Chapter 40: Unspoken Rule

Yumiko Miura was gasping for breath, clearly exhausted.

Her expression was complicated.

She had expected to lose—but not this badly.

The gap between them wasn't something that could be closed with hard work alone.

Ren Asakura's overwhelming skill made it feel like an adult playing with a child.

Like it was all just a game to him.

She had stepped onto the court full of confidence, only to be utterly humiliated.

She felt like crying.

But she held it in—no way was she going to cry here.

Ren sighed, suddenly recalling an unspoken rule from his previous life.

"Never completely shut out your opponent. Always let them score at least once or twice."

"And if you make them cry, you're responsible for cheering them up."

Not my fault!

She was the one who started this. What else was I supposed to do?!

Honestly, after watching through all of Oregairu, Ren knew that Yumiko Miura wasn't actually a bad person.

Even the description of her said:

Hachiman Hikigaya's classmate.

Hayama's close friend.

Blonde, well-defined features, a "queen" type personality.

A former tennis club member in middle school.

The pinnacle of female normies, best friends with Ebina Hina and Yui Yuigahama.

The queen bee of her class's female social scene.

A blonde beauty admired by many guys at school, though they all know she likes Hayama and don't dare confess.

Very proactive in social interactions.

As a result, she's about as clueless about social norms as Marie Antoinette.

Easily moved to tears, deeply cares about her friends.

Called out Yui for lacking independent thought.

Tried to help Ebina find a boyfriend but got rejected.

Has an older sister and an older brother.

Ren scratched his head, feeling slightly guilty.

"Great, now I've made her cry. And I'm the one who has to fix it."

Ren Asakura waved toward Hayama Hayato.

"Hey, blond pretty boy over there! Your girlfriend just lost—aren't you gonna comfort her? What an unqualified boyfriend."

Hayama had already planned to step in, but as soon as Ren pointed it out, he immediately walked over.

The moment Yumiko Miura heard someone call Hayama her boyfriend, she instantly brightened up.

"Hmph! At least you've got some taste!"

Hayama neither confirmed nor denied it.

In the end, the normie group left.

Ren shook his head. "Women are way too easy to cheer up."

Then, he turned to look at the group sitting on the steps.

"What's with those looks? You're staring at me like I'm some kind of irredeemable villain."

Yukinoshita Yukino nodded without hesitation.

"You made a girl cry. That's hardly gentlemanly behavior."

Hikigaya Hachiman added, "Yeah, Ren, you kinda went too far."

Ren turned to Megumi Kato, his voice full of hurt.

"Huihui, you don't think that too, do you?"

Megumi smiled awkwardly.

"Well… I really want to be on your side, but making a girl cry is a bit rude."

Ren clutched his chest in mock pain.

"I was defending our territory! Why—why—when my soldiers are still on the battlefield, does the commander surrender first?"

Yukino saw right through his dramatic performance.

With curiosity, she asked, "What if Yumiko had been tougher? What if she hadn't cried and instead kept provoking you?"

Ren smirked and raised a single finger toward the sky.

"When I reach the top, I find myself utterly alone. There is no one to talk to, only the bitter cold of winter. What is the purpose of standing above others, if solitude is all that awaits me?"

So dramatic.

Too bad for her—Miura did cry.

If he kept pushing, that'd just be too cruel.

"Don't worry. She probably won't come back after this. Anyway, break's over—let's get back to training."

Even after such an intense match, Ren still looked completely fresh.

His clothes weren't even wrinkled.

Yet another huge gap between them.

Before the game, Ren had already been training with Saika Totsuka for quite a while.

Now, Totsuka ran up to him, eyes sparkling.

"Ren, you're amazing! Your tennis skills are unbelievable!"

His smile was so bright it felt like flowers were blooming around him.

An adorable, glowing boy.

A gentle little angel.

Ren blinked.

For a second, he swore he actually saw special effects.

"Damn it, how is he so cute? That should be illegal. And on top of that, he's so sweet… No wonder Hachiman almost got bent. If Saika were a girl, Hachiman would be finished…"

Ren muttered under his breath.

Saika excitedly grabbed his hands.

"Ren! You should join the tennis club! With your skills, we could become the strongest team in school!"

His eyes sparkled with pure hope.

"Ahem!"

Yukino cleared her throat, cutting off the rom-com moment.

Then, in a calm voice, she said:

"Totsuka, it's still practice time."

Before long, morning practice was over.

For once, Ren actually had some free time.

Maybe because they had finally realized the gap in skill, Yukino took it upon herself to train Totsuka personally.

Megumi Kato's tennis skills were… average.

Her stamina? Also average.

So, she didn't really help much.

---

As time passed, Totsuka finished his training.

His request was officially completed.

And just like that, the Service Club returned to normal.

That morning at school—

Hachiman Hikigaya was suddenly called to the office.

The reason?

His career survey form was just as explosive and ridiculous as all his past essays.

This time, only he was summoned.

Hachiman turned to Ren in shock.

"Ren… how is this possible?! There's no way you didn't get called too—you wrote something just as crazy!"

Ren smirked and pulled out his career survey from his desk drawer.

"Surprise, Hachiman—I never turned mine in."

His grin widened.

"This time, you're facing Miss Hiratsuka's Extermination Fist all on your own. Good luck."

Hachiman's jaw dropped.

"You set me up!"

Ren dramatically covered his face with one hand.

"Hahaha! No, no, my friend. You were just too naïve. You actually submitted that survey. Your 'career goal' was to become a hikikomori—and you even cited that cute loli meme saying, 'My dream is to be a bride.'"

Ren shook his head.

"I can already see your future, Hachiman…"

Megumi Kato watched their antics with mild amusement.

Her career survey had been perfectly normal.

So normal that even if it were placed at the top of the stack, no one would bother to look at it.

Which was exactly in character for her.

Then—

Miss Hiratsuka entered the classroom from the back door.

She immediately spotted Ren, holding his unsubmitted career survey in plain sight.

Miss Hiratsuka: "…!!!"

°°°

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