Ch.72Midterms of Doom (2)

“Shota. Let me ask you directly. Are you… good at card games?”

Sasitsu asked.

“What are you talking about? I’m good at everything. It’s no exaggeration to say I’m the finest output humanity has ever produced.”

I replied curtly.

“No… cut the usual nonsense. Be serious.”

Sasitsu sighed as he spoke.

No. I really am good at everything! I felt somewhat wronged.

“Do you know about this…?”

Sasitsu immediately pulled something out.

It was a neatly covered card pack.

“Ah… that thing kids are into these days?”

I had a vague idea.

It was a trading card game called ‘Magic and Sword.’ It was explosively popular among kids. But… adults also participated in major tournaments. It was a thriving card game with official competitions.

Right. You could think of it as Yu-Gi-Oh from the original world. I knew the rules were roughly similar.

“Do you… play this stuff?”

I looked straight at Sasitsu. I had a feeling he might secretly be into this kind of thing.

“I don’t!!!”

Sasitsu immediately got angry.

“Remember what I mentioned before? About how I’m helping some kid who likes card games.”

Sasitsu explained.

Ah… that kid. He was one of the characters whose friendship level players needed to raise in the game. Because Sasitsu had raised the friendship level enough, he was able to create the mid-game psycho-robot Imp, which made the boss battle much easier.

“That kid… wants to enter a tournament, but there’s a troublesome situation.”

Sasitsu said.

“………”

Indeed. This game had some pretty solid sub-stories.

The deck the dueling kid used was an outdated one that hadn’t received support for years. Naturally, given the nature of trading cards, it couldn’t compete with newer cards.

However, that deck was proof of his youth, entrusted to him by his older brother before going abroad to study. The boy wanted to win with that deck.

The player would desperately research and strengthen the deck with the kid, eventually leading him to victory in the school tournament. It was a classic storyline.

The important themes were bonds with cards and affection—that sort of thing.

Normally, the player would handle this themselves… why is he asking me for help?

“The deck the kid uses is pretty terrible… there are a lot of problems.”

Sasitsu said as he spread out the deck.

Wait? The way he’s handling those cards seems suspiciously skilled. Sasitsu, be honest. You still play cards, don’t you?

“The deck is really bad, but he refuses to change it. I suggested just going with this deck, but there are complicated circumstances.”

Sasitsu explained.

“That deck…..”

“It’s the second prize I got from entering a sweepstakes. It’s a structure deck. I don’t know much about it!!! But I heard it fits the current meta. He could easily win with this…”

Sasitsu said.

The way he emphasized that he didn’t know much about it was strangely suspicious.

Anyway, so you didn’t get the first prize gaming console… Sasitsu, I had some hopes there.

“But? I’m also clueless about this stuff. How can I help?”

I asked Sasitsu.

“Shota. You said you used to be a hikikomori, right? Aren’t you an expert in this subculture stuff?”

Sasitsu asked.

“What exactly do you think a hikikomori is?”

Hikikomori and otaku are strictly different concepts. Don’t confuse them. The idea that all hikikomori are good with computers and knowledgeable about anime is just a stereotype.

“And… the school where the tournament is being held, there’s something strange about it.”

Sasitsu said.

Huh? School? I hadn’t heard about that in the game. The story with the boy was just something that passed by smoothly. There was just a cutscene showing “Won the tournament!” I didn’t know any behind-the-scenes details.

“Anyway, can you spare some time after school? Please help.”

Sasitsu stared at me intently.

“But… I’m busy.”

Yes. That was the problem.

After school, I had to train at the kendo dojo. With summer vacation just around the corner, I needed to prepare for the Toshin Cup. Gonzaemon had strictly forbidden me from missing practice.

After training at the dojo, I had to go home and work on my web novel. I needed to write daily to generate income.

Then I had to hang out with my girlfriends and help them study for exams.

When night came, I had to go monster hunting, and after returning home, I’d be drained until I passed out—a repeating daily cycle.

Honestly… just managing this schedule was a miracle.

“30 minutes is all I need!! A third-party opinion is valuable!”

Sasitsu shouted quite desperately.

“Hmm… if you put it that way.”

There was no reason to refuse when he asked like that.

Besides… for Sasitsu, the friendship level with the kid needed to be maxed out. That would unlock the final psycho-robot “Android Peshard” in the late game. It was an all-purpose electric-type agent that could be used throughout the latter part of the game.

The condition for max friendship was winning the school duel tournament.

——

I immediately went to the trio with quick steps to get permission from my girlfriends.

I explained the situation right away.

“So, I’ll just play with Sasitsu for about 30 minutes and then head straight to the kendo dojo. Is that okay?”

I proposed.

It’s just 30 minutes. They should allow this much.

However, the expressions of Umi, Eri, and Taiga quickly hardened.

“We’ll come with you.”

Umi said firmly.

“Yes. It’s a place with kids, right? I like children.”

Eri said with a smile. She was subtly emphasizing that she was a domestic woman. She really couldn’t be underestimated.

“Right. I might as well go too.”

Taiga also joined in.

“Is that really necessary…?”

When four high school students go where children are playing, the kids will just be intimidated. I didn’t want to disturb the children’s play area.

“Shota… if we take our eyes off you for a moment, there might be women trying to hit on you. Like Taiga did.”

Umi said.

“Ah… I get it. You were practically living with me while also maintaining a second household with Umi’s family.”

Eri also agreed.

“Seriously… he’s not even that handsome, but he’s so popular.”

Taiga also nodded.

“So! We’ll come along as surveillance!”

Umi shouted loudly.

“…I’m not some harem master. Do you really think women will flock to me during those 30 minutes?”

I said.

However, my girlfriends seemed determined to go.

And so, our schedule before going to the kendo dojo was set.

———

Oubashi Private Elementary School.

We took a bus straight to our destination. During the bus ride, I quickly researched the game rules. I also learned about the popular decks. Well… the rules were almost identical to that card game from the original world. Thanks to that, I had no trouble understanding.

It was quite famous in Emoshita. It was an elite elementary school directly established by a well-known corporate foundation. Despite being an elementary school, it even had uniforms. The tuition was expensive, and just attending there gave the impression of being part of high society. In this rural town, people who were well-off tried to send their children to Oubashi Elementary.

And… the company that established Oubashi Elementary was “Kunami.”

Yes. The company that created the famous trading card game in this world. This school duel tournament seemed to be held as a promotional event for the company.

“Wow!! There’s an otaku-like stall in front of the school!!”

Umi exclaimed with sparkling eyes.

Indeed. With generous corporate sponsorship, something like a duel shop had been set up.

“An otaku-like stall…”

That comment has more impact coming from a gyaru. Otaku get wrapped up in some inexplicable inferiority complex.

“I’m supposed to meet the kid here.”

Sasitsu said.

Honestly, the sight of a duel shop inside a school was quite astral.

As I looked around, I let out an exclamation of admiration.

“Ooooh!!!!”

Standees of characters from the famous “Female Mage” deck of this card game were set up.

There were mages in revealing bikini-like outfits, holding staffs and striking poses.

Even though I don’t play card games, I knew about that deck. Because they featured cute girl characters, all sorts of illustrations were produced.

This… is pleasing to the eye. I naturally appreciated the illustrations.

Even the elementary school kids were covering their crotch area while sneaking glances at the illustrations. Those little rascals… did they awaken to sexuality through those provocative illustrations?

But… they say if you awaken to sexuality through 2D characters, there’s a high chance you’ll become an otaku. How do I know? Because that’s what happened to me. Anyway.

“Hmm… Shota. Do you like outfits like that?”

Eri approached me.

“Yeah. I fucking love them.”

I stated bluntly. I’d say this even with a knife to my throat.

“Hmm… maybe I should try cosplaying?”

Eri said with a slight sparkle in her eyes. She seemed eager to win my favor.

“That’s embarrassing…”

Taiga said with a slightly reddened face.

“You’d only wear it at home anyway. To make Shota happy. Wouldn’t it be good to have some variety in the bedroom?”

Eri said.

“S-should I…?”

Taiga also seemed slightly tempted by the idea of cosplay.

“Cosplay… I hope there are sizes that fit.”

Umi said, kneading her own breasts. Well… all my girlfriends have large chests. They said it’s hard to find bras that fit.

At that moment, a boy ran toward Sasitsu.

“Master!! I’m here!!”

A boy with a buzz cut came running, calling Sasitsu “Master.”

“Master? No matter how much of a chuunibyou you are, forcing a kid to call you that is too much.”

I looked at Sasitsu with cold eyes.

“I didn’t!! I didn’t force him!! There are… complicated circumstances!!!”

Sasitsu shouted loudly with a reddened face.

“Um… Master. Who are these people?”

The boy seemed somewhat intimidated by the presence of unfamiliar high school students. Well, I was also scared of middle and high schoolers when I was in elementary school.

“They’re instructors for our duel.”

Sasitsu said.

“Instructors!! They seem so grown-up!!!”

The kid’s eyes immediately lit up. Children are so simple…

“Anyway, Hoeta. Can you show me your deck?”

Sasitsu got straight to the point.

“Sure!!!”

The kid called Hoeta immediately took out his deck.

“The deck my brother left me!! The Orc Harem Deck!!”

Hoeta proudly spread out his cards.

Female Mage… Orc Harem… each naming was quite dizzying. Is it really okay to sell this to children?