After enjoying a delicious dinner, Clara and her group strolled leisurely along the path by the beach, admiring the carefully designed artificial seaside landscape as they made their way toward their guest rooms.
But then, a problem arose.
“Eh! Do I have to stay in a room all by myself?”
“Well, I’m sharing a bed with Lucia~”
The resort had prepared double rooms for them—standalone wooden cottages for every two people, each with a single large double bed rather than the standard twin beds.
Upstairs in the cottage was the bedroom and bathroom, while the downstairs had a living room and a private pool—yes, even a pool.
This was the highest standard suite the whole resort had to offer.
After all, since they were filming a program here, it was essentially free advertising for the resort. Of course, they wanted to showcase the very best to the viewers tuning in.
The resort’s intentions were good, but for those actually staying, it was a bit awkward. Even if they split the rooms by gender, sharing a bed with another girl wasn’t exactly comfortable for everyone.
And with a group of eleven, the number of girls was odd, which meant one of the girls would inevitably end up alone. Given the nature of the show, that person was naturally Clara.
Thinking about this, Miss Squid suddenly let it go.
“Whatever, it’s not like I’m losing out~”
What’s so bad about having such a big room all to herself?
Even her budget apartment in Central City wasn’t nearly as spacious.
She tossed her luggage into the living room downstairs and wandered around the entire cottage twice.
From the second-floor balcony, she could gaze over the whole artificial beach, and above the station’s atmospheric dome was a holographic projection of the sunset, creating a unique and exquisite scene.
All of this was fake, of course, but if something fake looks just as good—or even better—than the real thing, does it even matter if it’s real or not?
Though outside the atmospheric dome, a constant solar storm still raged, as long as they stayed under the dome, they could enjoy the perfect summer scenery…
“Looks like this week will leave us with some truly wonderful memories~”
Leaning against the balcony railing, Clara couldn’t help but look forward to it.
“Let’s rest for a bit, then we’ll head over for the meeting.”
Fran came over as well, pointing to the wooden pavilion on the shallows, connected by the walkway.
“I wonder what activities are planned for tomorrow? These variety shows all have scripts, right?”
“There are activities arranged, but you’ll have to figure out how to make the show interesting on your own. Variety shows these days don’t use scripts—if viewers find out, wouldn’t it be even more embarrassing? Besides, just your group is enough to keep people hooked~”
A top-tier idol group… oh, wait… a hero team, plus the newly famous hero, Magical Girl Clara, who made her name in the last battle—this lineup alone was guaranteed to draw viewers.
[Not to mention, you have another hidden identity…]
Nyx suddenly chimed in, leaving Clara a bit puzzled.
[That is, before all this you were already somewhat well-known, with livestream clips being edited and shared, even artists drawing fanart of… the ‘Restroom Loli.’]
Clara was not pleased.
However, from her perspective, she absolutely refused to acknowledge that particular identity.
Absolutely not.
“Looks like everyone’s gathering, let’s head over too.”
The Sigma Heroes’ three staff members had gone straight to the beach after dinner. Spotting them from the balcony, Clara’s group tidied up and made their way there as well.
“Aren’t you two changing into swimsuits? After the meeting, you could take a dip.”
Fran was excited, but Lucia shook her head.
“No, let’s leave it for tomorrow. I’m a bit tired today.”
More than physical exhaustion, it was the mental strain left by the recent disaster.
Right now, all Lucia wanted was a good night’s sleep. If it weren’t for the meeting, she’d have collapsed onto Clara’s bed already—preferably with Clara to hug as she slept.
Still, she was pulled outside by the two others.
They left the rainforest, their slippers sinking into the still-warm, soft sand.
Maybe it was because there were actually fish being raised in the sea, but the night breeze coming off the water carried a distinct salty, fishy tang.
The artificial sea even simulated the tides, with the water rising at night.
The pavilion looked like it was built right over the water, with landscape lights arranged along the walkway and around it, their glow reflecting beautifully off the sea.
“Good evening, Miss Daruma isn’t here yet?”
Clara went up to greet them, and the stylist replied, “No, she said she’d bring all the Sigma kids with her…”
“They should be resting in the medical pod,” Fran reminded.
But the technician replied, “No, they can rest properly after the collaboration is over. Right now, what matters most is ensuring the quality of tomorrow’s program. As long as they look fine on the outside, it’s good enough.”
Even Clara couldn’t stand to hear that and protested,
“Hey, isn’t that too harsh on them?”
“That’s their job.”
The work intensity at a hero company was clearly different from that of an evil organization. Without a comparison, there’d be no sense of superiority; it was only now Clara realized how easy being a Monster actually was.
…J…
“They’re here.”
Ogata Daruma drove up from the infirmary, a four-seater tour vehicle barely fitting five people. The four Sigma members looked somewhat better—at least their skin was no longer red—but clearly they hadn’t recovered fully in places that couldn’t be seen.
The five of them got out, walked along the long walkway, and entered the pavilion over the water.
Sista immediately sat down next to Clara, then gently hugged her and started playing with the little tentacles hidden in her hair—a series of movements so natural it was like picking up a kitten and playing with it on your lap…
“Geez, at least say hello before you start touching me.”
Clara shifted her shoulders, feeling a bit helpless at Sista’s lack of sense for personal space. But Sista replied, “Sorry, then can I have a sip of Clara?”
“Huh? A sip?”
Before Clara could react, Sista buried her face in Clara’s neck.
“Wha—? Hey!”
Clara let out a flustered yelp. Lucia, on the other hand, covered her mouth, her eyes sparkling—her favorite CP from the Expo Center was now being this bold right in front of her…
“Stop it! Just because you say hello doesn’t mean you can start ‘sipping’!”
Clara used her tentacles to push Sista’s face away.
Ogata Daruma, meanwhile, walked to the center of the pavilion to preside over the meeting.
Sorry I’m late.
She placed a package on the table, pulling out several badge-like devices—about palm-sized, each with a clip on the back.
“First, these little things. Before we start the meeting, I recommend each of you take one—it’s up to you whether you want to use them…”
Lucia asked, “Miss Daruma, what are these?”
Ogata Daruma answered with actions.
She clipped a badge to her collar, and as she touched it, her figure became blurry—as if her whole person had been pixelated.
Lucia suddenly understood.
“Oh, it’s for privacy protection?”
“That’s right. I’m sure you’ve all noticed—the guest rooms here are completely open, not even a wall between the bathroom and bedroom. I know the reason for the design, but…”
She paused, then turned off the blurring filter.
“In any case, to avoid incidents like secret filming, I hope you’ll clip this device to your clothes—or keep it open beside you—when you sleep or shower.”
Privacy is very important for girls, and as heroes, their identities needed to be kept secret. If they were filmed, it could cause unnecessary trouble. Gadgets like these were essential.
[This is a bit like Psycho’s ability. Even without this, Nyx could do the same.]
Nyx seemed to have a strange sense of competitiveness about the device’s function.
In the early research phase, Ogata Daruma had visited with Chessia to investigate. She’d already considered this during the last visit, so this time, she’d come prepared.
“So thoughtful, Miss Daruma.”
Lucia picked up a badge to examine it.
“Especially for you, Clara. I’m sure you wouldn’t want your real face getting out, so better be cautious. You were already seen by the staff at the restaurant earlier…”
Ogata Daruma looked at Clara, her tone very serious.
“This is dangerous—they might leak your identity.”
…Mm, thank you.
Though she said this out of concern, that really shouldn’t happen.
After all, this place was a subsidiary of Nightmare; all the staff here were from Nightmare, and quite a few were Monsters in disguise…
Clara couldn’t imagine them having any reason to leak her identity.
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Tides on the moon, huh.