The Cups Are Made of Ice

The sand on the beach had absorbed the sun's heat, making it hot enough to feel against the soles of their feet.

All the moisture had evaporated from it.

"I don't think I've ever seen sand like this before."

"Unless you've been to a desert or a beach, you probably wouldn't see sand this fine."

Azu crouched down and scooped up the powdery sand with both hands.

If she knew the heat was coming, she could handle it.

The fine grains slipped through the gaps in her fingers like water, and Azu couldn't look away.

"If you add water and press it together, it'll hold its shape."

Alexia conjured a ball of water at her fingertip with magic and let it drop to the ground.

The wet spot was immediately obvious from how much the color changed.

Alexia formed the dampened sand into a small mound.

The same sand that flowed apart no matter how much you gathered when dry had completely changed character just from getting wet.

When Azu poked it out of curiosity, the little mound crumbled slightly.

"That's interesting."

"Want to build a castle later?"

"I'd love to!"

"Could we quench our thirst first?"

The beach house was using some kind of magic tool, because they were selling nicely chilled drinks.

Business was booming, the drinks flying off the shelves. The staff worked impressively fast, and it was only a short wait before it was their turn.

"Oh, you're the young ladies who bought the swimsuits! What'll it be?"

A spirited woman was running the shop.

She apparently remembered them from buying the swimsuits, greeting them with a warm smile.

"Drinks for four, please."

"Sure thing. No food? Alright, hang on."

She prepared four drinks with brisk efficiency.

It seemed the cups were kept inside a magic tool to freeze them.

Once she poured the drinks in and added ice, they were perfectly chilled and easy to drink.

Azu handed over eight silver coins and received the drinks.

It was pricier than a normal drink, sure, but considering how quickly you could get one and how cold it was, the markup was more than fair.

Each of them took one, and Azu carried Yohane's.

"I never would've thought to freeze the cups themselves. Think Master would be happy if we told him?"

"He'd probably buy the magic tool and start selling a new product."

"And I'd be the one refilling that tool's mana…"

The three of them returned to their spot just as Yohane was getting up.

"Here you go. The drink's in a frozen cup. Isn't that clever?"

"Oh?"

Yohane accepted the drink from Azu.

Just as she'd said, it felt cold in his hands.

He took a sip. The chilled, fruit-infused water flowed down his throat.

After sweating under the sun's glare and the sand's reflected heat, it was indescribably refreshing.

"… This is good. Hey, isn't this cup itself made of ice?"

The cup was as transparent as glass.

But he'd never heard of a food stall selling glass cups with their drinks.

"How much were they?"

"Two silver coins each."

That was far too cheap to include a cup.

The cup itself had to be made of ice.

"So that's what the magic tool does. Save on cup costs and chill the drinks at the same time… pretty handy."

"Yeah, but I've never heard of one like that…"

Magic tools came in an enormous variety, after all.

Some were produced in labyrinths, others crafted by skilled magic tool artisans.

Some, like the sword Azu had obtained, even came from inside monsters' bodies.

There were mass-produced ones whose manufacturing methods had been figured out, and others that were one-of-a-kind in the entire world.

This ice-cup magic tool was surely a rare find.

He'd want one if he could get his hands on it, but it would probably cost a fortune, Yohane thought.

"So, how was the ocean?"

"It was so much fun!"

"Good. I'm glad."

"Yes!"

Azu's enthusiastic reply satisfied Yohane.

He took off his straw hat and placed it on Azu's head.

"Wah!"

Even with sunscreen applied, too much direct sunlight was bad for the body.

A little shade would help, he figured.

It looked wonderful on her, too.

"How about you two?"

"It's a welcome change of pace."

"We're having a great time! Oh, that's right. Look at this."

Elza held up a fish skeleton.

Only the head and tail remained.

"What's that?"

"A monster fish. It came charging at us, so we grilled it and ate it."

"You're serious?"

"She is. It's all true. I didn't eat any, though."

Yohane stared at the fish bones.

Azu had pulled the straw hat down low, hiding her face.

Apparently it had caught up with her and she was feeling embarrassed.

Deciding it would be cruel to press the issue, he changed the subject.

"Monsters showed up, huh."

"Yep. Though even if one hit you, it'd just sting a little."

Elza poked the fish's head.

It had a narrow, pointed shape, but touching it confirmed it wasn't sharp enough to puncture anything.

"I'd heard beforehand that there weren't any monsters here."

"Maybe it wandered in from elsewhere?"

"Could be. Doesn't seem dangerous, at least."

They tossed the fish monster's bones in a trash bin.

The emptied cups gradually began to melt and disappear.

Taking only their valuables with them, the four of them set off for a walk.

The growing crowd had brought more patrolling staff, so there was less worry about theft now.

Walking around in swimsuits with so much skin exposed felt strange, but since everyone else was dressed the same way, it was surprisingly easy not to feel self-conscious.

The stares were another matter, though.

It was only natural, really.

Two beauties and one lovely girl.

All being led around by a single man.

Envious gazes followed them everywhere.

In swimsuits, there was no way to hide the slave marks, but the group carried themselves so confidently that nobody seemed to pay them any mind.

Besides, slavery wasn't prohibited here in the first place.

They enjoyed a stroll along the sea breeze for a while.

The one thing that caught their attention was a group of fishermen gathered around a wrecked boat.