There's no need to elaborate on Imamura Kohei's fate; his excessive pride had long since inadvertently offended many of his seniors.
Being specifically targeted, he had no means of resistance and was unknowingly dragged into the abyss.
Before long, his entire face was bruised and swollen. It wasn't that his skills were lacking; it was entirely because the other side had more people bullying fewer.
Under a series of continuous battles, even if he won most of the time, the times he lost were enough to leave him in such a state.
Qianshu Lian and Kasumigaoka Shiwa, on the other hand, watched with great interest. Although it looked brutal, from the fact that none of these people showed any overly aggressive behavior, and Imamura Kohei, who was beaten, was still lively afterward, it seemed that:
While the external injuries appeared severe, there seemed to be no significant internal damage.
"This is something worth studying. Is it that their control over their strength is so terrifying? Or is a certain guy's physique overly special?"
Hachiman Hikigaya stroked his chin with great curiosity, and without hesitation, stood behind Qianshu Lian.
His resolute posture was as if he stood in front of Qianshu Lian, shielding him from potential danger.
"It should be a special physique. After all, this is a diving club, not a martial arts club."
Yukino Yukinoshita analyzed. Although this outing was just for fun, she considered it a way to relax.
And even though it wasn't a solo outing, being able to go out together was already quite good.
Regarding this, Yukino Yukinoshita didn't mind clearing her mind and boldly analyzing the current situation, without being so serious.
"After all, he's someone who can make such expressions, so it's not surprising if his physique is a bit special," Kasumigaoka Shiwa added.
"This trip has truly broadened my horizons!"
Hikigaya Komachi said cheerfully. Her gains from this outing had increased; it turned out there really were people who could make such expressions in reality.
If she hadn't actually seen it here, she probably wouldn't have believed it even if she had heard about it later.
As they watched, Qianshu Lian pulled everyone aside to hide. The previous farce had ended, and the arrogant Imamura Kohei had been suppressed. What remained were the seniors' highly technical battles.
That's right, battles!
Because Qianshu Lian didn't want to call actions that could easily send people flying "games" or anything similar, even if he could do it himself. Because for his current body to achieve it, he had to treat it as a battle and unleash his body without restraint.
Snow Below and Hachiman also cooperatively followed behind Qianshu Lian, though they didn't all hide completely behind Qianshu Lian's body.
But this act of slowly retreating behind Qianshu Lian still made Qianshu Lian roll his eyes at them.
Hours later, the scene was a mess. The victors and the onlookers, including Gushouchuan Chisha, worked together to clean up the chaotic activity area, making everything look as good as new.
If one could ignore the piles of pig-headed strong men scattered throughout the room.
"That was truly amazing. I never thought I could watch such a game so intently. Is there something wrong with my mind?"
On the way back, Hikigaya Komachi asked, sounding a bit confused.
"This isn't your problem; the game was indeed exciting!" Qianshu Lian denied Hikigaya Komachi's doubt. Even he watched the game with great interest. It just goes to show that the source of human pleasure is often very simple.
Hachiman Hikigaya also chimed in, "It was indeed exciting. I still can't understand why they can slap their companions with such force without any hesitation."
"Perhaps it's precisely because they understand each other that they don't care? After all, once you're familiar, you can better understand your companion's limits!" Yukino Yukinoshita analyzed.
"Hiss—that angle of yours actually seems plausible!"
Qianshu Lian nodded, and the others also somewhat agreed. The only difference between this game and the slap-fighting contest in that world was that they had to play rock-paper-scissors before slapping.
If they weren't already familiar with each other, there would really be no need to use so much force. After all, if they hit too hard or won too many times, the nature of the game would change.
The group walked back to their room, speculating as they went. They would be returning tomorrow, as this wasn't a holiday, and they still had school.
On the other side, Hayasaka Ai gently covered her young lady with a blanket, and after sighing, lay down beside her.
Her stubborn young lady had, after all, succumbed to time. She had said she would monitor them closely, but she was gone by just past ten o'clock.
When would these days end? While lamenting, Hayasaka Ai opened her diary as usual, and then immediately wanted to die for agreeing to come along and monitor yesterday.
"These past few days, I specifically came to the seaside. Besides daily rest and wanting to enjoy the beautiful scenery, I also wanted to see the situation away from Tokyo."
Hayasaka Ai stopped torturing herself when she saw this, and focused entirely on the diary.
"To my surprise, I thought there were only mermaids in Seto, but I didn't expect there to be mermaids here too."
"And quite a lot of them. Even the hotel here seems to have mermaid shares. I've discovered that several of the service staff are mermaids."
Hayasaka Ai's expression stiffened. She had already interacted with many local people and truly had no idea there were mermaids among them!
The other girls also showed slight changes in expression, not expecting that the people of the mysterious world had not hidden themselves at all, but were simply among ordinary people.
That's true. It's not like people from the mysterious world are all ascetic! Since they even have families, it's not surprising for them to be in the prosperous human society, in the lower and middle classes.
"However, they don't have deep interactions with the true mysterious world and are still only in the lower and middle strata of normal human society. I remember there are quite a few mermaid clubs in the Seto Inland Sea area, and most of the mermaids here seem to be working normal jobs."
"I won't disturb them then. After all, they are just ordinary citizens of the mysterious world. What could they possibly know?"
Qianshu Lian, who wrote this, didn't write about letting the Black Shadow Troops' soldiers eavesdrop in secret. Anyway, I certainly didn't disturb their normal lives, right?
"After returning this time, I must accelerate my investigation. I don't have that much time to waste. I must prioritize ensuring my self-preservation ability."