Several days flashed by in the blink of an eye.
Soon, the day of the Sports Festival arrived.
In the earlier competitive events, the rivalry between the classes was incredibly fierce. In truth, when it came to athletics, Class C held a massive advantage. However, right now, the scores between the two sides were incomparably close.
This was entirely due to Kikyo Kushida and Hiyori Shiina. Kushida had leaked the participation list to Ryuen and his group, while Hiyori immediately used that list to formulate the most advantageous deployment. This completely nullified the advantage of Class C's athletic powerhouse, Sudo, keeping the distance between the two teams bitingly tight.
And now, they had reached the final event.
The Relay Race.
Subaru stood on the track, feeling the environment around him. The breeze brushed against his body, and surrounding him were the watchful gazes of the other students. Come to think of it, he had never participated in a Sports Festival before. Subaru raised his head to look at the sky, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.
"Natsuki."
At that moment, a familiar voice pulled his thoughts back to reality. Subaru turned his head and saw the man named Manabu Horikita standing beside him.
"I didn't expect to be standing on the same field as you," Manabu said, adjusting his glasses.
At this moment, the relay race had reached the second-to-last leg.
Class C had already fallen behind by a large margin. On the track, runners from other classes were sprinting with all their might. The White Team's fourth runner was already in position; he was a sprinting specialist from Class A, said to be able to run fifty meters in under six seconds.
And on the Red Team's side—
The second-to-last runner was Kiyotaka Ayanokoji.
That invisible man who always stood on the edge of the crowd, always expressionless, always making people fail to perceive his existence. Right now, he stood on the track, bending slightly at the waist, waiting for the baton pass.
"Ayanokoji-kun," Manabu spoke up. "He has been hiding his abilities, hasn't he?"
Subaru did not answer.
Then, the baton was passed into Ayanokoji's hand.
In an instant, the entire venue fell silent for a second. Because that boy, who had always been called the "invisible man," completely changed his aura the moment he took the baton.
Instantly, he sprinted.
His legs seemed to be fitted with springs, every step crossing an astonishing distance. His body leaned forward at an angle where he almost seemed about to fall, yet he maintained his center of gravity throughout. His breathing was even and long, as if this explosive speed was just a daily jog for him.
The gap was shrinking.
Five meters.
Four meters.
Three meters.
"Ayanokoji... is that fast?!"
"Seriously?!"
"Has he been hiding his strength all this time?!"
Thunderous exclamations erupted from the stands. Those who originally thought the Red Team was sure to lose all stood up. Those who were just watching for fun now stared with wide eyes. Even the participating athletes were stunned.
Kiyotaka Ayanokoji's speed left everyone in the venue dumbfounded. Even though quite a few people already knew Ayanokoji was hiding his light under a bushel, absolutely no one expected him to be this fast at running. During the previous physical measurements, Ayanokoji's result was already fast enough—5.8 seconds, the same as Subaru.
But no one expected that in the official competition, Ayanokoji's speed could become even faster! He was still accelerating. Did this guy even hide his strength during the physical test? Seriously?
The White Team's fourth runner—that sprinting specialist from Class A—saw his expression change. He originally thought his opponent was Subaru, that legendary monster. But now he realized he might not even get to see Subaru's face. Because Kiyotaka Ayanokoji was clawing back every bit of the lead with astonishing speed.
Two meters.
One meter.
Side by side.
Overtaken!
Kiyotaka Ayanokoji had chased his way to the second position!
At that moment, the eyes of everyone in the venue focused on the handover zone.
That mysterious final runner who had always been hidden—
Subaru.
What would he do?
What surprised the others most was Kiyotaka Ayanokoji's positioning. Theoretically, the fastest person should be assigned to the final leg. Why was Ayanokoji the second-to-last runner? Why was the final runner—Subaru?
At this moment, Subaru was locking eyes with Manabu Horikita, as if the surrounding events had nothing to do with him.
"Natsuki, I feel you've changed a lot recently," Manabu said slowly, looking at Subaru with incomparable seriousness. His voice was light, but amidst the noisy stadium, it clearly transmitted into Subaru's ears.
"Is that so? Many people have said that about me recently." Subaru looked unconcerned.
Changed? It seemed he really had changed quite a bit.
"Do you know why I say that?" Manabu asked.
Subaru did not speak.
"When I first saw you, the feeling you gave me was..." Manabu paused. "Dangerous. Not ordinary danger. It was that kind of... unpredictable, uncontrollable danger. Like a blade without a sheath, liable to hurt others at any time, and liable to hurt itself at any time."
"But now." He looked at Subaru. "That sense of danger is still there. But there is something else added."
"What thing?"
"Temperature," Manabu adjusted his glasses. "I met with Suzune once recently. She mentioned you to me. She said you've changed. She said you say things people can't understand, but those words... make her feel at ease."
Manabu paused for a few seconds. "Natsuki, do you know what this means?"
Subaru looked at him. "Means what?"
"It means—" Manabu's lips curved up slightly into an extremely faint smile. "You are turning from an observer into a participant. You are walking into their world. And you are letting them walk into yours."
Subaru fell silent.
He recalled the sentence Hiyori Shiina said: "Subaru-kun, you've changed."
He recalled the sentence Suzune Horikita said: "That reason is more real than most people's reasons."
He recalled the sentence Honami Ichinose said: "Thank you—for being right here."
He recalled—the thing quietly growing in his own heart.
"President," he spoke.
"Hmm?"
"Perhaps you're right."
Manabu raised an eyebrow slightly. "What?"
"I have indeed changed."
Subaru looked ahead.
On the track, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji was sprinting. That figure was as fast as a bolt of lightning. But Subaru's gaze went past him, looking toward a place further away.
He looked toward the stands, at that silver-white figure. Hiyori Shiina. She was sitting in the White Team's audience section, hands clasped before her chest, watching this way nervously. Even across such a distance, he could see that those clear eyes were full of expectation.
He looked to the other side, at Suzune Horikita. She stood in the Red Team's area, holding a file folder, her expression calm as ever. But in those fox-like eyes, an indescribable light flickered at this moment—was it nervousness? Expectation? Or something else?
He looked further away, at Honami Ichinose. She had already finished her events and was standing in the White Team crowd. Her face wore that real, brilliant smile as she said something to her teammates. But she would glance this way from time to time, then quickly look away.
He looked at—that figure curled up in the corner. Ryuen. He sat in Class D's area, arms crossed over his chest, watching this side. Those eyes that once burned with tyranny had now become deep and complex. He was watching Ayanokoji run, and he was watching Subaru. Like looking at an opponent he must defeat. And also like looking at an existence that terrified him.
He looked at—that figure standing in the shadows. Kikyo Kushida. She wore a tracksuit, that perfect, gentle smile hanging on her face, talking to the girls next to her. But those eyes would glance this way from time to time. In that glance, there was hatred. And also... expectation.
Expectation for him to lose?
Expectation for him to fail?
Expectation for him to be abandoned by everyone?
the corners of Subaru's mouth turned up slightly. It was an extremely faint arc. Not a smile, just a certain—confirmation.
And there was Kei Karuizawa, Airi Sakura, and others.
"Natsuki," Manabu's voice sounded again. "The baton is coming."
Subaru withdrew his gaze.
"Facing off against you for the first time, I look forward to it."
"I..." Subaru's words reached his lips but were not spoken aloud.
If it were half a year ago, what would he have said? I have no interest in you. A duel with you has no meaning. Manabu Horikita, you are too boring.
But the current Subaru did not feel that way.
"I look forward to it too," Subaru looked at Manabu and said so.
Manabu froze slightly, but a smile soon appeared on his face.
Ahead, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji had already rushed to the handover zone. His speed was too fast, fast as a gust of wind. But what was even more shocking was—his expression.
On that face that was forever expressionless, a trace of... a smile actually surfaced? Not mockery, not smugness, but something more complex, nearly akin to relief. He held the relay baton out toward Subaru.
At that moment, the two people's gazes met in the air.
One second.
Two seconds.
"Natsuki," Ayanokoji spoke, his voice very light, audible only to the two of them. "I went all out. This is the first time."
Subaru looked at him. He looked into those empty eyes, at the weak but real light burning there right now.
That was not color.
That was—something more important than color.
"I know."
Subaru accepted the relay baton. He did not sprint immediately, but waited for Manabu Horikita beside him.
____
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