＜Staff Room＞

"To think Mahima would get injured..."

"I'm sorry."

"Ugh..."

The teacher sighed. He was clearly irritated and was shaking his leg.

"Will she be unable to compete in the competition?"

"It's highly likely."

"Well... even if she could compete, winning would be difficult. ...Tch. Let her do as she pleases until the competition."

"...Yes."

The conversation ended without him ever making eye contact with me.

...Well, I guess this is how much 'Reina Mahima' is worth if she can't win.

As I left the staff room, I saw several underclassmen from the club standing in the hallway. They ran towards me as soon as they spotted me.

"Reina-senpai!!"

"Are you okay? Is the injury alright?"

"Yeah. It'll be fine if I rest. But it's a bit touch-and-go whether I can compete in the competition."

"S, so... ..."

Everyone looked down at my response. A few seconds of silence passed.

"But maybe if I..."

"I'll do my best for Senpai, so you should focus on your studying!"

One club member spoke up. Then everyone looked up and gave me words of encouragement.

'We'll do our best for Senpai.' 'Senpai, you should focus on studying.'

'It's a shame about the competition, but we're expecting you to be the first to get into college.'

Some of them even had tears in their eyes as they spoke to me.

But no one believes that my injury will heal completely... My club activities are over now, and they're expecting a perfect student from me.

"...Yeah, I'll be cheering you all on."

I think I said something like that. I don't remember exactly. My mouth just moved.

To avoid breaking everyone's ideal image of 'Reina Mahima.'

_______________________

"Ah."

While heading to the library, I happened to see Reina-senpai and Miyachi-senpai talking. I couldn't help but eavesdrop to hear what they were saying.

"It's inevitable that you got injured. It can happen to anyone if they're trying their best."

"...Yeah. That's true."

"And club activities aren't everything. Use this frustration as fuel and focus on your studies. You're perfect, Reina."

Miyachi-senpai gently patted Reina-senpai's shoulder.

"Yeah. ...Thanks for encouraging me, Jin."

"No problem. Don't get so down. See you later."

Even after Miyachi-senpai left, Reina-senpai didn't move from where she was. She looked like a broken doll.

"…………"

"S, Senpai, are you okay?"

I couldn't help but worry and speak to her.

"Ah... It's Chihiro. Yeah, I'm okay."

Reina-senpai smiled at me, but she seemed less energetic than usual. I could clearly see dark circles under her eyes.

"I got injured, you see. My right wrist was hurting, and I kept trying to protect it during practice... then my left wrist screamed in pain."

Reina-senpai's left wrist was bandaged painfully.

"If it heals well, I might be able to make it to the competition, but of course, practice is forbidden until it heals."

"I see..."

Even if she does heal, I think it would be very difficult for her to win the competition with no practice, even for someone like Reina-senpai.

The final competition of high school. Reina-senpai had practiced harder than anyone else on the team, aiming for victory in that competition... but she might not even be able to compete.

I was lost for words, not knowing how to comfort her, when Reina-senpai spoke to me.

"Could you walk home with me again after school today? ...Please?"

"Yes. Of course."