"Hey, you punk! How do you wanna die?!"
Bang!
Having locked onto his target, Kohei hurled the poor director down with brute force.
The poor director was already foaming at the mouth.
Seeing this—
Kamishiro turned to Ikegoshi in slight surprise.
"What did you do to him?"
Last time Kohei got this murderous, it had something to do with Maya…
Ikegoshi: ???
I don't know either!
He was just a poor, lost little idol who got captured by a giant beetle!
"Well, no idea why he's mad, but apologizing first can't go wrong!"
Having extensive experience in apologizing, Ikegoshi immediately bowed deeply:
"I'm sorry! I don't know why you're mad, but I'm sure it's my fault! Please forgive me!"
Seeing how fluent Ikegoshi was at apologizing, Kamishiro broke into a sweat.
Being an idol… really isn't easy. That's gotta be hard-coded into his DNA by now.
Kamishiro glanced at Kohei, who looked like he'd just crawled out from the gates of hell.
"Well, he's already apologized, so maybe just—"
"Ikegoshi!"
"Director!"
Before he could finish, the production team rushed over from behind Kohei, frantically pinching the director.
Director!!
At least let him be conscious long enough to get paid!!
Kamishiro's gaze was suddenly drawn to a gentle figure in a kimono—his mouth muttered:
"Just… go talk to her already!!!"
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a massive rhinoceros beetle appeared out of nowhere, startling the announcer Yukino.
From the perspective of Iori and the others, a gigantic mutated beetle was trying to suavely flirt with a beautiful woman, holding a rose in its pincers.
So… you didn't bring clothes but did bring a rose?!
And why the hell do you think this look is attractive?! She is a classy beauty she definitely hates bugs!!
Yukino: "Wow! Mr. Beetle, you're… so handsome!!"
She leapt into Kamishiro's arms with sparkling eyes.
?!!
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
WTF?!
Everyone was stunned.
Who reacts like that to a giant beetle?!
Handsome?!
What part of that outfit screams "handsome"?! This ain't Kamen Rider!!
Sensing the shocked stares behind him, Kamishiro held Yukino in his arms and flashed an evil, smug grin.
Hmph~
Any other girl would've been terrified. But Yukino?
Hmph hmph!
He came out to catch beetles just because of Yukino.
Who'd have thought he'd get so lucky—she was filming nearby!
Wait…
Filming?!
Kamishiro's gaze snapped to Ikegoshi.
So… Ikegoshi's co-host is Yukino?!
Bang!
In that moment—
Kamishiro teleported to Kohei's side with Yukino in his arms, and the two of them glared at Ikegoshi with menacing smiles.
"Hey!"
"How do you wanna die?!"
Ikegoshi: ???
This plot… feels very familiar!
What the hell did I do?! Why did Kamishiro suddenly switch sides?!
Earlier, Kamishiro's distraction was keeping Kohei somewhat calm, but now that he'd joined forces, Kohei instantly went berserk again.
"Unforgivable! This is the one thing that's unforgivable! You… you're marrying voice actress Yurika Muranaka?!
Unforgivable!!!"
"You're filming a show with Miss Yukino?! Die!!"
As the dark aura behind Kohei and Kamishiro grew stronger, the two charged forward like literal demons.
Thankfully—
The senpai and Iori had predicted this situation in advance.
Just as the two were about to grab Ikegoshi's throat, the senpai jumped in and restrained them!
Tokita: "Calm down!!"
Kotobuki: "Truly… a tragic tale."
Iori: "Hey, you over there—RUN! QUICKLY!"
Clearly, Iori understood just how devastating this news was to Kohei.
This level of rage was on par with telling Iori that Shiori started dating a bleach-blond delinquent…
Meanwhile—
Yukino's boobs were being squashed and deformed in Kamishiro's grip. The weird thing was… she wasn't resisting.
"Kamishiro, you seem like the jealous one here."
She looked at Yukino, still nestled in Kamishiro's arms.
All they're doing is working together. But you? You're straight-up hugging her and won't let go.
"Ahem… Still, filming a show with Yukino isn't acceptable either. Ikegoshi is occasionally quite the pervert."
Kamishiro couldn't help but glance at Ikegoshi.
At the moment…
He was completely covered in a thick golden-yellow goo.
And butt-naked.
________________
No matter who saw this, they'd definitely say: "What a pervert!"
Ikegoshi: "?!!"
Ikegoshi: "Who do you think is to blame for all this!!!"
o(╥﹏╥)o
Kamishiro: "You could've resisted, you know. You didn't even try to resist."
Ikegoshi: "???"
He did resist!
He'd been resisting the entire time!
It's just that… his power to resist was kind of weak. If he had even the tiniest bit more strength, things would never have turned out this way!
Seeing Ikegoshi's expression of disbelief, Kamishiro suddenly felt a slight pang of guilt in his conscience.
He looked away…
Ah, that's better!
Kamishiro: "Well then… Ikegoshi-san, maybe you should work out a little. At this rate, how are you going to satisfy Yurika after you get married?"
Ikegoshi: "Shut up! I'm super strong!!"
Kohei: "Ughhh!! You bastard! Let me go! I'm gonna kill that guy!!"
Maybe something had triggered a keyword, but Kohei started struggling more and more violently, looking like he might actually break out of the "brotherly cage."
Ikegoshi: "Stop provoking him already!!!"
Ikegoshi shouted, as if trapped in a cage with a tiger.
Only now, he was the meat… and the tiger was tied up with just a piece of twine!
Kamishiro: "..."
Hearing that, Kamishiro fell silent.
Wait a minute—wasn't Kohei already provoked before he said anything?
Whatever!
Now is the time for flirting!
________________
Meanwhile…
News anchor Yukino was just starting to snap out of the "beauty" of the rhinoceros beetle costume. She looked confusedly at Ikegoshi and Kohei.
Yukino: "Huh? Two Ikegoshi-sans?!"
Kamishiro and Azusa both twitched at the corners of their mouths.
So this airhead just now realized there were two of them, huh?
Kohei had already wiped out their entire filming crew and she still thought he was just a version of Ikegoshi...
Oh right!
The film crew!
Thinking about his dream of being a director, Kamishiro looked over to where the original director had fallen.
But—
There was nothing there now except a messy patch of grass.
Tch!
What a useless director.
If that's how it is...
Guess he'll just go ahead and claim the anchor lady for himself!
________________
Not far away, on that very patch of grass, the crew-cut director had just been resuscitated by the staff and was now gasping for air.
A crew member cautiously asked, "Umm, Director… what should we do now?"
With things in such a mess, they should probably stop filming and go talk things through with the group.
After all, their special guest had somehow duplicated into two people!
And one of them had nearly wiped out the whole team!
Facing his "saviors," the director resolutely shook his head.
Director: "No! Keep filming! This is gold! This is way more interesting than beetles!"
His eyes gleamed with excitement. He could feel it—this was the birth of a viral hit!
Staff: "..."
So why the hell was this guy filming beetle documentaries in the first place?
________________
One man's strength is always limited.
After a full five minutes of struggling, the raging Kohei was finally restrained again—this time, tied up and hanging from a tree by Iori and the others.
Iori rubbed his wrist as he looked at Kohei, who was still glaring death at Ikegoshi while dangling.
Iori: "You've really got some strength when you go crazy, huh."
If it weren't for the senpai, Ikegoshi would've been in real danger.
Tokita: "Are you calm now?"
Kohei: "I'm totally calm. Please let me kill him."
"..."
Yeah, he sounds super calm—he even used the word "please."
It's just that what he's asking for… isn't very friendly to Ikegoshi.
________________
Yukino: "Uhh, so what exactly is going on?"
The anchorwoman looked dazedly at the two "Ikegoshi-sans."
She still hadn't figured out why there were two of them.
A clone technique?
Kamishiro: "Nah, just a regular ol' doppelgänger situation. With so many people in the world, it's not strange to have two that look the same with no relation."
Yukino: "Huh? Really?"
She looked surprised, then said admiringly, "Mr. Rhinoceros Beetle, you know so much! Are you a biology major?"
Wearing a rhinoceros beetle costume clearly meant he liked beetles. And with that comment about genetics, he had to be a top student in biology!
Puffed up with pride, Kamishiro responded, "Of course. I'm the most biologically knowledgeable person in mechanical engineering!"
Especially in human biology.
Yukino: "???"
Mechanical engineering?
Something seems… off?
Whatever!
Anyone who likes rhinoceros beetles can't be a bad person!
________________
Yukino: "So, that one over there is the real Ikegoshi-san?"
She looked at the dirt-covered Ikegoshi, or rather, the now not-so-golden creature.
The honey had been too sticky, and when Ikegoshi had slipped and fallen earlier, his body got coated with dirt, grass, and who knows what else.
There might even be his least favorite bugs stuck to him right now.
Iori: "Obviously! Didn't you just work with Ikegoshi-san? Should be easy to recognize him, right?"
Yukino (awkward): "…Well, he seemed pretty normal back then…"
Her expression turned strange. The Ikegoshi now was so different from earlier… she barely recognized him!
________________
Meanwhile…
Watching Kamishiro flirt with a beauty in that costume made Iori burn with jealousy inside!
He'd already gotten the scoop from Ikegoshi: this woman was a beetle science content creator.
That explained why she wasn't grossed out by Kamishiro's costume—she actually liked it!
Damn you, Kamishiro!
You lucked into this!
Hmph. A beetle expert, huh?
A cruel smile crept onto Iori's face.
Let's see just how much of an "expert" this so-called beetle guy really is!
As the two chatted, Iori suddenly lunged forward and put Kamishiro in a chokehold!
Iori: "Oh~ since you're so knowledgeable about beetles, mind telling us what this is?"
He whipped out a stag beetle!
Yukino: "Wow! So cute…"
Her eyes were instantly drawn to the beetle. Just as she was about to name it—
Iori: "Wait, wait—Miss Yukino, let's let Kamishiro answer that first!"
Yukino: "Huh? Okay…"
She tilted her head in confusion, not understanding this guy's intent.
In her mind, Kamishiro would recognize the beetle immediately.
I mean, he was a biology expert, right?
But in reality…
Kamishiro had no idea what it was.
He'd seen this kind of beetle before, but never learned its real name!
His beetle knowledge started and ended with rhinoceros beetles.
Why? Because they only had one horn—easy to remember.
But this one… had two horns. So what was it called?
"Two-Horned Beetle?"
Dammit!
No way that's right!!
Iori: "Is something wrong, insect expert?"
A glint of mockery flashed in Iori's eyes.
He knew it!
This guy wasn't here for the beetles—he was here for the boobs!
Any guy who used to mistake a dung beetle for a rhinoceros beetle was never going to turn into an expert.
________________