☾☾☾
AS promised, after school, he came to fetch us, leading us out of the classroom and through the brightly sunlit courtyard, then down a path overgrown with trees.
“Sports, huh? Having Ui-Ui as our coach does sound enticing...”
Should you really be calling him Ui-Ui to his face like that?
“Of course. I’ll shower you with all my attention, Shizuku.”
So he was just ignoring the Ui-Ui bit? He really was the bigger person.
“Don’t push your luck, Ui,” Shimozuru cut in.
Since Izayoi was the judge this time, Shimozuru was supposed to be neutral, yet for some reason he still insisted on joining us.
“Ha! Oh, come on, Oboro. You could help me, too. Not like you have anything else to do.”
“Nothing else? You jerk...”
His glance flitted over to Aritomo. She merely walked on as if she hadn’t noticed.
“So, what sport do you suggest, Ui-Ui? Tennis? Or maybe golf?”
“Hmm, I mean if you want to learn tennis or golf, Shizuku, I can teach you. But those aren’t my preferences,” he said, a crafty grin creeping onto his face, “because I can one hundred percent guarantee you won’t win, no matter how much Chouko holds back.”
Wow. Maybe Mikazuki and the others were used to it, but this was just another example of how amazing Lady Chouko was.
“Well, what’s a sport I can win, then...? Oh, wait! I’m actually pretty good at swimming!”
The sun’s rays danced through the tree canopy. Watching Aritomo mime swimming in that light, she didn’t seem very fast.
“Ah, Chouko can’t swim, so that idea’s out.”
“Wait, Tsukuyomi can’t swim?”
“Doesn’t swim,” Mikazuki clarified with a wave of his hand.
I wondered what the difference between couldn’t and didn’t was, but nevertheless, if she didn’t swim, then that idea was out.
I heard someone mumble, “That sucks. If we did swimming, I could get some awesome CGs of them with their shirts off.”
Awesome CGs? Of whom?
Aritomo seemed dissatisfied. I thought I should say something before she erupted.
“I can’t swim at all, so please, let’s choose something else.”
The elementary and middle schools I attended did not have pools, and powerful indoctrination from my past life made me uncomfortable wearing a bathing suit in front of others, so I had never once been in a public pool. This was one matter on which I could not yield.
As soon as I said my piece, everyone quickly agreed, satisfied with my reasoning. I was a bit shocked they were so quick to accept that I couldn’t swim.
Hearing this about me, Aritomo gave up on the idea and started trying to come up with other options. I really wanted to learn her brand of mental flexibility.
“So what’s the plan, then? You brought us all the way out here. Is there a reason for that?”
“There is. Come on, just a little farther,” Mikazuki said, guiding us down the tree-lined road.
Unlike many other schools, St. Delia’s included students from preschool to high school, so the campus was huge. It had only been three months since we started school here, so we had no idea where on this vast campus this small path would lead.
As the path suddenly opened up, we saw a vast sunlit paddock surrounded by a fence.
In a stable a little ways away, several horses flicked their tails.
“Horses!” I exclaimed with delight.
“...Those are horses all right,” Aritomo said with a little less pleasure.
“Yup, horses.”
Mikazuki stretched his arms out wide. With a broad grin on his face, he finally offered his suggestion.
“Let’s make the next challenge horseback riding! That’s my suggestion!”