"Ugh...my head...gonna be sick..."
Sebas woke with a pounding headache that felt like someone had replaced his brain with a construction site. The throbbing pain eerily resembled his worst hangovers - except he distinctly remembered not drinking any alcohol yesterday.
At least...he didn't think he had—
His bloodshot eyes flew open in realization.
The "oolong tea."
His hands trembled as memories flooded back. That suspiciously strong "tea" Buki had "conveniently" left behind...
That musclebound psycho drugged me!
Clutching his throbbing head, Sebas' panicked gaze darted to the dorm door. Am I...being held prisoner here?
"I-I haven't even held a girl's hand yet..." he whimpered, visions of underground fight clubs and organ theft flashing through his mind.
Ding!
The cheerful notification made him jump. After confirming he was alone, Sebas summoned his system interface.
**[Daily Quest Complete: Survive First Night
Reward: 1 TP]**
"Wait, when was this quest active?!" The timestamp showed it auto-accepted during yesterday's chaos.
"Couldn't you at least announce these random tasks?!" he yelled at the void.
**Ding!**
**[Alert System Upgraded!
Future notifications will feature:
• 120dB chime
• Strobe lighting
• 10-second unskippable jingle]**
"...That's too thorough."
His 1 TP could buy emergency funds (≈10,000 yen) or basic supplies - precious if he needed to escape. Better save it...
As for expecting Angel's help? He'd have better odds teaching a fish to climb trees.
"Enough!" Sebas roared, springing up. "Time to bust out of—"
He wrenched the door open—
—and faceplanted directly into Buki's granite-like abs.
The grinning titan held a tray with two glasses of suspicious amber liquid.
"Morning, kouhai! Ready for your welcoming committee's second round?"
Sebas' soul prepared for ascension.
That's right—when push comes to shove, you can only rely on yourself!
With renewed determination, Sebas scanned the room and spotted a small ventilation shaft on the wall. The narrow opening was barely wide enough for an adult's arm, making escape impossible. Still, he dragged the bed over, climbed up, and peered through the vent's slats.
Outside, the streets were dark and deserted.
"Yes! It's still night—I couldn't have been out for long! That blond monster hasn't returned yet. I still have a chance!"
Heart pounding, he grabbed a random green shirt (whoever owned it probably wouldn't miss it) and threw it on. Mustering all his courage, he flung the dorm door open and charged out—
*"FREEDOM! I'M FREE—!"*
*THUD!*
Sebas rebounded off something impossibly solid and crashed back into the room, his skull smacking against the wall. As his vision blurred, he felt strong hands shaking him.
When he finally pried his eyes open, Buki's concerned face loomed over him. Behind him stood another bear-sized man, smiling benevolently.
Both wore only black wool vests, their bulging pectorals shamelessly on display.
"Sebas! Why the rush? Still feeling dizzy? Need me to take you to the hospital?" Buki asked.
Sebas' groggy brain snapped awake.
"Wait, you drank that 'oolong tea' I mixed yesterday, didn't you?" Buki chuckled. "Didn't peg you for such a heavy drinker—no wonder you slept all day!"
Sebas' jaw dropped.
"OOLONG TEA MY ASS!!" he screamed internally.
I slept an entire day?! How?!
Stammering incoherently, he stared in horror at the two musclebound titans.
"Relax, relax! Let me introduce you," Buki said cheerfully. "This is Tokita Shinji—our Peek a Boo club president. I call him Tokki, but you should address him as 'senpai.'"
The bear-like man stepped forward, his friendly grin stretching ear to ear.
"So you're Sebas-kun? Buki told me you came all the way from a distant country just to join our club! Eager to dive right in, huh?"
"Uh-buh-buh—?!" Sebas' language functions short-circuited. He flailed his arms in protest, but Buki and Tokita each grabbed a wrist with terrifying ease.
"Wow, so enthusiastic!" Tokita's caterpillar-like eyebrows wriggled with delight. "Can't wait to get to know us both, eh?"
Meanwhile, Buki whipped out a club registration form, forcibly guiding Sebas' hand toward the signature line.
For some reason, this scene felt eerily familiar to Sebas...
---