The good mood of a certain super-powered individual who loves sweets, especially coffee jello, didn't last long.
Outside the dessert shop, a group of sharply dressed guys were huddled together, whispering amongst themselves.
"Even though the location isn't ideal this time, if we all work on the atmosphere, we'll definitely succeed."
"Don't worry, with me here, it'll take at most three hours to get them all."
"Nice declaration, buddy. Don't worry, even if we can't manage it. I brought that along, and we'll bring them all down."
A flat-topped guy named Mike patted his pants pocket, and the others instantly shared knowing looks.
Saiki Kusuo, who had coincidentally arrived with Ned, saw everything. With his X-ray vision, he could clearly see that Mike's pocket contained a small bag of white powder—definitely not anything good.
[I paid a lot of money to get this good stuff. When they're not paying attention, we'll slip it into their drinks, knock them out, and take some pictures. I guarantee those stuck-up btches will be begging us for mercy.]*
Saiki Kusuo: "..."
(What a bunch of scumbags.)
Saiki Kusuo shifted his gaze to Ned, who greeted the three guys with a confused look. "Hey, seniors, what were you talking about?"
(Good, this guy isn't one of them.)
The three guys were startled. The leader, Mike, snapped at him, "You guys are late! Don't you know it's impolite for gentlemen to keep ladies waiting?"
Ned immediately apologized, even though they weren't actually late. The three guys, clearly a clique, were just looking for a reason to hassle them.
"Seriously, if we weren't short on people, we wouldn't have let you guys tag along. Once we're inside, just behave yourselves and listen, got it?"
Ned apologized again and again, finally managing to appease Mike.
The three guys then sized up Saiki Kusuo. Probably because Peter played the role of a nerdy, easily bullied bookworm at school, they didn't see him as a threat, unlike Ned. They simply gestured to the two of them.
"Follow us."
The girls were already inside. Perhaps because it was their first time having a party at a dessert shop, they were all buzzing with excitement, huddled together and whispering.
Laura, sporting a nose ring and a fashionable outfit, said to her companions.
"Listen, even though the location isn't ideal this time, if we all work on the atmosphere, we'll definitely succeed."
Saiki Kusuo: "..."
(Why does that sound familiar?)
"Don't worry, ladies. I paid good money to get the good stuff. Once they are not aware, we put it into their drinks, knock them out and take pictures. I guarantee those suckers only have to kneel and beg for mercy, and do whatever we want."
(So you guys are planning the same thing.)
Saiki Kusuo began to regret coming to this party.
After the guys and girls greeted each other, they sat down face-to-face.
Following the typical format of Japanese gokon (mixer parties), everyone introduced themselves.
Saiki Kusuo, showing no hesitation, reached for the dessert menu handed to him by the waiter, but was stopped by a freckled guy named Ryan.
"Hey, buddy, it's not polite to order before the ladies, you know? Besides, not everyone's here yet. What's the rush?"
Although his tone was teasing, Ryan's eyes held a clear warning as he looked at Saiki Kusuo.
Saiki Kusuo silently handed the menu to the girls. It was then that he noticed one of the girls was missing.
The girls shrugged, unimpressed by the guys' attempt at chivalry. They had no intention of forming any kind of romantic connection with these guys.
The attractive Mora explained her absent friend's whereabouts to the guys: "Mary went to the restroom. She'll be back soon. It's okay, Parker can order first if he's hungry."
Even though she said that, Saiki Kusuo didn't take advantage of the offer.
Because both sides had ulterior motives, the conversation was half-hearted. The only one truly enthusiastic was Ned.
He seemed to be quite taken with one of the girls. Although shy, he kept telling corny jokes, trying to get her attention.
Afraid of giving anything away, the girl played along with a friendly facade, but internally, she was cursing Ned up and down.
[This idiot looks like a total broke loser. I'll just drug him, strip him naked, and throw him out so everyone can laugh at him. Of course, it would be even better if he got arrested.]
[Ugh, this is so annoying. How much longer is this guy going to talk? My face is going to freeze from smiling.]
(Poor Ned,) Saiki Kusuo sighed. (He'd probably be heartbroken if he heard that.)
Saiki Kusuo wasn't exactly a warm-hearted good Samaritan. Ned was, to him, just someone he'd known for a few hours. But from Ned's inner thoughts, he could tell the guy was a genuinely kind, simple soul. Saiki Kusuo decided he didn't want such a good person to get caught up in this mess.
Thanks to Ned's efforts, the conversation became a little less awkward. Soon after, Mora suddenly waved behind Saiki Kusuo.
"Hey, Mary, we're over here!"
All the guys except Saiki Kusuo turned their heads curiously. Once they saw her, they couldn't look away.
She was a vibrant, beautiful girl, her red hair complementing her dazzling smile.
"Hi, everyone. I'm Mary Jane."
She introduced herself with confidence. With her arrival, the guys perked up considerably.
Now that everyone was here, Saiki Kusuo finally got his wish and could enjoy his dessert.
American desserts were a bit different from Japanese ones, and they didn't have his beloved coffee jello. Saiki Kusuo settled for an extra-large chocolate parfait and sat in a corner, watching the scheming guys and girls play their games.
MJ's appearance had Ned practically buzzing with excitement. He nudged Saiki Kusuo. "Oh, man, I've never seen such a beautiful girl! It's love at first sight."
Beautiful? Saiki Kusuo didn't think so. Even the most beautiful girl probably couldn't hold his attention as much as dessert. This was due to his uncontrollable X-ray vision.
If he stared at the same person for too long, it would activate, penetrating at a rate of one meter per minute. After a minute, anyone would just look like a mass of muscle tissue to him. If he removed his limiter, they'd even turn into animated skeletons.
Although he could stop it by looking away or blinking, having seen through to the essence of people, he'd lost interest in both men's and women's bodies and appearances.
He nodded while eating his parfait. Ned, lost in MJ's beauty, didn't notice his perfunctory response, completely smitten.
Saiki Kusuo thought he was being ridiculous and couldn't help but comment.
"Weren't you just interested in another girl? Your love is pretty cheap."
"You don't understand, Peter," Ned said earnestly, defending his change of heart. "That was just the fleeting infatuation of a young boy. This is love with marriage in mind."
"...Whatever makes you happy."
The girl who had previously been the target of Ned's attention was relieved by his sudden shift, but then proceeded to scorn his shallowness in her mind.
With the guys' attention completely captured by MJ, the other girls, feeling bored, decided it was time. They exchanged glances, unseen by the guys.
Mora stood up and took MJ's hands, saying with a hint of affection and playfulness, "I need to go to the restroom, MJ. Will you come with me?"
Even though their actual relationship wasn't that close, the beautiful and generous MJ wouldn't refuse her request.
So MJ nodded and stood up.
However, after taking a few steps with Mora, as if remembering something, Mora turned back and threw a playful wink at the guys.
"It's your time to shine, boys. Anyone want to accompany us to the restroom?"
MJ frowned at this. "Mora, you..."
Such a suggestion was out of line; it could be interpreted as a sexual invitation. Even in progressive America, a woman saying something like that in this situation would only make her seem shallow and desperate.
But the guys, blinded by beauty, stood up enthusiastically.
"Of course! As gentlemen, it's our duty to escort ladies to the restroom."
Seeing the men take the bait, the girls, except for MJ, smiled in triumph and stood up as well.
"Then, boys, make sure you get us there safely."
A large group of people headed towards the restroom, a truly comical sight.
(Whatever. Just don't interrupt my parfait.)
Saiki Kusuo, refusing to move from his seat, continued to eat and drink non-stop. Noticing he was missing, Ned reached over and tugged at him.
He seemed determined to have them both find someone at this party, stubbornly dragging him along.
With no choice, Saiki Kusuo followed them to the restroom.
The table was completely empty. Just as the waiter was starting to think the group of students was going to dine and dash, Mora quietly returned.
She quickly dismissed the waiter with a few words. Taking advantage of the lack of people, she slipped the drug into the guys' drinks, and also into MJ's drink, who wasn't part of their scheme.
Of course, she wouldn't treat MJ the same way she would the guys; she just wanted her to sleep through it and not disrupt their plans.
After doing all this, she slipped back to the restroom.
When she returned, Mike snuck back out, still dazed by beauty but not forgetting his objective. He slipped the drug into the girls' drinks. Of course, Saiki Kusuo and Ned, who weren't part of their group, also had their drinks spiked.
After completing this, he also returned to the restroom.
Saiki Kusuo watched their actions coldly. While letting them reap what they sowed would be the most appropriate course of action, a large number of people collapsing here would easily cause a commotion, and attracting the police would be troublesome.
So, he switched everyone's drinks and desserts.
The girls enthusiastically raised their glasses to the guys.
"Come on, boys, let's toast to our meeting!"
Once both sides saw the other drink their beverages, the guys, calculating the drug's effect, wore ambiguous smiles and made their offer.
"Now that the wonderful dinner is over, we've booked a karaoke room. Would you ladies be interested in going there for a bit?"