(Lian Li POV)
I raised an eyebrow at Manami and Kiyomi who were coming back from a faraway part of the beach, both of them looking rather satisfied for some unknown reason.
Behind me was Eris poking at the giant ice cube that was Brendan, unsure if he was even still alive.
"So… Any reason why our brother was encased in a giant block of ice?" I asked, already knowing who made him like that.
Kiyomi acted surprised to see the ice block at the side, gasping, "Oh my? Whatever happened to poor Brendan here?"
The ice fox youkai flicked a snowball at it, the impact causing the ice to shatter and release Brendan who was, surprisingly, not suffering from hypothermia.
I assumed Kiyomi hadn't frozen Brendan completely and insulated him somehow. At least we don't have to worry about her accidentally killing one of her fellow disciples to do whatever she had been doing with Manami.
Unfortunately, Brendan was still unconscious, which made me wonder what really happened to him while we weren't here.
Manami tilted her head at me, "Ara? Where is Diao Chan and Master's sisters?"
Eris stood up and brushed herself the sand off her knees, "Diao Chan is still…Erm... Preparing… And Master's sisters said they would be bringing something for us to enjoy the beach with."
"Oh? I'm looking forward to what they will bring." Kiyomi chuckled.
We heard a high pitched squeal and the four of us turned to see a giant tower made of sand stretching high up into the sky, towering over even the hill that the villa was built behind us.
At the very top was a window where Cai Hong and Master were standing, the little dragon waving at us enthusiastically.
I waved back at her before the tower began shrinking back down, depositing Master with Cai Hong in His arms in front of us.
Master smiled at Eris and I, "Ah, glad to see you girls made it. Have you already put the skin lotion on you?"
Both of us nodded affirmatively.
Obviously we had thought of begging Master to do it for us, but when we reached the beach with Master nowhere to be found, we decided to do it ourselves first.
I debated over whether we should free Brendan from his frozen prison but he might have been put in there for a reason so we had refrained ourselves from doing so.
It was only after we were done with the skin lotion did we see Master playing with Cai Hong further down the beach to our right, which was weird since she had been alone when we first got to the beach. Master must have been somewhere nearby before rejoining her.
Master looked around the otherwise empty beach, "Hmm? I take it that the others still aren't ready?"
I nodded an affirmative.
Master shrugged, "Ah well, the day is still early after all."
"Papa make big 'sand cas wewl'!" Cai Hong boasted proudly.
Looking to the side, there were several impressive structures made out of sand, including a very dashing sculpture of Master looking out towards the sea.
It took me a while to notice the horns and tail attached to it since I was too distracted by the face.
"Yes, they are very big, Cai Hong," I agreed with her, shifting my gaze back to the perfect being standing in front of me.
Master noticed my gaze, "I can teach you all later if you want."
"Yes please," All of us answered in unison, no doubt already thinking about how to create our own figurines of Master for our own personal use.
"In the meantime, shall we go for a swim?" Master suggested.
"Yay! Swim, swim!" Cai Hong cheered.
While Manami and Kiyomi responded enthusiastically, Eris and I hesitated slightly, an action that did not go unnoticed by our Master.
"Is something wrong?" Master asked in concern.
I looked at Eris who returned my worried gaze with one of her own.
It was obvious, I lived in a farming village my entire life before moving to the slums while Eris was from a mountainside town. There was no way we knew how to swim.
Master seemed to have seen through us and broke out into a grin, "Cai Hong, why don't you play with big sisters Manami and Kiyomi?"
Cai Hong looked at us before turning back to Master, "Muuu? Papa play with Cai Hong later?"
Master ruffled her hair, "Yes, Papa will play with you later."
"Okies! Big sis Manami! Big sis Kiyomi! Play~~"
Manami picked Cai Hong up from Master's arms before giving me a wink, the red fox descending into the water with her white fox sister.
Master waited for them to be out of earshot before giving us a serene smile, "Both of you look gorgeous."
I felt my cheeks heat up as I became conscious of myself. For some unknown reason, wearing this swimsuit felt more embarrassing than standing in front of Master naked.
"Wha… I… This one isn't… I mean… Unworthy…" Elaria sputtered.
Looks like I'm not the only one who was embarrassed.
Master reached His hands out to us, beckoning us over to Him.
Both Eris and I obeyed without question, grasping His outstretched hand and letting Master lead us towards the sea.
The three of us stepped into the waters, the waves rising up as though to welcome us, or rather, welcome the Divine Being leading us in.
We got deeper and deeper until the water reached just above our waist, I was grasping Master's hand rather tightly now.
Master smiled at me reassuringly, the smile alone making me relax my grip.
There was a flash of light in front of my eyes and I saw the memory of Master swimming appear before me, showing me how to keep afloat and how the body moved through the water.
It felt like a good hour had passed before we returned back to the present, but in reality only a few seconds should have passed judging by how the sun remained at the same place as before.
Master slowly let go of our hands, leaving us standing at where we were before moving back and away from us, stopping at where the water reached just below his chin.
"Come to me," Master whispered, His voice as compelling as sweet honey.
Eris and I waded forward instinctively, until we realised there was a sudden lack of ground after a few steps and Master had been treading the water to keep Himself afloat.
Both of us hesitated until Master repeated His words again.
"Come to me."
We leapt off the ledge, as though expecting that our conviction was enough to carry the both of us to our beloved Master, only for it to drag us down into the sea's dark depths.
I panicked, clawing at the water trying and failing to pull myself back up.
But before the darkness could close around me, a ray of light banished the darkness away and pulled me up from its depths.
I gasped for air and clung on to Master desperately, His strong arms wrapped around my waist protectively. On Master's other side was Eris, also in a similar position as mine.
"You're safe, you're safe. You won't be hurt with me," Master assured us, calming us down.
He placed us back gently on the place we had started from, "Remember your lessons to keep a calm mind and heart, it applies to swimming as well."
We nodded to show understanding.
Master drifted away from us once more, beckoning to us, "Try again."
We leapt forward into the water together.
I tried to mimic the swimming motions that I remembered seeing and managed to stay afloat for a good two seconds before sinking again.
This time, I remembered my beloved Master's words and fought down my rising panic, using my Quarks to create a bubble of air around me.
I began to get a little more confident until I realised I was still sinking and the panic came back to hit me.
Once again, Master reached in and snatched me back up to the surface, grinning at us proudly.
"Second try and you two are already getting it. Truly the geniuses you are."
I blushed at Master's praise. I wonder if Master would give us a reward if we succeeded in this?
Master drifted away again but this time he stopped further than before.
"First one who can swim to me will get a cake I bake to herself," Master announced, as though hearing my thoughts.
There was no hesitation.
My body surged with power and lightning cackled around me before I exploded forwards in a burst of sparks.
I would've rammed headfirst into Master if Master didn't kill my speed and caught me in midair before I reached Him.
The surprising thing was that Eris was right beside me and had somehow kept up with me as well.
Master raised an eyebrow, "To think Eris would learn how to infuse her own body with Quarks from trying to learn how to swim… You really are something else aren't you?"
"Ehehehe… I just acted on instinct..." Eris laughed sheepishly.
Well… We've only eaten Master's cake once and we have never forgotten about it yet. Eris had been trying to replicate it in her spare time but nothing she made came close to Master's own version of it.
If Master is giving such a reward just for this, there's no way we would be able to resist it.
"Anyway, this is not what I want, I want you girls to learn how to swim and not blast yourself forward like that. We're trying again until you get it."
"Yes, Master."
Master deposited us back at our starting position before returning, repeating the same command again.
I looked at Eris just as she did the same, both of us knowing that with cake on the line, we are now rivals and there's absolutely no way I will lose to her!
I will learn how to swim for the cake!
