Chapter 9: The Boy by the River (Patreon)

Under the dusk sky, beside that same remote, rushing river, Shinji was shirtless and dripping with sweat, doing one-fingered push-ups. Weight plates were strapped to his back, looking to be no less than fifty kilograms.

Perhaps because he was still in his growth period, or for other reasons, the constant, intense training hadn't turned him into a hulking mass of muscle.

To the naked eye, even with his clearly defined muscle lines, he still looked lean, though significantly taller than average, teenage boy.

Standing on the distant riverbank, a stack of student council documents in her arms, Rin watched Shinji's figure. Her thoughts involuntarily drifted back three years.

By pure chance, passing by this place, she had discovered Shinji performing physical training far beyond what should be possible for a boy his age.

Three hundred one-armed push-ups, followed by plunging into the icy, rapid-filled river to swim against the current, repeatedly swept back by the fierce flow, yet never giving up...

The countless marks on the riverbank were likely milestones of each challenge overcome.

The boy, having reached a new milestone, would climb exhaustedly from the river, lying on the bank, gasping for breath with a look of pure joy, as if he had achieved something wonderful.

That very day, as the boy left, she had learned his identity from the girl waiting on the levee—the rumored eldest son of the Matou family, whose Magic Circuits were blocked, Matou Shinji.

And that girl was her original sister—Matou Sakura, formerly Tohsaka Sakura.

Since then, Rin had often come here, and more often than not, she would see Shinji's figure, pushing himself through increasingly insane, age-defying physical training as if his life depended on it.

Every time, watching Shinji perform training that seemed impossible, guaranteed to injure the body, Rin would think—There's absolutely no way he can complete it, right?

But each time, Shinji persevered and completed the even more demanding physical regimen. The fact that he wasn't even a magus made it seem like a miracle.

A continuously repeating miracle.

Can mere effort and perseverance achieve such miracles? Rin had once searched her soul, trying a far less demanding version of Shinji's training in her own basement. She failed.

She only managed half of her self-imposed quota before she couldn't go on.

Lying there, exhausted and unable to get up, her first thought had been to give up. But then Shinji's image surfaced in her mind.

When he gets swept back by the current again and again, why does he keep going? What is he thinking about in those moments...? No, that boy isn't thinking about anything. His focus never wavers from the goal.

Maybe that's what I'm lacking.

Starting from that day, Rin began to emulate Shinji's training regimen. While she couldn't match his intensity, she gradually and systematically increased her own training load within her physical limits.

Then, one time, she accidentally set the intensity just a little too high. Right at the very end, with just a tiny bit left, her body gave out completely. The barbell in her hands was about to slip and fall to the ground due to sheer exhaustion.

But at the last moment, looking at the daily training quota she had posted on the wall, a surge of strength—she didn't know where it came from—flooded her body. She tightened her grip on the barbell and pushed through to finish that final bit.

After finishing, lying powerless and motionless on the floor, Rin looked up at the ceiling and suddenly, inexplicably, started to laugh.

So I can do it too... Is this how he feels every time? Is that why he looks so genuinely happy after completing that insane training?

It really is a kind of happiness that gets you addicted, isn't it?

What Rin didn't know was that Shinji was only happy because he completed a system task—a completely different kind of happiness from what she imagined!

Later on, she would still go to watch his increasingly training sessions. Occasionally, the thought would still arise—There's no way he can do this, right? This is absolutely impossible.

Yet, he never failed. Not once.

This guy is a madman. A madman of the utmost cruelty towards himself, Rin think inwardly more than once. But she never stopped watching him.

Especially the expression of genuine, heartfelt joy Shinji wore after every training session. She never tired of seeing it.

Because of one person, Rin began to believe in things she had previously paid little mind to. Things like perseverance, willpower, effort, and...

Miracles.

And then, there was last year's confession that caught her completely off guard.

It was April, when the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, petals drifting down continuously at the school gate.

A newly-enrolled middle school Rin stared in disbelief at Shinji, who stood with his eyes closed just outside the gate. Her first thought was that he had entered the same middle school as her.

But noticing the distinctly different uniform he wore compared to the boys around him, she dismissed the idea, feeling an inexplicable, faint sense of disappointment.

Then, the climax arrived—

"Hey, you. Wanna be my girlfriend?"

The first words he spoke after opening his eyes and turning to her left her stunned.

Who in the world confesses to someone the first time they meet? Is his brain also made of muscle?!

And... we're way too young for this!

Rin stared blankly at Shinji for a long moment before snapping back to reality, her face flushing a deep red the instant she did.

"Y-Y-Y-You! Do you have any idea what you're saying?!"

"Is that a no?" Shinji asked, sounding genuinely curious.

"Y-Y-Y-Y-You...!" Rin spluttered, too flustered and indignant to form a coherent sentence.

"Ah, if it's a no, then forget it. Just treat it as an April Fool's joke. See you, Miss No-Name."

Watching Shinji deliver this line and turn to leave, a wave of anger surged within Rin, and she kicked out at him.

"You did that on purpose, you jerk!!"

That was their first, and so far only, overly dramatic conversation and interaction.

...

Pulling her drifting thoughts back to the present, Rin looked toward Shinji again. He had already finished his one-fingered push-ups, sit-ups, leg lifts, and high-knee running in place, and was now taking off his pants.

Seeing the blue swim trunks with the cute anime girl print, Rin sighed softly.

This guy's swimwear style is still as... unique as ever.

Watching Shinji strap sandbags and weights to his legs, arms, and torso, Rin calculated silently. Just those weights had to exceed twice his own body weight.

—He's really getting more and more ruthless with himself. Isn't he afraid of damaging his body? You can't push yourself this hard, even if you're desperate.

Splash!

Watching Shinji jump into the river, even having witnessed many of his "miracles," Rin still felt a knot of anxiety tighten in her chest.

...Please, don't let anything happen to him.