The next scene was brutal for Haruno.
The cue ball traced a half-circle across the table, pocketing the first ball.
The cue ball leapt into the air, spun, and landed swiftly, pocketing the second ball.
The cue ball bounced around like a marble, pocketing the third ball.
The cue ball executed a three-star alignnt, pocketing the fourth, fifth, and sixth balls.
The cue ball used a "brown bear net," pocketing the seventh ball.
"Alright, that should do it."
The cue stick moved at an imperceptible speed, and the cue ball forcefully struck the eighth ball.
As it sank into the pocket, the cue ball kept spinning in place, like a tire stuck in mud...
Then it suddenly shot up, whistling through the air, flying toward Yuu’s face.
*SLAP!*
It was caught by a waiting palm.
"Done."
Expert-level skill ant the pinnacle of human technique.
Even such fantastical artistic billiards techniques were, for Yuu, rely a matter of whether he chose to fully unleash his ability.
He tossed the ball back and turned to face Haruno.
"I won again, right?"
"..."
While Yuu was shooting, Haruno, whose worldview had been shattered multiple tis, was too drained to look at him like he was an alien.
She didn’t even bother maintaining her smile, leaning half against the billiards table with a blank expression, glancing at him coldly and indifferently, answering in a hollow voice:
"Yeah, you won. Congrats, you’ve passed two trials."
Her attitude was completely different.
Feeling as though he was seeing another side of Haruno, Yuu, while intrigued, didn’t forget the decision he’d just made.
As he pulled all the balls from the pockets and placed them back on the table, he spoke to her in a casual, natural tone, like chatting with a friend:
"Hey, have you never lost since you were a kid?"
"Hm?"
As if lost in thought staring into the empty distance, Haruno shifted her gaze back to him, answering listlessly.
"Not never, but I’ve literally never lost."
"That impressive?"
"Of course~" Haruno swung her smooth legs under her sports shorts, speaking in a flat tone. "Don’t look at losing badly twice now—since I was little, I’ve never gotten second place in exams or competitions."
"Forget those younger or my age, even seniors with years more experience than —if I put in a bit more ti to learn, even if I can’t surpass them, I at least won’t lose."
As if recalling many boring things, Haruno shrugged, pretending to be casual as she looked at him.
"So, this kind of frustration? It’s my first ti feeling it."
"Finally experiencing the sa thing, sniff sniff, so this is what it feels like to be weak~"
Yuu hesitated but couldn’t hold back from saying:
"Your attitude is really annoying."
"Mutual~" Haruno laughed heartily, but her eyes held little amusent, only a calm acceptance of everything.
"I’m not stupid. I wouldn’t say things like that in front of others."
"Geniuses get envied, ostracized, and bullied, but that’s only because they lack the ability to control others with their own strength."
"So yeah, I won’t arrogantly stand at the top just because of my exceptional talent and beauty, okay?"
"—People like that, sooner or later, get blown away by a strong wind, falling and shattering into pieces."
Sotis proudly raising her chin, sotis deeply lowering her brows, her expressions shifted vividly like a changing mask, captivating those who saw her.
Finally pursing her lips, Haruno concluded with a mocking tone:
"People who don’t even understand this principle can only go so far."
Yuu knew who she ant—still that schoolmate he’d never t, Yukinoshita Yukino.
Haruno seed to have a deep obsession with her sister. Even normal conversations often veered toward her, and most weren’t positive.
It was like she was venting emotions she didn’t dare show openly.
To Haruno, Yuu was a rent-a-boyfriend—a stranger who’d have no connection with her after a week if the contract wasn’t renewed. That’s why she freely showed her annoying side and her constant criticism of her sister.
Their relationship was a lie that could end anyti, and everything built on it could be erased when the lie ended.
That’s why Haruno had no sha.
"Hmm..."
As if intrigued by sothing, Yuu stared at the side of her face.
Mature and radiant, elegant and beautiful.
Like thick snow covering the slopes of Hachiman in winter, never fully lting in that season.
Though the sunlight was sotis intense, beneath that thin layer of snow lay only a grayish-black road, not particularly beautiful, that had been there for years.
This was probably the second ti Yuu glimpsed a certain truth about the Yukinoshita family.
Following an impulse in his heart, Yuu asked:
"Haruno-san, is your goal in hiring a ’rent-a-boyfriend’ really just to enjoy a one-ti fling?"
"Eh?"
Haruno froze in place, looking at him in surprise.
After a long pause, she slowly raised her slender chin, pursing her lips slightly, gazing at the ceiling in thought.
"Well~"
In a drawn-out tone, Haruno suddenly tilted her head, her eyes like two black fish falling from a height into a pond, resting motionlessly at the bottom of her white sclera.
She looked at Yuu calmly, a faint smile on her lips, and said in a sweet, cute voice:
"If not, what do you want, Boyfriend-sama?~"
As if expecting this, Yuu sighed: "Can you not answer a question with a question?... Whatever."
He suddenly raised the cue stick, aid at the positioned cue ball, bent down, and didn’t look back at her.
"If you’re not in a rush for the next match, let’s use the remaining ti. We’ve rented the table for an hour, after all."
"Eh—so sudden?" A flicker of doubt crossed Haruno’s face, and she complained in an annoyed tone.
"I still wanted to chat with Yuu-chan... Besides, your skills are so good, I’m not enjoying the ga at all~"
*PANG!*
Her words barely finished when, like fireworks exploding, the fifteen colored balls scattered. Six pockets right in front of her filled with balls, but none fell in.
Calmly pulling back the cue stick, Yuu stood to the side, a friendly smile on his lips, saying kindly to Haruno:
"Want to experience playing? Don’t worry, I’ll go easy."
When it ca to being annoying, he wouldn’t lose to the university student before him.
"..."
Staring at him, Haruno was montarily expressionless.
The heat from outside seed to seep in, evaporating all the cold air around them.
But soon after, she flashed a bright smile.
Grabbing the cue stick from the side with enough force to snap it, Haruno slowly walked toward Yuu.
"So annoying~ Since you said that, I’ll go easy just this once and accept this cheap provocation!"
As she stood beside him, in a voice only he could hear, sweet yet fierce, she uttered:
"You little brat, don’t underestimate adults!"
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, host has received a reward: ...yen.]
[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Extre Anger (Status) one-ti use.]
[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Table Tennis (Expert Level).]
[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Minor physical enhancent (impact resistance).]
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