As soon as the first round began, the character controlled by Eriri launched a fierce attack. Judging by the action, it was an almost one-sided beatdown. (Continued)

But in reality, the conversations of the club members gathered by the windowsill had already sent her heart flying outside.

"What are you guys doing? Don't disturb everyone else while they're concentrating on their art."

With no other choice, she stopped what she was doing and asked with concern.

Because of the persona she put on, the girls weren't intimidated by her family background. Instead, they turned around with cheerful smiles and greeted her.

"Sawamura-san, how about taking a break today? Something interesting is happening downstairs."

"Yeah, exactly."

"Sawamura-san, why don't we go watch the match together? We could even draw them while they're playing! It's such a rare event at Shuchiin, so we can commemorate it and leave the drawings for future students to see."

Someone suddenly made the suggestion.

"That's a pretty good idea. I'm in!"

The others quickly agreed.

Everyone wanted to go see what was happening.

"I really can't do anything with you people, can I? Fine, let's go take a look..."

Eriri sighed and put on a reluctant expression, agreeing to their request.

"Great!"

The club members were delighted. With Eriri's standing at the academy, they wouldn't have to worry about squeezing in with everyone else to find a spot.

"Sorry for the trouble, Sawamura-san."

"It's nothing."

Eriri responded politely. She wasn't reluctant at all; in fact, she was overjoyed.

Even so, she was more worried than happy.

"That idiot Izumi. I heard his opponent is really athletic. I wonder if he can hold his own. I hope he's not just putting on a brave face."

Just as the Art Club was heading toward the scene.

Another utterly ridiculous incident unfolded on the tennis court.

"By the way, could you lend me a tennis racket? I don't have one."

Hasegawa Izumi held out his right hand and asked with a perfectly composed expression.

"Huh?"

Kawamura Kentaro and the many people present nearly thought their ears were playing tricks on them.

He was going to play tennis without bringing a racket?

Then what the hell was he playing for?

At that point, Kawamura Kentaro also noticed that his opponent really had come empty-handed. Suppressing his irritation, he instructed one of the club members, "Ishida, lend this guy your racket."

"But I just bought it... I understand."

Ishida tried to refuse, but under the club president's fierce glare, he swallowed the rest of his words.

"Here. This is a custom racket I ordered, and it was expensive, so don't break it!"

He took the racket out of his gear bag and held it out.

"Thanks. I'll be careful."

Hasegawa Izumi waved it off casually.

"All right, now you're not allowed to pull any more stunts. My patience is running out..."

"Just give me a moment."

Kawamura Kentaro was interrupted before he could finish.

At that moment, Izumi was testing the strings' elasticity between his fingers and gripping the racket, giving it a few practice swings.

"You won't get used to it in such a short time, but that's what you get for not bringing your own racket."

Kawamura Kentaro didn't make a fuss about it. As far as he was concerned, this sort of thing was perfectly normal.

A tennis racket was a tool, after all. The more comfortable it felt in your hands, the better. Even a slight difference in weight could affect the feel of a shot and your ability to play.

"No, I'm just estimating how much force I can use. I promised that student I wouldn't damage the racket, and I don't have enough money to pay for it."

Hasegawa Izumi merely shook his head, denying Kawamura Kentaro's explanation.

A few dark lines seemed to appear on Kawamura Kentaro's forehead.

Was that something a normal person would worry about?

"Enough! The match is about to begin. All you bystanders should clear out!"

He waved his hand.

The tennis club members immediately left the court.

"Go, Izumi-chan!"

"Sage, it's your time to shine."

After showing their support, Fujiwara Chika and Takanashi Rikka also went to sit on the benches outside the court.

A commotion arose among the crowd waiting for the match to begin.

Fujiwara Chika turned to look.

The crowd parted, and a group of Art Club members arrived, led by Eriri.

Oh, Eriri's here! She couldn't hold back her concern for Izumi-chan after all, could she?

Her heart stirred, and a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"Eriri, you came to watch Izumi-chan's match too!"

The moment she met Eriri's gaze while greeting her, she suddenly felt a deep chill.

"?"

A question mark appeared over the girl's head.

Had she done something to make Eriri mad?

She had no idea.

"Ahem. Everyone asked me to come. They said they wanted to record the event through art..."

Eriri gave her a benevolent smile and explained.

"Oh, I see. Then let's watch the match together."

Fujiwara Chika didn't pick up on what Eriri was really implying. With the match about to begin, she didn't continue the conversation.

"Phew."

Eriri felt relieved.

She'd almost forgotten that some people at this school knew about her relationship with Izumi...

The club's faculty advisor was a man in his thirties and a physical education teacher at Shuchiin.

After hearing about the situation, he volunteered to referee the match.

"Heads or tails?"

He tossed a coin high into the air, caught it in his right hand as it fell, then glanced at each of them and asked.

"You go first."

Kawamura Kentaro acted as though he didn't care.

"Heads."

Izumi answered.

The referee opened his fist and revealed the coin.

Izumi had guessed correctly.

He could choose whether to serve first and which side of the court to start from.

"I'll serve first, and I'll take the side I'm standing on."

He pointed at the ground beneath his feet.

They stood on opposite sides of the court, waiting for the referee's signal.

"The match will be played as a best-of-six set..."

After giving everyone a brief explanation of the rules, the referee waved the small flag in his hand.

"The match begins! Hasegawa to serve!"

Sunlight shone down as a gentle breeze passed through.

Hasegawa Izumi held the racket in his right hand. He bounced the tennis ball off the ground with his left, caught it, then did so several more times.

"Hey, big guy, have you ever heard of a twist serve?"

He suddenly lifted his head.

His sky-blue eyes gleamed brilliantly.

"I've already seen through your moves!"

"What the hell is that? Never heard of it. Just serve already! I can't wait to beat you to a pulp!"

Kawamura Kentaro rested his racket on his shoulder and spoke impatiently.

"Is that so? Then I'll make an exception and let you see one today."

Hasegawa Izumi didn't mind.

The people of the Human World had limited understanding, like frogs at the bottom of a well. They could see only a patch of sky the size of the well's opening, unable to imagine how vast the real sky was.

The person in front of him was no exception.

Their conversation left the spectators around them just as puzzled.

"A twist serve? Is that some kind of special serve?"

The tennis club members had never heard of it, and the others knew even less.

Izumi's acting up again.

Eriri thought to herself, her expression helpless.

"He's using a 'skill' right from the start? Looks like the Sage really is in a hurry."

Takanashi Rikka looked as if she understood everything, her face full of anticipation.

"What's a skill?"

Fujiwara Chika, sitting beside her, felt that her understanding of the world was painfully limited.

Standing in the service area.

Hasegawa Izumi put some force into his left hand and tossed the tennis ball into the air.

On the other half of the court, Kawamura Kentaro looked disdainful on the surface, but was quite wary inside. Holding his racket with both hands, he lowered his stance slightly and focused on tracking Izumi's movements, ready to rush toward the ball as fast as he could.

"Thwack!"

In an instant, Izumi sprang lightly off the ground, arched his back, and swung his racket in his right hand, striking the ball toward the upper right before quickly bringing his arm down.

Whoosh!

The tennis ball traced a beautiful arc across the court before dropping into his opponent's side.

What a textbook swing! And what a fast serve!

Kawamura Kentaro's heart jolted, but he still reacted in time and predicted where the ball would land.