The amplified voice echoed through the floating grandstand.
Words of comfort for the one who had made a mistake. And words of encouragement for the only hope that remained.
For someone holding the position of a student council president, for the very person who sits at the apex of Trinity—a school often perceived as being full of schemers—to say such things, it could easily have been felt as more pressure on the athletes.
And indeed, Saori's mood was not something that could be easily lifted by a single word of comfort.
For the members of Arius Squad, mistakes were unacceptable.
Even the most trivial error would be met with reprimand, and a more serious mistake would be followed by corporal punishment. That was the life they had lived.
This was the kind of mistake that should have been followed by punishment.
But she was being told it was okay. Your performance up until now was more than enough, her savior, a person to whom she felt she owed a debt she could never repay, was shouting to her.
There was no deception in those words.
In order to protect her squad from Beatrice and the Arius instructors who followed her, Saori had been forced to develop a keen sense of intuition. She had known Mika long enough now to be able to tell if her words were sincere.
And that's what made it all the more devastating. The fact that she had failed in a task her savior had so desperately wanted her to succeed in was a feeling that could not be easily soothed, even if Mika herself said it was fine.
"It's okay, big sis! You were so cool yesterday!"
"That's right, there's no need to be so down!"
"You worked so hard…!"
But then, words of comfort began to erupt from the stands, one by one, until they became a wave that washed over Saori. It was a soft, ticklish feeling that soaked into her, like the gentle waves that lap at your toes when you stand barefoot on the shore.
It started with the younger, middle-school-and-below students. Less tainted by Trinity's brand of politics, they had no trouble voicing what they felt. They were followed by the high school students who lived ordinary lives, far removed from politics. Their usual pretense vanished, and swept up in the atmosphere, they too added their words of comfort and cheers for Hifumi.
Eventually, a strange phenomenon occurred: even the children of Trinity's elite began to join in. However, they only did so after a moment of consideration, following the precedent set by Mika, Trinity's de facto leader.
This display from the usually pretentious and prim Trinity students was a novel experience for the students of Gehenna, leaving them with a strange impression. Though none from Gehenna joined in, the atmosphere of encouragement and comfort spread even to the neutral spectator stands.
Faced with the words of comfort from not only the thousands of students from a single academy but also from those who had simply come to enjoy the competition, Saori squeezed her eyes shut.
Though she appeared as if she would remain cool and collected no matter what happened, deep down, she still had the heart of a young girl. The parts of herself that she had been forced to bury in order to survive in Arius were now, very slowly, beginning to surface.
Leaving the other three behind, Saori dismounted her jet ski and, without realizing it, began to walk towards the stands.
There, she saw Atsuko, who had spotted her and was greeting her with a gentle smile.
There was Misaki, who seemed to be avoiding her gaze but was still peeking at her from the corner of her eye.
There was Hiyori, who was clapping with a goofy smile on her face.
And there was Azusa, who, with her usual unreadable expression, was rummaging through her bag for something.
They were all her precious family, the ones who had helped her get to where she was today.
She didn't shed any tears, but as her emotions swelled, Saori's final gaze fell upon Mika, who had joined the commentary booth and was giving her a little wink.
Finally, a small tear welled up in the corner of Saori's eye.
And in that moment.
[Hifumi, you can do it.]
Azusa, who had somehow produced a bullhorn from somewhere, let out a deadpan shout that snapped the emotional Saori back to her senses. Thanks to her, even Hifumi, who had been feeling the pressure, was able to relax again.
Incredibly, Azusa's bizarre act had not only prevented the birth of a new cringeworthy memory for Saori but had also managed to increase Hifumi's chances of winning.
The sight of Saori turning her back to exit towards the athlete waiting room before she could make a scene left everyone with the impression that she looked, somehow, at peace.
A few minutes after I joined the commentary booth, I started to wonder if I had made a mistake.
[A minor issue caused a delay in the proceedings, but it appears we are now ready to resume the race.]
[Are you calling the disqualification of a competitor a 'minor issue'...?]
[She wasn't our academy's representative. So yes, to me, it is a minor issue, Vice-President Hanekawa.]
[…Tch.]
"Well, she's not wrong. No need to get so worked up, Hasumi. When it comes down to it, we all want our own school to win, right?"
Hasumi didn't seem to dislike Gehenna that much, but it was crystal clear that Ako did not have a favorable opinion of Trinity. It was a wonder they'd been able to continue commentating together at all. Now that I was here, the role of mediator had fallen to me, and frankly, it was a pain.
Well, Ako is basically a chihuahua who barks at everything, so maybe I don't need to mediate at all.
[With the disqualification of Joumae Saori, all our previous predictions have become meaningless. As things stand, even if the Gehenna representatives fail to unite, Ajitani Hifumi, now left all alone, will be facing a significant uphill battle.]
[Without a teammate to help break through the opponent's blockade, her chances will plummet the moment one of the two Gehenna representatives gives up on the gold and focuses on interfering. The only problem is that it seems unlikely those two would resort to such an obvious and effective method…]
"By the way, you two are in your school uniforms. That's a little disappointing, you know."
[P-Pardon?]
[Y-You shameless woman! As if our Head Prefect isn't enough for you— Ahem. Lady Mika, would you please refrain from making comments unrelated to the race? You're breaking the audience's immersion.]
Ding. Ding. Ding.
[Ah, the starting signal…!]
Diiiiing—
"And we're off!"
The delay before the signal felt longer than usual. It wasn't just my imagination. It was as if it had waited until the very last second.
[The race has begun! Taking a slight lead at the start is Ajitani Hifumi! Following close behind are the two representatives from Gehenna.]
"Looks like Hifumi managed to overcome the pressure of being alone. That's my junior for you!"
[It seems likely this formation will hold until the first corner. All three competitors are accelerating smoothly. In the lead, Ajitani Hifumi has taken the inside lane, carefully controlling her speed to maintain the optimal velocity for the corner without giving up too much of her lead.]
[Perhaps judging that an overtake at the first corner would be impossible if this formation holds, Wanibuchi Akari suddenly accelerates, shattering the pace Ajitani Hifumi had maintained! It remains to be seen if she can handle that speed, however.]
[Wanibuchi Akari has already proven her skill in today's earlier races, as well as in the 2-person jet ski event. As if mocking the rule that straying from the holographic course results in an out-of-bounds disqualification, she has already pulled off several borderline drifts… yes, just like that.]
Akari, having successfully executed a dangerous drift that looked as if she would capsize at any moment, continued to accelerate. Surprisingly, Iroha was calmly following behind Hifumi as they rounded the first corner.
[She managed to stay on course again… As frustrating as it is, it seems she's confident she can handle her own pace. Wanibuchi Akari retakes the lead.]
[…Senior Administrator Amau, you don't seem to be rooting for the Gehenna representative to win?]
[Of course, I am. I sincerely hope those two troublemakers bring home a medal. The Prefect Team has invested in them, so they'd better deliver!]
However, the course for this race was on a different level of complexity from the opening match or the 2-person jet ski race. In the S-curve section, they were forced to slow down, and in the near-90-degree turns, not everyone could take the inside lane, causing their positions to shift.
[Perhaps the challenging course has finally forced them to be more discerning. The rankings of the three competitors are constantly changing, but what's noteworthy here is Natsume Iroha's position. She hasn't attempted an overtake yet, fluctuating between second and third, but she has navigated every corner almost flawlessly.]
[Indeed… just as Senior Administrator Amau said, while the other two have made one or two minor mistakes, Natsume Iroha has had no noticeable errors. Ajitani Hifumi is likely aware of this, but…]
"Well, Hifumi doesn't really have the luxury of worrying about Iroha right now. She's currently locked in a battle for the lead with Akari. If she gets distracted by anything else, she'll lose the lead for good."
As the race passed the halfway point and entered its final stage, a noticeable change occurred. Iroha, the only one who had been maintaining a relaxed posture, finally sat up, shifting her balance forward. I wasn't the only one who noticed this change.
[Natsume Iroha has changed her posture for the first time! Her cornering has become a little more precarious, but she's gaining an advantage in maintaining her speed.]
[It seems the saying 'even a slowpoke has its tricks' wasn't wrong. I never thought that lazybones could display this level of skill. The Head Prefect's eye for talent is truly amazing.]
"Hey, Ako. Are you even trying to hide your bias anymore?"
There were five corners left. Akari was currently in the lead, but the three of them were so close that the rankings could change at any moment.
[With the results impossible to predict as the rankings shift back and forth, Natsume Iroha takes the lead! Following close behind, Ajitani Hifumi blocks Wanibuchi Akari just before the final corner… what just happened!?]
[…That was an incredibly bold move from that competitor. She momentarily slowed down, putting pressure on Wanibuchi Akari, and then accelerated sharply. Startled, Wanibuchi Akari's speed dropped significantly, and it seems her ranking is now set.]
The jumbotron showed Hifumi's face as she sealed Akari's medal color with her dangerous maneuver. The sight of her maniacal, joyful smile stunned the audience.
"As they pass the final corner, the two competitors are fighting for the lead! It's a breathtaking race where either one could cross the finish line first… You can do it, Hifumi!!!"
[…Lady Mika, please mute your microphone. Right now.]
[I'm afraid I must agree.]
Ah, my mic.
Putting aside the sorrow of having my microphone confiscated, I focused on the outcome of the race.
Hifumi and Iroha, pushing their jet skis to the absolute limit to prevent the other from taking the lead, sped towards the finish line.
[They've crossed! The two competitors cross the finish line at almost the exact same time… To the naked eye, it looks like a draw, but it seems the machine has already determined a winner.]
The moment of the finish appeared on the jumbotron. And the name of the confirmed winner was…
[The winner of the 1-person jet ski finals is Ajitani Hifumi!]
[…Tch, that useless, lazy tanuki.]
The undisputed, best driver of Trinity.
The goddess of the racetrack.
My proud junior, Hifumi.
…As an aside, the moment Hifumi was confirmed as the winner, I started cheering so loud that I was kicked out of the commentary booth.
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