"Geez, Shiro, it's all burnt now. That's really going to affect the flavor, you know."
Right now, Azusa and Shiro were each holding a steel scrubber, scrubbing away at the pig's head. It had taken them forever just to rescue the poor thing from the fire.
By the time Tokita's group had already finished their part, they had only just managed to scrub off the charred areas on the pig's head...
"I couldn't help it! How was I supposed to know pig heads burn so easily…? I remember my family used to roast them like this all the time…"
Whack!
"Ow, that hurt!"
Azusa gave the guy a swift chop to the head—he hadn't considered at all that the shop owner had already prepped the pig's head.
These pig heads meant for sale were usually already cleaned, okay?! Most people would just use a blowtorch to char it. Who the hell throws it straight into a bonfire?!
"By the way, do we even have a pot big enough to stew this pig's head?"
Azusa looked around. She was pretty sure she hadn't seen a pot that huge lying around earlier.
"Oh, I borrowed one from the owner."
Shiro pointed to a large iron pot nearby. The shop owner had been nice enough to lend it to him for free.
"…You're surprisingly thorough, huh. Why didn't you just stew it at the shop then? Fine, go grab the seasoning. With luck, we might be able to eat this by tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?!"
"Yeah, what, you thought we'd be eating it today?"
"Uh… can't we?"
(???)
Azusa stared at the guy in disbelief. He really didn't know a thing.
"GO GET THE SEASONING!!!"
"On it!"
This time Shiro didn't hesitate and dashed into the villa. Azusa seemed extra fiery today... was she hitting menopause or something?
...
Meanwhile, Iori had come up with a brilliant idea—ask Chisa to help him practice!
She was the only one among them who wouldn't make fun of him, after all.
And so, fully focused on impressing Chisa, Iori completely failed to notice Aina creeping up behind him.
"Can I be with you? (To practice)"
╭(°A°`)╮!
Aina, who had just come to get some tea, squatted down in shock the moment she heard that. She clutched her mouth, her whole face screaming disbelief!
She kept trying to convince herself she'd misheard—or maybe it was some kind of code, like when they were shopping for groceries?
"I'm gradually falling for you. (Scuba diving)"
(′?`)
This time, there was no misunderstanding!!!
Aina had heard it loud and clear. That was a confession, no doubt about it! Her beautiful love story—was it already over?!
Her first crush… her first real friend…
No! It wasn't over yet! Chisa hadn't responded!
She remembered very clearly—when she'd asked Chisa about Iori before, Chisa had shown such a disgusted expression.
It couldn't have been fake!
Sorry, Iori—but please, Chisa, say no!
"I'm so happy~"
X﹏X
EHHHHHH?!
Chisa betrayed her!
"But… (without Nee-san's guidance) am I really good enough?"
"Yeah, you're the only one I (can rely on) now."
"..."
Aina didn't even listen to the rest. Like a balloon losing air, she drifted back to where Kouhei was, quietly mourning the cruelty of fate.
"He used to hate her guts!"
(′｀;)?
"What's wrong, Zombie Beast?"
"I don't want to be the one to say it…"
"...Probably just another dumb misunderstanding."
Kouhei sighed. He'd been through plenty of those already. Nothing new.
He stood up and headed toward Iori. If it was a misunderstanding, he'd just ask and clear it up.
"Bind with me!"
{{(°△°; ")}}!
Just as Kouhei arrived and opened his mouth to speak—he heard something absolutely explosive.
He immediately crouched down, his mind spinning. Was Zombie Beast telling the truth after all?!
Did this idiot awaken to some special fetish?! Damn it, when did that happen?!
Wait no, it might still be a misunderstanding. Let's listen a bit more…
"Please step on me without holding back!"
?━=????(??? ????)
CONFIRMED!
No room for doubt now!
This idiot really awakened to some kind of kinky fetish!
"Yo, Kouhei! What are you doing he—mmpf!"
Just as Shiro arrived and was about to say hi, Kouhei yanked him down and covered his mouth.
Shiro looked at him in total confusion—clearly not understanding what the hell was going on.
A spy mission?
Kouhei looked at him in despair. He said nothing—just pointed at Iori and shook his head as he slinked away.
(′｀;)?
Shiro was even more confused now. What the hell did that mean?
But whatever—more importantly, the pig head still needed cooking!
"So why are you working so hard anyway?"
"Well, it's kinda embarrassing, but… I just want to be with the others! (I don't want them to laugh at me.)"
Σ(????)?
Just as Shiro was about to get up, he squatted back down instantly. "The others"? As in, guys? Who are "they"??
Was this what Kouhei tried to warn him about?
"You all seem really close."
"Haha, we mess around all the time. Please don't tell them, Chisa. If they find out, it might ruin everything between us! (The teasing and getting teased...)"
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ!!!
Shiro's face froze in horror. Th-this was that intense?!
Iori… had awakened?
No way—had he been secretly going to the Great Rainbow Swinger's Club behind their backs?!
Shiro's legs started trembling… And those "they" he mentioned—it probably wasn't Tokita's group…
Looking toward the kitchen with the spices, Shiro gave up. Going in now would be walking straight into the lion's den!!!
Shiro collapsed onto the sofa like a ragdoll.
"That guy really awakened! (♂Bro love!)"
"Never thought he'd awaken to this! (Masochist!)"
"So he really did awaken… (to love, huh…)"
The three of them fell into an awkward silence.
They had never imagined their dear friend had… taken such a plunge into darkness.
…
"I'm back~"
"Welcome back~"
Nanaka had returned. It was time for the last group to make dinner. Azusa had even swapped turns with Kouhei earlier.
But now, she wasn't in the mood to cook.
Her eyes wandered to the sofa…
There sat Shiro and the others, all staring dead-on at Iori, their minds clearly spinning out of control.
'I have to help Iori pass…'
'Iori confessed to Chisa…'
'Kitahara awakened to masochism…'
'This idiot has become a man♂…'
The mood was electric. How could she possibly cook at a time like this?!
"Iori, what the hell did you do this time?!"
"Nothing, really…"
Iori was just as confused. All he did was cook dinner… probably?