When I Started Capturing the Academy Princesses, Things Turned into a Battlefield - V2 Chapter 08: Ball Game Tournament – Part 2

Chapter 08: Ball Game Tournament – Part 2

Day two of the ball game tournament.

It was now the afternoon.

“Let’s not waste the girls’ hard work! We’re taking the win today!”

Yamada shouted from the center of the team huddle.

Everyone in class looked fired up.

The reason for that was what had happened earlier that morning—

The girls’ basketball finals.

On the second day of the tournament, the basketball finals were held in the morning,

And the soccer finals kicked off in the afternoon.

Our class’s girls had made it through the prelims,

And we boys had all been cheering them on together.

It might sound rude to call it unexpected,

But the girls in our class were actually really strong.

Kazama especially stood out.

I’d never really associated her with sports,

But her movements were sharp and on point.

Rather than saying she was good at basketball,

It was more like she just had amazing reflexes and athletic ability.

They pushed through tough opponents one after another and made it all the way to the semifinals.

Unfortunately, they lost in a close match in the semifinals.

The opponents were upperclassmen and clearly had actual basketball experience.

If anything, it was impressive they kept up that well.

After the game, the girls looked equal parts frustrated and satisfied.

Watching from the stands, we were honestly moved by how hard they fought.

Which led directly to this fired-up team huddle of ours now.

“…So? How was my performance?”

Right before the match started,

Kazama—now changed into her uniform—walked up to me while I waited on the sidelines.

“Nice work out there. You really surprised me. Your moves were impressive.”

“Told you, right?”

“I didn’t know you were that good at sports.”

“I worked on it during my self-improvement phase.”

Come to think of it, Kazama once mentioned that she used to be a gloomy, quiet type.

Back when I was trying to better myself, I hit the gym a lot too.

Maybe we’re more alike than I thought.

“Are you always that good in regular gym class?”

If she were, there’d probably be more talk about it.

“I usually hold back, that’s all.”

“Oh? So today was you going all out?”

“Yeah. I decided a little while ago to start giving it my all.”

…What sparked that change?

“But still, it sucks. I really wanted to win.”

“The other team was strong. Can’t be helped. They actually ended up winning the whole thing, after all.”

The upperclassmen who beat our class in the semifinals went on to win the finals too.

“Still, Shiranui in that last match was amazing. Even against those seniors, she held her own like it was nothing. She almost had it.”

“…”

Yeah, it was Shiranui’s class that made it to the finals.

The finals were intense, sure—

But the real hype came during the semifinals on the opposite side of the bracket.

That match drew a massive crowd,

Because it was a head-to-head showdown between two Princesses.

Tsukihi’s class versus Shiranui’s class.

Both sides fought hard without giving an inch,

But in the end, Shiranui landed the final shot and secured the win.

The place went absolutely wild.

No doubt—that was the highlight of the entire tournament.

Tsuchiya’s beaming smile as she cheered was a pretty great bonus too.

By the way, Kanon’s class got knocked out during the prelims.

Well, going up against nothing but upperclassmen must’ve been too much.

“Y-Yeah… That really was something. Really, I wish I could’ve gone up against Shiranui-san.”

“Then save that for next year—”

Just as I was about to finish my sentence,

An announcement played over the speakers.

It was our turn.

“Looks like we’re up. I’m heading out.”

“Good luck. I’ll be cheering for you.”

“Thanks.”

◇

She told me to do my best,

But there was no way—absolutely no way—we were going to win this.

Last night, after I got home, Ayane cornered me looking seriously annoyed.

“Getting through prelims? You kidding me? You do know what happens if you actually win, right?”

But I didn’t even flinch.

No point getting worked up over something impossible.

The classes that made it to the final tournament were seriously strong.

…Or so I thought.

Then something completely unexpected happened.

All the classes suddenly decided to show some mysterious “sportsmanship,”

And limited themselves to a maximum of two soccer club members per team.

It wasn’t an official rule or anything,

But it became an unspoken agreement that every class followed.

Why now?

If anything, not going all out is what goes against real sportsmanship.

I cursed them silently in my head but kept my mouth shut.

And with a hint of dread creeping in,

The final tournament began.

Fired up after watching the girls’ performance,

Our class tore through the matches with unstoppable momentum.

It was hard to tell if the other teams were weak,

Or if we were just that strong.

Either way, every match felt easy.

I stuck to the back line and did my part.

Secretly cheering for the other team in my heart,

All while calmly passing the ball to whichever teammate was nearby.

I wanted to throw a wrench in the works,

But I also knew standing out with a suspicious mistake would make things worse.

So I didn’t try anything risky.

And the result was—

“We’re going to the finals!”

Before I knew it,

We’d made it all the way to the finals.

No—somehow made it.

…This is bad.

Yeah, it’s really time to lose now.

With the final match underway,

A crowd of students gathered around the field.

Among them, standing where most of the guys were stealing glances—was Kanon.

And right next to her stood Ayane, radiating an absolutely terrifying aura.

‘You know what you’re supposed to do… right?’

That’s what her eyes were screaming.

Or rather, I was definitely being told that.

Don’t worry, dear little sister.

I’ve got this—I’ll make sure we lose.

Our opponent in the finals?

Upperclassmen.

And not just any class—these were the same ones who’d won the girls’ basketball finals.

In other words, this was our shot at revenge.

And of course, that fired everyone up even more.

The game began.

Back and forth, no clear advantage.

As expected from seniors—they were strong.

They had us on the defensive for most of the match.

Still, we held together as a team, and somehow kept them from scoring as the match neared its final minutes.

…Looks like I’ve got no choice.

I need to make a critical mistake.

Next time I get the ball, I’ll hand it over to an opponent in just the right spot.

I made up my mind—to intentionally mess up a pass and give the other team an opening.

But if it looked too obvious, people would catch on and I’d get slammed for it.

I needed it to seem like an ordinary bad play.

With only a few minutes left on the clock,

The opportunity finally came.

A pass came straight to me.

At the same time, one of their players charged in at full speed to steal it.

This is it.

I’ll pretend I panicked when the opponent came charging and made a bad pass.

One of their players was standing wide open near the center.

Ideally, I’d pass it closer to our own goal,

But that would be way too obvious.

I quickly mapped out the plan in my head

And aimed the ball in the direction of the opposing player.

And then—

Disaster struck.

That player… was looking outside the field.

His eyes were fixed on Kanon.

Kanon, who was usually so quiet and expressionless,

Was actually cheering out loud.

And this genius was so mesmerized, he’d totally spaced out.

Hey idiot, focus on the game!

Of course, yelling in my head didn’t change anything.

The ball rolled right past him, untouched—

“Nice one, Kanbara!”

The one who picked it up was Yamada.

He charged forward with a clean dribble.

The stunned player snapped back to reality,

But by then, it was too late.

Yamada calmly sent the ball into the goal.

Then—the final whistle blew.

“HELL YEAAAAAHHHHHH!!”

“W-We won!!”

“YAAAAAY!!”

Crap. We actually won the whole thing.

“…”

As the crowd roared with excitement,

My eyes drifted toward my dear little sister.

Her face wore the same fake smile as always,

And she clapped her hands in a slow, mechanical rhythm.

To anyone else, it looked like a proud little sister applauding her brother’s big win.

But her eyes told a very different story.

They were filled with pure rage and utter disbelief,

Locked onto me like twin lasers of fury.

The moment our eyes met,

Her lips moved slowly—deliberately.

‘Go. To. Hell.’

While the rest of my classmates trembled with joy…

I alone was trembling with fear.