Chapter 18: An Impossible Way to Win

"That... that was such a fast serve!"

Outside the court, Bunta, with his small black ponytail, was utterly stunned.

Beside him, Izumi's expression was equally shocked. The others around them seemed equally surprised. None of them had expected this unfamiliar player to deliver such a lightning-fast serve.

"W-was that a fluke?" someone muttered instinctively.

But both Izumi and Bunta shook their heads inwardly.

A fluke serve wouldn't look like that. The speed and power of that serve were simply astonishing!

"Well?" A calm voice broke the silence. "Ref, does that serve not count?"

*Whoosh!*

Everyone turned their attention to Ishikawa, who stood on the court with one hand in his pocket, smiling faintly at the referee.

"Uh... um..." The referee was caught off guard by the sudden question. He opened his mouth, then carefully examined the service line on the opposite side. There, he saw a clear white mark inside the boundary.

Confirming the call, the referee let out a sigh of relief and quickly announced, "Serve is valid! Score is 15-0, X leads!"

He actually scored!

The crowd was stunned.

When they looked at Ishikawa again, their gazes had completely changed.

"5 experience points, huh?"

Recalling the system's notification, Ishikawa smiled inwardly. The effect of an ace serve here was the same as during practice matches at Hyotei. He tossed the ball into the air again.

"Here it comes!"

The spectators immediately perked up.

On the other side, the doubles player who had switched positions to receive the serve now wore a look of intense focus.

*Bang!*

The next moment, the sound of the racket striking the ball echoed like a cannon shot. The ball shot forward and landed sharply inside the service line.

An inside serve!

The doubles player stared in shock at the spot where the ball had landed. Like his partner before him, he could only watch as the ball flew past him. He couldn't even move a finger to react.

"30-0!"

The court fell silent once more.

**[Ding!]**

**[Player has executed an ace serve. Basic serve experience +4, Cannon Serve - Modified experience +3.]**

"Nice."

Ishikawa smiled in satisfaction.

This was the kind of effect he was looking for in the "wild." Constantly leveling up his skills during matches—it was just like grinding monsters in a game.

*Whoosh!*

He shifted his position and tossed the ball again.

"W-wait a second," Izumi, the guy with the explosive hairstyle, muttered nervously. "Is he planning to win the match like this?"

*Bang!*

Another ace serve answered his question.

"40-0!"

The crowd was speechless.

The doubles players exchanged a bitter look. They were incredibly unlucky to have run into such a top-tier serve specialist. They had barely warmed up their spot as the court's reigning champions, and now they were about to lose it. But there was nothing they could do—the speed of Ishikawa's serves was simply too much. Even their school's top players would struggle against this!

*Bang!*

Soon, Ishikawa's fourth serve landed.

"Game over."

As the ball exploded off the court, the referee's voice rang out. "X wins!"

**[Ding!]**

**[Player has defeated opponents at a street tennis court. Experience +5.]**

"Only 5 points?"

Ishikawa raised an eyebrow.

But considering this was just a single game, he quickly let it go.

"H-he's so strong!"

On the other side, the spectators were in awe.

"Was that even a minute?" someone whispered.

The others remained silent.

They all knew that a minute was an overestimate. This game had likely set a new record for the fastest match at this street court.

For a moment, many of the onlookers looked at Ishikawa with a mix of fear and respect.

"Don't get too cocky!" a loud voice suddenly shouted. "We'll be your next opponents!"

The crowd turned to see a burly teenager striding onto the court. His partner, a tall and lanky boy with sharp eyes, followed closely behind.

"It's Yoshida and Kijima," someone in the crowd identified them.

Yoshida, the burly one, and Kijima, the sharp-eyed one. Their doubles team was well-known at this street court, ranking fairly high.

"That's right!" someone else chimed in. "Don't let this guy intimidate you. He's only good at serving. But as the reigning champion, he won't have the serve advantage anymore!"

*Whoosh!*

The crowd immediately perked up.

The fear in their eyes faded, replaced by a growing sense of excitement.

"Tch."

Ishikawa simply smirked.

He wasn't annoyed at all. In fact, he was looking forward to facing opponents who were fired up like this.

Soon, the match began.

Yoshida served first. His serve had decent power, but it was too straightforward. For Ishikawa, it was no challenge at all.

*Bang!*

The ball shot back across the net.

Before Yoshida could even finish his serving motion, the ball had already passed between his legs.

"0-15!"

The crowd's expressions turned awkward.

"D-damn it!" Yoshida's face turned red with embarrassment.

He quickly repositioned himself and served again.

*Bang!*

The ball landed.

Due to the doubles rotation rule, Ishikawa had to let this point go.

"15-15!"

The score was tied.

Many of the spectators' eyes lit up.

"That's it!"

"According to the rules, he's practically giving away a point. There's no way he can win this match!"

"He brought this on himself. Did he really think he could win a doubles match alone?"

Because of the rules, everyone, including Izumi and Bunta from Yamabuki Middle School, believed Ishikawa had no chance of winning.

However, Ishikawa remained completely calm on the court.

*Bang!*

On the next point, he once again obliterated Yoshida.

"15-30!"

"His half-volley is incredible," Izumi and Bunta exchanged glances, both seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

Regardless of anything else, just this half-volley technique alone showed that Ishikawa's skill was far beyond the regional tournament level.

"Too bad," Izumi, the guy with the explosive hair, shook his head. "The rules have sealed his fate. He's destined to lose this match and become a laughingstock."

"Yeah," Bunta nodded in agreement.

He also believed that, under the strict rules of doubles, Ishikawa had no way to change the outcome.

*Bang!*

*Bang!*

*Bang!*

However, as the match continued and the score kept alternating between the receiving side leading and the score being tied, the crowd began to sense something was off.

"Wait a minute," Izumi's eyes widened as a realization hit him. "This match... could it be..."

*Bang!*

The next moment, as a sweat-drenched Yoshida served again, Ishikawa's return shot once again slipped between his legs.

*Thud!*

Yoshida, exhausted both physically and mentally, collapsed to his knees on the court.

"I... I can't do this anymore..."

*Thump!*

Before he could finish his sentence, he fell face-first onto the ground like a dead weight.

Instantly, the entire street court fell into an eerie silence. Everyone looked at Ishikawa as if he were a monster.

---

*(End of Chapter)*