What Kind of Protagonist Template Is This?
The sports festival had officially begun.
All the students lined up to enter the venue, listening to Fujimaki-senpai's opening statement.
Around the rubber track, the school's medical staff had set up several tents, ready for any accidents. The scattered audience in the stands mostly consisted of employees from the Keyaki Shopping Center.
Unlike other schools, the event schedule here was tight, and the audience turnout was limited. For Hikigaya, this was a relief.
After submitting the wool department's activity report, he had been training with Ichinose and the others. He wasn't slacking off, but the results were lackluster. With so many talented people around, even trying his best wasn't enough.
Shibata and the others weren't just naturally gifted; they also worked harder. Winning against them was practically impossible.
"Leave this sports festival to me!" Shibata declared, jogging in place with a bright, reassuring smile. "I'll definitely take first place in the individual competition!"
"Really reliable." Ichinose smiled, extending her hands to the middle. "But we can't just leave everything to Shibata. We have to do our best, too."
"I-I'll do my best!" Chihiro Baibo gathered her courage and nodded, placing her hand on Ichinose's. The rest of the group followed suit.
"Hikigaya." Ichinose looked at him, smiling.
"Uh… yeah." Hikigaya's face turned red. Somewhat embarrassed, he shuffled over and placed his hand on top. The feeling of excessive expectations crushing him made him nervous. He just wanted to do his best without disappointing anyone.
"Everyone, one, two, three—Go, Class B!" Ichinose cheered.
Hikigaya awkwardly followed along, hands joined with the others. It was so embarrassing. How did everyone act so naturally about it?
The 100-meter dash was first. The first-year students gathered at one end of the playground, waiting for their turn. The girls' races would be held later.
Hikigaya glanced at the lineup. He was placed in the eighth group, assigned to lane six. Other participants included Hamaguchi Tetsuya from Class B, and a couple of familiar faces from Class D—Haruki Yamauchi and Kanji Ike.
Those two stood out because they were always being obnoxious and loud, making themselves known for all the wrong reasons.
"Hikigaya, let's do our best!" Hamaguchi grinned and raised his fist for a friendly bump.
"Ah, uh, sure." Hikigaya awkwardly returned the gesture. Did fist-bumping really do anything to improve performance?
"Bang!" The signal gun fired.
Hikigaya turned his attention to the track, where the first group of boys had just taken off. A red-haired blur dashed ahead of everyone else, leaving the rest in the dust.
"Is that… a human? It looks like a monster." Hikigaya's jaw practically hit the ground.
The speed was ridiculous, almost on par with a professional athlete. This felt like a parallel world where monsters casually attended high school.
"You know him, right? That's Sudou from Class D. Their ace and our biggest threat." Hamaguchi chuckled and patted Hikigaya on the shoulder. "But don't stress. Just focus on doing your best."
Hikigaya nodded. Hamaguchi seemed to be trying to comfort him, but it wasn't necessary. He had already accepted that he couldn't beat someone like Sudou.
Giving his best effort where he had a realistic chance of success—that was Hikigaya's style.
The signal gun kept firing every twenty seconds. The 100-meter races for the first-year boys would be over in about four minutes, followed by the girls' races, and then the upperclassmen. The entire event would likely wrap up within thirty minutes.
The inner football field was now crowded with girls who were either eliminated or waiting for their events. They cheered on the popular figures and aces from various classes.
Names like "Hirata," "Shibata," "Satonaka," "Sudou," and "Kitou" constantly echoed through the air.
Hikigaya couldn't help but feel irritated. Why couldn't all those loudmouths just shut up?
Soon, it was the eighth group's turn. Hikigaya walked onto lane six, getting into position.
"Hikigaya, good luck!"
He looked over to see Juke cupping her hands around her mouth, shouting encouragement with her ponytail bouncing.
"Hamaguchi, you too!"
Hamaguchi smiled and waved, then whispered, "You and Juke get along well, huh?"
"No, idiot. She's just cheering for a classmate, just like she did for you." Hikigaya shook his head.
He crouched down and took a starting position. Juke cheered for everyone in Class B; she was just being friendly. Still, it felt a little embarrassing.
The signal gun fired. Hikigaya pushed off the ground with all his might, gritting his teeth as he charged forward. Unfortunately, someone passed him almost immediately.
He crossed the finish line and barely managed to secure second place. The winner was Hamaguchi, his own classmate.
Hikigaya sighed. Considering the weak group, even with his best effort, he only managed second place. But it could have been worse.
As they returned to the Class B camp, Hikigaya observed the girls' races. Juke was fast, but she only placed second. And Ichinose, despite her determination, only managed fourth place.
It seemed like their athletic abilities were about the same.
Their group eventually started watching the upperclassmen's competitions. In the senior classes, things were a lot more one-sided.
Class A of the third year, led by Manabu Horikita, and Class A of the second year, led by Masaru Nagumo, completely dominated the competition. Their power was overwhelming.
Hikigaya couldn't help but be amazed. How could the white team ever hope to beat the red team? Their focus should be on performing well within their own grade level instead.
"Hey."
Hikigaya felt a light tap on his calf. Turning around, he saw Juke frowning at him. "I cheered for you, but you only got second place?"
"Uh… Yeah. I tried my best." Hikigaya let out a dry laugh. "Besides, Hamaguchi still got first place, so it doesn't matter, right?"
"Maybe, but aren't you interested in getting more personal points?"
"Not really. It's not like I have a chance anyway." Hikigaya said with a shrug. His capabilities were limited, and it was better to accept that.
"Hmph. Whatever." Juke seemed annoyed but dropped the subject.
Hikigaya noticed her glancing toward the senior classes. "Those two," he said, nodding toward Manabu Horikita and Masaru Nagumo. "They're absurdly powerful. Like protagonists from some light novel or something."
"Actually, the school ranks them as the two most talented students of the past fifty years." Juke replied with a sigh.
"Wow. That sounds like a protagonist template if I've ever seen one."
It was unsettling. In the world of Oregairu, Hikigaya knew he was just a loner. Here, surrounded by monsters, he was just trying to survive.
Maybe that's all he needed to do.
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