"Bai Feng!" Mayumi Saegusa entered the training ground wearing a miniskirt.
"Sorry to trouble you again today."
"Mayumi, are you going to compete in that?"
Baifeng Uesugi felt a slight stir as he looked at the lightly dressed Mayumi Saegusa.
"Yes. Is it strange? Doesn't it look good?"
Mayumi Saegusa noticed that Baifeng Uesugi kept looking her outfit over with a puzzled expression.
"No, it suits you. It's just a little short, isn't it?"
Uesugi Baifang pointed at her skirt as he spoke.
"Don't worry, I'm wearing safety shorts underneath."
Mayumi Saegusa finally understood why Baifeng Uesugi had been looking at her in confusion, so she explained.
"I see." Baifeng Uesugi nodded.
"Bai Feng, come give me a hand."
Mayumi Saegusa looked at Baifeng Uesugi expectantly.
"Sure."
Baifeng Uesugi got up and moved behind Mayumi Saegusa to help her stretch.
He placed both hands on her shoulders and gently pressed her body down.
"That's enough."
Mayumi Kusa reached out, signaling for Baifeng Uesugi to pull her up.
Because her skirt was so short, some movements might not look very graceful, so Mayumi Saegusa needed Baifeng Uesugi to pull her up.
But Baifeng Uesugi didn't seem to catch on at first, making Mayumi Saegusa pout in displeasure.
"Oh, I get it."
Once Baifeng Uesugi understood, he pulled Mayumi Saegusa up.
As Mayumi Saegusa rose, she went with the motion and fell straight into Baifeng Uesugi's arms.
"Bai Feng, how long has it been since you held me?"
Mayumi Saegusa nestled in Baifeng Uesugi's arms, her eyes full of nostalgia.
"More than three years, I think," Baifeng Uesugi said after thinking back.
"Yes, exactly three years and two months."
Mayumi Saegusa looked at Baifeng Uesugi and corrected him.
"You remember it that precisely?" Baifeng Uesugi asked in surprise.
"Mm-hm. While you were away, I hoped every day that you'd appear before me like you used to. It took a little longer this time, but you still showed up."
As Mayumi Saegusa spoke, tears began to flow without her realizing it.
"I'm sorry, Mayumi. I'll never leave so quietly again."
Seeing Mayumi Saegusa like this, Baifeng Uesugi felt a pang in his heart.
He had only left back then to keep her out of danger, but he hadn't expected her departure to make her so sad.
"Bai Feng, I'll remember what you said today. Don't forget your promise."
Mayumi Saegusa smiled blissfully and held Baifeng Uesugi tight.
"Mm, I'll be sure to remember."
"All right, I need to go check on the other competitors," Baifeng Uesugi said.
"Mm-hm. Sorry for the trouble," Mayumi Kusa said.
"There's no need for that."
Just as Baifeng Uesugi was about to leave, a voice called out.
"Oh, Izumi-chan," Mayumi Saegusa said.
"Saegusa." Izumi held her head helplessly.
"Didn't I tell you not to call me that?"
"Then what did you mean when you said there was no need, Izumi?" Baifeng Uesugi asked, puzzled.
"Bai Feng, you just need to handle Saegusa's matches," Izumi said.
"Leave the others to me."
"I see. Got it." Baifeng Uesugi nodded.
"Then that's settled."
With that, Izumi turned and left.
"Ah, she's not a bad person..." Mayumi Saegusa said helplessly.
In the women's ball-scoring event, Mayumi Saegusa once again scored a point perfectly.
At First High School's temporary camp.
"The girls' side is going as expected," Rin-chan analyzed.
[Women's Icicle Destruction, second match.]
Kanon Chiyoda was up next.
"Here I go," Kanon Chiyoda said, full of fighting spirit.
"How's Chiyoda doing?" Tatsuya Shiba asked.
"She's raring to go," Kei said.
"Yeah, I can see that," Baifeng Uesugi agreed with a nod.
"She seemed to win the first match in the shortest time," Tatsuya Shiba said.
"Pretty impressive," Baifeng Uesugi praised.
"That's just the kind of person Kanon is," Kei said helplessly.
"It's starting," Shizuku Kitayama said.
"Minefield," Tatsuya Shiba murmured.
"That's exactly what the Chiyoda family excels at: long-range solid vibration magic. They're especially skilled at magic that shakes the ground," Kei explained.
"Oh, she's using ground vibrations to destroy the icicles?" Baifeng Uesugi mused.
"What is it, Bai Feng?" Kei asked curiously.
"Nothing. It just feels a little slow," Baifeng Uesugi said with a smile.
"Well, there's not much she can do about that. Vibration magic is what Kanon's good at, after all," Kei said with a wry smile.
"Still, it's enough to win this match," Baifeng Uesugi said confidently.
"Her opponent's defending, but there's no way she can withstand Chiyoda's attack," Shizuku Kitayama said.
"Her opponent seems to have switched to prioritizing offense," Tatsuya Shiba said.
"Should I say Kanon dares to go all out, or that she's rough and bold?" Kei said.
"Her approach is to knock her opponent down before she gets knocked down herself."
"Tsk, what a tough girl," Baifeng Uesugi said in amazement.
"What's a tough girl?" Shizuku Kitayama asked, puzzled.
"It means a heroine among women," Baifeng Uesugi said, making it up.
"That's an interesting expression, Bai Feng," Kei said with a smile.
"But there's nothing wrong with Chiyoda's tactics," Tatsuya Shiba analyzed.
At First High School's temporary camp.
Kanon and the others returned after the match.
Seeing Rin-chan at a loss, they asked what was wrong.
"What is it? Did something happen?" Kei asked.
"The results of the men's Monolith Code event weren't very good. We're recalculating the points needed for the overall victory," Rin-chan replied.
"Based on our current lead, if we win the women's official Surfing Race, the men's Icicle Destruction, Monolith Code, and Mirage Bat's star-catching event, we'll have enough points to be in range of a third consecutive championship."
Leo said.
"So that means winning four of the six remaining official events, right?" Tatsuya Shiba said.
"Although the points are only worth half as much, the results of the newcomer competition will affect the overall victory too, won't they?" Rin-chan said.
Dusk...
Everyone came to Tatsuya Shiba's room.
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