Defense and Counterattack

"Hahaha! Is scheming all you guys in Class B can do?"

Led by Sudo, most of the students in the Red Team were openly mocking Class B, and even the usually mild-mannered students from Class A were joining in.

After all, though Ryuuen hadn't technically broken any rules, his methods went against the spirit of sportsmanship, and were frankly just distasteful.

Students from Class C, who were also caught up in his ploys, glared at him with equal disdain.

In essence, Ryuuen's actions were a prime example of someone willing to lose themselves in their own need to disrupt others, even at the cost of their own victory. Class B and Class C might have had a fair chance of winning if they gave it their all, but Ryuuen was more interested in toying with his opponents—even if it meant his side lost as well.

His fixation had only turned him into a laughingstock. There's a lesson here: don't lose yourself to obsession.

With the Red Team winning the tug-of-war, the next event was the obstacle race.

Just as he did for the 100-meter sprint and the hurdles, Ryuuen once again chose to pair Class D's Sudo with two of the weakest students from his own class.

This guy didn't even try to switch things up. Surely Class B has more than just two people bad at sports, right?

It was as if he wanted Class D to catch on to the presence of a spy, hoping to see their surprised reactions.

Clearly, Ryuuen was one dull character.

At least Kushida had stopped genuinely cooperating with him. Otherwise, she'd eventually find herself betrayed.

I could only wonder what kind of countermeasure Horikita had in mind.

As I pondered this, the next match was about to begin, and this one promised to be slightly more intense than the previous rounds.

The competitors had to cross a narrow balance beam, crawl under a net set up on the field, and finally hop toward the finish line with both legs in a sack.

Just watching from the sidelines was exhausting.

Class B and Class C's representatives weren't especially impressive, but Shibata from Class A happened to be in Sudo's group this time.

He was a formidable opponent.

Shibata was not only the most athletic student in Class A but also a member of the soccer club, just like Hirata, with a solid record in sports.

So far, he'd claimed first place in all previous events, making it difficult to say if Sudo could beat him this time.

Still, Sudo seemed confident, certain he wouldn't lose.

This confidence seemed to bring him luck. He won, though by a narrow margin—the match was almost neck-and-neck.

"Whoo-hoo! What do you think, Hikigaya? I beat Shibata too!" Sudo's triumphant voice came through my phone. Judging by his heavy breathing, though, it hadn't been an easy win.

If it had been a straight sprint, he might not have won—Shibata was slightly faster. But because it was an obstacle race, Sudo's excellent balance, honed as the basketball team's star player, gave him the edge he needed.

Regardless, Sudo had taken first place three times in a row. His physical prowess was among the best in his grade.

It's just his brain...

"Sudo, I want to congratulate you, but please, stop calling me," I said, exasperated.

"Huh? Why?"

"… No reason. Just don't."

Not that it would matter much if anyone found out since Ryuuen had already noticed.

Frankly, I just didn't want the extra attention.

As the boys prepared for the three-legged race, the girls' obstacle race was about to begin.

The tension was already high, right from the first group.

Horikita's opponent from Class B was Kinoshita, with Yajima joining in… Ryuuen was obsessed.

To top it off, Class C sent in Kamuro.

These four girls were among the fastest runners in the first year.

"It looks like Suzune's in for a tough race," Sakayanagi commented.

Despite her words, she wore a calm smile, watching me with interest.

"Well, Hikigaya-kun, won't you lend a hand?"

"…No."

"Oh? But I haven't even told you what I need."

Even if she didn't say it, I could guess.

One time was enough for that embarrassment. Silently cheering her on from a distance should suffice, right?

Kamuro had impressive athletic skills. As the race started, she, along with Class B's two runners, quickly left Horikita behind.

Barring any surprises, the winner would be one of those three.

For an art club member, Kamuro sure kept up well with the pros. Makes you wonder if she'd chosen the wrong path.

However, as the girls navigated the various obstacles, things took an unexpected turn. After crossing the balance beam, Horikita gradually closed in on Kinoshita ahead of her, and by the time they reached the net, they were neck-and-neck.

Kamuro, meanwhile, had fallen behind Yajima. It looked like her hopes for victory were slipping away.

It's not surprising—some girls have a much harder time with the net crawl than most guys.

Of course, other girls excel in this aspect.

Horikita's nimbleness gave her an edge, and by the time she reached the sack race portion, she was pulling ahead of Kinoshita—only for Kinoshita to catch up moments later.

But then, something strange happened.

For some reason, Horikita kept glancing back at Kinoshita behind her, even Kamuro cast a glance backward.

"What's going on?"

Beside me, Sakayanagi looked equally surprised.

The next moment, Horikita and Kinoshita collided mid-sprint, their legs tangled, and they both fell to the ground at full speed.

Ouch… that looked painful.

I frowned. Something felt off.

The incident had happened so suddenly, it was impossible to tell who ran into whom. The judges would probably treat it as an accident.

Neither girl seemed lightly injured, and it took a while before they managed to stand, losing multiple places in the race.

Horikita managed to keep going but only finished in seventh place. Kinoshita, however, seemed in too much pain to continue and forfeited.

"What's your take, Hikigaya-kun?" Sakayanagi asked suddenly.

"… There's not enough information to go on, so consider this just my musings," I replied seriously. "It's likely that Kinoshita said something strange from behind."

Otherwise, Horikita wouldn't have looked back.

Of course, it was just a theory—nowhere near enough to accuse anyone.

Sakayanagi nodded in agreement. "It does seem unlikely… Well, excuse me for a moment."

With a polite nod, she left, possibly to gather details from Kamuro.

After a moment's thought, I stood up as well.

However, instead of heading back to my class, I aimed for Class B.

I spotted Kinoshita limping back with her classmates, while Shiina hurried over with an ice pack and towel.

I could ask Shiina for more on Kinoshita's injuries… but I decided against it. I didn't want to trouble her over Ryuuen's antics.

Better to handle this myself.

With that, I made my way to Class D's tent, only to find Horikita nowhere in sight. Where did she disappear to?

"Oh my, if it isn't Hikigaya-kun!"

A familiar voice called my name from behind.

Turning, I saw Matsushita, standing there with a smile.

Though… something about her smile felt off.

Was it my imagination?

"Such a busy person like you! What brings you here?"

"Uh…" Okay, maybe it wasn't my imagination.

"Uh, Matsushita? Are you… alright?" I asked cautiously.

"Hmph!"

Finally, Matsushita's expression soured, and she shot me a glare.

"What's with you? Everyone else is giving their all, and you're off flirting with girls from rival classes, even cheering them on!"

"Hey, don't twist things," I quickly denied. "Flirting is out of the question; I was just on the receiving end of some teasing."

"Oh really? And cheering on the rival girls?"

"…Friendship first, competition second."

I didn't expect the excuse I used on Sakayanagi to come back to haunt me.

Still, Matsushita didn't seem satisfied, retorting indignantly, "Well, why don't you cheer for me too?"

"You didn't make a reservation…"

"That requires a reservation?!"

Her surprise was understandable… But that's just how I am. If Ryuuen and Sakayanagi hadn't nudged me into it, I'd never pull something like that in public.

"Fine, fine, let's drop it," I quickly changed the topic. "By the way, have you seen Horikita? I need to speak with her about something important."

"Horikita-san…? I think she headed to the infirmary right after the race."

"Got it, thanks."

I nodded, intending to head over there—only to notice Matsushita following me.

"Wait… are you coming too?"

"Why, can't I?" she shot back, puffing her cheeks a bit. "Besides, I'm your partner. Isn't it normal to go together?"

"How is this related to partnership?"

"Hmph, don't try to fool me."

She folded her arms behind her back, looking a bit smug. "You wouldn't be looking for Horikita unless you were investigating that collision, right? Come on, let me in on the plan!"

"…You noticed something off too?" Hikigaya subtly admitted.

"Of course. Don't underestimate me," Matsushita replied, a knowing glint in her eyes.

She leaned in closer, lowering her voice slightly. "Is it Ryuuen again?"

"…Probably," Hikigaya sighed.

He didn't want to jump to conclusions without solid evidence, but he felt safe enough sharing his suspicions with Matsushita.

They stepped into the small room and found Horikita receiving treatment from the medical staff, looking visibly tense—likely a sign her injury wasn't minor.

Sitting nearby was another Class D member, Kouenji, reclining in a chair with his eyes closed as if dozing.

Come to think of it, this guy had been feigning illness to avoid participating since the start… Not that it concerned Hikigaya, but it was odd that Kouenji chose to sit here instead of heading back to his dorm or wandering off somewhere else. You'd think he'd rather be off indulging himself than quietly staying put here.

Was he really okay with faking an illness but drew the line at skipping class outright?

If so, that was surprisingly disciplined.

"Hikigaya-kun...?"

Horikita looked over, noticing Hikigaya's presence with a hint of surprise. Then her gaze shifted to the student beside him.

"And Matsushita? Why are you here?"

"We're here to check up on you," Matsushita replied with a bright smile, though there was a curious pause in her words.

"How's the injury?" Hikigaya asked as he approached.

"It's not too bad," Horikita said, shaking her head slightly. "You're the one who should be careful. You're not fully recovered yet, so there's no need to come all the way here."

"Relax. I'm not as reckless as you are."

"If I was that reckless, I wouldn't be here now."

Hikigaya hadn't expected Horikita to end up in the nurse's office so quickly. He figured someone as proud as her would resist showing any signs of weakness, tolerating discomfort in silence if it meant avoiding vulnerability.

Compared to the deserted island incident, where she'd hidden her fever without saying a word, she seemed to have learned a bit from the experience this time.

"Besides, coming here helped me realize something." Horikita glanced around the room. "I arrived right after the race ended, and yet aside from Koenji-kun, no other students have shown up... Even the girl who collided with me didn't come."

"I see," Hikigaya murmured, catching her meaning immediately.

The school had set up resting tents for each class, while the medical tents were shared. In theory, Horikita should've made it through the race despite her pain, and Kinoshita, who couldn't continue due to her injury, should have been here by now.

This lined up with Hikigaya's suspicions. When he'd seen Kinoshita return to class, Shiina had handed her a towel, as if it had been prepared in advance. It wasn't just foresight; Shiina and the others likely knew Kinoshita would be injured and wouldn't go to the nurse immediately. Otherwise, there'd be no reason to go through such an inefficient process.

And as for how they knew... it was probably Ryuuen's handiwork again.

The guy always enjoyed flaunting his influence. He made no effort to rotate participants or switch up groupings, almost as if daring Class D to notice the spy in their ranks, just to showcase his supposed dominance.

Similarly, it wasn't out of the question that Ryuuen had publicly shared his plan with his own class. His confidence in controlling Class B was ironclad... typical of an arrogant delinquent.

"Horikita-san, what exactly happened back then?" Matsushita still looked puzzled. "I saw you glancing back repeatedly—did Kinoshita do something strange?"

"Ah, yes. The girl behind me, Kinoshita-san, kept calling my name."

As Hikigaya had expected. That would explain why Horikita had looked back so often during the race.

"At first, I tried to ignore her, but after she called a few times, it felt odd. When I turned around, she crashed into me, and… well, here we are." Horikita's voice held a trace of irritation but mostly resignation.

"She did it on purpose," Hikigaya concluded.

"But... why would Kinoshita call your name at all?" Matsushita still didn't understand. "Even if Ryuuen instructed her, wouldn't it have been more effective to attack you without warning? That would increase her chances of success."

"That's because Ryuuen-kun didn't just want me hurt," Horikita replied, her tone calm but with a surprising clarity.

"His real goal was to set me up, much like he did with Sudou-kun's fight."

"Are you saying... Ryuuen had Kinoshita call your name to get you to turn around?" Matsushita began to piece it together.

"Exactly." Horikita nodded. "He wanted this incident to appear as if I had intentionally tripped Kinoshita, rather than her colliding with me from behind."

"So you saw through it and still took the bait?" Matsushita asked curiously.

"No, I don't have some special foresight. I just suspected Ryuuen might pull something during the sports festival, though I didn't know what. It wasn't until after the incident that I started putting things together," Horikita replied with a self-deprecating smile.

"I'd consider myself fairly athletic, but next to Kinoshita, I can't compete. From a bystander's view, it'd be hard to believe she'd intentionally cause such a collision."

Indeed, as a track team member, Kinoshita was a powerhouse, capable of securing high scores for her class. Ryuuen had used this to his advantage, staging the scene to paint her as the injured party and gain sympathy.

If it came to the student council for review, they'd likely factor in these impressions as well.

What struck Hikigaya most, however, was Horikita's newfound awareness of her situation. The old Horikita would never admit someone might outperform her. After all, while Kinoshita might be faster, her overall abilities couldn't match Horikita's by a long shot. But her previous mindset would have trapped her, leading her to think Ryuuen was just trying to sideline her from the upcoming events.

In reality, causing an injury in full view of others would be impractical and hard to control, and without understanding that contradiction, Horikita would've been paralyzed by indecision.

She really had grown a lot.

"So, do you have a plan?" Hikigaya asked abruptly, unable to suppress his curiosity.

Horikita gave him a confident nod. "Yes, I've started preparing. And… thanks to you, Hikigaya-kun, I now have allies I can trust. I'm truly grateful."

"Did you just say 'allies'? Are you sure you didn't hit your head?"

"Of all people, you have no right to question me."

Beside them, Matsushita observed their banter with a blank expression, finding it painfully tedious. She poked Hikigaya in the side with her finger, smirking as she teased, "Oh, Hikigaya-kun, you're one of Horikita-san's reliable allies now, huh?"

"Idiot! She wasn't talking about me," Hikigaya retorted irritably.

This girl can't interpret anything correctly.

"Actually…" Horikita began hesitantly. "The term 'ally' is just a broad term. Strictly speaking, Kushida-san still hasn't fully accepted me, but since we're working toward the same goal… if you're willing—"

"Willing to what?"

"..."

Horikita turned to glare at him in exasperation.

Really… she should know by now; a mere glare won't break his defenses. Hachiman's resilience remains unshakable!