"Wow!"
"That guy, Utsunomiya, how strong is he?!"
Listening to the exclamations of the surrounding students and looking at Asagiri Utsunomiya standing there, a thought suddenly sprouted in Kaguya Shinomiya's mind.
'This guy... Possessing physical and athletic abilities far exceeding that of a normal high school student... Could it be.... he's also a Player?'
But as soon as this thought appeared, Kaguya Shinomiya dismissed it.
How could that be?
If Asagiri Utsunomiya were really a Player, he shouldn't have been so inconspicious. Why would he make such attention-grabbing remarks and actions on the first day of school, and then go train in the school gym in the afternoon, openly displaying physical abilities far exceeding the level of a normal high school student in front of so many people?
After learning the entrance exam results, Kaguya Shinomiya had instructed her personal maid, Ai Hayasaka, to investigate Asagiri Utsunomiya's junior high school records.
Tennis, basketball, badminton—winning the Junior High National Championship two consecutive periods in all these three sports, and the impressive record of getting into a fight with five delinquents from outside the school and sending them all to the hospital without sustaining any serious injuries himself.
This means that if Asagiri Utsunomiya's outstanding physical ability was truly obtained through the Game, wouldn't that mean he became a Player in his second year of middle school?
Impossible!
The reason Kaguya Shinomiya thought it was impossible was simple: she couldn't be sure if she was among the first batch of chosen Players, but she was certain that the Game and its dungeons hadn't been around for long and were still in the early stages.
Otherwise, among the many Players who had obtained special powers, there would always be those who weren't cautious enough and would expose their special powers in the real world. Also, the Players who died in the dungeons, whether their bodies returned to the real world or they simply disappeared, would definitely attract the attention of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.
So...
Asagiri Utsunomiya's outstanding physical and athletic abilities were simply because his talent was originally excellent. Looking at it from another perspective, his usual style of not being low-key and always attracting attention around him made Kaguya Shinomiya feel that if he were a Player, he definitely wouldn't act like this.
It appeared that... Asagiri Utsunomiya was not a Player like herself.
For some reason, after confirming this, Kaguya Shinomiya felt relieved, but at the same time, there was an indescribable sense of loss in her heart. She didn't understand why she felt this way. Perhaps she felt that if Asagiri Utsunomiya, who had defeated her in the entrance exam, were also a Player, their rivalry would be very interesting.
While Kaguya Shinomiya was silently pondering, Asagiri Utsunomiya, who was in the center of the arena, had already walked over to the muscular boy.
Just as everyone expected him to humiliate and mock his defeated opponent, Asagiri Utsunomiya bowed slightly and extended one hand to the boy.
"Get up."
"Utsunomiya..."
The muscular boy sat slumped on the ground, staring at Asagiri Utsunomiya's outstretched hand with a somewhat complicated expression, then smiled self-deprecatingly and said, "As expected, I was overconfident, thinking I could defeat you..."
"No, you're wrong." Asagiri Utsunomiya first denied it with a shake of his head, then said patiently, "Even though you lost to me, as the victor, I still respect your determination and courage to challenge me. This determination and courage are something I will never underestimate or mock. After all, we are only opponents, not enemies."
"Utsunomiya..." The muscular boy couldn't help but feel moved. He grabbed Asagiri Utsunomiya's hand and, after being pulled by him, held it tightly and said earnestly, "Utsunomiya, thank you for the lesson."
Asagiri Utsunomiya responded with a nod and said, "Mm, likewise."
Seeing this scene, the boys in Class 1-A couldn't help but show complicated expressions. The boy who had been lectured by Asagiri Utsunomiya on the first day of school couldn't help but exclaim.
"Utsunomiya... is so charismatic..."
"This is how a battle between men should be."
"Even after achieving victory, he doesn't belittle his opponent's determination and courage... Utsunomiya's words are like the lines of the protagonist in a hot-blooded manga! Just listening to them makes me a little excited!"
Listening to the boys' words and seeing the admiration and longing in their eyes as they looked at Asagiri Utsunomiya, Kaguya Shinomiya couldn't help but frown slightly, thinking, 'how could something like this happen?'
At first, most of the boys in the class, if not outright hating Asagiri Utsunomiya, at least didn't have a good impression of him.
As a result, after just one self-defense class, a brief spar that didn't even last a round, plus his words after it ended, his reputation was completely reversed just like that?
Those words... were they that magical?
Kaguya Shinomiya actually scoffed inwardly at the words Asagiri Utsunomiya had just said.
What determination? What courage?
Winning is winning; losing is losing.
So-called determination and courage are just boring words used to comfort the defeated.
"Iwanaga-san, let's start practicing too."
Seeing Kaguya Shinomiya look at her and say this, Kotoko Iwanaga, looking resigned, shook her head and said with a smile, "Ara, Shinomiya-san, have you forgotten? I have a physical disability and can't participate in overly strenuous sports~"
"Then why did you volunteer to be in a group with me?"
"I'm being considerate of you." After saying this, Kotoko Iwanaga raised her index finger and added in a matter-of-fact tone, "Think about it, you're the young lady of the Shinomiya Family. If someone is in a group with you, everyone will inevitably worry about being too rough during practice and accidentally injuring you, right? So, since everyone is worried about this and no one wants to be in a group with you, and conveniently, no one wants to be in a group with me either, let's just reluctantly form a group together, the two of us who are rejected and have flaws~"
Kaguya Shinomiya replied expressionlessly, in a tone devoid of emotional fluctuation, "Iwanaga-san, I don't have flaws."
Kotoko Iwanaga looked directly into Kaguya Shinomiya's eyes, smiled meaningfully, and said, "Perhaps that's the case, if you're only talking about your body."
◆◇◈◇◆
Sunday, in Tokyo, at the entrance of a two-story detached house.
*Ding, dong~*
"Coming."
Megumi Kato exclaimed as she approached the front door. As she arrived, she gently opened the door of the house without removing the security chain and looked out through the slightly open gap.
Seeing the handsome boy standing outside, and beside him, a tall, well-proportioned girl with long flaxen hair, and another girl with light brown short curly hair, who was petite and looked like a junior high student, Megumi Kato couldn't help but be startled. After she recovered, she asked, "Excuse me... who are you looking for?"
"Don't you recognize us? Right, you haven't seen our real faces."
Hearing the words of the handsome boy, who was no other than Asagiri Utsunomiya, filled with amusement, Megumi Kato looked at the two girls standing there. Their familiar hairstyles and hair colors immediately made her recall what happened last Sunday.
"So it's you... You actually came to find me."
When Megumi Kato said that, her expression was very calm.
Immediately after, she said in a gentle tone, "Please wait a moment."
Megumi Kato closed the front door, removed the security chain fastened on it, and opened the door again.
"Please come in. My dad went to work, and my mom went to a hot spring with some neighboring aunts. They should be back tonight."
Hearing Magumi Kato say that, Asuna Yuuki tucked a strand of long hair behind her ear, nodded politely, and said, "Mm, excuse us for intruding."
Following that, Asuna Yuuki, Asagiri Utsunomiya, and Kotoko Iwanaga entered the door together. Before the three of them could speak, Megumi Kato proactively took out three pairs of disposable slippers from the shoe cabinet in the entrance hall, bent down, and placed them on the floor in front of the three.
"Do you want to change your shoes? It's okay if you don't. I'm going to clean up later anyway."
Hearing the words spoken by Megumi Kato in a calm voice, Asuna Yuuki smiled, nodded, and said, "Let's change them."
After the three of them changed into their disposable slippers, they went up to the second floor with Megumi Kato and entered her bedroom.
"Please sit down for a moment. I'll get you some drinks and snacks," Megumi said before leaving her bedroom.
After Megumi Kato left her bedroom, Asuna Yuuki couldn't help but carefully observe the bedroom and said thoughtfully, "Kato-san's house, and her room, are just like the feeling she gives people. What word should I use to describe it..."
"Ordinary?"
"Yes, yes, yes, that's the word." Asuna Yuuki first responded as if enlightened, then stared at Asagiri Utsunomiya and teased him half-jokingly, "You can actually think of using the word ordinary to describe a girl. Your thought process is really unusual."
"This is called precise judgment. I can also sum up your biggest characteristics in one sentence."
Hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's words, Kotoko Iwanaga and Asuna Yuuki both showed curiosity, the latter pressing on, saying, "Then summarize us?"
"You." Asagiri Utsunomiya pointed at Asuna Yuuki. "Love-brained Young Lady."
Before Asuna Yuuki could reply, he pointed at Kotoko Iwanaga again.
"As for you... Lewd Joke Loli."
Asuna Yuuki and Kotoko Iwanaga both opened their mouths to refute after hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's evaluation of them, but after thinking carefully...
What he said seemed to be correct, but they still had to be stubborn.
"Who's love-brained?"
"I'm not a loli! I'm a mature high school girl!"
After the two of them each delivered their rebuttals, before Asagiri Utsunomiya could reply, Asuna Yuuki looked at Kotoko Iwanaga, and her eyes were filled with doubt as she said, "You... were really a loli, right? With your junior high... no, elementary school-like appearance and figure, who would believe you're a high school girl?"
Kotoko Iwanaga's biggest weakness was having her loli figure brought up by others. She immediately retorted. "Hmm? What do you mean? What do you know? Asagiri-san likes flat ones like me!"
Hearing something outrageous, Asagiri couldn't help but think, '...Is that so? How come I, the person involved, don't know?'