As they chatted, more than an hour passed.
"Hm? Is it almost three o'clock already? Time passes so quickly?"
Eriri looked at her phone, her expression surprised.
"Chihiro, why didn't you remind us?"
She turned to look at him.
"Because you were all chatting happily, and besides, we weren't planning on going to the anime convention this afternoon, were we? We have plenty of spare time."
Izumi Chihiro replied with a smile.
"Well, we still have to do something, right? We're not just going to sit here and shoot the breeze, are we? And where did you get the idea that I was chatting happily with them?"
Eriri asked three rhetorical questions in a row.
"Exactly, there's no benefit in chatting with such a common person."
Gokou Ruri also retorted, clearly not getting along.
"I actually think it's very fun to be together. I wouldn't get tired even if we chatted all afternoon… Of course, mainly because my senior is here."
Kani Nayuta said with a cheerful laugh.
Normally, she rarely had the opportunity to chat with others, especially about topics she liked.
"Come up with an idea, don't just stand there without speaking."
Eriri's gaze pressed down on him.
"What can we do? Let me think."
Izumi Chihiro fell into thought, hoping to come up with something that would allow everyone to get along harmoniously.
Watch a movie?
Completely impossible. They would most likely argue because it's hard to please everyone.
Go to an amusement park?
Doing such intense activities outside in this weather would surely kill people from the heat. If they didn't do anything, there would be no need to go.
Go to a swimming pool?
Don't even think about it. There would definitely be a lot of people, and something like that requires preparation; they'd have to change into bikinis!
After thinking it over and over, he still sighed.
As fellow ACG enthusiasts, there were only a few things they would all be interested in.
If they didn't go to the anime convention, they could only go to the arcade.
The three of them didn't have any particular ideas and all agreed.
Gokou Ruri was, of course, the most excited, because the arcade was her home turf.
In her own territory, she could calmly deal with a certain person!
Gokou Ruri revealed a mysterious smile.
Eriri glanced at her, feeling an inexplicable chill.
…
"Come on, Sawamura, let's solo."
As soon as they entered the arcade, Gokou Ruri sincerely extended an invitation.
The speed at which the dagger was revealed was too fast.
"Why should I SOLO you?"
Eriri's momentum immediately weakened.
She had seen Gokou Ruri's performance when she won the King of Fighters tournament and also witnessed her strength in multiplayer games, so she naturally had reservations about her skill.
Normally, Gokou Ruri's gaming talent should be very high, and she wouldn't be bad at other games either.
She didn't think Gokou Ruri would be someone who only played one type of game.
"You're not scared, are you? If so, it's understandable, after all, you're just trash. As a weakling, you should know your place and not try to challenge the strong."
Gokou Ruri also began to show her sharp-tongued side.
Her expression and demeanor made Izumi Chihiro think of someone.
"Th-then fine! But I get to choose what game we play!"
Eriri is usually not someone who can resist provocation, unless there's absolutely no chance of winning. But since she had never competed against Gokou Ruri, she had no reason to back down before the fight.
Maybe she could find a game that Gokou Ruri wasn't good at, but she was?
After all, even the most talented person couldn't have played every single game.
"Hmm… alright! It's a deal!"
Gokou Ruri pondered for a moment before agreeing to the condition.
She also considered that possibility, but quickly firmed up her resolve.
Because among the fighting games in this arcade, there were only a few obscure ones she hadn't played.
She believed that Sawamura wouldn't choose such an obscure game, so her chances of winning were still higher.
"Senpai, why do I feel like something is missing?"
Kani Nayuta asked, looking puzzled.
"Perhaps it's because there's no punishment or reward for winning or losing; that takes away some of the fun."
Izumi Chihiro seized the opportunity to fan the flames.
Wanting to see his childhood friend get flustered was, of course, a mutual pleasure.
"Oh, right, we haven't discussed that yet."
Gokou Ruri's gaze sharpened a bit.
"Then what do you want?"
Eriri asked.
"How about this: the loser gives the winner a figurine, and carves '[Date] XX lost to XX' on it as a memento."
Gokou Ruri quickly came up with a condition.
"So ruthless!"
Kani Nayuta instinctively swallowed.
"This is truly vicious!"
Izumi Chihiro also clicked his tongue.
"Fine!"
Eriri gritted her teeth and agreed.
Next, it was time to compete!
Then, after Eriri scanned the fighting arcade games, she regretted it.
Popular fighting games were nothing more than King of Fighters and Street Fighter. Street Fighter was definitely out of the question, as that would be playing right into Gokou Ruri's hands.
But the number of selectable games was suddenly much smaller.
"Obscure games?"
Eriri considered it, but quickly dismissed the idea.
Because she hadn't played them either, and if they both started from scratch, the best-case scenario would be that neither knew how to play, and then it would come down to comparing talent, which would be disastrous.
So, she could only choose the Street Fighter version she was most proficient in from among the different versions of King of Fighters and Street Fighter. This way… even if she lost, she would die standing!
Thus, she chose a Street Fighter game that she had played the most with her childhood friend.
"That's a version I haven't played much."
Gokou Ruri said calmly.
"Are you scared?"
Eriri asked, also to boost her own confidence.
"No, what I mean is, even so, defeating Sawamura will be an easy task."
Gokou Ruri's tone became even more arrogant.
If she didn't have confidence in an area she was good at, she might as well dig a hole and bury herself.
"It's starting, it's starting!"
Kani Nayuta excitedly tugged on his sleeve, "Senpai, who do you think will win?"
"Why even ask? That would, of course, be…"
Izumi Chihiro stopped speaking halfway through.
Lest he get himself into trouble.
"I see."
Kani Nayuta understood instantly.
This fierce battle… no, a massacre began!
The game was decided to be a Best of 5.
In the first round, the experienced Eriri quickly defeated one of Gokou Ruri's characters.
"I haven't played much, so I'm not very skilled. Consider it a gift from me."
Gokou Ruri remained calm.
"Heh! Still making excuses like that? Can't handle losing, can you?"
Seeing this, Eriri's confidence soared, and she taunted her.
Gokou Ruri said nothing, then, in the subsequent matches, she became more and more skilled, as if she had grasped some trick, and utterly dominated her opponent.
The kill count was 9 to 1!
Aside from taking the lead at the very beginning, the rest was a one-sided result.
"How is this possible... how could this happen!"
Eriri's eyes were filled with disbelief, and she mumbled incessantly.
"Because you are weak. Accept reality!"
Gokou Ruri stood up, looked down, and showed a contemptuous gaze.
"I lost...!"
Eriri felt as if she had fallen into an abyss, clutching her pants with both hands, her face ashen.
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💯 PS = 2 bonus chapter