From Court to Confrontation
The match had started on a whim, so even Ruya, who had suggested it first, didn’t know the proper rules. It had turned into something closer to play than sport.
Thwack!
“Elisha!”
“Yes!”
Smack!
I leapt after the ball Ruya had tossed high, then drove it downward with all my strength. The powerful spike slammed into Oppa’s waiting arms below.
Thud!
“Hrk!”
“Nice one, nyang!”
Charlotte cheered as Oppa groaned, barely managing to return the ball. She sprang up and continued the attack.
Thwack!
“Not a chance!”
Ruya dove across the court, saving the ball that had been aimed for the corner. The rules were simple—keep the ball in the opponent’s court, nothing more. Since we were only playing for fun, none of us bothered with the official regulations we had looked up. We simply ran, jumped, and struck the ball with everything we had.
The sight of active hunters playing beach volleyball at superhuman speed soon drew a crowd. People of all ages gathered around the court, watching with interest.
“Hrah!”
Smack!
Ruya smashed Oppa’s powerful spike back into the far corner.
“Yes! Point!”
“Well done. That makes it ten to nine.”
“Let’s win this. How many points until the end, anyway?”
“Twenty-one.”
“Still a long way to go!”
We ignored the fact that sides should switch. The back-and-forth continued until the score reached twenty-all.
“Last point!”
“We’re winning this, nyang!”
With everyone fired up, Oppa served.
“Hah!”
The ball flew diagonally before curving sharply toward the corner. I threw myself forward and saved it.
“Good!”
Ruya set the ball perfectly for a spike. I rose quickly and jumped.
“Hup!”
BOOM!
The ball rocketed from my hand in a straight line toward the empty corner. Just as the system’s trajectory prediction showed it landing, Charlotte’s quick defense sent it flying back up.
“Nice!”
Oppa shouted as he leapt, using his bulging muscles to hammer the ball down.
Smack!
According to the system’s reading, the ball was heading behind me. I moved to intercept, but its trajectory suddenly changed mid-flight, slipping outside my predicted range.
“Ah!”
Thud.
The ball hit the sand with Ruya’s startled cry.
“Yes! We won!”
“Victory, nyang!”
Charlotte clung to the celebrating Oppa, laughing. I still couldn’t figure out how that ball had curved in midair. The system hadn’t been able to analyze it either.
Ruya wiped the sweat and sand from between her breasts, breathing hard from the intense exercise.
“What the hell was that at the end? The ball changed direction halfway. That’s cheating.”
“The system couldn’t analyze it either.”
“Haa… Well, we lost, so there’s nothing we can do.”
We gathered around Madam, who had been watching from under a parasol. Oppa smiled as he accepted the water she offered.
“Then the losing team goes to buy ice cream.”
“Tch, fine.”
“We’ll head back first and wash up. Wait for us at the camper.”
“Got it. Elisha, let’s go.”
“Yes.”
After receiving the card, I followed Ruya as she walked ahead. Her tail swayed limply with each step, drained by the heat.
“The tentacle tails look exhausted from the heat.”
“Oh, you’re right. They’re covered in sand too. Let’s buy the ice cream quickly and go wash up.”
Ruya quickened her pace after checking the state of her own tail. We bought several kinds of ice cream from the convenience store across the coastal road, then took a shortcut between buildings to reach the campsite.
Not long after entering the narrow alley, several men appeared, blocking the path. Empty bottles rolled across the ground, suggesting they had been drinking in broad daylight, and cigarette butts littered the area. The men kept spitting on the ground, making us frown unconsciously as we tried to pass without incident.
“Hey, you there.”
The man squatting down called out in a phlegmy voice, but we ignored him and kept walking. Two men standing nearby moved to block the exit.
Ruya sighed softly at their behavior and placed a hand on her hip.
“Could you move aside, please?”
“This girl’s got some attitude. Must be because of her race.”
“The one on the left looks like an elf from the ears. And this one… what race is she?”
“Dunno, but she’s got horns, so probably some kind of beastkin.”
“Anyway, when girls from these races walk around half-naked like that, it means they want to get fucked, right?”
“Girls wearing swimsuits at the beach are all the same. We’ll buy you drinks, so come with us.”
The sheer confidence and delusion behind their words left me stunned rather than angry. Had they drunk themselves into complete idiocy? While I calculated their body temperatures and the amount of alcohol in the bottles, Ruya spoke with an incredulous expression.
“If you’re going to drink, go home quietly. Why cause trouble here?”
“Kuhaha! Listen to this bitch talk.”
“Still, feisty ones taste better. Be good and come along while we’re asking nicely.”
“Hey! Get over here!”
Four more men appeared from outside the alley, blocking our retreat as well. Seven men in total now surrounded us, their eyes roaming hungrily over our bodies.
“Eat shit, you bastards. You should disappear quietly before you get hurt.”
Ruya flipped them off as she spoke. The men burst into disbelieving laughter.
“Puhahaha! Is this crazy bitch for real?”
“Does she think being an elf means she can use magic? Using magic on civilians will land you straight in jail!”
“We’ve studied martial arts, you know? If you don’t want to get beaten and fucked, shut up.”
“Look at that tattoo on her lower belly. What a slut.”
“Whoa~ That’s hot.”
Surrounded by men spewing vulgarities and snickering, neither Ruya nor I felt tense—only amused. When they claimed to have studied martial arts, I scanned their bodies. Instead of muscles built for fighting, they had the physiques of men ruined by alcohol and cigarettes.
Ruya stood with a hand on her hip as one man approached with a leering gait. She slapped away his reaching hand.
“You do realize this is a crime, right?”
“Oh dear~ Even if we film this, you girls won’t be able to report it anyway. Hey, start recording.”
“Already on it.”
One of the men in the back answered, holding up his smartphone to film us. I was also recording the situation, but the irony of them creating evidence of their own crime was almost funny.
“They’re making criminal evidence themselves.”
“Right. Seven men against two women. Anyone would call this self-defense.”
“Let’s finish this quickly. The ice cream will melt.”
“Front or back?”
“I’ll take the front.”
“Good. Then I’ll take the back.”
“What the hell are these bitches saying? Shut up and come with us!”
The sound of me dropping the ice cream bag served as the signal. I approached the man who had been harassing Ruya and drove my hand into his throat.
Thud!
“Kuhk!”
“What the—!”
As he clutched his throat and collapsed with a scream, I used him as a stepping stone to leap up and deliver a kick to another man behind him.
Smack!
“Krahk!”
“Damn it!”
After the man struck in the temple fell, I charged at the next one, who had clumsily taken a fighting stance. I dodged his wild punch and countered.
“Agh!”
“What the hell are these girls?!”
The man holding the smartphone watched his companion collapse with a bloody nose, then turned to flee in terror. At that moment, Ruya’s tentacle tail tripped him.
Crash!
“Kuhp!”
“Oh, nice work.”
The man who had been yanked by the ankle fell face-first and knocked himself unconscious. I patted the tentacle tail that had done the work, then turned to see Ruya had already finished her side.
“Honestly. Martial arts, my ass. They just watched some videos and copied the moves.”
“Is it over?”
“Just some local thugs. If they get caught, they’ll have to surrender their hunter licenses. From what they were saying, this isn’t their first time.”
“Hmm, just a moment.”
I picked up the fallen smartphone, connected wirelessly, and ran a hacking program. The security was laughable compared to Eden’s standards. Once inside, I found the device filled with videos of various crimes.
“These guys are repeat offenders. There are at least seven women who look like victims.”
“Really? They’re absolute scum. Let’s report them to the police.”
“Yes.”
We gathered the unconscious and groaning men in one place and waited for the police. When the officers arrived and heard our report, they asked for details.
“You reported catching attempted rapists and assaulters?”
“Yes.”
“Could you explain the situation?”
Ruya recounted everything while the other officers checked the men’s conditions. After we showed them the smartphone as evidence, one officer nodded.
“We’ll need to hear the other side’s account regarding the attempted assault. Their injuries suggest medical treatment should come first.”
He glanced at the groaning men on the ground. From the results alone, it did look like we had unilaterally beaten them.
“However, the previous recordings on the smartphone clearly show the victims and perpetrators in other crimes, so an arrest should be possible.”
“They’re real pieces of work, so please make sure they get some prison time.”
“We’ll do our best. Thank you for reporting this.”
After taking our names and contact information, the officer watched as two more patrol cars arrived to transport the men away.
“In the end, all the ice cream melted.”
“Tch, what a hassle because of those thugs.”
We had no choice but to buy new ice cream before returning to the camper. The three who had been waiting were already clean and refreshed. Our delay had worried them again.
“Why were you so late again, nyang? Did you really go meet some guys?”
“Why would that be the case? We ran into some thugs and had to deal with them.”
“Thugs? You didn’t get hurt, did you?”
“Of course not. We’re active hunters. We wouldn’t get beaten by mere thugs. We beat them up good.”
“Well done. Those kinds of men need to be taught a lesson.”
Madam praised Ruya, who was shadowboxing in the air. As Oppa ate the ice cream we had bought, he spoke to us.
“Wash up before dinner. There’s a shower facility over there.”
“I packed clothes and toiletries for you, nyang.”
“Thanks. Elisha, let’s go.”
“Yes.”
Carrying the bag Charlotte had prepared, we headed to the paid shower facility. It was late afternoon, and the showers were crowded. After paying the attendant, we waited in line until our turn came.
The interior had changing stalls and a row of simple shower heads. We placed our change of clothes in an empty basket and stood before vacant showers with only our toiletries.
“Elisha, let’s wash each other’s hair.”
“Okay.”
I answered as I removed my swimsuit. Sand had gotten between the fabric, so I rinsed it first before washing myself.