Chapter 130: Ryuen's New Target
Suddenly, only Koenji remained on the track. Compared to upperclassmen, first-years lacked stamina. Even Class C's strongest lineup struggled to gain an edge.
Sakayanagi: "Looks like it's tough for the White team to win."
She'd memorized the athletic records of the entire school. If Nagumo Miyabi and Horikita Manabu, both Red team and Class A, reached the finish, the White team couldn't reverse the score.
Hikigaya stayed calm. Nagumo and Horikita Manabu were terrifyingly athletic, beyond his reach. If he were there, he'd be crushed instantly.
But it wasn't him on the track, it was Koenji.
"Ending it now would be too soon."
Koenji watched the other final runners pass, eyes closed, arms crossed, as if he had no competitive spirit.
Only when Horikita Manabu was 50 meters ahead did Horikita Suzune belatedly pass the baton to Koenji.
Seeing her brother ahead, she showed no disappointment, placing all her hopes on Koenji.
"The rest is up to you."
Koenji's relaxed demeanor shifted. The moment he took the baton, his muscles tensed, and he shot forward like lightning.
This was Koenji's full speed.
"Hey, what's with that guy?!"
"The blond one! Isn't he the guy who hopped the 100-meter hurdles and took first?"
"No… this is beyond human limits. Did he get hit by a truck or something?"
From the stands, Hikigaya and Sakayanagi watched the boy speed off like a bolt.
Hikigaya: "If I hadn't seen it myself, I'd never believe this speed exists."
Sakayanagi: "This speed rivals world-class athletes… Hikigaya-kun, you found a great ally."
Hikigaya's gaze stayed on the track. The faster Koenji ran, the more he mourned his dwindling personal points.
Koenji overtook runner after runner, one, two, three. No one could match him. In mere seconds, he was at the leaders' heels.
Horikita Manabu and Nagumo, neck-and-neck, should've had an uninterrupted duel. But the commotion behind alerted them something was off.
Accelerating, still accelerating!
Koenji's speed kept climbing, surpassing human limits. Every muscle moved with precision. Horikita Manabu and Nagumo were just ahead.
In the final 50-meter sprint, both focused entirely, treating it as their duel. But Koenji's sudden charge disrupted their focus.
'Someone's faster than me?!'
'This bastard! Damn it!'
No matter their mental turmoil, Koenji never glanced back. His flowing hair became the race's most dazzling "beauty."
The stands erupted in cheers for Koenji, the "beautiful" man.
He overtook Class 2-A's dictator, Nagumo Miyabi, and the legendary student president, Horikita Manabu.
Their speed was beyond ordinary students, yet Koenji, overcoming a massive gap, surpassed them. Who was he?
The question lingered in everyone's minds.
Undisputedly, he widened the gap, becoming the only man to defeat Horikita Manabu.
Horikita: "We… won…"
Hirata: "We really won…"
Sudo turned, grabbing two random spectators in excitement. "We won! We won!"
Hirata and Onodera, fresh from running, were no less thrilled. Hirata's guilt lingered, he'd caused the gap.
Kushida, cold-faced, quipped about Koenji, "That guy's all muscle."
Karuizawa hugged Sakura. "We won! We beat the upperclassmen! Unbelievable!"
Sakura, moved to tears by the excitement, choked out, "Y-Yeah…"
Class 1-C's cheers shook the school, while others stared in awe at the golden-haired man.
Beautiful, too beautiful.
Hikigaya: "This guy really has no limits."
Sakayanagi: "Even you didn't expect this, Hikigaya-kun?"
Hikigaya: "Cut me some slack. I'm not a time traveler. If I could predict races, I'd be buying lottery tickets."
Sakayanagi, pleased with her teasing, smiled faintly and looked at him. "I'm starting to look forward to facing you."
Hikigaya, helpless, didn't want her as an opponent. "Why are you so set on facing me? Honestly, I have no plans to compete with you."
From the start, he knew Sakayanagi approached him for her own reasons. Despite her teasing, he never entertained those thoughts.
Sakayanagi Arisu placed a finger to her lips, striking a pose that would make any ordinary girl look adorable, amplified by her already charming face. She began speaking: "Though it may be disrespectful, I've always wanted to prove something."
"Hikigaya-kun, with your sharp mind from childhood, you've grown into a strong individual through repeated failures. With your vast knowledge and strength, I have no objections."
"You could say you're both strong and weak."
Hikigaya Hachiman stayed silent, letting Sakayanagi continue.
"If you pursue something as intangible as 'truth,' then my life also has something I must chase, a conclusion I must prove myself."
"Those who grow strong through experience, failure, and effort cannot rival natural-born geniuses. No amount of effort can bridge that gap. That's why I must face you, even if it's a bit forceful."
If not for their class rivalry, Hikigaya would never provoke someone like Sakayanagi, and she wouldn't want him as an enemy if not for proving this point.
If her words were true, Hikigaya finally understood her obsession.
But…
He didn't agree.
"There's no need to prove this."
"Oh? Do you think you can beat me, Hikigaya-kun?"
Hikigaya closed his eyes, shaking his head. "It's not about that. I realized long ago, and can prove, that effort can't surpass innate genius."
"Most effort is futile, just a way to console oneself. After failing, people say, 'I tried my best.'"
"All my failures and efforts only prove you're right. So, you have no reason to see me as an enemy."
Sakayanagi gave a wry smile, momentarily speechless but unable to quell her inner drive. "I said this conclusion is something I must prove myself, so…"
Hikigaya sighed helplessly. If it had to come to this, he had no choice.
As the sports festival drew to a close, the final Red and White team scores were about to be tallied. Sakayanagi picked up her cane and stood slowly.
"If that day comes, you must defeat me with all your strength!"
"That's our promise."
Hikigaya didn't respond, silently watching the limping girl leave.
Perhaps everyone has something they must pursue, whether right, wrong, real, or false, chasing it at all costs.
People are slaves to something, money, power, beauty. Losing that thing strips away their drive. Sakayanagi understands but won't give up.
Maybe I'm a slave to truth.
Hikigaya's heart was heavy. He'd encountered too much lately, Karuizawa, Kushida, Koenji, Sakayanagi, each with their secrets and burdens.
…
After a simple score tally, the first-year rankings were announced.
The White team narrowly won among first-years, but including second- and third-years, the Red team would likely win overall.
The first-year class rankings were revealed.
First place: Class B, led by Sakayanagi Arisu.
Oddly, despite no standout performances from Class B, they clinched first overall. That was Sakayanagi, a genius at strategy.
Though lacking stars like Sudo Ken or Kanzaki Ryuji, they had almost no low performers, balancing out other classes' first-place points.
The first-place class earned 50 class points.
Second place: Class C, led by Horikita Suzune and Sudo Ken. The class breathed a sigh of relief, not bad.
Horikita knew it was her fault. Had she regained her form earlier, first place was possible.
She stayed calm.
Second place had no reward or penalty.
Third place: Class D, led by Ryuen Kakeru. With a bold sacrificial strategy and strong players like Yamada Albert, Ibuki Mio, Kinoshita Minori, and Ryuen, they secured a decent rank. Kaneda Satoru, their strategist, contributed significantly. However, losing seven students to expulsion left Class D at a disadvantage.
Penalty: 50 class points deducted.
Fourth place, surprisingly, was Ichinose Honami's Class A. Despite Kanzaki and Shibata So's strength, that was it. Under Ichinose's cooperative leadership, most avoided deductions, but their results were lackluster.
Ichinose's flaw was becoming evident.
In this school, kindness wasn't freely given.
They lost 100 class points.
Fortunately, Classes A and D, part of the Red team, won overall due to the monstrous second- and third-year Class A students, earning 100 class points.
The new class standings:
- Class A: 850cp → 850cp
- Class B: 840cp → 890cp
- Class C: 520cp → 520cp
- Class D: 260cp → 310cp
Classes B and A swapped places again.
Sakayanagi reclaimed her throne, while Class C, despite their efforts, remained unchanged.
For most in Class C, no regression was good enough.
[Sakura Airi: "Feels like the four classes' scores are super close, unlike us now."]
[Her words stung those watching the video, but she spoke the truth. Outside the video, their gap with Class C was vast.]
[Sudo: "If Hikigaya joined our class, things might be different. Even Koenji works with him, he's got some unmeasurable charm!"]
[Ike Kanji: "Sure, but that's impossible."]
[Hikigaya, fresh from his "torture," saw his classmates' calls.]
[Yuigahama Yui: "Hikki, they're saying they need you."]
[Isshiki Iroha: "Senpai, you're their hope."]
[Hikigaya: "Even if you say that, I can't time-travel."]
[Yukinoshita Yukino, finger to lips, teased, "Crossing over to have so many girls rooting for you sounds tempting."]
[She smirked.]
[She's insane. Completely insane…]
[Katsuragi Kohei took a deep breath. "Class A is most oppressive when it's Class A."]
[Born in Class A, he believed he belonged there. But his actions in the video left only Yahiko Totsuka following him. Handing leadership to Sakayanagi for the festival showed the pressure he faced.]
[If the video's him thought like the current him, he'd never leave. To defeat Hikigaya head-on, he'd follow Sakayanagi, even abandoning leadership. Hikigaya was his obsession.]
[Hashimoto Masayoshi: "Didn't expect Katsuragi to have such resolve. Is he biding his time or serious?"]
[Sakayanagi, teasingly: "Doesn't matter what he thinks. As long as he's useful to me, he has value."]
[Kito: "Princess, only you could reclaim first so decisively."]
[Kamuro Masumi: "True, but Hikigaya barely fought this time. He just did his part. If we face him, we need to prepare."]
[Hashimoto scoffed. "He's got some smarts, but no one's beaten Princess. He's just a guy. As she said, effort can't surpass genius."]
[Sakayanagi: "Don't get cocky, Hashimoto."]
[Hashimoto: "Yes…"]
[Kamuro crossed her arms, done talking to him.]
The sports festival ended amid cheers, and life returned to normal.
Besides classes, most time was spent in bed. Occasionally, Hikigaya studied in the library, where he often saw Class D's Shiina Hiyori.
She'd greet him slowly, then dive back into her books.
What a quirky girl.
On Nagumo Miyabi's side…
"How was that guy's performance at the festival?"
A Class 2-B student, tasked with observing Hikigaya, presented his compiled data.
"Overall, no signs of holding back. His results were average, nothing standout. Except for showboating in the three-legged race, he barely participated."
Nagumo nodded, still irked by the festival. He saw no threat in Hikigaya.
The real concern was Koenji, who overtook him with flowing golden hair, a problem he needed to eliminate to protect his dictatorial rule. Hikigaya might just know Horikita Manabu.
"Alright, new task: observe that Koenji guy."
"Got it! About moving to Class A, Nagumo-senpai…"
"Why rush? There's still a year! Do well, and Class A's inevitable."
"Okay, okay…"
Nagumo and the Class 2-B student didn't realize this task would be a daily indulgence.
Koenji was either flirting, at the spa, or spending points on self-care.
The student would likely find nothing useful.
In this routine life, a text from Ryuen Kakeru reached the entire year.
"Ichinose has a massive point balance!"
Though unrelated to Class C, it caused a stir.
Shinohara Satsuki: "Did she get it through shady means?"
Ike: "Ichinose? That angel? No way…"
Yamauchi Haruki: "But how does she explain that huge balance?"
Hikigaya saw the message, stayed silent, and closed his phone.
Horikita, his desk mate, spoke naturally. "Looks like Ryuen's shifted targets."
Hikigaya: "At this stage, to climb back up, Class B's the best target."
Horikita: "Why? Our class is much weaker than Ichinose's."
Hikigaya couldn't say it was because he'd left a shadow on Ryuen, so he explained, "Last festival, Class B's issues showed. Ichinose's gentle leadership will only trap them in a rut."
Horikita understood. "So Ryuen's targeting that? What about us?"
Hikigaya: "We watch. Class B has flaws but won't collapse instantly. They have the world's most useless thing, unity."
(End of this chapter)