“Oh! Isn’t that Xiao Qian Qian… ahem, I an Xiao Qian!” Seeing Li Qian, Ling Ning walked over with a playful smile. Though she was tempted to call her “Xiao Qian Qian,” she figured doing so would probably get her punched.
Behind Ling Ning, Xia You and Xu Qing were still silently trading “eye beams” at each other. But when they noticed Li Qian, they both stopped glaring and turned to look at her.
“This… this b***h! Tomorrow’s the college entrance exam, and she’s out wandering around? And if that wasn’t bad enough, why did she have to co looking for Ling Ning?” both thought, feeling mutual frustration.
“Oh, um…” Li Qian blinked, a bit flustered as Ling Ning greeted her. “I… I was just out for a casual walk and just happened to end up here. It’s just a coincidence! Don’t get the wrong idea!”
Ling Ning looked at her, unimpressed. Did Li Qian think she’d die if she wasn’t tsundere? Sure, Li Qian’s house wasn’t too far from her place, but “a walk” wouldn’t lead her all the way here. She could’ve co up with a more believable excuse.
“Well, Miss Li Qian, since you’ve ‘walked all this way,’ would you like to co up for breakfast? I accidentally bought an extra portion,” Ling Ning offered with a resigned sigh.
“W-well… since you’re inviting so sincerely, I suppose I can stay for a while.”
“…Sure.”
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Sitting together after breakfast, the three girls silently glanced around the room, not saying a word. Ling Ning was starting to feel a strange, stifling awkwardness. Since they’d finished eating, the trio had only spoken when replying to her, and now it felt like they were each on high alert.
“Uh… how about we play a ga to loosen up a bit before the college entrance exam?”
Ling Ning finally suggested, unable to bear the tension any longer. She got up and pulled out the console she’d won from a prize draw. Although she didn’t ga much, she had a few on hand.
“A ga sounds great! It’s been so long—I wonder if my skills have gotten rusty,” Li Qian said, her smile full of excitent.
Xu Qing, anwhile, looked at the console with a hint of reluctance. It wasn’t that she disliked gaming; in fact, she’d once loaded a variety of gas onto her computer. But she’d ultimately deleted them all because… well, she was hopelessly clumsy.
Turn-based gas were the only ones she could handle, and she didn’t find them thrilling enough to keep playing.
As for Xia You, she was known as a ga strategy expert. With her strange knack for gaming, she could master any ga after just a few tries. Hearing about the ga, her eyes glead with confidence.
“So, which ga should we play?” Ling Ning scanned her collection before settling on True Scarlet Hero 7. Ever since she’d played it with Chen Ruo, she’d been hooked on its simple but exhilarating gaplay.
True Scarlet Hero 7 allowed two players to play simultaneously, which ant soone would have to be Ling Ning’s partner. But who?
The three girls exchanged glances, none willing to give up their spot.
“Well, if we’re playing a ga, we should let a ga decide who gets to play first,” Xia You proposed.
“Ling Ning, do you have any fighting gas on the console?”
Ling Ning checked her console and found a wrestling ga titled Bi♂Li♂King. “How about this one?” she asked, pointing to it.
The three girls nodded in agreent. None of them had played this ga before, so it would be a fair contest.
Since Xu Qing wasn’t confident in her skills, they let her go last. Xia You and Li Qian would duel first, with the winner going up against Xu Qing.
Ling Ning watched the three of them prepare to play, bewildered by their intensity. They were acting as if they were about to head into battle, just for a simple ga.
The mont Xia You picked up the controller, her entire deanor shifted. Gone was her usual reserved self; in its place was a calm, self-assured confidence that even Ling Ning hadn’t seen before. Though Ling Ning knew Xia You was a skilled gar, it was her first ti actually watching Xia You play.
Seeing Xia You’s confident aura, Li Qian felt an unexpected pang of unease.
The ga began, and as soon as Xia You familiarized herself with the controls, the match was effectively over. Though Li Qian managed a few hits at the start, once Xia You got the hang of the moves, it turned into a one-sided beatdown.
Even after the match ended, Li Qian couldn’t quite believe she’d lost so quickly. She’d thought she’d had the upper hand at the beginning, but it had slipped away in an instant.
As for Xu Qing, she didn’t even land a single hit before being KO’d by Xia You. Watching her muscle-bound character get pinned down on the screen, Xu Qing felt her spirit shatter. Getting KO’d without even a hit was just… too crushing.
But Xu Qing regained so confidence playing True Scarlet Hero 7. With the ga set to “Paradise” difficulty, even survival was a challenge. Against paper-thin soldiers and frail mini-bosses, Xu Qing beca the most animated player among them.
anwhile, Ling Ning and Xia You played on “Shura” difficulty. With her skill level, Ling Ning nearly got KO’d several tis, and if not for Xia You’s tily interventions, she might’ve lost in front of everyone.
Watching Xia You’s gaming prowess, Li Qian thought to herself, “Why did I ever agree to play a fighting ga with her? I was just asking to be humiliated.”
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“Who knew such a simple ga could be so exhausting? I can’t believe I lost track of ti and played the whole day.”
Ling Ning stretched out on the couch, resting her head on Xia You’s lap. Xia You’s lap, she thought, was truly a heavenly place to be.
Xia You smiled softly, reaching out to smooth Ling Ning’s slightly ssy hair.
“Xia You~”
“Hmm?”
“Do your best in tomorrow’s exam~”
“Hmm.”
“Xia You~”
“Hmm?”
“Will you make dinner tonight?”
“Hmm.”
“You’re the best, Xia You~”
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Author’s Note:
Originally, I wanted to use B-san in a backless sweater, but I think I’ve had so bad luck lately, so here’s Madokami instead!
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