Cherish This Everyday Life

"You've never had anything to do with bows or archery, have you?"

Senior Qiao Heng opened the door to the club's private activity room.

You En stepped inside. It looked about as big as the sports field, and just cleaning it must have been a huge undertaking.

"It's fine. What I'm teaching you is different. It's not proper archery, either.

The official members are practical. They use whatever works best."

Senior Qiao Heng said, "The unofficial members practice traditional archery, things like archery culture and shooting etiquette. Those rituals have some practical value, but they're more a form of spiritual cultivation.

For official members, they're just electives.

The most important thing, of course, is the shooting itself."

She picked up a well-maintained traditional bow from the side, held it steadily in one hand, and said to You En,

"Here. Take it."

You En took it from her and looked it over.

Senior Qiao Heng said, "When you're ready, shoot an arrow for me."

"Hm?"

You En looked up, his eyes full of confusion.

"Just shoot? I don't need to learn anything first?"

Senior Qiao Heng nodded.

You En didn't quite understand, but since he'd decided to join the Kyudo Club and become an official member, he might as well put in a little effort.

"Phew—"

He took a deep breath and slowly let it out, repeating the cycle several times.

You En raised the bow, his focus sharpening until it seemed ready to spill out of his body.

Besides his own hands, he saw another pair that didn't exist: his "Second Self."

Since crossing over, he hadn't gained any special cheat. All he could rely on was his present self and the person he'd been in his previous life.

Compared with other people, he could absorb information and master it much, much faster, though he couldn't say exactly how much faster.

You En focused intently on himself rather than the bow, because he knew nothing about bows and had never handled one before.

Relying only on "feel," he parted his legs slightly, adjusted his stance, nocked an arrow, and drew the bowstring as far as he could while keeping his arms steady.

He aimed at the target in the distance but didn't take much time to line up his shot. As far as he was concerned, he might only end up further off after aiming for ages. Better to shoot when it felt right.

"Oh..."

Senior Qiao Heng narrowed her eyes, then suddenly opened them and clapped her hands.

"Unfortunately, you missed the target."

"Ah, so I don't have a knack for it?"

You En sighed. He knew he wasn't a genius; he was just willing to try, study, and work at the things that interested him.

He looked at Senior Qiao Heng and joked, as if to lighten the mood, "Looks like I can't take advantage of being close to you and get ahead."

Senior Qiao Heng didn't get it right away. After thinking it over, she realized that the "moon" he meant was her, and a smile curled at the corner of her lips.

"If you work hard and improve, I might say yes.

"All right, fill out the form. It's the application for official membership."

"Hm?"

You En looked at her. "So I passed?"

Senior Qiao Heng countered, "Did you think someone with no experience had to hit the bullseye the very first time he picked up a bow to qualify as an official member?"

That seemed a little harsh.

You En kept that opinion to himself, then asked, "So what was this for?"

Senior Qiao Heng led You En to sit down. She didn't mind his completely undignified, ceremony-free cross-legged posture; she even adjusted her own pose to imitate him.

"This way of sitting is pretty comfortable, too."

She sat cross-legged facing the range, staring at the target You En had just aimed at, lost in thought for a moment.

"I just wanted to get a look at you.

"Since you've never done this before, the first arrow you shoot is a reflection of the life you've lived up to now.

"From that one arrow, I can get a general idea of whether you have talent and whether you can develop it through training."

"That impressive?"

"It really is."

Senior Qiao Heng made no attempt to be modest.

"You passed, but your talent for archery isn't top-tier. Your learning ability is strong, so you can reach a certain level by imitating others, but there'll always be a barrier you can't overcome."

"Is that so?"

You En wasn't discouraged. "Seeing where my limits are and reaching them would already be interesting. Isn't testing my limits fun, too?"

"Fun... testing your limits?"

Senior Qiao Heng repeated the two words several times, then said to You En,

"Fill out the form and head out. It should be dinnertime by now."

"Sure."

After filling out the form and handing it to her, You En left the Kyudo Club's activity room.

"Senior, will there be training? How will I find out? Should we exchange contact information?"

Senior Qiao Heng saw right through his little ploy. "Let's exchange contacts, then. I'll let you know when there's a training session, underclassman."

After getting her contact information, You En left, completely satisfied.

Senior Qiao Heng went to the spot where You En had just stood and closed her eyes, as if trying to recreate what he'd felt.

"So his Second Self didn't shoot an arrow? Interesting."

"But if you want to date your senior, you've still got a ways to go... Hey, Crimson, what do you think?"

An old, dark-red bow in the display case glimmered faintly.

"You think he's interesting, too? What... you think he'll surpass me?"

Qiao Heng wasn't upset. The shadow of that young man still stood in front of the target, slowly getting ready.

If you were going to do something, you had to do it well.

Once you started, there was no turning back. The most resolute "arrow" was already nocked.

That was his resolve. She understood it.

"Let me witness your 'journey.'"

She walked out the door. Less than half a minute had passed, yet no one noticed anything unusual.

She had just returned to the recruitment booth.

Kanji Ike came over. "Um, senior, I'm interested in becoming an official member of the Kyudo Club, too."

He'd just seen that pretty ordinary guy from his class getting along closely with this incredibly charismatic senior. Maybe he could use this as a way to get closer to her, too.

Qiao Heng simply closed her eyes, then "opened" them.

Kanji Ike instinctively looked up, ready to meet her gaze... but just before their eyes met, the blood in his veins seemed to freeze.

It was as if the genes forged over countless ages were telling him never to look into those eyes. His instincts and the history encoded in his biology warned him: danger. Extreme danger.

He shrank back and lowered his head, never lifting it again.

"You're not qualified, classmate."

Qiao Heng spoke calmly. She hadn't wanted to be so harsh, but if he lacked even basic courage, couldn't meet her eyes, and didn't dare pursue his goals, how could he talk about having a talent for archery?

"..."

Kanji Ike stammered, unable to get a word out. In the end, all he could do was force an awkward smile at himself and run away.

"You found an official member?"

The senior from the Kendo Club next door came over.

"Mm."

Qiao Heng nodded lightly.

The Kendo Club senior grabbed her arm and shook it. "The entry requirements for official membership in the advanced clubs keep getting higher. Sometimes, an advanced club won't even test a single newcomer in an entire year.

"Hmph, still acting all composed. You must be thrilled inside!"

"I've sold myself."

Senior Qiao Heng sighed.

"Hm? Doesn't that mean you're the one getting a great deal? An older single woman going after a young boy!"

When age came up, Qiao Heng couldn't hold back.

"Hey, Yui, I'm only about eighteen."

"Right. In this school, we're all 'eternally' eighteen."

Senior Yui looked into her eyes.

"But how long have we actually been through all this?"

Senior Qiao Heng shook her head. "I don't remember. I couldn't count it, and I don't want to."

Yui clapped her hands. "All right, tell me how you tricked that underclassman."

"I told him that if he placed in the top ten in the upcoming individual assessment, I'd consider dating him."

Senior Qiao Heng paused.

"But Crimson says he's better than me. I don't know what that old bow is thinking. That underclassman is a little unusual, but he only has a 'Second Self.' There's nothing all that special about that."

"A Second Self? An ordinary person from the present day can awaken one?! Are you sure?"

Yui's expression turned icy. "Qiao Heng, something's off. What's his name? I want to take a look. There might be a problem."

"Hm?"

Qiao Heng saw right through her good friend. "You're pretending to be concerned, but you're really trying to steal him from me."

Yui changed her tune, putting on an air of reasonableness. "As if! I'm just saying that maybe I'm a little better suited than you. If he changes his mind, wouldn't that be perfectly reasonable?"

"I have to admit, you two are alike in one way..."

Senior Qiao Heng looked at her shameless friend.

"But don't even think about stealing him. I've already submitted his name to S System, and his application's been approved. He's entered the Kyudo Club's training program."

"Tch, you moved fast. You're so desperate."

Yui wiped away nonexistent tears.

"My poor underclassman. He's going to be drained dry every day from now on."

"Don't be ridiculous."

Senior Qiao Heng turned her face away.

"He hasn't even taken the first assessment yet. Let's see if he survives that first."

Yui grinned mischievously. "Hey, don't tell me you're blushing."

Qiao Heng knew she couldn't let Yui keep going.

"Say another word... and we'll settle it with a match."

After messing around for a while, the two calmed down and watched the new students signing up.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka joined the other three.

Yamauchi Haruki looked at Kanji Ike, who seemed a little down. "What's wrong?"

"I was hoping I'd have some fateful encounter and find a girlfriend in a club, but all the girls here seem so fierce. That includes the girls from other classes in our year."

Thinking about what had just happened, Kanji Ike sighed sadly.

"Looks like I'll have to find a girlfriend in Class D."

"By the way, what about you, Ayanokoji?"

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka came back to himself. The main reason he was with the trio was that he'd lost track of both You En and Horikita Suzune.

He said to Kanji Ike, "I'd be grateful if anyone was interested in someone like me."

Kanji Ike said, "You don't seem to have much confidence. Look at Yamauchi Haruki."

Yamauchi Haruki proudly lifted his chin. "Yeah, Ayanokoji, you should learn from me. Confidence is a man's greatest asset."

You're not confident; you're an idiot.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka imitated You En. This was probably what he would say in this situation, but Ayanokoji was currently playing the part of an ordinary high school student, so he could only nod.

"You're right."

Yui turned her gaze away. "Some are idiots, some are lovesick, and some are pretending to be idiots. This year's newcomers are so boring."

"Isn't that just everyday life?"

Senior Qiao Heng said, "We used to be like that, too. We had no idea what kind of place this really was."

"Hmph." Yui couldn't be bothered to argue, but then she rolled her eyes.

"What about him, the underclassman you took in?"

"Him?"

Senior Qiao Heng replayed every moment she'd spent with You En in her mind. Thinking it over, she finally noticed something strange.

"He... seemed to have guessed what was going to happen next, and seemed to be... looking forward to it."

"Sounds great. Are you sure you won't tell me?"

Yui tilted her head. A lock of purple hair fell onto her shoulder as she cast Qiao Heng a sidelong glance. A red glimmer flickered deep in her black pupils.

"I'm genuinely, genuinely interested now."

Qiao Heng knew that even if she didn't tell Yui, Yui would find a way to approach him anyway.

But Qiao Heng chose to respect You En's own choice. She made her position clear and warned Yui in earnest.

"If he becomes interested in kendo,

"one day, in your own era, you'll get your wish and meet him.

"Death Blade Yui, leave him a little of his everyday life while you still can."

"His last carefree days?"

Senior Yui smiled.

"It seems you really like him, Red Bow Qiao Heng...

You hope he can truly save you."

"I never thought that. I just like his eyes."

The older student said, her voice desolate. In her vision, both she and the other girl were transparent and blurred.

They stood amid the crowd, yet no one could see them or hear them.

In the end, they didn't belong to this ordinary world.

What remained in the old academy,

was nothing more than

the remnants of days gone by.