Chapter 141: Strength That's Only for Show!
Luke surveyed the arcade machines.
Under the dim lighting, their screens shone painfully bright. Rapid, high-pitched music filled the air, occasionally interrupted by characters shouting from the games.
"Oh, how about this pachinko machine?"
Hiratsuka-sensei pointed toward one of the machines.
"Come on, Sensei. Isn't that basically gambling?"
Luke stared speechlessly at her choice.
Pachinko was a game involving small metal balls, but it was also gambling in all but name.
After inserting money, the machine released a stream of balls. Meeting certain conditions rewarded the player with even more, which could be exchanged for cash or used to continue playing.
"Hiss… Four yen per ball?"
Luke examined the price and clicked his tongue.
At that rate, carelessness could make several hundred yen disappear in less than a minute.
However, Shizuka also sounded surprised.
"Eh? I thought someone like you would enjoy gambling."
"There's something wrong with that statement."
Luke looked at her indignantly.
"I may not study seriously, sleep during class, and occasionally skip lessons, but I never drink, smoke, or gamble."
"Besides, I frequently perform good deeds and accumulate virtue."
Under his reproach, Shizuka repeatedly nodded.
"Yes, yes. I was being shallow."
"Eh… They really don't seem like a teacher and student."
Yui whispered to Miura Yumiko.
Yumiko could only shrug helplessly.
After correcting Shizuka's misunderstanding, Yui pointed toward another machine.
"Then how about this one?"
"Hm? A coin pusher?"
Yumiko glanced over.
"Aren't those usually for little kids? Yui, are you a child?"
It was exactly what the name suggested.
A platform inside the machine repeatedly moved forward and backward, pushing a pile of tokens. Players inserted their own at the right moment, hoping to knock the tokens at the edge into the prize tray.
It was a simple form of miniature gambling where the potential reward remained clearly visible, though it was designed more for entertainment.
The rules were not complicated, making it suitable for several people to play together.
"So you insert tokens to push the existing pile over the edge. It looks extremely simple."
Yukino also seemed unimpressed.
For once, she agreed with Yumiko and considered it a game meant for children.
Shizuka smiled bitterly and offered a different opinion.
"Don't say that. Try it first."
"The simpler a game is, and the more clearly you can see the reward, the easier it becomes to get addicted."
Hiratsuka-sensei was correct.
You could not understand the appeal until you tried it.
It followed the same principle as Tetris—stack, clear, stack again, then clear again.
It sounded simple, yet people never grew tired of it.
...
The arcade music continued around them, with the shop's background track clashing against the sounds of countless machines.
The coin pusher before them creaked and rattled strangely.
However, the people surrounding it made no sound. They merely stared at the machine in complete silence.
Yumiko and Yukino, who had previously looked down on it as a children's game, now kept their mouths tightly shut.
Their eyes moved constantly as they searched for the perfect opportunity to topple the tower of tokens in a single decisive push.
"Ahh~ Why won't it fall? Why is it resisting so stubbornly?! Honestly!"
Yui hurriedly inserted another token, but it sank into the machine without producing the slightest result.
"Please be quiet, Yuigahama-san."
Yukino warned her once again while staring intently at the machine.
Unfortunately, her own situation was equally terrible.
"…Ugh! I was careless. Did I miss the jackpot?"
Mm.
Yukino was having the time of her life.
Whenever victory or defeat became involved, she grew inexplicably serious.
She had focused intensely and quickly understood the machine's mechanics, so she had already invested a considerable number of tokens.
"How did she become this frightening?"
After another fruitless attempt, Yumiko gave up and walked beside Luke, commenting on Yukino's behavior.
"Didn't you already see this at the claw machine? You've witnessed her competitive streak before."
"I just never expected her to fight this hard over such a tiny victory."
Yumiko looked genuinely amazed.
"You're not continuing?"
Luke glanced at her after she had already invested so much.
"Phew, forget it. Let them play this childish game."
Yumiko muttered while watching Yui and Yukino enthusiastically continue.
The two girls were too deeply absorbed to hear them and kept feeding tokens into the machine.
"Ah, Yukinon, lend me some tokens."
Having exhausted her own supply, Yui reached toward Yukino's pile, only for her hand to be caught immediately.
"Wait. Will you actually repay me?"
"I've watched you throw tokens in without any plan whatsoever."
"Ugh—!"
Yui froze beneath Yukino's accusation.
She truly had no strategy.
She recklessly entrusted everything to luck, making her exactly the kind of person who should never become involved in gambling unless she wanted to lose everything.
Yukino seemed to share that opinion.
She raised one finger and earnestly began lecturing her.
"I have believed for quite some time that you suffer from a severe lack of planning."
"You make absolutely no preparations for your future…"
"Ughhh…"
With every word, Yui's body shrank a little further.
"How have things been going?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka approached Luke.
"What are you talking about? I don't understand."
"I mean the Service Club. You accepted that punishment with a specific task, didn't you?"
Only then did Luke understand.
"Oh, you mean Yukinoshita?"
He nodded toward her.
"Doesn't she seem fine? She's still merciless, but after spending time together, she feels much more cheerful."
"At the very least, she no longer insults me every single time she pours tea."
Luke then glanced at Shizuka.
"Also, she's certainly better than someone who enters the clubroom without knocking every time and never learns from it!"
"…I-is that so? Then I suppose that is a meaningful improvement."
Shizuka looked away sentimentally and pretended she had not been targeted.
Luke stared at her speechlessly.
Pretending to be cute would not erase the fact that she never knocked!
Shizuka glanced toward Yukino, who had finished scolding Yui and was now comforting her.
"Hmm. You were extremely unwilling before, but you've done a respectable job changing things."
"Obviously. Aren't you an office worker too?"
Luke spoke helplessly.
"Anyone who spends every day drowning in work, repeating the same tasks, then sacrifices their remaining time to play house with problem children would naturally be reluctant."
"It would be stranger if they weren't."
He released a breath, then added, "Still, things are pretty good now."
"Both club members are problem children, but they're entertaining."
"Good. Keep working hard."
Shizuka smiled and patted him.
"If you succeed, there will be a reward~"
"I don't mind working hard. I have too much free time anyway."
Luke brushed off her arm.
"But problem children must ultimately rely on themselves."
"No matter how hard I try, I can't lead someone forward when they insist on hiding themselves."
Shizuka considered his words.
"Hmm. Yes and no."
"The difference between being solitary and being lonely lies in strength that's only for show."
"The key is whether that disguise can be broken."
"However, people like that usually don't lack the ability to remove it. What they lack is a reason."
"Eh?! Sensei, are you secretly some kind of philosopher?"
Luke stared at Shizuka in astonishment after hearing her assessment of Yukino.
"Hey! What exactly do you think I am?!"
Shizuka unhappily pushed his forehead with one finger, then placed a hand on her waist and spoke proudly.
"You underestimate your teacher far too much!"
"I also lived through your age and possess plenty of life… experi… ence…"
Her voice grew increasingly dispirited.
As usual, Hiratsuka-sensei's expression darkened and her head drooped weakly to one side.
"I-is that so? I've already reached the age where I can lecture others and offer them life experience?"
"Heh… Heh. How wonderful…"
Luke did not know how to comfort Shizuka after she had depressed herself.
"Uh, Hiratsuka-sensei? Are you all right?"
"Please pull yourself together and remain strong!"
"I'm fine. I'll go die in the restroom for a while. Remember to call me before you leave…"
"Mm, all right. But please make sure you don't actually die."
"Understood. Thank you."
Mm.
Strength that was only for show was at least better than having no strength at all.
...
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