kscans

Chapter 107 - The Usual Two

"Haru."

"Yes."

"Please say you're sorry."

"I am so sorry!!"

An ikemen never goes back on his word. Since then, Rotta had swiftly teleported us from the preliminary venue, and we had moved to a small, simple room that looked like a waiting area.

—And so, Sora was hugging her knees in anger at one end of a long bench, while I was performing a dogeza from the other end.

Rotta, sitting in a chair across the table, was laughing cheerfully, but that level of humiliation was a trivial matter. The top priority was to improve the mood of my partner, which I had ruined by acting like an idiot…!!

"You've been getting carried away lately, Haru. Just because I've been a little lenient, do you think you can get away with anything?"

"Well… this time, I was just so excited, and I…"

"It was unbearable for me to be dragged into it! Please reflect on your actions!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

Hey Rotta, there's a limit to what I'll call trivial. If you continue to find my pathetic state so amusing, I won't hold back, even if you're a veteran player.

I have a feeling I won't stand a chance, but I won't back down!!

"Haru!"

"My apologies!!"

My foolish thoughts during the dogeza were read, and I received another scolding.

Damn it…! Even though she can't see my face, her ability to read me is steadily improving…!!

"Jeez… you showed me something so cool, and yet you're still the same as ever."

"No, really, I'm sorry, okay?"

After a few minutes, I finally managed to get Sora to calm down. I bowed my head one last time, and she finally forgave me with a "Well, it can't be helped." —Seriously, I really did something stupid… As Sora said, I was probably getting carried away.

Even though we're official partners now, if she gets fed up with me, it's all over. I need to be more mindful of self-restraint from now on—and as I was genuinely reflecting on my actions and feeling down, a soft sensation was placed on my hand.

"See, now the atmosphere is all weird, isn't it?"

Sora, who had shifted her position and was now beside me, said in a sulky tone while looking away.

"I wanted to… congratulate you properly."

Her hand, placed gently on mine as she murmured those words, was as if it were a substitute for the words that had become so difficult to say—

"…………Ah—"

Wa…………it, that's… the destructive power of that is, you know.

She herself must have been aware that she looked like she was sulking. Her cheeks, tinged with a faint crimson, looked so utterly adorable that—

When I averted my gaze, I saw a handsome face breaking into a grin that was on a whole other level.

"—Are you two always like this?"

"—!!??"

At the sound of Rotta's voice, who had finally spoken up, Sora jumped with a loud thump! and, using her avatar's agility, quickly retreated.

At the end of the long bench, she covered her face with both hands, steam practically coming out of her ears. Meanwhile, I, to cover up my own embarrassment, gave the grinning face a sidelong glance.

"Hey, you were deliberately hiding your presence, weren't you?"

"I think it's pretty amazing that you two can forget about the person sitting right in front of you and enter your own little world."

Damn it… this senpai has quite the personality.

"It was like, you know, some kind of content? Like, 'serving you the ultimate sweetness,' or something."

"Could you not treat our personal interactions as content?"

It was frustrating to have provided him with such amusement, but in this situation, anything I said would only add to my embarrassment.

For now, I'll ignore Rotta, who was still watching us with an amused look… and get to work on comforting my partner, who had been utterly defeated.