Chapter 153: A wild and crazy sports festival (1)

Despite someone’s desperate wishes, the day of the sports festival was exceptionally clear and sunny.

The blue sky stretched endlessly beyond the horizon.

Of course, this was inevitable. If there was even the slightest sign of rain on the day of the festival, Mana would immediately cast Control Weather magic to disperse the dark clouds.

Because of this, in the entire history of Anatolia Academy, the sports festival had never once been postponed—not even once in over 500 years.

For a certain white rabbit huddled quietly in the corner of the field, this was terrible news.

“So the day has finally come…”

Sion muttered in a gloomy voice.

If she could, she would go back in time and smack herself for signing up for the cheer squad.

No, she would go even further and erase the memory of ever feeling a sense of regret over a mere number of snacks.

Who cares about popularity anyway?

If it came to it, she could just wipe out human civilization with her power and rule over everything herself.

Surely, that would be better than suffering this humiliation… The thought briefly crossed her mind.

“Damn it, no matter where I look, it’s nothing but big-breasted girls… What the hell are humans eating these days to grow like this…? Is this the limit of being born in a poor slum…? This is so unfair…”

Sion grumbled as she glanced around, feeling utterly miserable about how small and insignificant she seemed compared to her seniors and classmates.

If she had known it would come to this, she should have gradually used magic to enhance her figure.

After all, the supposed “disadvantages” of having a large chest wouldn’t mean much to someone like her, who was already one of the strongest beings on the continent.

As Sion was gradually consumed by her negativity, the girl beside her, Exia, slyly tried to comfort her.

-“C-Come on, cheer up, Sion! Size isn’t everything, right? Look! Everyone’s watching you! I’m sure, with modern sensibilities, smaller and cuter is actually more appealing!”

“Yeah, right.”

Sion scoffed bitterly.

“Be realistic. All things being equal, men will always prefer bigger. That has been an unchanging truth since prehistoric times. I’m sure they’re all laughing at me inside, thinking, ‘She always acts so high and mighty, but in reality, she’s nothing special.’

Some of them might even be mocking me, wondering what confidence I had to join the cheer squad in the first place.

The masses love nothing more than tearing down famous people.”

-“W-Wait… You’re being way too negative! This isn’t like you, Sion, always overflowing with confidence. Didn’t you say you had a plan? Was that just bluster?”

“I do have a plan… But put yourself in my shoes. If you were the one receiving these humiliating stares, could you stay composed?”

Sigh.

Sion let out a small sigh. The regret in her heart dispersed into the sky like a faint breath.

Meanwhile, what were the students actually thinking as they stared at her?

‘So cute.’

‘What the hell, the Hero is absolutely adorable.’

‘Bunny-ear Sion? The student council president is a genius!’

‘Wait, is she seriously insecure about her chest? That’s insanely cute.’

‘I swear, I wanna tear those stockings and do unspeakable things, holy sh—’

Contrary to her expectations, their reactions were overwhelmingly positive.

Thinking about it, it was only natural. Though unintentional, Sion had achieved the perfect “gap moe” effect.

A hero who had always maintained a flawless, dignified image had undergone a sudden transformation.

A bold, daring outfit that starkly contrasted with her innocent face.

The sheer impact of this contrast made concerns about her chest size seem trivial.

A person’s physique is just one aspect of their charm—it’s not everything.

Even her slightly downcast expression, from an outsider’s perspective, only made her seem shy and even more adorable.

Thus, despite herself, Sion was actually achieving her initial goal.

“Kyaaaaaaah!! E-Everyone, look!! My sister is soooooo cute!!!”

Among the onlookers, the most ecstatic was Isabella, the very cause of this entire situation.

Her voice trembled with so much excitement that she sounded like she was about to pass out.

“Oh my god, oh my god, she’s so cute I’m going insane! I could die happy right now!! Hyaaaaaah!!!”

“Whoa, whoa! Isabella! Calm down!”

Next to her, Therese frantically smacked Isabella’s back, trying to rein in her frenzy.

She had quite the skillful touch, perhaps due to having experience dealing with a similarly hyperactive younger sibling.

After drooling slightly while gazing at Sion, Isabella turned her head to the side and spoke.

“Brother, are you really not going to look? You’ll regret this for the rest of your life, you know? You’re missing out on half of your existence!”

“I said I’m not looking! Stop talking to me!”

Martin shouted, his eyes tightly shut.

Of course, it wasn’t that Martin didn’t want to look.

He was, after all, a teenage boy before he was a prince.

How could he not be tempted to sneak a glance at bunny-suited Sion?

If they were in private, with no one else around, he might have risked a quick side glance.

But right now, they were in a public place, surrounded by everyone. More importantly, he was standing right next to Lancia.

Even if she was just his betrothed through an arranged marriage, it would be beyond inappropriate to ogle another girl right in front of her.

It would be utterly disgraceful.

Even if the world forgave him, Martin himself would never forgive such a dishonorable act.

So, he endured. No matter how much he wanted to look, he would endure.

For today, he swore he would not let his gaze wander to the cheer section.

“………”

Ironically, however, the very person he was being so considerate of—Lancia—was completely mesmerized by Sion, standing there in a daze.

Martin’s determination was admirable, but in the end, it might have been meaningless. Lancia hadn’t been paying any attention to him in the first place—her focus was solely on Sion.

Truly, they were a pair whose future seemed full of uncertainties.

“What the hell is that?”

Meanwhile, it wasn’t just the students who were startled by Sion’s outfit.

Even the headmaster, watching from afar, was just as baffled.

Mana blinked in surprise at the sight of Sion’s bunny ears.

“Why is Sion dressed like that? Is this some kind of punishment?”

“Huh? You didn’t know, Master? I thought for sure you would, since it’s been the talk of the school lately.”

“Not at all. I had no idea.”

Mana shook her head.

It wasn’t surprising. Despite being a headmaster, she was actually quite unaware of the school’s daily affairs.

To an elf like her, a human’s three-year school term felt like no more than a month or two.

If she got distracted by something else, before she knew it, students would graduate, and new ones would arrive.

She didn’t have the time—or interest—to memorize each individual student.

Her role at the academy was simply to exist.

As one of the pillars holding up the continent, her duty was solely to protect the school.

All the daily administrative tasks were left to her disciple, Sally, and the student council.

So, it was only natural that she was out of the loop.

“I’m not sure what got into her, but it looks like she personally applied to join the cheer squad this time. And she even canceled all her other sports festival events to do it.

Maybe she was worried that if she participated in the competition herself, it would throw off the balance?

After all, she once stood shoulder to shoulder with Master as a hero.”

“…………”

Mana only half-listened to Sally’s explanation as she stared intently at Sion.

Though her expression remained calm, her gaze burned with intensity.

After a brief silence, she spoke, still fixated on Sion.

“Sally.”

“Yeah?”

“Go to Cromwell’s workshop right now and buy a record modifier. Get the most expensive one.”

“…Excuse me?”

Sally furrowed her brows.

“Hold on, Master. Do you think Cromwell’s workshop is some cheap corner store?

Their headquarters is way over in Espera! That’s nearly 10,000 km from here! How am I supposed to—”

“I’ll give you 1,000 gold. You can keep the change as pocket money.”

“—handle that? Oh, I, Sally McAdams, know exactly how to handle that! I’ll teleport there right away! Be back in ten minutes!”

With a complete 180-degree change in attitude, Sally cheerfully cast her teleportation spell.

Truly, the easiest woman in the world to manipulate.

Even after her student had vanished, Mana’s gaze remained fixed on Sion.

Her mind was working rapidly, determined to etch this moment into permanent memory.

Sensing the intense aura, Sion instinctively shrank back.

‘Damn it, is she still staring at me? Just stop looking already! I know better than anyone that my physique is lacking!’

She sighed deeply and lowered her head further.

Meanwhile, as Sion was busy spiraling into a misdirected self-conscious panic, someone else was brimming with excitement.

The person standing right behind her—Dorothy.

She muttered under her breath, eyes locked on the back of the hero’s head.

“Heh… Hehehe… Finally, I’ve been waiting for this moment… Just you wait, Hero Sion. This time, I’ll definitely surpass you…!”

Dark circles lingered under Dorothy’s eyes, clear evidence of exhaustion.

Beside her, Philia looked down at her master with a mix of sympathy and concern.

“Aren’t you overdoing it? You’ve only slept about 30 hours in the past two weeks. You look like you’re barely holding on.”

“Hmph, unnecessary concern. Don’t underestimate a dragon’s stamina. I can keep pulling all-nighters for days if I have to.”

“Yeah, sure…”

Philia shook her head.

For the past two weeks since joining the cheer squad, Dorothy had all but abandoned her usual routine.

She had cut her sleep to a quarter of what it was, reduced her meals to one per day, and even had Philia disguise herself to attend classes in her place.

All that extra time?

Poured entirely into dance practice.

No matter how many times she collapsed or fell, she kept getting back up.

There was no denying it—dragons weren’t as naturally agile as humans.

But if a dance was simple enough that a complete beginner could master it in two weeks with effort… then through sheer, relentless training, she could at least reach a level where she wouldn’t embarrass herself.

After all, repeat an action hundreds, thousands of times, and it eventually becomes muscle memory.

‘Honestly, I’m surprised,’ Philia thought. ‘I expected her to give up after whining about it for a few hours…’

Given how Dorothy usually hid away in her cave, avoiding attention despite her immense power, this level of commitment was completely unexpected.

For the first time, Philia found herself feeling a sliver of respect for her master.

Sure, Dorothy’s usual claim—”If I put my mind to it, I can do anything”—had always sounded like empty boasting.

But now? Now, Philia had to admit that at least the willpower behind it was real.

…Even if the direction of her efforts was highly questionable.

“Alright, everyone, listen up!”

A voice rang out.

At the front of the group, Charlotte, the third-year captain of the cheer squad, clapped her hands, gathering everyone’s attention.

Scanning the team before her, she smiled.

“The opening ceremony is about to begin. We’ll wait here for now, then march up to the cheer stands before the first event starts.

Just stick to what we’ve practiced, and everything will go smoothly. No need to be nervous!”

Her reassuring tone lifted the team’s spirits.

“Just do your best so you won’t have any regrets! After all, when else will you get to experience something like this outside of school?

Oh, and remember—there’s a prize for the best cheerleader at the closing ceremony! So put your all into it!”

“…Huh?”

Sion frowned.

Did she mishear?

“Wait. Best cheerleader? What do you mean?”

“Oh? You didn’t know, Hero?” Charlotte tilted her head.

“Every year at the Anatolia Sports Festival, we vote for the most impressive and outstanding cheerleader.

It’s just a little friendly competition to keep things interesting. Last year, I won. But this year?

Who knows! The competition is fierce!”

“W-WHAT?!”

Sion’s eyes widened in horror.

That was a thing?! And no one told her?!

‘Crap, crap, CRAP! This is basically a public execution!’

She wasn’t concerned about the luxurious prize. She had way more money than she’d ever need.

No—what terrified her was the fact that there would be an explicit ranking—an undeniable public judgment of her performance.

This was bad.

This was very bad.

If she didn’t win, it would be a massive blow to her already fragile reputation.

‘No choice…! If it’s come to this, then I have to win—no matter what it takes!’

Her lips tightened, her fists clenched.

Deep within her eyes, an intense, almost ominous determination flared to life.