizing to her.

Then he recounted the whole story.

"So... it was all an act, is that right?" Rein looked at her with slight surprise.

"I'm sorry!" Alice apologized promptly.

Claire quickly spoke up, pleading for Alice, "No, it's not Alice's fault. If anything, it was me who brought it up. In any case, I hope Rein can get some rest."

"……what?"

"Rain, when was your last vacation? You don't even know how long it's been since you last had a break, do you?"

"Well..."

Rein thought about it carefully and realized it was true. Alice seized the opportunity to explain, "Rein has been working for me a lot, so I wanted you to go to the beach occasionally to change your mood. Therefore, I'd like to ask your brothers to help you create the most beautiful memories for Rein—"

“We’ve been watching Rein on the ship, but you don’t seem happy at all,” Claire continued, picking up where Alice left off. This made Rein very embarrassed, and she lowered her head, saying, “I’m sorry…”

“Raine shouldn’t apologize, I’m the one who should apologize!” Alice shook her head and said, “I think if I were here, Raine wouldn’t be able to relax either, so she acted out a scene with a cold…”

"I see... I see." Rein relaxed, a happy smile appearing on her lips.

"Rain, I'm sorry!" Alice apologized awkwardly, speaking cautiously, "It was my fault for not thinking things through. You're very angry, aren't you..."

"So, Lady Alice isn't sick, is she?...Phew, that's great. I was so worried about Lady Alice catching a cold...I know everyone wants to cheer me up, but I still think about Lady Alice. But thankfully, it was all an act."

"Rain!!" Alice was also moved by Rain's words, so the two decided to take this opportunity to have a good time and leave no regrets!

The group returned to the beach.

Aqua cupped the seawater in her hands and shouted, "Alice, here we come!! Goddess's Water Pour!"

"Wow, it's so cool!"

"Lady Aqua, this is fine!"

Seeing Alice get drenched in seawater, Rein rushed over to stop her, but Alice didn't seem to care and even said, "It's fine like this! Next up! Miss Aqua... pretend like this, heh!" Unexpectedly, Alice used a diversionary tactic, seemingly preparing to retaliate against Alice, but instead, she targeted Rein, instantly drenching her.

"Wow!" Rein exclaimed, "I didn't expect it to be this way... You're quite capable, Lady Alice... This is a return gift!"

"Ah! Raine is really something...hehehe..."

The two of them played around and laughed happily.

Huihui shouted disdainfully, "That's too gentle! Use my ultimate technique, Water Lily, break through and disappear along with the seaweed of the ocean! Haaaaaah—"

"Whoaaaaah!!" x2 Both of them were knocked to the ground by the huge waves.

"Megumin, you've gone too far! Lady Alice is soaking wet, isn't she!?" Darkness quickly reprimanded Megumin, while shouting, "Give me such a powerful blow!"

Seeing the group making a ruckus, Kobayashi sighed, "Honestly, that girl Rein, she gets all excited as soon as Alice arrives..."

"Really, you're a completely different person from before." Chris said with a smile as she looked at the group laughing and joking. "I was really worried about you just now."

Claire nodded in agreement and said with satisfaction, "Lady Alice seems to be very happy too. It's great that you arrived in time... To be honest, when we were on the ship, Lady Alice seemed to really want to come and play as well."

"Hey Claire, aren't you going into the sea?" Kobayashi asked, looking at Claire sitting on the beach. "Wouldn't it be better to play with Alice and Rein?"

"Hmph, I am Lady Alice's bodyguard. As a bodyguard, how could I easily do such a thing—"

"Hey! Stop just standing there and look around! Come on over here! Alice says she wants to play with everyone!"

"I'm coming right now!!"

"We still have to go!"

Claire, well, this is already a pretty good development. You know, at the beginning, Claire didn't even wear a swimsuit, looking like she was determined to stick to her guard job to the end.

In the evening, the barbecue activity had already begun.

"The crabs here look cooked too," Kobayashi said to the crowd, fiddling with the bright red crabs on the grill. "There's still plenty of meat here, eat as much as you want."

"What kind of meat is this, Kobayashi!?" Megumin asked, her eyes shining as she took a bite of steak. "It melts on my tongue without me even realizing it! Kobayashi, another piece of meat, please!"

"I'll have another glass of sparkling wine! As expected of the sparkling wine prepared by royalty, I can drink as much as I want!" Aqua was also quite drunk.

Just then, Chris pulled Darkness along and ran to the shore, excitedly shouting, "Look, Darkness, the sunset sinking into the sea is so beautiful!"

"Ah, what a beautiful view!" Darkness was equally delighted by the scenery. However, as Kobayashi watched the sunset, she also glanced at the charming figures of the group; to be honest, they were a sight to behold in themselves.

"There's still plenty of ingredients and sparkling wine left. This is for everyone, so please don't be shy," Alice said with a smile. Then, looking at the people around her, she asked, "Rain, are you enjoying your meal?"

“Of course. Such a lavish meal… is too wasteful for me.” Rein returned the smile.

“That being said, there’s something I just can’t accept. I’m very satisfied with the food, but…” Huihui pouted, somewhat unwillingly, and Chris knew exactly what she wanted to say, and said, “You’re talking about the beach volleyball match, right? It ended halfway through, didn’t it?”

"Damn it... I'm so upset! We should have won decisively. It's such a pity!"

"Isn't this great? This way, everyone can enjoy a meal together. The unfinished match will continue someday."

Chris comforted Huihui in this way.

Rein smiled and said, "I understand, but I won't do what I did before. I also want to use my skills as the princess's guard."

"In that case, shall we come again?" Alice said to the crowd, "After the gathering in the capital, how about we come back to this beach? That way, we can continue the competition..."

"Lady Alice...you're being so willful again. Again and again..."

"Please, Claire... okay?"

The person in front of her was practically an angel! How could she possibly refuse when she was pleading with that expression?! —Claire, naturally unable to handle Alice's request, readily agreed, "I understand, I'll go arrange it right away!!"

“Thank you, Claire!” Alice said happily, then asked another guard, “Is there anything else Rhine hasn’t done?”

“I’m already very happy, there’s nothing else to do… Ah.” Rein suddenly paused.

"What were you thinking about just now? What was it? Please tell me!"

"Then... there's only one..."

Rein said this with considerable embarrassment, but what was even stranger was that she looked at Kobayashi with a hint of shyness. He had expected some kind of unspoken thank-you note or something similar, and had even prepared himself to accept it, but unexpectedly—

"The fried noodles that Rein wanted are ready!" That's right, Rein wanted the fried noodles that often appeared at temple fairs, and specifically, soy sauce fried noodles with extra garlic and soy sauce—a dish very rarely ordered by girls. And Rein not only wanted that, she even wanted…

"Um, Lord Kobayashi, I'd like a large one!"

"Okay, let's make another one!"

Kobayashi got busy again. Alice brought fried noodles, and ultimately, the ingredients for this kind of street food weren't important; what mattered was its cheap taste, which Rein really liked.

Alice had never smelled such a wonderful aroma before. She sniffed and exclaimed, "It smells so good! It's making me hungry!"

"It's freshly made and very hot. Please eat carefully." Without any hesitation, Rein handed the soy sauce fried noodles to Alice, gesturing for the princess to savor it.

"Then I'll start eating... Waaaaah... Delicious! This is so tasty!"

"Indeed, the elasticity of the noodles is irresistible!"

Not only Alice, but Claire also praised it highly. After spending so much time together, she no longer resisted the food of the poor, such as pizza and dumplings, and accepted them.

Rein smiled. She thought that grilling high-end ingredients was indeed delicious, but she still preferred the simple taste... Most importantly, Alice was right beside her now.

"Okay, after we finish eating, let's set off fireworks together," Kobayashi suggested to everyone.

"Huh?!" Chris exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise. "Kobayashi, you've even prepared fireworks?"

"Of course! Who do you think I am? I knew this would turn out this way," Kobayashi said smugly.

"As expected of my elder brother!" Alice clapped her hands happily, then said to the guards beside her, "Rain, Claire! Let's release it together!"

"Okay, of course!"

"But..." Compared to Claire's quick agreement, Rein gently reminded her, "Instead of playing happily, you should change your clothes before nightfall, or you'll really catch a cold."

"Ugh!...Really, Rein! Didn't you already apologize?" Alice pouted and pretended to be unhappy, but the two quickly started laughing again.

The taste of the fried noodles that day that Rein ate with Alice was her most cherished memory.

(End of this chapter)