Looking at Iori's smug expression and the expectant gaze of Yukino, Kamishiro couldn't help but start to feel nervous.
Think fast!
Shirou, you can do this—think fast!
Kamishiro frantically searched through his mind, his mental engine practically overheating from the effort.
Luckily…
His efforts were not in vain!
He thought of a creature with a similar appearance, and more importantly, it had a very fitting name!
As everyone knows, the designs of Pokémon are mostly inspired by real animals.
And there was one Pokémon that looked very similar to this beetle!
Even though he wasn't sure the name was technically accurate, that didn't matter now.
Maybe it was even a common nickname.
With that thought, Kamishiro's gaze grew resolute!
"It's—Pinsir, right?!"
"Eh?"
Upon hearing this answer, Yukino froze in place, staring at Kamishiro in disbelief.
Isn't this just a stag beetle?
Could "Pinsir" be a new nickname or a new scientific name she didn't know about?
Poor Yukino, having been so thoroughly misled by Kamishiro, didn't even question him—she started to doubt her own knowledge instead.
Of course, some of the credit goes to that ridiculous beetle costume.
Even Yuno herself must have felt that only a hardcore insect enthusiast would dress like that…
As for Iori—
He had already pulled out his phone to do a search.
Staring at the majestic-looking Pinsir on his screen, Iori's lips curled into a wide grin.
He handed the phone to Yukino and said,
"Ah, so that's what our expert Shirou was referring to! Well, in that case, hurry and catch this Pinsir with your Poké Ball~"
That's it!
Kamishiro clenched his fists—that bastard's trying to sabotage me!
With a twisted expression, Kamishiro slung his arm around Iori's neck and growled,
"You little punk, stop ruining my moment!"
"Oh, I'm just rescuing an innocent girl who's being deceived," Iori replied coolly, pressing his forehead against Shirou's as the two squared off.
The scene…
It was like a live-action stag beetle battle.
Headbutting.
Yukino, after checking the image of the so-called "Pinsir," looked utterly confused.
With a strange expression, she asked,
"Umm, Mr. Shirou… You were joking just now, right?"
Looking at the picture, they did look kind of similar… was it just a nickname?
"Ah, yes! That's right, just a joke!" Kamishiro quickly played along, explaining,
"You see, I'm also a huge Pokémon fan. Since they look so similar, I just call this one Pinsir as a habit.
Look, they both have strong pincers and can't fly—perfect match! Hahaha…"
But just as Kamishiro was halfway through laughing—
He watched, eyes wide with disbelief, as the stag beetle that had been calmly resting in Yukino's hands suddenly spread its back shell, revealing translucent wings.
And then—it flew away!
It flew.
"..."
The silence at that moment was deafening.
Facing one gaze full of doubt and another full of amusement, Kamishiro forced a strained smile.
"Ahaha… Now it's really like Pinsir. You know, the Mega Evolution version can fly too…"
(Ｔ▽Ｔ)
Damn it!
Why'd you have to fly, you big, honest-looking bug?!
The silence at the scene was deafening.
Yukino looked at Kamishiro awkwardly, not saying anything—but her silence said everything.
Realizing he had to salvage the situation, Kamishiro quickly raised his hand.
"Wait a second!"
He turned away and pulled out his phone.
With practiced fingers, he opened his browser:
"Types of beetles, with pictures!"
After a quick scroll, Kamishiro locked onto his target!
"Hahaha, that earlier bit was just a joke! I mean, of course I know it's a stag beetle.
I just wanted to share a fun fact about Pinsir—you know, since I'm a Pokémon expert and all."
He looked eagerly at Yukino, hoping to see trust and understanding in her eyes.
Unfortunately…
Unsure whether or not to believe anything this man said anymore, Yukino quietly stepped back.
"Umm… I'm going to go check on Ikegoshi…"
Her eyes drifted over—and twitched slightly when she saw Ikegoshi lying on the ground, nearly blending into nature.
"Maybe I should go check on the director…"
But the director was nowhere to be found.
Pfft—!
Seeing this, Iori couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
Noticing Kamishiro's blazing eyes, Iori knew his mission was complete. He smugly turned to walk toward Ikegoshi.
"Oops, am I being a third wheel? My bad, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone~"
#Grab!
Kamishiro made his move!
But Iori, anticipating it, blocked with his arm.
The two locked in another fierce grapple!
Kamishiro: "You think you can cause chaos and just walk away? Not a chance!"
Iori: "Heh, I have no idea what you're talking about. I was just asking a question~"
Ikegoshi: "Stop fighting and someone help meee!!!"
That panicked voice finally interrupted the beetle-brawl.
Kamishiro and Iori turned to look—
And saw Kohei, who had somehow broken free, now straddling Ikegoshi and choking him out.
The posture… looked really bad.
"DIIIEEEEEEE!!!!"
Watching Ikegoshi's golden face turn purple, Shirou and Iori quickly rushed over to pull them apart.
________________
Kohei: "Let go of me! I just want to kill him what's so wrong about that?!"
Now swinging from a tree again, Kohei swayed back and forth, even a glint of a tear in his eye.
…Is it weird that Kohei looks genuinely pitiful right now?
Ikegoshi: "I'm the real victim here!!"
"..."
Okay, yeah. He probably had it worse.
Watching the whole mess, Tokita muttered while stroking his chin,
"Instead of fighting, how about settling this with a game?"
Ikegoshi:"A game?!"
Wow, the tone shift was drastic.
Just moments ago, things were life-and-death—now it's back to a typical college scene?
Azusa: "Yeah, a game sounds perfect! That's totally the PAB way—got a dispute? Settle it with a game~"
Then Azusa turned to Kamishiro and Iori.
"You two join in too. Let's ease the tension."
At her words—
Shirou and Iori grinned at each other with barely concealed malice.
"No problem!"
"I'll bash your pig-brain right outta your skull!"
"..."
The mood for this game felt… a little too heated.
Still, Ikegoshi sighed in relief as he brushed the grass off himself.
"Phew… It's nice that we're resolving this peacefully."
"Umm, is there a punishment for the loser? What is it?"
Yukino, having failed to locate the missing director, decided to just join this strange team instead.
It… seemed kind of fun~
"Oh right, what's the punishment?"
Ikegoshi suddenly remembered—this was a game after all, and games needed punishments.
Thinking about those strange liquids Kamishiro always carried with him, he had a bad feeling he already knew what was coming.
Probably some bizarre concoctions again.
Ikegoshi gulped. He mentally braced himself.
That brief moment of calm earlier had helped him understand the situation more clearly.
This man who looked almost exactly like him must be a diehard fan of his fiancée, Yukari.
After all, when he'd begged Ikegoshi to act as his stand-in before, it had been in exchange for Yukari's autograph.
At this point, Ikegoshi felt incredibly lucky that he hadn't mentioned Yukari was actually his fiancée while they were in Palau.
Otherwise...
Forget successfully transitioning his career—he might not even have made it back to Japan alive.
He made up his mind. He'd intentionally lose this round.
This was called social awareness!
And social awareness was the most important thing for an idol!
"Oh, you mean the punishment?"
Kamishiro and Iori exchanged a glance and said in unison:
"Obviously, it's to fulfill Kohei's wish—let him slaughter you."
??
!!
"How can you two say something that terrifying so calmly?!"
Good grief—this was a death game, wasn't it?!
And to think he actually believed they'd resolved everything peacefully!
Kotobuki: "The loser being left at the mercy of the winner is only natural."
Tokita: "That's the way of the samurai!"
"..."
Ikegoshi's mouth twitched. What kind of "way of the samurai" was this?! Since when did it involve being half-naked?!
"Then what's your punishment?"
Ikegoshi asked—he wanted a matching punishment.
But the very next second, he abandoned that idea completely.
Because Kamishiro pulled out five bottles of "Water of Life" from his case!
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
"This is it. Just finish all of these."
!!!!
Seeing those five bottles, Ikegoshi widened his eyes in disbelief, staring at Kamishiro and Iori.
So... they were serious?!
Even though Ikegoshi didn't drink much, he did know about the infamous "Water of Life."
96% alcohol—just one shot of that stuff was like a torture session!
Was this even something a human could drink?!
And they had five bottles!
What made it worse was...
No one around them was stopping them. Instead, the crowd erupted in cheers!
Kotobuki: "Now it's getting exciting!"
Tokita: "Drink! Drink!"
Azusa: "Place your bets! Place your bets!!!"
Under Azusa's instigation, even Aina and Chisa, who had just been watching, blindly tossed in a thousand yen each.
Oh—and a wild newscaster, Yuno the anchor, wasn't spared either.
Trembling, Yuno handed over her money to Azusa.
What kind of group had she gotten herself involved with?!
(For the record, she bet on Kamishiro to win.)
Stag beetles never lose!
...
Seeing the wild atmosphere, Ikegoshi thought back to that cup of oolong tea he had earlier...
So just what kind of life were these people living?!
o(╥﹏╥)o
He just wanted to survive, okay?!
"Um, I think I'll just—"
Upon realizing the "cost" might be his life, Ikegoshi tossed the whole idea of social tact out the window.
Screw this! What kind of social game was this?! He wasn't planning to participate at all anymore!
But then Iori said something that made him instantly drop the thought of backing out:
"If you don't participate, we'll just let go of Kohei."
??!!
"Wait a second!"
After witnessing how absurd this group could be, Ikegoshi no longer thought they were joking.
They were dead serious!
One option: drop out of the game and die immediately.
Other option: play the game and possibly survive.
Anyone with a brain would know which to choose!
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Ikegoshi weakly asked:
"Um, could you at least tell me what kind of game it is?"
At least let him prepare a little!
"Game, huh..."
Azusa tilted her head in thought. "How about strip-rock-paper-scissors?"
"No strip-rock-paper-scissors!"
Before Ikegoshi could even react, Azusa's suggestion was immediately shot down by Iori.
After all, Kamishiro and Iori were participating too.
And Iori had no intention of playing strip-rock-paper-scissors with Kamishiro, that bug-level cheat character.
That underwear of his was practically a rule-breaking item!
Wait a second—he didn't seem to have that underwear now.
Iori glanced at Kamishiro, who was wearing a full beetle costume.
Still no!
If this costume turned out to be a rule-breaking item too, it'd be even more annoying.
"Iori, you're way too cautious."
Azusa pouted. If they played strip-rock-paper-scissors, she could join in too.
But Iori ignored her ulterior motives. He was deep in thought, trying to brainstorm a game where Kamishiro couldn't "cheat" and he could definitely win.
He couldn't underestimate Kamishiro—sometimes the guy was just like a monster. Even with all of Iori's "Land Battle God" skills, he couldn't always guarantee victory.
As he hesitated, his eyes landed on something.
A chestnut.
A spiky chestnut!
Iori's lips curled into a wicked grin.
Chestnuts... were perfect.
...
Aina: "What if we have a chestnut-collecting contest?"
Chisa: "But we already have way too many chestnuts. We couldn't finish eating them even if we picked more."
Yuno the anchor: "How about catching beetles?"
Bug battles!
Ikegoshi: "Please have mercy on me!"
Hearing that idea, Ikegoshi nearly dropped to his knees in front of Yuno, begging her to give up that dangerous suggestion.
Considering they still had to film a show together later—just let him live!
Kamishiro: "I still think strip-rock-paper-scissors works—simple, and everyone knows how to play."
Azusa: "Right? Right? I think so too!"
Kotobuki: "Very on-brand for our club."
Tokita: "But we might run out of drinks."
As everyone kept debating, Iori suddenly walked over holding a chestnut.
"Everyone! We can drink anytime back home. Since we've come all the way into the mountains, we should do something different!
So—how about a Chestnut Volleyball Tournament!"
At Iori's suggestion, everyone exchanged confused glances.
Chestnuts? Volleyball?
Could those two things even be combined?
Yuno looked at the spiky husk with concern. "Can this really be used as a volleyball?"
One hit and someone could go straight to the hospital.
"It's all spikes."
"How would you even play with that?"
Aina and Chisa both voiced their doubts. The risk factor was just too high.
However...
Iori had already prepared a counterargument. He spoke up passionately:
"The ultimate bet in this game is a human life! Of course we need to show some real fighting spirit!"
Ikegoshi: "..."
Thank you so much for that, seriously!!!
Ikegoshi covered his face in despair. If they really played this game, he wouldn't need Kohei to kill him—he'd just die from getting hit by chestnuts.
But just as he was about to propose a different game, Iori suddenly slung an arm around his neck and whispered:
Don't worry, Ikegoshi. I've got your back—we've got a guaranteed plan to win!
________________