The Saint Next to Me Who Sometimes Comes Without Wearing Underwear Tells Me What’s Under Her Skirt in Secret - 33

Chapter 33

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“What do you want to do, Haruki-kun?”

“What do I want to do?”

“You were the one who invited me, right? I thought you had something in mind.”

Hmm…

I thought for a moment before answering.

“I just wanted to come to the summer festival with you. There’s nothing in particular I want to do.”

“Oh? Then can I take that to mean… You’re happy just being with me?”

She asked with a teasing smile. Strictly speaking, I just wanted to experience the situation of “going to a summer festival with a close girl,” so it wasn’t quite the same…

Well, whatever.

“That’s a fine interpretation.”

“Eh? Ah, I-I see…”

When I responded seriously, Seira looked away, looking clearly embarrassed. Her cheeks were slightly red.

“D-Don’t get the wrong idea! It’s not like I like you or anything!!”

…Should I have said that?

“So, in other words, you have absolutely no plan in mind?”

“No, I’d like to see the fireworks.”

“See? You do have something. Is there a good spot to watch them from?”

“The best view is from the balcony of my room.”

“…Well, that’s true.”

Seira looked a bit deflated. Her expression said, “This wasn’t what I was expecting…”

“There’s still time before they start. What about you, Seira? Is there anything you want to do?”

“Hmm, let’s see… To be honest, I haven’t been to many festivals, so I’m not really sure what to do. I always thought they were more for kids…”

Maybe she doesn’t actually like festivals that much?

Just as I started to regret not making a more detailed plan… Seira’s gaze was drawn to a single point.

“You’re interested in the shooting game?”

“Eh? Ah, um… It’s just.. I’ve never done it before, so I just thought I’d give it a try.”

“Then let’s try it.”

“Y-Yeah. Everything’s worth experiencing once.”

Despite her words and tone, Seira’s steps were light. That comment about it being for kids was probably just bravado.

Why is she embarrassed? Because it’s a festival and she’s excited like a kid? As a normal human being, not wearing underwear is way more embarrassing, if you ask me.

I paid the shopkeeper the fee and borrowed a gun. Seira loaded the bullets awkwardly and raised the gun. She was aiming… At what looked like a teddy bear.

It wasn’t that big, and it was in a pretty easy-to-hit spot. Not a bad choice.

If it’s just a stuffed toy, there’s probably no trick like it being glued down.

“Like this, maybe? Hmm…”

Pop! 

The bullet fired with a sound. Unfortunately, it missed. She fired four more times, using up all her bullets, but didn’t manage to win anything.

“…This is harder than I thought.”

Seira furrowed her brows and let out a frustrated sound. She hesitated, reaching toward her bag, probably debating whether to take out her wallet. The stuffed toy was cheap, and it wasn’t like she was desperate for it. That said, she was the type who hated losing. Her pride wouldn’t allow her to just walk away like this. 

“If you’d like, I can show you how to play this game.”

“You’re good at it?”

“Well, decent enough.”

And so, we paid again for another try. I stood behind Seira and helped her hold the gun.

“Spread your feet. Tuck your elbows in… Yeah, just like that.”

I corrected her stance first. Then I gave her tips on aiming and where to target.

“Try aiming a bit higher, especially toward the edge. Picture it falling from centrifugal force. 

…We’re still aiming for that bear, right?”

“…Yeah.”

I placed my hands gently over hers. Just lightly. As our bodies touched, I could feel her soft skin, her warmth, and her sweet scent wafting through the air.

Not bad at all.

“Can I shoot now?”

“Yeah.”

At my word, Seira pulled the trigger. The bullet grazed just above the prize.

“…So close.”

“You’ve got four shots left. Let’s lower the aim just a bit.”

We adjusted the aim again. Seira was completely focused on the game and didn’t seem to notice how close we were. Part of me felt lucky, but another part was a little disappointed.

“Ah, I hit it.”

“That’s it.”

This time, the bullet hit the top right of the stuffed bear. It didn’t fall, but the aim was solid.

“…It’s really hard to knock it down.”

“Just a little more. Stay calm.”

Another hit. Still didn’t fall, but it moved closer to the edge of the platform. One more shot and it would probably drop.

“…Got it!”

On the third shot, the stuffed animal finally tumbled off the platform.

“That was actually pretty fun.”

Seira said, holding the prize she received from the shopkeeper. She was smiling brightly and just that smile alone made it worth inviting her out.

“You shoot the last two bullets.”

“Are you sure?”

“With just two shots, I wouldn’t be able to get anything with my skill level.”

“I see.”

So she thinks I can do it with two shots? Not impossible, but that’s a lot of pressure on me.

“That candy okay?”

“Anything’s fine.”

I didn’t want to look lame by missing, so I aimed at the most easily knocked-down item. I took my time, aimed carefully, and pulled the trigger. The box of chocolates fell off the platform.

“One shot?! That’s amazing!”

It didn’t go this well normally.  Maybe the god of festival games decided to help me out so I could look cool in front of the girl I like.

“It was just pure luck.”

Then I took my final shot… And missed.

“Oh.”

“…Yeah, hitting both was a bit too much to hope for.”

I scratched my cheek without thinking. I did land one shot, so I managed to save my face in front of Seira, but… Still, it felt a bit anticlimactic.

“Here.”

“Oh? Are you sure? You were the one who won it.”

“You were the one who paid for it.”

With that, I handed the chocolate to Seira. She smiled and put the chocolates into her bag.

“I see. Then I’ll gladly accept it. But…”

“But?”

“I’m not so softhearted that I’d forgive the sexual harassment just for this, okay?”

Seira said with a laugh. It turned out she noticed what I had been doing earlier. 

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