This is the end of the update streak.
Mid-December. The final exams are over. In many ways, they’re over. Dang it…
Hina has been unbearably annoying ever since we got all our test papers back.
What was that “Of course I won, I’m the older sister” nonsense? I beat you in the last practice exam, didn’t I!?
That humiliating event is behind me now, and all that’s left is to wait for winter break… but before that, just like at the end of the first semester, there's a rush of events.
One of those is the marathon. It's held near the school—though it's actually more than a kilometer away—but anyway, the course loops once around a park and its quiet surrounding area. That’s our school’s marathon event. The distance? A solid 15 kilometers. That doesn’t change whether you’re in first, second, or third year. The only difference is the staggered starting times.
Anyway, I was dreading this marathon. It’s not that I hate running or anything.
“So why are you dreading it?”
Tajima-sensei, our P.E. teacher, asked me that during gym class before the marathon.
“The marathon takes up almost half the day, right?”
“Hm? Well, the third-years start at 10:00, second-years at 10:30, and first-years at 11:00. Some of the slowest first-years take up to four hours to finish, so yeah, it ends around 3 p.m. I guess you could call that half a day.”
“So that means we have to wait outside until the last person finishes? In December? In the freezing cold!?”
Exactly. That’s why I was dreading it. I absolutely can’t stand the cold. When I’m outside, I usually deal with it by standing upwind of Hina, who’s bigger than me—both height-wise and, well, chest-wise—and sticking close to her to block the wind. But with the marathon, I’ll be outside for a long time with no cover. If that’s not something to dread, I don’t know what is.
“Sigh… I could finish 15 kilometers in about an hour. But having to wait in the cold until the last person crosses the line…”
Please don’t call me heartless. I just really dislike the cold.
“Geez, Yuu-chan, you’re so selfish.”
Hina said that from right next to me, but I ignored her. I didn’t argue back either. If I said the wrong thing and she refused to be my windbreak, I’d be in serious trouble.
“…You seem to be misunderstanding something. The teachers stay until the end, sure, but you students can go home once you’re done running, you know?”
“…Huh?”
“Haven’t the first-years been told yet? We’ll take attendance before the race starts, but once you finish and submit your time, you’re free to head home.”
“W-Wait, just hypothetically, if I finished in about 30 minutes, could I go home after 30 minutes?”
“Haha, if you can actually run it in 30 minutes, sure.”
Yes! That fired me up instantly. Like I said, I don’t hate running. I hate the cold. And if I can shorten my time in the cold by putting in some effort, I’ll do exactly that. But for some reason, my sudden motivation made Tajima-sensei panic.
“W-Wait a second, Tachibana. There’s no way you can do it in 30 minutes. Be reasonable. It’s 15 kilometers, okay? Even the men’s world record is 41 minutes. The world record for 1 kilometer is about 2 minutes 11 seconds, even for men. So you’d have to keep a world-record pace of 2 minutes per kilometer the whole time to make 30 minutes. It’s impossible, okay?”
“Ahaha, of course. I know I can’t run it in 30 minutes. Even my best time for a single kilometer barely goes under 2 minutes 30 seconds.”
“R-Right… Wait, did you say 2 minutes 30 seconds per kilometer for a girl…?”
“My minimum goal is under 45 minutes. Ideally, under 43.”
“W-Wait a minute, that’s probably a world record!!”
Tajima-sensei said something or other after that, but I wasn’t really listening anymore.
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And so, the day of the marathon arrived. The only required item of clothing was the school-designated gym uniform, but there were no rules about shoes or anything else. I was equipped with a running watch that Yamashita-san and the others gave me—it cost 50,000 yen, had GPS, could measure lap times per kilometer, and was unbelievably light—and running shoes that were just as light. I did a bit of an unusual warm-up routine.
Now, my superhuman physical abilities come from something like magical power or ki or… I’m not really sure how to explain it, but it’s that kind of mysterious power. I can generate it inside myself, but I can also draw it in from outside. You could say it’s like external ki, if you’re into Chinese martial arts. So, to absorb some external ki, I went off a little way from the others, took a few deep breaths, and slowly regulated my breathing.
Whether I really managed to take in any ki or not—I have no idea. But you’ve gotta believe. Belief is everything.
After finishing my warm-up, I stood at the starting line. The second-years had started thirty minutes earlier, and the third-years an hour before that. I’d probably catch up to the second-years somewhere along the course.
Later on, I heard from Hina that apparently I looked so intense before the start that nobody dared speak to me.
"First-years, get ready to start. On your mark..."
Bang!
With the light sound of the electronic starting pistol, I dashed off. I don’t know if the ki thing worked, but my body felt light. I kept accelerating.
The first kilometer: 2 minutes 40 seconds. Good! Just as planned.
Just before the 5km mark, I started spotting students in the green gym uniforms of the second-years. This was probably the tail end of their group.
Passed the 5km mark in 13 minutes 22 seconds. Not bad—still on schedule.
Since I’m the type who can’t really do a huge final sprint, I’ve just got to keep running at a steady pace the whole time. So far so good.
Up to this point, I was managing a steady 2:40 per kilometer pace, but gradually my speed began to drop.
I passed the 10km mark at 27 minutes 11 seconds.
By that point, I was seeing more and more third-years in blue gym uniforms.
And then—at the finish line...
The large digital timer at the starting point read 1:43:16. Since it's shared across all years, it couldn't be helped. Considering I started an hour later than the third-years, my actual time was 43 minutes 16 seconds.
Hmm... I was aiming for under 43 minutes, though.
If I’d kept up the 2:40 pace per kilometer, I would've finished in 40 minutes. I feel like I could've pushed a little harder...
“Huh? Yuuri? Wait, don’t tell me—you already finished!?”
Someone called out to me. Huh? It must be a fellow first-year, but I thought all the first-years were still running...
I turned around to see three very familiar third-year faces. It was Eri-senpai and her friends.
“Ah, long time no see, senpai.”
Though I say “long time,” they actually came to the gym the Monday after we qualified for Spring High to congratulate us, so it’s only been about three weeks.
“They said once you finish the marathon, you’re allowed to go home. So I gave it my all.”
“Well, sure, you’re allowed to leave once you’re done, but most people wouldn’t push themselves just for that.”
“Ehh~? But staying outside in this freezing weather for hours is impossible for me…”
“Yuuri, you’re as out of sync with everyone as ever.”
For some reason, my totally reasonable opinion made them smile wryly.
“By the way, Yuuri, aren’t you getting some pork soup?”
“Pork soup?”
Looking over, I saw that Eri-senpai and the others were holding plastic bowls and disposable chopsticks.
“You didn’t hear the explanation, did you? Let me tell you—after you finish, you can get a bowl of pork soup. It’s warm and tasty.”
Ohh, I see. Looking over, there was a line of people in blue tracksuits. A few green tracksuits were scattered in there too.
“…Sorry, I don’t have the guts to line up in that crowd.”
Just imagine it—being the only first-year lining up among all those third-years. That’s pretty nerve-wracking.
“Well, yeah, I get that. We’ll line up with you.”
Still, it’s not like lining up takes forever—five minutes at most. Just chatting makes the time fly.
“—Wait, senpai, were you at the second and third qualifiers for Spring High too? You could’ve said hi…”
Turns out Eri-senpai and the others had come to support us at both the second and third rounds of Spring High qualifiers. They only missed the final round because it clashed with a mock exam.
“Sorry... but honestly, it already felt like a completely different team from when we were around…”
“I heard you even had a match against the basketball club and absorbed their skills after winning. But seeing it in person…”
“Also, when we got to the venue, it was packed, like a real prefectural tournament. And most of the people there seemed to be there for Yuuri, so it was hard to approach.”
Ahh. Now that you mention it, the stands were pretty full during the Spring High qualifiers. I think Asuka said something about scout squads from other schools coming to check us out?
“Eh?! Scouts from other schools were there?”
“Yuuri, that’s amazing…”
“Well, compared to how you were back in June, your growth is obvious to anyone.”
Ah, so it is noticeable. That’s right! I’ve grown a lot since June!
“You noticed, huh? Get this—when I measured recently, I was a C cup!”
Hehe, kinda embarrassing to say, but I can’t help it. It’s true, after all...
“Yuuri, some things about you never change.”
“Like, not even a little…”
For some reason, Eri-senpai and Miho-senpai looked exasperated. And then—
“Yuuri! You traitor! Tell me right now—how did you get bigger!?”
Yui-senpai accused me of betrayal...
“Well, first of all, I started drinking this milk brand called ‘Drops of the Earth’ that Yuki recommended—every single day…”
Then I shared the bust-enhancing tips I’d heard from Ryou-nee and Hina. Before long, even Eri-senpai and Miho-senpai were listening with serious expressions. Apparently, the tips I got were all stuff they’d done back in elementary and middle school.
While we were chatting about silly stuff like that, it was finally my turn in line. The pork soup I got was filled with ingredients, and—
“Mmm, yummy…”
Maybe it was because I was tired from the run, but the warm, hearty soup was honestly really tasty.
“Running 15 kilometers is tough, but getting this kind of delicious pork soup at the end makes it worth it.”
That was my honest impression, but Eri-senpai and the others gave me an awkward look.
“Well, Yuuri, you’re a first-year, so it makes sense you didn’t know…”
“This pork soup, the way it’s handed out every year is totally random. If you finish early, it’s full of stuff. But if you finish late, there’s basically nothing left.”
“This is the first time I’ve seen such a loaded bowl of pork soup as a third-year. Up until now, I thought the idea that this marathon had hearty pork soup was just an urban legend.”
No way. That would put the first-years—who start a whole hour after the third-years—at a huge disadvantage. That’s gotta be an exaggeration… or so I thought, but I heard later that the second-place first-year, Reiko, who lost to long-distance track team ace Hamura by a close margin, had a finishing time of around 61 minutes (121 minutes after the third-years started).
And the pork soup Reiko got? She said, “Well, it’s free, so I guess this is about what you’d expect.”
The faster first-years like Hina, Asuka, and Mirai got, quote, “one slice of pork and a single piece of vegetable.”
Yuki—who’s not great at long-distance runs (probably because she’s short and has smaller strides)—said hers was “miso soup, not pork soup.”
And those below average in the year? They got something lukewarm and watery instead of anything warm.
…Did they really need to highlight grade-based inequalities in pork soup, of all things…
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A little story afterward
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“Tachibanaaa! Come run track with me! You don’t hate running, right? C’mon, how about in March, after Spring High? There’s a proper marathon event where you can get an official time! I’ll run too, so let’s do it together!”
Ever since the marathon, Tajima-sensei has been pestering me with passionate “join track!” invites, and honestly, it’s getting a bit much. Apparently, my time from the school marathon beat the women’s world record, which only made his recruitment more persistent.
Now then, what am I going to do about this...
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