Stealing Spree

Around half a minute later, Satsuki finished loading the cloth sack and handed it to me.

Yep. Even if she said that we could just break the record on the next two rounds, she still diligently did her job.

I thought of teasing her about it but the girl was more than ready to scold me if I ever tried to. Besides, Aya was looking too hopeful in her post.

I better not waste the advantage that girl gave to our group.

And with that, carrying the cloth sack on my back that more or less weighed around five to six kilograms, I quickly dashed to Sakuma.

Sure enough, while it’s heavier than the normal weight-specific problem, it’s barely negligible to me. I mean, I could exercise comfortably even with a weight strapped on my wrists and feet. My only misgiving about the sack was how it looked like it was about to burst. Those balls were big enough to almost fill it.

Going from the second post to the third took less than five seconds. And with Sakuma already eagerly waiting there for his chance to show off, our chances to break the record were still there.

If I had to estimate, we might put it down to ten seconds quicker. But that’s only if Sakuma wouldn’t mess up. The current record was around two and a half minutes. Even with a part of the advantage Aya created being used up with the loading and counting, my estimate was still close to the mark.

Thankfully, he didn’t.

Upon handing it to him, Sakuma appeared like he was a different person. The air around him made the guy look like a reliable idiot.

Yep, he’s still an idiot but a reliable one. I guess that’s how he is as an athlete.

With an overly serious expression that actually made some girls from the audience gasp at the realization that he also has nice features, Sakuma ran to the small cart next to the weighing scale to count and confirm that we loaded it correctly.

Since we didn’t use the ability of the fourth member to help, I remained there until the guy handed the sack back to me before sprinting to the start line.

Sure enough, he showed everyone his speed. If I remember correctly, his position is a midfielder. I guess that’s his specialty; his speed.

Although I could only take this short sprint as a sample, he’s fast enough to not be left behind by me.

His acceleration was also great. If he went to the Track Club, he might even be qualified to be a good sprinter.

When he reached the start line and turned around to make the last sprint to the finish line, the girls who gasped earlier started cheering for him.

Yep. He’s probably going to get a little popular from now on. He truly got time to shine. But will he be able to tame Setsuna-nee-san?

That’s… still unclear.

I have yet to hear about his progress after that time he asked me for advice on how to ask that devious girl on a date. Considering he didn’t come to school in despair, he’s probably still treading the line between courting her and just reestablishing their previous relationship. ．

Anyway, although he would fail to accomplish the ‘less than ten seconds’ spring that he bragged about, Sakuma soon reached my position.

Grabbing the cloth sack and lugging it behind him, his speed noticeably slowed down.

However, that’s already irrelevant at this point.

Along with the cheering of the crowd as well as the curses of those who wanted the guy to trip and fall down, Sakuma successfully reached the finish line.

With Eguchi-sensei’s whistle as an indicator, our group’s first round has ended.

“Hey… Aren’t they too fast? The group at the other side started their round a few seconds earlier than them yet they’re still in the middle of weighing their sack.”

“Huh? Now that you mention it… They’re too quick. Do we have a winner already?”

As Eguchi-sensei started walking toward Sakuma to announce our time, similar conversations started to rise among the audience.

Obviously, I also got intrigued. I glanced at that side and saw the other group still fumbling their way to the third post.

They’re too slow…

And guess which group it is…

Fukuda’s group.

Coincidentally, perhaps drawn to the cheering at our side, the guy who was actually the one at the third post also glanced in our direction.

Our gazes couldn’t help but intersect.

I put on a smirk which instantly threw the guy off. And due to that distraction, he failed to notice that his lackey carrying the sack was already before him.

When he turned his attention back to it, the two of them crashed into each other, resulting in their foreheads bumping and the contents of the sack scattering out.

Hana who was overseeing the activity there facepalmed at what happened. And as though she already lost any intention to watch how that round would end, she stopped paying attention.

Yep. What a tragedy.

Although that event got the attention of many, Eguchi-sensei who had a huge smirk on her face walked about, her eyes shining with appreciation once again.

She ignored Fukuda and his lackey crashing into each other and announced our result while her gaze seemingly focused on me…

Uh, her bias was showing… Should I tell her that she might get caught?

Ah. No. There’s no need to. Because before she could call out to me, Sakuma who was returning from the finish line smugly made a peace sign before declaring, “See that, Onoda? I told you I could do this!”

This guy is truly an idiot. Is it really worth bragging about? Should I tell him that I timed his sprint and he failed?

Well, I’ll let him have that. Besides, I guess he indirectly helped Eguchi-sensei return to normal.

I quickly thought up a reply to the idiot.

“Yeah, that’s wonderful. So, do you want me to pat your head?”

Hearing me say that with as bland a tone as possible, Sakuma was stumped.

He paused for a moment before shouting in a fluster, “I don’t!”

I shrugged and stopped paying attention to him. And let’s not get to Satsuki’s reaction. For sure, that girl would just treat him like an idiot again.

Putting my focus back on Eguchi-sensei, her earlier expression mellowed down as she cleared her throat with a fake cough.

Ignoring the chaos that was about to happen on the other side, she started by clapping her hands which drew most of the student’s attention back to her.

“Two minutes and ten seconds! Onoda-kun’s team has created a new record… Very Impressive. Rindou’s excellent mental solving of the problem and Sakuma’s unhindered sprint, as expected from a soccer player, brought about this record. If anyone else can beat it, then I’ll be happy to give another reward…”

Eguchi-sensei paused for me as she waited for how the students would react.

And sure enough, their eyes went ablaze upon hearing the word ‘reward’.

After nodding in approval at the remaining groups’ burst of enthusiasm, she then turned to me, “Say, Onoda-kun, your group still has two rounds left, are you going to slack off or will you try to beat your group’s record?”

Will she get mad if I answered with the first option?

Anyway, beating the record or not, I couldn’t help but notice her intention… This would be another excuse that she could use to show me her appreciation…

Let’s see… It’s fine to look forward to it, right?

Besides, Aya was too happy to be praised and Satsuki’s fighting spirit also got enthused by her words. Yep, we should enjoy this activity to the fullest.

“If we can do it then we will… We’re going to look forward to that reward, sensei.” I eventually answered with a nod, resulting in Eguchi-sensei’s pleasant smile.