Chapter 1023

Smack!

With a sharp crack, the ball exploded off Sheryl's racket.

It was fast and brutal.

Her opponent, a law student who just played for fun, was completely outmatched by someone with Sheryl's semi-professional background.

She had just signed up for the experience.

She never expected Sheryl to go in so hard—so hard that she not only missed the return but nearly tripped over her own feet trying to dodge it.

"She's hitting way too hard," someone grumbled from the bleachers.

"Seriously. She knows the other girl isn't a pro. Does she really need to be that aggressive?"

If that ball had hit the poor girl in the face, it would have left a serious mark. "Look at Juniper's match! It's so much better."

On the adjacent court, Juniper and the music student were having a perfectly normal, respectful volley. The crowd felt infinitely more relaxed watching them.

Soon enough, the music student missed a shot, dropping a point.

"You're doing great," Juniper called out softly, giving her a small wave with her racket.

"Thanks."

The girl didn't get frustrated; she just took a breath and reset her stance.

...

Sheryl was rapidly losing her patience. She just wanted to flex her skills and end this pointless match as quickly as possible.

For the next few serves, she put a wicked, aggressive spin on the ball. Even when her opponent managed to make contact, returning it was agonizingly difficult.

Half an hour later, the law student couldn't handle the relentless barrage anymore.

Exhausted and sporting several angry bruises on her arms and legs, she collapsed onto the court.

Trash.

Sheryl offered an exaggerated shrug and strolled over to the rest area.

She finally shifted her attention to Juniper's court.

A moment later, she burst out laughing.

Were they playing tennis or ping-pong?

They were hitting the ball so delicately it looked like they were terrified of hurting each other.

Well, it made sense.

They both looked totally amateurish. It was just a comedy routine for the crowd.

"Sheryl, looks like Juniper's going to win this round," a classmate

whispered. "If she beats the music student, she'll play the literature lay the department next, and then shell be up against you."

"Literature?"

Sheryl sneered lazily. "Let's see if she can even get past them first."

The first round wrapped up shortly after.

Unsurprisingly, Juniper claimed victory by a "narrow" margin.

"Goddess!"

The music student practically skipped over to her, abandoning her racket to whisper in Juniper's ear. "You're actually really good atthis... You went easy on me, didn't you?"

You could only really gauge someone's true skill when you were playing against them.

"You did great, too."

Juniper didn't make it awkward, offering a charming smile. "Come on, let's get that selfie. I've got another match to play."

"Yes! Thank you!"

The girl whipped out her phone and leaned in close like an excited puppy, flashing a peace sign.

"I'll be cheering for you from the sidelines!"

Round two kicked off.

Juniper faced off against the literature student.

Her new opponent had zero experience.

After awkwardly fumbling a few returns, she ran out of breath and forfeited early.

Juniper effortlessly advanced to the top three.

Over on Sheryl's side, things wrapped up just as quickly.

The two losers went to battle for third place.

Juniper and Sheryl were set to fight for the championship.

The tension in the air skyrocketed.

They had a thirty-minute break before the final showdown.

"Sheryl, it actually looks like Juniper knows what she's doing," Yolanda whispered leaning in Just, to be

absolutely safe, I think you should

takè some... precautions."

Sheryl narrowed her eyes at Juniper, a vicious gleam flashing in her gaze.

She was completely confident she would win, but.....

Making that little bitch suffer an incredibly humiliating defeat?

That sounded fantastic.