"Ugh, it's so hot today…"
Kamishiro couldn't understand why it was still this hot in October.
Does Izu not have autumn or something?
"Quit complaining. Once we finish moving this stuff, we can finally drink to our hearts' content."
Kouhei was carrying a box beside him, trying to comfort Kamishiro.
Sweat rolled down his firm jawline, attracting the attention of nearby girls—pulling their gaze away from Kamishiro.
But Kamishiro no longer reacted with childish jealousy like before.
Instead, he looked at Kouhei's firm butt with pity.
"Well, let's put the drinking aside for now. I just didn't expect you to be so... full of hidden talents."
(λ?_??)
Kouhei's face darkened instantly. He knew Kamishiro was teasing him about that 10-yen coin game from before.
He had realized something was off the next day in class, when his two close bros wouldn't sit with him.
After a bit of threatening questioning, Kouhei finally understood the misunderstanding.
"I TOLD YOU—it was just a colonoscopy! My love for Rarako is unwavering!"
Kamishiro nodded innocently under Kouhei's burning glare.
"Exactly! I also meant the colonoscopy~"
After all, that long tube… truly hidden depths~
Kouhei: ???
He couldn't quite follow, but somehow it didn't sound like a compliment.
"Pfft!"
As a seasoned woman-of-the-world, Azusa nee immediately caught Kamishiro's meaning, and her eyes wandered over to Kouhei's butt.
She could no longer see the phrase "hidden depths" the same way ever again!
Meanwhile, seeing the dangerous gleam in Aina's eyes, Iori refused to engage in this topic.
Not only that, he quickly changed the subject out of fear Aina would latch onto her "question" again.
"Are we sure this little bit of beer is enough for everyone?"
He jiggled the box in his hands. This was, after all, the whole reason they'd gathered in this heat—
Restocking!
That's right—at the moment, everyone in PAB was lugging boxes full of alcohol.
All kinds, too.
After the last drinking party, the senpai realized something serious:
Because everyone had been so busy, they hadn't restocked the bar in a while.
And that night, the remaining inventory was completely wiped out.
So now, every guy had at least one box of booze—some of the muscular senpai had two.
Azusa and the other girls were carrying plastic bags filled with drinks (mostly fruit liqueurs).
It should last them a while.
That said…
Actual beer was in short supply. Only Iori had a box of it, which was why he asked.
One drinking party would wipe it out.
The senpai laughed and explained:
"It should be enough."
"Besides, if we buy too much, we've got nowhere to put it."
Beer wasn't a big deal. Once they ran out, they could just buy more.
There was a convenience store near the dive shop. Azusa had even worked there before.
They were regulars—the shop owner even knew PAB's preferences.
Iori thought that made sense. But he still had one more question:
"What about 'Water of Life'?"
"Buy as much as you want!" ×2
He didn't even finish the sentence before the senpai interrupted in unison.
Clearly, that convenience store didn't sell Water of Life…
When did this stuff become essential?!
Iori sighed.
"It's all back… everything's back to normal."
But whatever. Water of Life?
Now that he was back in peak condition, Iori considered it nothing more than mouthwash!!!
Kamishiro: "…"
As his childhood friend, Kamishiro didn't need Iori to say anything.
Just seeing his cocky little smirk, he knew exactly what Iori was thinking.
"This idiot is showing off again."
Completely forgetting the time he got drunk, stripped, and Kamishiro posted his nude photo on the forum.
"Some people never learn."
Kamishiro shook his head. He had a feeling… he'd be getting some new material soon.
However—
Speaking of Water of Life, Kamishiro suddenly remembered something.
Back when they drank at Yamamoto's house, they left a half-drunk bottle of it in his fridge…
"Tch. Almost forgot. Gotta go pick it up sometime."
It'd be wasted on Yamamoto. That guy's alcohol tolerance barely qualifies for wheat juice!
But Kamishiro didn't know—
That bottle of Water of Life...
Might already be lost forever.
________________
Meanwhile...
Yamamoto's house
Yamamoto was digging through his fridge, wearing only boxer shorts.
"Damn it! Why'd the A/C have to break now?! It was perfectly cool just the other day!"
He muttered angrily while sweating buckets.
Especially under his belly.
He swore again to go on a diet.
"Yep! I'll start in the winter!"
"Too hot now… winter's cooler anyway!"
"Damn, I drank the last cold drink yesterday—wait... what's this?"
Finally, after all his searching, Yamamoto found a strange-looking bottle in the freezer compartment.
As he stared at the odd bottle, a long-buried memory surfaced.
"Wait… this is alcohol, right?"
Left by Kamishiro and the others the last time they drank at his place.
"On a hot day like this, a cold drink might not be bad…"
But usually that meant beer.
This one? It had been in the freezer for days without freezing.
Just imagining the alcohol content made Yamamoto shiver.
"Those guys really drink like demons…"
Yamamoto wasn't built like them.
And he definitely didn't want to be.
He preferred his nice, safe beer.
He hadn't forgotten the trauma of being held down by two muscle-heads and forced to drink.
But… if he got drunk… maybe he wouldn't feel hot anymore?
Yamamoto grimaced, unsure what to do.
Should he head out into the blazing sun to buy water?
Or drink the booze, cool down, and maybe pass out?
He glanced outside. The sun was brutal.
He instinctively opened the bottle cap—maybe just a sniff?
After opening it, he didn't immediately smell anything. Probably from the freezing.
As he leaned in closer, he noticed the bottle's mouth…
It was huge.
(Okay, not as big as a sports drink bottle—but close.)
And then—
A bold idea struck Yamamoto.
He remembered reading in "Little-Known Tips to Combat Heatstroke" that cooling your crotch could cool your entire body...
He looked at the bottle's mouth again.
Now, in Yamamoto's eyes, it wasn't a bottle anymore.
It was a seductive demoness in lingerie, beckoning him closer.
In the end, Yamamoto couldn't resist temptation.
He slowly reached for his last shred of decency.
One second later, a pair of oversized boxers floated through the air.
From the room came the sound of sloshing liquid...
And Yamamoto's ecstatic moans.
"Ohhh~"
Beep beep beep~
"Hmm?"
While carrying a box of alcohol, Kamishiro paused in confusion and took out his phone.
Who would be calling him at this hour?
Kiyoko? Sakurako? Or maybe that loli girl he just met recently?
There were too many possible candidates, so Kamishiro couldn't guess right away. But most likely, it was that loli girl.
After all, they had just met and were still in that ambiguous phase. It wouldn't be strange if she called to ask him out.
Of course, it could also be Sakurako or Kiyoko inviting him on a "Tiger & Dragon" date.
Hmm...
The boss lady of the Tiger & Dragon just came back recently. Might need to find another place again.
Married men, huh...
He definitely wouldn't end up like that!
But anyway—
If he couldn't figure it out, then he might as well just check!
Full of anticipation, Kamishiro looked at his phone to reveal the caller's identity.
And then...
"Yamamoto"
"..."
Kamishiro's face instantly darkened. Without hesitation, he hit "Decline."
Sure, he had misunderstood—but still, this was Yamamoto's fault!
Why the hell was Yamamoto calling him out of nowhere? His number wasn't something some loser like Yamamoto should be dialing!
"What's wrong?"
Iori asked from the side.
"Nothing. Just a spam call."
Kamishiro replied casually—this kind of thing wasn't worth paying attention to.
Iori: "..."
That bastard was definitely hiding something from him!
Just as he was about to press for more details—
Beep beep beep
Iori's phone started ringing too.
∑(′△｀)?
Now Kamishiro was getting curious. What exactly did Yamamoto want to say, if he was even calling Iori too?
Unlike Kamishiro, Iori didn't overthink it. He just answered the call immediately.
"Hello?"
"Sorry, Kitahara..."
"What's up?"
Kamishiro also leaned in at this point, curious about what was going on.
Iori shoved Kamishiro's head aside in annoyance. Judging by Kamishiro's earlier reaction, he probably figured out who had called him.
"What's the matter? Why so sudden?"
"It's about the liquor you guys left with me."
Huh?
"The liquor?"
Iori looked over at Kamishiro—he had almost forgotten about that stuff.
Kamishiro: "The 'Water of Life.'"
Ah—
Now Iori remembered. "What about it?"
Did Yamamoto drink it?
But considering Yamamoto's weak alcohol tolerance, how could he still be calling them if he had?
"You can't drink it anymore!"
???
Kamishiro and Iori looked at each other, completely baffled.
If it was all gone or had spilled, that would've made sense—but "can't drink it anymore"?
Why?
Or did Yamamoto just say something wrong?
"You drank it all? Or spilled it?"
"Neither!"
(′△｀)?
"Then what happened?"
"That I can't say."
There was a strange sense of calm and relief in Yamamoto's voice, as if he had just completed a monumental task.
Well… he kind of had.
At this moment—
Yamamoto was stark naked, holding his phone while talking to Iori.
And his expression?
Unmistakably… satisfied.
"All I can say is—I was too immature."
???
The trio looked at each other in total confusion.
What did "Water of Life" have to do with being immature?!
Because the issue involved the liquor they had stored, Kōhei came over to listen too.
None of them could figure out what could've happened to Yamamoto.
They were extremely curious.
Also… a little worried.
After all, the "Water of Life" could be dangerous for someone without a trained tolerance.
If the police later investigated Yamamoto's body and found links to them, things could get messy.
With that in mind, Iori shouted into the phone:
"What the hell are you even saying?!"
"Anyway, that's how it is."
"Hey! Wait—"
Before they could get anything else out, Yamamoto hung up.
The three of them stared at each other, unsure what to do next.
"Uhh… should we go check it out?"
Kamishiro suggested hesitantly. His instincts were screaming that something hilarious had happened over there.
Iori and Kōhei were also tempted—they knew Yamamoto well. If he was being all mysterious like this, then something had definitely gone down.
If it were just the three of them, they'd already have stormed Yamamoto's room by now.
But they weren't alone anymore.
They looked toward Nanaka and the others.
"Well, let's all go. We've got nothing else to do anyway."
The senpai exchanged smiles. It wasn't a big deal, just a bit of walking.
"Haha, thanks a lot then."
Kamishiro, excited after getting permission, immediately marched toward Yamamoto's place—while pulling out his beloved camera from behind his back.
Big scoop, here I come!
________________
Meanwhile
Yamamoto, having just hung up, was no longer smiling.
Sure, it had felt amazing at first. After the "release," he had felt totally refreshed and even cooled down.
But—
When he tried to remove his little buddy from that bottle of sinful liquid...
A very serious problem arose.
He couldn't get it out!!!
He hadn't noticed during the heat of the moment, but now that he'd cooled off, he realized something horrifying—
That alcohol was seriously strong!
Especially when some of it went inside from there...
The burning sensation was unreal!!!
Yamamoto had tried to pull it out forcefully, but whether it was the alcohol's sting or the overly vigorous action earlier, his little brother had become red and swollen.
In fact—it was even thicker than when he had been "in the mood."
But Yamamoto didn't want that kind of thickness—his manhood was now too swollen to come back out of the bottle!
Which meant… it was stuck.
Completely.
And constantly under alcohol assault!
Something is seriously wrong!!
Yamamoto could feel it—something was very wrong.
He'd tried pouring beer on it before and it never felt anything like this.
What the hell was in that stuff?!
After the initial rush wore off, all he could feel now was a burning pain that reminded him of using disinfectant.
He couldn't take it anymore. That's why he called Kitahara.
Was this really alcohol?! What kind of liquor was this?!