Compared to the relaxed atmosphere for the third-years, the first and second-year students were far more competitive. Each of them had their eyes fixed on the main track, fully focused and determined to win.
After the second-year boys' 50-meter sprint ended, Ichin glanced around and asked, "I've been meaning to ask—where did Eriri run off to?"
From the other side, Sayuri Sawamura smiled and replied, "It seems that my arrival made that girl very nervous, so she went off to keep practicing."
Seeing Sayuri's beaming smile, Ichin instantly understood—this lady had definitely predicted how Eriri would react.
Well, this was just a little game between mother and daughter. Ichin had no intention of getting involved.
Soon, a wave of surprised exclamations rippled through the spectator stands—mostly from the boys.
There was no need to ask why. Clearly, Yukinoshita Yukino had made her entrance.
Over at the track, Yukino stood among a group of girls, her single ponytail swaying slightly. Standing at 165 cm, her height made her stand out immediately.
Her hairstyle today was different from her usual loose hair. The rare ponytail subtly changed her entire aura, making her look even more captivating. The boys in the stands, seemingly having forgotten about Yukino's usual cold demeanor, all widened their eyes, completely focused on her.
It was proof that a beautiful girl could be the center of attention no matter where she went—even if she was just wearing a standard gym uniform.
Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Ichin remarked, "You normally don't notice it, but Yukino's actually quite tall, huh?"
"Of course she is," Utaha—now back to her usual calm self—rested her chin in her hands and said, "I'm 168 cm. Yukino is just a tiny bit shorter than me. Most of the girls competing over there don't even hit 160 cm, right? Plus, among the girls you know, aside from Aoba who looks like a middle schooler, none of them are particularly short."
A quick glance confirmed that Yukino indeed towered over most of the other girls.
Ichin reflected for a moment. He really had been misled by the people around him.
Even Eriri was about the same height as the tallest girls in that group.
Wait a minute—didn't Mr. Spencer stand at 180 cm? So how come Eriri didn't inherit any of that height? Even Sayuri had been over 160 cm at one point.
Hmm...
Rubbing his chin again, Ichin shook his head. Better not tease Eriri about that. She'd had a rough enough day already.
Soon, all the participants were ready, and the PE teacher acting as referee raised the starting pistol.
"Ready—!"
Bang!
The race began.
Yukino exploded forward, instantly taking the lead and pulling ahead of the others.
Ichin and Utaha said nothing—both quickly raised their phones to start recording. Meanwhile, the sound of Sayuri's camera shutter clicking never stopped.
In the blink of an eye, the 50-meter sprint was over. Yukino crossed the finish line in first place, completely unchallenged.
A huge wave of cheers erupted from the audience. Some were from boys captivated by Yukino's graceful appearance, while others were from her classmates.
Even though Yukino rarely interacted with them at school, the sports day events were team-based, and her performance directly contributed to their class's overall score. With someone as strong as Yukino on their side, they had every reason to be excited.
Ichin's mother looked on in surprise and commented, "That girl looks so slim, but she's really fast!"
Ichin smiled and explained, "The second young lady is a genius. She picks up anything quickly—tennis, horseback riding, even Aikido. The only problem is her stamina. That's her one weakness, so after learning each activity for a while, she'd give up once she hit her limit and couldn't improve any further."
At the finish line, Yukino stood catching her breath for a few seconds. Then, everyone saw Eriri—who had been practicing earlier—run over to her and hand her a sports drink.
Yukino took a sip, intending to return to the stands with Eriri, but Eriri, thinking she still had more practice to do, quickly left again.
Holding the drink, Yukino walked back to the stands.
Utaha pulled her to sit down and looked at her with admiration. "That was amazing, Yukino. Group A actually took first place. Looks like you've got a solid shot at the finals this afternoon."
The second-year girls' 50-meter sprint had two preliminary groups. The top four from each would advance to the afternoon finals.
Yukino calmly shook her head. "It's not the finals yet—nothing is certain."
Ichin agreed wholeheartedly. "Exactly. Celebrating halfway through the game only invites disaster."
However, the second group's preliminaries began shortly after, and while the top three girls had decent times, none came close to Yukino's performance.
This wasn't some major tournament—just a school sports event. So it didn't seem wrong to feel a little happy, right?
Of course, they were half-joking. Not only Ichin and the others, but even Yukino herself wasn't overly concerned with the results of a casual sports day event.
With her morning race now over, Yukino's remaining events were the 50-meter sprint finals and the high jump, both scheduled for the afternoon.
Next up was Ichin's turn. In about half an hour, it would be time for the third-year boys' 100-meter sprint.
Unlike the first and second years, the third-years had no prelims or finals—it was a one-shot race.
Mainly because not many signed up. Most students were busy preparing for university entrance exams and didn't have the time or energy to spare for athletics. Even those who did register were mostly just there for fun—except for the few naturally athletic ones.
Ichin's mother turned to her son and asked, "Ichin, do you feel confident about your race?"
"Confidence, huh?"
Ichin recalled the list of participants he had checked with the sports committee earlier. "None of the third-year athletes signed up. They've been training for three years—if they joined, it would've been unfair. Honestly, I'm not sure how it'll go. I'll just try to get into the top three."
Physically, Ichin was in good shape, but he'd never specifically trained for sprinting.
Still, as a third-year, he might as well treat it as a fun memory.
After the third-year 50-meter sprint concluded, Ichin got up to begin his warm-up and prepare for his race.
Barely two minutes after he left, Eriri returned, her forehead glistening with sweat and a sports drink in hand.
Instead of sitting next to Sayuri Sawamura, she headed straight to Ichin's original seat and sat next to Utaha. Curiously, she asked, "Where's Ichin? Is it his turn now?"
"Almost," Utaha replied. "Next up is the 100-meter sprint."
Looking at Eriri's slightly flushed face from practice, Utaha smiled and asked, "How did your practice go? Confident about the afternoon race?"
Hearing that, Sayuri Sawamura also turned to look over.
"Eriri, do your best! Mommy will take lots of good pictures of you!"
Eriri rolled her eyes in response.
"I'll do my best. As long as I don't embarrass myself, I'll be satisfied."
...
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