Ephemeral Ability Reflects the Heart

Today, Mishuku Hana seemed to be absent from school.

She is probably trying to get back in shape for the sports festival tomorrow. It is not difficult to imagine that the fatigue of three days of training cannot be overcome by a night's sleep.

Her absence did not seem to be a topic of conversation.

But for now, let's see what will happen when Hana comes back. Having said that, it would not be so easy for her to betray, but still, it would be better to keep a close eye on her.

...It's like walking on a tightrope.

Well, it can't be helped that there are no convenient powers such as hypnosis, brainwashing, or curses. But the thought of being discovered is frightening.

And yet, Chihiro can't stop. 

Probably, he is greedy.

He wanted to know people's hearts and joined Shibahou following in the footsteps of his older sister, only to fail and seek power. He made a contract with Maria, enslaved Riko, and now he still seeks power and women.

How far?

How strong does he need to be to be satisfied?

At least, not enough as it is now.

「Izumi-kun. Can I have a moment of your time?」

That day, afternoon PE is a free period.

It's not the teacher's negligence, of course. In order to prepare for the next day's sports festival, they allowed students to practice the events they are going to participate in.

There are some events that are difficult to practice, such as the javelin, so those students are given the opportunity to train as they wish or to help other students practice.

Chihiro's participation in the cavalry battle depended on Kamishiro's busy schedule, but as soon as the class started, Kamishiro approached him.

「I'd like to organize a cavalry battle today」

「Okay」

Chihiro nodded and gathered the other members together with Kamishiro.

The cavalry would be a team of four, with each rider being carried around the field by three horses - one in front and two behind.

「Can we practice for the relay or something?」

「Yeah, we'll do that later. We'll be practicing after school there」

「I understand」

If Chihiro remembers correctly, relays are the highlight of the sports festival.

Even in middle school, he had the image that the students chosen to represent the team stayed after school to practice.

「Besides, Maisaka insisted on us winning」

When he followed Kamishiro's gaze, he saw Maisaka smiling at them and raising his hand to them. It seems that the class president, who wants to win the prize, is working hard to arrange for the victory.

Although it's only 1000 yen, but it's still 1000 yen.

If one considers it to be the cost of lunch for two days, it's a small price to pay.

「Well, let's give it a try」

With Kamishiro in front and the other two men behind, Chihiro is raised upwards by their hands. The feel of the man's hard body and the smell of sweat is not very pleasant, but it gave him a stability that he would not fall easily.

「Wow, Izumi, you're so light」

「Are you eating properly?」

The reason for his stability seems to be Chihiro's weight. The cavalry is made up of athletic members, so it's natural that he's not as reliable as them.

But when it comes to body, which is not always the case, it is the nature of boys to want to joke around.

「Izumi-kun, you should hold your body more firmly. Yeah. Put your hand on my shoulder or on my head」

Kamishiro, however, is very serious. He is careful not to disrespect like the other two, instead he is preparing for the performance.

When Chihiro followed his instructions and put his weight firmly, his body became more stable.

「Good. Let's get started」

"One, two", the riders shouted in unison as they began to walk.

At this point, Chihiro's job is to stay as still as possible and not to fall.

He has to endure the shakes caused by the uneven pacing and swaying of the three horses, and he has to keep himself balanced while riding on top of them. It is a simple but hard work.

The practice starts with a slow walk, and gradually increases in speed and turns. At first, it is not so much a problem, but when it comes to galloping and changing direction, both rider and horse begin to feel a greater burden.

While the horses tried to keep their bodies still and move in time with the riders, Chihiro tried to match their movements and endure the shaking.

（So, I'm going to fight in a melee and take the headband while reading the opponent's minds?）

It's much harder than he expected.

But the rider, Chihiro, can concentrate on fighting for the headband because he can leave the movement to the horse. It helps that the battle between rider is not affected by their own mobility. 

「OK. Now let's try it out in a real battle」

After practicing for about 20 minutes, they asked another boy to make another horse and they had a real battle.

The horses made by the four of men faced each other and charged each other.

As expected, Chihiro and his team's movements are much different from those of the improvised horses. They approached the wobbling enemy at high speed and quickly entered the fighting distance.

This is where the rider comes into play.

From the moment they approached, Chihiro looked intently into the eyes of the other rider. He can see it. He can see what the other rider's feeling and it's anxiety.

The other rider is afraid of falling off his horse and can't concentrate.

Although he couldn't read his specific strategy, but that made it easier to fight. If he stretches out his right hand while supporting his swaying body with his left hand, his opponent will be scared to pay for it.

Then, two times, three times. The opponent staggered, his anxiety doubling as the opponed repeatedly attacked while being stared by him. And taking advantage of this opportunity, Chihiro grabbed the opponent's jersey instead of headband, which was wrapped around his head.

「Well, that's good」

「I guess this won't embarrass me on the stage, right?」

Chihiro let out a sigh of relief as he is lowered to the ground after the practice.

The other cavalry students seemed to be feeling good about their current victory, and are shouting cheerfully.

Kamishiro nodded, a smile on his face.

「Yeah. We'are moving well, and Izumi-kun's jockey is in good form. I don't think there's anything to worry about in the battle. It's just...」

Kamishiro's expression clouded.

「I'm not sure we can beat the upperclassmen or 1-A's horse」

「1-A?」

Chihiro tilted his head, reflexively thinking of Hana's face.

「Class A, is anyone amazing coming out?」

「Yeah. There's someone a little tricky...」

Kamishiro replied, looking around the field with a distant look in his eyes. At this time, all the first-year students are in PE, so the person in question might be around somewhere.

The opponent that Kamishiro is having trouble with.

If the opponent going to be in a cavalry battle, this person must be a physical type. If that's the case, is this person a different student from Hana?

「Ah, Yuse Shuka. That person definitely a pain in the ass」

Maisaka joins the conversation as he walks towards Chihiro and the others. At the same time, the other two boys on horseback scattered somewhere.

Perhaps they had other practices to attend, or perhaps they didn't want to talk with Maisaka because it would be too long.

「Yuse, san? A girl?」

「Yes. Her rank is C. Her ability is [Heat Manipulation]」

Heat manipulation.

The first thing that came to mind when Chihiro heard this was a girl emitting flames from her palm and can wrapped herself with it. However, since he said [Heat Manipulation] instead of [Flame Manipulation] it's a little different.

Kamishiro explains with a subtle smile on his face.

「Yuse-san's [Heat Manipulation] is mainly to adjust the temperature inside the body. If she tried hard enough, she might be able to make fire, but that's not its basic use. It's about raising the body's internal heat level to temporarily boost athletic performance」

People consume energy, calories in short, in order to be active.

By consuming extra calories when exercising, Yuse Shuka is said to be able to gain performance beyond her natural athletic ability. There are many aspects of the [Lost Item]'s abilities that are still unknown, and since it uses mental energy to cause supernatural phenomena, not all of it can be explained by science.

「Is that what Kamishiro-kun's want to say...」

「Yeah. In a sense, it's superior. Especially in terms of instantaneous power, her performance seems to be better. On the other hand, it's not as fuel-efficient and doesn't last long, so it's hard to say in terms of versatility」

Still, it's scary enough. 

「Incidentally, Yuse has already had a few rivalries with Kamishiro in the past」

「Rival, you mean?」

「...Well, sort of」

At Chihiro's voice, Kamishiro looked annoyed.

Is there much of a rivalry between him and her? Or does Shuka know his weakness?

Maisaka smiled.

He deliberately put his face close to Chihiro's and spoke in a whisper, too loud for a private conversation.

「He pushed Yuse down and squeezed her breasts at the entrance ceremony」

「Eh?」

「Hey, Maisaka, you promised NOT to reveal that...!」

Judging from Kamishiro's raised voice, it seems he's telling the truth.

...In fact, if he had remained calm, Chihiro might not have believed this story.

As Chihiro was pondering how he should react, his shoulder was grabbed firmly. Kamishiro, with a more serious face than usual, looked at Chihiro intently.

「It was an accident, you know. I just fell and ended up in trouble... please, you have to believe me」

「Uh, yeah」

Chihiro nodded anyway, as Kamishiro's emotions are telling him that he will die if he is misunderstood.