Chapter 15: A whirlwind of Clubs
Translated by algoo | Proofread by algoo
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Arriving at the basketball court, we changed into our gym clothes in the locker room and stepped out onto the court.
…But, I had a hunch, and it turned out to be true. Couple’s gym clothes.
“Eugene’s little brother, please sit here. It’s okay to just watch today!”
Airi’s bright smile was a stark contrast to her usual slightly subdued expression.
Is Airi part of the basketball club? Seeing the basketball club members greet her warmly, it seems likely.
Basketball… I’ve played it before.
I quit after I broke my pinky finger when the ball hit it wrong.
‘…Airi is incredibly good.’
Even to a beginner’s eye, the stark difference in skill between Airi and the others was evident.
Taller than the others by at least a head, with long limbs. Come to think of it, she has the perfect physique for basketball.
“Wow.”
A fiery dunk shot.
I heard it’s actually really difficult, but why does it look so easy when Airi does it?
After making the shot, Airi exchanged feedback with the other basketball club members and resumed the game. This repeated several times.
It wasn’t boring just watching, so before I knew it, an hour had passed.
“Eugene’s little brother! How was it!?”
Clap, clap, clap—
“It was amazing, amazing!”
“Hehe… Ehehe…”
What the, that’s cute.
She was moving so coolly just now, but what’s with this gap?
“Then, shall we go to the tennis club now?”
“Huh?”
Tennis club? Why?
“Come on, we don’t have time!”
Airi grabbed my hand and started running at a fast pace.
It felt great running across the wide field while being seen off by the basketball club members… but why are we going to the tennis club!?
“Airi, why the tennis club…?”
“I promised to help them with practice today.”
“Ah…?”
She’s part of the basketball club but also helps the tennis club with practice, is that it? Since Airi is kind, she probably agreed to such a request…
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A short while later, we arrived at the tennis club.
About six members applauded and welcomed us as soon as they saw Airi.
“Lady Airi! And, Sir Eugene too! Ah… What happiness is this!”
“Indeed! Ah, what supreme bliss…!”
The problem is that the people who greeted us were the owners of the voices I heard in the restroom.
You guys, were you in the tennis club…?
“Eugene’s little brother, I’ll be watching the captain’s practice, so would you like to play tennis with Clara while you’re there? She’s also skilled, so it’ll be fine even if you’re a beginner.”
“Sir Eugene! I will be gentle with you!”
“…Magnanimously.”
The atmosphere was such that I couldn’t refuse.
With so many eyes watching, they probably won’t try to eat me alive, right…? Scary.
In the end, we started playing tennis, Clara and I, using an entire court.
Along with four spectators, excluding Airi and the captain who were practicing.
You guys should practice too.
“Sir Eugene, please hit the ball with all your might! I can receive it however much you give!”
Sawa, sawa.
…In Japanese, this would be like desu wa~ desu wa~, right? I thought it would sound really strange if I actually heard it, but Clara’s bun hair and somewhat aristocratic appearance make it kind of suit her.
“Here goes!”
Regardless of her speech, I swung my racket towards the ball with all my strength.
I don’t particularly like moving my body, but tennis is something I can enjoy lightly.
“Ha!”
The ball, which was heading towards the opponent’s side after hitting my racket, was instantly struck by Clara’s racket, which had moved in front of the ball, and returned to my side.
Strangely, at a speed slow enough for me to hit.
“Yah!”
And the rally continues.
I was a beginner, so my shots were terrible, and the ball occasionally flew out of bounds, but Clara never missed a single ball and always sent it back to me.
No matter what angle I hit the ball, it always flew towards me at a speed I could manage, so I knew she was playing a welcoming game. But, it was fun.
‘What is this?’
Thwack—!
Thwack—!
‘This is fun!’
So tennis was such an enjoyable sport.
Pleasantly moving my body, I felt energized throughout.
I haven’t done any exercise other than dabbling in basketball after watching Slam Dunk, but this feels like it could become a new hobby.
“Ah, I lost.”
After several rallies, the ball finally bounced twice on Clara’s side.
…No, that’s not it.
“Clara, you could have hit that ball just now, right?”
“Y, yes?”
“I want to see Clara’s true strength.”
“…True strength?”
“Yes.”
Did she read the determination in my eyes? Clara, who was smiling leisurely, picked up the ball and looked at me with burning eyes.
Her fighting spirit made my whole body flinch, and I wanted to run away immediately, but I gripped my racket firmly.
“Here I go!”
Whoosh—!
A powerful smash, completely different in speed and power from the previous rallies.
The ball whizzed past me in an instant, bounced off the ground, and disappeared into the distance.
Thud—
“S, Sir Eugene! Are you alright!?”
The tension made my legs weak, and I collapsed. Clara approached and helped me up.
This is a ball with true strength behind it.
“Amazing…”
“…Yes?”
“Clara, you’re amazing! I couldn’t even see it properly.”
I hugged her slender waist tightly and looked up at her.
When I first saw her, I was mostly scared, but now respect was welling up inside me.
“S, Sir Eugene…?”
“Can I come again and ask you to practice with me? I want to be able to hit Clara’s serious shots someday.”
“B, by all means!”
“Hehe, thank you.”
Squeeze—
I’m glad I followed Airi today.
I feel like I’ve found a good hobby.
“Eugene’s little brother, you look like you’re having fun…”
“Ah.”
While I was hugging Clara and enjoying the gentle strokes on my head, I couldn’t help but turn my head at the intense gaze I felt from beside me.
Airi, who was glaring at me, pulled me out of Clara’s arms, hugged me tightly, and bowed to the tennis club members.
“Everyone, I’ll see you next time.”
“…Thank you for your hard work, Lady Airi.”
“Good work!”
“Clara~ See you next time!”
As I was being carried away in Airi’s embrace, I waved to Clara.
…Hey, Clara. Everything’s good, but could you please stop staring at me while drooling? It’s scary.
“Hey, Airi.”
“What is it?”
“Where are we going next?”
“Well, next is the kendo club, then the judo club, then the fencing club, then the rhythmic…”
“Stop, stop!”
I stopped Airi’s mouth with my hand as she continued to list off the names of other athletic clubs.
No way, Seo-ah and I only visited three clubs yesterday. Are we going to all of those in one day?
“…Airi, you were in the basketball club, right?”
“Yes? I like basketball, but I’m not in the club.”
“…Then the tennis club?”
“Fufu, the same goes for tennis.”
So, she was helping them all out of goodwill? And she’s mastered all sports enough to help club captains with their practice?
…I thought Airi was a literature-loving girl who hated exercise like me, but she turned out to be an incredible sports girl.
“Eugene’s little brother, let me tell you again, we’re out of time!”
“Save me…”
In the end, I followed Airi around and ended up visiting eight more athletic clubs.
It wasn’t just watching; I participated as well… Maybe they excluded basketball because I might get hurt.
“I’m tired…”
“Fufu, you’ve worked hard today, Eugene’s little brother.”
I was so exhausted that even walking was difficult, so I ended up being carried on Airi’s back as she moved somewhere else.
Airi said the next place would be fine just to watch… I hope she’s right.
“Airi, is this the last one…?”
The sun was starting to set.
“It’s the last one. Because it’s the club I’m the captain of.”
“Airi is!?”
At those words, endorphins rushed through my body, and my tired eyes snapped open.
The all-around sports girl Airi is a captain!? How good is she… I’m curious!
“Yes. I’d be happy if you were interested and joined the club, Eugene’s little brother… Hehe.”
“Hmm, I’ll see.”
Come to think of it, I can join clubs too.
I hadn’t even thought about it because I was busy following the Stella members every day.
…There aren’t any clubs that have particularly caught my interest yet.
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“Here it is.”
“…The Kyudo Club?”
The place we arrived at with Airi was the Kyudo Club, which had its own large building.
It felt like a place with history and tradition.
“The other members are at a competition, so they won’t be here today. Feel free to sit wherever you like!”
A competition? Then why is Airi… It can’t be that she didn’t go because of me.
“Um, Airi, is it okay that you’re not at the competition?”
“Fufu, I’ve already won that competition several times, so I gave the opportunity to others.”
Ah, so that’s it.
I would have been angry if she had given up because of me.
“Eugene’s little brother, please wait a moment!”
After bringing me a cushion, Airi busily moved around.
About five minutes passed? When she reappeared, Airi was dressed in something I’d often seen in Japanese manga.
Kyudo clothing with a white top and black bottom, a chest protector.
And a bow as tall as me.
“You shoot something that big?”
“Yes. Once you get used to it, it’s fine!”
I don’t think I could even pull the string.
“Eugene’s little brother, please watch. I’ll lightly shoot three arrows!”
After briefly looking at the distant target, Airi closed her eyes.
The sight of her holding the bow with her eyes closed looked like a picture, and I couldn’t help but let out a gasp of admiration.
“Wow…”
Creak, creak…
As Airi opened her eyes again and pulled the bowstring, the large bow began to bend with a loud noise.
A moment later, as she released her hand, the arrow flew like lightning.
Thwack—!
The arrow, flying at an almost invisible speed, hit the center of the target, making me gasp in admiration once more.
Thwack, thwack—!
The following two arrows also hit the center of the target without fail. Even as a complete novice, I could immediately tell how amazing this was, and just how skilled Airi was.
Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap—!
“Amazing! Amazing, Airi!”
“Fuu…”
After exhaling a long breath, Airi turned to face me. Beads of sweat dotted her face, but even that looked beautiful.
Airi in her element is this cool.
“How was it, Eugene’s little brother! Do you feel like joining the Kyudo Club!?”
“…It might be a little difficult.”
“W, why!?”
“The bow is too big…”
“Ah…”
I want to try shooting it once, but it’s physically impossible.
“W, we can make a bow specifically for Sir Eugene!”
“But, there are regulations for that, right? If it’s made for me, it’ll have to be incredibly small, and that’s not allowed, is it?”
“…Is that so.”
“Yeah. But, Airi was really cool just now.”
“Cool…”
After holding her cheeks in embarrassment for a moment, Airi approached me and knelt down.
She met my gaze at eye level and stared intently at me. For some reason, she looked cool, so I turned my head away.
“Eugene’s little brother. We haven’t hugged yet today.”
“…That’s true.”
“Can I hug you now?”
Thump, thump—
I haven’t even given her permission yet.
As if she already knew I would agree, Airi took off her chest protector and threw it on the floor.
…It can’t be helped.
“Okay.”
Squeeze—
Thump, thump—
“Airi, a little gentler…”
“Ah, I’m sorry…”
Airi’s hug was too strong, so I asked her to loosen her grip a little. But even though I said that…
“…I’m sorry. Actually, hug me a little tighter.”
Feeling somewhat unsatisfied, I ended up asking her again. I’m sorry, I’m fickle.
“Ah, ah…”
Sniff, sniff… Ha.
Airi, burying her nose in my hair and sniffing, was still a pervert.
But for some reason, I didn’t feel like pulling away.
“…Catherine took off the bandage last time, right?”
“Huh…?”
“As expected… It was a different brand from my bandages. After that, only you and Catherine were left in the dormitory.”
…Airi’s smart. And scary.
“Eugene’s little brother, if it hurts… I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”
Crunch—
“Ugh…”
Chomp, chomp—…
Hot.
My neck is hot. It hurts. It’s itchy.
If I had any energy left today, I would have pushed her away immediately.
But I don’t have the strength. So please, be gentle….
“Ha… I’ll put a bandage on you again.”
A silver bridge stretched between Airi and my neck.
Why do perverts like my neck so much?
“…Hurry up and put it on.”
Should I start wearing a scarf or something?
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