After breaking up, my ex asked me to win her back

"Roarrrrrrr!!"

As the outcome of the match became clear, Yuqiu High School's Teacher Yamazaki and the three members of the Kendo Club all stood up together, raising their hands and cheering loudly.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Meanwhile, the Gorilla Vice President from the Disciplinary Committee and a sheepish Miyamoto Shi remained seated, seemingly wanting to clap but not quite daring to do so.

On the court, Ayakoji Chiyoko stood in place for several seconds, pondering, before she shook her head in acceptance and bowed to Kagura Hikaru as they returned to the starting line.

Thunderous applause erupted from the stands.

After leaving the arena, when the two encountered each other again, Ayakoji Chiyoko removed her faceguard and hand protector, reaching out proactively to shake Kagura Hikaru's hand.

"That was a good match, I really enjoyed it."

"Thank you."

Kagura Hikaru also removed his hand protector to shake hands with her.

The barriers between them seemed to fade away as well, in the exhaustion that followed the end of the match.

"Did you figure out I was bluffing with the Throat Stab in advance?" Ayakoji Chiyoko asked as they released hands.

After taking off his faceguard and headband, Kagura Hikaru ran a hand through his damp hair and nodded gently, "You had some small tells, plus your acting wasn't very good."

This explanation made Ayakoji Chiyoko laugh.

Claiming that someone who had systematically studied acting, been a child star, and had an actor for a father wasn't very good at acting was quite blunt indeed.

However, unexpectedly, she didn't feel anger or any other emotion, but calmly accepted it.

"Okay, I will work hard to improve," she said.

"Mm."

Their short conversation ended, and both Kagura Hikaru and Ayakoji Chiyoko were engulfed by their teammates who rushed up to celebrate excitedly.

"Hahaha, well done! Such good kids, well done!" Teacher Yamazaki was jubilant, laughing heartily and vigorously patting Kagura Hikaru on the shoulder, "Our Uka High finally won a big tournament, and we even took the top two spots! Those Keihanshin guys must not be able to laugh now, haha..."

Ryo Kuroiwa, who was about to come over to congratulate, became visibly embarrassed as his own coach dragged him away with a dark face.

"Congratulations, that was an amazing performance!" Minister Uchida from the Kendo Club approached Kagura Hikaru with unmistakable admiration and envy on his face.

He was only good enough to make it to the top sixteen, but his insight was adequate to understand about seventy to eighty percent of the match's level between Kagura Hikaru and Ayakoji Chiyoko, yet even just that much made him feel awe-struck.

These two were living in entirely different worlds from their peers.

So much so that he could not even feel jealousy, only aspiration.

Once their conversation was over, Yui Hosaka also approached, pretending to lament, "I can't believe it actually happened. Now I have nowhere to turn, it's all your fault, Mr. Kagura."

"Will I see you in the competition teams next year?" asked Kagura Hikaru.

"Who knows if you don't try?" said Yui Hosaka with a smile, her hands clasped behind her back.

"Then I wish you success."

"Thank you." Yui Hosaka suddenly became shy, fidgeting as she said, "Wait, when we get back to school, I have something important to tell you. Don't you run off, Mr. Kagura."

"Why can't you tell me now?"

"Oh, you'll find out then. Don't be so impatient."

She ran off with her face flushed.

Witnessing this scene, the burly members of the Kendo Club who had just been chatting merrily glanced towards Kagura Hikaru with a profound look, as if they were trying to see through him.

Kagura Hikaru: "??"

He had a feeling that she did not mean that in the way they were thinking.

The competition ended, awards were given, interviews conducted, and it wasn't until noon that Kagura Hikaru and his team were finally able to leave the venue.

The first thing upon stepping out was to head straight to the barbecue restaurant.

Teacher Yamazaki had promised before that if they made it into the top eight, he would treat them to barbecue.

Now that Kagura Hikaru and the others had not only made it into the top eight but also exceeded expectations by winning the championship and sweeping the first two places, there was even less reason not to treat them.

A five thousand yen barbecue buffet per person, they ate from twelve at noon until three in the afternoon before coming out, filled with a sense of satisfaction.

The plan was originally to return to the hotel since they had to take the Shinkansen back to Tokyo at six in the evening, and accounting for the round trip, there wasn't much time to spare.

But Hosaka Yui suddenly proposed that it would be a shame to leave Capital City in such a hurry without properly exploring, considering they had made the rare trip.

Since the others agreed, and unable to withstand the students' persistent wheedling on top of the good mood from the successful competition, Teacher Yamazaki relented, cancelled the six o'clock tickets, and switched to nine o'clock instead, and also contacted all the students' families, promising to take responsibility for sending each of them home after returning to Tokyo.

As Hosaka Yui and the others licked their matcha ice cream, they watched Teacher Yamazaki make phone calls until he gave a thumbs up to everyone after hanging up, and they all suddenly burst into laughter like chickens that had just been stolen.

Having gotten permission from their parents, the night's stay in Capital City was confirmed.

A trip on the public dime, Wuhu~~

The first stop, soaking in a hot spring!

Things did not start off well, as there were simply too many people soaking in hot springs in winter, and reservations were necessary at any hot spring inn.

Though they weren't able to soak in the hot springs, they had an unexpected find; near the hot spring inn, they discovered a street specializing in Japanese confections, selling Capital City's specialty sweets.

They tasted along the way, as if they were on a group winter tour, all smiles and in high spirits.

Making achievements on a business trip meant being able to splurge just like that.

As the ancient capital and a tourist destination of the Island Nation, Capital City retained many traditional style architectures, and occasionally walking through certain streets, one could feel as if they had stepped back into the Edo Period.

Although the temperature had become milder, it was still winter, yet occasionally one could see young ladies walking on the streets in kimonos and yukatas.

Most of these were tourists; the locals of the Island Nation rarely dressed like this because wearing a kimono is truly troublesome, reserved for cosplay or certain professions, and people wouldn't wear it casually out on the streets.

As for what these certain professions are, don't overthink it, they are actually referring to Kabuki.

When it comes to Island Nation culture, many people might conjure the image of a woman with her hair up, wearing a kimono and wooden clogs, and a heavily made-up, whitened face with an exposed nape, moving gracefully.

This is the classic image of Kabuki.

Kabuki is not a prostitute; more accurately, it is similar to the courtesans of ancient Huaxia, selling the art without selling the body, a tradition that has continued to this day without interruption.

It gradually got dark.

When Kagura Hikaru and the group eventually strolled near Gion, they saw five Kabuki, with small, delicate steps, walking elegantly on the cobblestone path, attracting eyes with their charisma and attire, with curious tourists, both from the Island Nation and foreigners, following them around.

Hosaka Yui was among the curious, almost choking on her barbecued meat at the sight of the Kabuki. She quickly swallowed, grabbed her phone, and rushed to snap pictures and tweet away.

Kagura Hikaru couldn't appreciate that sort of makeup, but the silhouette of the Kabuki was still very beautiful, especially at night on an illuminated street, which gave a sense of an intersection between the past and the present.

"Did you know?" said Kagura Hikaru, holding a candied apple, "Most of the Kabuki nowadays aren't even from Capital City, but they speak with an accent more standard than the locals."

"The world is moving towards more diversity; such things will become more common," Ayakoji Chiyoko glanced at him and continued, "But I believe some things will not change with time... No, I'm overthinking it."

At night, Ayakoji Chiyoko seemed to be affected by the atmosphere and spoke with the sentimental touch of an ordinary woman.

This was an opportunity that Kagura Hikaru couldn't pass up.

[How could there be anything unchanging in this world, just look at the Island Nation fifty years ago, compared to now, it's like a completely different country.]

[Honor, faith, spine, the things that shouldn't change, yet we've completely discarded them.]

[You have gained through peeking into the heart: Speech +2]

[Speech lv3 (29/100)]

"There are no constants in this world, I agree," said Kagura Hikaru, looking up at the full moon, "Under the power of time, even celestial bodies change and perish, let alone the tiny civilization on a single planet."

"...That's also true."

"However, although we cannot pursue infinity, we can chase after finitude. Creating infinite value within a finite life, that's the meaning of existence," Kagura Hikaru turned to look at her, "Success comes from action, failure from inaction. If you want to change something, I suggest you start preparing now. I can help."

Ayakoji Chiyoko was stunned for the first time, feeling that Kagura Hikaru's gaze had the power to see through her inner thoughts.

Averting his gaze, she didn't know how to react and just huffed, walking ahead. She pretended to watch the Kabuki with the others while eating her candied apple.