Physical Fitness Test

Afternoon.

The sun had heated the track until it was almost scorching, giving off the strange smell of baked rubber.

"Damn, having PE class in this weather is torture."

"Seriously. It feels like it's at least forty degrees."

"The school could be a little more humane. They could adjust class times when it's this hot."

The boys of Class 1-D were all listless, gathering in small groups of three or five to shoot the breeze.

The PE teacher stood at the front of the line, electronic recorder in hand, and cleared his throat.

"Stand properly. Today, we'll be conducting a year-wide physical fitness test."

"Today's events are the fifty-meter dash and the standing long jump. Let me remind you that every score measured today will be entered directly into the school's official records. They'll follow you for three years, so I hope you'll take this seriously."

The boys responded, though clearly no one took the words "entered into the records" seriously. At this free-spirited school, where even sleeping in class was not stopped, a physical fitness test hardly mattered.

Tatsuya Sakuya had his own thoughts on the matter.

Being entered into official records for three years... the school was probably building a comprehensive profile of each student's abilities. After all, this school believed in the supremacy of ability, and physical fitness was an important consideration.

"The test will proceed in student-number order, two at a time. First group: Sudo Ken and Ike Kanji."

The PE teacher prepared to begin the day's routine.

"Just watch me!"

Sudo Ken swaggered over to the first lane.

He began loosening up his wrists and neck, displaying a strong desire to show off. After all, he had always excelled at sports.

Ike Kanji, on the other hand, looked completely indifferent.

The moment the starter pistol fired, Sudo Ken stamped down hard and launched forward like a ferocious beast unleashed from a bowstring. The fifty meters vanished beneath his feet in an instant.

"Six point one four seconds."

The PE teacher glanced at the timer and nodded approvingly.

"Not bad. An excellent result."

"Six point one four seconds! That's terrifying!"

Yamauchi Haruki, standing at the finish line, let out a bizarre cry.

At the finish line, Sudo Ken stood with his hands on his hips and his chin raised.

He basked in the astonishment and attention of the boys in class, unable to hide the pride on his face.

Next up was Kouenji Rokusuke. He was not even wearing standard running shoes; he merely adjusted his bangs elegantly.

After the starting pistol sounded, he completed the course with effortless ease in six point three zero seconds. When he finished, he did not even spare the result a glance, saying to himself, "What a barbaric game, utterly devoid of beauty."

The line continued to move forward, and soon it was the back row's turn.

Just as the other students were discussing who might rival Kouenji and Sudo Ken, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, standing not far in front of Tatsuya Sakuya, asked Sudo Ken a question.

"Sudo, can I ask you something?"

Sudo Ken was still wiping away sweat, in high spirits. "Yeah? What is it, Ayanokouji?"

"How many seconds does an ordinary male college student usually run fifty meters in?"

Ayanokouji asked.

Based on his own understanding, Sudo Ken casually replied, "An average person would probably be around seven seconds. Breaking the seven-second mark is decent among ordinary people."

"I see. Got it."

Ayanokouji nodded.

The field was bustling with noise. Some students who had achieved good results were loudly talking about their scores nearby, and no one noticed this entirely ordinary bit of conversation.

Tatsuya Sakuya was thoughtful.

Asking about the baseline for ordinary people?

Here, neither mediocrity nor excellence was especially rare. Ayanokouji, were you about to start controlling your scores?

"Next group: Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and Tatsuya Sakuya!"

The PE teacher's voice rang out.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka headed for the third lane, while Tatsuya Sakuya headed for the fourth.

The two crouched before the starting line.

"On your marks!"

Bang!

The instant the starter pistol fired, Tatsuya Sakuya transferred his explosive force in a fraction of a second, his body stretching out like a cheetah's.

But after the first ten meters, he reined in the force from his core muscles, keeping his stride frequency and breathing within an appropriate range.

Ayanokouji's movements were equally flawless and precise. They were mechanical, as though he were following textbook standards exactly.

The two crossed the finish line one after the other.

"Tatsuya Sakuya, six point four five seconds!"

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, six point seven one seconds!"

The PE teacher announced the results.

Six point seven one seconds.

Ayanokouji had controlled his score to a level slightly better than average, one that would not attract anyone's attention.

Tatsuya Sakuya picked up a towel to wipe away sweat, turning his gaze toward Ayanokouji.

Ayanokouji was breathing steadily, pretending he had just run the fifty meters at full speed.

The tests continued until four in the afternoon. Besides the fifty-meter dash, they also tested the standing long jump.

At nine that evening, in Lovingly United Class 1-D.

The previously quiet group chat was suddenly thrown into an uproar by more than a dozen messages from Ike Kanji.

Ike Kanji: [@Everyone, the first day of the fitness test is over. Wasn't Sudo's fifty-meter dash insanely cool today?!]

Yamauchi Haruki: [Definitely. Sudo is absolutely a top contender for the highest overall fitness-test score in our class.]

Ike Kanji: [Hehe, just watching is boring. Want to put something on the line? Yamauchi and I are opening bets. Guess who'll be Class 1-D's overall champion.]

Yamauchi Haruki: [Minimum bet is one thousand points. Come on, place your bets! No changes after betting!]

Sudo Ken: [Hahahaha, Ike, Yamauchi, you two really get it. I'm betting five thousand points on myself to take first.]

Classmate A: [I'm betting three thousand points on Sudo!]

Classmate B: [Kouenji looks pretty strong too. I'm putting two thousand points on Kouenji.]

Messages flew through the group chat. The boys joined in and egged each other on, while quite a few girls even sent popcorn-eating stickers.

Just as the conversation was getting heated, Ike Kanji suddenly tagged Ayanokouji in the group chat.

Ike Kanji: [@Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, Ayanokouji, you're the only boy in class who hasn't joined. If you're a brother of Class 1-D, get in on it.]

In his dorm room, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka frowned as he looked at his phone screen.

In this carnival-like atmosphere where nearly everyone had placed a bet, would insisting on refusing make him seem out of place? It was only a few thousand points, anyway.

After thinking for several minutes, Ayanokouji typed a line into the group chat.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka: [Then I'll bet one thousand points on Sudo.]

He chose to go with the flow and hide among the crowd. No matter the final outcome, it would not affect him much.

Tatsuya Sakuya suddenly sent an unusually distinctive betting message to the group.

Tatsuya Sakuya: [I'll bet five thousand points that my total fitness-test score will be higher than Ayanokouji's.]

The rapidly scrolling group chat paused briefly when this message appeared.

Then Ike Kanji sent a string of question marks.

Ike Kanji: [???]

Yamauchi Haruki: [Sakuya, what are you doing? The betting pool only covers individual champions. There's no head-to-head bet between two people.]

Ike Kanji: [Exactly. And why did you specifically choose Ayanokouji for a bet?]

Tatsuya Sakuya casually typed out an explanation in the group chat.

Tatsuya Sakuya: [I noticed my scores and Ayanokouji's are pretty similar. I'm really curious whether our total scores will also be close. We'll give the bookmaker ten percent then. Is that okay?]

Yamauchi Haruki: [Sure, sure, I'll take it as the bookmaker. But it only counts if the person involved agrees! @Ayanokouji Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, someone's handing you five thousand points. Are you taking it?]

Everyone in the class assumed it was merely an offhand joke from Tatsuya Sakuya. The group chat filled with teasing and spectatorship stickers.

Holding his phone, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka fell into thought.

If he refused the challenge, with so many people watching, he would become the center of attention. From then on, every move he made would be scrutinized under a magnifying glass.

But if he accepted the bet, it meant he would have to choose between continuing to hide his abilities and winning five thousand points.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka typed two words into the chat box and pressed send.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka: [I accept.]

In the girls' dormitory, Horikita Suzune glanced at the group messages on her phone.

"Childish."

In her eyes, it was nothing more than a pointless waste of points.

And at that very moment, on the balcony of Dorm 217.

Sakuya Siba watched as Ayanokouji chose to enter the game.

"Those five thousand points are mine."