"Ugh… why am I here?!" Koyuki wailed, thrashing against the ropes binding her.
"Self-inflicted, idiot," Neru snapped.
"You should be grateful it ended like this," Akane said with a chilling smile. "Hehe."
"Eek! Akane-senpai's scarier than usual!" Koyuki squeaked.
"I could've shot that drone down from that distance," Karin said coolly. "Be thankful it wasn't a direct hit."
"No one told me you could throw a bullet by hand and destroy a drone!" Koyuki protested. "What even is that?!"
"Guess you were just unlucky," Neru said with a smirk.
"Waaaah!" Koyuki cried, flailing on the ground.
Neru sighed, shaking her head at her chaotic junior. Meanwhile, Mash stepped aside to call Yuuka, explaining the situation.
"So, can we keep Koyuki-chan with us a bit longer?" Mash asked.
["We'd prefer you hand her over immediately…"] Yuuka's voice crackled through the phone.
"If we just turn her over and call it a day, it feels… off," Mash said. "She might just do it again."
["You've got a point…"] Yuuka sighed. ["Fine. We'll wait a bit longer."]
"Thanks, Yuuka-chan," Mash said.
["No problem."]
"And about that reward—a giant cream puff machine—" Mash started.
["Denied,"] Yuuka cut in.
"Got it," Mash chuckled.
["Thank you, Sensei. Really,"] Yuuka said warmly before hanging up.
Mash had a plan. Sure, making Koyuki reflect was part of it, but he also felt sorry for her. Not because she didn't realize her own talent, but because she genuinely believed she was nothing special. That was the real tragedy, and Mash wanted to fix it.
"Sorry for the wait," Mash said, returning to the group.
"Welcome back, Sensei," Karin said. "When do we head out?"
"Waaah! I don't wanna go back to that place!" Koyuki sobbed.
"You got yourself into this mess, so sit tight!" Neru barked.
"But I just wanted to hit VIP and get everyone's praise!" Koyuki whined.
"That's not how it works," Akane said, her tone sharp. "You've got incredible skills already. What more do you need?"
"Skills…" Koyuki mumbled, deflating.
"She doesn't even realize it," Neru muttered.
"Yeah! Everyone says I'm amazing, but it doesn't feel like it!" Koyuki said, pouting.
"Genius problems, huh?" Asuna mused.
"Probably," Mash nodded.
"What a pain…" Neru groaned.
Koyuki rolled around on the ground, a whirlwind of despair. She'd thought she'd finally earn praise and a sense of accomplishment, only to have it all crumble.
"Koyuki-chan," Mash said gently.
"Ugh… I'm not gonna reflect, no matter what you say, Sensei!" Koyuki huffed. "You're amazing too, so you don't get to—"
"You're plenty amazing," Mash interrupted. "You just don't see it."
(I'm one to talk, Mash thought, holding back a self-deprecating jab.)
"So…" Mash continued, pausing for effect. "We're gonna praise you to death."
"What kind of logic is that?!" Koyuki yelped.
C&C and Koyuki stared at Mash, dumbfounded, their eyes screaming, What is he on about? But Asuna lit up, snapping her fingers. "Oh, I get it! You're gonna boost her self-esteem by showering her with praise, right?"
"Exactly," Mash nodded.
"No, no, no! Why's it going there?!" Koyuki protested.
"If you don't feel the praise or your own greatness, we'll make you feel it—by force," Mash said, deadpan.
"Peak meathead logic!" Koyuki cried.
"Praise to death, huh? I'm in," Neru grinned.
"Neru-senpai?!" Koyuki gasped.
"Sounds fun," Karin said.
"I'm game too," Akane added, her smile wicked.
"Akane-senpai, Karin-senpai?!" Koyuki squeaked.
"Here we go—praise-to-death time!" Mash announced.
"Noooo!" Koyuki wailed.
For the next fifteen minutes, Mash and C&C bombarded Koyuki with praise, from the smallest details to her biggest feats. Mash's theory—born from his own experience—was that relentless praise could build self-esteem.
"Point is, you can do things I can't, and that alone makes you amazing," Mash said.
"O-Okay… I get it…" Koyuki stammered, her face red. "Enough… please…"
"Rare sight," Akane chuckled, snapping photos. Click, click.
"Akane, that's too many pictures," Karin said.
"Praising someone… not bad," Neru admitted.
"Leader's usually just yelling," Asuna teased.
"Shut it!" Neru snapped.
"You guys are mean…" Koyuki mumbled, still flushed.
"But there's no lie in our words," Mash said. "It's the truth."
"That makes it worse…" Koyuki groaned, hiding her face.
Even someone who didn't feel praise could be overwhelmed by Mash and C&C's genuine, unfiltered compliments.
"…But… it doesn't feel bad," Koyuki admitted softly.
"Feel better?" Mash asked.
"Not completely, but…" Koyuki trailed off.
"I'm not saying this to be mean, Koyuki," Neru said. "But you gotta quit gambling and stuff. Keep it up, and you'll end up here again."
"Ugh… fine," Koyuki muttered. "But I only got into it because of Yuuka-senpai—er, nothing!" She caught Neru's glare and clammed up.
"Koyuki-chan," Mash said, kneeling to meet her eyes. "Using other people's money is wrong. That's not something we can praise."
Bound in ropes, Koyuki slumped, listening as Mash spoke gently but firmly.
"But working hard to be praised, pushing yourself to be recognized—that effort's amazing. I respect that," he added.
"You're weird, Sensei," Koyuki said. "Most people would just lecture me and ignore my side."
"Lectures matter," Mash said. "But I don't like shutting people down completely… unless it's a special case."
"I give up!" Koyuki laughed. "I can't win against you, and I don't even want to try anymore."
"That's the spirit," Neru said, smirking.
"So… case closed?" Karin asked.
"Well, about that," Mash said, untying Koyuki's ropes and pointing toward the ship. "Feels like a waste to just leave. Wanna have some fun before we go?"
"Huh?" Neru blinked.
"Love it!" Asuna cheered.
"Is that… okay?" Karin hesitated.
"Didn't Asuna-senpai hit S-rank? She's a VIP," Akane pointed out.
"Yup! Everything's basically free, and they said do whatever!" Asuna said, bouncing.
"So… let's go all out," Mash suggested.
"W-Wait, me too?" Koyuki asked.
"You're my student," Mash said with a grin. "You'll get an earful later, so let's enjoy now."
Koyuki realized she couldn't beat Mash—not in strength, but in how wildly different his perspective was. She was in awe.
"Fun, huh…" Neru muttered.
"Forgetting work and cutting loose is good sometimes," Mash said.
"I know that," Neru grumbled. "Fine, whatever. Hey, gremlin! You know this place, right? Lead the way!"
"Me? Really?" Koyuki blinked.
"Sensei says it's fine, so that's that," Neru said.
"…" Koyuki paused.
"Come on, Koyuki-chan," Mash urged. "Let's go."
"Nihaha! Fine, I'll show you around!" Koyuki said, skipping ahead.
"Yay!" Asuna cheered.
The group went wild on the ship, hitting up card games, casinos, anything that caught their eye.
"…"
"Cheer up, Sensei," Neru said.
"It's just…" Mash mumbled.
"Losing's normal!" Akane offered. "Probably…"
"It's luck, you know?" Karin added.
"Donmai, donmai!" Asuna sang, undefeated.
Mash, it turned out, was terrible at gambling and lost every game. He swore off it for good that day. But doing something special with his friends? That was something he'd never quit. In a way, he was addicted to it, too.
Epilogue
As punishment, Mash tasked Koyuki with working off her debts at his favorite cream puff shop. She groaned, expecting dull labor like her Seminar days.
"Nihaha! Ten cream puffs, thank you!" Koyuki called, bustling behind the counter.
"Koyuki, cover that order!" the manager shouted.
"On it!" she replied cheerfully.
Unlike her Seminar work, the cream puff shop was fun. The manager's praise-heavy style boosted Koyuki's confidence, and she grew to love the place. Slowly, she started believing in herself.
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