The Witch and Her Companion: I'm Just a Normal High School Student, but I Became the Familiar of the Highest-Ranked Witch. Also, It Seems I'm the Only Guy in the Witch Organization I Joined

Chapter 34.3: Rounds of Battle and Muteking

[Baba Sakurako]

“──Today, I’ll show you my god-tier skills!”

With that declaration, Karuta-chan led us to an old, rundown arcade in the southern district of Shinto.

Since Hikari-chan and I had no particular plans after school, we decided to tag along with Karuta-chan and Emilia-chan for some fun. Kanon-chan also joined us.

“Oh? This is an arcade too? It looks completely different from the ones we went to yesterday and the day before,” Kanon-chan remarked.

Emilia-chan, who had started acting like Kanon-chan’s responsible older sister, looked around the place with fascination.

But seriously, playing in an arcade for three days straight? That’s some hardcore gaming addiction. Even Karuta-chan, who usually looks half-asleep, seemed unusually lively.

“This place has tons of retro arcade cabinets, so it’s really fun! But don’t worry, they have the latest games too~ Oh, and they’ve renovated a lot inside, so you might be surprised by the difference from the outside~”

She was unusually talkative, but this wasn’t just my imagination. Karuta-chan was definitely the type to sleep through every class and pour all her energy into club activities and play.

“So this is where commoners gather for entertainment? It looks rather shabby,” Kanon-chan muttered.

“What, first time in an arcade, rich girl?” Hikari-chan shot back.

“Indeed. I’ve known of their existence, but I’ve never actually set foot in one before.”

“Then let me teach you the rules of the arcade. First off, newcomers have a tradition of handing some cash to the experienced players who brought them—”

“Hikari-chan, stop lying at light speed.”

I delivered a light chop to Hikari-chan’s head as she grinned mischievously. Still, I wondered why Kanon-chan wasn’t offended at being called a rich girl.

“Come on, everyone, let’s hurry inside~!”

“Hey, Karuta, if you jump around like that, your hair’s going to come undone.”

Karuta-chan, who usually wears her hair down, had it pinned up today with a kanzashi, thanks to Emilia-chan.

Emilia-chan always ties her braided silver hair into a bun with a kanzashi too. I wonder how she does it? Maybe I should ask her to teach me someday… not that I even own a kanzashi.

In any case, if we didn’t head in soon, an impatient—or rather, an addict-like—Karuta-chan might jump around so much that all of Emilia-chan’s efforts would go to waste.

＊＊＊

Just as Karuta-chan had said, the inside of the arcade was surprisingly clean, a stark contrast to its exterior.

As soon as we stepped in, Karuta-chan took a deep breath and muttered something borderline insane.

“Wait a sec~ I need to breathe in the arcade air and become one with the arcade~”

There were coin games, crane games, and rows upon rows of arcade cabinets. A strangely addictive BGM played throughout the store.

After finishing her bizarre ritual, Karuta-chan strode forward with confidence.

“──Alright, let’s go, Emilia. Today, I’ll show you my divine skills again.”

Her voice was unusually firm, and her usually sleepy eyes were sharp with determination.

“She changed when her phone screen cracked too. She’s a busy one,” Hikari-chan muttered, rattling a bucket full of tokens with a wry smile.

“Aren’t you guys going to watch Karuta’s godly skills?”

“Nah, I wanna play medal games. Not interested.”

Hikari-chan dismissed Emilia-chan’s disappointed look without a second thought. She was clearly dead set on playing medal games.

“That’s fine, Emilia. Hikari’s just scared of witnessing my divine skills. Once she sees them, she’d have to admit there’s someone she can’t beat.”

“…Huh?”

But Karuta-chan, now one with the arcade, had gained the tongue of the arcade as well—her trash-talking skills had skyrocketed! …Wait, what am I even saying?

“Well, it can’t be helped before the invincible king. Come, Emilia.”

“…Oi, hold it right there, you dumb Karuta. Fine, I’ll take you on!”

Hikari-chan shoved her token bucket into my hands, eyes burning with determination.

“Hikari-chan, let’s not. Karuta-chan’s probably really strong. Let’s just play medal games together instead.”

“Don’t stop me, Sakurako. Trust me, people who act all confident like that usually aren’t actually that good.”

We all came here to have fun together. There was no need to start a fight over it.

But Hikari-chan had already gone beyond the point of reasoning.

“Heh, talk big, Hikari. How about we make a bet? The winner gets to issue one day of absolute obedience to the loser.”

Karuta-chan, of course, made things even worse.

“Fine! If I win, I’ll make you lick Sakurako’s shoes!”

“Why does that only cause problems for me…?”

And so, an unexpected, honor-driven, merciless arcade battle began.

＊＊＊

──To cut to the conclusion, Hikari-chan was utterly destroyed.

She lost the first game outright. “Best of three, dumbass!” she insisted, only to be crushed again in the second.

Then, in sheer desperation, she claimed, “The next game is worth a billion points!” only to be obliterated yet again.

Final score: a billion points to zero. A complete and total defeat.

I should’ve realized something was off when, the moment Karuta-chan stepped into the arcade cabinet area, the other customers started murmuring.

“Hey, Muteking is here!”

“It’s Muteking! The one with the hands of a god!”

The customers kept calling Karuta-chan “Muteking.” At first, I had no idea what they meant, but after the matches, I saw the ranking screen.

1st place: Muteking

That’s when it all clicked.

Every game Hikari-chan played had Muteking in first place. Most likely, Karuta-chan had dominated the high scores in nearly every game.

The legend of Muteking was real.

“…Hikari-chan, cheer up? Come on, let’s play some medal games together?”

“…”

Hikari-chan, utterly crushed, was sitting curled up in the corner. She was so dejected that even talking to her felt like intruding.

“Oh, I know! Hikari-chan, there’s a claw machine over there with a really cute cat plushie! Kanon-chan and I couldn’t get it, so could you win it for us?”

“…Why don’t ya just have Muteking do it? She’d get it in one shot…”

“Why are you suddenly speaking in Kansai dialect?”

No good. She was sulking hard. Even her usual witty retorts had lost their edge. If she’s this bad at losing, why did she act so tough in the first place?

“…Well, I get that you’re upset. You said confident people usually aren’t that good, and now that’s come back to bite you big time.”

“…Weren’t you supposed to be comforting me?”

“…Oh, oops. I tried to cheer you up but accidentally slapped you with the harsh truth.”

I hadn’t meant to, but Hikari-chan curled up even tighter. If this kept up, she’d turn into a pill bug.

“…Here, take my coins. Go play somewhere else.”

“…Don’t say that, Hikari-chan. Oh, I know! How about I give you a hug to cheer you up?”

I had no idea where that came from, but I blurted it out. No way she’d actually—

“…Mm.”

Hikari-chan slowly uncurled and turned toward me, eyes red and puffy from crying.

Then, hesitantly, she raised her arms.

“…Mm.”

Tearfully, she looked up at me and spread her arms wide. Something about it was so overwhelming that I instinctively pulled her into a hug.