43. I Didn't Hit It, But Why?
“It’s the last day of the festival, so today I’m taking it easy.”
“I’m not some evil CEO. And I’m not doing this to rake in money.”
“So on the last day, I rest. Normally Fridays don’t have overtime or extra shifts anyway.”
“Eh…? Rest? But we’re not working today?”
“Why not? This wasn’t half bad.”
“But why are you all pushing us to go out and have fun when we don’t want to?”
“We just did it because the boss said to work only in the morning. But my seatmate immediately shot back, ‘No way. I’m leaving on time.’ It’s exactly the same as what I said.”
“This is ridiculous.”
I stared at Selena, who looked just as baffled as I did.
She even muttered something about showing unnecessary diligence in the wrong place.
“Hey! Rest already! If Karl says rest, then rest! Why are there so many words?”
Joachim, who had clearly been through a lot, was desperately trying to convince the others.
Yeah… I guess I can’t wear the carp-patterned clothes anymore. Let’s see, Joachim. I’ll remember this.
After all the effort I put into making those clothes for you, you’re ashamed of them? Next time it’ll be hotteok-patterned ones.
Of course there’s no head… Ah, no, I’ll just stick a single rabbit ear on it.
Leaving the cooking booth behind, I thought about taking a nap, but Selena quietly followed beside me.
“Karl.”
“Yeah. Selena. Do you have something to say?”
“Today’s the last day of the festival. What are you going to do now?”
“I was going to go back to the room and sleep.”
Selena stopped in her tracks with a “Huh?” and stared at me.
After all, suggesting to sleep on the last day of the festival probably sounded pretty absurd.
But what could I do? I was tired. The conscripted returning student had become low on stamina after passing through sergeant!
“B-but… on the last day of the festival, shouldn’t we enjoy it more?”
“Hmm.”
Selena was right. Naps could be taken anytime, but the festival couldn’t.
If I were an outsider, maybe. But right now I was an academy student. A returning student, no less.
The first priority for a returning student was to adapt to school life and blend in as much as possible.
Otherwise I’d become that weird, half-present, half-absent Schrödinger’s returning student.
In that sense, enjoying the festival without running away was actually quite natural.
Thinking about it, I hadn’t even shown my face at the booths the other juniors were running.
Since it was the last day, I should at least pay my respects.
“...Now that I think about it, you’re right, Selena.”
“Right?! Then come with me?”
“With Selena?”
“Yeah. Um, I mean… Ah! This might be the last festival for me!”
Ugh. Just hearing it made me feel sad. Graduating from the academy.
Four years as an ordinary student, then returning to the noble world… It would be quite a loss.
Like graduating from college and jumping into the real world, I suppose.
At least in this world, nobles aren’t being pressured to get a job, so that was fortunate.
“More than anything, this feeling is strangely weird.”
When I first returned to school, I thought I’d never face Selena again.
If we did meet, I figured we’d just greet each other and go our separate ways, since we both had a lot of shame and dark past between us.
But here we were, walking the festival streets together.
“Yesterday, that Lavrenti person…?”
“Lavr went to see her family first. She said she came straight to me right after discharge.”
“Wow. She came right after discharge? She must be really attached to you, Karl.”
“...No matter how I think about it, I still don’t get that part.”
Yeah, according to Lavrenti, I had given her advice and praised her, encouraging her to do even better in the future.
But the problem was, the one standing right next to me had completely missed the mark.
Lavrenti had clearly seen my pathetic performance. While giving advice, I was the one who actually did nothing!
Yet she still called me Master and said everything was thanks to me!
“I don’t get that either? Karl?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Can’t shoot? You were on the battlefield for three years and even became a sharp shooter. How can you say you’re her master?”
I needed to show her. Let’s see… Ah, there’s a perfect spot right here.
“Karl?”
I led Selena to the shooting booth. It was a classic game where you shot at targets and won the prize if you hit.
The mechanism was almost identical. Except for the fact that it wasn’t real bullets flying and the power was greatly reduced when fired.
“I’ll show you. My shooting skills.”
Somehow it sounded like a certain overpowered protagonist saying “I’ll show you my power.”
In reality, I had only hit a handful of times in the entire war.
I received ten bullets in total from the student running the booth.
The distance to the target wasn’t far. The dolls were mostly larger than the targets.
I set my stance. Just like before, I held my breath, aimed, and pulled the trigger.
Thwack!―
“Ah! That was close! I missed a little!”
...Yeah. I knew it would happen. One more time.
Thwack!―
“Aaaah! Right next to it! That was close, Karl.”
“...”
Damn it. Why?! I was clearly aiming and shooting, but why wasn’t I hitting?!
I was intensely considering disassembling this gun right there on the spot.
“Karl. Can I try once?”
Selena’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
Since I knew I wouldn’t hit anyway, I simply handed her the gun.
“Um… like this?”
“No, not like that. Like this. Here.”
Of course, the difference in handling between a conscript and a non-conscript was obvious.
The distance to the target was close for me but far for Selena…
Thwack! Thwack!―
“Ah! I hit it! I hit it, Karl! Hehe!”
“Eh, eh… I see.”
What the…? If it’s this easy, what am I supposed to do!
“Congratulations! Here is the doll you hit!”
“Thank you. Ah, can I shoot the remaining ones too?”
“Of course! You can use all the bullets you purchased!”
Excited, Selena set her stance again.
Eh? Why was she holding it so sloppily? The butt of the gun was floating off her shoulder.
“Selena, wait a second.”
“Eh, w-what?”
I might not be able to shoot, but I was confident in my posture at least.
After all, I was a conscript. I couldn’t endure this discomfort! Aaaah!
“Like this. Here. Put it against your shoulder.”
“U-um.”
“Face it properly. Look at the target you want.”
I stood behind her and adjusted the fine details.
The stance was good. But her breathing was a bit rough, which bothered me.
“S-shoot?”
I was about to tell her to calm down and shoot, but she had already pulled the trigger.
Probably going to miss again—
Thwack! Thwack!―
“Ah! Hit again!”
“Congratulations! Wow! This time it’s a bigger doll!”
“...”
Impossible? I said her breath was rough, so the gun should have shaken!
Why was she hitting it? Why?! Why was I missing and she was hitting?!
“Now it’s your turn. Here.”
“...I think Selena can just shoot all of them.”
“No. You shoot two. And I shoot two. Fairly, okay.”
My reluctance to accept and my pride as a conscript collided.
I felt it. Even if I shot the remaining six, I probably wouldn’t hit a doll.
If I backed out here and said “Let’s stop,” I’d be a conscript who got pushed in a shooting match by a girl! Damn it, I could never accept that!
“Please. Just one. Please!”
I even went as far as pressing the gun to my lips like I did on the battlefield.
I had seen comrades who hit Gganf well by doing this.
So when I pressed my lips to the sword and swung it, it felt sharper than before.
I glared at the target. The closest and largest one. The one that was actually meant to be hit.
It was embarrassing, no, insanely embarrassing, but I had to hit it.
Even if the first two were mistakes, if I missed the next ones, it would look bad.
“I never thought the Medal of Honor would be this burdensome. Damn it.”
Yeah. Especially since I had received the Medal of Honor twice.
If a guy who got the Medal of Honor couldn’t even shoot a girl… I’d be finished.
“Huu.”
I steadied my breath, aimed, aligned the sight. For the trigger pull—
“Eh?! Wait! If you put it there like that!”
Out of nowhere, a bang! came from the booth behind us.
Others might have only heard that, but I heard more. Something flew through the air and landed right where Selena was standing.
Instinctively, I pulled Selena toward me and fired the gun I was holding.
*
“Like this. Here. Put it against your shoulder.”
“Face it properly. Look at the target you want.”
My heart was pounding so hard I thought I’d die. I was even worried that the trembling sound might reach Karl.
When he stood behind me and adjusted my posture one by one. When his hand touched my shoulder and hand. When the warmth from behind tickled my nape.
Selena bit her lips tightly so hard that no “fuiing” sound would escape between them.
“Shooting… isn’t that bad…?!
I wanted to stay close to Karl, but I had already shot two times. It was his turn now.
So when I handed him the gun and was about to calm my embarrassed feelings—
“Ah?”
Suddenly my body was pulled sideways and I was embraced by Karl.
At the same time, Karl raised the gun in one hand and pulled the trigger toward the sky.
Crash!―
A test tube shattered right in front of where I was standing.
If I had been standing there, it would have been a disaster.
“S-sorry! Sorry! Are you okay?! Did you get hurt anywhere?!”
“Ah. I’m fine. I didn’t get hurt…”
Selena, still in Karl’s arms, stared blankly at him.
Probably, she would have to regret rejecting his confession many times over.
On the other hand—
“Why is this hitting? Damn it.”
Karl stared blankly at the gun in his hand with a dumbfounded expression.
The gun that couldn’t hit even with proper aiming had somehow fired with one hand and hit.