Chapter 100: First and Second Update! Player Checkmate...

The King's words were clear and concise.

Li Hai had no one to refute.

However, the only survivor of Higa, Nagashiro Kide, did not hear anything at all.

Or perhaps it should be said that he could no longer hear anything.

...What kind of ball is this?

What the hell is this ball what ball what ball what ball?! ! !

This speed, this precision, this time difference, and even this ghostly and elusive ethereality,

This kid...how could he possibly possess such strength? ! !

The yellow ball, resting quietly at the bottom white line of Higa Middle School's court, silently watched everything that was happening before its eyes.

Kimute Nagashiro's emotions had become a mess, and his entire brain was shocked.

Even the trail of the tennis ball, the slightest sign of it, was beyond my consciousness. I couldn't even sense it, let alone catch it...

He held the racket tightly with one hand and slowly turned his head with the other.

The direction he turned towards was the Rikkai University side, where Niou Masaharu, who had played against Chinen and Hirakoba in the previous match,

...This guy cheated him.

Deliberate, absolutely deliberate.

He imitated the moves of the boy in front of him, but only exerted less than half of his strength, which caused a deep misunderstanding to Nagashiro Kide, who had some thoughts about this. He misjudged and underestimated the real strength of this black-haired boy.

Sensing the ominous gazes coming from the crowd, Ren Wang remained calm and whistled slowly.

"Well, trusting a fraudster too much is the key to a successful fraud, puri~"

Even though he was too confident and mistakenly believed the smokescreen released by Rikkai University, Nagashiro Kide had already adjusted his emotions within the short time when he lost points.

It's just one ball, just this one ball,

It was only the second round of the match, and he seized the opportunity to turn the tide. Kimite Nagashiro pushed up his glasses.

The refracting lens turned and focused again on the black-haired boy who slowly took out the second tennis ball from his pocket after serving the first ball.

Overturning all his preconceptions of Yagi Kei at once, Kide Nagashiro forced his sanity to take over. His gaze, like a cold, snake-like hiss, he approached his opponent.

The embarrassed cheering group in Higa had almost regained consciousness. When they saw that the outcome of the game was decided, they looked at the field and most of them had sad expressions on their faces.

Meanwhile, the regular members of Higa looked at the two men fighting, their expressions looking unhappy for some reason.

Kai Yujiro, the vice-captain of the Higachu Tennis Club, clutched his arm and spoke slowly, "Wooden Hand..."

Nagashiro Kito lowered his body, maintaining a high-risk alert state ready to attack at any time.

The 'Shrinking Earth Technique' was forced to its highest point, and his eyes were fixed on the black-haired boy who pulled a tennis ball from his pocket, the racket in his hand seemed ready to launch a counterattack in the next second -

Player Click Skill ['You Butterfly Flash, Hit the Wall, 365 Degrees, Thomas, No Turning, Barehanded, 100% Catch the Blade, the Scheming Frog Touches Your Belly' Use! ]

【Successful use! 】

The slightly twisted ball left the fingertips, and the man with lowered eyes raised his arm and swung the racket upwards to hit it—

A slight 'buzzing' sound sounded again!

Nagashiro Kitade seized this moment, activated the 'Shrinking the Earth Technique', raised his arm and used all his attention and vision to predict the ball.

Betting everything on him, no matter what serve it is, as long as it faces him, Kide Eishiro will definitely be broken——

“Boom.”

The ball brushed past the net, and the shadow flashed slightly, but when the sound was made simultaneously, it was already somewhere behind him.

"……untie."

His pupils slowly shrank, and Kimura Nagashiro's expression changed from an almost stern and sinister determination to a renewed look of disbelief, all in the same span of one ball.

“30:0!!”

The referee blew the whistle, the sound was loud and clear. As the score was confirmed and the whistle fell, the whole stadium was ignited again and it was boiling!

“Once again, he showed up and scored!!”

"As expected—it's worthy of being called the real thing." You flashed like a butterfly and hit the wall 365 degrees. Thomas caught the blade with his bare hands without any spin. The scheming frog touched your belly. The ball!

"\Yagi Kei/\Yagi Kei/\Yagi Kei/\Yagi Kei/\Yagi Kei/\Yagi Kei/!!"

Nagashiro Kito couldn't breathe in or out, and it was difficult to spit out or swallow.

The words that came out of his mouth could not be taken back. After facing the impact of the previous ball, he faced it again, but was still unable to resist.

It was so fast that the ball's trajectory could no longer be seen with the naked eye, and the brain could not keep up with the reality.

Even the body's instinctive reaction, which has been tempered by thousands of times, cannot be connected.

Why why why on earth——!

His dissatisfaction was almost overflowing, and a thick black aura surrounded him.

In response, the player just continues to click,

[Skill: 'Thomas's 365-degree spin, 100% chance of catching a blade with bare hands, the scheming frog touches your belly again, and the invincible Big Bang attack' is in use!]

【Successful use! 】

There was no time to lament the last goal, the only thing the player could see was the health bar of the still-living BOSS.

I'm going to chop it down, come and help me!

He took out a tennis ball from his pocket and pressed it in his palm. The slight change in posture was not noticed immediately by Nagashiro Kide, who was immersed in resentment, and he completely missed this key information.

As a freshman at Rikkai University this year, the advantage is that the information has not yet spread throughout Japan, so no school has specifically targeted me yet.

Higachu is completely unfamiliar with the dark horse Kei Yagi!

Across the net, Yagi Kei threw the ball, bent his knees, swung his racket, and served - "knock"!

The yellow ball flashed like a long yellow dragon. Due to the high rotation and intense friction, the ball was faintly twitching and tearing in space.

It's so overwhelming and unstoppable,

——But, I can see the trajectory!

After a moment of surprise, Nagashiro Kito suddenly became overjoyed.

'This kid finally made a mistake!'

Overconfidence and pride filled his brain with this, and the deepening of his cognition prompted Kimute Nagashiro to immediately perform the "Shrinking the Earth Technique".

He took a step forward, then crossed most of the court to reach the landing point of the ball with a clear trajectory!

He was overjoyed, but he suppressed it, raising his arm and swinging his racket to meet the attack.

Finally he caught the opportunity.

Even at this moment, Kite Nagashiro did not forget to press the racket against the ground, passing through the ground where he had dug a small hole, stirring up rubble and sand.

This trick works over and over again. Even if the attack has not been successful before, as long as there is a chance to hit, it is a profit!

With a sneer on his lips, Nagashiro Kito slapped his arms, veins clenching. He had been prepared for this.

bring it on!

“Boom!!”

The moment the racket string touches the high-speed spinning tennis ball, the entire racket starts to spin in the opposite direction.

Excessive friction caused the temperature to rise, and even the faint strings seemed to be on the verge of breaking, and the entire racket was making an almost wailing squeaking sound.

His palm could hardly hold the racket, and Nagashiro Bokuto struggled hard to resist. He used both hands to force the ball down, but the force of the ball was almost terrifying.

Isn't it speed, why is strength so superb too?!

Kimute Nagashiro's heart was once again filled with inexplicable confusion, but the ball under pressure became more and more violent in the struggle, and the friction actually accelerated its rotation.

The hands and the entire racket seemed to be trying to break free from the shackles!

Higa Chuu, who was watching the game off the field, couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. From their perspective, it seemed that Kide Nagashiro's arm was almost twisted, and that overly powerful ball was constantly pressing downwards, making it a completely one-sided attack.

Even because the entire racket was on the verge of being taken off but not being able to, Kimura Nagashiro's resistance seemed futile and powerless.

It seems long, but in reality it is just a deep breath.

Just a deep breath,

With a "sizzle", the tennis ball hit the ground with a loud bang.

The racket in Kimute Nagashiro's hand had already spun and flew backwards without any surprise.

It rolled and hit several times before it finally landed on the ground. When I looked closely, I found that the entire racket string was broken and it was completely unusable.

Affected by the power of the ball, Nagashiro Kide couldn't control himself and stumbled back a few steps. He was trying to calm himself down, but his hands were still shaking, and the pain was showing signs of spreading to his forearms and upper arms.

The high impact broke the threshold, and the palms and knuckles were numb.

The racket that fell to the side fully proved that the strength of the black-haired boy in front of him was simply unfathomable!

Whether it was the ball just now or the new ball that was shown now,

Even if you are immersed in your own imagination, you have to face reality in this frame.

The tip of Kimura Nagashiro's nose itched, and when he looked down, he saw that the gravel that had been kicked up from the ground by his serve had been crushed into powder by the friction between his serve and the net.

“…”

“…”

Silence, endless silence, the silence is spreading.

“——Beep!”

“40:0!”

The referee blew the whistle and announced the result.

Nagashiro Kimura had to pause the game and dig out his tennis bag from the ruins to replace his racket.

All the spectators outside the stadium witnessed this scene, and many of them cheered passionately for the true strength displayed by Yagi Kei, and of course there were also more.

"...Yagi, has his strength increased again?"

Oishi Hideichiro spoke slowly,

Kawamura Takashi, who specializes in strength, nodded with a serious expression.

"Judging from the power of Yagi's current shot... it has completely surpassed my Hado ball, and even surpassed it..."

Kawamura didn't say anything else, and everyone in Qingxue knew what he meant.

The 'butterfly ball' with peak speed as its advantage,

The 'explosive ball' that dominates the area with pure power,

And the "confusion ball" that has not yet appeared, which is infinitely confusing and makes it difficult to distinguish oneself from reality and illusion.

With these three balls in hand, you can even perfectly copy the moves of all the opponents you have encountered. No, you don't even need to copy.

After all, just based on his basic stats... it's enough to crush everyone.

This guy...

After being defeated by Rikkai University in the Kanto Conference, he underwent inhuman torture and training, just to avenge his defeat in the National Conference.

To avenge the Rikkai University that defeated them,

But at this moment, the belief was suddenly shaken.

If the opponent is of equal strength, there will be endless eagerness to challenge and curiosity.

If there is a slight gap between us and our opponents, we will have more motivation and courage to overcome the difficulties.

However, if you think about it for a moment, your heart will be filled with insurmountable fear, dread, and even terror.

...Such an existence has appeared before our eyes.

"He's just a first-year student..."

Someone sighed, and everyone felt a surge of emotion.

Like climbing a mountain, like facing a chasm,

The most intuitive power is even a crushing force in a different dimension.

Both Tezuka Kunimitsu of Seigaku and Hyotei Atobe Keigo have fallen silent.

The same silence also appeared on Kide Nagashiro's face.

Losing serve, or even losing three balls in a row in the opponent's serve,

Although Nagashiro Kide, who had made the ambition from the very beginning, had not yet wavered in his heart, when the difference in strength gradually became clear, it was his body's instinctive reaction that was difficult to shake off.

His heart was pounding like thunder.

Blood vessels rushed faster, eardrums bulged, and the cheers and discussions from the audience on all sides of the field turned into a buzzing noise.

Amidst the noise, the only clear sight was the dark-haired figure throwing the tennis ball once again.

The smooth and flowing movements are consistent from the beginning to the end.

Throw the ball, bend your knees, jump, swing the racket—

Kimite Nagashiro's body reacted instinctively, but his brain was working rapidly.

Which ball will it be?

Speed, strength, or...

A light and slow ball reached his eyes, and Kide Nagashiro was stunned.

This ball was completely substandard in terms of speed, power, and accuracy. It even flew out from the edge of the racket and barely grazed the net.

At first glance, it looked like a complete serve error!

This made the fear in Muto Eishiro's heart disappear immediately.

——He knew that there would definitely be a chance for such a genius to be assassinated.

Now, the opportunity has come!

No matter how talented one is, there will always be a moment of omission!

A serve error - just wait for his death!

Kimute Nagashiro was so excited that he couldn't help laughing.

Facing a slow and sluggish ball, a precise 'shrinking the earth technique' perfectly reached the ball's landing point, right in front of the net!

The newly replaced racket touched the ground, and a cloud of dust flew up. Shimitenaga Shiro felt that he was in the best condition, and even when returning this ball, it was effortless.

As expected, he shouldn't have been intimidated by the Rikkai University kid's pretentious display of strength in the first few balls.

It's basically a paper tiger. If he catches you when you're not doing well, it won't be easy to recover!

Kito Eishiro was so inflated that he was so proud that a cruel smile appeared on his face when he saw the black-haired boy who had also reached the net.

Swing, hit, and spare no effort!

He could almost see Rikkai's panicked expression, the kid's wailing, the referee's whistle, and the wonderful announcement of the score when the ball dropped—

“——Beep!”

"Rikkai University scores, 2-0!"

“…”

“………”

"Mu Shou...why did he suddenly stop moving?"

On the side of the court, Higa,

Tian Renzhihui murmured.

On the court, Nagashiro Kide stood still as if frozen.

He held the racket in both hands, pretending to swing but not yet, and even had a smile on his face.

But the direction he was about to wave was empty.

There's nothing there.

The tennis ball that was actually thrown had already landed on the ground and rolled away.

“…”

"...It appeared. It was the 'Confusion Ball'."

Atobe Keigo placed his hand on his brow bone, his eyes in the deep eye sockets staring straight into the field. He took in all the scenes of the fight between the two, analyzing them frame by frame.

"From an outsider's perspective, no matter how many times I watch it... I can't see it at all."

Fuji Shusuke opened his eyes and said,

From the perspective of the audience outside the court, they could only see Nagashiro Kide standing still and watching Yagi Keiichi's serve go, and they couldn't understand why he did that.

Only those who have truly experienced this ball, Atobe Keigo and Fuji Shusuke, can understand how difficult it is to escape from this illusion.

And this time, judging from Kimute Nagashiro's physical reaction, he was almost completely immersed in it and didn't realize the possibility that it was an illusion.

The realism...is more in line with reality.

Let Keigo Atobe and Shusuke Fuji stand in front of Yagi Kei and experience this "confusing ball" again. At that time, they can feel something is wrong.

But now... is it really okay?

No one could give a definite answer, and they could only look towards the field.

When the referee blew the whistle and decided that Rikkai University had won the game again, the illusory Kide Nagashiro twitched all over and fell to his knees.

He barely supported himself with the racket, raised his head and looked around.

There was no score, no serve, and Rikkai University did not panic.

Even the boy who was separated by a net was standing in front of him calmly, looking down at him.

Those dark, black eyes never reflected his shadow from beginning to end.

Kimite Nagashiro wanted to say something harsh, but he caught a glimpse of the scoreboard.

The huge Rikkai University vs. Higachu: 2-0,

It grabbed all his attention, his pupils trembling,

"No, that's not right. Higa was the one who scored just now. It was clearly—"

The question that was about to come out of his mouth suddenly stopped at the moment. He is not stupid, he is even smart.

Higachu's minister, Nagashiro Kide, was able to bring Higachu from Okinawa to the whole country. He was never a brainless person.

Connecting with reality, making a few inferences, and combining with the five senses just now,

The conclusion is at hand.

He was blinded by the kid's ball.

The racket in Kimute Nagashiro's hand was firmly clenched in his palm. The players of Higa Middle School on the side of the court saw this and looked at each other in confusion, unable to resist speaking out.

"Minister Woodhand..."

“Ouch… Ouch…”

Finally, Higachu's coach, Harumi Saotome, slowly woke up and climbed out of the rubble.

Touching his bald head, he looked around confused about the current situation and saw Higachu who had given up three games in a row.

And the battle between Nagashiro Kide and the first-year students of Rikkai University.

"2-0, Mu Shou, you're still 2-0, what a shame! You should just get kicked off early after losing to a freshman like that."

Saotome Harumi, regardless of the situation, is always putting pressure on people when she opens her mouth.

"You've already lost, why bother fighting now? It's a waste of time. Stop embarrassing me!"

He finished his call and turned to leave. The resentment surrounding Bokuto Eishiro had almost become a physical entity.

The player looked at the pop-up window and glanced at the BOSS's health bar, and suddenly found that there was an extra Buff in the status bar.

[Kute Eishiro: Darkening]

……etc?

What does this darkening mean?

Before Harumi Saotome could even take a few steps, a yellow tennis ball volleyed in and hit him directly on the butt.

Saotome Harumi was knocked forward with a sudden blow, falling flat on her face.

Seeing this scene, the audience fell silent.

Rikkai University also frowned slightly.

Outside the field, Seigaku, Hyotei, and Rokkakuchuu also saw this kind of scene for the first time, with the club leader attacking the coach...

However, there was no resistance or speaking up for the coach in Higa. They just watched in silence as Nagashiro Kide completed his actions.

A strange mood and atmosphere spread,

The player quickly taps [Skip],

What's going on? There's all this nonsense, and suddenly an animation comes in during the cutscene. If you don't know, you might think they're padding the word count.

Players have no curiosity about the love, hate, and vengeance between NPCs, and are only interested in quickly defeating BOSSes to gain resources and experience.

After committing an act of subjugation against Coach Saotome, Nagashiro Kide turned around, holding his glasses. During this process, he had already imagined several possible reactions from the Rikkai University kid.

It's best to be fearful, affecting your emotions and performance. This way, giving him an opportunity to take advantage is completely...

He turned around,

Yagi Kei also turned around.

Noticing that the opposing BOSS had paused, the player attacked and threw the ball to him.

Hurry up, hurry up, players are in a hurry to finish the dungeon and go to the daily tasks.

“…”

“…”

The hand holding the glasses stopped there.

Nagashiro Kito silently looked at the figure holding the racket and the tennis ball that the other person took out of his pocket and threw to him.

The ball slowly rolled to the feet and stopped there.

As he performed all his actions on coach Saotome,

Yagi Kei, who was separated by a net, didn't care.

In his eyes, there was no faith that Bokuto Eishiro, Higachu, or anyone else would cling to.

Only tennis.

He only wanted victory.

…

madman.

Even if he punishes his coach by committing a crime, he will be bound by worldly definitions and the ties of his companions.

But at this moment, he suddenly touched it in front of him, just a net away.

The core of the black-haired figure standing there.

A person who is indifferent to everything else and only cares about the victory that is about to be achieved.

Inhuman in nature...

devil.

…

"Beep! Higachu serves!"

“3:0!”

"Beep—Rikkai University serves!"

“4:0!”

“Beep!”

"Higachu's serve is over, 5:0!"

“Beep!”

"Rikkai University serves!"

The whistles that followed one after another were like the sound of a death knell, and in the process, the increasingly exhausted Kide Nagashiro was constantly exhausted.

Physical strength, mental strength, belief and persistence in victory,

No matter how you play, you will definitely be hit back.

No matter how you fight back, you will definitely score.

No matter what—points will be lost.

It was just a net, lying between the two of them, but it was like an insurmountable chasm.

After crossing the chasm, what you face is the unknown.

Kimute Nagashiro was panting and gasping for breath. He looked so pale that he almost died on the spot. His last bit of energy was barely enough for his brain to function.

As the ball flew high in the air, he rushed to the rescue - uncontrollably, he suddenly remembered a scene before the game started.

The spectators gathered around the net were talking in low voices, saying things like "Diablo", "Rikkai University's rising star", "this year's unique dark horse",

It sounded like a joke, but everyone in Higa just laughed it off, and even made some sarcastic remarks, not caring at all.

As the lagging and finishing up the race, Nagashiro Kide turned around and heard a clear sentence:

"Well, it's that guy after all."

"This generation of players is being completely suppressed, now and in the future—I don't know when we can escape his shadow."

"——The abyss, it's truly an abyss that follows me like a shadow, an abyss I can't escape~"

I have forgotten what he was thinking at that time.

Perhaps it's just disdain and confidence in one's own abilities.

After all, it's just a first grade.

Just a first grader.

And this first grader, standing across from the net,

Calm and composed, in perfect condition, without fatigue or embarrassment,

It's just like an ordinary warm-up. The areas that ordinary people find difficult to cross and reach are just normal to him.

Throw the ball, bend your knees, jump, serve,

No change, textbook-like,

The appearance at this moment is almost terrifying.

The moment the racket pressed down,

“—Boom!! Boom!!”

Checkmate.

“Beep!!”

"Rikkai University High School VS Private Higa Junior High School, 6-0!!"

"Rikkai University, win again!!"