Chapter 112: Game Center

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Translator: Soafp

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Final day of exams. Having finished the last test, Ginji looked up and sighed.

He felt the kind of pleasant exhaustion that made him want to collapse and just melt into the moment. Since it was the last day of exams, there were no afternoon classes—students got to leave early.

“Hey, Ginji! How'd it go?”

Tanaka, equally tired, came up to him. Dark circles hung under his eyes, and he seemed to carry an aura of dampness, like mold could start growing on him at any moment.

“Yeah, I think I did okay.”

“…Back when we first enrolled, our scores were neck and neck. You've gotten pretty confident, huh. Must be the power of having a girlfriend.”

“Having a girlfriend… well, I guess that's part of it.”

Sora had drilled the basics into him thoroughly, given him dozens of custom-made practice sheets, tutored him with kind patience, and even prepared snacks and tea to help him concentrate. And the biggest motivation of all—her brilliant smile every time he got a question right. Her presence was enormous.

“Ugh, listen to you gush. You two were practically glued together the whole exam period. People are talking, you know.”

“Figured as much… but strangely, no one really bothers us. Aside from you guys teasing me once in a while.”

Sora had not only topped the monthly exams but had become noticeably more beautiful lately. Of course, she was drawing attention. Ginji had seen guys trying to casually wander into their classroom during breaks, obviously hoping to see her.

But oddly enough, no one actually tried to make a move. Sure, Aika's entourage still gave them the cold shoulder and whispered behind their backs, but Sora's rising popularity had made overt bullying fade. Compared to when Ginji had first declared he'd be on Sora's side, things were downright peaceful.

“Well… I guess that's a good thing. Anyway, exams are finally over! Let's enjoy the little time we've got before results come out and the end-of-term assembly. Wanna hit up the arcade?”

“Sure. Mind if Sora comes too? She actually really enjoys arcades.”

“Wait—Takagi-san too!? I-I mean, I don't mind… but would she even want to?”

Tanaka hesitated, but before anyone could answer, a small figure popped out from the side.

“I don't mind! Arcades are fun!”

Sora had leaned over Ginji's desk, smiling brightly.

“O-oh, right. In that case, maybe we grab lunch, then meet up afterward in casual clothes? How about Shooting Star?”

Shooting Star was a game center not far from school. It was an odd mix of old and new—some areas still allowed smoking and had retro arcade cabinets, while others featured cutting-edge online games. You could call it nostalgic… or just plain outdated.

“Got it.”

“Never been, but if I'm with Ginji, I'll be fine.”

“R-right. Takagi-chan's coming too, huh… Aha… See you there, then.”

They arranged a time to meet and left the classroom with their bags. Back at his desk, Tanaka was cheerfully packing his things when…

“…Tanaka. You've done it now.”

“You crossed the line, man.”

Both of Tanaka's shoulders were grabbed—by Murakami (making a long-awaited return) and Saito. Their pupils were fully dilated.

“M-Murakami?! Saito, you're not even in this class! What are you doing here!?”

“We heard. You're going to the arcade with Takagi-chan. That's not just unfair—it's immoral.”

“Right. That place can be dangerous. We'd better come along for safety.”

“Give me a break! This was my lucky win after inviting Ginji…”

Tanaka trailed off for one simple reason—out in the hallway, a quiet but menacing crowd of boys had appeared and were glaring daggers at him. Among them were even a few girls, eyes bloodshot, glaring even harder.

“Let's have a little chat elsewhere, Tanaka. Don't worry, it'll be quick.”

“Nooo! I'm in the ping-pong club—I can't fight this! Stop! Let me goooo!”

Meanwhile, completely unaware of this unfolding drama, Ginji and Sora had changed clothes at home and met back up in front of their usual spot at the shopping street.

“Yo, long time no see.”

“Yeah, been waiting. I wore pants like you said.”

Ginji was dressed casually in an aloha shirt and jeans, while Sora had styled her hair in playful tufts, wearing a houndstooth-patterned shirt tucked into khaki shorts, topped with a sun-shielding long-sleeve hoodie and a newsboy cap. Through the open hoodie, the gentle curve of her chest—hardly noticeable in her school uniform—was now quite visible.

“…Told you to wear pants ‘cause that place is full of guys, but now I'm wondering if that backfired.”

Seeing how much effort Sora had put into dressing up for their outing made Ginji chuckle as he patted her hat.

“Eh? Really?”

Sora instinctively zipped up her hoodie a little more.

“Anyway, with me and Tanaka there, you'll be fine. You can always back out if you're uncomfortable.”

“No, I want to go… Just make sure to protect me, okay, boyfriend?”

“You got it. I suck at fighting, but I'll always protect you, Sora.”

She had meant to tease, but Ginji's straightforward response caught her off guard. Blushing, she clung to his arm.

“…You've got a villain's face, though.”

“My face has nothing to do with it. Now hop on.”

“Okay!”

Sora hopped onto the rear seat of Ginji's bike, and he pushed off hard on the pedals.

“When we get back, we're reviewing the test, remember?”

“Yeah, I'm feeling pretty confident.”

“Really? Then I better start thinking of your reward. I'm looking forward to summer break!”

Chatting like that, they soon arrived at the front of Shooting Star. It was across from an abandoned movie theater, its flickering neon signs barely hanging on. Students and bored adults loitered out front. Near the side parking lot, a group of boys stood waiting.

“Oh, more than just Tanaka showed up.”

“That's Saito and Murakami, right?”

Looking visibly more worn out than this morning, Tanaka stood between Saito and Murakami, both of whom were smiling suspiciously.

“Yo, Ginji! Heard you were hitting the arcade, so we—huh?”

“Yeah yeah, no ulterior motives at all… b-but casual clothes…”

The moment they saw Sora, both boys froze. Murakami even wiped his eyes.

“Hmm, I said hi this morning, so it's not scary… What's wrong, you guys?”

“Ahhh, so it was too much…”

For guys with little interaction with girls, Sora in casual clothes was far too powerful. Even Ginji, used to being around her, didn't realize how desensitized he'd become. A quick flick to the forehead brought the dazed trio back to reality, and they finally stepped into the comfortably air-conditioned arcade.

“It's been a while since I've been here.”

“Well, you've been with Sora-chan a lot lately. Huh? I lost my account card. Guess I'll have to make a new one.”

“It smells… but I kind of like the atmosphere. Makes me want to sketch the perspective.”

Sora wrinkled her nose at the mix of stale AC and cigarette smoke as she looked around the arcade with genuine curiosity.

“Haha, different vibe from the arcade by the station, right? Since we're here, let's do a match on one of the arcade machines.”

“Arcade? Ooh, the joystick is a nice change. I've played this game at home before.”

Without hesitation, Ginji and Sora sat at one of the machines. It was the kind where you choose from several games and can battle someone locally if you pick the same title.

They selected an old fighting game. After a quick glance at the instructions on the machine, Sora chose her character. Ginji also picked one with practiced ease, while the other three stood behind to watch.

…Actually, the audience wasn't just the three of them. Some of the “All Blacks” — their test-failure crew — had heard about what was happening and showed up at the arcade. On top of that, a few regulars, drawn by the rare sight of a girl in the guy-dominated space, were watching with interest.

“You usually use a controller, right? Bet you're not used to the joystick. This round's mine.”

“Oh? You sure you wanna say that? I've been practicing fighting games recently, you know.”

With playful banter, the two started the match.

Ginji picked a grappler and played defensively, while Sora picked a combo character and aggressively attacked. Ginji easily won the first round, but when Sora asked for a rematch, the tide began to turn.

“Ugh, she's mixing up highs and lows now. I can't get a grab in.”

“As long as you don't perfect-guard me, I can keep pressing. And once I land a hit, it's combo time.”

Sora stuck out her tongue cheekily—she had already figured out Ginji's guarding habits and exploited them mercilessly.

Watching from behind, Saito and the others whispered amongst themselves.

“She's completely read his patterns.”

“So this is how Ginji fell…”

“Takagi-chan's got a real aggressive streak, huh.”

The three nodded in understanding.

“Hey, quit your commentary back there!”

“Ah, opening!”

“Gah!”

The words “YOU LOSE” flashed across Ginji's screen as his character collapsed. He slumped in defeat. For the record, this game let the winner continue for up to three matches.

“Alright, my turn! I'll show you my fiery spinning top!”

“Stop with the references no one gets. Give it up, Saito—you don't stand a chance.”

“Leave this to me, a proud member of the ping pong club.”

Pushing Ginji aside, Tanaka confidently took the seat.

…And then all three were thoroughly demolished in succession.

Someone else in the arcade challenged Sora after seeing her skills, but—

“Uh, u-uh…”

As usual, Sora froze in front of a stranger and hid behind Ginji. He politely declined the match and led her away.

They went on to enjoy some online quiz games next.

“Ginji, do you know this one?”

“Nope. But since the last two were B, I bet this one's C.”

“You're right, but that's cheating. Still, good job. I'll give you a compliment.”

“……”
“……”
“……”

“You doing okay, Sora? Not tired?”

“Nope, I'm fine. Thanks, Ginji. Look, let's try that game next.”

“……”
“……”
“……”

After making a full round of the arcade, Ginji finally looked at the three guys and found them all silently staring into space, each holding a can of coffee.

“…What's with you guys?”

“Why are you all drinking canned coffee?”

Ginji and Sora exchanged puzzled glances.

“Well, um… my mouth felt a bit too sweet…”

“She's way too much up close… Ginji, man… you're something else…”

“Takagi-chan smiles way more outside of school… Guh…”

Even the other All Blacks lurking nearby had glassy eyes and drifting souls, overwhelmed by Sora's affectionate expressions outside school. Sure, Sora often smiled around Ginji at school, but seeing her in casual clothes, openly affectionate without the pressure of Aika or her group, was downright lethal.

With the guys acting weird and more and more eyes on them, they decided to call it a day.

On the way home, Ginji pedaled the bike with Sora riding on the back, both reminiscing happily about their time at the arcade.

“That was a blast. It's been a while since we just hung out.”

“Yeah. That arcade's like a shared space, huh?”

“Shared space?”

“I saw a few familiar faces—first and second-years from school.”

“Huh, didn't even notice. Guess we all had the same idea after exams, huh?”

“Yeah, but having so many people around made me a bit nervous. I used my brain a lot too, so let's slice up some yokan when we get home. And we've got test review to do.”

“Once we're done with that, it's finally summer break.”

“Hehe… I'm looking forward to it because you'll be there, Ginji.”

“…And I'm looking forward to it because you will be there, Sora.”

They laughed together as they headed home.

…For the record, the All Blacks never once tried to sneak a photo of Sora—that's how strong their bond was. But whispers spread from those who had seen her that day: “She was insanely cute,” “Just being near that aura made me tear up,” “I bombed the test, but seeing Takagi-chan having fun made it all worth it.” Quietly, Sora's popularity surged even higher.