I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

"...Qin Xiang?"

Amamiya tried calling out.

He clearly noticed that the girl who was dragging his arm and leading him in a certain direction was now blushing to the roots of her ears, as if she was enduring immense torment from 'shame'.

Serika ignored Amamiya's calls.

The girl remained silent, only pulling Amamiya towards a certain place.

Amamiya: "..."

So what exactly are the girls of Abydos planning?

After a moment of doubt, Amamiya became even more curious.

Amamiya wouldn't be surprised if this squad did something completely unreliable—

After all, they had considered robbing a bank to pay off their debts, and they almost actually did it.

If, at this moment, it were suddenly told that another "idea king" had come up with a bizarre suggestion that everyone agreed on and approved, and that Amamiya would be taken to implement it now, Amamiya wouldn't be so surprised.

So who will be the 'idea king' this time?

Amamiya was already mentally prepared for the ultimate goal of "going on vacation to a resort"—

After all, Serika had told him about this a day in advance.

He was just a little curious about who came up with this so-called "plan".

Serika, teetering on the edge of embarrassment, remained silent, and Amamiya wisely refrained from continuing the conversation, silently quickening his pace to follow Serika.

Soon, Amamiya was taken to an empty playground.

—The desert terrain of Abydos means that the middle of the playground will not be a lawn.

From a distance, Amamiya could see a helicopter parked in the middle of the playground, which was probably made of some kind of heat-resistant asphalt.

Thanks to Yuriko's bond skill, "Gunsmith's Knowledge," which includes some knowledge about military industry, Amamiya was able to barely recognize the prototype of the helicopter.

【SH-60 B Seahawk】.

"This is one of the 'large pieces of equipment' we recently acquired in Abydos... We call it 'Rain Cloud'."

Rain Cloud? That's quite an interesting name.

It looks pretty new... If it's practically brand new, it must be ridiculously expensive, right?

Without the pressure of debt, Abydos has recently become... more and more vibrant.

After observing for a moment, Amamiya was about to ask Serika what the "plan" was all about... when he turned his head and met the eyes of the other four girls in swimsuits.

She changed into a white lotus leaf swimsuit, simply draped a blue jacket over her shoulders, hugged a whale pillow of some unknown material that looked rather abstract yet cute, and put on sunglasses, looking like a pink-haired girl with a lively and energetic vibe as if she were about to go on vacation.

Wearing only an orange three-piece swimsuit, a white wide-brimmed sun hat, and a nearly translucent white jacket, the blonde girl effortlessly showcased Abydos's most enviable figure.

A simple, one-piece school swimsuit, hair tied in twin ponytails, and nothing else on her body, giving off a simple and refreshing summer vibe; a gray-haired girl with a sense of 'simple yet youthful'.

and also……

A simple striped bra and beach shorts outfit, with a white hooded jacket draped over her shoulders, perfectly conveys the 'most mature girlishness' with a shy expression. A black-haired girl who is gentle and serious at the same time, with a summery vibe.

Amamiya couldn't help but gasp.

So many different styles of swimwear... and beautiful young girls wearing them.

When they stood side by side in front of me... it was truly a sight to behold.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Sensei~"

Nomiya made a "whoosh" sound and hopped closer.

Immediately, the girl 'unreservedly' spread her arms out, making a gesture as if she were about to hug Amamiya, or simply showing off her figure.

"I was a little delayed because I was changing into my swimsuit~"

"Sensei, what do you think of our swimsuits?"

Meeting the girls' earnest gazes, Amamiya remained silent for a brief moment.

"They all have very...personal characteristics."

After a pause, Amamiya added, "...It gave me a feeling of having my eyes opened and being treated to a feast for the eyes, making the trip worthwhile."

【~???~】(From the entire Abydos group)

"Sensei gave it a thumbs up~" The blonde girl immediately beamed with satisfaction. "So... the 'plan' can be considered a preliminary success~!"

So what exactly is this plan...?

"Then let's not delay..."

Hoshino coughed lightly, flashed a sly smile at Amamiya for a fleeting moment, then waved the whale-shaped body pillow in her hand: "Now, shall we proceed directly to the second step of the 'plan'?"

"Oh~!" (From Nomiya)

"Oh." (From Shirako)

“…Oh.” (From Ayane and Serika)

Amamiya: "..."

This subtle, simple reply revealed a person's character, which amused Amamiya.

But before he could finish enjoying himself, he noticed that all the girls' eyes were focused on him.

Amamiya was taken aback.

"Then what happens next..."

After saying this, Nomiya made the first move.

The blonde girl beamed with a wide smile, but she was also the most decisive in taking action—she lunged forward and hugged Amamiya from the front.

Amamiya felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and then the girls quickly surrounded him and hurriedly supported him.

"Let's go on vacation together, Sensei!"

Chapter 53 What Can I Say?

What does it feel like to "crash a plane"?

Having experienced countless near-death experiences in other worlds, Amamiya couldn't help but miss Makoto Niijima, who was in charge of piloting the Morgana Catcar and the Morgana Helicopter.

Perhaps because Niijima's driving skills were really too good, Amamiya's experience with vehicles in the other world was neither good nor bad.

Besides... Makoto Niijima has never 'rolled over' or 'crashed' a vehicle when he drives one.

The moment the thick black smoke entered his eyes, Amamiya felt as if a strange melody, perfectly suited to this place, was playing in his ears.

'It's been a long day without you my friend~'

'And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again~'

With the helicopter shaking violently, Ayane, who was piloting it, was clearly panicked: "W-How could this happen?!"

The unexpected situation made the girls sitting in the cabin perk up one by one.

Hoshino, who had been dozing off just a moment ago, suddenly sat up and rushed to the co-pilot's seat of the helicopter, asking urgently, "W-What's wrong... Ayane-chan?"

Ayane, who was frantically dealing with the various error messages on the instrument panel and trying her best to keep the helicopter stable, did not answer.

While sweating profusely as she controlled the plane, the black-haired girl's golden eyes, framed by red glasses, trembled slightly with tension.

Ignoring Hoshino's problem, Ayane focused all her energy on controlling the plane while muttering to herself, "It should have undergone several checks before departure... How could this happen... Ugh...!"

In order to prevent the helicopter from crashing on the spot, Nomiya, who was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, was also doing his best to cooperate with Ayane in operating the various instruments and equipment on the helicopter.

This was, after all, the first batch of equipment that everyone in Abydos had painstakingly saved up to purchase for the academy, and it held extraordinary significance—therefore, even if they could choose to jump out of the helicopter in an emergency, the girls were more willing to 'fight to the end' with the out-of-balance helicopter…

At the very least, we should preserve its remains as much as possible.

"I checked everything carefully several times before setting off, and there was nothing unusual..."

"Even so, problems still arose..."

"It must be the guys who sold us the plane..."

Beside Amamiya, the swimsuit-clad cat, who was leaning against Amamiya due to the turbulence of the plane swaying from side to side, gritted its teeth.

Amamiya sighed softly.

Regardless, problems still arose.

Right now, any mishandling could lead to a scenario reminiscent of "Black Hawk Down".

Amidst the chaos, Amamiya, sitting in the helicopter cabin, coughed lightly and clapped her hands, instantly attracting the girls' attention.

"No one can be sure whether tomorrow or an accident will come first... Let's all calm down first."

"Right now, we have other forces we can rely on."

Amamiya's reminder caused the girls to fall silent for a moment before they all showed expressions of realization, as if to say, "Why didn't I think of that?"

Celery was the first to regain her senses, trying to concentrate and call upon the existence of her inner world.

"Persona" is almost impossible to summon in physical form in the real world—the reason Amamiya can summon it is because his "individual strength" is a self-contained system.

If we compare Persona summoning to building in an RTS game, the "real world" is normally an "illegal area," where buildings generally cannot be constructed.

As for Amamiya, he used his "golden finger" to forcibly carve out a flat piece of land, and then used this flat piece of land as a foundation to "legally build structures through illegal means".

However, although most of the Personas used in combat cannot be summoned... if they are forced to be used, they will more or less play a role in the real world that is 'insignificant' compared to the other world.

'—Princess Jasmine!'

With Celery's soft call, a light purple, transparent telekinetic force appeared, stabilizing the crashing plane.

'Horus!'

Hoshino followed closely behind, and after a sudden burst of pink light from the halo behind her, a semi-transparent Persona phantom appeared.

The 'Sun God' appeared briefly and gazed at the cabin, and then the plane seemed to receive the blessing of the wind, and the surrounding airflow became turbulent.

As one of the most mysterious beings in Abydos… or even perhaps the entire Kyowotos, Hoshino is capable of summoning Personas in the real world, much like Amamiya, and achieving considerable success in doing so.

Although it requires more mental energy to use than in another world, and the magic's intensity and effect will be reduced.

Following Hoshino, Shirako, not to be outdone, also used the power of her Persona.

'Ramses II.'

Ramses II's primary attribute is fire... Logically speaking, fire shouldn't be helpful in a scenario where a helicopter is about to crash.

Actually it is not.

After the ancient emperor's power flashed by, the black smoke escaping from the helicopter cabin instantly diminished and nearly disappeared.

In an instant, Ayane, who was in charge of controlling the aircraft, felt much less stressed.

After letting out a long sigh of relief, Ayane felt much calmer, and the pages of the Book of the Dead were reflected in the lenses of her red-rimmed glasses.

'Plan the best route... Book of the Dead.'

—As a "Navi" type Persona, Ayane has the weakest Persona power that she can borrow in the real world.

However, in terms of effectiveness alone, it is actually the most practical and the most powerful type.

After all, knowledge is power, and having a grasp of the overall situation allows one to strategize and manage everything.

The pages of the book reflected in the mirror flipped through the pages with a rustling sound, and then, as if receiving a divine revelation, Ayane performed a series of actions that seemed somewhat mystical, even incomprehensible—

However, even with this mysterious manipulation, the helicopter became increasingly stable.

Thanks to the girls' combined efforts, the helicopter, which was about to stall and crash, managed to come to a safe and steady stop on the beach.

Although it didn't land at the airport or on the tarmac as planned, a safe landing was a stroke of luck amidst the misfortune.

Nomiya, the only one without the power of the Persona, quickly glanced around at his companions, who were showing varying degrees of fatigue from using the Persona in the real world.