Ome Quartet of Snow Country

Chapter 466 Kinki
It was past noon when the train arrived in Nagoya.

After Naruse and Naoko got off the bus, they had lunch at the station, then got on the Shinkansen train from Tokyo and took half an hour to reach Maihara City.

This was not their destination for the day yet. The two of them got off the train here just because the next stop of the Shinkansen was Kyoto.

“What a quiet place.”

"We're in the country again."

"The mountains over there look so close."

"It's only about 600 meters away."

After waiting for a while on a quiet platform with almost no other passengers, the Biwako Line tram pulled into the station, and the two of them dragged their luggage onto the train again.

And just five or six minutes later, they got off the bus at the next stop.

"Hikone—Hikone, here we are—"

After leaving Hikone Station, I dragged my luggage and walked for about ten minutes before arriving at the hotel where they would stay today and tomorrow.

There are many inns or hotels near the station. The two of them gave up convenience and walked such a long way just because this hotel is right next to the moat of Hikone Castle.

The green willows along the river are like silk, and the scenery is just right. Hikone Castle is hidden behind the trees and cannot be seen from this angle.

"I can't seem to see..."

"Well, you can see it in the room."

Naruse glanced at it a few more times, then took Naoko and turned around and walked into the spacious hotel next to it.

It was still early, so they left their luggage at the front desk and then came out.

"Let's go to Hikone Castle for a walk first."

"Ah."

One of the entrances to Hikone Castle is right next to the hotel. The two of them walked along the moat and crossed a bridge. There was another river inside. This ancient castle was protected by two moats inside and outside.

The outer areas within the first moat are now used for other purposes such as middle schools, local inspection offices and even stadiums. Only the area within the second moat still maintains its original appearance hundreds of years ago.

Walking to the Omotemon Bridge entering Hikone Castle, both Naruse and Shoko saw the stone monument standing at the head of the bridge.

[Eight Views of Lake Biwa·Moonlight·Hikone’s Ancient Castle]

In the 50s, as Lake Biwa was designated as a national park, people around it selected the "Eight Scenic Spots of Lake Biwa". The seventh scene, "Gekomei", refers to Hikone's ancient castle under the moonlight.

Walking across the bridge, Naruse said: "The inner and outer moats are connected, and they are connected to Lake Biwa through Hikone Port."

Shangzi also glanced under the bridge, "Then this is the water of Lake Biwa."

"Ah."

Entering along the crooked road that was deliberately built to resist enemy attacks, the two first walked around the perimeter, and then spent some effort to climb up to the ancient castle of Hikone Castle.

You can also visit the inside of the castle. When the two of them entered, they got two shoe covers, but they had to take off their shoes when entering. The shoe covers were only used to hold shoes.

Climbing up the almost vertical steep stairs, the interior space of the castle is actually very narrow. After climbing up, you can only look into the distance through a few narrow windows.

Naoko squeezed in front of Naruse, stood on tiptoe again, and tried to raise his sight, "You can also see Lake Biwa from here."

"Yeah." He looked down at her and resisted the idea of ​​holding her higher - not just because it was unsafe, but also because Naoko would be shy and complain.

Shangzi was unaware and just looked into the distance, "It's really vast."

"When we go out later, we can go directly to the lake for a walk." Naruse said, "It's not that far anyway."

"Good~"

The two of them looked at the castle for a while and then went down. Except for the view of Lake Biwa, the experience of climbing up was not good.

Returning to the bottom, Naruse took Naoko and left the inner city through the exit on the other side, then walked through the path between the park and the football field in the outer city, and finally crossed the outer moat through another bridge, leaving Hikone Castle and heading towards Lake Biwa. direction.

After walking for 10 minutes, they arrived at Hikone Port, and the calm and vast Lake Biwa appeared in front of them.

The lake is rippling, the water and sky are vast, and you can vaguely see the rolling mountains on the opposite side. The occasional wind that smells of the lake water slightly relieves some of the afternoon heat.

On the extended breakwater, there were several figures fishing.There is a cruise ship parked at the pier, and another cruise ship has just set off and is leaving Hikone Port.

"This is a cruise to the scenic island in the lake." Naruse raised his finger and pointed to the center of the vast lake, "It's almost over there."

Naoko squinted and stared for a long time, "Is there really an island over there...Has Harumi seen it?"

"I didn't see it either."

He smiled and said, "It's a very small island with only a temple and a pagoda on it, nothing else."

"There are also temples and shrines everywhere around Kyoto."

"This is the case in Kinki area," Naruse said.

After looking at the pier for a while, the two of them could not stand due to the scorching sun, so they left quickly.They walked along the river extending from the pier to the city, turned at the end, and walked for a while before they returned to the hotel.

After walking around so long outside, it was already past three o'clock in the afternoon.

After checking in, the two went to the room on the third floor. Directly facing the window was the Ninomaru Gate Gate of Hikone Castle, and the highest castle tower was naturally clearly visible.

There is a wide terrace on the second floor with a good view. The hotel's bathhouse is also on the second floor. You can soak in the hot spring while enjoying the view of Hikone Castle outside the window.

Shangzi was not interested, so he looked at the window for a few times and then lay down on the bed.

"So hot……"

Naruse wiped the sweat from his head and felt the same. He searched for a while and turned on the air conditioner in the room.

drop--

"It's a little hotter here in Kinki than in the mountains." Naoko said, looking at the ceiling.

"Ah."

Naruse sat down next to her, "We've almost caught up with the hottest time here in Kinki."

She puffed her lips and was in a daze for a while.

"Generally speaking, I go to the beach in the summer..."

Naruse also lay down, "Naoko, do you want to go to the beach?"

"No." She stood up and faced him, "I just suddenly felt that our choice was a bit strange."

Naruse pinched her face and said, "You're saying that when it's almost over?"

She smiled, then moved forward and kissed him.

"Well...it's still very hot now...well..."

The air conditioner blew out cold air, and the temperature in the room slowly dropped.

The two of them were tired and weak, and neither of them had much desire. The intimacy also stayed at the stage of kissing and touching, and did not go deep.

After lying there for a while longer, Naruse suddenly woke up before falling asleep.

"I almost fell asleep... My body is sweaty and I feel a little uncomfortable. Let's go downstairs to take a bath and soak in the hot spring for a while."

"Well..." Shangzi opened his eyes and closed them again.

"Shangzi wants to go?"

"go……"

Her mouth opened, but she lay motionless and closed her eyes tighter.

Naruse was a little helpless. He could make her wake up quickly, but it was not necessary because this hotel also did not have a separate bath, so the two of them could only bathe separately.

"I'm going down first. I'll come out after taking a dip later and sit on the terrace for a while. Come down when Naoko wakes up."

"..."

She opened her mouth, probably wanting to say she understood, but her voice was held back by her sinking consciousness and couldn't come out.

After finding the yukata, Naruse leaned over and kissed her on the face before going down first.

Shangzi fell asleep in a daze. He didn't know how long it had passed before a slight vibration came from the side of his head.

Half asleep, she reached out and touched her phone, but it was already a few minutes after she got it.

After lying there for another ten minutes, at some point, she opened her eyes and woke up.

"..."

The entangled dream was suddenly interrupted, and her consciousness went blank for a moment. She was in a daze for a while, and vaguely remembered that her boyfriend just said he wanted to go to the hot spring.

At this moment, she was the only one left in the room.

After being dazed for a while, Shangzi found that he was holding the new mobile phone he just bought a few days ago in his hand.

"..."

What's going on? Was she also thinking about peeking when she was sleeping?
With a move of his finger, the screen lit up, and there was a message sent almost 10 minutes ago.

Yiye: Are you coming back the day after tomorrow?
Shangzi blinked and woke up instantly.

Naruse: Yes.

　Happy National Day

　　
　
(End of this chapter)