Chapter 106 – The Mindset of a Pro

 

The relay was divided into two parts due to the large number of teams participating.

 

Our going-home club was assigned to the first part.

 

Other than us, judo, football, computer, badminton, rugby, volleyball and basketball club were assigned to the first part. We were lucky that the track club wasn’t assigned with us. Eiji being here was a godsend.

 

They were unmatched in the second part though since there were no notable clubs there. 

 

“Hey, hey, come closer!”

 

Said Rion to Eiji and I as she waved around a selfie stick. Masao, Takazo and Arina were all standing on the other side.

 

“You actually brought that thing here?”

“Mhm! I loooveee having this bad boy around~ C’mon, come closer! Let’s take some pics together!”

 

She was probably the type of person who uploaded her pictures on social media to boost her ego or something. Those kinds of people would take pictures of their meals, sceneries they saw or their boyfriends and threw them into the internet (This girl didn’t have a boyfriend though).

 

If I were to do the same as her, I wonder if anyone would follow my social media account at all? Probably not. I would only share pictures of tomatoes after all.

 

“Let’s do it again later, ‘kay?~”

 

When we finished, I suddenly felt sorry for Arina. I wonder how she felt, being squeezed between Masao and Takazo like that? What kind of conversation they had when I wasn’t looking? Probably, they spent the whole time in silence?

 

I thought about going over there to possibly smooth things over between them, but sadly there was no time for that.

 

*   *   *

 

The battle was about to begin and we lined up to welcome it, even though we normally didn’t group up together like this.

 

Our first runner was the Pro Gamer Eiji with a mouse in his hand. When I asked him why he brought it, he said that it was the mouse that led him to his victory at nationals. In any case, this dude was a former member of the track club, I didn’t have a single doubt that he would do his part perfectly.

 

On another note, the computer club stole my attention. Their first runner was bringing their PC on his back. As a result of that, he was literally on his last breath already. I guess he was doing this for the hell of it, huh? Well, I gotta thank him for this, one less rival for us to beat.

 

The other clubs were sports clubs, so they were wearing their uniforms. Both our club and the computer club stood out like a sore thumb and people probably thought that we were just here to be funny or something, but little did they know that our going-home club was serious about winning this thing.

 

[On your marks!]

 

The referee’s voice echoed through the ground. At the same time, Pro Gamer Eiji threw his mouse at me. The hell? So you weren’t going to run with it? His face looked dead serious as he raised his glasses and exhaled slowly. 

 

Where did his FPS syndrome go? This guy who always walked around with a finger gun was actually staying still as he waited for the referee’s commands.

 

“Eiji, are you okay?”

 

Muttered Rion. She sounded worried for his well-being, it seemed. Seriously, though, there was nothing for her to worry about. He finally returned to being a normal human being again, instead of worrying, we should celebrate this occasion instead.

 

I remembered the words he said to me before this.

 

‘I’ll get to the first place. I may not be as good as the active members of the track clubs, but I won’t be beaten by amateurs.’

 

He was making a gesture of pulling a pin out of a grenade as he said that. The dude looked confident though since he had a smug look on his face.

 

[Ready!]

 

The referee raised his pistol straight up.

 

The whole place was clad in silence.

 

With the dry crack of the pistol, all the competitors started running immediately.

 

Eiji’s start was perfect. He knew exactly when the shot would be fired, so he managed to be in the lead, which was surprising since he was wearing the school uniform instead of club uniforms like the other clubs did. The football and basketball clubs were struggling to overtake him.

 

A cloud of dust rose up, shielding the runners from the spectators’ gazes. Those guys were doing their best to the point that I could hear each of their footsteps.

 

“ORRAAAA! FASTER! FASTER!!”

 

Heartbreak Rion raised her voice like an old man while waving her selfie stick around. See? This is why you aren’t popular, woman.

 

By the way, the computer club was dead last. He hadn’t even passed the first corner yet.

 

Eiji’s work was almost done as he started to approach the starting line. He managed to maintain his pace, two meters ahead of the runner up, the soccer club.

 

In the end, he took first place and passed the baton to the next runner. The eyes of the spectators who were focused on him switched to the other guy. Suddenly, he made a loud roar.

 

Berserker Masao.

 

With his broad shoulders that barely managed to fit the width of the lane, he was a major threat to the other runners. On top of that, he was in his awakened state because of the mango he just ate. He glared at the other runners with an expression that reminded me of a Hannya. His thick arms were covered with blood vessels and his uniform looked like it might tear at any moment. I was glad that he was on the same side as me.

 

Then, he ran. His left arms that were as thick as a bull’s thigh were thrown backward heavily. Even Eiji had to grit his teeth as he passed the baton to him because of his powerful momentum. Masao’s speed had improved dramatically since the first time he practiced and Eiji barely managed to pass the baton in time.

 

“Masao!! Please turn into a human again, you idiot!! I’ll die if you keep this up!!”

 

Screamed Rion. Yes, she was the next runner.

 

Anyway, after passing the baton over to Masao, Eiji fell down on his back. He raised his right arm up high as he gave us a thumbs-up. ‘I did it’, he said before he let his arm down again. Good job, my dude.

 

“UWOOOGH!!”

 

Meanwhile Masao ran with a force rivaled that of a tank. The football club member that was right behind him failed to overtake him as expected. The half-crazed Masao was a human weapon. Attempting physical contact with him would result in a fatal wound.

 

‘I-I’m an amateur though…’

 

Seeing him like this made me think that his worries back then were a lie.

 

The soil he stepped on was gouged out and flung into the air. The ground shook as if a mortar had landed on it. He kept running even though his apron was ripped up and his face was covered by it.

 

As for the reason why he shouted like that, nobody but him knew. Probably, the shout was a sign that deep inside his heart, he was fighting against his weakness.

 

Around the last corner, the football club managed to get closer to him. Well, this was expected since running was like breakfast for them. The gap between the two was really close as they entered the straight part of the course.

 

Meanwhile, Rion had been making a lot of noises in her lane.

 

“You! Why did you reject me back then, huh?! I will never forgive you!! What? What did you just say? You had a girl that you like?! HUH?!”

 

That was a strategy she came up with. She was aware that everyone thought that she was a b*tch, so she had been telling me that she would create a shuraba scene to upset our enemies. Her current target was a member of the football club.

 

“What?! You weren’t serious when you approached me?! How dare you!! HAAAAH!! I swear I will ****** (We had to censor this part) and tear you to shreds!”

 

Of course, this was nothing but a bluff, still it worked, so all was good. I felt bad for the victim, but hey, all is fair in love and war. I was glad that Rion was on my side.

 

She ignored the excuse of the football club’s member as she got into position. Then the human weapon came.

 

“I can’t do this!! It’s scary, it’s scary!!”

 

With Masao running behind her, she took some pictures with her selfie stick while she ran. With bloodshot eyes, Masao thrusted out the baton and chased after the fleeing Rion. It was like seeing a human being chased around by a buffalo.

 

As they approached the takeover zone though, Rion quickly threw her stick and took the baton smoothly. 

 

“Leave it to me!”

 

After she said that, the pure and innocent ex-cheerleader club member ran.

 

Masao, who ran out of energy, stopped on all fours. He was struggling to breathe.

 

“Good job, Masao, that was amazing.”

“Hooooh… Hoooh… T-Thank– hoooh you… hoooh very much!!”

 

There was a strange breathing sound as he said that. I guess this was what happened to someone when they tried to forcibly break their limit?