Chapter 20: Sports Day Showdown

The long-awaited sports day has arrived.

“Ah… I don’t want to wear this.”

Shahin, who rarely hesitates when speaking, gazed blankly at the class shirt laid out on the bed.

Yeah, I guess it would seem strange even after seeing it.

Because before the possession, I never had to wear something like this.

“A class shirt.”

“[Huh?]”

I briefly explained what a class shirt was to Shahin, who didn’t know, and picked it up with both hands.

I never thought I’d have a day where I’d wear something like this.

During the class shirt vote, none of the final candidates — the military training uniform, patient uniform, or animal pajamas — were chosen.

The kids who discovered this new option got excited and pushed hard for it, insisting on this one no matter what.

Maybe the class thought about how the “Four Heavenly Kings” would look wearing it, because they got way too excited and didn’t even let anyone raise objections.

So, the class shirt for Class 3 of Grade 2 was chosen.

“It looks similar to the clothes I saw in prison.”

“Yeah, that’s because it’s a prison uniform.”

I stared blankly at the beige prison uniform in my hands.

On the way to school after changing into it, unfortunately, the timing overlapped with the Four Heavenly Kings.

I decided to walk far away so my silly fangirling wouldn’t be heard.

I slowed down my pace little by little, but it was useless.

“Eunhyeol, I heard you got sued for theft?”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“You stole my heart!”

When the fierce gaze of Ban Eunhyeol landed on him, the kid spouting nonsense quickly shut his mouth.

I closed my eyes tightly and sped up to get ahead, but then another hurdle appeared.

“Um, I wanted to ask for directions.”

“Uh? Where are you headed?”

“To Hyungkwang’s heart.”

“Ah, haha.”

Before I knew it, Yeon Hyungkwang, who had become almost as popular as the Four Heavenly Kings among first graders, was walking ahead on his way to school—wearing his class shirt like a uniform or police uniform.

With a morning like this, I strongly suspected today’s sports day wouldn’t go smoothly either.

“Why is the sky so clear for no reason…”

The clear autumn sky today felt unbearably frustrating.

Under the cool, clear autumn sky, the entire school gathered on the playground and took their seats by class in designated spots.

Everyone had put effort into their appearance for the sports day.

“Guys, let’s definitely win first place!”

Han Ji-bin stepped forward and raised both fists high while shouting this to us.

The kids cheered in response, pumped up by his words.

I almost forgot this was inside the internet novel world.

“Han Ji-bin, you’re guilty of arson in my heart. Life imprisonment, seriously.”

“Ji-bin really pulls off that prison uniform. No, the prison uniform looks good because of Ji-bin.”

“Hey, look back there. It’s total paradise.”

“Who said we should wear prison uniforms? Come out and let me praise you.”

As expected, compliments were flying around everywhere.

Even though we had already seen the Four Heavenly Kings in prison uniforms on the way to school, it was still surprisingly fitting when seen again.

Ban Eunhyeol looked like a delinquent prisoner with all his buttons undone, revealing the black T-shirt underneath, and sleeves rolled up to his elbows exposing his forearms.

Ji Kang-han only had the top two or three buttons undone, and his purple hair with the beige prison uniform created a balanced yet striking look.

Eun Bada looked like the model prisoner, with all buttons neatly fastened and no rolled-up sleeves, making her look the most proper.

Han Ji-bin proudly wore the glitter name tag the class had given him on his chest.

[Cutie Ji-bin]

[Class 3’s Cutest Powerhouse]

It was a name tag I didn’t particularly want to see.

Soon, a beep sounded from the podium, and the principal brought the microphone close to announce the official start of the sports festival.

***

The early events, in which the participating students gave their best but failed to capture much attention, passed by.

Finally, it was time for the much-anticipated relay race.

Just the appearance of the Four Heavenly Kings (Sadae Cheonwang) stirred a tremendous roar that seemed like it could blow the school away.

No one could compete with the Four Heavenly Kings running even faster than during practice.

The Four Heavenly Kings received the baton, lightly greeted the students, and ran at a swift pace.

They even showed moments of leisure by briefly stopping to wave their hands.

Each time they did, a huge cheer erupted.

Among the crowd, one notable spectator caught attention — the principal, wearing the school tracksuit, watching from the podium.

He was wearing a banner around his neck that read “Milky White Han Ji-bin” and cheered the Four Heavenly Kings at the top of his lungs.

His passion rivaled that of the female students.

Though a few teachers found his behavior ridiculous and sat him back down, he was undeterred.

Meanwhile, Ban Eun-hyeol, the last runner, crossed the finish line to secure first place.

The result was unsurprising to anyone.

In the blink of an eye, the Four Heavenly Kings finished their run and moved aside to watch other relay teams.

The real contest was for second place.

After the Four Heavenly Kings’ performance ended, the students cheered for their respective teams, and the competition was surprisingly intense and fun to watch.

I was also excited to see who would come in second.

Next up was the mission relay.

Our team included Ji Gang-han, Han Ji-bin, Yeon Ha-yeon, and… me.

“Dana, sorry… but you can run well, right?”

“Of course! Dana, you’re super fast!”

Um, I haven’t even answered yet.

Originally, a friend who was supposed to participate got an ankle injury during practice for another event, so I ended up being a last-minute substitute.

The mission relay rules were simple.

At each section of the track, you had to complete a mission, and at the end, bring back an item or a person written on a note.

You could only pass the baton after completing all missions.

Of course, speed was advantageous, but since missions were involved, it wasn’t just about running fast…

Mission execution was also important.

I was the first runner.

The reason was that even if I wasn’t very good, the others behind me could easily make up the difference.

Whoosh—

At the teacher’s whistle, the first runners took off.

I tried to keep my pace similar to my competitors, watching their speed carefully.

“Dana! Don’t spill too much water!”

“Jump higher! Run more!”

“Turn around a little faster!”

The missions were: carry a bucket of water without spilling much, jump and eat snacks hanging from a string with your hands behind your back, and spin around like an elephant’s trunk.

After the earlier runners finished, I finally saw the desk with the mission note.

After running so well with Yeon Ha-yeon in the three-legged race, I couldn’t slow down now, so I arrived at the desk at a speed close to first place.

Without realizing it, my body sped up and I quickly opened the note.

[Person wearing a black T-shirt]

My eyes quickly scanned my classmates.

Unfortunately, many wore beige prison uniforms, so I couldn’t find anyone in a black T-shirt.

Except for Ban Eunhyeol sitting uninterested at the very back.

The classes on either side wore firefighter T-shirts and animal pajamas, so no black there either. I moved forward feeling disheartened.

“Dana, what are you doing!”

I heard someone shout.

Ban Eunhyeol, who had been glaring at me for days but had calmed down recently, looked down at me.

Biting her lips tightly, I showed the note to Eunhyeol.

“Person wearing a black T-shirt!”

The class cheered and urged Eunhyeol to go quickly.

Eunhyeol checked the note, glanced around, and frowned deeply.

Since he had to run with me to the finish line for the next runner to start, he couldn’t refuse.

I didn’t want to either. Ban Eunhyeol…

I roughly grabbed his shirt, but then I heard a low voice calling me.

“Eccentric.”

“Huh?”

“You, that, trash…”

Trash?

Was he calling me trash?

It was clear he said “trash” — no way I misheard because I was running.

I looked up at him while running, and Eunhyeol ruffled his hair roughly and clicked his tongue.

“That’s enough. What are you talking about?”

“But, uh, Eunhyeol.”

I stammered, still not used to calling him just by his name without “Ban.”

I planned to ask why he had been glaring at me so fiercely.

Whoosh—

Before I knew it, we had already crossed the finish line.

As we crossed, the next runner, Han Ji-bin, took off.

“What.”

I thought he’d ignore me and go, but Eunhyeol said sharply, cutting me off.

“Have I done something wrong lately? Tell me and I’ll fix it.”

Even if it wasn’t my fault, if it could reduce even one uncomfortable look, I could adjust.

Eunhyeol raised his eyebrows and said as he went back to our class position,

“No.”

Why do you do that then?!

The question that I couldn’t bring myself to ask lingered in my mind.

Following Han Ji-bin and Yeon Ha-yeon, who quickly completed their missions, our class firmly took first place.

The last runner was Ji Kang-han.

He had done the previous missions well, but after opening the last mission note, he stood there for a while.

“What? What’s up with him?”

“We might get overtaken if he keeps this up!”

As the others grew anxious and tried to hurry him along, he suddenly ran up to me, grabbed my hand, and ran to the finish line.

Surprised, I glanced quickly at the reactions of the girls nearby.

‘Ah… this is bad.’

After being carried like a princess last time, now holding hands and running?

Even if I tried to stay quiet at school, I couldn’t guarantee my future would be peaceful.

“2nd year, Class 3, first place!”

The teacher shouted as he approached and took the note and whistle from Ji Kang-han.

This was the procedure to confirm that the person described in the note was correctly brought.

The teacher’s face changed to an interesting expression as he opened the note and read it.

What on earth could be written there?

I felt a bad premonition.

The teacher raised his eyebrows and gave a meaningful smile.

“It says ‘cute kid,’ huh?”

What?

I wasn’t the only one who heard that clearly.

Every student nearby caught that word perfectly.

‘Cute kid.’

I was so shocked I couldn’t speak, just opening and closing my mouth.

I barely regained my senses, but the flood of stares made me lose focus again.

‘No, I have to explain somehow.’

If I didn’t, even though I had distanced myself from Ban Eunhyeol, school life might become miserable because of Ji Kang-han.

“Ji Kang-han… you really read that note correctly?”

“Yeah, I did.”

His brief answer made me more anxious.


Luckily, maybe sensing my feelings or just casually, Ji Kang-han added,

“You were the closest.”

‘Hey, you clueless idiot!’

I nearly blurted out my inner thoughts.

I faced the hostile gazes of the many girls sitting on the benches around the field.

Fortunately, no one seemed to have overheard Ji Kang-han’s comment.