The moment Ryoma settles onto the stool, Hiroshi and Sera move into their routine with far steadier hands than before. There is no trace of the earlier panic. As far as the blue corner is concerned, everything is still unfolding according to the plan Ryoma had laid out.
Nakahara crouches in front of him and offers a bottle of water, speaking a little faster than usual, determined to make every second of the one-minute break count.
"Good work, kid," he says. "You made him work far harder than he wanted. And despite all that, you still managed to keep the accumulated damage to a minimum. Keep this up, and he'll be yours soon."
Ryoma rinses his mouth, spits into the bucket, then slowly shakes his head.
"No... this isn't working."
Nakahara's brow furrows. "Hm? What is it? Did you notice something I failed to see?"
