My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 23

I picked up the tennis ball rolling on the ground and gently tossed it to Yuihama.

"She'll be back sooner or later, you can continue practicing."

"……Um!"

Totsuka answered with great enthusiasm and resumed his practice.

He never shows weakness, nor does he utter a complaint.

He has already tried his best.

"I'm tired~~ It's your turn to feed the ball, you introverted guy."

It was Hihama who complained of being tired first...

Well, I have nothing else to do anyway, so I can just squat on the ground and observe the ants.

Moreover, that ant has already died at the hands of the lumber carrier, and I have absolutely nothing to do now, I'm so bored I'm practically frantic.

"Okay, it's my turn."

"That's great. Ah, you'll probably get tired of it after about five balls, so be careful."

Five balls? That's way too fast! Just how little patience do you have?

I took the tennis ball from Yuihama's hand, and at that moment her smiling expression suddenly turned sour.

"Ah, someone's playing tennis! Tennis!"

Hearing the sounds of laughter and chatter coming from behind, I turned around and saw a large group centered around Hayama and Miura. As they walked past Zaimokuza towards us, they also noticed me and Yuihama.

"Ah...it's Yui and the others..."

The girl next to Miura whispered.

Miura glanced at me and Yuihama again before ignoring them and going to talk to Totsuka. As for Zaimokuza, she seemed to have never taken it seriously from the beginning.

"Totsuka~ Can we play here too?"

"Miura-kun, I'm not playing around... I'm practicing..."

"Huh? What? I can't hear you."

Miura seemed not to hear Totsuka's quiet rebuttal, silencing him with a single sentence. However, if I were asked that, I probably wouldn't dare utter a sound either, because it's truly terrifying.

Totsuka mustered his last bit of courage and spoke again:

"I...I was practicing..."

But the Queen didn't care at all.

"Oh, but there are people from outside the tennis club present too, which means it's not just the men's tennis club that can use the courts, right?"

“That’s right…”

"Then we should be able to use the court too, right?"

"But……"

At this point, Totsuka looked at me, seemingly at a loss. Huh? Me?

Yes, it really is just me left. Yukinoshita has disappeared somewhere, Yuihama awkwardly turned her head away, and Zaimokuza can't help... so I have to step in.

"Ah, I'm sorry, the court was borrowed by Totsuka specifically for its use, so no one else can use it."

"What? So what? You non-club members use it too, don't you?"

"Oh, no. We're assisting Totsuka with his practice; it's more like a business contract or outsourced manpower."

"What? What nonsense are you spouting? That's disgusting."

Good heavens, this woman doesn't want to listen to me at all. That's why I hate brainless sluts! If you can't communicate verbally, are you even a primate? It's easier for me to talk to a dog.

"Okay, okay, don't get excited."

Hayama jumped in to smooth things over.

"It's more fun playing together, isn't that better?"

Upon hearing those words, a fire immediately ignited within me.

Miura cocked the pistol, while Hayama pulled the trigger.

So, the next step is to shoot.

"Who are you referring to as 'everyone'? Is it the 'everyone' you argued with Mom about, 'Everyone else has it but I don't'? Who are those people? I've never had any friends, so I've never used that kind of reason..."

"Shooting" and "melancholy"! A miraculous combination ("shooting" and "melancholy" are pronounced the same).

Even Hayama would panic upon hearing such words.

"Ah, no, that's not what I meant... I apologize first, I'm sorry. Um... if you don't mind, you can come to me for advice if you have any troubles."

Ye Shan tried his best to comfort me.

He's such a good person, I almost thanked him with tears in my eyes.

but--

If cheap sympathy could save me, would I still be this kind of person? If a mere word could solve all my troubles, no one would suffer from them.

"...Hayama, your gentleness makes me very happy. I know you are a good person, and you are the ace of the soccer club. Plus, you are so handsome, you must be very popular with girls."

"W-Why are you suddenly bringing this up..."

Hearing the sudden praise, Hayama visibly wavered. "Hmph, go ahead and be happy."

You'll never know.

Why praise others? It's to elevate them to the heavens first, then to bring them crashing down from their pedestals!

This is my tactic.

"You're almost perfect, so why are you competing with me, who has nothing, for the court? Don't you feel ashamed as a human being?"

"That's right! Hayama, your actions are unethical and utterly despicable! This is aggression! I will seek revenge!"

A timber stand appeared beside me, followed by the sound of gongs and drums.

"When the two of you are together, the feelings of inferiority and irritability are greatly amplified..."

Yuihama, standing to the side, didn't know what to say, while Hayama scratched his head and sighed softly.

"Hmm...I see..."

A wicked smile crept across my lips.

That's right, Hayama doesn't like to make things awkward, and right now, it's me, Zaimokuza, and Hayama present. Hayama will be forced to submit to the majority and accept our demands.

"Hey~~ Hayato~~"

Just then, a very dull voice broke in from the side.

"Why haven't you finished talking yet? I want to play tennis."

Damn it, that idiot curly-haired woman is here again. Are your brain cells even curly? Can't you even listen to our conversation? It's people like you who would confuse the accelerator and the brake.

In fact, Miura really did misjudge the accelerator and brake.

Her interjection gave Ye Shan time to think, allowing him to use the brief lull to come up with a good solution.

"Hmm... Ah, how about this? Let the non-male tennis club members play against each other, and the winner can use the court during lunch break. Of course, they also have to practice with Totsuka. Practicing with someone who is more skilled will be more helpful for Totsuka, and everyone will be happier too."

...This idea is too perfect, are you a genius?

"Playing tennis? What? That sounds really interesting."

Miura revealed the ferocious smile characteristic of the Fire Queen.

Meanwhile, her entourage cheered loudly.

Everyone got excited when they heard about the upcoming competition. Amidst the frenzy and commotion, our training suddenly entered its third phase.

They talk a good game, but it's actually a game where the right to use the stadium is at stake.

Why does it become like this...

× × ×

I had joked about things like fanaticism and riots, but it all came true.

At this moment, the tennis courts located in a corner of the campus were packed with people.

I did a quick count, and the number of people at the scene far exceeded two hundred. Of course, there were members of the Yeshan Group, as well as a bunch of people who had heard the news from somewhere and came to see what was going on.

Most of them are Hayama's friends and supporters, with the majority being second-year students, but some are also first-year and third-year students.

Hayama is really outrageous; he might even be more prestigious than some politicians.

"Hayato, go for it! Hayato, go for it!"

The audience cheered for Hayama and even did a wave dance, as if they were at their idol's concert. However, most of them probably weren't really supporting Hayama, but just joined in the fun because they thought it was funny... I think that's right, isn't it? Let's hope so.

From an outsider's perspective, it was practically a religion. Their fervor was chilling; they were truly terrifying youth cultists.

Amidst the chaos, Hayama strode confidently towards the center of the court. Surrounded by so many spectators, he showed no fear, seemingly accustomed to the attention he received. Besides his usual followers, he was now surrounded by male and female students from other classes.

We were completely engulfed; our vision had been blurry since the beginning, and even with our eyes closed, the deafening noise made us dizzy and disoriented.

Hayama had already picked up his racket and stood on the court, watching curiously as we decided who would play.

"Hey, you autistic guy, what do we do now?"

"How should I know what to do..."

Yui asked me uneasily, and I glanced at Totsuka, who looked like a rabbit taken to a stranger's house.

He walked timidly to my side, his legs tucked in, a truly adorable posture.

It seems I wasn't the only one who thought this way; Totsuka's appearance also aroused the girls' protective instincts, and they all shouted loudly, "Prince~~" and "Aya~~".

But every time Totsuka heard the cheers of support, his shoulders would tremble, and then the supporters would cheer even more excitedly, which made me excited too.

"Totsuka can't play..."

Hayama said this was a match between non-male tennis club members; in other words, it was a contest that staked Totsuka and the right to use the tennis courts.

"...Zaimokuzai, do you play tennis?"

"Leave it to me. I've read all the comics and even went to see the stage play. I'm quite good at tennis."

"Never mind, I can't believe I was stupid enough to ask you. Also, since you're going to use 'teiki' to refer to tennis, then you should change how you refer to stage plays too." ("Teiki" is the Japanese kanji for tennis)

"Then you'll have to go on stage... Hey, what are the Japanese kanji for stage plays?"

"indeed……"

"Do you have a chance of winning? So, I'm asking you, what exactly are the Japanese kanji for the stage play?!"

"How could I possibly win? And you're so noisy! If you don't know what you're doing, then change your character's backstory! Your character's backstory has already been ruined."

"Oh, I see... You're so smart."

Timber genuinely admires me. His problem is solved, but mine remains completely unchanged. Sigh... what should I do?

I racked my brains for a solution, while the person on the other end was rudely urging me on loudly.

"Hey, can you hurry up?"

You're so noisy, you slut!

As I cursed inwardly, I looked up and saw Miura checking the condition of his racket.

I wasn't the only one surprised by this; Hayama was too.

"Huh? You want to fight too?"

"What? Of course! I just said I wanted to play tennis."

"But they'll most likely send a boy. You mean that guy... Penguin? Anyway, it'll be him. That's a bit disadvantageous for you."

Who is Pixiv? Pixiv won't be playing; it'll be Hachiman... I guess.

After Hayama's analysis, Miura gently pulled at her long, curly hair and thought for a moment.

"Ah, how about we change it to a mixed doubles match? Ugh~ How come I'm so smart? But, does anyone want to team up with Penguin? Just thinking about it makes me laugh."

Miura let out a shrill laugh devoid of any elegance, and the audience roared with laughter; even I couldn't help but chuckle. Hahaha, ha, ha, ha, ha! This tactic was despicable yet incredibly effective; suddenly, everything went black before my eyes.