Shiro felt a firm grip on his shoulder.
He turned his head—
And was met with Kotobuki's smiling face!
Cold sweat immediately began dripping down Shiro's back. His expression was one of pure terror.
"U-Um, senpai… I'm allergic to alcohol…"
Kotobuki kept his friendly smile, nodding as if he understood. But the hand gripping Shiro's shoulder didn't loosen in the slightest.
Then, he pulled out his phone.
Displayed on the screen was a photo of Shiro—
Together with a certain purple-haired onee-san, both hugging several bottles of liquor, surrounded by countless empty beer cans on the floor.
AZUSA-NEE!!!!
Shiro's eyes widened in shock!
He never expected Azusa-nee to sell him out like this!
She wasn't even here for the event, yet she still managed to betray him!
"Mmm, mmm. Azusa already told us everything. Who would've thought? You can hold your liquor just as well as she can~"
"Go on, go on. We're waiting for you at Table A!"
At that moment—
Inside Shiro's mind—
He had already sentenced that smiling, purple-haired demon to the worst punishments imaginable.
Too terrifying!
Why did this photo even exist?!
And more importantly—
WHEN WAS IT TAKEN?!
Shiro had no choice.
Dragged by Kotobuki, he was placed right beside Kitahara Iori. The two of them sat there, faces darkened—
Staring straight into the depths of hell.
"...You're here."
"Yeah. I'm here."
"You shouldn't have come."
"I know, but I had no choice…"
"..."
"HAHAHA! So you two know each other? That makes this even better! Alright, freshmen! What'll you have?!"
The upperclassman in charge of drinks laughed heartily, not really understanding the ominous way the two greeted each other.
Not that it mattered.
He just had to smile and be welcoming to the new members!
"What's that idiot Kitahara drinking?"
"Huh? Iori? He asked for oolong tea. Want one too?"
Well done, you idiot!
Shiro silently applauded Kitahara in his heart. Thank goodness. They did have normal drinks!
"Yes! Please! I'll take one!"
"Sure thing!"
Shiro was excited.
Maybe these upperclassmen weren't so bad after all!
Then—
He watched as the senior took an empty cup—
And proceeded to pour 90% vodka and 10% whiskey into it.
"..."
Shiro's face twitched as he stared at the abomination before him.
"Um… May I ask… What is this?"
"Oolong tea."
"…Vodka-whiskey tea?"
"Oh! That's a great name! But it's still oolong tea."
"..."
Shiro calmly pulled out a lighter.
Click.
Fwoosh!
The surface of the drink IGNITED.
The blue flames flickered ominously.
Shiro silently looked at the upperclassman across from him. Despite his squinting eyes, the man radiated a terrifying amount of pressure.
But—
This upperclassman wasn't normal either. He simply nodded in approval.
"SUGOI! It's on fire!"
"THEN HOW CAN YOU STILL CALL THIS OOLONG TEA?!"
"Isn't it fun?!"
"BASTARD! WHEN A DRINK CAN BE SET ON FIRE, IT'S NO LONGER OOLONG TEA!"
"Huh? But the color's the same."
"DO YOU GUYS JUDGE DRINKS BY COLOR ALONE?!"
Shiro had nothing left to say.
Seriously.
Why—
Why did he ever think these upperclassmen might be normal?! His past self needed to apologize to his current self!
Suddenly—
A realization hit him.
Shiro's gaze sharpened.
He turned toward Kitahara—
This bastard…
He knew, didn't he?!
"YOU TRAITOR!"
"HOW IS THIS MY FAULT?!"
"As a slave, you should be willing to die for your debtor! How dare you not warn me?!"
"WHY DOES OWING 50,000 YEN MAKE ME A SLAVE, YOU IDIOT?! THAT'S YEN, NOT DOLLARS!!!"
The two started strangling each other again!
"Oi, oi! Calm down, you two! Also, don't bully the freshmen too much!"
Seeing the chaos, Kotobuki and Tokita stepped in. They handed both of them a glass of water.
"Here, drink this and cool your heads."
Silently, Shiro and Iori each took their glass and placed it on the table.
Click.
Fwoosh!
…It caught fire.
"Why the hell can your water be set on fire…?"
"Water is flammable."
"The color is obviously water, so don't worry about it."
"YOU BASTARDS, STOP JUDGING DRINKS BY COLOR!!!"
But—
Under the overwhelming pressure of the two upperclassmen, Shiro and Iori had no choice but to raise their bizarre glasses of water…
"Alright, freshmen! Drink up and enjoy yourselves! Cheers!"
"CHEERS!!!"
---------------
Table C: A harmonious, peaceful gathering.
Table B: Friendly, like a cozy mixer.
Table A:Hell itself.
Kitahara Iori and Shiro moved like criminals in the night; sneaking, silent, perfectly in sync.
Never before had they worked together so seamlessly. Their bond within this club had strengthened immensely.
A joyous occasion?
Hell no!
This was purely a desperate bid for survival!
Until—
One of them stopped.
Because standing in their escape route was—
A short-haired brunette.
"Eh? Chisa? You're here too?!"
Iori stared in surprise.
He thought for sure she hated these kinds of events.
"IORI! IS THIS REALLY THE TIME TO HIT ON GIRLS?! Chisa! Wanna escape with us?!"
Shiro yanked on Iori's collar.
If it weren't for the fear of getting blamed later, he would've ditched this idiot ages ago!
Dragging Iori along was already a defensive measure—if they got caught, it wouldn't be just him suffering!
And if they could pull Chisa into this mess…
Even better!
He could sell them both out and escape on his own!
Genius!
"You're making that creepy face again!"
Chisa deadpanned.
She knew exactly what kind of schemes this guy was plotting.
"My dad forced me to come. He said I should 'make friends'… Are you two running away?"
She looked at them strangely.
"Of course we are! You didn't see it, Chisa! Their oolong tea and water are flammable! IT'S TERRIFYING! Hurry up and escape with us!"
Shiro rambled frantically.
If he could just convince her, the rest would be easy!
"Ah… I see."
Chisa took a casual sip of her cocktail.
Then—
She smirked at them.
"But I suggest you turn around first."
!!!
Shiro and Iori's souls left their bodies.
"URAAA!!!"
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"
In that moment—
Shiro once again felt the crushing might of the titans. He was yeeted straight back into hell!
"Oi, Shiro, Iori… Not drinking properly is unacceptable! Let's enjoy ourselves, yeah?"
Shiro had given up.
Tears welled in his eyes.