Chapter 151: The Fate of the Penalty Game

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Translator: Soafp

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Sora and Ginji, brimming with confidence, headed straight to the goldfish scooping booth. Under colorful lights, bright orange goldfish swam about in a pale blue tank.

“They're really vibrant up close. Are we taking any home?”

“Keeping goldfish is a hassle. A lot of places now assume you'll release them.”

A group of people had just left, so the two stepped up to the front.

“Welcome! Our goldfish are lively tonight!”

The booth owner greeted them with enthusiasm — but Ginji frowned. He recognized the person sitting behind the booth.

“…What are you doing here, Saito?”

It was his friend, Saito from the baseball club, with tanned skin and a twisted headband that suited him strangely well.

“Long story. This isn't even my assigned booth…”

“Good evening, Saito-kun.”

Sora, startled by the loud voice, peeked out from behind Ginji. Seeing it was someone familiar, she relaxed.

“Gahk—!”

Saito suddenly coughed violently.

“Are you okay?”

“Ahaha, I bet seeing Sora in a yukata shocked you, huh?”

“Eh… Do I look that different?”

“He means it as a compliment. Right, Saito?”

Ginji teased, but Saito nodded with a serious expression.

“Honestly… I wasn't prepared. She's… stunning. It's like seeing a celebrity in real life. Actually, since I know what she usually looks like, it's even more shocking.”

“I didn't expect you to give such a sincere response. I get how you feel, but… you're acting weird.”

Ginji leaned in, sensing something was off.

“You being here instead of busy with baseball is weird too. What happened?”

“Nothing major. Just… Ginji, be careful. Takagi-chan's too cute, and rumors are spreading fast. Our squad is mostly wiped out — we can't move anymore. Murata's been smiling motionlessly for ten minutes…”

The second half was muttered under his breath and didn't reach their ears.

“Yeah… I figured that might happen. Thanks for the warning. I'll protect Sora — I am her boyfriend, after all.”

“I doubt those rumors are about me. Anyway, Saito-kun, can we try scooping goldfish?”

Sora smoothly shifted the topic, ignoring Saitō's odd behavior.

“Well, there are rumors about Ginji too, so it'll probably be fine… Alright, go ahead. 300 yen for two scoops. You can take home up to two fish, but don't dip the bowl into the water. If you release them, I'll give you a candy.”

“Let's release them, yeah?”

“Yup.”

They paid and received their paper scoops and bowls from Saito. Sora stuck out her tongue at Ginji playfully.

“We start on ‘Ready, go!' okay?”

“Yeah, whenever you are.”

They readied their scoops.

“Ready… go!”

Both moved with experienced hands.

“I've beaten Tetsu before — never lost a goldfish match. I won't lose to someone who's new to this.”

Ginji skillfully angled the scoop to minimize damage to the paper and efficiently caught goldfish. His steady hand filled his bowl quickly.

“Mmph… You don't look dexterous, but you're pretty good.”

“Face has nothing to do with it.”

“But I've figured out the trick too.”

Sora used her sharp observation skills to target slower fish and those lingering at the edges. Her scoop handling wasn't quite as precise as Ginji's, but it was still impressive.

As their scoops began to wear down, they both fell silent and concentrated. Eventually, both their scoops tore — almost simultaneously.

“Damn, I got greedy.”

“Shouldn't have gone for the big one…”

When they compared bowls, Ginji had caught slightly more. They returned the fish to the tank and received candy from Saito. Ginji puffed out his chest triumphantly.

“Close one, but I win.”

“Ugh… I feel like I only lost because I took too long to get the hang of it… One more time!”

“No, there's a line forming. Let's check out the other games. Later, Saito.”

“Yeah. And don't forget what I told you.”

“I got it.”

“I still think it's a misunderstanding… Bye, Saito-kun.”

Sora waved while adjusting her yukata collar. Saito gazed up at the sky.

“Gahh… Y-Yeah. You two enjoy the festival… It's all up to you now…”

As the couple walked away, they thought they saw some people helping hold Saito up — but he quickly vanished into the crowd.

“He was coughing again at the end.”

“He'll be fine. He's tough. Anyway, let's try more games. This is a penalty game, remember? That's one win for me.”

“Oh yeah. I won't lose next time!”

They left Saito's strange behavior behind and dove into the festival games.

At the shooting game, Ginji leaned forward dangerously and shot down a weird-looking figure, while Sora achieved a perfect score at ring toss.

The two played with genuine excitement, sometimes getting seriously frustrated, other times cheering each other on.
Even walking the short distances between booths, they stayed hand-in-hand, chatting about their scores and victories.

The back-and-forth continued until they reached the final event: candy molds.

“Don't underestimate me — I worked a welding job. I'm great at this.”

“I've done fine detailed work for sculptures and art. I'm good too. Let's pick the hardest one — the dragon!”

“That beard's way too detailed… Fine, let's do it. Mister, two dragons.”

“Coming up. And no wetting them.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

They were handed the trays. At the table beside the booth, they carefully unboxed their molds.

“…”

“…”

With intense focus, they carved out the shape using toothpicks. Sora peeked sideways — Ginji was slightly ahead.

“H-Hey Ginji… we never agreed on the penalty game. What is it?”

“Ah? I forgot. When I play with the guys, we just make the loser buy something—”

“You'll buy me everything!?”

Ginji broke into a cold sweat at her delighted reaction.

“No way! Look, the point is just having a penalty — doesn't matter what it is.”

“…Then can I choose?”

“Sure.”

“Alright. I'm going all in.”

“I'm already way ahead, though…”

Snip snip snip snip snip…

“You're kidding—! Wait, crap!”

As Ginji panicked watching her sudden boost in speed, the dragon's horn on his mold snapped.

And then Sora, with flared nostrils and fierce determination, presented her flawless dragon mold.

Now the two were walking along the riverbank toward the best viewing spot for fireworks.

“…So, what's my penalty? Lay it on me.”

“Um… Ginji. I…”

Sora's hazel eyes shimmered with emotion. She gripped his hand and opened her mouth—

“Hey, Sora-chii, Ginji! Finally found you guys! We were looking everywhere!”

“That's him? He's cute! Kinda hot, right?”

“Mutsu would totally be into him. And Sora-chii! That yukata is next level! Can I take a pic?!”

Suzu, Mutsu, and Tsukki — the gyaru girls from the all-girls school — came running over in yukata.

“Suzu and the others… You know them, Sora?”

“…”

“Wait — was that bad timing…? Sorry, Sora-chii!!”

Sora puffed out her cheeks adorably in frustration.