I Chose the Plain Girl Instead of the Class’s Top Three Beauties, and Somehow She Became the Heroine - 60

Chapter 60: Surrounded by Nothing but Enemies

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《Sora Mukei’s POV》

For some reason, ever since my friends cheered for me, the stares in the venue felt painfully sharp. When the lineup for the opening ceremony ended, the air in the gymnasium grew heavier, and it felt as if a killing intent aimed at me had intensified.

The referee’s whistle, the sound of tabi sliding, and the murmur of the audience. The battlefield known as the tournament had begun. My master lightly tapped my shoulder.

“Take a deep breath. …Don’t tense your shoulders.”

“Osu.”

I answered dryly. Ahead of my gaze was the tatami for the first match. My opponent was a black belt, clearly bigger and more muscular than me. We bowed and took our stances. The smell of starch from the uniform reached the back of my nose. Sweat and wax mixed, and for a moment the world drifted far away.

The moment the referee called “Begin!”, my body moved on its own. His punch was fast. I matched it with a front kick to block, then swept downward to divert its path. The impact echoed down to the core of my arm.

“You harem bastard, I’ll absolutely kill you?! Hard work never betrays you!”

A pressure so suffocating it stole my breath came crashing toward me! Right in front of me, the black belt’s fist wavered for an instant. I aimed there and struck a middle punch. It grazed him.

“One point!”

The referee called. I had won the first match. I didn’t know why, but it felt like he had tensed up too much and was burning out. Somewhere in the audience, someone shouted.

“Yes!”

Maybe Hiroko-san, or Hino-san. I couldn’t tell whose voice it was, but it definitely reached me.

“Sora! Anno-san is cheering for you!”

Akira’s voice carried clearly. Good, if I won even one match, I might’ve shown something decent. When I returned, Master quietly nodded.

“Your breathing was good, but your right entry was too fast.”

“Yes.”

The second match’s opponent was a black belt known for being a regular at regional tournaments. The frayed sleeves of his uniform looked like proof of his experience. The moment we bowed and took our stances, his gaze pierced sharply.

“A normie like you… I’ll crush you with my fist! You piece of trash!”

Ah, he was completely underestimating me. Just a brown belt mixed among black belts, and I was already being used as a “stepping stone.” While keeping my stance, I took a brief moment to observe our breathing. His breathing was rough. Even before the match, his shoulders rose and fell slightly. He was too tense. When facing me, opponents tended to unravel on their own.

The match started. A punch flew toward me. Fast. But I could read its path. Proof he was flustered. I stepped back, waiting for his center of gravity to lean forward. I feinted to the upper level, then immediately swept low. His foot lifted. My middle punch landed.

“One point!”

The venue rumbled. On the observation stand, Hiroko-san lifted her fan. For a moment, it entered the corner of my vision. It made me happy. Hino-san and Miura-san also waved at me. I bowed and waved back at them.

When I returned, my master laughed.

“You had good eyes. He was completely tensing too much.”

“Yes. His breathing was off.”

“You saw that?”

“Yes.”

I reminded myself not to get carried away. I knew the reason I was winning wasn’t because of my strength, but because of their “tension.” Black belts were strong. But they were too obsessed with winning. When you load “I want to win” onto your fists too heavily, your body becomes heavy. I, on the other hand, simply stepped forward. Because I repeated that to myself, I felt just a little lighter.

Semifinals. Only two opponents left in my division. My opponent bowed silently. He was apparently well-known even among the black belts. His eyes burned with hostility.

Again.

Probably, he didn’t like that a brown belt had made it this far. The instant we took our stances, his whole body radiated the spirit of “I will knock you down.” While receiving that pressure, my own tension somehow settled. I was scared. But the more the opponent burned, the more I cooled. That sensation felt comfortable.

His roundhouse kick aimed boldly at my head. Fast and heavy. Each time I deflected it, my arms tingled. I created distance and breathed. His movements became a little rough. Still, as expected of someone who had made it here, he was strong.

But for some reason, he was impatient. I chose my timing and stepped forward. I feinted an upper punch and closed the distance with my left foot. When his roundhouse kick came, I turned with it. Avoiding his attack, I matched it with a spinning back kick.

“One point!”

The referee’s voice echoed. The venue stirred. This time, the shock was clear in the air. A black belt had lost to a brown belt. I was surprised myself. I never thought I’d manage that well.

Before I realized it, I had reached the finals. I took a sip of water in the waiting area. My throat wasn’t dry. I just wanted a moment of calm. Hiroko-san’s voice echoed in the distance. Hino-san’s voice mixed in. Okabe’s voice, oddly loud as always…

“Aren’t you too amazing?! Mukei, you’re gonna win the whole thing?! Go get ’em!?”

He was annoying most of the time, but maybe he should join a cheering squad. His voice wasn’t bad. But strangely, everything sounded like pleasant background noise.

“Mukei, the next one is the big one.”

Master’s voice reached me.

“Your opponent will try to crush you. Don’t receive. Dodge and strike. Stay calm. He’s a regular champion. Even if you don’t win, go crash into him.”

“Osu.”

I stood up and checked my belt knot. My brown belt, slightly heavier with sweat, felt somehow reassuring. My opponent was a large man, and far calmer than any of the others. We bowed and took our stances.

“Begin!”

The first strike was abnormally fast. An upper punch that grazed the tip of my nose. The others had been strong, but this person was in another dimension entirely. I reflexively pulled back. I just barely avoided it and a low kick followed. I blocked it, was pushed back, and my sole slapped against the floor. Heavy. But my breathing wasn’t disturbed.

“Interesting. You’re not just some Harem Master after all.”

“I’m not a Harem Master. They’re all just friends.”

“What?! That’s what being a normie is!”

A brief opening. I threw a middle punch, but he dodged.

“I watched your matches.”

“I see.”

But I stayed calm. When he avoided my middle punch, I used it as bait. Using the lesson I’d learned earlier, I slipped in a roundhouse kick from his blind spot.

“What?!”

“One point!”

Silence spread, then cheers exploded. Master clapped his hands, laughing. Hiroko-san smiled with a face that looked on the verge of tears. Okabe pumped his fist for some reason and slung his arm around Akira’s shoulder.

I slowly exhaled. I had won. But it was a victory helped by my opponent’s tension. It might not have been my strength. His fists were sharp, strong, and fast. But that anger—its heat—had disturbed his breathing ever so slightly. That slight disturbance opened a single moment’s gap. It felt less like I won, and more like I was helped…Helped by their emotions.

At the center of the tatami, I bowed. When I finished the bow, my palms were trembling. The afterglow of battle still clung to me. Yet, my heart was strangely calm. I glanced toward the audience. Hiroko-san held her fan to her chest, murmuring something at her lips. I couldn’t hear it. But from the movement of her lips, I could read “congratulations.”

I lowered my head slightly in response.

“Thank you.”

Amid the cheers and applause, the scenery of the dojo slowly blurred. Victory was only a result, but the path leading here had undoubtedly shaped this moment.

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