Chapter 61: Anticipation and Jealousy

Leave a Comment / Level 999 / By IX

After the Superhuman Sprint Spirit Sprint ended, I returned to the second-floor cheering section where Class 1-A was located. I was currently cheering for the ongoing event, the “Soulful Ball Monster Bag.” Well, I was a bit separated from the rest of the class.

“The Soulful Ball Monster Bag is reaching its climax! With only three minutes remaining, will a class be able to overturn the rankings?”

The Soulful Ball Monster Bag, like the Superhuman Sprint Spirit Sprint, had a somewhat extravagant name, but in essence, it was just a game of “throwing balls into a basket.” The simple rule was that the class that managed to put the most balls into the basket would win.

However…

“Oh! The students from Class 1-C are having trouble catching the Feather-Eyed Pupil! It seems challenging for them to make a comeback!”

The balls to be put into the basket were not ordinary balls but “Feather-Eyed Pupils,” virtual “magical beasts” created to resemble real magical beasts. They had an appearance with bat-like wings on their eyeballs and were capable of high-speed flight using an internal magical energy furnace. They were programmed to react to the magic elements of magicians and exhibit evasive actions. Due to their small size, they could fly and move at super speeds with minimal magical energy, making them nearly impossible for ordinary people to capture.

I learned about this from Senior Pitaja, who loves studying magical tools. Even for us magicians, capturing a single one is quite difficult. It requires accurate judgment of the situation and skillful use of magic. By the way, if a Feather-Eyed Pupil is accidentally damaged, it doesn’t count towards the score when put in the basket, so “capture” is the essential premise, making it more challenging.

“While many classes are struggling, Class 1-A has surpassed 100 points! Since the previous highest score was 98 points, this is already a new record!”

As such a broadcast flowed, the spectator seats were filled with loud cheers. Hearing those voices, I unintentionally smiled wryly.

“… They’re really getting into it, huh?”

The reaction was completely different from the Superhuman Sprint Spirit Sprint that took place in the training grounds earlier. It’s truly enviable. Moreover, among the participants from Class 1-A this time, Mil was also included. With her wide range of ice magic, she was stopping the movements of Feather-Eyed Pupils and capturing multiple ones at once, earning points. Representative Maron was also there, so with the outstanding performance of the two, Class 1-A was leading by a large margin.

…Mill, she’s really standing out more than me.

I inwardly clenched my teeth in frustration. And then, I suddenly heard the voices of my classmates cheering.

“Go, Maron!”

“Baldanu and Pershi won’t lose!”

“…”

…And Mill, why don’t you cheer for her too?

It sounded like there were only three participants, but the actual participants were Maron, Baldanu, Pershi, and Mill, four people in total. She was completely excluded from the cheering, probably due to being a commoner and standing in the position of scholarship students.

It’s unfortunate, so I should stop this.

“…Go, Mil.”

I cheered for Mill, though it was a small gesture. Perhaps thanks to that, Mill managed to score three times in a row, and the event came to an end. As a result, Class 1-A took first place, with a total score of 112 points, widening the gap by 20 points with the second-place class. We were able to earn more class points and move closer to victory in the Starry blossom Festival.

Afterward, there was a short break until the next event started. While my classmates started chatting with each other, I decided to wait alone until Mil returned. I sat at the back of the spectator seats, which were arranged in a staircase-like manner…

“Hey there!”

“Ah, Poire-san!”

Suddenly, my classmate Poire-san came over from the next seat and called out to me.

As usual, she seemed sleepy.

It was unusual for her to initiate a conversation, so I couldn’t help but tilt my head in confusion.

Poire-san sat down on the seat next to me and yawned as she spoke.

“Congratulations on getting first place.”

“Huh? Ah, you mean the Superhuman Sprint Spirit Sprint. Yeah, thanks.”

It seemed she had heard the results of the previous event from someone. She came to congratulate me for getting first place, and I smiled and thanked her.

“Good job in the competition too, Poire-san. I heard you had a great performance.”

“Well…,” she responded nonchalantly, but I had heard that she achieved remarkable results.

While I was participating in the obstacle race at the training grounds, another event was taking place at the stadium.

There, Poire-san had made a splendid performance that propelled Class 1-A to the top position.

She had garnered a lot of attention from the audience, and I could still feel occasional glances from various directions.

As expected of someone who had obtained the second highest support rate through representative recommendation.

However, Poire-san herself deliberately tried to avoid attention and seemed to shrink beside me.

Could it be…

“…Poire-san, did you come to me because you don’t want to be approached by others?”

“…Talking to Sachi-san doesn’t tire me out much. But talking to others, it’s a bit tiring.”

As she trailed off, Poire-san shrank even further, resembling a small animal.

She had received too much attention due to her previous performance, and it seemed that unwanted interference from strangers had increased.

Because it was tiring for Poire-san, she sought refuge with me, who she could comfortably talk to.

Talking with me didn’t tire her out much. That was somewhat gratifying to hear, but…

“It’s a luxurious concern, huh?”

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, no, I was just thinking that you don’t seem to enjoy being in the spotlight like others. You see, everyone wants to stand out and demonstrate their abilities on this occasion. Do you not have such aspirations, Poire-san?”

I want to become famous in the industry quickly so I can free Mulbury-san from the Forest of Sinners.

“I don’t particularly need to become famous. I enjoy giving it my moderate best during the Starry blossom Festival and then sleeping soundly afterward. That’s the most enjoyable thing for me right now.”

“That’s very much like you, Poire-san… By the way, why did you decide to enter the Magic Academy in the first place?”

My impression of Poire-san was that she was always listless and dozing off.

I didn’t sense any special desire to become a National Magician.

If she didn’t want to become famous as a magician, why did she come to this Magic Academy?

Once again, I received a response that was very much like Poire-san.

“Becoming a National Magician means you can live an easy life.”

“Easy?”

“You receive research funding and money without having to work hard. That way, even if you’re sleeping all the time, you won’t get scolded, right?”

“…I think research funding is meant to be used for research purposes.”

But, yeah, I understand what you’re trying to say.

In essence, you want to become a National Magician to live an easy life and have passive income. That way, you can indulge in your beloved naps all the time.

But being a National Magician is no different from being a direct subordinate of the government, so I think you’ll face various troubles and responsibilities.

I didn’t want to spoil that dream for her, so I didn’t mention these complications.

“Well, I have a rough idea of what you’re aiming for, Poire-san. If that’s the case, it makes sense that you don’t want to stand out.”

“Standing out isn’t always a good thing. When you stand out too much, you have to talk to many people. It reduces your sleeping time, you know?”

“Well, for Poire-san, that could be a big problem.”

Studying less, sleeping more. Eating less, sleeping more. Playing less, sleeping more.

For someone who prioritizes sleep like her, having her sleep time reduced would be akin to torture.

That’s why I feel a sense of happiness that she’s talking to me like this.

As I secretly thought about that, Poire-san seemed to be gazing into the distance and muttered softly.

“Also, a lot of expectations and jealousy will be directed at you.”

“Expectations and jealousy…?”

“When many people are watching you, it means they will have various feelings towards you. That can be tiring and difficult.”

“…”

So, standing out too much isn’t necessarily a good thing.

With her drowsy eyes, Poire-san seemed to imply that as she looked at me.

Well, I feel like I understand what she’s trying to say.

It carried even more conviction coming from Poire-san, who already garnered a lot of attention.

“Standing out too much isn’t good, huh? Yeah, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“…Yeah, that’s good.”

“But you know, in the end, isn’t it the most saddening thing to go unnoticed by anyone? I think indifference is more cruel than expectations or jealousy…”

“Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, there will be more competitions. If it’s Sachi’s abilities, I believe that someday everyone will notice. So, do your best.”

“I hope so…”

With such trivial exchange, we spent the time until the next competition began.