Miyabi Nagumo and the Competition Roster / Airi's Support, Kiyotaka's Motivation

"Kiyotaka~ I'm tired. I want to sleep..."

"You're not going to take a bath?"

"Mm... Let's talk about it after I wake up..."

As they spoke, Horikita slowly drifted off to sleep, a satisfied smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Seeing this, Kiyotaka kissed her forehead, tucked her under the covers, then fell asleep with her in his arms.

Early the next morning, Horikita woke to the dazzling sunlight.

She looked at Kiyotaka, who was still sleeping soundly beside her. Remembering the previous day's wild passion, her cheeks flushed bright red. She tiptoed out of bed and went into the bathroom to wash up.

When she came out wrapped in a towel, she found Kiyotaka already sitting on the sofa.

"You're awake?"

"Yeah. I woke up the moment you got out of bed."

"Oh..."

Feeling guilty, Horikita didn't dare say much. She was afraid that one wrong word would lead to another intense round. Though it had been wonderful, the swelling and soreness she felt now told her not to provoke Kiyotaka.

Seeing her like this, Kiyotaka understood exactly what was going through her mind. He didn't say anything about it and instead brought up business.

"It's the weekend. How about I ask Kikyo to come with me and check out the other classes?"

Horikita looked at Kiyotaka in confusion and asked, "I can go with you, but why invite her too?"

"Because she knows more about them. Or do you think someone as bad at socializing as you can remember everyone's names and what they're like?"

Horikita pouted, then nodded without saying anything. After all, what Kiyotaka said was true.

Besides, she hadn't asked because she disliked Kikyo. They'd known each other for a long time, and their earlier disagreements had long since been put behind them. In fact, because of Kiyotaka, they even kept in touch privately.

She simply wanted Kiyotaka's time all to herself. It was just a little thing girls did, nothing more.

Kiyotaka soon contacted Kikyo, who happily agreed. After the two of them quickly got ready, Horikita decided to go back and change, so they agreed to meet outside the dormitory.

Miyabi Nagumo and the Entry List

"Sorry, sorry! Am I late?"

Kikyo ran over and saw that Kiyotaka was the only one waiting outside. She apologized sheepishly.

Kikyo was wearing a simple, comfortable white T-shirt and a pair of very short denim shorts that hugged her thighs.

As she bent over to apologize, the white lingerie beneath her neckline and a glimpse of her fair skin appeared and disappeared from view, making it hard to look away.

"It's fine. Someone else is later than you."

Kiyotaka glanced at a figure appearing in the distance and spoke calmly.

Following his gaze, Kikyo saw someone wearing a pale blue floral dress and a large straw hat that covered most of her face. Though she couldn't see clearly, that cold aura could only belong to Horikita.

"What, do you have a problem with that?"

Kiyotaka had spoken very quietly, but Horikita had exceptionally sharp ears. She immediately snapped back at him.

"Okay, okay, let's get going. The Soccer Club should be having a practice match today. We'll miss it if we're late."

Kikyo stuck out her tongue and changed the subject, taking Horikita by the hand.

Horikita gave a cold snort and walked ahead with Kikyo, leaving Kiyotaka behind. He shrugged and followed them leisurely toward the field.

By the time they reached the field, quite a few students had gathered to watch, and a match was already underway.

"Oh, it's already started."

With a thud, the ball traced a beautiful arc toward the goal. The goalkeeper reacted nimbly and punched it away.

The match seemed to include students from all three years. Hirata was among them, but most of the players were unfamiliar.

"Reconnaissance Club activities, gathering information about students from other classes... It feels so thrilling, like we're spies. My heart won't stop pounding."

"It's not that dramatic. We're just here to watch a match because we've got nothing better to do."

"Either way, it's best to gather information first. You never know when it might come in handy."

As they chatted, a corner kick was taken on the field, and the players began fighting for possession. Hirata won the ball, but with his opponents marking him closely, he didn't force an attack. Instead, he cleverly sent it along an arc to another player. The student was from Class B, and they'd met him a few times before. At just the right moment, he struck the ball, sending it beautifully into the goal.

"So Shibata's in the Soccer Club," Kiyotaka remarked calmly.

"Yeah. Hirata often praises him and says he's better than he is. They seem to get along pretty well."

Kikyo knew these things like the back of her hand. As soon as Kiyotaka asked, she told him everything.

The match started again, and Shibata won possession once more. He darted through the opposing team's formation at tremendous speed.

"He's incredibly fast."

Kiyotaka estimated Shibata's pace. In terms of speed alone, Shibata had already surpassed Hirata. It seemed Hirata hadn't been exaggerating when he said Shibata was better than him.

"Oh, they're playing a match! Everyone's so energetic today. Wonderful!"

A tall boy in a club uniform stood on the stairs beside them. He had blond hair and a warm smile, so dazzling that it caught Kiyotaka's attention.

"Good morning, Senior Nagumo."

Kikyo seemed to know him. She greeted him politely, and Horikita's figure shifted slightly when she heard the name.

Miyabi Nagumo was a candidate to become the next Student Council president, and apparently a very capable one.

"Oh? It's little Kikyo! Are you on a date with a boy on your day off? Nice, nice..."

"Ahaha, no. We just came by to take a look."

"Take your time. Our club members don't know how to go easy on anyone, so I think this is a reliable way to assess their abilities."

Nagumo seemed to have figured out what they were thinking. He waved to them, then headed to the field to join the group.

As soon as Nagumo joined in, the atmosphere among the team led by Hirata changed, as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

"Can students be in the Student Council and a club at the same time?"

Kiyotaka looked at Kikyo and asked.

"I don't think there's a rule against it, but it seems he's already left the club. Even after quitting, he's still one of the best, so he comes to activities like this to offer guidance."

As they spoke, Nagumo switched places with one of the players on the field. When the match resumed, the focus of the entire game immediately shifted to him. Hirata challenged Nagumo for possession.

But the dazzling skills Hirata had shown just moments earlier looked as awkward as a newborn's in front of Nagumo. Nagumo slipped past him with ease and left him behind.

Shibata moved in at just the right moment, but Nagumo's series of feints threw him off balance and exposed an opening. Nagumo quickly got past him too.

Hirata and Shibata were already among the most capable players, but compared with Nagumo, they seemed to be on entirely different levels.

Nagumo charged forward alone, then unleashed a powerful shot from a considerable distance. The ball traced an almost terrifying arc before going into the net at an incredibly sharp angle.

"The next candidate for Student Council president really lives up to his reputation," Kiyotaka couldn't help remarking.

"...I can't deny his athletic ability," Horikita said, sounding a little reluctant to admit it.

After we watched practice for a while, the match came to an end. The players began taking a break, and Nagumo called Hirata over to speak with him. He seemed to be telling him that we were watching from the sidelines. Before long, Hirata headed our way.

"Good morning, you three. It's unusual to see you here."

Shibata, who'd spotted us from a distance, ran over too. In no time, we'd become a rather unusual group of five.

"Morning, Kikyo~ And... you're Ayanokoji and Horikita, right? I'm jealous, having two beautiful girls around you. Don't tell me you're on a date?"

"No, it's not like that," Kiyotaka replied calmly. He'd only met Shibata once or twice, so he hadn't expected him to remember his name.

"Is something going on today? This is quite an unusual group," Hirata said with a smile, smoothly coming to our rescue.

"We came to see if there were any particularly capable people in the other classes we should keep an eye on," Kiyotaka said honestly. There was no point hiding it.

"Then did you make sure to put me down as a top priority? I'm the speedy Shibata, after all!"

Shibata jogged on the spot, showing off just how fast he was. He made no effort to hide his ability.

It was hard to tell whether he was so outgoing because he was in Class B, led by Ichinose, or simply because that was his nature.

"Shibata's as fast as the rumors say. Ayanokoji and I were both amazed," Kikyo said, generous with her praise. Shibata sheepishly rubbed his nose.

"Shibata really is impressive. I don't want to be in the same group as him at the Sports Festival."

Hirata smiled as he spoke.

"Hey, Hirata, saying that won't make me go easy on you. Don't think I don't know how good you are. What about you, Ayanokoji?"

"Hmm... I've always been a member of the Go-Home Club, so you should know what to expect."

"Fair enough... Haha."

Shibata crossed his arms and laughed.

Time slipped by amid the busy training sessions, and soon only a week remained before the Sports Festival.

Class D had to finish the entry list and hand it to their homeroom teacher, Chabashira, by the end of the day.

Hirata stood at the podium, while Kikyo faced the blackboard with a piece of chalk, ready to write down the names.

"Next, we'll have the events in this order. Hmm... There's one spot left in the 1,200-meter relay. Let's have Sudo run the final leg."

"That's a sensible choice. Sudo is very fast."

The class agreed with Hirata's suggestion. Even Kiyotaka admired how, in such a short time, Hirata had managed to come up with a lineup that took both ability and everyone's preferences into account.

Only Horikita, beside Kiyotaka, looked completely opposed as she stared at the blackboard.

As soon as the discussion ended, Horikita left her seat and headed straight for Sudo.

"What is it?"

Sudo looked at Horikita, standing before him, nervous and confused.

"There's something I'd like to discuss. Could you come with me?"

"Huh? Oh, sure."

"And Hirata, could I borrow you for a moment too?"

Horikita called Sudo and Hirata over and led them to the back of the classroom.

"I'd like to discuss the 1,200-meter relay. Sudo, would you let me run the final leg?"

Horikita's request left Sudo puzzled.

"Usually the fastest runner takes the final leg. Do you think I'm not reliable, Horikita?"

Since men and women were in separate groups, even if Horikita might be far ahead of the other girls, she might not even beat Hirata among the boys. Naturally, the safest choice was to give the final leg to Sudo, who was faster than Hirata. Even Sudo couldn't accept her proposal.

Horikita explained, unusually calm and gentle.

"No, that's not it. I saw how capable you were during practice. I'm suggesting this because you're also good at accelerating from the start, aren't you, Sudo? If you run the first leg, you can pull ahead of the others right away, put pressure on them, and help Class D secure the inside lane first, as the rules specify."

"But..."

Kiyotaka had been quietly listening nearby. Horikita had a point. Putting pressure on the opposing team from the start and claiming the advantage of the inside lane was a good strategy. But she'd overlooked something important: the other runners didn't have Sudo's ability. Watching their opponents slowly catch up to them could put them under tremendous pressure.

Airi's Cheer, Kiyotaka's Motivation

The two sides were at an impasse over the issue, and it was clear they wouldn't reach a conclusion anytime soon.

Kiyotaka discreetly signaled to Kikyo in the distance. Kikyo immediately caught on, stepped forward, and pretended to join the conversation out of curiosity.