I continued through the Trick House with Alice. Just as I’d suspected, the layout was fundamentally based on the one I’d explored with Shiro-san, though any tasks involving intense physical contact seemed to have been removed.
In their place were the kind of cliché, romantic challenges that were Alice through and through. Some, like being required to share an umbrella, had a wholesome, innocent charm that reminded me of high school students.
We steadily cleared our way through the attraction. Given the scale of Shiro-san’s version, I guessed we only had one or two rooms left before the exit.
"If this follows the same pattern as Shiro-san’s, we should be reaching the end soon, right?"
"Two rooms left, sir."
"I see."
"…Kaito-san, I have a proposal. See that emergency exit right there? Why don’t we just… head out through that?"
"Alice, just what kind of tasks did you prepare for these last two rooms?"
"…I just thought I’d let loose a little for the grand finale…"
It seemed Alice’s deepest desires were packed into the couple-themed challenges waiting for us. Her face was already turning crimson; considering she was trying to flee through an emergency exit, were the upcoming prompts really that embarrassing?
With a mix of curiosity and trepidation, I reached the next room. The objective was written in large letters, accompanied by a diagram.
『Stand within the circle on the wall to the right and maintain the pose shown below for at least five minutes.』
The diagram depicted a girl with her back against the wall while her boyfriend reached out, pinning her in place.
"…This is a 'Wall Slam,' isn't it? Was this something you really wanted to do?"
"…Well… it was kind of… a situation I’d always yearned for, I guess… but honestly, I'm so embarrassed I feel like I'm going to cry. What is this humiliation play?!"
"You’re the one who designed it, Alice. You’ve hoisted yourself on your own petard."
It was a classic cliché. It was very typical of her—the kind of knowledge one would only pick up from romance manga or light novels.
Then again, come to think of it, I’d never actually done a Wall Slam myself. Setting aside fictional stories, a situation like this would never naturally occur in real life.
"…Should I make a loud 'thud' when I do it?"
"Ah, no, just placing your hand against the wall and holding the pose is fine."
"Alright then. Alice, stand over there… Okay, here I go."
"Y-Yes!"
"…Ah, wait. Since we're doing this, let's take that mask off."
"Wh-Why?! Are you trying to kill me with embarrassment? Ah, wait—whoa!"
Thinking it would be better to see her face, I quickly slipped the mask off her. Alice’s face turned beet-red instantly, but for all her protests, she didn’t try to take it back.
I couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction. Following the instructions, I placed one hand against the wall and looked down at her. Because of her petite stature, she was forced to look up at me. It gave her an adorable, upturned gaze that made my heart skip a beat.
She often joked about being a Transcendent Beautiful Girl, but in truth, Alice really was an undeniable beauty. Seeing her bare face this close made me feel a bit flustered myself.
"…Th-This is… even more intense than I imagined… I'm so embarrass— Eh? U-Um, Kaito-san? Why is your hand on my chin? A chin lift wasn't in the instructions!"
"I don't know, you just looked so cute I did it instinctively. Might as well make the most of it."
"Wait, wait, wait! This flow is definitely… I-I'm not mentally prepared for this yet!"
She was just so darling that I couldn't help myself. I hooked my fingers under her chin, tilting her face up toward mine. Sensing that I was about to kiss her, Alice panicked, but she didn’t try to pull away. As I leaned in, she squeezed her eyes shut and accepted it.
We stayed like that, lips pressed together for a long moment. When I finally pulled back, Alice’s face was as red as a ripe apple.
"…That was a foul! A total surprise attack! Do you have any idea how embarrassing that was?!"
"You didn't resist, though."
"Don't mock me! A romance bottom-tier like myself has no hope of escaping when her lover approaches her with such a cool expression!"
"You really shouldn't be declaring that so proudly…"
"Besides, that was a false start!"
"A false start?"
I found her bashfulness endearing, and a warm feeling filled my chest, though I didn't quite understand what she meant by her last remark.
However, the meaning of her words became abundantly clear in the final room.
『Perform a deep kiss between lovers.』
I looked at the task written in massive letters and finally understood Alice’s previous complaint.
"…I see. The last one really was a false start."
"Right?"
"Though, I have to ask… this was what you meant by 'letting loose'? We’ve kissed plenty of times before."
"No matter how many times we do it, embarrassing things are still embarrassing! Just so you know, every single time we kiss, I’m using Thought Acceleration to spend several minutes steeling my resolve!"
"Wait, really? You go through all that? …Well, I guess that’s just like you, Alice."
At this rate, it felt like the trip to the seaside cottage was still a long way off. I was curious to see how she’d react if I just took her there by force, but I figured I’d save that thought for later.
Serious-senpai (Sugarification): "…………"
Machina: "And… zap!"
Serious-senpai: "A-Ah? Am I back to normal?"
Machina: "Yep! You still have to watch the segment with Kuromueina after this, and I figured you wouldn't be able to see it if you were still melted, so I fixed you up!"
Serious-senpai: "…Is there… is there no mercy in this world?"