Σ_(°△°」∠) Ugh—
"Chisa... your driving skills are really lacking. Next time, just let me handle it..."
Shiro clutched his mouth in pain — that last bit seriously made him want to throw up. They were driving at 60 km/h, but somehow it felt like 180 km/h...
"Yeah, exactly! Σ_(°△°」∠) Ugh—" ×2
"You three better reflect on whose fault this really is!"
Aina swung her weapon — a paper megaphone — at them furiously. It was that thing that almost caused them to crash!
How the hell did that idiot Iori pull a paper megaphone out from behind him anyway?It was even more absurd than those TV shows where the heroine pulls a weapon out of her chest!
Smack!
A loud clap interrupted their conversation.
"Over here, over here~!"
Azusa was clapping to signal them over — the seniors had already met up with their assigned diving instructor.
It was a girl with short, greenish hair, wearing baggy clothes, with a huge "?" hairpin on her forehead. Her sun-kissed skin gave off a vibrant, lively vibe!
!!!
The moment Shiro and Iori saw her, their whole aura completely changed!
Their previously sickly faces instantly turned serious and dignified!
Aina and the others even saw Shiro somehow pull out a rose from behind him!
Did this guy's body have some kind of Doraemon-style four-dimensional pocket or something?!
And... these two idiots were weirdly in sync...
They rushed toward Amuro Ninagawa at the same time! Right now, Shiro and Iori were exchanging intense glares!
'You bastard! What are you trying to pull?! That's your instructor!'
'You piece of trash! First of all, put down that rose! You're being completely inappropriate!'
'Bullshit! I'm just trying to make friends, that's all!'
'Like hell anyone would believe that!!!'
"You two can actually communicate with just your eyes, huh,"
Tokita said, a little envious.
He wished he had a skill like that too.
"Wow, so pretty! Is this for me?"
Amuro's eyes sparkled as she looked at the rose in Shiro's hand. Nobody had ever given her flowers on a first meeting before.
"Of course! I picked it out just for you. Hope you like it~"
Seeing her delighted reaction, Shiro showed a triumphant smile!
Step One of relationship-building: Complete!
With this, even if there were a few "accidents" during the exam, the examiner might be a bit more lenient~
Hah!
Foolish Kitahara and Kohei, they're no match for me!
Right, this was a golden opportunity. Maybe he should set up a little wager later...
Those two idiots were easy enough to bait into anything with a few provocative words!
Already preparing his plan, Shiro was plotting how to maximize his gains. Meanwhile, Iori stared furiously at that rose — that scumbag was getting ahead again!
"Hold up! That flower came from Shiro's a—mmmph!"
Before he could spill the truth, Shiro ruthlessly clamped his hand over Iori's mouth!
"Ass...? His butt?"
Amuro looked at them suspiciously, her lively eyes full of confusion.
"Ahaha... you misheard! This idiot meant to say... it was freshly picked!"
"Really?! Thank you so much!"
"Haha... you're welcome."
Seeing the pure, innocent look on the green-haired girl's face, Shiro suddenly felt a wave of guilt.
He shook his head.
This won't do! I need to train my mental fortitude better!
Dragging Iori back to the group — and snatching Kohei along the way — Shiro left Chisa and Aina behind, looking at each other in confusion.
What were those three idiots plotting now?
"You scumbag!"
"Hmph, you're just not smart enough!"
(???)
"What are you two even talking about?"
Honest Kohei really had no clue. He hadn't even thought about "buttering up" the exam instructor.
"Well, Kohei, don't worry about it. But seriously, just taking the diving exam is boring, right? Why don't we add a little bet to spice things up?"
(´・ω・｀)?
"Bet?"
Both of them looked puzzled at Shiro.
The diving certification exam was already tough enough — why throw in a bet?
"Rejected!"
"Nothing you offer could possibly tempt us!"
They immediately turned him down. Iori knew Shiro had already boosted his favorability with the instructor, and Kohei, trusting his ultra-accurate instincts, sensed danger!
"What's wrong? Are you two scared? Or is it that you have no confidence in passing the exam?"
Shiro sneered, relentlessly needling them with his words.
"You damn bastard! You already bribed the instructor with a flower! We're not even starting from the same line!"
????!
"What?! Shiro, you actually bribed the examiner?!"
Finally catching on, Kohei was stunned.
Damn it — bribing an examiner?!
And with a flower, no less?!
Has bribery in Japan gotten this cheap?!
Shiro raised his hands innocently,
"(??ω??) Can't help it — just my natural charisma. Besides, this bet doesn't require anything serious. Whoever ranks last at the next drinking party has to drink alcohol that's at least 80% proof."
"80%?!"
"You might as well drink pure ethanol!"
They were terrified — 80 proof alcohol? Even medical alcohol is lower than that!
They usually drank...
Uh...
...Oolong tea and plain water...
Thinking about it, they decided —Actually, maybe they could handle it!
Seeing their hesitation, Shiro knew he had them hooked!
His forum popularity had been dropping recently. He needed some new spicy photos to reignite things. Two idiots chugging 80% liquor would surely produce some "quality material."
And once they were drunk and collapsed —he could "arrange" their poses, take some pictures...
(??ω??)
Forum hype, secured!
Though if Iori hadn't seen him give the flower earlier, he would've outright proposed something like taking embarrassing pics of the loser instead~
Oh well~
Meanwhile, where Shiro couldn't see, Iori and Kohei were secretly communicating.
They realized something.
The forum only had their embarrassing photos!
Totally unfair!
But getting Shiro's naked photos wasn't easy —his underwear was like it had been welded onto him, and stripping him during strip rock-paper-scissors was impossible!
Plus, he always held his liquor better than them.
But not this time!
With 80% alcohol, they had a real shot at knocking him out!
Then they could finally snap some glorious revenge pics!
Maybe even headline the forum:
"Scandalous! High-Quality Newcomer's Shocking Night—"
And finally, they wouldn't be the only ones humiliated anymore!
As for Shiro being a better diver than them?
Hah!
Two versus one. No way they could lose!
Thus, amidst their lively plotting, the bet centered around the diving exam was officially made!