A hero who wants to help others wants to live a normal life - Chapter 41

Chapter 41   “Three Arrows” Formed

“So, about the strategy—are we going with what Moriya mentioned earlier?” I asked.

Moriya would act as a shield, drawing the enemy’s attention while the rest of us attacked. That was the basic idea.

“Yes, that should work. The question is how well each of us can fulfill our roles,” Kujou replied.

“We don’t have time to test things out, so we’ll just have to wing it,” I said. If we’d been teamed up a few days earlier, we could have practiced, but we’re heading into a simulated monster battle right after this. There’s no time for training.

The school probably planned it that way. One of their goals is likely to see how well we can handle a team thrown together last minute, to test our ability to adapt to unexpected situations.

“What concerns me is that they mentioned the overall combat power of each team was supposed to be balanced,” Kujou said.

“Combat power…what now?” Rinrin asked.

“Yes. I don’t mean to boast, and please don’t take this the wrong way, but the fact is, I am a ‘Blessed One.’ I have superior combat abilities compared to others. That means, logically, the other members of this team are likely below average in some way,” Kujou stated bluntly.

“You’re pretty straightforward, huh?” I commented.

I understood she didn’t mean to brag, but the way she phrased it could easily come across as arrogant or condescending.

“My apologies if I offended anyone. However, I believe that taking an objective view of the situation is the first step toward success,” she added.

“Nah, no offense taken. I actually agree with your thinking. If one person’s really strong, it makes sense to balance things out by putting weaker people around them,” I said.

If the teams were organized to have equal overall strength, then it would make sense to put weaker members on a team with a ‘Blessed One’ to even things out. I’m in Class A, but my grades are nothing to brag about.

“Well, I’m not super strong either, you know? I mean, I am strong, but… there’s that little issue of my skill having limited uses,” Rinrin chimed in.

Yeah, that’s Rinrin’s biggest flaw. No matter how powerful her magic is, if she can only use it once during a fight, her overall evaluation is bound to suffer.

“As for me, it’s not my skills but my base stats. I can fight, but my abilities are just low overall. Still, I’ll do my part,” Moriya added.

So, Moriya can fight and use his skills, but his raw stats are lower than average.

“And I guess that leaves me, the guy with a lame skill that’s not really suited for combat,” I said with a self-deprecating laugh.

My abilities are technically combat-related, but they don’t translate into raw strength. Yeah, I’m definitely a weak link here.

“…” Kujou seemed to be deep in thought, her expression serious.

“What’s with that face? You’re getting worried now?” I asked.

“To be honest, yes. But if we fight strategically, we can win. And we must win,” she replied.

“Yeah, we have to win. Losing would be boring, and besides, it’d tank our grades,” Rinrin said.

“Are your grades really that bad?” I asked.

“Heh, I’m not bragging, but I’m terrible at studying! The only thing I’m good at is going all out in a single strike!” Rinrin declared proudly.

“Rinrin is the lowest-ranked student in Class B. And as for me, I usually hover around third from the bottom when it comes to practical skills,” Moriya added with a slight shrug.

“…”

Oh, this is worse than I thought. Sure, the fact that they’re relying so much on the “Blessed” means they have high expectations, but still.

I think the teachers are overestimating the “Blessed.” They’re not all-powerful. Sure, in their specific area of blessing, they might be stronger than others who use skills, but if the situation goes south, they can lose just like anyone else.

But, well, there’s no point in complaining about it now.

…Come to think of it, could Inori be in a similar situation? She’s also a “Blessed,” so she’s probably struggling too. All I can do is wish her good luck.

“Doesn’t it sound more hopeless the more you hear about it?” I asked.

“Even so, we have no choice but to try,” Kujou replied confidently, despite the overwhelming disadvantages our team faced.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Whatever happens, we won’t know unless we actually try. Let’s hear what everyone can do in detail and plan from there.”

“Yes. I have a suggestion!” Rinrin chimed in.

I have a really bad feeling about this.

“What is it?”

“Let’s decide on a team name!”

“Huh?”

See? I’ve barely known Rinrin, but I can already tell she doesn’t say anything sensible.

“We’re going to fight together as a team, and how can we do that if we don’t have a name? We need to decide on one first!”

“A name, huh…”

“I think it’s a good idea. Deciding on a name won’t take much time, and we’ll still have enough time afterward to discuss strategy,” Kujou added.

Are you sure about that? I hope we don’t end up wasting too much time on this because someone gets fixated on it…

After some discussion, we ended up deciding on the team name “Three Arrows.” It’s a reference to the famous saying by Mōri Motonari, implying that we could overcome difficulties if we work together. Kujou became the team leader, and since she uses a bow, the name also ties into her weapon of choice.

Even though there are four of us, the name is “Three Arrows” because, according to Kujou, “someone has to fire the arrows.” Basically, she’s the one shooting us—her three arrows—at the enemy.

I don’t think that’s how the original metaphor was supposed to work, but it’s annoyingly clever.

Well, it’s good that we at least came up with a name. I didn’t care about the name, but we spent so much time on it that if we hadn’t decided, it would’ve been a complete waste of time. So yeah, it’s a good thing we settled on one, but…

“––In the end, we spent all our time just coming up with a team name,” Kujou sighed.

The problem is, deciding the name ate up all the time we should have used to plan our strategy and understand each other’s roles better.

It’s probably the umpteenth sigh I’ve heard from Kujou today.

“This team… or rather, isn’t this just completely off?”

“Well, come on! We decided on a cool team name, so it’s fine, isn’t it?” Rinrin said cheerfully.

“I think the strategy was more important than the name, though…”

Rinrin’s the only one happy about it. Even I, who wasn’t planning on taking this test seriously, feel like sighing.

“Well, we’ve come this far. Complaining won’t change anything now. We’ve got the basic tactics down, so we just have to tough it out and go for it.”

Right now, there’s one team fighting in front of us. Once they’re done, it’ll be our turn. No point in saying anything at this stage.

“––Phew. That’s right. As long as you can buy me enough time, I’ll handle the rest. Just make sure none of you get knocked out,” Kujou said with confidence.

“Right~!” Rinrin responded playfully, but for some reason, her answer only made me more anxious.

“… Are we really going to be okay?”

“We don’t have a choice.”

With that, it was our turn to fight. We stood up and headed toward the simulation battlefield.

The “stage” wasn’t like one for a play or anything. It was just a large space marked with lines, separating the combat area from the viewing and waiting zones. There wasn’t any raised platform or anything, and the space wasn’t walled off or enclosed by glass. However, there were thick metallic pillars at each corner, likely to mark the usable area.

We walked toward the center of the battlefield.

“All right, next up is Kujou’s team’s test––”

“Ah! Our team name is ‘Three Arrows,’ so remember that, teacher!” Rinrin suddenly interrupted the teacher as he was about to start the fight.

I mean, I get that she wants to use the name since we worked hard to come up with it, but was it really necessary to correct him right now?

“Huh? You guys were thinking up a team name instead of planning your strategy? Are you sure you’re ready for this?” the teacher asked, clearly surprised.

Yeah, no kidding. While the other teams were probably busy planning their strategies, we were wasting time on something as trivial as a team name. Of course he’d be dumbfounded.

“… Please don’t worry about that. Let’s just begin the test,” Kujou said, trying to stay composed.

“Well, it’s just a simulation fight, so you don’t need to get too worked up… but give it your best shot, ‘Three Arrows.’”

The teacher mocked us a bit, calling us by our team name, and Kujou furrowed her brows. I get how she feels. The only one looking happy about it is Rinrin.

“Let’s refocus. It’s starting,” Kujou said, bringing everyone’s attention back.

Her words seemed to signal the beginning, as a faintly glowing mist began to gather in front of us, forming a solid mass.

Before we knew it, the mist had taken on a real shape –– it had turned into a monster.