My system allows me to copy talents

Hiro could feel his throbbing heart, the nervousness inside him growing.

‘What’s happening? Why am I feeling this way? Am I getting aroused?’ Multiple thoughts popped inside his head with no definite answers.

He could also feel a tight sensation in his crotch.

‘No! Not here,’ feeling the sensation, Hiro panicked. He could tell that he was having a boner.

“You… look beautiful,” Hiro responded, his breathing a little hurried. He sounded quite nervous as if something was bothering him.

Hearing Hiro’s compliment, Ishikawa’s cheeks turned red, and a graceful smile tugged her lips. However, before she could even thank him, he said, “Now, let’s hurry… We should join them.”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Ishikawa nodded before following Hiro.

“It was a close call,” Hiro mumbled. He couldn’t help but feel glad he came out of the earlier situation unscathed.

If he had remained there any longer, it would have been dangerous. Fortunately for him, Ishikawa didn’t notice the boner he was having earlier.

It would have been troublesome if she had noticed it.

“But still, why did I react that way?” Hiro tried to comprehend the earlier situation.

The waves carried him while he remained afloat on the water. Hiro could feel the warmth of the sun on his back. He could also feel the coolness of the water underneath the tube. Ishikawa was resting on the beach.

Meanwhile, Endo and Akashi were swimming.

For a while, Hiro pondered over the matter.

“Perhaps it’s because of the feelings I have for her?” Hiro turned to look at the beach. It didn’t take him long to locate Ishikawa.

“Do I love her?” Hiro’s expression became stiff. “Or is this just guilt?”

Though he wanted to treat her better, he couldn’t comprehend the emotions he held for her. He still couldn’t tell if he wanted to treat her better because he loved her or if he wanted to salvage himself for not treating her better previously.

While pondering, Hiro realized the emotions were much more complicated than what he assumed them to be.

The more he thought, the more he found himself entangled. Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire

Despite pondering over it deeply, he couldn’t conclude.

“Is it guilt or love?”

While pondering, he cast a glance at her. For some reason, her skin was glowing today. The graceful smile that tugged her plum lips, the blush on her cheeks, and the innocence in her eyes bewitched him.

For a while, he sat there staring at her like an individual enthralled by the beauty of nature.

Then she turned to look at him and said something. However, Hiro couldn’t hear the words spoken. The only thing he noticed was the cheerful face before him.

It felt like the world around him had slowed down for some reason.

Hiro’s presence had been reduced to nothing but a mere spectator. He sat there watching her dazedly without even blinking his eyes.

The strands of his hair dangled freely with the breeze.

At this moment, one thing became clear to him— he adored her dearly.

Had she always been this charming?

“That’s right, she used to smile like that too,” Hiro smiled.

The smile on his face faded as he recalled the past.

“I guess I did steal her smile.” Hiro frowned. “If it weren’t for my twisted self, she wouldn’t have lost her smile. She used to be a cheerful person originally.”

After things started worsening for him, his personality became twisted. He became unsatisfied with life, and the glimmer of hope he held onto faded, pushing him into despair.

The more difficult life became, the more he pushed the blame on others.

For every missed opportunity, he blamed people instead of taking the blame. During those moments of despair, Hiro felt like the whole world was against him.

“You can’t go on like this. You’ll only become more miserable, and I can’t see you hurting like this. Please… Hiro. It’s enough now. Let’s start anew.”

Hiro recalled her teary eyes.

It was right after he had suffered a devastating injury.

The room was small, barely enough to accommodate two people. The fluorescent bulb hanging on the ceiling dimly illuminated the room. There were piles of trash sorted in the corner.

The atmosphere inside the room was rather grim.

Hiro lay above the tatami floor, his face facing away from Ishikawa. His legs were wrapped in bandages.

While talking, he could hear her shrieking.

Having seen her tearing up earlier, he intentionally turned away from her. He didn’t want to see her crying. Even more, he didn’t want to confront her because he was the culprit of her state.

“I know… You don’t want to give up. I know how much it means to you. But it’s time you stop, Hiro. You know you can’t compete in your current state. The doctor has already warned us. So, please, Hiro… stop being stubborn.”

He couldn’t even bring himself to respond because what she was telling was the truth. Yet still, he couldn’t bring himself to quit.

He didn’t want to quit, even if it meant breaking him even more.

He clutched his heart tightly, gritting his teeth in pain. He knew she was only worried about him. Yet still, hearing those words about quitting didn’t sit well with him.

The more he heard it, the more indignant and helpless he felt.

“Please… Hiro,” Ishikawa begged.

The cracks in her voice, the grief in her tone, he could hear them audibly.

Lately, arguments and rifts have become frequent among them. Especially when it came to football, the disagreements grew even further.

These arguments and rifts had already strained their relationship.

Both of them had lost their smile in the process.

With her head slumped and her eyes full of tears, she sat there trying to convince him. However, he didn’t even look at her.

While recalling the past moment, the two of their image overlapped.

This made his frown even deeper, and his guilt grew exponentially. Though she was cheerful right now, he couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt while remembering the trouble he had caused for her.

“I did steal her smile, didn’t I?”