160 - Mixed Gender Relay Race (Patreon)

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(PREVIOUS CHAPTER EDITED)

"Alright, next up, we’ll decide on the members for the class’s mixed gender relay race at the sports festival," the physical education committee member announced while scanning the classroom.

The last lesson on Monday is the long homeroom, and today, they are discussing the upcoming sports festival.

The sports festival at the high school where Haruto and his friends attend is a class competition format. Each event has assigned points, and the ranking in each event affects the score.

The discussions progressed smoothly, and it was decided who would participate in each event. Then, the final topic to be addressed was the Mixed Gender Relay.

This event is held last every year, the so-called "grand finale." Additionally, it has a large number of points assigned to it, so a good performance in the mixed gender relay can significantly affect the class’s overall ranking.

In other words, this event is crucial for the success of the sports festival. Because of that, most classes tend to choose their best athletes for the relay.

"Anyone who wants to participate in the relay, please raise your hand!"

In Haruto’s class, there were more students who wanted to enjoy the sports festival purely for fun, so the mood was light and there wasn’t much tension during the discussion.

However, when it came to the Mixed Gender Relay, no one was eager to volunteer immediately due to the high stakes of the final event.

"Anyone? Self-nominations or recommendations, it’s up to you!"

The PE committee member looked around the classroom as he urged the students.

Then, one boy raised his hand sharply.

"Oh, Sato. You volunteering?"

The student with his hand up was none other than Sato, who had previously gotten on Ayaka’s bad side and, after Haruto’s skills were explained to him, came to respect Haruto.

"No, it’s not me. I think Otsuki should do it! After all, Otsuki was chosen for relays back in elementary school. He’s amazing!"

Sato, his eyes shining with excitement, enthusiastically spoke about Otsuki as if he were talking about a hero. The PE committee member responded with a slight, "O-Oh..." as he seemed taken aback by Sato’s enthusiasm.

"Alright, Sato says that, but Otsuki, what about you? Will you volunteer for the relay?"

The PE committee member turned his gaze toward Haruto.

"If the class is okay with it, I’ll volunteer."

"Everyone! Otsuki is amazing! He’s the perfect person to represent our class in the final relay event at the sports festival!"

Sato spoke to the class with sparkling eyes, passionately convincing them. With his infectious enthusiasm, the class nodded in agreement.

"Alright, so the first person is Otsuki. Now, we need one more guy and two girls. Anyone else willing to volunteer?"

With Haruto confirmed for the mixed-gender relay, the PE committee member once again looked around the classroom.

Then, one of the boys raised his hand and suggested, "If Otsuki’s doing it, how about Tojo-san joining too?"

As soon as the suggestion was made, all the boys turned their attention to Ayaka.

"Yeah, that’s a good idea."

"With Tojo-san running, the other runners might be distracted and we’d have an advantage!"

"A couple running the relay together? That would be awesome! But Tojo-san’s running form is a treat to watch…"

The classroom buzzed with excitement.

Haruto recalled the glances that Ayaka had received when she ran laps around the track in a previous PE class, and he felt a little awkward.

Then, one of the girls coldly countered the boys’ suggestion.

"Come on, you just want to watch Tojo-san run, don’t you? That’s gross."

"W-Wait, that’s not it! I was just thinking that it would increase the class’s chances of winning!"

The boy who suggested Ayaka’s participation immediately denied it, though his eyes kept darting around nervously.

"What do you mean ‘chances’? Your ulterior motives are so obvious! Boys are such idiots," the girl retorted, sniffing disdainfully.

The boy, looking dissatisfied, glanced over at Ayaka with a scowl.

"Don’t jump to conclusions. Maybe Tojo-san wants to join the relay too, right?"

As soon as the boy said this, the whole class turned their attention to Ayaka. Her close friends began asking, "How about it? Do you want to join, Ayaka?"

"Uh? Well... I guess, if I were running with Haruto, I’d be a little interested, but... I’m not really that fast, so maybe someone else should run instead of me..."

Ayaka hesitated, gently turning down the suggestion.

However, after hearing Ayaka’s words, Sato’s face lit up.

"Don’t worry, Tojo-san! Otsuki’s amazing! He’ll cover for you!"

"Eh? Oh, well... if Ayaka really wants to join, I’ll do my best, of course..."

Haruto answered while trying to hide his discomfort at Sato’s intense energy.

Sato then looked at Haruto with the face of a child who had just met his hero.

"I knew it! Tojo-san can totally join the relay! Otsuki will turn his love for Tojo-san into power and run like the wind!"

Without any shame, Sato said this. Haruto, somewhat suspicious of Sato’s exaggerated praise, wondered if he might be holding a grudge after Ayaka had gotten mad at him before.

Haruto glanced at Sato, only to meet his pure, respectful gaze. Sato’s eyes were wide, brimming with admiration. Unable to handle the intensity of the gaze, Haruto quickly looked away.

"Love-powered relay running, huh? That’s kind of wonderful," Sato’s words made some of the girls sigh with longing.

"Tojo-chan will run her hardest for her beloved Otsuki-kun, right?"

"And then she’ll fall behind, but Otsuki-kun will catch up and say, ‘I’ll win for you,’ as he takes the baton, racing like crazy toward the finish line!"

"And then they’ll win, and embrace each other at the finish line!"

"Kyaa!! So beautiful!!"

Some of the girls couldn’t help but let out loud squeals.

Haruto mentally groaned, thinking, Wait, wait a minute!

But the daydreaming girls were unstoppable.

"Tojo-chan, join the relay!"

"Eh? But I’m really not that fast..."

"It’s okay! It’ll be better this way!"

"Really?"

"Yes! You should definitely join, with Otsuki-kun!"

Pressed by the enthusiastic girls, Ayaka hesitated but eventually nodded.

"Well... I guess I’ll join the relay then?"

"Alright, Tojo-san is in! Now we just need one more girl. Who else is fast?"

The PE committee member asked as he looked over the class.

At that moment, one of the boys from the soccer club raised his hand and looked toward Tomoya.

"Hey, wasn’t Akagi fast?"

"Ah, yeah. Tomoya, you’re fast, right?"

Multiple boys nodded in agreement.

The PE committee member turned to Tomoya and asked, "So, Akagi, are you in for the relay?"

"Hmm, well, since Haruto’s in, I guess it’s time to show off my athleticism."

"What athleticism? You missed every shot during PE basketball class!" Haruto shot back, coldly.

Tomoya, though fast, wasn’t particularly good at sports in general. While he could perform well in activities that tested pure physical ability, like running or jumping, his skills in ball sports were mediocre.

Tomoya was better at sports that involved repetition and learning through practice.

"Hey, even geniuses make mistakes sometimes," Tomoya said with a chuckle.

"Alright, then. Is everyone good with Akagi joining?" The PE committee asked the class.

Most of the classmates nodded in agreement.

"Now we just need one more girl. Who’s fast?"

The PE committee asked again, looking for the last runner. After a moment, one name was suggested.

"What about Aizawa? She’s pretty fast, right?"

"Me?" Saki, surprised, pointed to herself.

The class murmured in agreement, saying things like "That’s true," and "Saki-chan’s fast."

The PE committee member turned to Saki. "So, Aizawa, are you joining?"

"Well... let me think about it..." Saki hesitated.

At that moment, Ayaka, sitting a few seats away, turned to look at her.

"Come on, Saki, let’s join the relay together."

Seeing her best friend so supportive gave Saki a sense of reassurance.

"Well... if everyone’s okay with it, I’ll join," Saki said after a moment of thought.

The PE committee then asked the class, "Anyone against Aizawa joining?"

The class responded with a unanimous approval.

"Alright, then our class team will be Otsuki, Akagi, Tojo, and Aizawa. Let’s entrust the fate of our sports festival to them!" the PE committee member declared.

The classroom erupted in applause, filled with support and encouragement for the team.