Chapter 10: The Competition Subject Is the Shot Put

“Testing physical fitness?”

Yuriko sized up Nomily’s small frame.

Her legs alone were a good deal shorter than Yuriko’s own, giving her an inherent disadvantage from the start.

Besides, Big Sister Yuriko had been getting into group fights since she was a child.

She was someone who could clear an entire field by herself.

Her strength and endurance were beyond reproach; if she hadn’t been capable, she would have been buried a long time ago.

With just two quick glances, Yuriko knew that Nomily was absolutely no match for her.

There were no visible muscle lines on the girl’s legs, suggesting a lack of long-term training.

Unless she was a Heterogeneous Race born with divine strength, Nomily was definitely not her equal.

Nomily looked like she was probably only a little stronger than an ordinary person.

“Student Kipling, unless you are ranked at the very bottom of the Academy, even if you beat me in a competition, it wouldn’t prove that I don’t belong here, would it?”

Yuriko still wanted to avoid this meaningless contest.

She didn’t want to be perceived as someone who was easily provoked.

“Hmph, you’re saying that because you’re scared! You’re afraid of making a fool of yourself in front of everyone!”

Obviously, Nomily wasn’t going to give up because of one sentence.

However, if Yuriko refused to accept the challenge, she couldn’t do anything on her own.

“It’s not like that. I just don’t want my arrival to break the harmonious atmosphere of the class.”

“Maybe the atmosphere would be even more harmonious once you’re gone.”

Nomily pestered Yuriko relentlessly, demanding a match.

Yuriko used various excuses to push her off, trying to make Nomily abandon the idea.

Ultimately, neither side could convince the other, and they fell into a stalemate.

At that moment, Carmilla finally recovered from her exercise-induced fatigue.

Having regained some strength, she immediately tried to smooth things over for Yuriko.

“Student Kipling, how about we just forget it? Student Wyndham probably wouldn’t want you to do this either.”

With Carmilla joining in, Nomily’s momentum seemed to falter.

The girl even started to consider giving up temporarily.

However, just as that thought surfaced, someone else slipped over.

The person who approached was none other than Yuri, who was “interested” in Yuriko.

Her physical fitness also seemed poor; after resting for a while, she hurried over as soon as she saw something happening near Yuriko.

“What is it, what is it? Are you guys arguing?”

Yuri’s voice suddenly rang out, causing Yuriko’s heart to tighten.

‘She wouldn’t try to cause trouble again, would she?’

Seeing Yuri arrive, Carmilla said to her, “Student Yuri, please help us persuade Student Kipling. She wants to challenge Ruri to a physical test, and we can’t seem to talk her out of it.”

Hearing Carmilla’s explanation, Yuri immediately understood what was going on.

Her eyes blinked, and the corners of her mouth suddenly curved into a beautiful arc.

How could she not involve herself in something this interesting?

“They’re right, Student Nomily. How could you force Student Yuriko to compete with you?”

Yuri’s first sentence caught Yuriko off guard.

Surprisingly, it sounded quite normal, with nothing strange about it.

‘Did this girl find her conscience? Does she not want to cause trouble now?’

Yuriko was still a bit uneasy.

She felt it couldn’t be that simple.

Given Yuri’s personality, it was impossible for her to pass up an opportunity like this.

Sure enough, Yuri’s next sentence was:

“I saw Student Yuriko’s performance during class. After that kind of exercise, she didn’t even break a sweat.”

“Can’t you tell? Student Yuriko’s physical fitness is way better than yours. She’s only refusing you because she doesn’t want to hurt your self-esteem. So, Student Nomily, don’t just go looking for a humiliation~”

The moment Yuri finished speaking, Yuriko knew it was over.

With this troublemaker around, she probably wouldn’t be able to refuse the match.

Yuri’s two casual sentences successfully ignited Nomily’s rage.

The petite girl was like a cat hissing in anger, her voice even rising by several decibels.

“Who’s looking for a humiliation? Her refusal to agree must be because she’s guilty. Today, I must have a match with her!”

Nomily’s voice attracted nearby students, leading to a small crowd gathering to watch the excitement.

The remaining students who hadn’t heard the commotion saw so many people gathering and grew curious, so they all walked over to see what was happening.

As the number of onlookers increased, Yuriko suddenly felt a bit of regret.

If she had known, she would have just agreed to the match immediately; at least there would have been fewer witnesses.

“Wait!”

A flash of inspiration hit Yuriko.

With so many people gathered here, wasn’t this the perfect opportunity to show off?

As long as she agreed to the match with Nomily, she could rightfully show off her athletic talent!

“What’s going on in there?”

“It seems Kipling wants to challenge the new student.”

“A match? At what?”

“Not sure. I heard it was physical fitness?”

The surrounding students exchanged words.

Once the situation was confirmed, some troublemakers started cheering.

“Student Ruri, accept! Otherwise, people will look down on you!”

“Yeah, if word gets out that you’re timid, people will laugh at you.”

Listening to the students’ cheering, Yuriko put on a “difficult expression.”

She looked at the students around her, her face appearing very conflicted.

While she was “struggling to decide,” Yuri came to her side and said:

“Student Yuriko, with so many people watching, it won’t be easy to end this if you don’t agree. Unless Student Nomily gives up on her own. Do you need me to try and persuade her again?”

Even though Yuri’s behavior was expected, the corner of Yuriko’s eye twitched uncontrollably.

‘This girl definitely planned for it to go this way.’

Fortunately, the current situation was actually turning in Yuriko’s favor.

She let out a sigh, making it look as though she was forced to agree because of the pressure from her peers, and said to Nomily:

“Fine then. I accept your invitation to compete, Student Kipling. However, I still hope we can prioritize harmony and not let this match ruin our relationship.”

In the eyes of the students, Yuriko was agreeing to the match under pressure; there was no suspicion that she was intentionally trying to show off.

“Hmph, you should have done that from the start,” Nomily said, crossing her arms.

“So, what exactly are we going to do? For a competition, we need a specific event, right?”

Although she had agreed to the match, Nomily hadn’t mentioned what they would actually be doing.

When asked by Yuriko, Nomily took on a thoughtful expression, as if she had only just started thinking about it herself.

‘So you hadn’t even thought it through?’

Nomily pondered for a moment before finally announcing the nature of the competition under everyone’s watchful eyes.

“Then let’s do the Shot Put!”

The Shot Put.

It was an event of pure strength.

Although Yuriko had never thrown a shot put before, she was confident in her power and agreed.

“Alright.”