After a series of clashes, Ying had a general understanding of the gap between herself and Lumine.
Although there was still a difference, it was no longer to the extent of being instantly defeated. Even so, if she continued to confront Lumine head-on, she probably wouldn't last five or even ten minutes. It seemed she needed to adjust her strategy...
With this thought, Ying immediately changed her stance, adopting a more defensive posture, hoping to stall until after ten minutes.
Lumine saw through Ying's intention and immediately attacked swiftly. However, facing Ying, who had put all her energy into defense, she couldn't find any openings for a while, and thus was held back for five minutes.
"Hmmph..."
Seeing that she couldn't break through her defenses, Lumine immediately changed her fighting style, throwing a straight punch towards Ying's arm.
Ying quickly stabilized her stance, intending to block the punch. But just as it was about to land on her arm, Lumine suddenly changed her punch into a palm strike and grabbed her wrist.
"Eh?!"
Ying hadn't expected Lumine to do that and was momentarily stunned. Lumine seized the opportunity, gave a forceful swing, and sent Ying flying into the air.
Seeing this, Ying quickly prepared to be thrown, but found that Lumine hadn't let go of her hand. Instead, she was gently placed on the ground on the other side.
The moment Ying landed, before she could even steady herself, Lumine followed up with a trip, knocking her to the ground. Then, Lumine pressed down on her.
"Mmmph?!?"
Instinctively thinking Lumine was going to bully her, Ying let out a small gasp and tried to struggle free from Lumine's restraint. However, Lumine held her hands down, pinning her firmly to the ground.
"Oh, oh, oh! It's a cute girl snuggle!"
"So envious of the Honorary Knight!"
"I want to snuggle with Ying-bao too!"
"Woah, you guys are so perverted. Unlike me, I want both."
Everyone: ...
Meanwhile, Ying, pinned beneath Lumine, was still struggling in a panic, trying to use words to awaken Lumine's reason.
"Wait! So many people are watching, Lumine, be rational!"
Realizing Ying had misunderstood, Lumine couldn't help but chuckle and explained with a smile,
"Hehe~ Don't worry, don't worry. Did you forget? If someone stays down for more than 30 seconds, the other person wins~ (^_^)"
Upon hearing Lumine's words, Ying finally understood. She sheepishly stuck out her tongue and began to struggle again. However, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't break free from Lumine's grip.
Seeing that time was running out, Ying, in a moment of desperation, gave up struggling and suddenly lifted her head, giving Lumine a forceful kiss on the cheek.
"Eh?! (//∇//)"
Lumine was caught completely off guard by Ying's action and instinctively loosened her grip. Ying seized this opportunity, exerted all her strength, broke free from Lumine's hold, and immediately turned the tables, pressing down on Lumine.
"Ohohoho! My Ying-bao is back on top!"
"Nonsense! She's mine!"
"Stop struggling, you're both mine."
"Damn it! Where did this pervert come from! Get the Millelith to arrest him!"
Ahem~ Back to the arena...
By now, Lumine had recovered from the kiss, and a smile reappeared on her face.
"Hehe~ I didn't expect you to go as far as a public kiss to win against me, little Ying-ying~"
"Hmph~"
Ying let out a soft哼 and wasn't flustered by Lumine's words.
"This is about whether I can sleep well tonight, so just surrender honestly!"
"Hahaha, it's not that easy to make me surrender~"
As soon as Lumine finished speaking, Ying felt a surge of strength. Startled, she tried to increase her pressure. However, since she hadn't locked Lumine's joints to prevent her from using her strength, Lumine quickly broke free.
It's over?!
The words flashed in Ying's mind. The next moment, Lumine was once again pressing down on her.
Ying struggled a few times, but when she found she couldn't break free, she attempted to repeat her earlier move. However, Lumine, having learned her lesson, wouldn't fall for it again. She firmly pinned Ying to the ground for half a minute, causing her to lose the match.
Although Ying lost the match, she didn't feel disheartened. After all, her counter-attack had successfully dragged the time past the ten-minute mark.
After waiting for Lumine to finish her lengthy, and largely forgotten, plot explanations with the others, Ying happily returned to the Serenitea Pot with her. Paimon and the others, meanwhile, were drooling over the money they had just earned and happily ran off to play at the shops.
Although Ying had warned them not to return too late before they left, judging by their appearance, they wouldn't stop until the shops closed.
Meanwhile, back in the Serenitea Pot, Ying happily jumped onto the head of a Wind Anemo Slime at the entrance and joyfully said to it,
"Hehe~ Do you know what? The match against Lumine was my victory!"
Seeing her smug expression, Lumine, who was standing nearby, spoke with a hint of helplessness.
"Hey~ It seems like I won that match, right?"
Hearing Lumine's words, Ying reached out and pinched her cheek.
"Hmph~ You won the match, but I won the bet. So, Lumine, you can't be mad at me for the next few days~"
Hehe~ It feels so good to openly pinch back~
Seeing Ying's audacity, Lumine couldn't help but burst into laughter and pulled her inside.
"Look at you getting all puffed up. Hurry and take a bath, you got dirty lying on the ground for so long."
"Mhm~"
Ying nodded obediently and followed Lumine to the bathroom, as in her eyes, she was now in charge.
After putting her dirty clothes in the laundry basket, Ying dashed to the bathtub and began to fill it with hot water.
"Hmph hmph, now I can take a bath with peace of mind~"
However, as soon as she finished speaking, a pair of mischievous hands reached out from behind her and grabbed her sensitive spot.
"Ah?! It tickles! Hahaha... Wait! Lumine, what are you doing?!"
"Helping you scrub your back (^_^)"
"This is hardly... hahaha... scrubbing!"
Ying struggled, trying to escape, but her body felt completely weak.
"Wait... hahaha... You said you wouldn't be... hahaha... angry..."
"I'm not angry, but I like to tease you even when I'm not angry (^_^)"
Ying: ...
It seems I can't argue with that...
"Lumine, you're tricking me again!!"
"Hehe~ I didn't say anything. You just misunderstood (^～^)"
After answering Ying's question, Lumine stopped what she was doing, scooped Ying up and placed her in the bathtub, then said with a smile,
"Besides, I said I wouldn't be angry about you going out with others. So it doesn't include you being smug and pinching my face just now (^_^)"
Uh...
Ying shivered and looked up at Lumine, who was pressing down on her and looking at her with a gentle smile.
"Can I say a last word... Mmmph..."