A Hundred Ways to Use Muscle Mastery

Yuu noticed something.

The record on this machine seemed rigged. The score was not only neatly set but also pushed to a point where even an ordinary expert would struggle to reach it.

Perhaps this was a trick for the event?

Unfortunately, he wasn't an ordinary expert—forget reaching that score, the one he achieved was several times higher.

On the naming screen after completing the game, Yuu pondered.

(Hmm… This should be the highest score a human could achieve, right? If so, let's assume it was set by a computer.)

If it was AI, it'd easily be named "Love," so he chose the three letters CPU with the electronic pistol and clicked confirm.

The screen flickered, and the name at the top of the leaderboard, with a score several times higher than second place—CPU stood proudly at the top. Unless the machine broke its own record or the game center pulled another trick, that name would stay at the peak.

As a skill holder, Yuu was certain… even he might not be able to replicate that score a second time.

And the next person to see this leaderboard would probably storm to the counter and slam the desk in protest, right? If they didn't want to give out prizes, they shouldn't do it like this.

But that had nothing to do with him.

The game center could break the second record, so why couldn't CPU break the first?

There was no such logic in this world. Not in Tokyo, and not in this small sports center either.

"My sister's mission, complete."

A small ticket spat out from under the machine, proof that could be exchanged at the counter for the "super large assorted surprise potato chips" Sora wanted.

Yuu tucked it into his pocket. Ponytail Girl was still clinging to his side, but he immediately activated block mode. Though not as strong as Accelerator reflecting sound, her words and actions didn't register in his consciousness, like nobody cared about the sound and shadow of a passing pigeon.

In short, all of Ponytail Girl's subsequent roles were cut.

"Then, next…"

As Yuu turned to look at Haruno and Kouichirou, he couldn't help but freeze.

Haruno was smiling as usual, but a faint dark aura radiated from behind her, as if her entire body was inscribed with the word "amusement," making anyone who saw her shiver.

As for Kouichirou, he looked like a female general dragged back to the tent after losing a war—his expression listless, shoulders slumped, his refined demeanor reduced to a shred of resolute politeness, showing his stubbornness as if, even lying down, he'd still glare at the ceiling counting stains.

(This… I was only playing for less than ten minutes, and you two just stood there without leaving. How did it turn into a fight of two or three hundred rounds?)

(Don't tell me they were battling in Accel World?)

"Did something happen?"

His character couldn't falter, so Yuu maintained his cold face, expressing his confusion in a flat tone.

Kouichirou didn't answer, only giving a wry smile.

Haruno tilted her head to glance at him, her smiling gaze icy, as if it could freeze the entire game center.

So Kouichirou quickly adjusted his expression, clearing his throat twice.

"Well… we were discussing a project assigned by the professor last week, and I realized I couldn't outdo Haruno-san in ideas, analysis, or innovation, so I felt a bit frustrated. Sorry for worrying you."

(A bit? Is your definition of "a bit" a little exaggerated?)

Grumbling inwardly, Yuu pursed his lips, turned his face away, and maintained his quiet, cold demeanor.

"…Not worried at all."

Kouichirou froze for a moment, staring at him with his mouth slightly open.

Those classic words… that tsundere expression…

He couldn't help but touch his chest, checking his heartbeat, the corners of his mouth slowly forming a strange smile.

"Yuuki-kun?"

His smile stiffened instantly.

A cold, low voice sounded beside him. Haruno, with a friendly smile and a murderous gaze that seemed to say [If you dare target my person, I'll kill you in three days and leak all your files to the world], said to him:

"Yuu-kun's done challenging the record. What do you want to play next?"

"…A-Alright, let's continue with this game!" Kouichirou hurriedly nodded, addressing the two still standing by the machine. "Let's do 2v2. I'll team with Haruno-san, Tenkuji-kun with Ribbon-chan. How about it?"

Yuu didn't mind. He couldn't just use someone's coins and ditch, so being a playmate was fine.

Ponytail Girl, of course, wouldn't refuse, so the 2v2 battle began promptly.

Haruno's shooting skills were unquestionable, and Kouichirou's abilities weren't to be underestimated either—both had the potential to claim the top spot on the previous leaderboard.

Meanwhile, Yuu was hindered by Ponytail Girl, not just in the game but in real life too, bothered by all sorts of things. Not only were his eardrums nearly bursting, but he was also bumped into several times, almost unable to hold the pistol steadily.

Since this effectively lowered his strength, Haruno didn't say anything this time, focusing on the game, aiming to surpass them in total team score.

And it proved that using cheats could do whatever you wanted.

[Ding!]

[Congratulations, host has received a reward: …yen.]

[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Minor physical enhancement (explosive power).]

[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Learning (Proficient Level).]

[Congratulations, host has received a reward: Instant Recovery (minor injuries) (one-time use).]

Two new rewards he'd never seen before appeared, but Yuu ignored them for now.

"Ah~ We lost in the end."

Haruno put down her electronic pistol, already expecting this outcome but still sighing in frustration.

She then stretched widely, her beautiful back arching backward, revealing her prominent chest and slender, snow-white arms, like the most stunning portrait in the world.

Unconsciously, Yuu glanced at Kouichirou—

(Wow, he didn't even look at this beautiful sight and is still staring at me! No need to ask now—he's definitely gay.)

A wary glint flashed in his eyes. Yuu, expressionless, distanced himself from the guy.

Kouichirou: "???"

(Wow, am I being mistaken for gay again?)

(What's with those eyes?! You didn't look at Haruno-san stretching either—your first glance was at me?)

(We're both the same in every way, so what right do you have to keep your distance from me?!)

The more he thought, the more annoyed he got. The smile on Kouichirou's face vanished, and he wanted to show the proper senior attitude, glaring back with authority.

At that moment, Haruno gave him a cold glance, then turned away as if too lazy to look at him.

(…Forget it, a great man can adapt. Blame me for being easily defeated by my weaknesses.)

Consoling himself, Kouichirou still felt sad and couldn't help but sigh to the heavens—his mother was like this, and the prospective son-in-law his mother targeted was like this too.

No wonder he didn't want to marry a scary woman like that!

"What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing, maybe he's just too shaken."

Haruno waved her hand, casually changing the topic with a relaxed expression:

"There are still plenty of tokens. What do we play next?"

Yuu glanced at her, answering indifferently: "Anything, but I can't stay here too long."

"Then let's play a bit more and go." Haruno looked at Kouichirou, laughing. "After all, the tokens are from Yuuki-kun, so you decide."

"…Alright." Kouichirou nodded honestly.

Next, the four of them played arcade music games like Taiko no Tatsujin, maimai, and Project DIVA Hatsune Miku.

While playing, Yuu suddenly realized that the permanent status reward—Muscle Mastery—was incredibly helpful for these types of games.

Often in gaming, mistakes happen because fingers can't keep up with the reaction speed of the brain and eyes.

For example, this scenario:

Eyes: I saw it!

Brain: Okay, red blue red blue red blue blue blue red blue sequence ahead, ready to tap.

Hands: I… I'll tap your butt!

With the Muscle Mastery status, it was like radio waves bypassing nerve transmission, going straight from brain commands to muscles. His hands were nearly as fast as his eyes' reactions. Every tap could perfectly follow the rhythm, every press evenly powered. With just rhythm coordination and dynamic vision, any song, no matter the difficulty, could be cleared with a Full Combo.

As the word "status" implied, Muscle Mastery became his passive skill. Anytime, he could perfectly control his muscles, doing things he couldn't before.

For instance, making his fingers vibrate at high frequency… Hmm, maybe useful for typing and arguing on social media.

Or making his tongue vibrate at high frequency… Hmm, a godly skill for eating cherries—Sora would definitely want to learn.

Most importantly, if this world had unusual monsters, perhaps slightly stronger than humans…

(Muscle Limiter Released: 100% or something like that… Maybe worth a try?)

(Hah, not zombies—if I tried that, I'd die sooner or later, right?)

Yuu chuckled softly, dismissing the thought. His physique was still that of a normal human, and he'd face backlash proportional to the strength used. Such overly abnormal things were better not tried carelessly.

But even just for gaming, Muscle Mastery made him a walking cheat—as long as it was a game requiring control, Yuu consistently outshone Haruno and the other two, securing an undisputed first place.

He won so much he got bored himself, then took the chance to ask to leave.

Coincidentally, the other three had nearly used up their tokens in the gambling area. After regrouping with them, they started discussing where to go next.

Of course, this had nothing to do with Yuu and Haruno, who were preparing to leave.

"Oh, by the way, before we go…"

Casually glancing at the punching machine nearby, Kouichirou suddenly said:

"How about we try that one?"