"The first stage is over, and now we're moving on to the second stage," Chitose declared. "Since there are only six participants remaining, the matches will now be one-on-one—boys versus boys and girls versus girls."
She raised her hand, pointing to the tournament bracket:
A - [Roka Shibasaki vs. Big-breasted Takao]
B - [Kenji Kazama vs. Shinonome]
C - [Shin Takao vs. Tennouzou and Airu]
"The type of match will be decided by lottery! Now, it's time to draw!"
While waiting, Shin glanced at his supposed "team" opponent—a two-person single team. "I didn't even notice them during the first round. Did they burrow underground or something? " he muttered. "You gave me too much trouble just searching for you. You'll die the second the game starts."
Though no one could hear him, the girl inside the robot suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. For some reason, she had the urge to back out… but this was a task from the former Student Council President. There was no turning back.
Meanwhile, Kenji glanced at his opponent and couldn't help but smirk. After eliminating the 14 Orchestra of Evil, his confidence had returned. Defeating his next opponent would bring him closer to his goal.
"Okay! First match—Roka vs. Takao!" Chitose announced. She reached into the lottery box and pulled out a slip of paper. "The game is… Musical Chairs!"
Both girls sighed in relief. They were glad it wasn't a violent match—they didn't want to hurt each other.
"Next, Kazama vs. Shinonome… It's Finger Wrestling!"
"And finally, Shin vs. Tennouzou… Sumo!"
"..."
"Participants, head to your designated fields!" Chitose instructed.
Since there were only three fights remaining, all would be held simultaneously. Surprisingly, they ended up being pretty anti-climactic.
Match Results:
Roka vs. Takao: Roka wins by deception. Takao thought it was a tug-of-war and dropped her guard. Roka took the chance and dove into the chair, securing victory.
Kenji vs. Shinonome: Kenji played dirty. When the referee wasn't looking, he gripped Shinonome's fingers tightly, causing him to scream in pain and surrender.
Shin vs. Tennouzou & Airu: Shin was the fastest. The moment the match began, he kicked off the ground and shoved Tennouzou out of bounds. As for the robot with Barfy inside, he pushed it even more violently—so much so that colorful water leaked out.
"With that, the final match will be a three-way… between dirty players! " Chitose exclaimed.
"Is this really okay? " Inada asked, concerned.
"Well, it's what we've got, so we better go with it," Chitose replied.
She reached into the box for the final game. The crowd leaned in, holding their breath.
"The final game is… King's Game! "
The remaining contestants stood silently. Two of them released an intense, murderous aura. Kenji glared at Roka. Roka glared at Shin. And Shin... was looking up at the sky, deep in thought. Despite the heavy tension, he remained indifferent. Whether it was confidence or arrogance, it had a strange charm—girls in the audience couldn't help but cheer for him. He didn't even notice.
Meanwhile, Yamada—a member of Takao's club—was standing awkwardly, holding a glass containing three popsicle sticks. Surrounded by three intense players, his body was stiff—not by choice, but because of fear. Despite his size, he was actually a good-natured guy.
Kenji approached and lightly placed a hand on Yamada's shoulder, gently pushing him down. "Calm down, Yamada," he said. The tension in Yamada's body eased slightly.
"…But it'd be better to lower your hips. Otherwise, it'd be a waste."
"Gulp…"
Then Kenji turned to Roka. "See? Now you can reach for it."
"HE'S JUST BEING CONSIDERATE!? "Someone cried in disbelief.
Roka stared at him, deadpan. "You just want to peek, don't you? "
"SO HE IS PLAYING DIRTY!? HOW SHAMELESS!!! "
Kenji and Roka each picked a popsicle stick, leaving one for Shin, who was still lost in thought.
The atmosphere remained thick with tension. But as commentators, Inada and Chitose had to say something.
"President, who do you think will win? " Inada asked.
"Hard to say. Since it's not a contest of strength, Kazama-senpai has a chance. The game depends on luck."
"But when it comes to unpredictability… Shin has the highest success rate."
"Shin? Why do you say that? "
"Don't you know? He's not just skilled at playing dirty—he also has immense luck."
"But that only applies if he knows the game setup beforehand, right? Since this is random, it'll be hard for him to pull off any tricks."
"Well, let's just wait and see. Look—Kazama-senpai and Shibasaki-senpai already picked their sticks."
"Shin-san, why are you still in a daze?" Roka asked with concern, seeing him standing still, eyes fixed on the sky. "Are you feeling unwell?"
Shin let out a sigh, carrying the weight of the world in his breath. "No... I'm just thinking about things."
"Hoh? That's rare. For him to be lost in thought... did something happen?" Chitose leaned in, curious. "What are you thinking about? Spill it!"
Shin didn't answer right away. He simply glanced back at the sky and murmured, "Not much. It's just... I've never been defeated before. So knowing I'm going to win this match… it feels hollow. Like I'm empty inside."
"..."
Though his words sounded arrogant, no one called him out. In truth, none of them even thought to. Looking back, Shin was always on top—untouchable. For those who knew him well, this was the first time they'd seen him so... lost. His words were vague, but they carried weight.
"...You don't have to worry about that, Shin-san," Roka was the first to speak. Her tone was firm. "Because today, you're going to experience your first defeat."
Shin didn't respond. Instead, he walked toward the glass and pulled out the last remaining popsicle stick. Even though he did it right in front of them, none of them could see what was written on it. He simply clutched it, then turned his gaze to Roka.
There was a moment of silence before he finally spoke.
"I really hope that's possible... However, everything in this world is predetermined. And we call that fate."
"..."
"Just like how you're destined to die the moment you're born. Everything was set into motion—including the outcome of this battle."
His words hung heavy in the air, light in delivery but crushing in weight.
"What's with the sullen atmosphere? " Chitose muttered. No one had a reply.
"Roka..." Shin called her name softly as he turned to walk away. "This match is already over."
And with those parting words, he raised his hand, revealing the popsicle stick with a small crown engraved on it.
"...H-he found the King!?" Inada gasped in shock.
"Does that mean he won the match!?" she asked, turning to Chitose.
"No..." Chitose replied, shaking her head. "Even if he found the King, he hasn't declared it yet. To win, a player must both have the King and declare themselves as King."
"Then why hasn't he declared it yet?"
"Who knows…? Maybe it's like he said—he's just tired of winning."
Kenji, who had been frozen in despair, suddenly perked up upon hearing that. Life returned to his eyes.
"In that case, if you're holding the King... I'll just snatch it from you!" he shouted, charging toward Shin.
Roka followed close behind.
The game suddenly shifted into a chaotic game of cat and mouse.
Yet even with both of them chasing him, Shin remained calm, his expression unmoved. He kept evading them with ease—until eventually, he got cornered.
"It's over now," Chitose said, eyes narrowed. "He kept running, but now he's trapped. He can't escape this time."
"Now it's just a matter of who gets the King," Inada added.
However, Sakura raised a different question. "I wonder... Shin-senpai could've just declared himself the King and won. But he didn't. Instead, he turned it into a chase. Why? "
That question would remain unanswered. Only Shin knew the reason—and whether he'd ever tell them. Unlikely.
"Shin-san, we've already got you cornered," Roka said, standing just a meter in front of him. "Even if you tried to declare yourself king now, we'd snatch it away before you could."
"I just have one question… Why didn't you win when you had the chance?"
Shin raised his hand casually as if offering a surrender. Despite the tension, he wore an almost theatrical calmness.
"You're right… And to answer your question? It's extremely simple," he said as his hand, once midway, suddenly shot up high—then with a flick, he hurled the stick into the air.
Roka and Kenji both instinctively looked up, eyes wide in disbelief.
"H-he actually threw the king!? " Inada cried.
"That's right," Shin said, leaping away. "I didn't declare myself king… because of this. Fight among yourselves!"
"Damn, he got us!" Kenji muttered, eyes now locked on the falling popsicle stick.
Roka, however, quietly slipped behind him, pulling out her secret weapon—a black sack.
"Oh no, a sneak attack!" Inada shouted without thinking.
Kenji reflexively turned. "Damn, that's low!" He sidestepped just in time, dodging Roka's ambush and putting distance between them. Yet, he didn't take his eyes off the falling stick.
Meanwhile, in the commentator's booth…
"What's going on? Why is Shin running toward Yamada!?"
"Could it be—?" Chitose's expression twisted in realization. "Damn it, Shin! That's way too dirty!!" she yelled, slamming the desk.
Her sudden outburst caused a stir.
"President, what's happening!?"
Chitose glared at Shin as if seeing through his plan. "It was fake! He faked the king! He misled them—and now he's aiming for the real one!"
At the same time, back in the field, Roka and Kenji were still locked in a scramble. But using his height and ultimate skill—the vertical jump—Kenji leapt up and successfully grabbed the falling popsicle stick.
"Ha! Finally! I'm the King!!" he shouted triumphantly as he landed. But the moment he looked at the stick, his expression turned sour—like he'd just swallowed a bug. "This is…"
Everyone stared.
"What's happening? Why does he look so defeated? Isn't he the king?"
And then they notice clearly that the king's engraving looked fake—even from afar.
"H-how is that possible!? " Inada exclaimed.
All eyes turned toward Shin, who now stood calmly with two sticks in hand. He didn't keep them waiting and explain things.
"From the beginning…" Shin began. "The moment 'King's Game' was announced, I scraped up the mud stuck beneath my shoes."
"What I did was a gamble—1 in 3 odds. I might succeed, or I might not. If I had picked the real king, I would have declared it immediately and escaped. But since I wasn't sure if the last stick was real or not… I prepared a second plan."
"...While Roka and Kenji were sizing each other up, I pretended to be in a daze. During that time, I molded the mud."
"And when I realized I got an empty stick, I glanced at Roka engaging in a staring contest. During that 'dazed' moment, I engraved the King symbol onto the mud-stick I'm holding. Once I'm done, all that's left is the final step... Make them fight over the fake King while I chase after the real one."
The crowd was speechless.
Even Roka and Kenji stood frozen, too far away now to catch up.
Chitose smiled proudly. "I told you. Even if the odds are against him, Shin always finds a way to win."
"Didn't you just degrade him earlier? Now you're praising him!"
Shin turned his gaze to the last remaining stick, holding it gently. Before declaring himself the king, he paused—trying to remember this moment.
He slowly opened his hand, and as he looked at the stick, his expression shifted from expectation to disbelief. His hand trembled violently as if he were experiencing a seizure.
"T-this is…" he muttered.
Everyone stared, confused.
"Again, what's with that look? Isn't he the victor? Just like Kazama, he looks so defeated!"
"What happened?"
But instead of answering, Shin started laughing. Genuinely, deeply, happily. For the first time, the crowd saw a different side of him.
With a smile, showing his expression happier than ever, he turned to Roka. "Congratulations on your win, Roka."
Seeing him smile genuinely, Roka smiled back softly. "Thank you, Shin-san…"
Without another word, Shin turned and walked away from the stadium, still staring at the stick in his hand. It wasn't the king's stick. But he recognized it. There was no King engraving. Instead, it had the rarest symbol of all—the "Winner" ticket.
It was a prize ticket, hidden inside, and can only get to a specific store; it's one of the most expensive popsicles. Something akin to a golden ticket.
To think Roka had sacrificed it… just to fool him. Shin felt relieved. He never expected to be outsmarted. But even more than that, he was touched. He decided to treasure the popsicle stick and keep it safe.
Although he loses, he also feels victorious. To think he would find such a person?
Meanwhile, everyone else was still confused—until Roka stepped forward to explain.
"When Shin walked away, we all thought he had the king stick... A normal response should be to chase after him."
They nodded in agreement; if they were in the same shoes, they would also do the same.
Roka continues, "But instead of chasing after him, I decided to check the popsicles..."
She takes a momentary pause as if reminiscing about something. "Back then, Shin-san tricked us by claiming there were two queen cards. Chitose, you remember that, right?" She asked her.
Which received a firm nod.
"So when I saw the King engraving after pulling the stick, I realized—he was using the same trick again and trying to bluff us. I didn't know exactly what he was planning, but I decided to switch the real King with the rare ice cream winner stick."
The audience gasped.
"But for you to trade such a rare reward…" someone murmured. If they were in the same shoes, they wouldn't do such a thing; after all, it's a rare winning popsicle stick only available at certain stores, and there are only 5 of them.
Roka simply shook her head. "I can get more prizes, but there's only one Shin in this world."
Seeing the innocent and caring personality of her, everyone felt a soft pang in their chest. "Ugh… I'm crying… it's so touching… Uwah...!"
Roka smiled at the crowd. "Besides, a favor from Shin is worth more than any rare ice cream I've ever tasted, so it doesn't really matter to me. Shin-san is an important friend."
With that, she raised her tiny arm and proudly declared. "I am the king!"
Chitose wiped a tear from her eye and lifted her mic. Seeing her friend being happy, she also makes an announcement. "And the final victor of the King's Game… Roka Shibasaki!"
The crowd erupted into applause—even Kenji, who had lost, clapped along. He wasn't feeling bad, after all… he could always challenge her again. Besides, it was her moment, so she should enjoy it.