Chapter 340: The Plush with Yukinoshita

The raffle results were announced.

Hmm…

They didn’t win.

But then, why did Yukinoshita glare at him just because they lost?

Was it his fault?

Yukinoshita didn’t say a word, yet Himekoji could instantly sense the hidden meaning behind her cold gaze—”This fake couple act of yours is utterly useless.”

Himekoji really wanted to argue back—

But we’ve been pretty useful, haven’t we? I bought you two bottles of water, acted as your guide and human shield!

Of course, those words stayed locked inside him. Wisely, he kept quiet.

Ms. Yukinoshita was in an extremely sour mood right now. Best not to provoke her.

…

“The couples who didn’t win the plush needn’t lose heart! In our game zone, there are plenty of claw machines where you can try to grab panda plushies. Give them a try!”

Hearing the host’s words, Yukinoshita and Himekoji locked eyes instantly.

Wow, so this whole raffle was just a sneaky ad for the claw machines?

“Want to give them a shot?” Himekoji suggested.

“I’m not interested in that kind of game,” Yukinoshita said flatly.

But her eyes sparkled—glowing with fierce determination to win that panda plush no matter what.

Reading her expression, Himekoji instantly decoded the true meaning as if he’d eaten Doraemon’s Translation Konjac—

I’m not interested in the game. Just the plush.

“Hmm, but the plush can only be won through games. Let’s at least check out the game zone,” he pushed gently.

After a pause, Yukinoshita silently nodded.

…

The game zone overflowed with couples.

Without Yukinoshita lending him fake legitimacy, Himekoji doubted he’d survive even a second there.

The arcade section had coin games, co-op shooting games, racing games—nearly all requiring two players.

No wonder only couples dared step in. For lone wolves, this place screamed hostility.

The moment Yukinoshita entered, her gaze laser-beamed onto the claw machines.

Well, upon closer look, Himekoji realized her true target: the plush inside.

Exactly like the prize they saw earlier—

Gloom-filled eyes that pierced through darkness, claws made for shredding bamboo and beasts, fangs glinting menacingly under the lights. Truly Johnny the Panda.

Its terrifying looks screamed pure power—no wonder “Johnny” had “strong” in its name.

“Want to try?” Himekoji asked.

“No. Like I said, no interest.” But as she spoke, Yukinoshita’s unspoken glare urged him to fulfill his fake boyfriend’s final duty,

—Win me that plush.

All couples near the machines worked that way: Guys fought the machine carefully. Girls shrieked encouragement.

Himekoji pretended not to notice.

Help Yukinoshita deliver a baby? Maybe. Help her snag a plush? Hard pass.

“…You… wouldn’t happen to suck at this?” Himekoji blurted.

“Huh?”

Instantly, icy energy radiated from Yukinoshita—her competitiveness switch flipped ON.

“Are you challenging me? Or mocking my skills?”

“Not questioning your talent. It’s just—beginners rarely succeed. Akiko wasted all her childhood pocket money here. Never won once.”

Poor Imouto dumped coins like feeding a piggy bank—Himekoji’s heart ached just remembering.

But dragging Akiko out to soothe Yukinoshita’s pride? Futile.

She pulled out a 1000-yen bill and exchanged it for a heavy pile of coins.

“Difficult for beginners? Then I’ll master it fast.”

Marching forward, she seized a claw machine.

Clink. She dropped a coin. Wa-wu-wu whirred the machine.

Yukinoshita froze—eyes glued to the equipment, face sculpting into focused intensity.

She looked incredibly capable just standing there.

Himekoji quietly awaited legendary moves.

…Several minutes passed. She hadn’t moved an inch.

Eh?

Wait—

Don’t tell me… she doesn’t know how to play?

“The right joystick moves it left-right. Left joystick moves it forward-back. Press the button to lower the claw. Release it to stop instantly,” Himekoji reluctantly coached.

“Oh… th-thank you,” Yukinoshita mumbled, cheeks flushed.

Testing it out, she nudged the claw right…

Okay, she’s got it! Simple controls after all.

Swiftly, she maneuvered it above the biggest panda plush—picture-perfect positioning.

She exhaled softly.

“…Claw is there.”

Himekoji then turned his head and saw the girl clenching her small pink fist to make a little victory pose.

This was the kind of cute moment that only happened once in a while on her!

Too bad, Yukinoshita’s victory pose didn’t last long and collapsed almost right away.

That was because the mechanical claw let go of the plush toy with a “wah-wah” sound, returned to its original spot, and said nothing more.

Failure.

That was only natural.

If it was that easy to succeed, the claw machine’s operator would have already lost all their money a long time ago.

“Right? It’s tough at first, isn’t it?”

Himekoji decided to comfort Yukinoshita a little.

But Yukinoshita didn’t listen at all and just glared angrily all by herself at that claw.

“It definitely grabbed it just now, right? Why did it let go?”

Using her usual sharp tone like she did with him, Yukinoshita questioned the mechanical claw.

Scary…

“Hmm… See, the doll you just grabbed fell to a better spot now, didn’t it? The trick with claw machines is to move it slowly, bit by bit.”

Himekoji simply read out the operation instructions on the claw machine word for word to Yukinoshita.

“Ah, I see… The claw isn’t strong enough, so it needs more tries?”

Yukinoshita seemed to understand the key point.

“Okay, I’ll try one more time.”

As she said that, Yukinoshita put another coin into the claw machine.

“Ugh, why did it drop it again?!”

“Is this machine broken?”

“Hey! It’s about time to stop this nonsense!”

“I mean you! Be reasonable!”

…

If you only heard the sounds, you might easily think Yukinoshita was mistreating the mechanical claw right now.

Himekoji couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for the claw.

Even though she kept failing, Yukinoshita’s expression stayed very calm, but of course, the coins nearby were disappearing fast again…

It seemed like it was time to give up…

Looking at Yukinoshita like this, no matter how many times she tried, it didn’t seem like she would succeed.

At last, Himekoji found something that Yukinoshita wasn’t good at.

Oh, right, he almost forgot, he found something like this a long while ago—wasn’t it her being always bad with directions?

…

“You’re way too useless…”

Himekoji finally couldn’t stand seeing it.

“Huh? If you dare say that, it means you think you’re great, right?”

Faced with Yukinoshita’s angry stare, Himekoji looked super confident.

“Of course.”

That was because before, to help Rikka pass her makeup exam, the System forced him to buy “Claw Master” skills.

He thought they were useless skills he’d never need in his life, but who knew they came in handy right here.

Alright, Yukinoshita, hold your thoughts for now.

Just watch me play on the claw machine!

Look and learn carefully.

With grabbing toys, someday, you’ll get as skilled as me too.

…