Arc-3 Ep-15

 The autumn concert tour by the internal group “Sistema Solare” is scheduled to take place across four cities from October through November.

Besides our home city, which can also be called the capital, the venues include the country’s second-largest metropolis, as well as the central cities of the distant north and west.

Incidentally, all of them are dome stadiums that serve as home grounds for professional baseball teams.

The schedule takes advantage of weekends when those professional baseball teams are away on road trips as visitors.

By the way, there are also tours in spring from March through April, as well as in summer before the Reitaisai, and sometimes a fifth one is held in a central city roughly in the middle.

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“Lately it seems like almost everything is being done in domes.”

『Is that because of seating capacity issues?』

“Probably. Even now we constantly hear that tickets are impossible to get, so smaller arenas or halls would never be enough.”

『Increasing the number of shows also has its limits.』

Today I am in a room at the highest-class hotel in the northern region. Starting tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday, one concert will be held each day.

The summer music festivals were tough, but this time it might be just as grueling, or even more so.

Inside the dome, the environment is incomparable to the scorching midsummer heat of that time, but in exchange, the performance duration is completely different.

Even though MC segments will be inserted here and there, I have to perform more than twenty songs in roughly three hours.

I have the lyrics and choreography memorized perfectly. The problem is my greatest and only weakness: stamina.

Will I last three hours? Even if the first day goes fine, what about the second day?

From practice results I think it will be okay, and the manager also said there is no issue, but in the peculiar atmosphere of a concert, it is impossible to know for sure.

Thanks to the god-given cheat, I should not lose my composure, but I have to make sure I do not charge ahead at full speed right from the start due to the venue’s energy.

“…Ah, sorry. It’s about time for me to go take a bath.”

I arrived around noon on Friday, finished the first rehearsal, then had dinner with Schus Sola and Fortissimo staff members. During the free time afterward, I called Nozomi-chan and we were chatting when the bath time slot started approaching its end.

Thanks to the hotel’s generosity, one of the large bathhouses has been reserved exclusively for Schus Sola, though only for set time periods.

Of course, this individual room also has a bathroom with a large tub befitting a top-class hotel, but I want to soak in a spacious, open bath.

『Yes, understood. Please do your best tomorrow.』

“Thank you. If I still have energy left, I’ll call you tomorrow too.”

『I’ll be waiting. Good night then, Mikuri-chan.』

“Good night, Nozomi-chan.”

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The time slot reserved for Schus Sola is one hour.

Since I am the newest member, it felt wrong to go right at the start, so I aim to arrive about halfway through the allotted time.

(I wonder if anyone is already there…)

Come to think of it, this will be the first time I bathe together with other idols.

I feel a bit scared that my former-male side might show through and make me act suspiciously.

With a mix of half excitement and half fear, I walk down the corridor leading to the bathhouse when I spot a male Fortissimo employee standing there.

“G-Good work?”

“Yes, good work. I’m on lookout duty, so please feel free to go in without worry.”

“I-I see. Thank you very much.”

Looking farther down the corridor, I see the sub-manager Niikura-san standing in front of the changing room entrance to the bath, and beyond her there is another male employee.

Seeing this level of strict security, I wonder if something happened in the past. Well, the lookout duty is only for one hour, so it probably is not much of a hardship.

“Good work, Niikura-san.”

“Good work, Kayanuma-san. There are about thirty minutes left, so please hurry a little.”

“Understood. Excuse me then.”

After a brief exchange of words, I open the door to the changing room.

A slightly elevated temperature and humidity greet me.

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“…There are two people here.”

Along the wall of the changing room are several bamboo-woven baskets placed on shelves.

Two of them still contain clothing, indicating they are in use.

Right now, on the other side of the door leading to the bathing area, two currently active popular idols are soaking.

Of course, from common sense, they are surely not wearing anything uncouth to cover their dazzling bodies.

They might be holding towels in front to conceal themselves, but that in itself would be alluring and nice.

(Wow. I’m starting to get excited.)

I set down the things I brought, then hurriedly strip off my clothes.

I am used to seeing this beautiful girl’s body since it is my own, but when it comes to other people, the level of excitement is completely different.

After removing everything down to my underwear and becoming fully naked, I stand in front of the large full-length mirror in the changing room and check my entire reflection.

In the mirror stands a transcendentally beautiful girl with a slender, graceful figure, smiling back.

(All right! No suspicious vibes at all.)

Even though I am excited inside, none of it shows on the outside. The acting ability I received as a god cheat is doing excellent work here too.

“Well then, shall we go?”

Now, to paradise.

I pick up the basket containing my favorite body soap and other items, along with a thin bath towel, place my right hand on the handle of the sliding door, and slowly pull it to the right.

“…Excuse me.”

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First, through the thin steam, the washing area comes into view.

There are several stools and washbasins, with faucets and showers installed in front of them, a typical washing setup like you would find in public bathhouses or hot springs.

Then, as I turn my head, a reasonably sized bathtub enters my field of vision.

It is not enormously huge, just large enough that ten people would probably feel a bit cramped, but it is filled with clear, transparent hot water.

There, two women are soaking while facing in my direction.