Chapter 231 : Eye Beam Attack
“Oh! Isn’t that Xiao Qian Qian… ahem, I mean Xiao Qian!” Seeing Li Qian, Ling Ning walked over with a playful smile. Though she was tempted to call her “Xiao Qian Qian,” she figured doing so would probably get her punched.
Behind Ling Ning, Xia You and Xu Qing were still silently trading “eye beams” at each other. But when they noticed Li Qian, they both stopped glaring and turned to look at her.
“This… this b***h! Tomorrow’s the college entrance exam, and she’s out wandering around? And if that wasn’t bad enough, why did she have to come looking for Ling Ning?” both thought, feeling mutual frustration.
“Oh, um…” Li Qian blinked, a bit flustered as Ling Ning greeted her. “I… I was just out for a casual walk and just happened to end up here. It’s just a coincidence! Don’t get the wrong idea!”
Ling Ning looked at her, unimpressed. Did Li Qian think she’d die if she wasn’t tsundere? Sure, Li Qian’s house wasn’t too far from her place, but “a walk” wouldn’t lead her all the way here. She could’ve come up with a more believable excuse.
“Well, Miss Li Qian, since you’ve ‘walked all this way,’ would you like to come up for breakfast? I accidentally bought an extra portion,” Ling Ning offered with a resigned sigh.
“W-well… since you’re inviting me so sincerely, I suppose I can stay for a while.”
“…Sure.”
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Sitting together after breakfast, the three girls silently glanced around the room, not saying a word. Ling Ning was starting to feel a strange, stifling awkwardness. Since they’d finished eating, the trio had only spoken when replying to her, and now it felt like they were each on high alert.
“Uh… how about we play a game to loosen up a bit before the college entrance exam?”
Ling Ning finally suggested, unable to bear the tension any longer. She got up and pulled out the console she’d won from a prize draw. Although she didn’t game much, she had a few on hand.
“A game sounds great! It’s been so long—I wonder if my skills have gotten rusty,” Li Qian said, her smile full of excitement.
Xu Qing, meanwhile, looked at the console with a hint of reluctance. It wasn’t that she disliked gaming; in fact, she’d once loaded a variety of games onto her computer. But she’d ultimately deleted them all because… well, she was hopelessly clumsy.
Turn-based games were the only ones she could handle, and she didn’t find them thrilling enough to keep playing.
As for Xia You, she was known as a game strategy expert. With her strange knack for gaming, she could master any game after just a few tries. Hearing about the game, her eyes gleamed with confidence.
“So, which game should we play?” Ling Ning scanned her collection before settling on True Scarlet Hero 7. Ever since she’d played it with Chen Ruo, she’d been hooked on its simple but exhilarating gameplay.
True Scarlet Hero 7 allowed two players to play simultaneously, which meant someone would have to be Ling Ning’s partner. But who?
The three girls exchanged glances, none willing to give up their spot.
“Well, if we’re playing a game, we should let a game decide who gets to play first,” Xia You proposed.
“Ling Ning, do you have any fighting games on the console?”
Ling Ning checked her console and found a wrestling game titled Bi♂Li♂King. “How about this one?” she asked, pointing to it.
The three girls nodded in agreement. None of them had played this game before, so it would be a fair contest.
Since Xu Qing wasn’t confident in her skills, they let her go last. Xia You and Li Qian would duel first, with the winner going up against Xu Qing.
Ling Ning watched the three of them prepare to play, bewildered by their intensity. They were acting as if they were about to head into battle, just for a simple game.
The moment Xia You picked up the controller, her entire demeanor shifted. Gone was her usual reserved self; in its place was a calm, self-assured confidence that even Ling Ning hadn’t seen before. Though Ling Ning knew Xia You was a skilled gamer, it was her first time actually watching Xia You play.
Seeing Xia You’s confident aura, Li Qian felt an unexpected pang of unease.
The game began, and as soon as Xia You familiarized herself with the controls, the match was effectively over. Though Li Qian managed a few hits at the start, once Xia You got the hang of the moves, it turned into a one-sided beatdown.
Even after the match ended, Li Qian couldn’t quite believe she’d lost so quickly. She’d thought she’d had the upper hand at the beginning, but it had slipped away in an instant.
As for Xu Qing, she didn’t even land a single hit before being KO’d by Xia You. Watching her muscle-bound character get pinned down on the screen, Xu Qing felt her spirit shatter. Getting KO’d without even a hit was just… too crushing.
But Xu Qing regained some confidence playing True Scarlet Hero 7. With the game set to “Paradise” difficulty, even survival was a challenge. Against paper-thin soldiers and frail mini-bosses, Xu Qing became the most animated player among them.
Meanwhile, Ling Ning and Xia You played on “Shura” difficulty. With her skill level, Ling Ning nearly got KO’d several times, and if not for Xia You’s timely interventions, she might’ve lost in front of everyone.
Watching Xia You’s gaming prowess, Li Qian thought to herself, “Why did I ever agree to play a fighting game with her? I was just asking to be humiliated.”
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
“Who knew such a simple game could be so exhausting? I can’t believe I lost track of time and played the whole day.”
Ling Ning stretched out on the couch, resting her head on Xia You’s lap. Xia You’s lap, she thought, was truly a heavenly place to be.
Xia You smiled softly, reaching out to smooth Ling Ning’s slightly messy hair.
“Xia You~”
“Hmm?”
“Do your best in tomorrow’s exam~”
“Hmm.”
“Xia You~”
“Hmm?”
“Will you make dinner tonight?”
“Hmm.”
“You’re the best, Xia You~”
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Author’s Note:
Originally, I wanted to use B-san in a backless sweater, but I think I’ve had some bad luck lately, so here’s Madokami instead!