Preparations for the Sports Festival were well underway in every class across the three years.
The gymnasium had been divided into two halves between Class B and Class C, as they had decided not to train together at first. On the first day, each class would rely on a series of simple physical ability tests to determine the students' levels.
Therefore, secrecy was important at this stage.
I stood on Class C's side, looking around as the students gathered into two groups, boys and girls, ready to begin. On the other side, all the students had gathered around Ichinose.
She really was the center of the class.
That could be just as good as it was bad.
Hirata approached with his usual friendly smile, carrying a clipboard to record our results.
I feel like it would be embarrassing to end up at the bottom of the class. I just hope my abilities are at least around average.
High school students seem to consider anyone who isn't good at sports nothing more than a rock blocking their path during the Sports Festival.
Sorry, but I don't want to play that role right now.
Sudou stood in the middle of the group, holding some kind of device for measuring grip strength.
I didn't know exactly how it worked or how it measured strength, but Sudou seemed comfortable handling it.
As expected from the person who bragged the most about his physique.
"Sudou-kun, you can start..." Hirata said as he watched the counter on the device, ready to record the result exactly as it appeared.
Perhaps he considered it a great responsibility, since the results would determine how the class would proceed with the test. That was probably why he was so careful not to make a mistake.
What if I gave him a Max Coffee? Would he accept it and write down a respectable number for me?
Sounds like a good deal.
I should propose it to him.
Oh, of course, it wouldn't be a bribe.
"Haaaaaaa..."
Suddenly, a loud and annoying yell interrupted my train of thought as Sudou began squeezing the device with his fist, making the counter move along with him.
But seriously, what's with the yelling? Does it actually help increase strength?
Maybe I should scream until their eardrums explode.
"82.4..." Sudou shouted as he raised the device into the air, announcing his result.
"That's amazing..."
"That's really high..."
"He even broke 80..."
Voices of admiration began coming from the spectators as they acknowledged Sudou's achievement.
I didn't really understand how this thing worked, but it was obvious that a high number was a good thing.
"Hey, Kouenji, you should try this too..." Sudou called out to Kouenji, who was sitting alone on the platform, taking care of his nails like an idiot.
Perhaps Sudou felt that his only real rival in the class was Kouenji, especially considering their rather unusual physiques.
"I'm not interested," Kouenji replied as he lightly blew on his nails.
Ah... well, that's exactly what I expected from him.
He wouldn't cooperate with anything involving the class.
That could really interfere with things this time.
I feel like someone should deal with this side of the problem.
But I don't want to.
"Tch... Here, Ayanokouji, you try it..." Sudou said as he pushed the device toward Ayanokouji, who was standing beside me.
Sudou seemed genuinely annoyed at being rejected.
Ayanokouji stared at the device in front of him with his usual blank expression, as if he were contemplating a problem that would determine his future.
I glanced sideways at the device.
The counter was pointing exactly at zero.
What would happen if my turn came and I achieved the same result?
It wouldn't really be that bad.
After all, it would still be a record.
"Sudou, what's the average...?" Ayanokouji asked as he prepared his fingers to place them inside the device.
"Huh? I think it's 60..." Sudou said, scratching the back of his head before stepping away.
60 was average?
That seemed ridiculously high to me.
Well, Sudou was an expert in this field.
Perhaps it was time for him to surprise us with his vast knowledge.
Ayanokouji began squeezing the device, and the counter steadily climbed until it stopped at 60.6.
"Hmmm..."
I watched the counter from the side.
Had he hit the average exactly?
Were we supposed to be surprised, or should we actually believe this?
"I can't squeeze any harder..." Ayanokouji said as he raised the device slightly.
However, Hirata, who was supposed to record the result, was busy talking to some of the students beside him.
Our eyes met.
Ayanokouji quickly pushed the device toward me as if he were trying to get rid of it.
Wait a second.
Can't I just stay until the very end?
But it was already too late.
The device was in my hands.
I sighed in frustration as I adjusted my grip around it.
I'd better hurry before anyone saw my record.
Although everyone would know it anyway once Hirata wrote it down.
I gently squeezed with my fingers.
To my surprise, the counter moved instead of remaining frozen at zero.
The numbers slowly began rising.
As each number changed, I couldn't help wondering whether the device had somehow broken after Sudou's excessive strength.
The device finally stopped counting.
My eyes stopped with it on the number displayed.
I could feel several sideways glances trying to pry into my result, but I tried to ignore them.
It was useless, though.
Ayanokouji's eyes had already reached the number.
It seemed I hadn't even reached the average.
Still, it was better than zero.
"Sorry for the delay. What are your numbers...?" Hirata asked as he prepared his pen to write our results next to our names.
"60.6..." Ayanokouji said flatly.
Hirata, however, reacted differently.
His eyebrows rose in surprise.
"Ayanokouji-kun, I didn't expect you to be this strong..." Hirata said before writing down the number.
"Really...? It seems like the average to me," Ayanokouji said.
Well, that's what Sudou had said.
But seriously, can anyone actually rely on Sudou's ridiculous answers?
"No, the average is much lower than that. Around 45 or 50," Hirata said, correcting the misinformation.
Did Ayanokouji fall into Sudou's trap and surpass the number he was aiming for?
That's suspicious.
"Hikigaya-kun, what's your result...?" Hirata asked, waiting for my answer with his annoyingly kind smile.
"90," I said, looking away casually.
"Huh...?" Hirata exclaimed instinctively, taking a step backward.
"He's lying," Ayanokouji said in his emotionless voice without hesitation.
"You idiot. Why don't you just let the cat get your tongue..." I muttered, almost ready to smash the device over his head.
But then I remembered that I'd have to pay for it afterward.
That would be a terrible decision.
Wasting my money because of this idiot wasn't worth it.
Although it had been a perfect plan.
A can of Max Coffee, and he would probably write down 100 for me.
"Ha-ha... So, what's the actual result?" Hirata asked with an awkward laugh after his own foolish reaction.
"49.8," I said as I pushed the device toward Hirata to end this whole thing.
"Oh, it seems you've achieved quite a good number, Hikigaya-kun..." Hirata said as he stepped back to continue with the others.
I gave Ayanokouji one last sideways glance.
He was standing beside Hirata, and he was also looking at me from the corner of his eye.
Then, we each went our separate ways.
The pure physical tests continued, chewing away at our bodies with exhaustion for half of the time allocated to us in the gymnasium.
The events consisted of the standing long jump, ball throwing, and a ten-meter sprint to be completed in the shortest possible time.
My results were reasonably average, so there was no need to worry about the looks from those around me anymore.
I grabbed a bottle of water to quench my thirst as the students from both classes finally gathered in the middle of the gymnasium after finishing the collection of sensitive information.
"So, what are we going to do now? We've finished the schedule assigned for today..." Ichinose said.
"We've finished our work for today as well..." Yukinoshita said, gently touching her chin as if thinking about how to make use of the time we had left.
Wouldn't it be better to just go home now?
Rest was the most important thing at this stage.
It was an essential part of the whole process that couldn't be ignored.
"It would be better to use this time for some additional physical training," Kanzaki said from Class B.
Even though most of the students around him already looked exhausted.
"Why don't we play tag?" Yamauchi shouted without hesitation.
What an idiotic suggestion.
He said we should train, not play.
"Ha-ha... Sorry, Yamauchi-kun, but we should train first..." Hirata said, trying to calm down his idiotic friend's enthusiasm.
"Why not? Doesn't running count as training?" Yamauchi asked as he raised his fist into the air.
"Yeah, that's true..."
His friends began supporting his idea after finding it appealing.
Well, that actually made sense.
Combining fun with training...
Wait a second.
That was close.
For a moment, I was about to fall into the trap of such a naive idea.
"Well, that makes sense..." Hirata said, considering their suggestion seriously this time.
However, he still couldn't give his honest opinion about it right away.
Wait a second.
Were they really going to accept this stupid proposal?
"Yukinoshita-san, what do you think?" Hirata asked, turning to the person who would probably give us the correct decision.
I tightly closed the cap of my water bottle as I waited for Yukinoshita's decisive rejection.
That would put an end to this nonsense, and I could return to my room.
"Do whatever you want..." Yukinoshita said, averting her gaze and turning away.
I suppose all this physical activity had really exhausted her.
But not enough to make her agree this easily.
"Okay, it's decided. Let's play tag!" Sudou shouted enthusiastically, as if he really liked the idea.
"That sounds fun, everyone. Let's join them," Ichinose said brightly.
However, she didn't receive the same response from her classmates, who showed no signs of wanting to play with us.
Were they looking at us with disgust?
Well, we deserved that.
"I want to play," Kanzaki said as he stepped forward from his group.
The serious guy actually liked this kind of nonsense too?
That's surprising.
Well, maybe I'll just sit here and watch what happens.
"I want to play against Hikigaya," Kanzaki said, pointing his stupid finger toward the edge of Class C, where I was standing alone.
Everyone's eyes gathered on me as if they were examining me carefully.
Why was I being dragged into this now?
"No. No, I don't want to."
I refused outright.
There was no reason to hesitate.
Even a single moment of hesitation would only lead to disaster.
"Why not?" Kanzaki asked as he took another step forward.
"Ah... well, I'm feeling a little tired right now..." I said, scratching my cheek.
Why was he so persistent?
This was a really bad idea.
"Okay..." Kanzaki said, nodding as if he already understood what I meant.
"You can run. I'll chase you," Kanzaki said seriously, as if he were making me an offer that couldn't possibly be refused.
Okay, I'll admit it.
That was a tempting offer.
But I still didn't want to.
"Why don't you agree, Hikigaya-kun? This looks like fun..." Horikita said in her cold voice, a smug smile forming on her face.
Tch... What's wrong with this girl? Why can't she just mind her own business?
"Come on, Hikigaya-kun. I'll participate too..." Hirata said, announcing that he would join.
Wouldn't that make this situation even worse?
Now there would be twice as many spectators.
"I'll participate too..." Sudou said, raising his fist enthusiastically as if he had found another opportunity to prove himself.
"I want to participate too..." Ayanokouji said, raising his hand slightly.
What?
Did Ayanokouji actually find the motivation to participate as well?
Hirata looked affectionately at his friends who had stepped forward to participate, as if he were proud of their initiative.
Then he turned toward me with a bright smile.
I sighed in resignation as I looked at the floor, thinking about how I could fall flat on my face and let him catch me easily.
The shortest route was always the best.
Ayanokouji, Sudou, Hirata, and Yamauchi stood ready to participate, so I positioned myself in front of them.
It seemed we had already been divided into two teams.
Ayanokouji, Yamauchi, and I on one side.
Everyone else against us.
Was this division really balanced?
"Okay, let's agree on the rules before we start. Kanzaki-kun's team will chase you for one minute. If they can't catch all of you, you win..." Ichinose explained the rules before we began.
Did we really have to run around for an entire minute?
This was getting worse.
Everyone stood facing their opponents as if our peaceful training session had suddenly turned into a grudge-filled war of pursuit.
"Ready..." Ichinose said before giving us the signal to start.
"Go!"
Sudou immediately charged toward Yamauchi and, without the slightest difficulty, caught him.
"What the hell, man? That's not fair..." Yamauchi complained as he was trapped between Sudou's massive arms.
"Shut up. You got crushed! Hahaha..." Sudou laughed like an idiot, intoxicated by his little victory.
Hirata took off after Ayanokouji, who was running at a normal pace without taking the matter personally.
As usual, Hirata was simply trying to enjoy himself.
I turned toward Kanzaki, who was staring at me intently, waiting for my first move before making his own.
Without any warning, he started running toward me and quickly reached out for my shirt to catch me.
I barely managed to dodge him at the last moment.
Wait a second.
The way he was doing this didn't exactly feel like a game.
It seemed like this had suddenly become personal.
Kanzaki continued trying to catch me, relentlessly cornering me while I kept dodging his aggressive attempts.
I didn't think I could keep this up for much longer.
Ayanokouji was still in this game too.
Could he just win already and stop acting like an idiot?
"I got you..."
From the corner of my eye, I saw Ayanokouji's body frozen in place like a statue, with Hirata holding his arm after finally cornering and catching him.
"It's just Hikigaya-kun against Kanzaki-kun now..." Ichinose announced.
It seemed Ayanokouji couldn't stop acting like his usual idiot.
What was this?
Had victory really become dependent on me?
That's exactly what I hated the most.
For some reason, the more I dodged Kanzaki's attacks, the more intense he became.
He even started aiming for the collar of my shirt and my neck.
Was I going to be okay after this?
Cold sweat began gathering on my forehead from the intense physical effort.
Perhaps my strength would run out soon and I'd accidentally collapse face-first onto the floor.
"Thirty seconds remaining..." Ichinose announced in her role as the referee.
My legs almost froze in place.
What?
We had already been running for so long, and we'd only made it halfway through the time?
This was pointless.
Kanzaki's hand shot toward me like an arrow without hesitation.
He finally grabbed my shirt tightly and began wrinkling it as he panted slightly.
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but then closed it again, gritting his teeth.
"The first team wins..." Ichinose announced, declaring the end of this stupid game.
"Hah..." I breathed out heavily as I heard the side conversations resume now that the thing occupying everyone's attention had ended.
I felt like nothing more than a piece of entertainment at a circus.
This was humiliating.
"Hikigaya, you let me catch you, didn't you?" Kanzaki asked as he stood behind me.
"Of course not..." I said, waving my hand in front of my face.
"Then why did you suddenly stop?"
"I got tired..." I replied flatly, looking around in search of the bottle of water I'd left at the edge of the gymnasium.
"Come on, guys! Let's play again..." Sudou said enthusiastically, as if the first round hadn't satisfied him yet.
"Sure, why not..." Hirata said, as though he had found some enjoyment in participating.
Even Ayanokouji nodded in agreement.
"What about you, Hikigaya-kun?" Hirata asked as if he didn't already know my answer.
That's what I should expect from popular boys.
Their expectations were always too high.
I looked at the large boy standing behind him.
A smile stretched across his face, a clear sign of how confident he was in his abilities.
Perhaps the only thought running through his head right now was that I was no match for him.
"Fine. I'll participate against Sudou..." I said as I took off my sports jacket so I could move more easily.
"Huh? Really...?"
"Come on. I'm ready..." Sudou said, cracking his fingers enthusiastically.
I wanted to put my jacket aside first, but I couldn't find a suitable place.
Then I saw a hand reaching toward me, so I handed it over without hesitation.
"Huh...?"
I quickly turned around after realizing who I had given my jacket to.
Horikita was standing alone at the edge of the court, holding my jacket in her hands.
Well, I suppose this was fine.
But Horikita-san, don't let your grudge take over and burn the poor jacket.
Things had gone badly from the beginning anyway, so there was no harm in extending the game a little longer.
"Hikigaya, you can run. I'll chase you..." Sudou said confidently as he stood in front of me.
I wasn't concerned about either my team or the opposing team.
This would be over quickly again.
There was no need to worry.
"Go!"
Sudou didn't hold back this time.
He charged forward like a bull toward the red target.
His hand shot directly toward my shirt to catch me.
But I jumped one step backward, causing him to miss his target.
"Huh..."
Sudou froze in place, stunned that he had wasted his chance to catch me.
"What? Are you going to give up this easily...? Looks like this will be an easy round..." I said with a mocking smile on my lips as I casually walked around.
"What did you say? Get over here!" Sudou growled loudly as he charged toward me again without hesitation.
I ran away from the center of attention where the other chases were taking place, heading toward a corner of the gymnasium.
Sudou chased after me at full speed, showing no intention of backing down.
"Hah..."
I stopped where I was and sighed, watching him from a distance with empty eyes without saying a word.
His face twisted with anger.
"What is this? You look so angry that your hair has turned red..." I said as I lightly hopped in place.
"You bastard! Get over here!"
Sudou charged at me with insane speed and force, swinging his fist directly toward my chest.
But I quickly grabbed his arm to stop him before he could wrinkle my shirt.
Come on.
You're not the one who's going to iron it, so stop ruining it.
"See? This is exactly why you'll be nothing but an obstacle in your class's path..." I said as I loosened my fingers around his arm.
"What did you say...?" Sudou asked, anger still clearly visible on his face.
"Isn't it obvious? All it takes is a little provocation to drive you into a frenzy. I'm sure the same thing will happen during the Sports Festival if Ryuuen says something sarcastic to you..." I said as I straightened my shirt, which had already begun to wrinkle.
"Hah..."
Sudou froze in place after realizing the trap he had fallen into.
"That way, it's easy to pull you out of the competition and lead you around like a bull toward whatever action they want you to take."
"That's not true..." Sudou said, clenching his fist tightly.
"No, it is. I know this is your field and one of your strengths, but if you keep acting like this, you won't accomplish anything. You want to lead your class toward victory, don't you?" I said, looking directly into his eyes, which were trembling slightly.
"Y-Yeah..." Sudou answered, avoiding my gaze after realizing his mistake.
"At this rate, you won't accomplish anything. You'll only lead them toward a certain defeat. Know your role and understand your importance in this game. Control yourself first..." I said as I walked past him.
I was done now.
I could finally go home.
"Hikigaya..."
Sudou suddenly shouted from behind me.
I turned around to see what he wanted.
"What?"
"You were right. I'll do my best to control my emotions. Don't worry. I'll lead you guys to victory..." Sudou said, nodding as if encouraging himself before running back toward the group.
He might be an irritable guy, but he's actually the easiest person to deal with.
"Hey, Sudou. Who won between you two?"
"Of course I did..." Sudou said, raising both fists into the air.
What a bastard.