Miho finally managed to compose herself after a few moments. This year would be Riku's 3rd year on the National Team, so they had some familiarity with each other. He almost felt like a big brother the way that he annoyed her so much.
Unfortunately, she had lost a lot of face while dealing with his antics, leaving the newcomers with questionable expressions.
"Ahem. My name is Miho and I'll be in charge of your nutrition while you're competing with the National Team. Please head inside and pick a dorm in the west wing."
Once she said this she smiled sweetly, painting a completely different picture than the one they had experienced earlier.
Daichi seemed even more enamored by her smile, his cheeks reddening even further.
Ken who was about a foot away from Daichi could feel the heat emanating from his face, causing his eyes to widen in shock.
'Damn, is this love at first sight?' He thought inwardly.
Before his brother embarrassed himself, Ken quickly nudged him in the arm and got his attention.
"Let's head in and grab a room." He said, adjusting the bag on his shoulder.
"Ah, yeah sure."
Daichi suddenly snapped out of it, though he still seemed a little shaken. He had never experienced such a situation before throughout his entire life.
Ken made sure to push his brother on the outside as they walked past so he wouldn't make a fool of himself. However, Miho's gaze caught his own before she sent a soft smile his way, full of unknown meaning.
'Eh? Why did she look at me like that?'
However, Miho's mind was currently filled with other thoughts.
'He's tall and has plenty of muscular growth potential. No wonder he can throw so fast.'
Miho's eyes were sparkling as she watched Ken's retreating figure, not even noticing Daichi who was walking next to him.
As the players made their way into the building, there were another couple of staff members to direct them to the west wing where their rooms were located.
Ken, Daichi and Hiroki made their way down the long hallway and could already see some players getting into their rooms. Each room had two beds and two desks with a small TV in the corner.
Since there were 24 players, they were allocated 12 rooms from the University. This led to a situation where their group would have to split up, with one person joining one of the other players.
Hiroki knew that he was at a disadvantage since the two guys with him were literally brothers, so he pulled the only trick at his disposal.
"How about we play rock, paper, scissors to see who has to split up?"
Ken's eyes narrowed at the sneaky guy who would rather leave things up to chance than be voted out altogether.
Daichi agreed, still half in a daze thanks to falling under love's spell, leaving Ken with no choice but to adhere to the man's wishes.
"Alright, here we go…"
"First comes rock, Janken Pon!"
Ken threw out scissors, hoping to cut off at least one of his competitors. However, his face turned to one of horror as he stared at the two large fists that the two had produced.
Suddenly he lowered his head in defeat, feeling a tinge of annoyance at Hiroki's celebration dance.
With that, he left in a huff and walked back down the hall in search of a room. There was nothing more awkward than bunking with a random person, particularly in this case where they were competitors.
He walked back to the start of the hallway, still not having found a place.
"Ken, are you looking for a room?"
Suddenly Ken's ears perked up, hearing an unfamiliar voice.
He turned around only to see the bleach blond hair of the delinquent Kei Hama, the person he'd knocked out in the first round of Koshien.
"Um yeah, do you have space?" Ken felt a little awkward, but he still needed a room.
"Sorry, I don't like sharing rooms." He said, closing the door swiftly in his face.
Ken's jawalmost dropped to the floor as he stared at the outside of the door. Why would the guy ask if he was looking for a room in the first place if he was going to slam the door?
His eyebrow twitched in annoyance before the door suddenly opened again, revealing the grinning and punchable face of Kei.
"Sorry, I thought a little joke would break the ice." He said, stifling a laugh.
"Hah… haha."
Ken laughed awkwardly, lamenting how socially inept the guy in front of him was. Yet he still managed to work up the courage to step into the room.
'It's just for one night…' He told himself, over and over like a mantra.
He placed his bags on top of the remaining bed and quickly dug through it to grab a change of clean clothes. From what the staff had said, they should have time to shower before dinner was served.
"Well, I'm gonna go shower before dinner." Ken stated, before leaving with haste.
Kei watched his retreating figure blankly.
"Damn, did I mess that up?" He muttered aloud.
Around 40 minutes later, Ken returned to the room and let out a small sigh of relief. Kei wasn't in the room yet, which meant he should be able to slip out to the cafeteria before he returned.
Just as he was leaving the room, both Daichi and Hiroki were walking past.
"Oh hey, good to see you found a room." Hiroki said with a snigger.
Ken felt the sudden urge to inflict some heavenly retribution upon his friend, however he thought of something much better. His face morphed into one of a plotting nature, causing Hiroki to shudder unconsciously.
'Oh no, what have I done?' Hiroki's expression crumbled as he felt instant regret.
He knew intuitively that he might have gone too far with his smart-assery. However, before he could apologize, Ken already had a lead towards the cafeteria.
Unaware of his roommate's plight, Daichi let out a hollow chuckle and followed his brother.
The staff members were like guides as they ushered the players towards the cafeteria. Once the trio walked in, they noticed it was a huge room which could likely fit upwards of a few hundred people at once.
Therefore it felt kind of empty when it was just 24 teens and a few staff members.