Side Story 7, Swamp (7-7)

'Finally...'

The finals. Though no one said it, everyone could be felt getting excited about the final match between the two from Suun High. Yu-wan too waited for the match with a strangely elevated mood. Although he had only faced one of those two, it seemed this match would be satisfying just to watch.

That premonition proved correct, as the final match between the two from the same high school exceeded everyone's expectations. Yu-wan couldn't take his eyes off the match area for even a moment. Though he knew he should go prepare for his third-place match, no thoughts would come to his mind. He realized for the first time then that a sword could be wielded in such ways.

'It would have been nice if I could have had a match with that person.'

That faint thought was the only one he had. The feeling of falling into an endless swamp just from watching left him rooted to the spot, unable to move. And this was just from watching.

Every time the lean participant boy at the end of Yu-wan's gaze swung his bamboo sword, his brain, submerged in a hot swamp, turned this way and that in the same direction.

The match that everyone watched entranced finally reached its conclusion. Yu-wan was seized by an indescribable intense emotion watching the lean participant boy grasp the glory of victory.

It was that emotion felt on some primordial day - an overwhelming feeling that seemed to combine the desire felt upon first recognizing numbers, the sensation at the peak of grueling exercise, the feeling of quiet stillness when exceeding the speed limit on a motorcycle, and the catharsis felt while constructing programs on a monitor.

Yu-wan gasped like someone about to drown, crushed by this weight he had never felt before in his life. Each breath while gripping the railing felt unfamiliar. What was the name of this? What could this be that had drowned him in a deeper swamp than anything he had felt before?

The match just now had truly been amazing beyond words. He couldn't confidently say he would have won even if he had been in place of the person who fought the winner.

The third-place match was conducted briefly while most people had lost interest after the spectacular finals. Yu-wan couldn't properly focus on the match with the final match still circling in his head, and ended up resignedly giving up third place.

Now that the third-place match was over, it was time to hand over the championship trophy. Though the award ceremony was simpler than expected compared to the matches, people strongly hoped to see the winner one more time. It was a fervent enthusiasm that bordered on yearning.

Yu-wan also thought he should change clothes quickly and go watch the award ceremony as he entered the waiting room, but he saw someone still in kendo uniform with their mask on, casting a shadow while standing to one side.

Tall with an athletically trained build similar to his own. It was undoubtedly the runner-up boy. Though Yu-wan wondered why he was standing there like that, he passed by indifferently thinking it was probably nothing as he headed to the bathroom to wash his face.

However, that would be the last time Yu-wan would see those two Suun High boys.

Three days had passed since the competition ended. Even the kendo club guys who had been bothersome until yesterday trying to console Yu-wan for placing fourth without getting a medal had now returned to their daily routines and disappeared, and his grandfather had asked if it would be alright to assign work to him again.

But the scene of the winner boy's performance in the final match still remained in Yu-wan's mind. What had initially remained as just an afterimage became clearer as time passed, now making him feel as if he was repeatedly watching that match even while wide awake.

He had never seen anything capture his mind so intensely that wasn't related to numbers, programming, motorcycles, or exercise - just a living person. But in truth, what he desired most desperately was to feel again that intense emotion he had felt that day, for the first and last time.

"Sigh..."

While rubbing his forehead after letting out a long sigh, Yu-wan suddenly had the impulsive thought of going to Suun High himself to meet him. Though he couldn't properly remember the face or name, he clearly remembered the information that he was from Suun High and was the kendo club captain. And soon finding that idea appealing, he made up his mind to do it.

Not realizing this was his first interest in another person, Yu-wan looked up directions to Suun High with his now somewhat clearer mind.

When he got on the bus that stopped at Suun High after school, glances from other schools' female students sitting in the bus kept darting toward him.

Yu-wan was certainly a handsome male student rarely seen in the area. Unlike his somewhat lean body that well suited the white short-sleeved school uniform shirt with navy accent stripes, his arm holding the handle showed nicely toned muscles.

Even the navy uniform pants that looked somewhat unfashionable suited the handsome guy unreasonably well, making him look like a scene from a fashion magazine. While the female students strongly noticed him, whispering about wondering which school that boy was from, no one knew that Yu-wan's mind contained nothing but thoughts of going to Suun High.

Yu-wan got off the bus when he heard the stop name for in front of Suun High. Though this place was unfamiliar as his first visit, seeing the large school building visible nearby made him think he had found the right place.

Though he had come impulsively, he had no regrets. As he slowly walked through Suun High's school gate, faces of Suun High students surprised by the appearance of a male student in an unfamiliar uniform could be seen here and there. Though most expressions were wary, fortunately no one came to stop him openly since it was officially after school hours past 4:30.