Parallel (A Virtual Gamer's Story) [Vol.1 - Vol.4 Complete]

Chapter 79: Memories of You

Iruma, Saitama Perfecture.

21st June 2043.

It was that time of the year again. High schools of Japan were awash with the torrential outpouring of youthful exuberance. That time of year, when every athlete and geek alike honed their respective skills to fulfill their magnificent dreams.

Yes, it was the period of Regional Competitions! Baseball, Basketball, Badminton, etc. Japanese telecommunications were hijacked by this insatiable fever. One such competition had grown in prestige over the years till it now boasted city-wide coverage over both radio stations and news channels.

This was the Annual Marksman Competition, split into Junior, High School, and Professional levels. It was further divided into Male, Female, and Mixed.

The regional competition had begun, attracting quite a significant crowd to the outdoor arena. Most had come to see the goddess loved by the media; the only woman who, after dominating the female category, still survived in the mixed competition: The aptly named Archery Princess.

The stands held their breath as the young lady, still tied with the young man she struggled against, stepped onto the raised platform. She was a picture of serenity, brows neither furrowed because of the heat, nor visage betraying the stress she must have been under.

And it would be no surprise too if she were to collapse. No one had expected a girl to come this far in the competition, let alone hold her own against Nagi Shigi, the young prospect touted to soon dominate the Olympics.

Both contestants had been tied for over forty-five minutes, each trying their utmost to break the deadlock while hoping the other slipped up. To finally break the stalemate, the organizers moved from the competition from the indoor arena to the outdoor arena, usually reserved for the Professional competitors.

Which was where they found themselves now.

Nagi had gone first, soon displaying his familiarity with outdoor Archery. He had clearly been practicing with the Olympics as a goal. The gallery had erupted after his magnificent display, and now waited with bated breath-and slight trepidation-for the Princess' inevitable downfall.

Adachi Ayumi took a deep breath and closed her eyes, listening as the wind picked up. What am I doing here? Here she was, struggling for a trophy that meant nothing, but somehow arbitrarily added value to her life. It was this value her father sought in her, her peers envied, and her fans worshipped.

Ayumi missed Leila. In that world, her actions actually mattered, her decisions changing the lives of many.

Adachi Ayumi was trapped, doomed to follow the predictable ladder of society laid out before her. She supposed it was why she had found Suzuki so fascinating.

A young man who, in this day and age, shrugged when asked what he wanted to be would be labeled aimless. And she couldn't lie. Ayumi initially thought the same of him too. But she also could not deny that he possessed a freedom of spirit that she, who society labeled 'ideal' would never have.

In a world where it was believed that money equaled success and happiness, Suzuki had shown her what it meant to find joy in the smallest things. Which was ironic in its way, since Suzuki himself wouldn't know what happiness was if it dressed up as a clown and danced in front of him.

Pfft!

Leila failed to choke back her amusement, and chuckled on the spot, shielding her face from the cameras. Unfortunately, her shaking shoulders gave the onlookers the wrong idea.

"Ara ara, she's crying because the wind picked up."

"This is unfair, anyway! There's no way a girl could have beaten a guy."