Chick 184
by Cristae184
“Ball rolling means you have to roll the ball! Team 3, disqualified!”
“Eh?!”
“What?!”
Pop!
Startled, Veilach lost control and burst the ball.
Fssss—
In front of the deflating ball, two children and one plump bird stared blankly at the announcer.
“Oh dear, my little sweethearts. Sorry, but you’re disqualified.”
Thanks to Groo’s team, the Red Team picked up an easy point.
“Wow—!”
“We won!”
The children from the Red Team’s Giraffe Class abandoned the ball and hugged each other.
Escorted off the field and comforted by the teachers, Groo clenched her little fists in frustration.
With a sulky expression, she shot a glare at Veilach.
Veilach was slumped on the ground, unable to accept reality.
“Lost? How? What is this super-con-what thing?”
[Blue 10:17 Red]
From the ball rolling event onward, the scores began to soar.
All across the field, matches were underway; cheers and applause filled the campus.
Groo’s Blue Team was falling far behind.
Would the tablet PC slip away like this…?
What were her Blue Team allies doing? Cold sweat ran down her back.
Was it time to pull out Groo’s secret winning strategy?
“There’s no time for this. Vei, let’s go to the next event.”
Groo pointed to the “Pinata Smashing” contest.
One of the essential events of the kindergarteners: Pinata smashing!
It was a game where a piñata—made to look like an animal or a star—was smashed open. Inside were candies and little toys, and the participant only had to strike it hard with a stick to break it open.
Restricted to the kindergarteners, only little children crowded onto the grass.
“Groo!”
“Hi, Groo!”
Groo greeted the swarm of children around her, telling those who asked about Veilach that he was her cousin.
Soon Groo’s team’s opponents were announced. The Red Team’s Squirrel Class, attendance numbers 8 and 9!
‘Squirrel Class… They’ve sent their heavy hitters…!’
Each class had ten students, with attendance numbers assigned by height.
Meaning Groo, who was number 1, faced numbers 8 and 9 of Squirrel Class—kids in a completely different weight class.
In a game like piñata smashing, where strength is key, that kind of size advantage was sure to decide the match.
“……”
Seeing Groo so crestfallen, Veilach laid a hand on her shoulder.
“Master, I can use my strength—”
“Not this time.”
Groo shook her head.
They’d tried a shortcut with the ball rolling and failed.
‘Groo, you weren’t fighting fair.’
Sports should be honorable, but she’d been happy just because Veilach helped her cheat.
Gripping the bat together, Groo and Veilach stood with dignity before the horse-shaped piñata.
‘No cheating allowed.’
-So, Groo decided to hide a fork up her sleeve.
“Hi-ya!”
Pretending to hit the piñata with the bat, she snuck the fork hidden in her sleeve and poked it into the piñata.
Pop!
Rustle!
Candy and shimmering paper spilled out from the burst piñata.
“Yay—candy!”
“Groo’s the best!”
“Awesome!”
Children rushed forward, each grabbing a piece of candy and showering Groo with praise.
“Blue Team wins!”
“How did number one beat us…?”
As the defeated children stood crushed, Groo had delivered a win to the Blue Team and learned something:
It only had to look fair enough, after all.
Secretly following Groo around, filming with his phone, Serhi blew a bubble of gum.
“Groo’s cheating.”
Guidan, holding a camcorder, grinned.
“That’s what Hyunak’s known for.”
Notorious reputations don’t come from nothing. Serhi gave a short laugh, then suddenly asked,
“Aren’t you competing in any events?”
“You?”
“……”
“……”
Both fell silent and returned to filming Groo.
Guidan had been asked by Jurim, and Serhi by Jin Siwon, to record Groo’s day.
Since Groo had insisted that no one come to watch, the job had fallen to the older brothers who attended the same school.
Not only them—someone evidently sent by the Doan Group was filming Groo as well. There were other onlookers and paparazzi as well, but since they weren’t much of a threat, they were left alone.
However, the two’s actions were hurting the Blue Team—since the school had divided the teams based on student abilities.
With both powerhouses focused on filming Groo instead of playing, it was hardly surprising that the Blue Team struggled to close the gap with Red.
[Blue 119:130 Red]
Groo, wielding a secret fork, swept victory after victory across campus with Veilach.
[Blue 129:147 Red]
‘Still not enough…?’
But the gap only continued to widen.
Groo, sitting in the shade during a break, pouted sullenly.
Her tiny shoulders drooped.
‘Zombie Hunter…’
Groo picked up her phone.
On Jurim
Make sure you wear your watch and call if anything happens. You understand?
On Suhyung
Groo, Grandpa has lots of time today—so maybe later…
Shin Nayeon
You told me not to come, so I’m a little sadㅠ Still, I’m cheering for you…
Lee Romi
My baby, fighting! Next time I’ll definitely come see you!
There were lots of supportive messages, and in the midst of them was the Hyunak underage group chat.
Groo looked at yesterday’s conversation and, feeling glum, typed a message.
▶ Hyunak Minor Group Chat
Yesterday
Which team are you guys on?
Serhi
Blue
Guidan
Blue team, lol
Groo is on the Blue Team too!
Guidan
Oh di ˃ ᴗ ˂
Groo Groo, we’re on the same team!
Let’s do our best together!
Guidan
(fighting emoticon)
Serhi
(flag emoji)
Today
Blue Team
is really bad
right
(pouting squirrel emoticon)
Serhi
Yeah
Guidan
lolololol
Blue’s looking weak today (´;ω;｀)
How about you guys?
Are you winning?
Groo’s working so hard
but Blue keeps losing (cry)
“……”
“……”
Serhi and Guidan.
Blue ribbons fluttered around their wrists and arms.
Serhi glanced at Groo’s sullen message, chewing his gum, and said sardonically,
“Why are you slacking off and making her cry?”
Guidan replied in disbelief.
“Just me?”
“Well… It’d be enough if you put in some effort.”
“Wow, so now it’s my fault?”
“Yeah, that’s a fact.”
Shaking his head, Guidan stretched out his arms.
“Hey, baldy junior, quit playing politics and keep up.”
“Who are you calling junior?”
Without further delay, the two headed for the field.
“YAAAAAAAH—!”
A roar erupted from the distance.
Groo, startled, jumped and turned around.
‘Is it the high school division?’
At the same moment, the Blue Team’s score began to rise rapidly.
[Blue 140:147 Red]
Big Brother, Big Brother!!
Did you see the Blue Team’s score????
Serhi
Yeah
Guidan
Looks like Blue Team’s going to finally get serious!
Lazy Blue Team, honestly ᕙ( ︡’︡益’︠)ง
That’s right (cry)
Guidan
Our baby was sooo upset, huh?
It’s okay now!
(squirrel with fist raised emoticon)
Blue Team’s on fire!
Guidan
lololololololololololol
Serhi
That’s good
Guidan
lololololololololololol so cute