Hermione lunged forward but missed, watching helplessly as the ball bounced back against all logic after landing, only to be easily caught by Draco was already waiting at the net.
Due to the momentum of her forward run, Hermione stumbled before regaining her balance, watching Draco catch the ball with a mocking expression.
She was speechless for a moment.
"Wow--!!" The audience gasped in surprise.
"What's that? How did the ball go back by itself?!"
"The ball bounces back after hitting the ground, that violates the laws of physics, doesn't it?!"
" Draco! How much more do you know?!"
Hermione almost fell! Draco, you're too cruel!
The last sentence was spoken by Mary, whose focus was different from others. Becky was so excited she jumped up and down. "See? I told you he had a secret weapon up his sleeve! This move is even cooler than a behind-the-back shot!"
"What the hell is this?!"
Hermione found it unbelievable.
Draco tossed the ball in his hand and said, "Play more seriously, honey. Didn't you tell me to play seriously?"
"I told you to be serious, not to use this... unscientific move!" Hermione stamped her foot. "There's no way to catch this!"
"How could you not be able to return it?" Draco approached the net and laughed across the net. "Anticipate in advance and volley it in, it's just a bit difficult for you right now."
After saying that, he asked again provocatively,
Do you want me to keep taking it seriously?
Hermione's competitive spirit was ignited, and she raised her head, saying, "Go on! Who's afraid of who! Show me what you've got!" She didn't believe Draco could always pull off such a strange move.
"Yes, madam." Draco smiled.
That was the smile of a hunter seeing his prey fall into his trap.
In the following match, Draco's teaching demonstration made everyone present realize what it means to be outmatched.
With what appeared to be a light slice, the ball plummeted after clearing the net, barely bounced upon landing, slid forward a short distance along the ground, and then came to a stop.
Hermione rushed to the net, her racket practically under the ball, but missed because the ball didn't bounce. In the end, she could only watch helplessly as the ball rolled along the baseline.
On his third serve, Draco returned a cross-court shot with an extremely tricky angle. The ball landed on the sideline, then slid a short distance along the white line before finally falling into bounds.
The endless stream of moves left the audience speechless; their mouths were agape. This wasn't a match between the two sides; it was practically a showcase of individual skills!
After one round, Draco hit three straight points, and Hermione didn't catch a single ball, or even have a proper rally.
"0-40," Draco calmly announced the score, as if those incredible scores were just routine.
This round left Hermione both angry and shocked. She braced herself on her knees, panting, and glared at Draco, scolding him:
"Can't you just give in to me?!"
"I let them win, I didn't even use the previous moves, and didn't you tell me to be more serious, honey?"
Draco walked to the net, both amused and exasperated.
"I told you to be serious, not to torture your wife like this!" Hermione blurted out in embarrassment and annoyance.
"Pfft—" Someone in the audience couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Oh no, Hermione's really angry. Draco's going to be kneeling on a washboard when he gets back!" Becky suggested.
"I think he's really going to get a beating. How can someone beat their own wife like that? They don't give her any face at all," Mary said, suppressing a laugh.
"But Hermione looks so cute when she's angry."
Susan laughed along.
The teasing from the crowd reached the arena, Draco's lips twitched slightly upon hearing it, but he could always make his wife look adorably sulky.
He doesn't care at all; at worst, he'll just...
"It's my fault, I admit it." Draco sincerely admitted his mistake, "I didn't hold back and frightened the lady."
That's what they say.
But his eyes still held the look of someone who would do it again next time.
"Hmph!" Hermione turned her head away from him.
"It's my serve." Draco walked back to the baseline, picked up a ball, weighed it in his hand, and looked at Hermione across from him, asking, "Shouldn't you be more serious about your serve, honey?"
Hermione's heart skipped a beat at the word "wife," but her competitive spirit wouldn't let her back down, especially after being so badly beaten just now.
She refused to believe that there were so many tricks to serving!
"Fine, I'll serve! You think I'm afraid of you?!" Hermione raised her chin, assuming a receiving stance. Though her heart was pounding, she refused to admit defeat. "Try scoring with a weird serve yourself!"
"As you wish." Draco smiled, prepared to serve, tossed the ball, jumped, and swung his racket—his movements fluid and powerful.
The moment the tennis ball left the racket was no different from before.
But then, everyone witnessed a jaw-dropping scene: the yellow tennis ball didn't fly in a straight line; instead, it traversed an exaggerated C-shaped trajectory in the air.
Then they circled around to Hermione's right.
Then, just before it went out of bounds, it suddenly veered inwards and crashed onto the outer corner of Hermione's service court!
Therefore, Hermione completely misjudged the direction.
Based on Draco's movements and the ball's initial trajectory, she moved towards her backhand side, but the ball curved in from the outside corner, and by the time she reacted, the ball had already bounced far away.
Spin ball!
"Hiss--" A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. "Am I seeing things? The ball curved in the air?"
"The serve curves to the outside corner?! How am I supposed to receive that?!"
"Another violation of the laws of physics!"
Hermione was bewildered by the faint mark left on the sideline on the other side, her mind racing.
This is not aerodynamic!
Unless the ball experiences intense, uneven spin during its flight, combined with a specific striking angle and force, utilizing the Magnus effect and air resistance to create this bizarre arc... like a banana kick in soccer,
But this is a tennis ball; the ball is smaller and heavier.
The spin also needs to be stronger, which places an insanely high demand on the server's wrist strength, control, and technique...
"Based on fluid mechanics and rotational mechanics..." Hermione murmured unconsciously, beginning to analyze the principles of hitting the ball.
Seeing Hermione deep in thought, her brows furrowed and her muttering to herself, Draco couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Even now, his all-knowing daughter wasn't forgetting to analyze the principles. He suppressed a laugh and asked, "Have you finished analyzing? Do you want me to send you another one so you have time to study it slowly?"
Hermione was pulled back from her thoughts, her cheeks flushed, and she insisted, "No need! Let's try again!" She refused to believe she couldn't catch it!
Hermione's second serve was also a topspin serve, but the trajectory was slightly different; this time it curved towards the inside corner. Hermione tried to anticipate it.
But the ball's spin and trajectory were so unpredictable that she misjudged it again, and the ball slipped into her forehand opening.
"0-30." Hermione bit her lip.
On the third serve, Draco seemed to have taken pity on her, slowing the ball down and making its trajectory more pronounced. Hermione anticipated the ball's path and lunged towards the predicted landing point.