???~
Shiro hummed a tune as he walked freely down the central path, occasionally handing out his contact info to girls who approached him.
This kind of life…
This was what a school festival should be like!!!
Shiro was completely immersed in this lifestyle. Luckily, he didn't know how to make okonomiyaki, so he didn't have to stay stuck at the stall!
Life should be free and unrestrained. As for the dream of becoming a cooking god… yeah, that belongs in the trash can~
Seeing that TB's okonomiyaki stall had closed down, Shiro promptly discarded his wooden board and decided to explore.
Since they had shut down, there was no reason for him to stick around—what if the upperclassmen caught him and made him do manual labor?!
Better to go have fun!
At the TB club stall, Kudou watched Shiro disappear into the distance, and a flicker of hope reignited in his eyes!
Could he finally reopen his business?!
"Forget it, President. At this point, everyone knows that eating at our stall will get them targeted by beasts…"
A club member sighed and patted Kudou on the shoulder before handing him a phone.
The academy's forum was currently flooded with posts about funny incidents at the school festival. At the top was:
"The Okonomiyaki That Will Get You Targeted by Beasts!"
"..."
Kudou silently turned off the screen, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Guys!!! We're drinking tonight!!!"
"I absolutely did NOT want to run into you two…"
(?′ω`? )
At that moment, Shiro was firmly locked in place by two towering figures, completely unable to escape.
"Hey! Shiro, you were really enjoying yourself just now, huh?!"
"How many girls did you even add to your contacts, you bastard?!"
Iori and Kouhei had a tight grip on Shiro!
They had just come out for a break when they spotted Shiro basking in the attention of girls, looking like he had not a single worry in the world.
The moment they saw him, their minds went blank. They had only one thought: this bastard needs to be beaten up!
Why was this guy casually chatting with girls while they were swamped with work?! Their hands were sore from flipping okonomiyaki all day!
Why did this bastard just stand there watching when they were drowning in calculations?!
(?′ω`? )
Shiro gave up struggling. If he had known, he would have taken a different route!
"Calm down. What I did was actually useful, okay? I fought a very intense business war! Without me, we wouldn't have had so many customers!"
BAM! BAM!!!
"So it's all because of you that we were this busy?!"
"How the hell is that a business war?!"
"You bastards! Don't underestimate a street vendor war! That was a textbook example of business warfare!!!"
"..."
After some playful brawling, the three of them decided to forget about the whole thing. At the very least… they were finally free! They could finally enjoy the school festival!
"By the way, why are you both out here? Shouldn't at least one of you be at the stall?"
Shiro looked at them in confusion. According to their plan, one person should have stayed behind.
!
The moment he said that, Iori's face stiffened.
Kouhei also looked confused. "Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. Why did Azusa-senpai suddenly switch shifts with me?"
Under their scrutinizing gazes, Iori averted his eyes awkwardly. "Uh… yeah… why indeed…"
(′｀;)?×2
Shiro and Kouhei stared at him suspiciously. They definitely felt like they were missing something.
The truth lay in what happened earlier when Azusa and Iori were taking a break.
Because Iori was a fellow 'man of culture,' Azusa was thrilled to have found someone to talk to. She clung to Iori, endlessly bombarding him with questions about what kind of men he liked…
She even shared her three personal targets. Aside from Nanaka, the other two names made Iori seriously consider dumping them into Tokyo Bay.
So… among the people he knew, that left only two potential targets for her.
Iori turned to Kouhei with a deeply guilty look. "Uh… I feel like I did something really bad to you…"
"You bastard!!! What the hell did you drag me into?!"
Kouhei was dumbfounded! He swore, his biggest regret in university was getting involved with these two idiots!
(′｀;)?
Meanwhile, Shiro continued to look at them in confusion.
Why did it feel like… there was some sort of philosophical aura between these two?
As they walked, the three of them happened to pass by TB's okonomiyaki stall. At this moment, the TB members were drinking, as if venting their frustrations!
For some reason, though, most of them were focused on the girl drinking in the center. Was it because she drank so boldly?
But with that level of alcohol tolerance… she'd only rank fifth among the newbies in PaB.
"You're so adorable, Aina-chan!"
"I think I'm getting a little drunk too!"
"You're amazing!"
"..."
The TB members kept praising this girl named Aina as if they were worshipping some kind of celebrity.
However… to Shiro, this looked more like a comedian's performance act.
"There are people like you everywhere, huh?"
"That's probably their club's designated clown."
Shiro and Kouhei both turned to look at Iori. They had to admit, he and that girl gave off the same kind of vibe. Both were clearly born to be entertainers, right?
"I'd appreciate it if you two didn't talk about me like that!"
Iori retorted. From his perspective, these two were just as much clowns as he was.
The three of them continued walking, clearly unwilling to waste any more time at TB's stall.
"Wait a minute!!!"
But, as fate would have it, someone didn't want to let them leave so easily.
The girl named Aina called out to them, then beamed at them with a dazzling smile!
That expression…
Shiro felt like he had just seen a demon!
If he were to judge purely by her facial features, Aina should have been a delicate, refined beauty, the kind with a demure charm. However…
Right now, this so-called delicate beauty had caked on makeup so thick it could rival a clown's!
The last time Shiro saw something like this was in a viral video where a 7-year-old girl tried to copy an influencer's makeup tutorial!
Did this girl not know how to do makeup at all?!
?━=(??? ????)
The three of them slowly grew more and more horrified. No matter how they looked at it, getting involved with this girl would only spell trouble!
"Ehehehehe~"
Aina giggled and leaned in toward Kouhei, sizing him up from head to toe.
Truthfully, her original target was Shiro, but… too many of the club's senior girls already had their eyes on him. If she got too close, she might get torn apart!
"Hey, you—do you have some free time?"
Aina struck up a conversation. Seeing that she wasn't talking to them, Shiro and Iori immediately relaxed and looked at Kouhei with teasing smiles.
"You free?"
"Makeup Corpse Beast."
Kouhei's voice was calm, but his words were ice-cold, instantly startling Ai!
However, she didn't give up and exaggeratedly twisted her body, saying, "I'm looking for someone to drink with me. You…"
But…
"That thing is a Makeup Corpse Beast."
"Oh, I see…"
"So that's what it's called."
The three of them weren't even listening…
"Are you guys even paying attention?! What I'm asking is, do you want to grab a drink with me?"
That line, at least, they heard clearly. Both Shiro and Iori turned to Kouhei.
"So, you going?"
"A complete and utter Makeup Corpse Beast!"
"..."
Kouhei responded perfectly with his words and expression, though it was a bit brutal.
Shiro even took a moment of silence for the girl. To be rejected this hard… she must be—
"Can you stop calling me that?! This kind of makeup is super common among university students!"
She's definitely insane!!!
Shiro was dumbfounded. Forget university students—even middle-aged ladies wouldn't do their makeup like that!
She could literally apply for a job at a circus right now!
At that moment, the three of them exchanged glances.
'This place is dangerous. What do you two think?'
'Run?'
'Run!'
Miss "Makeup Corpse Beast" turned her head with a proud expression.
"Could it be… you're feeling nervous because a girl invited you—"
"Where did they go?!!"