Chapter 21: An Obvious Setup... But Who Cares as Long as the Summer Event Is Fun!

Under an intensely blue sky.

The cry of some cicada-like creatures echoes through the air.

It is certainly noisy, but somehow, it feels like there is more to it than that.

I can feel my heart naturally starting to race with excitement.

『A large-scale lake has been detected ahead. Shall we go around it?』

"Can't we swim across?"

As we headed east toward the Machine City Mikania and the Great Elven Forest, we ran into a gigantic lake. We had encountered various troubles along the way, but we can skip over those. They probably won't even be mentioned in the game.

But now there was a lake here. Just as the weather was starting to get hot, a lake appeared as if on cue...

Could this be it??

『If I were in my complete form, traversing the water would pose no problem. However, with my current level of completion, that would be difficult.』

"Then we have no choice but to go around it?"

『However. Given approximately three days, I can modify myself into an amphibious vehicle using the components currently assembled and materials found nearby.』

Hmm, hmm. So this means a three-day vacation!

A perfect opportunity to rack up event points!

"Three days, huh... I wonder which would be faster, modifying you or going around?"

『It is impossible to determine conclusively, as the exact area and shape of the lake are unknown. If we could observe it from a great height, the situation would be different.』

"You mean using something like flight magic to check?"

Hey, hey, Kizuna-kun. Don't go saying something weird and accidentally get rid of the summer event, okay?

"Flight magic isn't that convenient. The higher you go, the more enormous the amount of concentration and magic power required becomes. If you are an existence possessing an immense amount of magical power, or have wings suited for flight, that would be a different story... But at least, I can't do it."

"Unfortunately, I cannot do it either. An aerial knight of Yupitelia should be able to accomplish it with ease, but..."

Even if I could, I wouldn't do it. Imagine if we checked and discovered that going around was actually faster. There goes the summer event for earning points.

Besides, flight magic is an extremely advanced form of magic. Far more people lack the aptitude to use it than those who can.

And even those who can use it cannot do so without limitations.

If it is only myself, I can fly a decent distance with a reasonable amount of freedom. I can even fight while flying.

But carrying even a little luggage causes the consumption of magic power and mental fatigue to increase dramatically. If I tried carrying an entire person, things would undoubtedly get really bad.

So, if it were only Liz and me, we could cross to the opposite shore on our own. But making a round trip while carrying Kizuna-kun and the others... that's impossible.

『Within the range that can be confirmed from our current location, the lake in question extends north and south... in other words, to the left and right relative to our direction of travel. Conversely, from east to west... the direction we are traveling in, it is comparatively short.』

...Now that I think about it, the gigantic lakes on Earth were absurdly huge too. The ones overseas.

Not that I've ever actually gone to see one in person.

I wonder how long it would take to drive all the way around one. Then again, we'd probably run out of fuel pretty quickly.

"Kizuna-kun. I think we should modify Tetoma before moving on."

"I agree with Tierra-san. There's no guarantee we won't encounter terrain like this again. If we can modify it now, I think we should."

"I'm not in any particular hurry, so either option is fine with me."

"I am accompanying you in order to repay the debt of gratitude for your hospitality, so I have no objection to either choice."

"I'm fine either way, nyah."

"Rene-chan, do you understand what you're saying?"

"...???"

"I don't understand either, nyah. We're comrades."

"Yeah. I don't get it."

"...Then, let's modify Tetoma over the next three days. After that, we'll go straight across the lake!"

There were roughly two people who hadn't followed the conversation at all, but there was no need to worry about that.

If necessary, I could explain it in a way that even a little child and a dummy could understand.

Vacation is about to begin!

『Then, here is a list detailing the types and quantities of materials that will be required. It seems there was once a civilization that flourished along the shores of this lake long ago, and we have discovered several useful components among its remains. With those, modifying me should be sufficiently possible.』

"So, while Tetoma focuses on the modifications, the rest of us can gather the components on the list, right?"

From a game perspective, this would probably turn into something like repeatedly doing quests to gather materials...

...By the way, I wonder what we're going to do about swimsuits?

That was what I had been thinking, but there was no need to worry.

"I'll tell you, I'm Tatta! The big brother!"

"I'm Saho! The little sister!"

While walking around to investigate the lakeshore, we encountered a strange pair.

Two small children with light-blue hair. They wore matching clothes and had remarkably similar features.

Worried about seeing two little children all by themselves, Kizuna-kun and the others approached them.

But they weren't actually as young as they looked. Their true identities were spirits, just like me.

I vaguely remembered the game's content.

The twin siblings, "Tatta" and "Saho." Conceptual spirits who governed concepts such as "weaving," "looming," "clothing," "sewing," and "dyeing."

They were characters who appeared with an absurdly high probability whenever some kind of costume-change event occurred.

I don't think they had actually been implemented in the game... Maybe.

"You know, normally, there should be..."

"A boat here, you know..."

In short, since the lake was so enormous, there apparently used to be ferries and ferrymen here.

Several villages had already been confirmed along the lakeshore, which was blessed with water and food. If we went a little farther, there would probably be a town as well.

And after crossing to the opposite shore and traveling for a while, there was the famous Machine City.

Under circumstances like these, naturally, someone would think of starting a ferry business.

Whenever the twins passed through here, they used the ferry, and they had intended to do the same this time.

"A magical beast, you know, it..."

"Destroyed the boat, you know..."

"The lake's guardian, you know..."

"It went on a rampage, you know..."

"We can't get to the other shore..."

"What a problem, you know. What should we do...?"

Apparently, about a week ago, an enormous magical beast known as the "Lake Guardian" had gone on a rampage, completely destroying all the boats along the lakeshore.

It was normally gentle, and apparently nothing like this had ever happened before.

Between repairing the boats and their fear of the guardian, not a single boat was currently operating.

That said, there were no reports of anyone being attacked while fishing in the shallows, and rumors had begun circulating that perhaps the beast had already calmed down.

In any case, the twins were stuck because there were no boats.

"Then why don't you come with us to the other shore? Actually—"

After hearing all that, there was no way Kizuna-kun would simply leave them behind.

He proposed that the twins cross the lake together with us aboard Tetoma.

The twins were overjoyed and offered to make and give us "clothes" as thanks.

At first, Kizuna and the others politely refused, but the twins wouldn't back down.

They made their living by selling clothes and traveling from place to place. A merchant who failed to repay a favor received could not be trusted. "Nothing is more expensive than something free," and so on.

And so, Kizuna-kun and the others eventually agreed to accept their thanks.

As for the type of clothing, as expected, it turned out to be "swimsuits."

At first, Kizuna-kun had seemed to be thinking something along the lines of, "Do we even have time to play?"

But when he asked Tetoma, it turned out that Tetoma itself would spend most of those three days working on the modifications.

In other words, they had an absurd amount of free time.

The conversation eventually turned toward how everyone needed some time to relax, and their vacation was officially decided.

They're all still young boys and girls—roughly middle-school to high-school age in terms of the original world—so naturally, they're at the age when they want to have fun.

"Though, you know, we only have..."

"Enough materials for six, you know..."

According to the twins, they could create clothes based on images they had in mind using a special technique.

However, it apparently required special materials.

This wasn't simply a matter of how much fabric was needed. That's where the fantasy element came in. One "unit" was required for each person.

And they currently only had enough for six people.

At that point, the ninja Nanashi-kun immediately withdrew. Apparently, he always carried underwater clothing with him, so he would simply wear that instead.

Immediately afterward, I withdrew as well. Since everyone in this kind-hearted group was liable to start a contest over who should give up their spot, I spoke without a moment's hesitation.

Everyone was looking apologetic, looking as though they wanted to volunteer to give up their own spot instead, so I launched a preemptive strike before anyone could say anything unnecessary.

"I'm not very good at swimming."

A lie.

If I said it with a wistful expression, they would probably think there might be some deeper reason behind it, rather than simply assuming I was "bad at swimming."

Besides, I didn't want to turn this wonderful event into something gloomy, so I continued with a smile.

"Hehe, actually, I have a summer outfit of my own. A beautiful, cute, special outfit. There is more than one way to enjoy summer. I'll show you all, so look forward to it."

Yes! I successfully avoided the swimsuit episode in Year One! And on top of that, a special summer-exclusive character illustration is practically guaranteed!

A guaranteed limited-edition character illustration! Fuhahaha!

Summer. Night. Yukata... How powerful those three words are!!

You can imagine all sorts of things, right?

I'll show them that summer isn't just about swimming in swimsuits!!

Tremble before the charm of an older woman that those little girls could never possess...!

Well, anyway.

And so, the first festival-like celebration began.

The sound of cicadas can be heard.

Summer is beginning.