Chapter 17: The Street Tennis Court

The next day.

Weekend.

The weather was clear and sunny, with not a cloud in the sky.

The tennis club was nearly empty. Most members had left after running a couple of laps, seeing that none of the regulars were around. Only one figure stood out, having completed 20 laps and then adding another 10. It was none other than Ishikawa.

Even though it was the weekend, the game's daily tasks were still active. Ishikawa didn't want to miss out on the over 100 experience points he could earn each day.

That's right.

As his level increased, the experience points from daily tasks also grew. Now, completing a single daily task rewarded him with 25 points. For Ishikawa, maintaining this routine meant he could level up every three days or so.

Moreover, this consistent training was improving his physical attributes—speed, strength, and stamina. By the end of the month, Ishikawa was confident his foundational skills would reach a new level.

Of course, improving these five core attributes would become increasingly difficult as his base stats grew. But that was a problem for later, during the Kanto or even national tournaments. For now, Ishikawa's primary goal was securing a spot as a regular at Iceberg.

*Huff!*

After completing his 1,000th swing, Ishikawa let out a deep breath, sweat dripping from his brow. By now, all the other Iceberg members had left. Glancing at the time, he saw it was already past 10 a.m.

Ishikawa packed up his tennis gear, changed into a fresh set of clothes in the locker room, and left Iceberg, stepping into the "wild zone" outside.

"So this is Tokyo?"

Having never been to Tokyo in either his past or current life, Ishikawa found the city's streets, so different from those in China, full of novelty.

At the bus stop, he pulled out a map of Tokyo he had prepared earlier. While he treated the world outside Iceberg as a "wild zone" in the game, he wasn't naive enough to think that everyone walking around was a "wild monster." He had a clear goal in mind.

"Since this is a tennis game, only those active in outdoor tennis courts can be considered 'wild monsters,' right?"

"If I remember correctly, that place is close to Seigaku, Iceberg, and Fudomine."

Ishikawa marked the locations of the three schools on the map and then chose a spot near their intersection. He boarded a bus and, after about ten minutes, got off and began searching the area. Soon, he heard the sound of tennis balls being struck.

Following the noise, he found a tennis court set up in a park.

"Found it!"

Looking down from the steps, Ishikawa saw a group of players engaged in a doubles match. When they noticed the newcomer, many turned to look, but upon seeing that Ishikawa was alone, some of them smirked.

Their attention quickly returned to the match.

*Thud!*

About two minutes later, as one team executed a successful smash, the boy acting as the referee announced, "Game over! Haneda and Maruya win!"

"Next up, Kōya and Nakazaki!"

Two boys, around 13 or 14 years old, confidently stepped onto the court.

The match began.

Unlike standard rules, matches here were single-game affairs, with the challengers serving first. The winners stayed on as the defending team, while the losers stepped aside to make way for new challengers.

Kōya and Nakazaki started aggressively, trying to take advantage of their opponents' fatigue from the previous match. However, their opponents defended well and eventually turned the tables, defeating the challengers.

"They're strong!"

"As expected of Izumi and Buba from Rokkaku Middle School."

"Yeah, they're probably the best players at this street court."

Rokkaku Middle School? Izumi? Buba?

Ishikawa's gaze settled on the two confident boys on the court. Indeed, compared to the other challengers, their coordination and strategy were impressive.

After about ten minutes, they were still standing, having defeated six consecutive pairs. However, their stamina began to wane, and in the seventh match, they finally made a mistake and lost.

Even so, their performance earned them genuine applause from the spectators.

"Excuse me," Ishikawa finally spoke up during the lull. "Can I join the match?"

"Of course," said Izumi, the boy with the brown afro, who had just stepped off the court. "But we only play doubles here. You'll need to find a partner."

The others chuckled, clearly not planning to team up with Ishikawa.

But Ishikawa had no intention of partnering with anyone. He smiled and said, "That's fine. I'll play alone. Since it's only one game, I don't need a second person to serve for me."

*Huh?*

The boys around him frowned.

"This guy's pretty bold!"

"Singles against doubles? He's either confident or clueless."

"I think he's never played doubles before. He has no idea how naive this idea is."

The crowd murmured, but Ishikawa remained unfazed. Instead, he turned to Buba and said, "You're not scared of losing to me, are you?"

*Whoosh!*

The atmosphere instantly shifted.

The boys glared at Ishikawa, their competitive spirits ignited. At this age, none of them were willing to back down from a challenge.

"Fine!" one of the boys who had just defeated Izumi and Buba snapped. "We'll give you a chance."

"Yeah," the other added, clearly annoyed. "But if you lose, don't show your face around this court again!"

"Deal," Ishikawa said with a smile, pleased that his provocation had worked.

"Wait," Buba interjected, frowning. "At least tell us your name."

"My name?" Ishikawa thought for a moment, then grinned. "You can call me X."

*X?*

The boys exchanged glances, their expressions darkening.

"This guy's way too arrogant!"

Izumi and Buba shared a look, both clearly irritated. This newcomer clearly didn't respect the court's rules.

"Fine," one of the defenders on the court sneered. "X, is it? Let's see what you've got."

"Sure," Ishikawa said, pulling a tennis ball from his pocket.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he tossed the ball into the air, bent his knees, and leaned forward. With a powerful jump, he swung his racket with incredible speed, striking the ball with a resounding *crack*.

*Boom!*

The ball shot forward like a cannonball.

The defender at the baseline barely had time to react as a flash of yellow light exploded in front of him.

"What?!"

His face paled as he realized his body wouldn't move.

"I... I can't move?"

*Tap, tap, tap...*

The ball landed, bounced, and rolled gently to the side after hitting the wall behind him.

For a moment, the entire street tennis court fell into complete silence.

(End of Chapter)