"This guy... Was he really that fast in the first half?!"
Even the swimming teacher was shocked for a moment. He realized he had completely underestimated this student.
As a teacher, he had permission to view the students' records.
[Keima Katsuragi]
[Stamina: E]
Wasn't this student supposed to have E stamina?
Had he hidden his abilities when he enrolled?
"Big Brother! You can do it!!!!"
Nearby, Elsie shouted encouragement to Keima Katsuragi while wearing a swim ring.
Even Airi Sakura, farther away, couldn't help taking a few steps forward as she watched Keima Katsuragi in the pool.
But just as he passed the halfway mark, Keima Katsuragi's speed suddenly dropped to an incredibly slow pace.
What's going on?
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was puzzled, but he took the opportunity to pass him. After slowing down a little, he reached the finish.
"Not bad. Twenty-six point five four seconds."
The teacher smiled at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"What was this student's name again?"
"I think it was Ayanokoji. He doesn't seem to stand out much in class."
"He's pretty good at swimming."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka heard the students around him talking.
This was outside his plan.
Since he didn't know the normal swimming speed of an average boy, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka couldn't be sure how fast he should swim to end up in the middle of the pack. So he could only use Keima Katsuragi as a point of reference.
As a result, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had swum faster than he'd expected. Even though he slowed down in the second half, he still achieved a fairly impressive time, almost matching Yosuke Hirata's and placing fourth among the boys.
So that meant...
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka turned and looked toward the pool.
Several seconds later, Keima Katsuragi finally reached the finish.
"Keima, your time is thirty-six point five four seconds... Keima!"
Keima Katsuragi had just climbed out of his lane when a peaceful smile appeared on his face. Eyes closed and head drooping, he sat down beside the pool.
The god had burned out.
Driven by games, Keima Katsuragi could surpass his limits for a short time.
But his stamina left something to be desired.
By the second half, Keima Katsuragi's stamina bar had already emptied completely.
"Big Brother!"
Elsie hurried over to Keima Katsuragi and shook him vigorously. His head bobbed back and forth like a yo-yo.
"Elsie, wait! You're going to shake Keima to death!"
On the second floor of the pool building, a white-haired girl with hair down to her waist leaned against the railing. Her features were exquisitely beautiful, but her red eyes held an inscrutable gaze.
She smiled as she watched Keima Katsuragi, who had already lost consciousness, with keen interest.
"My, my. This year's first-years include a rather interesting fellow."
A meaningful smile appeared on her face.
Swimming class finally ended. As if he'd been rescued, Keima Katsuragi changed as quickly as he could and fled.
Swimming had completely drained his stamina, and now his legs were trembling slightly.
"God of Conquest, are you all right?"
Beside him, Elsie asked with a worried expression.
"For me, the God of Conquest... this is nothing!"
Though Keima Katsuragi said so, his voice had already begun to tremble.
"Let's hurry to the cafeteria... Oh, right. I guess we'll have to stick to the cheapest set meals for a while."
"Huh? Why?"
"Because I've nearly run out of private points."
Keima Katsuragi sighed. Besides the necessities, he'd spent quite a few points on his handheld console, games, and his deal with Sae Chabashira.
Still, in Keima Katsuragi's eyes, it had all been worth it.
But just then, someone appeared in front of him.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
"Keima, could we talk for a moment?"
Soon, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Keima Katsuragi had made their way to an empty corner of the school.
Keima Katsuragi had no idea what Ayanokoji Kiyotaka wanted with him.
Come to think of it, Keima Katsuragi had also keenly noticed earlier that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka seemed to watch him often.
"Ayanokoji, may I ask what this is about?"
Keima Katsuragi asked.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked at Keima Katsuragi. The usual languidness in his gaze seemed to have diminished a little.
After swimming class, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was certain that Keima Katsuragi was no ordinary student.
The many things that had happened in class earlier had already convinced Ayanokoji Kiyotaka that Keima Katsuragi had abilities beyond those of an ordinary student.
Especially his ability to influence those around him.
In just a few days, Airi Sakura's and Suzune Horikita's attitudes toward him had changed somewhat.
There was no doubt that Keima Katsuragi had been manipulating everything behind the scenes.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka simply wasn't sure who Keima Katsuragi was or what his purpose was.
The swimming class had just made Ayanokoji Kiyotaka suspect that Keima Katsuragi might be targeting him.
By taking advantage of Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's unfamiliarity with ordinary swimming speeds, he had lured him into showing off a little in front of the class.
If that was true, then Keima Katsuragi's usual image as a game enthusiast might well be a disguise.
I used to think the best disguise was to avoid drawing attention whenever possible.
But Katsuragi made me realize that idea was wrong.
The more attention someone drew, the easier it was to conceal their true identity.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka thought it over, though he knew it was only a guess.
To test his theory, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had decided to approach Keima Katsuragi directly.
By speaking with him face-to-face, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka could observe him more closely. Even if Keima Katsuragi concealed something, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka could still glean useful information from his words and actions.
"I want to know how you did it."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka asked.
"Did what?"
"Swimming. You don't look like the athletic type, but at the start, you exceeded my expectations. If you hadn't slowed down in the second half, I might have ended up behind you."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka held something back.
Having grown up in the White Room, he lacked the emotions ordinary people felt and was indifferent to almost everything.
Yet when he had swum against Keima Katsuragi, he had felt a powerful sense of curiosity.
Keima Katsuragi didn't look like he'd trained, so why had he been so fast?
To Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Keima Katsuragi's slowdown in the second half seemed more like a deliberate act of holding back.
At the other boy's answer, however, a meaningful smile appeared on Keima Katsuragi's face.
"Love!"
Volume One: Chapter 53: Ayanokoji, You Actually Want to Play a Gala Game, Don't You?!
"Love?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka mulled over the word.
By definition, love was an intense, positive emotional and psychological state.
It represented a deep, sincere affection for a person or thing—a profound fondness for someone or something.
From a biological perspective, it was nothing more than an emotional change brought on by the release of hormones.
But Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had never felt love or been loved. He didn't understand what Keima Katsuragi meant.
"Because someone's watching me, I can feel their strength."
As he spoke, Keima Katsuragi lowered his head and looked at the handheld console in his hands.
He was talking about the characters in his game.
While swimming, he had played a game, and the girl on the screen had seemed to give him motivation.
It was the bonds he shared with the characters in the game world that allowed him to surpass his physical limits and unleash astonishing power.
"Someone's watching you?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka considered Keima Katsuragi's words.
Someone was watching Keima Katsuragi.
Was it Horikita?
Or Kushida?
Or perhaps Sakura?
Come to think of it, quite a few people had been watching Keima Katsuragi while he swam.
Could someone's attention help a person unleash greater potential?
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka couldn't understand what Keima Katsuragi meant at all.
It was something they had never taught in the White Room.
Seeing Ayanokoji Kiyotaka lost in thought, Keima Katsuragi figured he might be interested in the game he was playing.
"Have you heard of CLANNAD?"
"No."
"Have you heard of Aokana: Four Rhythms Across the Blue?"
"No."
"Do you know what an AVG is?"
"No."
"Do you know what a Gala Game is?"
"No."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had never heard those terms before.
"Geez, you don't know anything. You seem to be lacking a bit in common sense."
Keima Katsuragi sighed.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka hadn't expected Keima Katsuragi to seem to see right through him.
Before you continue