Chapter 147: The Trap

In the locker room after the closing of the store and after everyone had left.

The room was dimly lit, with only a little morning sun shining in through a small window.

I bit my lip tightly.

After all, I had fallen to fourth place.

First place went to Mako, the bitch.

Damn… don’t you dare give me any extra motivation.

I slammed the desk with my palm in frustration.

I’m in trouble.

Summer vacation was still a long time away, but there was only one day if I want to settle the target. If I didn’t stay in first place for the rest of the summer, it would all be over.

My relationship with my teacher would be exposed, and the dream of a happy family that would have come true as soon as I graduated would disappear into thin air.

My teacher is fired. I was expelled. With that, the two of us are forcibly separated, with the world pointing fingers at us as we fall from the ranks of the diligent school public morals committee.

「What am I supposed to do…?」

I’m stuck. I am stifled. It’s as if I can’t reach out and grab anything.

I just want to throw everything away and run away from here.

I even thought that I could live like this, working in a girls’ bar, somewhere where I didn’t know anyone.

「Just when I thought your return was delayed… What are you so upset about?」

The next thing I knew, Cockroach maid was standing behind me.

「…You’re annoying」

「Are you giving up already?」

「Because there’s nothing I can do about it! There are still almost thirty days of summer vacation left! But I can’t do this, no matter what I think!」

「Haa~…」

The cockroach maid nodded with a look of disdain on her face.

「I can’t help it. I’ll prepare a solution for Takata-sama, who is not as good as I expected」

「A solution?」

「Yes, I’ve been ordered by the head maid to hire a bitch to handle Master’s carnal needs」

「What?」

「Didn’t you hear me? A bitch to take care of the sex. The pay is unbelievable. 10,000 yen per ejaculation. Master is immensely wealthy, so it’s no wonder he can make 100,000 yen a night」

「Wait! Wait a minute!? Master is… You mean, Fumio Kijima, right? You mean I’m supposed to have sex with him?」

「Yes」

「No, no! I don’t want to!」

「Is that so? Well, if the head maid finds out that the bitch I’ve prepared for the sex is Takata-sama, she’ll punish me severely, so it would be better if you refuse」

「I mean what finds out…? She’ll immediately know who I am!」

「But, don’t you remember that the last time you talked to Master, the room was completely dark? Master doesn’t know what Takata-sama looks like now. Just act like a dirty bitch and he won’t even know you’re here」

He won’t know it’s me? As soon as I thought that, I felt my heart shake.

But somehow I managed to hold my ground and shook my head.

「Anyway! I refuse!」

「I see. Well then… please feel free. Then please return to your room」

And then Cockroach maid simply backed off and led me towards the commuter entrance.

◇ ◇ ◇

『Good evening! Aramaki-san announces the time is nine o’clock at night, Jake! Let’s gather at the round table, Jake!』

「Hii!?」

Aramaki-san’s voice rang out so loudly that I jumped up on my bed.

（Oh…I must have fallen asleep）

In the morning, after finishing my hot sandwich, I fell asleep and woke up to find curry and pork cutlet on the table.

After eating it, I must have fallen asleep completely.

（I’ve been up all night…）

It couldn’t be helped. Death march at the end of the project. I’ve been working late at night for a while now.

Lying in bed with nothing to do, it was obvious that I would fall asleep.

I shook my sleepy head and woke up.

（Nine o’clock at night…that means it’s time to open the polls, right?）

When I think of it as the time to decide who will be killed, it feels so unreal that it’s like something out of a movie or drama.

（…Terrible sleeping habits）

I quietly walk out of the room, holding my hair in my hands.

Apparently, I was the last one to leave. Everyone except me was already sitting around the round table.

The seating is as you wish. That’s what the handbook said, but everyone is sitting in the same seat they were sitting in at the beginning.

The seat next to mine was empty. The lady detective is gone.

When I looked at the floor where she had fallen, I felt as if something cold had been poured down my spine.

There might still be the body of the detective under the floor.

When I took my seat and looked around, I saw that everyone looked somewhat nervous.

Fumijima-san was trembling and praying desperately to something, and Misuzu-chan was watching him with a grin on her face.

「Haha, Fumijima, it’s finally time to say goodbye. Bye, bye」

「No, please don’t…」

Misuzu-chan waved her hands in front of him, and Fumijima-san looked as if he was about to start crying.

Aramaki-san is on the monitor. With a zoomed-out image.

When I sat down and everyone became quiet, she (?) cleared her throat, coughed a little. And then–

『Oh, it took five minutes for everyone to quiet down, Jake』

She sounded like the principal at a morning assembly.

『Looks like everyone voted, Jake. Even so… the results of the vote were pretty amazing, Jake, everyone voted for the same person except for two people, Jake』

At that moment, there was a sense of relief in the air. I guess everyone had a pretty good idea of who the votes were for.

『It’s not funny, Jake. I’d like to see a little more tension, Jake』

As Aramaki-san let out a sigh, the hard rocker let out an annoyed sigh.

「Shut up. Seafood. Get on with it, ya jerk」

Then a close-up of Aramaki-san appeared on the screen.

『It’s terrible, Jake! You’re right, Aramaki-san is a bit of a jerk, Jake! But I’m not a seafood and don’t want to be one, Jake! The bug in my stomach just won’t go away, Jake!

And then, just when I thought I’d seen the first image..

『Well, speaking of bugs in the belly of salmon, they are Anisakis[1]!』

She was giggling to herself.

Apparently, it was a salmon joke.

Yeah, I think that joke is too early for human beings.

After a moment of silence, Aramaki-san went into a close-up again.

『Speaking of bugs in the belly of salmon, they are Anisakis!』

She repeated again.

No, it’s not that I didn’t understand what she meant.

Still no one responded,

『Well, the funny thing about that joke is that it’s about stomach bugs and parasites…』

She started to explain her own joke, which was so painful that the new model with the short cut said..

「Don’t explain your joke…」

And she gave her advice. Maybe she’s a little kinder than I thought.

Aramaki-san, who had somehow managed to regain her composure, raised her voice a little and shouted again.

『Then, let’s announce the results, Jake!』

With a close-up of Aramaki-san in the background, the words “Results” appeared on the screen in a flashy motion, with flame effects.

Next, the words “Akira Mizuki – One Vote, Itsuki Kurashima – One Vote” appeared on the screen.

「Who is it! Who voted for me!」

「What!?」

Akira-chan shouted, and the president gasped.

And finally…

『Misuzu 9 votes』

With these words, an explosion-like effect appeared on the screen.

「No…no way…」

Misuzu-chan stood up in a daze, her mouth half-open, and went rigid.

Next to Misuzu-chan, Fumijima-san said, “I-I survived!” and jumped up from his chair.

The sound of everyone’s exhaled breaths echoed in unison.

It was me who voted for President Kurashima.

It was probably Misuzu-chan who voted for Akira-chan.

The fact that I that Misuzu-chan voted for Akira-chan after telling everyone to vote for Fumijima-san may have been an attempt to discourage people from voting for him in the next round.

「Why, why…?」

There’s absolutely no explanation for it.

All I could say was that it was the way it had to be.

「Oh, you guys! How dare you!」

Misuzu-chan shouted at the two new models.

And the new models tucked their chins provocatively at her.

「Sorry, Misuzu-neesan. I can’t keep up with you anymore. I hope you die quickly」

「Aha! I’m sorry, Misuzu-chan, but I’ve been hiding this from you for a long time… I hated Misuzu-chan」

Misuzu-chan backed away from the two who did not even try to hide their malice, bumping her legs against the chair.

「N-no… Uuuuuu…」

Then Misuzu-chan shouted desperately at Aramaki-san on the monitor.

「Yes, that’s right! Mission! If I complete the mission, I’ll be saved, right?」

『Indeed, if you can complete it properly, you will be saved, Jake』

On the screen, Aramaki-san nodded her head.

「What do I have to do! I don’t want to die! I-I’ll do anything! I’ll do anything!」

『Fufun, well, then, let’s announce your mission, Jake!』

Another flashy effect.

And the words on the screen…

『Live breeding sex with ugly guys! Worldwide emergency live broadcast!』

Everyone’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Misuzu-chan collapsed in a heap on the spot.

Without paying attention to her condition, Aramaki-san continued her explanation without hesitation.

『That red door. On the other side of it is a bedroom with an internet connection, Jake. And with that ugly guy there… Fumijima. You’ll have sex with him, and if he successfully impregnates you, you’ll survive, Jake. Of course, the whole thing will be broadcast live to the world on the Internet, Jake, and the URL has been sent to all major media outlets, Jake』

「Y… you’re crazy」

Misuzu-chan muttered in dismay, and Aramaki-san went up again.

And then–

『Breeding is the most important part of a salmon’s life, Jake!』

And then she said something incomprehensible from the perspective of the salmon.

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(1) Anisakis is a genus of parasitic nematodes that have life cycles involving fish and marine mammals