With a light sense of weightlessness, my left, ski-clad foot touched the water's surface. The spray kicked up, a pleasant coolness washing over me. I focused on balancing, the tip of my right foot carving through the cool current.
I placed my right foot on the back of the ski and folded my wings as far back as they would go. The basic stance required leaning back, and leaving my wings open would just create drag.
I glanced diagonally and saw Hina, a little ahead of me, had already found her balance. Her eyes met mine, and with an impassive look, she let go of the tow rope with one hand and raised her machine gun.
Damn, I was a little slower on the start. Seeing that I had my balance, Hifumi started to pick up speed, but the gap had already begun to widen.
Rather than rush to ready my weapon, I leaned my body and pulled on the tow rope to create some distance. With the speed we'd already picked up, the sea breeze buffeted me fiercely.
Whizzz—
Through the roar of the wind, I heard a familiar sound from my right. Hina, in the strange stance of holding the tow rope with her left hand and propping her gun on her right arm, had opened fire.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!!!
As the merciless volley of machine-gun fire rained down on me, I leaned further, my body skimming just above the water's surface. The tow rope pulled taut, yanking my body to the right, but the ski continued its path to the left, widening the distance between us.
Each of Hina's enchanted bullets that struck the water next to me sent up a small pillar of water, as if a mortar shell had landed.
The moment Hina's firing paused, I let go with one hand. My body wobbled for a second, but I wouldn't fall from something like this. Before she could resume firing, I aimed my gun at her and pulled the trigger.
Not a wild spray, but a precise burst. In this completely new combat environment, my accuracy would be terrible either way. Hina's own shooting, which hadn't landed a single hit despite her stable stance, had already proven that. So the goal was to just…
"Ugh?!"
My posture broke for a second. A quick glance showed Hina was in the same boat. Our boats had just passed the first holographic checkpoint and had begun a sharp turn.
Naturally, my body was pulled in the direction of the curve, inevitably closing the distance between me and Hina. This was exactly what I'd been waiting for.
At this range, I can land at least five shots.
With that thought, I held on to the tow rope and unleashed a torrent of bullets, trying to match Hina's path.
Swoooosh—
Damn. The timing was slightly off.
Because we were on the inside lane, Hifumi had already started accelerating in a straight line again after I'd only managed to land about three shots, not the five I'd hoped for.
I couldn't blame Hifumi. This was a competition, but it was also a race. Being even slightly ahead was a step closer to victory. The only problem was that the faster we went, the greater the strain on those of us being pulled behind!
I clenched my hand on the tow rope, bracing myself, and flipped my gun to a reverse grip. Then, I switched the hand holding the rope.
From experience, this was the most dangerous moment. Reloading, already a difficult task with my small hands, had to be done in this awkward position while fending off an opponent. If I lost my balance and fell but held onto the rope, the match wasn't over. But if I let go of the rope, it was as good as finished.
Calmly, with my now-free hand, I quickly formed three clusters of stars and sent them flying toward Hina. Her eyes widened, and she leaned sharply to dodge. It looked like she was trying to create distance, but having just come out of the corner, she had a ways to go.
BOOM!
From the sound of it, two of the star clusters missed and hit the water, but one seemed to have scored a direct hit. Regardless, my hands moved without hesitation, grabbing a magazine from my belt and finishing the reload.
Click-clack.
Reload complete, I checked Hina's position. I hadn't heard a splash, so she probably hadn't lost her balance, but I figured the explosion must have obscured her vision and hindered her at least a little. A normal student would have at least lost their balance from that, but this was Hina. With her monstrous durability, she would have just shrugged it off.
Whizzz— Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!!!
Jeez, she really took a direct hit and recovered in just a few seconds. Not missing the opportunity our now-closer proximity provided, Hina opened fire while simultaneously pulling away again.
The barrage from the now-distant Hina subsided. It seemed a few bullets had hit me squarely in the leg, as it felt a little weaker. She must have been aiming for my arms and legs, the most effective targets.
"Pfft."
A laugh escaped me. The thrill of speeding across the water while exchanging fire was incredible. If they just ironed out the rules, I could easily see this becoming a proper summer sport in Kivotos.
I could just make out the second checkpoint approaching. This time, we were slightly ahead and entering the corner on the outside. I had to make full use of that.
The sight of Hina, somehow managing to lift her back foot while on a single ski to reload her machine gun, was absurd enough to make me chuckle. But before she could get into a firing stance, the corner was upon us.
Timing it perfectly, I cut through the wake of the boat, rapidly closing the distance to Hina. Touching another team's tow rope was against the rules, so I leaned my body until it was almost horizontal, kicking up a massive spray of water. With my gun hand, I fired indiscriminately in Hina's general direction. Accuracy didn't matter. With her vision blocked by the water, even one or two hits would be a success.
As we rounded the corner, the positions of our boats evened out again, and I could feel the distance between me and Hina closing. I emptied the magazine, then straightened up.
I put pressure on my front foot, still locked into the ski, and sharply changed the ski's direction, carving through the water once more.
Now back at the same distance as when the race started, I began to reload and looked over at Hina. She looked annoyed, but she was also smiling. I could see the tips of her wings, which were now much larger than before, dipping into the water and creating their own spray.
…What is that?
Don't tell me those wings are helping her balance while under fire. That would be a total foul. It's so unfair that my wings are just a hindrance while hers are actually helpful.
Hina and I aimed at each other simultaneously. Ten checkpoints remaining. This was going to be a long fight.
My body lurched violently. The two boats were racing at what felt like double their initial speed, a breakneck pace that made the race truly harrowing. The strain had increased to the point that taking a single bullet could completely throw off my balance.
We had just passed a checkpoint, leaving only one more to go. After that, it was a straight shot to the finish line. It was obvious that the match would be decided at this final checkpoint.
I had the magazine I just loaded, plus one more. I couldn't be sure about Hina's condition, but she couldn't have much left either. Assuming she started with the same number of magazines as me, she probably had about half a magazine more than I did.
Even if we ran out of ammo, we could still use our Mystery for explosive attacks, but that wasn't an infinite resource. Against an opponent like Hina, every single bullet had to be imbued with Mystery to have any meaningful effect. After emptying our magazines, we'd have enough energy for maybe two or three explosive attacks at most. By the time we recovered, the race would be long over.
The key was whether we could take down the other person with our final magazines, but honestly, I was skeptical. At this rate, I felt like the winner would be decided by our drivers.
Whizzz—
The moment I heard the sound of Hina's shot, my body reacted, and I instantly swerved the ski. I had somehow managed to master a pretty advanced technique. I wonder if my instructor would be impressed.
THUD!
The sound made me look ahead, and I gasped in shock.
I had just said that the race would likely be decided by our drivers.
But I never said they should ram their boats into each other while going what felt like a hundred kilometers per hour…!!!
(Hifumi's POV)
Ajitani Hifumi's assessment of herself was as follows: an ordinary student, in every sense of the word.
Not particularly stunning, not a genius like Hanako, not a combat expert like Azusa. Just a perfectly, utterly ordinary student with no special talents.
Hifumi did not dislike this ordinariness. In fact, she cherished it.
But even she had someone she looked up to. A reliable upperclassman she'd met in front of a café one day, who became a precious friend, and an idol she wanted to emulate.
That very person had come to her and asked her to be her partner for the festival's opening exhibition match. She had asked her to drive the boat.
Hifumi could not refuse the offer. Nor did she want to.
And so, she learned how to drive a boat. Surprisingly, it came to her with incredible ease. It was a strange feeling. To think that even she, the ordinary Hifumi, had something she was good at.
But now, with just one checkpoint to go, the race was still neck and neck. Her idol, Mika-senpai, was even stronger than she had imagined, and her opponent, the Head Prefect of Gehenna, was every bit her equal. The only problem was that the opposing driver was also a formidable opponent.
Hifumi glanced to the side and felt her confidence waver. Her opponent was driving with one hand, leisurely reading a book. She had been doing so since the start of the race, without ever putting the book down.
'Aww… this won't do. I have to repay Mika-senpai for trusting in me…!'
For Mika-senpai's sake, she had to win.
'Hifumi! If we win this, I'll get you any Peroro merchandise you want. Limited edition, whatever, it doesn't matter.'
For the Peroro merchandise, she had to win.
Ajitani Hifumi would absolutely not accept defeat.
THUD!
"...What do you think you're doing?"
"Aww… Um, well…"
For the first time, the opposing driver closed her book and fixed a cold stare on her. At that moment, Hifumi felt a strange sense of exhilaration.
"I…"
"Sigh… what a pain… Why are you getting so fired up now of all times?"
"I… want Mika-senpai to win."
"I'm afraid that's not going to happen. I have my own reasons for needing to win this race. The Head Prefect promised me something, you see."
"And… I want Lord Peroro's merchandise…!"
"...What?"
THUD! SCREEEEEE—
"Kyaa?! St-Stop it! What are you doing all of a sudden?!"
"Aww… Lord Perorooooo!!!!!"
In that moment, awakened by her obsession with Peroro, Hifumi's skill surpassed its limits. Iroha, momentarily intimidated, felt a crack in her pride as a tank commander.
"...Fine. It's a pain, but if you want to settle this like that, then I'll play along for a bit."
Iroha put down her book and, for the first time, gripped the wheel with both hands.
The already breakneck speed of the two boats began to accelerate without end. The two skiers, who had started to wobble from the recoil, were no longer a concern for the drivers. A meaningless battle, just as intense as the one for pride unfolding behind them, had just ignited at the front as the race neared its end.
The moment they passed the final checkpoint, Hina and Mika, unable to withstand the insane, ever-increasing speed, lost their balance and fell into the water, completely unnoticed by their drivers.
The two drivers' pride collided. A showdown between two prideful, genius drivers.
CRRRRAAAAASSSSHHH!!!
The showdown ended about fifty meters from the finish line, with both boats capsizing simultaneously.
The result of the opening match was a completely, utterly anticlimactic draw.
There was no winner, and no loser.
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