[Class 1-D wins the Girls' 100-meter Sprint. Current score: Class 1-D leads 2–0.]
[Now selecting the third individual event...]
[Selection complete.]
[Third event: Freestyle Fighting, submitted by Class 1-B.]
[Both commanders, please confirm your participants.]
[Confirmation complete.]
[Participants, please proceed to the designated arena.]
"You saw this coming, didn't you, Ryo?"
As he warmed up, Ryuuen Kakeru muttered to Kitagawa Ryo through the earpiece, his tone tinged with irritation.
"Or are you planning to get betrayed by that girl again?"
"Betrayed...?"
Kitagawa replied lazily, "Why would you think that? Wasn't it you, Ryuuen, who was the most against cooperating in the first place? You insisted we could take on the second-years ourselves and treat the other three first-year classes as enemies. Well, congratulations—we're now fighting Class 1-D. Just as you wished."
"Tch."
Ryuuen clicked his tongue in annoyance and glanced back at their restless class formation. The back-to-back losses had shaken morale. Shiina Hiyori was trying to comfort the frustrated Ibuki Mio.
"I won't lose."
Without further words, Ryuuen turned off his earpiece and stepped onto the freestyle fighting ring.
"Ryuuen Kakeru, Class 1-B."
"Sudou Ken, Class 1-D."
Ryuuen looked at his opponent. As one of Class 1-D's strongest members, Sudou had already competed in three events that day, yet he still appeared energetic and ready to fight.
"I'm counting on you, Sudou-kun," Karuizawa Kei said sincerely through the earpiece. If Class 1-D won this round, they would have four match points in hand.
"If you hadn't used 100,000 points to save me back then, I'd already be expelled."
Sudou nodded firmly. It was hard to believe this was the same boy who had once beaten up a senior over a verbal spat. But in this past semester, he had grown more than in his entire life. In terms of development, he might be the fastest-growing student in Class 1-D.
"So I'll fight to win."
He put on the gloves handed out by the referee and slammed his fists together.
Stripped to the waist, Sudou revealed a body honed to perfection. Physically, he was undoubtedly one of the strongest in his class.
Opposite him, Ryuuen looked leaner, but his years of street fighting gave him superior combat instinct.
Karuizawa Kei stared at the screen. Unlike the composed strategist her classmates imagined her to be, she was now drenched in cold sweat, her jaw clenched tight, and her body trembling under immense pressure.
For some reason, Ryuuen seemed to sense the camera's direction. He turned and gave it a glance. That twisted look in his eyes—rage laced with cruelty—instantly triggered a wave of dark memories in Kei's mind.
School bullying. Fear. Trauma.
But she quickly collected herself. Taking a few deep breaths, Kei clenched the photo in her hand as if drawing strength from it.
"Ryuuen fights dirty. Watch out for low blows."
Freestyle fighting had no strict rules or style. It emphasized personal technique and real combat. The goal was simple: use any part of the body—fists, knees, legs—to defeat the opponent.
Which was why Kitagawa Ryo had chosen Ryuuen for this event.
"I know."
Even as Sudou answered, Ryuuen had already charged forward, throwing a fierce punch. Sudou raised his arms to block.
But Ryuuen didn't stop. His follow-ups were fast, wild, and relentless—like a madman. He attacked from all angles, avoiding the few banned areas like the head, elbows, and teeth.
Physically, Sudou had the edge—rated A by the school. But after multiple matches, he was clearly drained. And Ryuuen had seized the initiative.
Sudou was driven to the edge of the ring, struggling to defend.
"Hey, Karuizawa. You can hear me, right?"
Locking Sudou's arms, Ryuuen kneed him in the gut. Sudou doubled over.
Leaning in, Ryuuen whispered viciously:
"Ryo may have allowed your move... but I don't."
Suppressing the struggling Sudou, Ryuuen punched him square in the eye.
Sudou retaliated with a punch to Ryuuen's face, but Ryuuen grabbed his hair and returned the hit without hesitation.
Sudou's furious blow left Ryuuen's left cheek swollen, but Ryuuen only spit out blood, unfazed.
"I'll never forgive you."
Just as Ryuuen opened his mouth to taunt Kei again, the referee intervened.
Sudou was deemed unable to continue. The match ended.
Ryuuen's hand was raised.
[Class 1-B wins the Freestyle Fighting event. Current score: Class 1-D leads 2–1.]
Before stepping off, Ryuuen shot another look into the camera. Though bloodied, his presence remained terrifying. He spat blood onto the floor and walked off.
After trailing two points, Ryuuen had finally scored one for Class 1-B.
[Now selecting the fourth individual event...]
[Selection complete.]
[Fourth event: Archery, submitted by Class 1-D.]
[Both commanders, please confirm your participants.]
...
[Class 1-D Commander, please confirm your participant immediately.]
"Karuizawa-san!"
Hirata Yosuke's voice came through the earpiece, snapping Kei out of her trance. She quickly selected Miyake Akito's name.
If she had delayed a few seconds longer, the school system would've auto-assigned a random student.
"Are you okay?"
"...I'm fine."
Karuizawa pressed her fingertip against her brow. Ryuuen's earlier words still echoed in her mind:
["I'll never forgive you."]
She felt like she'd heard that phrase before...
Memories churned like stormy waves, crashing against her chest.
When was it?
She had spent a long period hospitalized as a child. Aside from her parents and doctors, she rarely saw anyone.
One afternoon, a boy around her age came to her hospital room. He didn't have a key, so he peered through the window.
Excited, she had jumped off the bed, thinking someone had come to play.
But the boy spat on the glass.
And mouthed each word clearly:
"I... will... never... forgive... you."
The face in her memory began to overlap with Ryuuen's.
Karuizawa clutched her head in pain.
In the past, her parents had forbidden her from remembering these things.
But now...
Her sweat-soaked shirt clung to her back, the cold sinking into her bones.
The dampness made her body churn with nausea.
"No... it's not like that..."
No matter how she tried to deny it, the image in her mind wouldn't go away.
The figure standing with a blood-stained knife—back turned to her.
That was Kitagawa Ryo.
-------------------------------------
"Doesn't seem like we have anyone good at archery in our class."
"Komiya said he practiced a bit with his dad back in elementary school, but honestly, he doesn't look up to it."
"The guy Class 1-D sent—Miyake Akito—is from the archery club. I've seen him before."
Worry clouded the Class 1-B camp as the match began. They didn't know much about the rules of archery, but judging by accuracy alone, their Komiya didn't stand a chance against Class 1-D's Miyake.
Sure enough, after a few rounds, the referee declared Miyake the winner.
[Class 1-D wins the Archery event. Current score: 3–1. Class 1-D reaches match point.]
"Believe in Kitagawa! Class 1-B won't lose!"
Ishizaki Daichi raised his arm, trying to lift the mood. Beside him, Shiina Hiyori calmly added:
"The challenged side gets to choose one event. And Ryo hasn't stepped in yet."
Their words brought back a flicker of morale. After all, to Class 1-B, Kitagawa Ryo was a symbol of victory.
And he didn't disappoint.
[Class 1-B Commander selects the fifth individual event: High Jump.]
[Both commanders, please confirm your participants.]
Unaware of Karuizawa Kei's current state in the other multipurpose room, Kitagawa selected Hotaru without hesitation.
"They'll probably send the cat again. We just have to go through the motions," said Hirata Yosuke, noticing Kei hadn't issued any instructions since the previous match.
"O-okay..."
Kei weakly selected a boy from their class. Her gaze shifted to the screen—to the white cat.
[Class 1-B participant: Hotaru.]
Kitagawa... Hotaru.
Hotaru.
"I want to name it Hotaru."
"Sounds nice, doesn't it?"
"Because its eyes are that glowing firefly color?"
"Maybe that's part of it."
Fragments of memories flickered through her mind. Kei ripped off her headset and rushed to the bathroom.
She vomited violently—her stomach twisting until it felt like everything had come out. Her throat and gut burned with fire-like pain.
Wiping the tears from her eyes with her sleeve, Kei stumbled back to the sink, staring blankly into the mirror.
Her body trembled.
"Yeah, I was the one who named it."
"Nice name, right?"
That day, just before summer ended, in a small café—Kitagawa Ryo had said that. The cat had jumped into her lap like it belonged there.
Kei wiped her mouth and returned to the control room.
She leaned in close, staring at the image of the cat as if trying to capture every strand of its fur.
"Kei, have you heard of the term 'rotten grass turns into fireflies'?"
"Huh? No."
"It's from an old Chinese tale. People used to think fireflies were born from rotting grass. Of course, it was just because fireflies laid their eggs there."
"It's not true, but I always thought it was a beautiful mistake."
The now-grown white cat leapt gracefully, easily clearing the bar.
"Even decaying grass can light up a summer night as a firefly."
"I just hope this little one—no, I hope Hotaru can make it through this summer."
Kei reached toward the screen, as if she could touch it.
Hotaru had survived that summer.
And was healthy.
And so, so adorable.
[Class 1-B wins the High Jump event. Current score: Class 1-D leads 3–2.]
Surrounded by cheering Class 1-B students, Hotaru basked in the praise. It jumped into Shiina Hiyori's arms, rubbing its paws against her neck and purring affectionately.
Still, it was incredibly... lovable.
Kei lowered her eyes.
[Now selecting the sixth group event...]
The match continued.
[Selection complete.]
[Sixth event: Boys' 4x400m Relay, submitted by Class 1-D.]
[Both commanders, please confirm your participants.]
"Karuizawa-san? Karuizawa-san?!"
Hirata Yosuke's panicked voice echoed from the earpiece left on the side.
Kei bit into her arm. The sudden pain stopped her tears.
Humans cry when they feel pain.
But during her bullying years, Kei had learned one thing: bullies love watching their victims cry.
So when she felt pain, she taught herself never to cry.
"I'm here..."
She had bitten so hard that her teeth left a deep, red imprint on her pale wrist.
"Follow... the original plan."
"Class 1-A will assist."
Kei moved her mouse to select her class's runners, but her blurred vision made it nearly impossible.
Tears streamed down, falling onto her keyboard.
Like someone drowning reaching for the final straw, she pulled out a photograph from her pocket.
Seeing Kitagawa Ryo and Hotaru together, she couldn't hold back the tears. She held the photo away to keep it dry, but it became hard to see. She wiped her eyes desperately, streaks of tears staining her face.
The cold autumn wind blew in through the open window, brushing against her shoulders.
The season had changed.
It was already fall.
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