Chapter 45: Eriri's Twisted Skill Upgrade
Shunsuke defended himself—no, he explained logically. "Kitagawa-san, have you been playing too many eroge? Why would Sagiri and Izumi-san be included in this?"
"Uh, well..." Marin looked a bit embarrassed. She'd gotten carried away just now, and thinking back, she realized how rude that was. Judging so quickly just because of Eriri-senpai's drawings...
Seeing he was getting through to her, Shunsuke pressed his advantage. "Besides, as for the girls you're talking about—you and Mashiro, I only recently met. Koizumi just became my classmate this year, I've only seen junior Isshiki once, and I flatly turned down Iwase's confession. And Yasuraoka already has someone she likes. So, really, other than Eriri, none of them count."
"Baka Shunsuke! Who said I like you? I'm only around you because I'm Izumi-sensei's disciple, and we're just childhood friends! Don't get the wrong idea!" Before Marin could respond, Eriri, blushing furiously, burst out and continued marching ahead.
Shunsuke pointed. "See? Eriri's ruled out too."
Marin's expression nearly cracked. No way... Such obvious tsundere behavior—her feelings are practically written on her face! Fujii-senpai, you're supposed to be a fellow otaku—how can you not see this? You didn't just time travel here from 17 years ago, did you?
Shunsuke pretended not to notice Marin's look of frustration.
"Girls, come dry off," Mrs. Izumi called, approaching with a pile of towels. "If you don't mind, feel free to take a shower here. It's spring, and you might catch a cold otherwise."
"Shun-kun! The girls are soaked, and you're just standing there? Where's your gentlemanly spirit?" she chided as she hurried over.
Accepting the scolding, Shunsuke took one of the towels and began drying Mashiro's hair.
"Achoo!" Eriri sneezed loudly.
Mrs. Izumi gently pushed her on the back. "Eriri, hurry and take a bath. I'll make some ginger tea."
Turning to the others, Shunsuke said, "Mrs. Izumi's house has two bathrooms. Kitagawa-san, you can go with Eriri. As for clothes, you can borrow something from Mrs. Izumi's wardrobe, though it may not be the perfect fit."
Shunsuke wasn't skilled like Jin Mitaka at guessing exact sizes, but he could make a general Mrs. Izumi was at most a D cup, while Marin was at least a D, if not more.
What? Use my Star Platinum with its A-rank precision that can see even a fly clearly to measure? Sure, Star Platinum was incredibly useful, but it would cry if used like that.
Before Marin could reply, Eriri's childhood friend radar went off.
"Wait, Shunsuke, you're letting Marin and me bathe first? What about Mashiro and Koizumi?"
Shunsuke replied matter-of-factly, "Obviously, they'll go to my place to shower."
"Nani!? Absolutely not!" Eriri immediately rejected the idea.
"But what if they catch a cold?"
Shunsuke insisted he was only concerned for his friends.
"Then I'll be the last to shower!"
"We're still one person short." Shunsuke said with genuine concern in his voice. "Besides, Eriri, you were the first one to sneeze. I don't want to see you missing the start of the semester because you caught a cold."
"Then... I... I'll go to your place to shower with Mashiro! I need to supervise, yes, make sure you don't take advantage of Mashiro and Koizumi!"
Eriri stammered for a while before finally finding what she thought was the perfect solution.
"Alright, alright, Eriri, calm down. You're making it sound like my place is some lion's den where I'm just lying in wait for Koizumi."
"Hmph, who knows what you're thinking? I mean, inviting a girl you've barely known a few days to your place to bathe? That's totally suspicious! Where's your common sense?"
Eriri's jealousy was practically spilling over at this point.
"Ah, wait, did I not mention it? Koizumi and I have actually known each other for a long time; we're old friends who just happened to end up in the same class this year." Shunsuke countered seriously. "So, compared to the newly acquainted Kitagawa-san, of course I'd invite Koizumi to my house. I thought this through!"
Eriri looked like she was on the verge of tears.
Meanwhile, Marin was speechless.
Is Fujii-senpai secretly a sadist? she wondered.
Or maybe… this is just the way he and Eriri-senpai bond?
Amid the playful squabbling, Shunsuke escorted Eriri and Mashiro under his umbrella back to his place.
"Eriri, you can use my father's bathroom. Mashiro, you take this one," Shunsuke said as he showed them to the respective bathrooms.
"Has your dad not been home for a while?" Eriri asked as they entered the master bedroom.
Shunsuke glanced around his father's room, confirming that it still looked unused. "Yeah, he hasn't been back in a while. What kind of horrible company works its employees like this? Not worried they'll drop dead on the job?"
Though Shunsuke usually found his father's presence restrictive, an extended absence did bring a hint of concern.
He sent a quick message to his father on LINE.
[Shunsuke]: What's going on lately? You haven't been home at all.
A reply came swiftly.
[Father]: Don't worry, I should be home this weekend. I've got a surprise for you.
[Father]: Glad to know my son cares about me. Makes me proud!
Shunsuke frowned. A surprise? What on earth could that mean?
Seeing the quick reply, Shunsuke thought to himself, So he's slacking off at work, huh? Looks like people are the same everywhere. Even the so-called "hardworking" Japanese people have their fair share of slacking and overtime battles.
"If he's not back by the weekend, maybe I'll just drop by his office," he muttered to himself, deciding on his next course of action.
With that, Shunsuke nudged Eriri toward the bathroom. "Hurry up and shower. I'll get some clothes ready for you."
"Wait."
Eriri grabbed his wrist as he turned to leave.
"What is it? Don't tell me you want me to join y—"
"Absolutely not!" Eriri flung her damp hair, splattering him with water.
"Then what—?"
"You're not planning to go wash up with Mashiro, are you?" Eriri's eyes narrowed, interrupting him with a sharp look. "Going on about how 'Mashiro can't bathe on her own' or something and then using that as an excuse to help her, to... scrub her back or something."
"..."
Shunsuke turned his head, pretending not to notice her accusation.
Geez! She's just a so-called "loser in love," yet she's got all her skill points maxed out in catching suspicious behavior!
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