Because It's You

Chapter 9 - Catching

Normal text
Thinking
Onomatopoeia

Xuan Luo Wan's POV
Now this is a surprise, I didn't expect my sister to treat Senior Ahri like that.

"Hehehe. Oh my~ Is my brother falling in love with Senior Ahri?" I teased.

Sister rolled her eyes and whispered, "Have you forgotten? I'm a girl."

"And what's the issue with that?" I retorted.

Sister sighed, "You are overthinking things. I just did it because her aura was blue in colour. She's stressed and worried. Since she helped us, I just wanted to offer my help to her in case she does need it in the future."

I chuckled and said nothing. My sister might be dense towards her own emotions, but I wasn't. I have lived with her for 14 years after all. I understood her better than she herself did. If it was really just to repay her for her help, she wouldn't have bothered to give her a sweet and say all that. She would have just given her a business card with the company's number on it. She had never connected herself emotionally to other people's problems. In that way, she's just like Mommy, pragmatic and calculative. When dealing with others, it's always a matter of calculating the best course of actions that brought the most benefits to her. That's what made her detached from others' emotions. Back in Ionia, she wasn't known as a heartbreaker for nothing. She cares about her. A lot more than what she lets on.

It's fine. No need to rush. There's plenty of time.

By this time, most of our classmates had finished their runs and were currently resting under the shade of a tree.

Keira asked, "What are we doing for today?"

"Catching," my sister replied.

Our classmates look left and right at each other.

"It's not normal catching. For this activity, you are allowed to use only level 1 spells. All of you will be separated into 2 teams, the catcher and the runner. The catchers are in charge of catching the runners. You catch them by tagging anywhere on their bodies. Those that were caught will sit around this tree. For runners, you can save your fellow caught runners by tagging them. Once tagged, they will automatically become a runner once again. Catchers win when there are less than half of the runners remaining at the end of the game. Runners win by having more than half of their group left at the end of the game. The losing team will have to run another 4 rounds after class," my sister explained.

"What about the winning team?" a guy asked.

"Well, your reward is that you don't have to run 4 rounds after class. What better reward can there be?" Sister grinned.

Our classmates looked at each other, then at me.

Sister understood what they were thinking and added on, "Of course, since Xiao Wan has a strong magic foundation, people that are in her team will have to do more to win. They will also be punished more if they lose. To win as a catcher, her team will have to catch 3 quarters of the runner team. To win as a runner, her team needs to have 3 quarters left uncaught at the end. If her team loses, they will have to run 6 rounds."

Oh dear. Sister is in her devil training mode.

"I will be a catcher," I announced.

Everyone was discussing among themselves on which side they wanted to be on. Slowly, people started to separate into 2 distinct teams.

"Excellent. The game lasts for 30 mins. When the time is up, I will inform all of you. Your playing field will be within this forest. People that run out of the boundary will be immediately disqualified and have to do their punishment. The time starts now," once she finished, the runners instantly scattered.

I reacted quickly and immediately caught a girl. Then I proceeded to apply level 1 wind enhancement magic on my legs and sped after the nearby scattering runners. I quickly caught a bunch of classmates who were slow in reacting. I could clearly remember who was on the runner team. But apparently, my team can't. They kept catching each other by mistake. Some runners even tried to smoke them into thinking that they were catchers.

This is bad.

Our team was disorganised. This game might look like it only trained your magic manipulation, but to excel in it, there must also be teamwork and strategy. Each team must have a clear separation of roles and communicate with each other. There was no clear indication of whose roles were what. When the game started, my team immediately ran off to catch others instead of staying back to discuss. Since there's no clear order, many runners even came back to save their caught teammates.

Since it's too late to cry over spilt milk, I just need to catch more people than they can rescue.

After 30 mins, the game ended and our team barely won. I sat down under the tree panting heavily. My sister handed me a bottle of water and I immediately drank down half of it.

"Why... haaa... are we... haaa... even doing... this?" one of the guys wheezed why complaining.

"Didn't all of you want to be like Xiao Wan? To have this level of control, you must first have a strong magic foundation. By only using level 1 magic spells, it trains your body to fully utilise those spells. When you keep using those spells, you become more familiar with them and soon, you will not even need to think to conjure up those spells. Anyway, there's more to this game than just catching and running. This game not only tests your magic foundation, it also tests your strategic thinking and planning. Since all of you can't remember your teammates, why didn't you hang a piece of coloured cloth to signal which person belongs to your team? And what about the roles you play? Who's in charge of catching and who's in charge of guarding the caught runners? Who's in charge of running and who's in charge of rescuing?" Sister patiently explained.

Everyone was silent.

"Keira told me that since the competition can be related to anything under the sun, we should only train in our raw strength and magic. But I don't think that's the correct training method. Yes, I know I can just train your magic powers, but I don't want that. I prefer brains over brawn. What I want to teach you is not only magic but also the ability to think. All of you said you wanted to be part of a peerage. But only having strong magic powers will not forever guarantee your position in the peerage, since in the end, you're still just a dispensable chess piece. What happens if someone with more powers comes along? The only way to show that you are indispensable is to show your ability to think and strategize."

"But is it really okay for other chess pieces to also take part in strategy planning? I thought only Kings have the right to strategize?" Keira asked.

"Yes. This is the reason why Ionia's peerage ratings are generally much higher than that of Piltover. Because in Ionia, every chess piece is expected to think. Only by having the ability to think will you be able to help your King and solidify his position in rating games."

Everyone was deep in thought.

Haizzz... It may take some time for them to gradually change their mindset.

I clapped my hands, "Well, since the runner team lost, you guys will have to run 4 rounds."

"Urghhh..." they groaned before standing up and proceeded to do their punishment.

Well, there's still time. No need to push too much now.