"Wh-what nonsense..."
Yumiko Miura tightened her grip on the tennis racket, her eyes already showing some fear.
With the force of that previous shot, if it hit her body, or even her face...
Wouldn't that be fatal!?
"Classmate Ye Xing."
Hayato Hayama also showed displeasure on his face.
"This is just a match between classmates. Besides, aiming at opponents' bodies when hitting goes against sportsmanship, doesn't it?"
"Sportsmanship?"
Hearing this term, Ye Xing seemed amused, lightly laughing and shaking his head.
"Sorry, I have no morals."
Then, looking directly at Yumiko Miura and Hayato Hayama across the net, a smile carrying madness and inexplicable excitement appeared on his face as he softly said:
"Or, if you're scared, you can forfeit the match."
"Wh-what nonsense!"
Though Yumiko Miura felt some panic inside, hearing the words "forfeit the match" made her clench her silver teeth and tighten her grip on the tennis racket.
"Continue!"
"Classmate Miura..."
"Don't say anymore, Hayato."
Yumiko Miura frowned deeply, took a deep breath, and said seriously:
"This is just the opponent's psychological tactics. Don't fall for it."
Hearing this, Hayato Hayama looked somewhat doubtful.
Is it really just psychological tactics?
Judging by Ye Xing's behaviour...
It doesn't seem that way...
"Serve."
Yumiko Miura tossed the tennis ball into the air and served with another perfectly standard form.
"Yui, return it."
"Eh?"
Hearing Ye Xing's words, Yui Yuigahama froze for a moment before quickly nodding. As the ball bounced after touching the ground, she swung her racket and hit it back.
Seeing that Ye Xing hadn't hit another terrifyingly powerful straight shot, both Yumiko Miura and Hayato Hayama breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hayama, stay out of my way!"
Yumiko Miura wasn't thinking about cooperation or understanding between teammates at all, directly hitting back the ball that should have been Hayato Hayama's return.
Yui Yuigahama didn't back down either, swinging her racket again to return the ball.
Her expression now was completely different from her usual silly smile and gentle demeanour—she looked utterly serious.
There was only one thought in Yui Yuigahama's mind.
'Ye Xing said he needs me right now.'
'Then I absolutely can't let him down.'
Yumiko Miura and Yui Yuigahama went back and forth, neither giving an inch, no longer looking like a mixed doubles match but rather a one-on-one duel in women's tennis.
"Damn it..."
Yumiko Miura gritted her teeth, watching the completely unyielding Yui Yuigahama on the other side, her feelings of imbalance and sense of loss growing stronger.
All the letters passed to Ye Xing had gone through Yui Yuigahama's hands, and hers was no exception.
Although they weren't in the same class, Yumiko Miura simply couldn't understand.
Why could a girl like Yui Yuigahama - pretty-faced but without any opinions of her own, even somewhat silly - join Ye Xing's club?
While she, the centre of her class, leader of the girls' group, with many admirers in school, had her letter handed over without receiving a response, as if it had sunk to the bottom of the sea?
Could it be...
In Ye Xing's eyes, was she inferior to Yui Yuigahama?
Thinking this, Yumiko Miura found it even harder to accept.
Just as the two were engaged in their back-and-forth stalemate...
BOOM!!!
A piercing sonic boom sounded through the air.
In Yumiko Miura's field of vision, she could only see an illusion.
Whoosh!
The illusion brushed past her cheek, the wind from its passage even lifting her long hair.
Thud!
The first sound was Ye Xing's racket hitting the tennis ball.
The second sound was the ball embedding itself in the wire mesh fence.
Yumiko Miura wanted to turn around to see what had happened behind her.
But only then did her brain finally process what had occurred.
The feeling of having brushed shoulders with death, of narrowly escaping disaster, made her body uncontrollable, her legs trembling slightly, her entire expression frozen.
"30... 30-love!"
Exactly the same as before.
The tennis ball Ye Xing hit hadn't touched the opposite side at all, instead passing straight by Yumiko Miura's cheek.
This naturally counted as a point for the other side.
But Yumiko Miura couldn't feel happy about it at all.
"Sorry, my aim was off."
Ye Xing glanced down at the broken tennis racket in his hand and casually tossed it aside before picking up a new one from the court edge.
He wore a benevolent smile as he looked at Yumiko Miura.
"Don't worry, I definitely won't miss next time."
"I... I..."
Yumiko Miura's pupils contracted in shock.
Missed?
Did that mean he had been aiming for her face from the beginning?
Yumiko Miura turned her head with difficulty to look behind her.
The tennis ball was embedded perfectly right beside the first one.
The only difference was that this one was embedded much deeper than the first.
And...
It had actually broken the racket's strings!?
Was this even human!?
If that tennis ball had been just a few centimetres off target...
Nobody dared to imagine what kind of bloody scene would have unfolded.
"I... I..."
Yumiko Miura's entire body trembled as she tried to utter the words "I surrender".
But when she looked at Ye Xing standing opposite her, and Yui Yuigahama beside him, she found herself completely unable to speak those words.
Surrender?
Yumiko Miura's proud self-esteem wouldn't allow her to do such a thing.
Hina Amano, who had been watching from the sidelines, showed a puzzled expression after witnessing the previous exchange.
"If Ye Xing said he would aim every shot at his opponent's body, why didn't he return the ball immediately? Instead, he let Yuigahama play several rounds first?"
"It's quite simple."
Among all those present, only Yukino Yukinoshita understood the intention behind Ye Xing's approach.
"He's applying pressure on the opponent."
"Applying pressure?"
"Correct."
Yukino nodded slightly and explained calmly.
"Amano-san, imagine if he used that kind of move in the very first round every time. The opponent would be mentally prepared."
"But if he lets Yuigahama-san play a normal match first, then suddenly delivers another dangerous shot just as the opponent grows accustomed to the rhythm..."
"Clearly, the second method is far more nerve-wracking and frightening."
As Yukino Yukinoshita said, what people fear most is the unknown beyond their control.
It's like a prisoner on death row. If you tell them the exact execution date, they might actually feel relatively calm as the day approaches.
But if you say that within the next ninety days, a random date will be chosen for execution...
Then that prisoner would spend the most terrifying ninety days of their life, living in constant fear of death.
By the end, they might even beg for the execution to happen sooner.
Ye Xing's method follows the same principle.
Yukino Yukinoshita didn't believe for a moment that his previous shot had genuinely missed.
It was clearly meant to pressure Yumiko Miura.
Through the tennis ball embedded in the fence and the broken tennis racket, he made Yumiko Miura imagine just how much terrifying force was behind that shot.
Then she would unconsciously wonder what would happen if that ball had hit her body or face.
Judging by her trembling body and facial expression, it was obvious.
The pressure had taken effect.
While Yukino Yukinoshita wasn't skilled in such tactics herself, she was quite familiar with them.
Her elder sister, Haruno, often used similar methods during negotiations, gradually breaking down the opponent's psychological defences.
"Shall we continue?"
Faced with Ye Xing's smiling inquiry and the casual way he swung his racket, Yumiko Miura's mental endurance finally reached its limit.
She collapsed onto the ground, her delicate face lowered, the head that was always held high finally bowing down.
"I... I forfeit the match."
"Should've done that earlier."
Ye Xing wore a friendly smile, but combined with the two tennis balls embedded in the fence and the broken racket, no one present believed he had been joking.
"Since you've lost, prepare to accept your punishment."
Ye Xing tossed aside his racket and slowly walked over to Yumiko Miura, looking down at her from above.
Yumiko Miura, who had always been proud and never looked up to anyone, now felt incredibly small.
"Miura-san."
Hearing Ye Xing's voice, Yumiko Miura instinctively nodded in response.
"Yes..."
"I heard from Yuigahama-san that you wrote me a letter?"
"Yes..."
At this, Yumiko Miura's cheeks flushed red as she tried to explain with forced composure.
"I just wanted to get to know you, nothing more. It wasn't that kind of... confession letter, please... please don't misunderstand."
"I'm aware of that."
Ye Xing nodded noncommittally before smiling.
"Then do you know why I threw your letter into the bin without even reading it?"
Hearing this, Yumiko Miura couldn't help but frown slightly.
She was proud and deeply concerned with saving face.
Being told such embarrassing things so bluntly in front of her friends was difficult for the proud Yumiko Miura to accept.
Before Yumiko could speak, Ye Xing said softly.
"You asked Yui Yuigahama to deliver the letter, but you actually didn't want to get to know me, nor join our club."
"Perhaps you want to say those were your only intentions."
"But in reality, you have no interest in me as a person, or in the Supernatural Society itself."
"You made this move simply because I'm the most noticed person at Sobu High School, and the Supernatural Society is the most noticed club."
"You just thought that if you could associate with us, you'd gain more attention yourself."
"Miura-san..."
Ye Xing looked directly into Yumiko Miura's eyes, speaking word by word with a smile.
"You're really quite weak, aren't you?"
Hearing this, not only did Yumiko Miura's expression change.
Even Yukino Yukinoshita, standing nearby, showed a flicker of something unusual in her eyes.
It wasn't that she disagreed with Ye Xing's assessment of Yumiko Miura.
Quite the opposite.
It was because Yukino Yukinoshita's view of people like Yumiko Miura was the same as Ye Xing's.
On the surface, they appeared to be popular figures in school, the centre of their class.
But in reality...
They were just weak people who needed others' attention to cover up their own mediocrity.
For people like this, the more attention they craved, the more it represented how lacking they were in self-identity.
Yukino just hadn't expected that Ye Xing, who usually disagreed with her, would share the same view about people like Yumiko Miura.
It seemed...
Their relationship wasn't as incompatible and uncooperative as she had originally imagined.
"Alright, you should leave now."
Ye Xing waved his hand and stood up.
Hayato Hayama frowned slightly and said hesitantly.
"Um... Ye Xing-kun, aren't you being a bit too harsh? Miura-san just wanted to get to know you, she didn't..."
"Huh?"
Ye Xing looked at Hayato as if noticing him for the first time, with a curious expression.
"Who are you?"
Hayato was taken aback for a moment before forcing a smile.
"I introduced myself earlier... I'm Hayato Haya..."
Before Hayato could finish, Ye Xing delivered a smooth combo.
"Don't know you. Not interested. Don't care."
Hayato's character could be completely summarised in two words.
Nice guy.
A genuinely nice guy.
Ye Xing had zero interest in this football club ace, the sunny and cheerful Hayato Hayama.
The other's personality was so good that it made him feel rather bored.
Seeing that the matter was resolved, Yukino Yukinoshita began to take over the match.
She stepped in front of Yumiko Miura and the others, speaking in a flat tone.
"Since you've already lost, please leave quickly and don't disturb our practice."
A bespectacled girl came over and helped Yumiko Miura, who was slumped on the ground, to her feet, asking with concern.
"Are you alright, Yumiko?"
Yumiko Miura pushed the other's hand away, gritting her teeth as she stood up on her own.
"Don't meddle! I'm fine!"
Clearly, the evaluation of "weakness" that Ye Xing had given had deeply stung Yumiko Miura's heart.
A famous philosopher once said.
Lies don't hurt people; the truth is the sharpest blade.
Precisely because deep down, Yumiko Miura herself knew that she was actually quite weak and needed others' attention.
That's why Ye Xing's accurate assessment had such a strong impact.
...
After Yumiko Miura and the others had left, Ye Xing waved to Saika Totsuka, who was still sitting in the referee's position.
"Your turn, Totsuka-san."
By now, Yui Yuigahama and the others basically understood.
Before they started, that thing Ye Xing had said, about a cruel trial for the soul...
So it wasn't just chuunibyou, it was a real trial!?
Hina Amano, who knew Ye Xing's abilities best, couldn't help but show concern on her face.
"Totsuka-san, maybe..."
Before Hina Amano could finish, they saw Saika Totsuka climb down from the high chair, tennis racket in hand, and take position at the other end of the court.
He gripped the racket handle with both hands, wearing an expression of grim determination as if facing certain death, and slowly spoke.
"I understand, Ye Xing-san. Please teach me!"
"Excellent."
Ye Xing nodded with satisfaction.
"Totsuka-san, I can feel your resolve! Receive this!"
"Yes!"
...
Two hours later.
Looking at the gradually darkening sky and Saika Totsuka lying on the court without caring about his appearance, looking like he had narrowly escaped death, Yukino Yukinoshita's eyes rarely showed admiration.
She thought that although Totsuka-san appeared soft and weak, even resembling a petite, cute, beautiful girl, she never expected him to have such strong determination.
At first, Ye Xing only used plain, unadorned tennis techniques, except that he would suddenly increase the power at certain points.
You could say it seemed like an ordinary tennis practice.
But for Saika Totsuka, this was essentially a death tennis match that could happen at any moment, with balls that might graze past his ears the very next second.
Under such tremendous pressure, his hitting form and footwork had completely deteriorated.
However, the training effect was quite remarkable.
From being completely at a loss at the beginning, after two hours, Saika Totsuka had started to adapt to this pressure.
Moreover, he occasionally attempted to catch those incredibly powerful straight shots Ye Xing delivered with his racket.
Of course, he never succeeded.
But such reactions showed that Saika Totsuka was gradually adapting to this level of intensity.
Even when enveloped by the life-or-death sense of danger, he could remain calm.
By the time the actual match came, he naturally wouldn't feel nervous anymore.
However...
Yukino Yukinoshita walked over to Ye Xing's side and spoke in a flat tone.
"Ye Xing-kun, I admit that your training methods do produce more significant improvements than my training plans for amateur athletes at the high school level."
"But you've never actually used moves like the Zero Serve or Tornado Destroys Parking Lot."
"These were just made up by you, weren't they?"
Facing Yukino Yukinoshita's questioning, Ye Xing simply smiled, tossed the tennis ball into the air, and casually hit it with his racket.
Yukino Yukinoshita frowned slightly, about to warn Saika Totsuka, who was lying on the opposite side, to be careful of the bouncing tennis ball, when she witnessed something astonishing.
The tennis ball that Ye Xing had hit, after touching the ground, didn't bounce back at all. Instead, it stuck directly to the ground and slowly rolled back toward the net.
"This is!?"
Seeing this bizarre scene, Yukino Yukinoshita was completely shocked.
"Yukinoshita-san, this is the Zero Serve."
...
After returning home, Yui Yuigahama sat at the table, absentmindedly scrolling through her phone with a distracted expression.
Seeing her daughter like this, Mrs Yuigahama couldn't help but ask curiously.
"What's wrong, Yui? Are you in love?"
Hearing this embarrassing question, Yui Yuigahama's face immediately turned red as she hurriedly waved her hands to explain.
"N-no way! Don't say such things, Mum."
"Oh, really?"
Seeing her mother's meaningful, suggestive expression, Yui Yuigahama sighed helplessly.
Suddenly, as if she had remembered something, she froze completely.
"Wait a moment..."
Yui Yuigahama recalled what had happened at the tennis court, her eyes flickering as she murmured to herself.
"Ye Xing-kun... called me by my first name for the first time?"