Four
students per class, thirty-six in total, entered and lined up by class on the
outer edge of the oval track.
The
placement seemed to be random, and just in front of Chihiro is 1-A――Yuse
Shuka. It seems that she is the rider of the race. All the members except Shuka
are men.
「Guys,
the rider of class 1-A will probably come to this side」
「Ok」
「Let's
focus on that for now」
The
three cavalry of Class C nod to each other.
After
putting on a landmark headband, Chihiro is lifted by the three.
He
looked around at his surroundings with a heightened vision and adjusted his
breathing.
A
few tens of seconds later, the starting pistol sounded. Immediately after, all
the teams start moving at the same time. Shuka's...as expected, ran straight
into Chihiro and the others.
**a
「Kamishiro!」
「Yah,
leave for now! We'll meet them where the crowd is less dense」
Chihiro
and the others detoured to the left, avoiding the area where the melee had formed.
Then, to their surprise, Shuka and the others charged through the melee,
closing in on them.
Naturally,
the other cavalry attacked them, but...
「Out
of my way!」
They
are lightning fast.
They
swept away the second-year rider who had reached out to them, and snatched away
the headband while running straight through. Her hand is very fast due to her
[Heat Manipulation].
Seeing
the disqualified cavalry of 2-C, the other cavalry seemed to have given up on
Shuka.
No
one made any further moves on her, and so her team approached Chihiro and the
others without hesitation.
「It's
been a hundred years since we met here!」
A
sharp, intense look pierced Chihiro's face.
It
seems, she doesn't complain about not being able to face Kamishiro directly.
And to counter her, Chihiro resisted the urge to look away, and looked back
into Shuka's eyes.
――Approach
from the front, and attack him by scooping him up with my right hand.
Chihiro
understood the plan of attack, and his body moved almost simultaneously with
the start of Shuka's attack. Perhaps confused by the uncomfortable feeling of
having her mind read, Chihiro saw Shuka's expression change into a quizzical
one, and he could brush off Shuka's hand with his left hand.
However,
his left hand went numb from the shock.
「Wha...?」
Shuka
stiffens for a moment in surprise, but of course, not wanting to wait for her
to regain her composure, Chihiro extends his right hand, aiming for Shuka's
headband. However――
「!」
Just
in time.
Shuka
brushed off Chihiro's hand just in time. Despite the fact that the time lag
between recognition and reaction is short, her instantaneous power makes it
happen and it's terrifying.
「Fall
back!」
A
sharp command was given, and the horse of 1-A took a few steps back.
「Izumi-kun!」
「Sorry,
just stand by!」
Though
it was tempting to attack Shuka before her team could regain their stance,
Chihiro probably wouldn't be able to deal with her if she countered.
So
now, if Shuka is coming at him, he would counter her.
It's
probably the only way to win. It might be possible to wait for Shuka to run out
of stamina, but it would be dangerous if Shuka's energy capacity is unknown.
Maybe she will consume calories to the limit because it is before lunch.
「Kamishiro
Yuuki!」
Before
Chihiro know it, Shuka and the others are approaching again. And it's head-on
again. This time, they seem to be planning to stick around until they get
Chihiro's headband, and then decide the game with a series of high-speed moves.
Surprisingly, she and her team smart. They must have understood from the
earlier interplay that they would be blocked if they just used a single move.
This
is not good. But Chihiro read her mind again.
――For
the first strike, move the right hand from the waist to the headband straight
ahead. Chihiro, who had read thus, thrust out his right hand in order to make
the first move.
If
he could get to the headband first, he would win.
「Too
bad!」
But
Shuka's left hand blocked Chihiro's move. She managed to block the
counterattack with her right hand, but now there was no time to attack. Still,
Shuka senses the attacks just in time and continues to prevent them.
It
helps her that his attacks are straightforward,
「Why
don't you just get beaten up, Kamishiro Yuuki!」
Both
of them are getting impatient with the stalemate.
And
it is not only the rider who is burdened. The horsemen, who continue to face
their opponents and slowly changing direction as they approach each other, are
also gradually accumulating fatigue.
In
this situation, the disadvantage is the rider who has less mental space and is
heavier.
「Ah!」
After
a dozen or so attempts, Chihiro's horse on the right behind him collapsed, and
the students on the left staggered along with it. Seeing Chihiro's horse
collapsing, the horse of 1-A hurriedly moved away.
（I
will fall）
Chihiro,
thinking that he would fall, squeezed his eyes shut, but the expected fall did
not come.
Because
Kamishiro raised his arm and held Chihiro's body. Thanks to Kamishiro, Chihiro
is able to keep his balance just in time, and he managed to control himself by
being carried by Kamishiro.
「Izumi-kun,
hold on tighter」
「Uh,
yeah」
"Sorry,
please take care of the rest", his classmate said so when Chihiro clung to
Kamishiro. To be honest, it's very uncomfortable to have his crotch against the
back of his head, but at this point, there is no replacing it.
**b
「...OK.
If you still want to do it, I'll fight you」
Although
Chihiro and the others who had regained their footing with just the two of them
made her tighten her expression, their expression also tightened. At the sound
of her voice, the cavalry of class 1-A rushed forward.
「!」
Kamishiro
avoids to the right with minimal steps. When they turn to face each other, he
moves to the left.
「You're
moving restless!」
Shuka
sometimes reaches out to Chihiro, but she can't seem to get her aim right in
the fast-moving world. So, her attacks are unsuccessful.
And
with fewer people, Chihiro and Kamishiro are able to move around more easily.
However,
the stability is lost, and Chihiro struggles not to be knocked down.
And
then, suddenly, Chihiro realized.
On
the field, most of the cavalry had already left. Besides Chihiro and Shuka,
there are only two cavalry left.
When
that group is finished, the winner will intervene on their fight.
...So,
they need to decide by then.
Kamishiro
and Shuka must have thought the same thing.
「Izumi-kun,
we'll do it next」
「We
will!」
Their
voices overlapped, and the final battle began.
Shuka's
horse is charging straight at Kamishiro, but Kamishiro is prepared to take it,
and so he could avoid it by one step to the left. This is a necessary measure,
because if they collide, it is Chihiro and Kamishiro who will collapse.
And
Shuka seemed to be aware of it.
「I'll
take it!」
A
hand is extended at high speed. Taking advantage of the horse's stability,
Shuka moves her hands away and concentrates on the attack.
（Shall
I take it? No, we're at a disadvantage in an endurance battle）
Ignoring
Shuka's hand, Chihiro extends his right hand. He aims for his opponent's
headband.
Shuka
is quicker.
But...
「Eh...?」
*wobble*.
Chihiro's body shakes, and his attack misses.
Naturally,
since he is desperately clinging to Kamishiro's head with all his limbs, the
more he moves his right hand away, the more he loses his balance.
But
now, both Chihiro and Kamishiro are nearing their limits. So, there is no time
to regain their balance, and now, the game is between Chihiro falling off from
Kamishiro or he taking off Shuka's headband as soon as possible.
...Don't
think about anything else.
Chihiro
just went for the headband.
Ignore
what's happening to his body. All that mattered is that his right hand reached
the target.
And
he got it.
「...You're
good」
Shuka
muttered, her eyes widening and a smile appearing on her face shortly after.
Hearing
this, Chihiro felt himself falling.
「Ah!」
Kamishiro's
arms stretched out as quickly as he could and caught Chihiro with both arms.
"Kyaa..."
Some of the students (mostly girls) cheered, but the people in question are not concerned with that.
*exhale
sound*
Chihiro
exhaled and looked up at Kamishiro's face, trying to calm his heartbeat.
His
forehead was sweating, but he was smiling.
**c
「Good
work, Izumi-kun」
「...Kamishiro-kun,
is this going to be a disqualification?」
「Well...uh,
yes. You've fallen from the horse...」
And
then a voice from the side.
「But
as long as the rider doesn't touch the ground, it's safe」
It's
Shuka, who has dismounted. While the other three rushed out, only she remained
there, looking up at Kamishiro.
「I
lost this time, but don't think you can win next time」
「...Haha.
It's not me who won this time, it's Izumi-kun」
Kamishiro
laughed at Shuka's aggressive ranting, wondering where she got such energy.
To
be honest, Chihiro would have preferred not to get involved in the
conversation.
Fortunately,
Shuka only glanced at Chihiro and snorted, "Hmmph".
「I'm
not interested in options」
With
that, she strode off the field.
Chihiro
and Kamishiro couldn't help but follow her with their eyes. ....
「Behind
you, they're coming!」
「Eh?」
When
they looked back, the only remaining cavalry is closing in on Chihiro and the
others.
「Izumi-kun,
hurry up and get on my head」
「Uh,
yeah. Oh, but I have to wear this headband, too」
The
two rushed to get ready, but couldn't make it in time.
They
fell to the ground together by the rush of the third year's cavalry.
Thanks for reading...
