Chapter 1 - Part 3
Unlike in sports, where there is no need or obligation to fight fairly and bravely along with early signals. Without mental preparation, Shiki had no time to think about how to kick or plan his moves. He became desperate as he launched a front kick towards the approaching Kawato, but it was immediately followed by a punch unleashed by Kawato that struck his face directly.
Feeling the sensation in the sole of his foot, it seemed that his front kick had hit Kawato. However, due to the punch to his face, he couldn't be sure where on his opponent's body he had kicked. Additionally, after executing the front kick, he lost his balance from the powerful blow while standing on one leg, resulting in a dramatic fall.
Shiki genuinely believed that if he was overpowered by his opponent, he would die. He tried to protect himself by curling up his body like a turtle, but...
"Eh?"
When he saw Kawato, who was sprawled on the ground while clutching his stomach with both hands, Shiki stopped moving while he was halfway through protecting his body.
"You bastard... you idiot..."
Despite muttering with an almost inaudible voice, Kawato couldn't move an inch from his position, as if he were prostrating.
"I told you, if you do as I say, you'll win, right?"
Speaking with a hint of arrogance, Karin approached with confident steps and grabbed Shiki's hand.
Although he hesitated to hold a girl's hand, it was not a reason to refuse her kindness. So, resignedly, Shiki reached for her hand and stood up.
(Is this... really real?)
I look down at Kawato, who is lying on the ground, and I can't comprehend the situation. Perhaps sensing my confusion, Karin asks me the following question:
"Let's go back to the story of when you almost collided with me, Shiki. Do you remember how you effortlessly climbed the stairs by jumping five steps at a time?"
"Well... that's because ever since the first year, Kawato-kun and the others made me run up the stairs with a time limit every day. So, naturally, I became accustomed to it..."
"Maybe for you, it's an unpleasant story because it happened due to their imposition, but the point is, because you were forced to do the 'stair run' every day, you eventually became capable of effortlessly leaping five steps at a time. And with that kind of leg strength, I'm confident that if you were to face someone inexperienced in fighting, like this idiot, you'd be fine. That's why I gave you that advice."
Karin's unexpected words leave Shiki stunned.
"Kawato is not accustomed to fighting...?"
"More precisely, it's not just Kawato, but the other two as well."
Casually, Karin states this, leaving Shiki even more shocked.
"You seem to find it hard to believe. Shiki, you thought they were skilled fighters simply because they are used to hitting people. But that doesn't mean they're skilled in actual fights. In fact, you could easily defeat fools like Kawato."
"I-It may be true, but..." Despite that, Shiki remains dissatisfied with the explanation. Perhaps his facial expression revealed his doubts, prompting Karin to provide further explanation.
"For someone like Shiki, who is essentially an ordinary person, the reason why people like Kawato have an advantage in fights is because they're used to hitting others. People who are accustomed to hitting others usually have no hesitation or even enjoy it. So they can hit with full force, unlike ordinary people. In fact, Shiki, the reason why you were able to kick Kawato so strongly was also because you felt desperate, not just because of the front kick that Kohinata-san anticipated."
As Shiki truly realizes this, he is shocked.
"It can't be... Did Kohinata-san consider everything thoroughly and give me advice like that!?"
Suddenly, silence descends upon them.
"Well, of course, isn't it obvious?" Karin's response comes with eyes that appear surprisingly cheerful.
"It can't be... Kohinata-san..." Shiki's words trail off.
"Ah! Um! That's right! For example, even if their punching power is exactly the same, someone who is used to hitting others can do it with full force, while someone who is not used to it can only hit with half the strength. So, simply put, the calculation would result in twice the difference in punching power, right? When Shiki thought that Kawato and the others were skilled fighters, it was mainly due to that significant difference!"
"That means... if I hadn't felt desperate, and if the anticipated front kick from Kohinata-san didn't have as much power as expected, there's a possibility that I couldn't have defeated Kawato-kun..."
Once again, silence fell between them.
"You, you're someone who knows when to act! I truly believe in you! It's true! I'm not lying!" Karin insisted with an incredibly cheerful expression.
(...Yeah, let's just leave it at that as a satisfying outcome.)
What remained unspoken was Shiki's relief.
"B-But, basically, even though our school always has a lot of fights, there are actually very few people who are truly skilled at fighting, you know? Maybe only around twenty or thirty people?"
The number sounds quite significant when heard, but it is said that the delinquents at St. Lucimantz make up seventy percent of the total enrollment of over six hundred fifty students.
Indeed, as Karin mentioned, the number might be considered small in comparison.
"Especially people like Kawato, they always seem to only hit those who are clearly weaker than them, right? So they might underestimate the counterattacks from weaker opponents and feel that they won't get hurt as a result. Even though they have experience in one-sidedly hitting others, they don't have much experience in receiving punches, so their defense is also poor. That's why, if someone has kicking power like Shiki, they might be able to subdue their opponent with just one front kick."
As she said that, for some unclear reason, Karin looked at Shiki's thighs, and Shiki reflexively closed his legs.
"Of course, if you can perform high kicks, it would be more effective, but it's unlikely that you're used to doing flexible stretches, right?"
Ah, so that's why she looked at my thighs, Shiki thought while nodding his head.
"If that's the case, how about we start from today?" Shiki was taken aback when she said that. Just when Kawato was supposed to be lying on the ground, he suddenly rose to his feet.
"You bastard, -Oooriiiiiiifuuushiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!"
With a voice resembling a beast's roar, Kawato tried to strike Shiki. With such a menacing force, Shiki was startled, and a sound of surprise seemed to get stuck in his throat, "...!?" Shiki flinched.
"Tssk!" A swift high kick soared through the air.
Karin's right leg successfully caught the side of Kawato's head, and this time, she certainly managed to knock him out.
"With kicking skills like that, I'm sure Shiki can defeat most people."
Karin smiled with satisfaction.
However, Shiki paid no attention to Karin's arrogant expression. It seemed too late for him to avoid Karin's gaze.
To be clear, Karin was wearing a mini skirt at the moment...
If she performed a kick like that while wearing such attire... it could be assumed that it would end with her underwear being clearly exposed.
With slightly flushed cheeks, Shiki didn't want to make eye contact with Karin, who finally realized and blushed as well.
"You, you're really dumb. You must think I often show my underwear. So, I have no problem or shame when people stare at me, right?" she said with an increasingly reddened face.
As she mentioned underwear, a flash of memory of her plain white panties came to my mind, and although I felt impolite thinking about it, I was slightly surprised by her statement.
"A-and, I'm not that small-minded to complain just because someone saw my underwear. And wearing this skirt is just to play around a bit with those guys."
Without fully understanding the strange resilience, she continued. Whether it was good or bad, because she pretended to be a 'naughty student', it seemed that Karin didn't want others to see her as naive.
Seeing her behaving like a child trying to appear more mature, I suddenly realized something. Unconsciously, my fear of "Jo-Tei" that was once so strong was now gone.
"W-Whatever! I don't care about that, so let's hurry back to Haruno's place!"
"Is it really safe to leave them like that?"
Although they were going to leave this place, Shiki felt worried and asked Karin.
Of course, the phrase "leave them" referred to Kawato and his friends.
"It's not a problem. They will wake up on their own, feel embarrassed on their own, and eventually go home on their own. Well, if someone sees us fighting and reports it, we might have to deal with the police."
Nevertheless, Shiki, who had become a victim of bullying, felt that it would be better if she could rely on the help of the police.
.
.
After walking for a while, they arrived near a main road, and suddenly,
"Ah! Karin-senpai!"
A girl whom Shiki had saved from Kawato and his friends smiled and waved her hand as she walked towards them.
Then, by trying to navigate through the crowd, she ran closer ─ right in front of Shiki's eyes, with a motion resembling a headlong slide, she fell in a striking manner.
Of course, by doing such a thing near the highway, it would undoubtedly attract the attention of many people, but when Shiki saw the gaze of the gathered crowd shift from the girl to herself, he shook his head.
He realized that he didn't have any attention-grabbing features, and that made his even more uncomfortable.
"You all, come over here for a moment!"
Although it was only Karin who panicked, she grabbed Shiki's hand and the girl's hand, and with a forceful tug, they began to walk. They left the busy road without resistance and finally arrived at an empty park.
Shiki, curious as to why he had drawn people's attention, finally opened her mouth to ask, but before he could speak, the girl exclaimed in surprise,
"Oh! When I look closely, this is a serious injury, isn't it?!"
Finally, Shiki understood. He had been dealt multiple hard blows to her face by Kawato. So even though his face was swollen, it wasn't something out of the ordinary.
"But seriously, you're too indifferent about your own condition. Weren't you even feeling pain when you tried to speak?"
After giving it some thought, it's true that when I was first punched, I experienced an unfamiliar pain... Perhaps because I've become accustomed to being punched, I also become quick to adapt to the pain.
I feel a sense of sadness upon this new discovery about myself.
"I-I-It's time to clean the wound!"
As I said that, a girl ignored me and busily rummaged through the bag hanging on her shoulder. She took out a small bottle of disinfectant and a piece of gauze.
However, when she tried to drip the disinfectant onto the gauze, she was surprised.
"Eh, what's this?"
Even though she tilted the bottle and pressed her finger into it, no disinfectant came out. The girl grew more panicked.
"W-Why? There should still be disinfectant in here!"
With an increasingly panicked voice, the girl began investigating the spray nozzle of the disinfectant bottle while it was upside down.
Anticipating the imminent disaster, Shiki and Karin tried to shout to stop her, but they were slightly too late.
"N-Nyaaa───!!"
The disinfectant suddenly sprayed out forcefully, directly hitting the girl's eyes, causing her to faint.
Even just looking into the spray nozzle from below was already dangerous enough, but neither Shiki nor Karin could have imagined that the girl would insert her finger into the upside-down bottle and spray its contents.
"You're so stupid!!"
"Y- Yes, let's go to the water fountain!"
15 minutes later...
"I'm really, truly sorry! And thank you so much for your help!" The girl, Haruno Momozono, still with red and swollen eyes, lowered her head towards Shiki.
"Ah, well, I was helped too, and because Momozono-san provided first aid like this, you don't have to worry so much."
As he said those words, Shiki applied the ice he bought from the convenience store to his bruised cheek after being hit by Kawato. He transferred the ice into two plastic bags he bought at the convenience store, then wrapped them with a towel.
It felt a bit awkward to have Karin and Haruno apply it for him, so Shiki decided to do it himself.
Regardless of that, and the fact that the disinfectant that caused the big disaster earlier turned out to be unnecessary, the previous moment was truly unimaginable, but Haruno's current handling was spot on.
"Because her parents are doctors. It's become a simple task for her..."
"I'm clumsy, always getting hurt, so my parents always taught me, 'Remember this well.' So, I'm used to first aid," Haruno said candidly, as if not feeling ashamed about it.
Ignoring it, Karin held her head with one hand, as if to say, "There's no need to say it intentionally."
Meanwhile, inside Haruno's bag, there were bandages, gauze, plasters, and disinfectant liquid, enough to rival a small first aid kit. Shiki thought that it was probably also the advice of Haruno's parents.
Karin said, "Alright, let's start from the beginning." She pointed at Shiki with the iron fan she suddenly took out.
"Let me reintroduce him. He is Shiki Orifushi. We're in the same class and go to the same school, so he's one grade above Haruno. And..."
This time, she pointed at Haruno and continued the conversation.
"This is Momozono Haruno. It's probably unnecessary to say, but she also goes to the same school as us and is one grade below you."
"Yes! I'm Karin-senpai junior!"
Haruno said happily. However, when comparing her to Karin, in terms of appearance, it couldn't be avoided that Haruno seemed like the senpai here. Karin herself had an average height for her age and a face that matched her age, so it wasn't an issue for her.
Simply put, because Haruno appeared much more mature than an ordinary high school student, to the point where it was difficult to consider her the same age as the others who were still 15 years old.
Of course, this only applied if she remained silent, as there were some aspects of her personality that showed she still had a side more reminiscent of a junior high school student, despite her appearance suggesting otherwise.
"I don't want to say it, but somehow I don't seem to fit in with St. Lucimantz,"
"Yeah, exactly. That's why I suggested her to go to a different school..."
Even though it had only been less than half a month since they entered school, Shiki felt that they had become quite close, so she was convinced that it had been the case even before Haruno enrolled in St. Lucimantz. Hearing their words now, Shiki was certain that their relationship had existed prior to Haruno's admission.
As if to prove that, Haruno started speaking enthusiastically and rapidly about their encounter with Karin.
"This happened about a year ago. I ran into some bad people who were trying to forcefully take me somewhere, but then Karin-senpai happened to pass by and defeated them all, saving me. I was so impressed by a senpai like that, so I decided to enroll in St. Lucimantz too!"
"Even though she's telling the story with such enthusiasm, it feels like I'm dragging her into the wrong path, and I feel a little guilty," Karin said, while taking out a white stick resembling a cigarette from a small box she pulled out from her pocket, then biting on it.
"Hm..."
Up to this point, witnessing Karin's action of seemingly offering the box to Haruno and trying to influence her, Shiki, who had thrown away the plastic-wrapped ice from both her cheeks, was shocked and let out an unusual exclamation.
"W-w-wait! What are you doing, Kohinata-san?!" Shiki panicked, shouting at Karin, who smiled as she pointed a box containing white sticks resembling cigarettes towards her.
"Does Shiki want to join too?"
"W-what? Join?"
"Of course, about these Pine Cigarettes (candies)."
".........................Huh?"
A foolish sound escaped Shiki's mouth.
"Well, there you have it, it's the candy from the pastry shop, right? Chocolate or cola flavor. That's the Pine flavor."
"Pine......"
Suddenly, Shiki realized the embarrassing misunderstanding he had made, and his face turned red.
Seeing that, Karin laughed gleefully like a mischievous child who had successfully played a prank.
"Ahahaha! It's been so long since I've seen someone being deceived so thoroughly!"
"Senpai! Are there people besides me who get deceived so thoroughly?!"
Proudly raising her hand for some reason, Haruno, who was acting strangely, merely hid her face and patted her head.
Even though Shiki thought that the white stick always in Karin's mouth might not be a cigarette, there was a part of her heart that couldn't deny that as a "Jo-Tei," it wasn't something impossible to happen.
That's why, when she witnessed Karin suddenly offering Pine Cigarettes to Haruno, she reflexively tried to stop her.
(Now that I think about it, since we were at the parking lot, she was always biting on it, but never disposing of it... and all of a sudden, it disappeared...)
After realizing that he had been trapped so clearly, Shiki lowered his shoulders in embarrassment.
Karin gave a stick to Haruno and then directed the box towards Shiki again.
The design resembled a real cigarette box, but it was about one size smaller and its depth was even questionable, possibly half of the actual size.
Furthermore, with the words "Pine Cigarette" prominently written on the front of the box, although Shiki rarely saw real cigarettes up close—he had seen some delinquents at school with actual cigarettes from a distance—there were clear differences that he should have noticed.
Before revealing the prank, Karin seemed to intentionally hold the box in a way that made it difficult to see its size, and she might have also deliberately covered the product name with her fingers.
Perhaps because Shiki's thoughts were evident on her face, Karin began answering without any questions being asked.
"First of all, I don't like the smell of cigarettes, so I won't smoke."
"But why Pine Cigarette?"
"Besides liking the taste, I think it's cool. Like this."
Although her answer sounded ordinary, Karin still offered the Pine Cigarette box to Shiki for the third time.
"So, what do you think? Do you want to try one too?"
Though his face was indeed affected by the intentionally deliberate expression, Shiki didn't have the courage to refuse in this situation, so he obediently accepted one stick.
As soon as she bit into it, the scent of pine and peppermint immediately filled her mouth. The taste was, perhaps, quite enjoyable.
"If we were caught by the police in this state, it would be quite amusing. With this appearance, we would be instantly misunderstood," Karin said, laughing cheerfully.
Haruno also joined in the laughter, but Shiki's face grew more furrowed.
"Well, enough joking around like this, let's talk seriously for a moment... Shiki, as a precaution, allow me to accompany you to the doctor tomorrow to have your facial injury checked," Karin said seriously, looking at Shiki.
Haruno, understanding the meaning behind the gaze from her admired senpai, provided support by saying, "I think that would be for the best. Actually, it would be better if you could go to my place today, but since it's Sunday, my parents are attending a conference and won't be back until late."
The latter part of Haruno's statement actually brought a sense of relief to Shiki. Even though this was an injury he sustained while helping Haruno, asking her parents to examine the injury was a significant matter.
In this situation, with Karin's expertise and Haruno being the daughter of a doctor, Shiki felt compelled to follow what they said. However, he had doubts in his heart.
"But if I rest too much, what will they do the next day... Kawato-kun and the others..."
"You're being too timid if you think he'll hide when he's intimidating. Of course, he wouldn't dare seek revenge because that would break his promise with me."
"But Kawato-kun was really angry at me because of my kick, and in the end, it was Kohinata-san who defeated him..."
"Ah... if you put it that way, well, it's true."
"I'm sorry... it's all my fault," Haruno said, full of regret.
"It's not your fault at all, Momozono-san!" Shiki quickly objected.
Seeing Haruno saddened and Shiki panicking, Karin shook her head and then expressed something.
"It's alright. Since we're already involved this far, I will support you until the end."
"K-Kohinata-san... saying 'support' like that is a little... inappropriate for a girl..."
"Ah... ye-ye-yes! You're too noisy! Honestly, the idea that women should act according to stereotypes is outdated thinking."
Caught in turmoil because of those words, Shiki fell silent without words.
"As freely as I can. I mean, I won't have free time to protect you all the time. So..."
Karin smiled widely and uttered something very surprising.
"I will teach you how to fight."
"....W-what?"
Shiki didn't immediately understand the meaning of those words and could only give a response that seemed foolish...
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