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[Game] Chapter 272: A Smooth Victory
🕑 Added 2025-06-29 17:55:30 +0000 UTCAlthough her relationship with her mother had improved a great deal compared to a year ago, Yukino still hadn’t expected her to show up at the school sports festival in person.
At the same time, she noticed her older sister Haruno sitting between their mother and Utaha.
Was this Haruno’s doing?
The thought crossed Yukino’s mind but was dismissed within three seconds. Her mother wasn’t someone who could be persuaded that easily.
Even though the distance between them was a bit far, Yukino could clearly feel her mother’s gaze locked onto her. That alone was enough to make her tense up from sheer reflex—something drilled into her from childhood. Her warm-up movements unconsciously became stiff.
Soon, at the referee’s call, the eight girls competing in the final lined up at the starting line.
Yukino couldn’t help but glance over at her mother again.
And in that moment, she saw her mother looking directly at her, and even moving her lips.
Although she couldn’t hear anything, Yukino somehow instinctively understood what she was saying:
“Do your best.”
Stunned for a brief moment, the anxiety that had built up inside her slowly began to melt away. Yukino lowered herself into the starting position, feet pressed firmly against the blocks.
“Ready—!!”
Bang!
With a sharp burst, Yukino shot forward with total focus.
After two races that morning, Yukino already knew: as long as no one was holding back, and she ran as usual, first place was hers.
Sure enough, under everyone’s watchful eyes, she crossed the finish line with ease—at least a full stride ahead of the runner-up.
From the stands, Eriri jumped up excitedly.
“Yes! First place!”
Ichin was also smiling brightly, though he couldn’t help teasing her a bit. “You know you’re not in Yukino’s class, right? The girl from your class came in fourth. No medal for her.”
“Uh…”
Only then did Eriri realize, turning her head awkwardly to the side. “Well... it’s just a sports festival. It’s all about participation—participation!”
Yeah, she was clearly rooting for someone outside her own class. Fortunately, none of her classmates were nearby, or she’d definitely have been roasted for that one.
After receiving her medal, Yukino still had some time before the high jump event, so she returned to the stands.
Approaching her mother, Yukino asked a bit stiffly, “Mother, what brings you here today?”
Madam Yukinoshita patted the seat beside her and gestured for her younger daughter to sit. Once Yukino sat down—back straight and proper—her mother explained, “Things have been quiet lately, and after hearing from Haruno that you’d signed up for the school sports festival, I asked her to come home yesterday. We came together today.”
Seeing Yukino sitting so rigidly, Madam Yukinoshita let out a quiet sigh in her heart. After a few moments of thought, she gently reached out and patted her daughter’s head.
“You did well. But don’t push yourself too hard—don’t get injured.”
That simple gesture left Yukino completely stunned.
But after a moment, it was as if something clicked in her heart. Blushing, she nodded lightly and didn’t resist her mother’s touch.
Haruno, sitting nearby, was just as surprised by their mother’s action—but even more than surprised, she was happy.
On the other side, Ichin quietly explained the Yukinoshita family situation to his own mother.
Ichin’s mom was surprised after hearing the story.
“Eh? Is that so? But from the looks of it now, it doesn’t seem like things are beyond repair. That’s good—really good.”
She could more or less understand Madam Yukinoshita’s past actions. After all, what parent doesn’t want their child to be outstanding, to excel beyond their peers?
But the way she went about it had clearly gone too far. Combined with a lack of proper communication, it led to a chain of problems down the line.
Still, the important thing was that things were now moving in a positive direction.
---
Because the high jump event was held far from the stands, the group left their seats and joined the crowd around the event area.
High jump wasn’t Yukino’s strongest event. She had only practiced briefly in PE a few days ago, and her technique wasn’t exactly textbook.
Even so, she still managed a respectable second place.
With Yukino’s events now wrapped up, everyone’s attention naturally turned to Eriri.
Feeling all eyes on her, Eriri instinctively took a step back.
“D-Don’t look at me like that! I—I’m going to warm up for my event!”
And with that, she turned and bolted off.
Watching her run, Ichin pulled out his phone and asked,
“Utaha, does your phone still have battery?”
“Yep,” Utaha nodded with a smile. “Plenty for recording video.”
“Alright, let’s make sure we both get footage then,” Ichin said with a big grin. “Later we can pick out the best shots and save them. Eriri’s a member of our studio, so of course we’ve got to share her big moments with the team.”
“Exactly. This is once-in-a-lifetime footage—we have to record it.”
Listening to the two of them, Yukino quietly swallowed and turned her head slightly away.
She wasn’t quite sure whether knowing these two upperclassmen was a blessing… or a curse.
---
Half an hour later, a group of teachers cleared out a spacious area on the sports field to begin the three-legged race.
Aside from the relay race that had just finished, this was one of the only two events in the school’s sports day that required teamwork.
And it was easily the most fun to watch.
As the first-year group’s race began, pairs of students began awkwardly running toward the finish line, each duo moving with a rhythm of their own.
Watching them, Utaha let out a soft sigh. “What a shame. Not a single boy-girl pair in the whole lineup.”
Haruno, who was watching with interest, chimed in,
“Probably because they’re all still new to the school. Most of them don’t know each other well enough to team up like that. But give it a year—by second or third year, you’ll definitely start seeing mixed pairs. By the way, Ichin, Utaha—why didn’t you two join this event?”
“Not really our thing.”
Ichin and Utaha responded in perfect sync.
Then Utaha added, “We tried it once when Eriri was practicing the other day. It was way too easy. Honestly, if we entered, it’d feel like we were bullying the competition.”
When it came to teamwork, Utaha didn’t think any of the contestants could rival their chemistry.
“Ehh~ is that so?”
Haruno glanced curiously between them, then turned to Yukino.
Yukino nodded.
“It’s true. That day was their first time practicing, but they didn’t make a single mistake—they went straight to the finish line. I timed them. They were even faster than the first-year team that just placed first.”
Madam Yukinoshita, who had been observing the school atmosphere quietly nearby, overheard the conversation and couldn’t help but glance over at Ichin and Utaha with interest.
...
