Vol. 2 Chapter 33 – Competitive Spirit

“Eh? L-Like me— Mmphh!!” (Reiya)
“No! No no no!! Absolutely not!! Even for you, Ayaka, that’s the one thing that’s absolutely forbidden!!” (Hikaru)

Wrapping her arms around the back of my head, she hugged me tightly as if shielding me with her own body.

“H-Hey, Hika… too tight… can’t… breathe…!” (Reiya)

My vision was completely obscured, the fabric of her clothes pressed against my face, making it hard to breathe.

I couldn’t even contemplate the identity of the soft objects pressing against my face.

Was this hazy ecstasy due to happiness? No, it was probably just lack of oxygen.

“Calm down… I was just teasing you a little because you were being persistent. I have no intention of taking him, nor do I think I could.” (Ayaka)
“What was that…? Seriously, stop it…” (Hikaru)

Perhaps relieved by Hino-san’s words, the strength of her embrace loosened.

“Well, it wasn’t 100% teasing, though.” (Ayaka)
“Mmph!! H-Hika…! Tighter again… G-Give…” (Reiya)

At Hino-san’s words, the grip tightened once more.

“It’s just that, hearing the story of how you fell for Kageyama-kun, Hikaru… I did think it was kind of nice. I mean, high school romance is usually childish, right…? Like an extension of playing around? Compared to that, you two seemed to be thinking about each other on a deeper level… Some people might find that kind of thing heavy, but I just thought that if I ever fall in love someday, I’d want it to be like that.” (Ayaka)

Hino-san said this in a tone that genuinely sounded envious.

Hearing that, Hikaru’s grip weakened slightly again, and seizing the moment, I slipped free.

“…See, Reiya-kun?” (Hikaru)
“Wh-What…?” (Reiya)
“She said… our love is super serious and mature.” (Hikaru)
“I didn’t really say that much.” (Ayaka)

Ignoring Hino-san’s exasperated tone, Hikaru started touching me all over.

Her way of touching was becoming like how it is when we’re alone.

When she does that, my own ‘desire’ starts to ramp up too.

“Ahem…!” (Ayaka)

Hino-san’s cough, meaning ‘stop right there,’ pulled me back to reality.

“Anyway, what I thought was nice was the nature of your relationship, not that I have romantic feelings for Kageyama-kun personally.” (Ayaka)
“…Reallyyy?” (Hikaru)

Hikaru still hadn’t completely let her guard down, looking at Ayaka skeptically.

“Of course. Because if I were to fall for someone, it would definitely be someone smarter than me.” (Ayaka)

Well, that rules me out, I thought, feeling a mix of sadness and relief.

Meanwhile, hearing that, Hikaru’s face lit up as if she’d had an idea.

“Then… could it be, my broth—” (Hikaru)
“That’s the only one absolutely impossible!!” (Ayaka)

And so, after finishing the meal, just as the mood was shifting towards wrapping things up for the day.

“Studied lots, time for a little gaming~!” (Hikaru)

Hikaru picked up a controller and turned on the PolyStation.

“What should I play~… Yosh, I feel like beating someone up today, so let’s go with Ape!” (Hikaru)

Then, sitting down on the bed, she chose a title while saying something slightly disturbing.

I thought Hino-san might reprimand her, but she seemed to be on her own break time now, looking at her phone screen.

I cleared away the dishes, sat down in my chair, and watched Hikaru play.

The game she was playing was a so-called Battle Royale type First-Person Shooter (FPS).

A game where you fight continuously on a battlefield that gradually shrinks, aiming to be the last one standing.

Among modern core games, it’s quite popular with the casual crowd and could be called one of the most trending genres.

And as for her skill level… well, see for yourself.

She maneuvered her character with skillful pad work, piling up a mountain of corpses at a pace of one kill per magazine.

Since she hadn’t been playing for long, her rank wasn’t high, but because of that, it was like a high-rank smurf account had been mixed into a low-rank lobby.

“Yeah! Champion! Winner winner chicken dinner!!” (Hikaru)

Without falling into any real crisis, she easily achieved victory.

Hikaru’s mother said she could succeed in any sport, but I thought she definitely would have succeeded if she’d chosen to be a pro gamer too.

“Is this… really that fun?” (Ayaka)

As I was thinking that, Hino-san suddenly muttered those words under her breath.

“It’s fun~. Like, super awesome, makes the good stuff flood your brain kinda fun.” (Hikaru)
“Hearing that actually makes it sound scarier…” (Ayaka)
“Have you never played games before, Hino-san?” (Reiya)
“I’ve seen my younger brother play a little, that’s about it.” (Ayaka)

Along with the fact that she had a younger brother, I sensed a hint of interest in her voice.

“…Well then, why don’t you give it a try too, Hino-san? As a break.” (Reiya)
“No, just hearing about it, this kind of thing isn’t for me…” (Ayaka)
“That’s a great idea! Then, since we’re at it, let’s play Duo?” (Hikaru)
“D-Duo…?” (Ayaka)
“It means playing as a team.” (Hikaru)
“I’d hate to drag you down, so maybe I should just—” (Ayaka)
“It’s fine, it’s fine! I’ll carry you! Here, take the controller?” (Hikaru)

Hino-san tried to refuse, but she couldn’t win against Hikaru’s forceful persuasion.

Practically having the controller thrust upon her, an impromptu duo was formed.

“Um, you move the character with this stick… and move the camera with this stick…” (Reiya)
“L-Like this…?” (Ayaka)
“Right, right, and you shoot with this button… and activate character-specific special abilities with this button.” (Reiya)

While Hikaru prepared to play on my computer, I gave basic control instructions to Hino-san, who was holding a controller for the first time.

Like with studying, she was a quick learner, but since it was her first time playing, her handling was clumsy.

Still, she somehow managed to grasp the bare minimum controls just as Hikaru finished her preparations.

They formed a party, and the battle began, almost completely unrehearsed.

“Alright, let’s go!” (Hikaru)
“Wh-What is this… We’re flying somehow… W-We won’t fall…?” (Ayaka)
“I-It’s okay. Hikaru’s controlling this part, so you don’t have to think about anything, Hino-san.” (Reiya)

I offered advice from the side, trying to reassure the panicking Hino-san.

Honestly, for a first-time gamer, the shooter genre… especially this fast-paced, action-heavy title, is quite difficult.

Surviving until the end would be tough, but I hoped she could at least enjoy it a little…

“Okay, landed! Enemies landed nearby too, so be careful~!” (Hikaru)

Dropping from the sky onto the battlefield, Hikaru immediately dispersed.

She’d be fine on her own, so I should focus on taking care of Hino-san.

“Wh-What should I do…!?” (Ayaka)
“For now, there are weapons inside those boxes or buildings, let’s go pick one up.” (Reiya)

Following my instructions, Hino-san headed towards a building with clumsy controls.

Once inside, luckily, a decent set of equipment was lying right nearby.

“Um… Weapon, weapon… The pick-up button is this one…” (Ayaka)
“Ah, Ayaka. An enemy might have just gone towards you.” (Hikaru)
“Eh!? E-Enemy!? Do I have to fight!?” (Ayaka)
“Yeah, sorry. I’m tied up with another one over here, so I might be a little late joining you.” (Hikaru)
“C-Calm down! It’s okay for now, let’s calmly get to an advantageous position!” (Reiya)
“Wah! Something flew in!?” (Ayaka)

As Hino-san was practically panicking, a grenade was thrown through the window towards her.

Naturally, she couldn’t avoid it and took a direct hit from the blast, leaving her near death.

Immediately after, an enemy rushed in and attacked, downing her easily.

“Ah… I got taken out…” (Ayaka)

Looking at her downed character, Hino-san muttered sadly.

Getting taken out one-sidedly without understanding anything.

As if that wasn’t a bad enough first game experience—

“…What are they doing now?” (Ayaka)

The enemy who defeated Hino-san, of all things, started ‘finisher cancel griefing.’

The finishing move animation was repeatedly cancelled at high speed, making the screen flash violently.

Even without knowing the specifics, it would be obvious she was being taunted intensely.

“D-Don’t worry about stuff like this at all! Bad manners should be ignored! Ignoring them is best!” (Reiya)

I desperately tried to smooth things over so she wouldn’t end up hating the game itself.

“It’s not like I care one bit about such childish taunting, but…” (Ayaka)

Despite her words, her voice clearly carried some kind of negative emotion.

Due to the nature of online games, encountering these kinds of ill-mannered players is absolutely unavoidable.

‘Let’s take the initiative to do things people dislike.’

In this world where that phrase is interpreted in the exact opposite way from school education, human nature is laid bare.

But to think she’d experience such depths in her very first match…

While I was feeling guilty for recommending a PvP title right off the bat, the taunting continued on screen.

Perhaps bored with finisher cancels, the enemy now started teabagging intensely, like a Cossack dance.

This is bad, bad, bad…

Thinking the blame might be directed at me for recommending it, I glanced sideways, but surprisingly, Hino-san maintained her usual calm expression.

“NoobMaster69… huh…” (Ayaka)

As she muttered the griefer’s name flatly, a shiver inexplicably ran down my spine.

Afterward, Hikaru joined up and instantly eliminated the griefer.

While I hoped that would somehow appease her, Hikaru revived Hino-san.

For the rest of the match, she stuck to safe play, just following behind Hikaru—

“Yeah! Back-to-back Champion!!” (Hikaru)

This game also ended with Hikaru’s overwhelming victory.

While Hikaru was overjoyed, asking me for a high-five, Hino-san stared blankly at the victory screen.

She’ll probably never play this again… I thought, but just then.

“…One more time.” (Ayaka)
“Eh?” (Reiya)
“I said, let’s play one more time! Come on, hurry!!” (Ayaka)

Hino-san raised her voice, demanding a rematch from Hikaru.

“Ah, okay… I don’t mind at all… But Ayaka, you’re suddenly really motivated.” (Hikaru)

Unaware of her best friend’s strange transformation, Hikaru simply started matchmaking again.

But unlike her, I, not wearing a headset, could hear it.

“Those guys… I’ll never forgive them… Next time we meet… I’ll definitely…” (Ayaka)

Hino-san muttering curses in a voice filled with resentment.