Chapter 113 Tennis 01
[Accomplishing the second round...]
【The host has left this world.】
[Importing the next world to the host...]
[Tennis World has been successfully loaded. Please select your initial landing location: Hyotei Academy, Seishun Academy, Rikkai University Affiliated Middle School, Shitenhoji Middle School.]
Kurikawa Sana lowered her eyes and just listened silently to the system prompts, looking exceptionally quiet.
As if it had noticed her abnormality, the system's usual mechanical and uniform prompt sound during initial loading paused for a moment, and only continued to sound after a long while.
[The appearance of the captureable object is loading... Please remember the appearance of the captureable object. ]
In the center of the pure white space that appears after each round of the game, a group of teenagers wearing different colored team uniforms from their schools appeared again, but Kurikawa Sana still had her eyes lowered, staring at the ground in a daze.
She looked down at the ground. The pure-colored space was like a white canvas, reflecting the appearance of the person she wanted to see.
Everyone……
Kurikawa Sana only felt that the group of young people who loved volleyball were still in front of her, and she could not see any other new people or things.
Their warm and bright smiles when they first met, the little bits of joy and happiness they shared day after day, the touch she felt every time she saw their waiting figures in the middle of the night, the touch she felt from their love for volleyball and their persistence in the game...all of it seemed to be still vivid in her mind.
It was so warm and beautiful that she even forgot the pain of falling off the cliff when she escaped and had no fear at all.
What made her sadder than the pain was that she would never be able to see those enthusiastic and wonderful young people again.
…
Her unusual silence and the abnormal behavior of not raising her head at all finally caught the attention of the system.
The system's calm electronic voice rang out: [Sana, are you still thinking about the people in the volleyball world? ]
The girl hummed softly, her voice filled with obvious depression and sadness.
The system also fell silent for a moment.
He had guessed that she would be sad, but he didn't expect her to be so sad.
When the basketball world ended before, she didn't have the same performance and emotions as now. Obviously, the ending at that time was much more regrettable than this time.
It is obvious that the young people in the volleyball world have become her "white moonlight".
[It seems that you really have a lot of feelings for them, Sana.]
"...Because they are really nice." Kurikawa Sana whispered.
System: [It's understandable that you can't get over it for a while. You can be depressed and miss them appropriately, but don't let it affect what you should be doing.]
"We've come this far, are you really going to give up now? Sana, if you stop now, all your efforts so far, as well as your decision to leave them despite your sadness, will be meaningless, right?"
Upon hearing this, Kurikawa Sana was stunned.
...That's right.
Now that we've come this far, there's no reason to give up.
Suddenly, Kurikawa Sana recalled the New Year's wish she made when she and everyone in Inarizaki went to the temple to pray for the New Year on the first day of the new year before she left.
She hoped that if the gods were merciful and merciful, if it were still possible...
She hoped to see them again, even if only in her dreams.
Inexplicably, for a moment, Kurikawa Sana felt that her wish might come true.
When she raised her head again, her eyes became firm and no longer confused.
"You're right, system." Kurikawa Sana shook her head to make her thoughts clearer. "I was too pretentious just now, but I'm fine now. I won't do that again."
The system paused for a moment before continuing, "Don't say that about yourself. Humans aren't plants or trees. As long as you're a flesh-and-blood person, you'll experience emotional ups and downs. This is perfectly normal for humans, and it's not pretentiousness, Sana."
Kurikawa Sana: "...I feel like this isn't the first time. System, your words make you sound like an alien life form."
system:【………】
[Okay, let's skip this question. The first step to starting over is to memorize the appearance of the objects you need to conquer in the new world.]
"Okay." Kurikawa Sana nodded.
In the pure white initial space, what appeared before her was still a group of young men with dazzling average looks and a sporty demeanor, wearing the uniforms of four different teams from four schools.
The two young men, dressed in blue and white stand-up collared uniforms, had very different styles, but both were strikingly handsome. The bespectacled young man had greenish-brown hair and a pair of slender, upturned eyes. His cool aura, offset by his rimless gold-rimmed glasses, gave him the mature aura of a leader despite his youth.
Another young man, also wearing the blue and white uniform, had chestnut-brown hair and a slender figure with fair skin. His smile was gentle when he squinted, but when he opened his eyes, his blue eyes seemed to reflect the sky, pure and gentle, yet tinged with a firmness and strength that contrasted sharply with his slender appearance.
Their team uniforms all have "SEIGAKU" written on them.
The young man in the gray-white team uniform standing next to Qingxue raised his chin arrogantly. His facial features were gorgeous and handsome, and his temperament was flamboyant. The ends of his short purple-gray hair were slightly curled to the sides. His deep rock blue eyes were filled with sharp pride and confidence, like an emperor looking down on the world.
Kurikawa Sana: "..."
Wait, why did she unconsciously come up with the adjective "like an emperor" in her mind? It was outrageous, but the other person's temperament really gave people such a feeling!
Another potential target wearing the same school uniform has dark blue shoulder-length hair, is handsome, and tall. He wears a pair of rimless round-frame glasses on his tall nose. The literary and artistic atmosphere brought by the glasses and the sporty atmosphere of his light wheat skin tone are perfectly combined.
The young man next to them had silver-gray hair with a hint of brown, and his bony hands were tightly wrapped in white bandages, giving him a distinct personality. The yellow and green team uniform he wore, with the words "Shitenhoji" emblazoned on it, was striking.
But what caught his eye even more than the color of his uniform was his incredibly handsome face, practically flawless. If there was a textbook for handsomeness, this guy would be on page one.
Kurikawa Sana fell into silence on another level of meaning.
No, why are they all so exaggeratedly handsome?
Although everyone in the previous basketball and volleyball worlds was also very handsome, these conquerable targets in the tennis world are so handsome that even the style of painting feels different.
But when her sight continued to move to the left and she saw the last young man with purple-blue hair, Kurikawa Sana realized that she was too surprised too early.
...This one is even more of a heavyweight.
The boy, wearing a khaki team jacket draped over his shoulders, was tall and slender, his iris-purple hair and eyes a dreamy, mysterious color. Beneath a light green sweat-wicking headband, his features were exquisitely perfect, almost beautiful. It's rare for a boy to be described as "beautiful" and "pretty" without seeming effeminate. The moment you laid eyes on him, you felt a wave of astonishment.
The team uniform he was wearing had "RIKAI UNIV" embroidered on it.
Kurikawa Sana: "…………"
"System, in this world, people who are not good-looking cannot play tennis?"
system:【………】
"And there's another thing that's very concerning. Is there something wrong with my eyes?"
Kurikawa Sana rubbed her eyes uncertainly. She vaguely saw a few black silhouettes standing behind the clear figure and face of the target, blurry but definitely there. "Why do I feel like there's someone standing behind them?"
[You read that right. Besides the ones we've clearly identified, there are indeed hidden targets in the world of tennis that can be conquered. You'll find out once you unlock them later.]
"Eh? Why is this happening? Hidden captureable targets...were not there in the previous two worlds?"
System: [Unless something unexpected happens, the Tennis World will be the last world you experience. Remember what I said at the beginning? You need to accumulate 3000 health points to restore your main body's health. After experiencing the Basketball World and Volleyball World, you are currently nearly 800 health points away from 3000.]
[Considering the high difficulty of conquering this world, it's unlikely that all of the clear conquerable targets will have full favorability. Therefore, just in case, a hidden conquerable target has been added, something that hasn't been seen in previous worlds.]
"...I understand." Hearing this, Kurikawa Sana's expression became serious.
System: [So, which school do you plan to choose this time? ]
School……
The uniforms of the conquestable targets from Seigakuen, Shitenhoji, and Rikkai University all have their respective schools written on them, so the only two remaining ones wearing gray and white uniforms should be from Hyotei Gakuen.
"System, where are these four schools located?"
Drawing on her experience from the previous world, Kurikawa Sana realized that the location of a school was incredibly important. The Inarizaki High School she'd chosen at the start of the previous world was located in Hyōgo Prefecture in Kansai, while the vast majority of the conquest targets were in Tokyo and Miyagi Prefecture, a vast distance. Finding a suitable and unobtrusive reason to reach them proved challenging.
In the previous world, it was because she chose to debut as an artist that she was able to gain everyone's favorability even at a distance. Because of her work as an artist, traveling back and forth between places did not seem strange.
But this time, Sana Kurikawa didn't want to go through so much trouble. It was really tiring to balance the mission and studies while also taking into account her work as an artist. She had to choose a school with a suitable location.
System: [Hyoutei Gakuen and Seishun Gakuen are both located in Tokyo, Rikkai University is located in Kanagawa Prefecture, and Shitenhoji Temple is located in Osaka.]
"What's the difference between Hyotei Academy and Seishun Gakuen?"
Hyotei Academy is a private aristocratic school with luxurious facilities and a luxurious atmosphere. Seishun Academy is an ordinary private school, but its academic atmosphere, academic performance, and clubs are also very good.
She then asked, "Which one of Hyotei and Seigaku is closest to Tokyo Station?"
System: [? Ice Emperor is closer.]
"Okay, let's choose Hyotei Academy." Kurikawa Sana said firmly.
system:【………】
Did I just look at which school was closest to the Shinkansen this time? That's a pretty simplistic approach, but the Shinkansen from Tokyo takes only 40 minutes to Kanagawa and two and a half hours to Osaka. So Hyotei is definitely a good choice.
System: [I thought you would choose Rikkai University. In your previous thoughts, only the one from Rikkai University particularly impressed you.]
The reason why she decisively chose Inarizaki High School in the volleyball world last time was because "there are many handsome guys there."
"System, every time you see through my thoughts, I get really nervous. Luckily, I didn't think anything was wrong." Kurikawa Sana held her chin and said, "Hmm... The one from Rikkai University is really pretty, but there's only one captureable target at Rikkai University, which is too few. Of course, it's better to choose someone with two."
system:【………】
Is it such a simple and crude reason?
[In fact, each school has hidden captureable targets, so don't worry about the small number. ]
Kurikawa Sana stopped hesitating and said, "I'll choose Hyotei!"
【I see. 】
The system's sound changed again to the mechanical electronic sound of the initial loading mode—
[Data loading completed, currently being transferred to the third world for the host——]
[The countdown begins, five, four, three, two, one...]
The already dazzlingly pure white space burst out with an even stronger light, and Kurikawa Sana skillfully closed her eyes first.
…
When she opened her eyes again, the scene before Kurikawa Sana had changed into her "home" in this world.
In line with Hyotei's image as an aristocratic academy, her new home in the tennis world is much more luxurious than her previous "homes" in the basketball and volleyball worlds. It is no longer a single-family house on the roadside, but a top-notch large flat-floor apartment located in the heart of Tokyo's metropolitan area.
Outside the fully transparent glass floor-to-ceiling windows is the dazzling and magnificent night view of Tokyo city. The top-level interior lights of the Grade A office building shine in. Along with the night light, Kurikawa Sana sees her own figure reflected in the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. It seems that her body is obviously smaller than last week.
She couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, turned around and looked at the full-length mirror of the huge floor-standing shoe cabinet in the living room, and confirmed again that she was not mistaken - this time her body really became smaller, smaller than her high school body in the volleyball world, and larger than her first-year junior high school body in the basketball world. It seemed to be the body of a third-year junior high school girl.
Sensing her confusion, the system added: [You read that correctly. You are indeed a third-year junior high school student in this world. Tomorrow you will be enrolled in Class 1, Group A, third grade, at Hyotei Academy.]
“Hmm…”
Was it a coincidence? Kurikawa Sana couldn't help but think that her time periods in the three worlds were completely staggered, and she never appeared at the same time.
The timeline in which she first landed in the basketball world was the first year of junior high school at Teiko Junior High School, the timeline in the volleyball world was the second year of high school at Inarizaki High School, and this time in the tennis world it was the third year of junior high school, and there was no overlap.
But wait…
Kurikawa Sana suddenly discovered something even more shocking. "So, those tall, handsome guys I just saw who were potentially conquestable were actually all just junior high school students?!"
system:【……? 】
Her strange focus is okay.
[Yes, for now, they are indeed junior high school students.]
"No, junior high school students actually look so mature? They look like high school students or even college students..."
The system laughed: [Aren't the captureable targets at Teikou Junior High School in the Basketball World also junior high students? They're much taller. Okay, don't worry about that. The Hyotei uniform is right in front of you. See if it fits you.]
Kurikawa Sana: “…It seems so.”
After she finished speaking, she looked up and saw the Hyotei Academy girls' uniform on the long marble table in front of her.
Hyotei's uniform was very similar to Inarizaki's: a brown khaki blazer, a pleated skirt, a white undershirt, and a red bow tie. Aside from the school emblem on the chest, the resemblance was so disorienting that Kurikawa Sana couldn't help but freeze.
Whenever I stop to recall, I still miss them.
"System..." Kurikawa Sana asked softly, holding the extremely similar school uniform in her hand: "After I left last week's world, their favorability..."
——Is it full value?
In order to reach full favorability within a limited time, she chose to "escape" from the previous world in that way...
Falling off a cliff during a film shoot in full view of the public, widely reported on the news and social media...they will find out one after another.
Whenever she thought of this, Kurikawa Sana would feel a surge of guilt.
The system replied: [Full value.]
[Except for a few captureable characters like Kuroo Tetsuro, Iwaizumi Ichi, and Akaashi Kyoji, who are still a few points short of reaching the maximum value, the other captureable characters' favorability towards you has already reached the maximum value.]
"……I see."
Silence surrounded the large, luxuriously decorated flat. The black-haired girl stood blankly in the middle of the living room, her pretty face visibly dazed.
The system also considerately gave her some time and space, and remained silent.
Kurikawa Sana didn't ask, as she did last time, what happened after she pulled away to achieve the maximum favorability rating. Unlike last time, this time, she had actively pursued and achieved the ending, breaking through their long-standing favorability bottleneck in the most tragic and extreme way. She could already imagine what would happen next, without even asking the system.
After a long time, Kurikawa Sana gradually pulled herself out of her memories and thoughts.
"I'm fine, System."
"Anyway, it's a new world now."
The system hummed, then continued, seemingly changing the subject: "The value you exchange for favorability can now be used to purchase high-level system items. The god-level tennis item "Black Hole" you purchased in the previous round can still be used this round, but given the current progress of your captureable targets, it's too early to display it. I recommend using it later. For now, a simple, yet powerful, and practical tennis item would be more suitable."
Recalling the function of the item called "Black Hole", Kurikawa Sana was silent for a moment.
Back when she was kidnapped together with Akashi Seijuro, she used the prop "black hole" and swung a tennis racket to create a "black hole" that was physically visible to the naked eye. The bullet fired by the kidnapper stopped in mid-air and was sucked into the black hole, successfully rescuing Akashi Seijuro.
Indeed, no matter how you think about it, this prop is shocking in every sense.
"...Are you sure I can use this item in the later stage?" Kurikawa Sana wiped the sweat off her forehead.
The system calmly replied, "It's not a big deal. In the world of tennis, there are even more exaggerated skills than this, such as 'Ashura Shinto'."
Kurikawa Sana: "..."
Ashura Shinto, she was also deeply impressed by this prop. If she remembered correctly, it was "the highest realm that can be reached after experiencing countless hellish defeats. After understanding it, it can summon powerful extra-dimensional forces such as pirates, demons, knights and samurai to help you play tennis.
There are also skills such as "Destruction Light Ball" and "Destroy Five Senses", which sound very magical. Kurikawa Sana was silent for a moment, opened the tennis section of the system's advanced mall, and decided to exchange for a "normal" and slightly "simple but very powerful" tennis skill first.
Federer Possessed: The first tennis player to win 20 Grand Slams, the unrivaled world number one. Serving, receiving, volleying, forehand, backhand, driving, chipping, attacking, defensive, and tactical skills are all at the pinnacle, with no weaknesses in any aspect. The champion's spokesperson → Redemption Required: 100 points.
Sampras Possessed: A king of the court, possessing a perfect balance of strength, technique, and mental fortitude. Top-notch serve, numerous aces, the longest reigning No. 1 in tennis, skilled in serve and volley. → Redemption Required: 100 points.
Nadal possesses the "King of Clay," one of the world's top three players. He possesses unprecedented dominance in certain venues, setting numerous unmatched records. → Redemption Required: 100 points.
[Djokovic Possessed: Unprecedented triple Grand Slam record-breaker, possesses impeccable defense and extreme saves, while possessing strong offensive and scoring abilities, and impeccable skills → Redemption Required: 100 points.]
Sharapova Possessed: A powerful baseline player with immense explosive power, she's not good at volleying, but possesses exceptional forehand and backhand power. Her matches are highly visually appealing, and she consistently tops the list of the world's highest-paid female athletes, boasting impressive commercial value and income. Possessed by Sharapova, she gains a similarly valuable commercial physique. Redemption cost: 100 points.
Looking at the series of props in the system mall, Kurikawa Sana fell into deep thought, and finally chose to buy [Federer Possession].
Obviously, each prop has its own outstanding advantages and strengths. Sampras' ACE serving ability, Nadal's dominance on clay, Djokovic's extreme defense and saving ability, and Sharapova's commercial value are all top in their respective fields. Federer has the most comprehensive comprehensive ability.
In last week's episode on the volleyball world, Kurikawa Sana deeply experienced how much a good shot can help with strategy progress. With every hit, you could hear everyone's favorability levels soar, and this time around, the tennis world is likely to be no exception.
The system also quite agrees, [A very wise choice. ]
Then he changed the subject and said, "It's late, Sana, go to bed early."
【Tomorrow begins, and it will be the first day in this new world.】
"Yeah, I know."
"Thank you, system."
Thank you for always being with me.
Holding a brown-khaki school uniform that was very similar to that of Inarizaki High School, the black-haired girl fell on the brand new and gorgeous sofa, closed her eyes and fell asleep.
The moonlight flickered outside the window in the night, and walked into the house silently, illuminating the crystal tears in the corners of the girl's eyes.
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