Chapter 179: Dazed and Confused, He Slipped Into Yukino's Futon.
.....
"Aren't you just bullying the honest guy here?" Hayama Hayato couldn't help but retort.
"Tch." Iori Kitahara shot him a look of pure disdain. "If you want to see the girls, just say so. Why beat around the bush?"
"Exactly, exactly~" Hidenori Tabata joined in the mockery from the side.
Seito wore a look of utter contempt. These two still won't admit it? You're already here, so what's with the act?
Ryuen and Hayama stood there awkwardly, at a loss for words.
Splosh—
Standing up, Seito turned to leave. What was there to say to a bunch of dudes? Better to make a quick exit.
He leisurely made his way to the changing room, got dressed, and stepped out of the mixed bath area. Just as he emerged, his eyes instinctively drifted toward the female baths.
"Wait, what??"
"The Hideyoshi Bath?"
Seito blinked. Right next to the mixed bath, there was actually a "Hideyoshi Bath." This exists? Should I go take a look?
Thinking this, Seito scanned his surroundings. Seeing no one around, he slipped inside with a quick flash of movement.
Inside the Hideyoshi Bath.
Hideyoshi Kinoshita and Saika Totsuka were currently soaking.
"Having this massive pool all to ourselves... how refreshing~" Hideyoshi said, taking a sip of milk.
"True, though I still don't get why a 'Hideyoshi Bath' even exists," Saika grumbled. "He" felt like "he" had been categorized as an entirely different species. It was a deeply helpless feeling.
Patter, patter, patter—!
Just then, the sound of footsteps echoed from the changing room. Hideyoshi and Saika both froze.
"There's someone else here?" Hideyoshi was stunned. Weren't there only two "Hideyoshis" in the entire school?
"I don't know," Saika shook his head, equally baffled.
Both turned their eyes toward the entrance, only to see a white-haired youth with a lazy smile entering their field of vision.
"Seito-san?! Why are you here?!" Hideyoshi blurted out instinctively.
"Here for a soak. The mixed bath next door is packed, and I bet the men's bath is just as crowded, so I came here instead."
"You two don't mind, right?"
As Seito spoke, he sat down in the pool and began to soak.
"We don't mind," Hideyoshi shook his head. If Seito was willing to come here, it meant he viewed them as men—Hideyoshi and Saika were more than happy to accept that!
Cr-crack—
The sound of a can opening rang out. Hideyoshi and Saika watched as Seito produced a bottle of beer and took a long swig.
"Ah~ that hits the spot~" Seito's expression grew increasingly relaxed.
"Seito-san, is it really okay to bring alcohol in here?" Saika couldn't help but ask. Who drinks while bathing? What if he got dizzy?
"No big deal," Seito smiled. Trying to take me down with a beer? This isn't hard liquor! Besides, even if it were the hard stuff, he could down a whole bottle without breaking a sweat.
Taking another sip, Seito asked, "So, how are you two liking Kaguya's guild?"
"It's pretty great," Saika answered.
"This old man thinks so too," Hideyoshi added after a moment's thought. "Even though we have to hand over materials, Shinomiya-san pays us fairly in return."
While Kaguya Shinomiya's guild required members to submit resources, she compensated the students with actual money. Overall, the system was well-structured and very user-friendly.
"Actually, Seito-kun, do you know about something?" Hideyoshi asked, as if recalling a specific detail.
"Know what?" A question mark appeared over Seito's head.
"You know there are quite a few 'moles' inside the Fatui guild."
"Before, Kirito-kun and Hachiman-kun would sell the gear they bought from the Fatui shop to Shinomiya-san. But lately, only Hachiman-kun is still doing it. For some reason, Kirito-kun has stopped selling his gear to her."
This was something Kaguya had been puzzled by. Kirito's sudden refusal to sell gear was suspicious. On the surface, he seemed the same as always, but when Kaguya asked Hachiman about it, the "Great Teacher" just looked conflicted and refused to say a word.
Seito: "..."
Ah... this.
Seito was stunned. If he remembered correctly, Kirito had officially become a "hidden eccentric" (a total goofball). Usually, he masked it well, but the moment
something happened, his new "personality" would leak out. That was likely why he stopped selling to Kaguya—he was probably too busy being a dork.
Rubbing his chin, Seito thought for a moment and said, "You two have noticed Kirito's... 'changes' over the past couple of days, right?"
Hideyoshi and Saika shared a look and nodded in unison.
"The reason he isn't selling is mainly because he's turned into a total memelord,"
Seito said flatly. Better to just tell them the truth. Kirito was now a full-blown "sand-sculpture" (goofball).
"..." The two Hideyoshis were floored.
A memelord? What on earth?
As they lowered their heads in thought, Seito closed his eyes and drifted off into a peaceful soak.
Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, it was 9:00 PM.
In the bath, Seito slowly blinked awake. "I actually fell asleep."
Rubbing his temples, he tiredly scanned the room. Seeing that Hideyoshi and Saika had already left, he slowly stood up. He vaguely remembered them calling out to him, but he must have ignored them in his daze.
Shaking his head, Seito left the bath. After getting dressed in the changing room, he walked out of the bathhouse and headed toward the Class D girls' dormitory.
He soon reached the door and pushed it open. Inside, the girls were chatting. When they saw a visibly drowsy Seito stumble in, their conversation died down.
Under their bewildered gazes, Seito walked straight toward Yukino Yukinoshita's spot. He pulled back the covers, crawled inside, and pulled the duvet over his head.
"..."
The room fell into a stunned silence. What the hell?! Why are you in Yukino's futon?!
Yukino's face turned bright red with embarrassment, but she didn't say anything to stop him. Instead, a tiny spark of happiness flickered in the depths of her eyes.
"Um..." Yui Yuigahama whispered from the side, "Yukino-san, should we wake Seito-kun up? What if he... tonight..."
.....
Thank you for reading.