"Okay, let's go take a look."
"Let's go!" Shouko stood up with a whoosh, reached out to grab him, and pulled him up.
"Don't worry, there's no one queuing there, and the ground is so slippery here, be careful not to fall." Tsuna tugged at her hand.
Shouko then slowed down her pace.
"Are you two here for the event too?"
As the two approached the entrance of the building, a staff member in a sexy swimsuit came forward to greet them.
Tsuna finally looked over, then quickly raised his hand to block Shouko's eyes. He frowned and looked at the staff member, hesitant inside, but finally couldn't help but complain:
"Big sister? Are you wearing the wrong swimsuit?"
The staff member covered her mouth with a chuckle, a hint of playfulness at the corner of her eye, and ignored his expression:
"Haha... this is called freedom of dress, okay? But then again, are you two here to participate in this limited-time event?"
After saying this, she didn't forget to make a playful face at Tsuna.
Hearing that, Shouko reached up and grabbed his hand, asking curiously, "What's that, Tsuna? Don't block my view, I want to see too!"
Tsuna still refused to let go, leaning close to her ear and whispering, "Be good! I'm afraid you'll have a nightmare tonight, so it's better not to look."
Seeing her obedient, Tsuna looked back at the staff member's face and asked, puzzled, "By the way, big sis, what's that promotion you were talking about?"
"It's a limited-time offer where you can eat a giant ice cream cone and get it free. The loser will have their face smeared with cream, and then a photo will be taken and hung on our display for a day.
How about it? Want to try it?"
"Okay!" Tsuna was still hesitating after hearing the staff member's explanation, but Shouko, whose view was obscured, nodded in agreement.
"Just go inside and tell the beautiful lady at the counter that you want to sign up."
The staff member, noticing another curious person approaching, said this and hurried on.
Tsuna watched her walk away before releasing his hand from blocking Shouko's eyes. Hesitantly, he said, "Do you really want to join? Eating ice cream so early in the morning..."
"Come on, Tsuna. Besides, it's past ten, not really early." Shouko pulled the hesitant man back inside.
Halfway through, she glanced back curiously at the staff member who had just spoken to them, and then her body shuddered.
"See, I told you not to look." Tsuna's lips curled slightly, a smile already creeping onto his face despite his best efforts to suppress it.
Shouko, observing his teasing, didn't hesitate and lightly punched him in the arm.
Then, the two of them went inside and explained the situation to the front desk staff.
"The giant ice cream challenge must be completed by one person, and must be finished within three minutes."
"This..."
"Tsuna, I'll leave it to you!"
"Huh?"
"Honestly, you want to see me with cream smeared on my face, right?" Tsuna eyed Shouko suspiciously, her expression uncharacteristic.
Shouko quickly shook her head to indicate she wasn't.
How could she possibly want to see Tsuna's face covered in cream? She'd clearly agreed to this because she could get a giant ice cream cone for free, right?
Yes! That's right.
Seeing the boy didn't say anything, the staff member agreed. Seeing other tourists entering the room, they reminded him,
"Okay, both of you, please choose an unoccupied table and chairs and wait for a moment."
Tsuna had nothing more to say. He led Shouko to an empty square table on the left, pulled out two chairs, and sat down.
After settling down, he quietly surveyed the interior. It resembled a large milk tea shop, except for a display board to the right of the front desk.
A comical photo of a loser with cream all over his face was already on the display, and he suspected another photo would appear soon.
Since everyone came to the water park to experience the attractions, there were only a few scattered visitors inside.
But none of them were participating in the event, which clearly proved to be a complete rip-off.
"Sorry for the wait!"
Before long, a gruff, loud voice drew the attention of the scattered visitors.
"Look, there's more fun to be had."
"I'm ready to see that kid get sprayed with cream."
"I just don't know who's doing the challenge."
"No need to guess, it's probably that boy."
"Luckily I didn't participate, opting instead to watch. Otherwise, I'd be the one getting screwed."
The visitors' eyes darted between the ice cream held by the staff and the faces of the two men, whispering to each other.
Tsuna and Shouko also looked in the direction of the voice, and Tsuna's eyes widened as he saw the voice carrying a bowl of ice cream towards them.
That's right, a bowl, a plastic bowl filled with colorful scoops.
As the staff member in a neon chef's uniform placed the ice cream on Tsuna's table, Tsuna finally saw the size of the scoops.
One was barely larger than his fist, and inside—he mentally counted the scoops visible on the surface—there were about ten.
He was already bracing himself for the cream to be smeared on him. At that moment, he finally understood why this place was called the Ice Cream 'Bomb' House.
"Hey, guys, this is the three-minute countdown. Go for it,"
the female staff member said, a forced smile on her face. She held a timer next to the table, ready to press it when Tsuna started.
"Tsuna... just keep going. I believe you can do it..." Shouko bit her lip hard, pinching her palm with her fingertips to stifle a smile.
"Hmm..." Tsuna nodded silently, picking up the large iron spoon beside the basin.
"Okay, let's get started."
As Tsuna scooped up a spoonful, the staff member pressed the countdown.
With only 1 minute and 20 seconds remaining, Tsuna managed to swallow his fifth ice ball, his head already stinging with the cold.
Finally, the clock ticked, and Tsuna only managed to eat three more. He put down the iron spoon, rubbed his head, and exhaled the cold air.
Seeing this, Shouko reached out and gently massaged his head.
"Are you ready?" The female staff member approached with a bowl of white cream, her lips curled up.
Tsuna glanced at the bowl of sticky whipped cream in the female staff member's hands and asked, "Um, can we take this ice cream after we're done?"
"Yes, that's fine." The female staff member glanced at the girl beside him, gently rubbing his head, and nodded in agreement.
She seemed to have guessed what the boy meant.
Tsuna interrupted Shouko's movements, thanked the staff, and took the bowl of cream from her hand and handed it to Shouko.
"Okay, I'll satisfy you. Let you spread it." After saying this, he smiled and closed his eyes.
(End of this chapter)
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