I Was Possessed By An Unknown Manga

I could hardly recall how the next three minutes unfolded.

No matter what I did, the audience clapped with moved expressions, so I eventually gave up and quietly struck various poses.

As a result, I received the first-ever perfect score from the judges.

Riding on the high rating from the audience, I advanced to the finals as the top qualifier from the preliminaries.

Honestly, I didn’t know how it ended up like this.

But one thing’s for sure. People appreciated the beauty of muscles.

As someone following in the footsteps of many pioneers, this aspect was certainly gratifying.

There were a total of 10 finalists, including myself, Ryuji, the trainer named Kenichi Yoshida whom we saw earlier, and the woman who made a huge blunder on stage, creating an embarrassing moment in history.

I thought she would have definitely been eliminated, but surprisingly, her clumsy moment seemed to be perceived as cute.

Anyway, perhaps because the preliminaries took up quite a bit of time, the finals were conducted in a format where all the finalists came up on stage for a group interview.

During the brief 10-minute break, we received a simple explanation backstage.

“In the finals, it’s just going to be a simple talk, so don’t worry too much. We won’t push you to do a solo performance like in the preliminaries.”

Perhaps because many were already burdened by the talent show aspect of the preliminaries, everyone looked relieved.

It would be better to just go with what the MC suggested than to wring out non-existent ideas.

After the short 10-minute break, all the finalists swarmed onto the stage.

“Alright! Finally, it’s starting! The Onjoku Beach Swimsuit Contest Finals! The strong competitors who made it through the fierce competition will now compete here!”

Wooow!

Indeed, it seemed like more people came to watch after the preliminary rounds ended.

People who had left their seats out of boredom during the preliminary rounds seemed to have returned for the finals.

The increase in spectators made me feel more nervous.

Indeed, it seemed I wasn’t cut out for the stage, even in my final moments.

“In the finals, unlike the preliminaries, we will conduct in-depth interviews with the participants! We’ll get to know more about their charms that weren’t visible during the preliminaries! And also, we are taking real-time votes from under the stage! We ask the audience to cast a vote for the person you like!”

Unlike the preliminary rounds, where the judges’ scores had a significant impact, the finals seemed to rely entirely on the audience’s reaction.

The MC conducted interviews with the finalists in order, starting from the front.

“Who did you come with?”

“I came with my college friends.”

“Oh! Perfect! Do you have a boyfriend?”

“Yes!”

“Eh~ Then you’re out.”

“What?!”

It was a casual, light-hearted exchange.

Unlike the preliminary rounds, where participants had to showcase something, the finals relied more on the MC’s ability to engage in conversation, so everyone watched in a pleasant atmosphere.

As soon as one person’s interview finished, the next person’s interview began. The process was so smooth that it didn’t feel suffocating at all.

After interviewing a few people, it was the turn of Kenichi Yoshida, whom we had seen earlier.

Unlike me, who had bulky muscles, he had the kind of well-proportioned muscles generally preferred by people.

In reality, that kind of physique couldn’t be achieved in just 1 or 2 years.

It must have taken more than 5 years of consistent training.

His handsome face, decent conversational skills, and sleek muscles naturally drew responses from the female audience.

“Do you have a girlfriend?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Ah~ I can already hear voices of disappointment~”

The MC said this and then posed another question.

“So, among the participants, who are you most conscious of?”

Yoshida then pointed directly at me.

“I think my rival among these would be the participant from Korea over there.”

“An unexpected declaration of rivalry!”

The atmosphere in the audience instantly heated up.

The stage MC didn’t miss this opportunity and approached me to ask,

“What do you think about his provocation?!”

Startled, I soon responded calmly.

“Honestly, I consider it an honor.”

“Oooooh! Such humility!”

Giving meaning to every little word, it was honestly hard to keep up with the tension.

I forced a smile and expressed my gratitude.

Then, the interviews of the other participants proceeded in turn.

After Ryuji, who was right before me, finished, it was finally my turn, and all eyes were on me.

It seemed to be because I had received the highest score from the judges in the preliminary rounds.

“Now, it’s the turn of Kim Yu-seong, the dark horse of this contest! The first question we must ask! Do you have a girlfriend?”

Expecting this question, I answered easily,

“Not yet.”

“Does ‘not yet’ mean you will have one soon?!”

“It could happen, or it might not.”

I resorted to evasive answers to the difficult question.

Then, the MC, seemingly wary of probing further, asked the next question.

“You advanced to the finals with the highest score from the judges in the preliminary rounds! Do you have any participants in mind who you are particularly aware of?”

I realized his question was meant to solidify the rival dynamic created earlier.

Normally, I would have named Yoshida, who earlier identified me as his rival, but after some thought, I spoke up.

“I think the most threatening participant here is Sakamoto Ryuji, who is sitting next to me.”

Then, the MC asked with a surprised expression,

“Ah! I naturally thought of Mr. Yoshida! Why suddenly choose Mr. Sakamoto?”

“Well, because he’s my classmate.”

“Ah! An unexpected comment about a classmate! This is quite an embarrassment for Mr. Yoshida!”

I didn’t know if he actually thought that, but the MC was subtly stirring up competition.

In fact, such instigation was part of the charm of these events.

As the audience watched with interest, the stage MC deliberately brought the microphone to Yoshida and asked,

“What do you think about Kim Yu-seong’s opinion, whom you personally nominated as your rival?”

“It’s a bit sad to feel like I’m not even in his consideration.”

“Yes! He says he’s sad! What should we do about Mr. Yoshida’s lost sorrow?!”

Now, I wasn’t sure what the MC was trying to say.

Anyway, with my interview, all interviews were concluded, and it seemed like the real-time voting from the audience was also wrapped up.

With only the final results announcement remaining, one of the stage staff members came up and whispered something to the MC.

Then, the MC, nodding his head after listening, caught my eye and, with a mischievous smile, spoke into the microphone.

“The current voting results are being tallied! In the meantime, let’s have the finalists play a mini-game!”

A mini-game?

The finalists, unprepared for this unexpected event, began to murmur among themselves.

However, the MC nonchalantly announced the mini-game.

“The game will be an arm-wrestling competition! The winner will receive a local gift voucher worth 10,000 yen, courtesy of the MC!”

Arm-wrestling at this time? Was this an outright invitation for a showdown?

While it was a baffling choice, some participants had already declared their surrender, deeming the game unfair.

“Of course, since it’s arm-wrestling, we will divide it into male and female categories! The numbers are just right for that!”

As he said, among the finalists, there were 6 women and 4 men.

While the men would start in the semi-finals, the women would have fierce competition.

But well, among the men, three out of four were muscle men, so it seemed reasonably fair.

Soon, a hastily arranged table was brought onto the stage, and as everyone cheered for their favorite participant, I lightly stretched my wrist.

Fortunately, my first opponent seemed to be an average person, so it appeared I wouldn’t need to exert much effort.

“Please take it easy on me.”

“Alright, let’s have a good match.”

Though my arm-wrestling opponent wasn’t particularly short, standing in front of me, they appeared somewhat smaller.

“You seem older than me, so please feel free to speak casually.”

“Ah, okay.”

…It seemed like this couldn’t be helped.

I decided to just go with the flow.

“Ready, start!”

Bang!

The first round ended as quickly as it began.

Honestly, since the outcome was anticipated even before we started, no one was surprised.

On the other hand, the surprising event was not mine, but the arm-wrestling match between Ryuji and Mr. Yoshida.

While most people predicted the muscular Yoshida’s victory, Ryuji won against him with sheer strength.

Honestly, seeing Yoshida overwhelmed despite his superior physique, one could only logically conclude that his muscles were just for show.

Just like me, Ryuji, who had also won his match easily, made a victory sign with his fingers and looked proud when our eyes met.

Well, it seemed the arm-wrestling finals would end up being an internal competition within Ichijo Academy.

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