Super Recovery

It was the gentle remarks he didn’t usually say that were the most terrifying.

My body refused to move. I felt exactly like a goblin caught in the glare of a dragon.

"You're still naive, Weiss."

"Huh? —!?"

Right at that moment, Teacher Milk materialized out of nowhere and hurled a water balloon at Weiss with every ounce of her strength.

His soaking wet blond hair hung limp against his face.

"..."

"We're retreating, kids!"

The next moment, Teacher Milk used Flight to bolt from the scene.

Th-that's... so unfair.

"Th-then, I'll also—"

"B-bye-bye, Weiss!"

"Wait! Hold on, guys! Me too—eeeyaaaaagh!"

"Duke, are you familiar with the concept of muscle Super Recovery? You're in luck. Today, I'm going to teach you all about Destruction and Regeneration."

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

I managed to put some distance between us, Duke's agonizing screams fading into the background. As Shari and I ducked into the shadows, I realized I was laughing.

Up until now, we’d always been so desperate to win. We never had the luxury of actually enjoying ourselves.

She’s right... If I'm this wound up, I'll miss what's right in front of me.

Then, Teacher Milk dropped down from above.

"Did one of them die?"

"Teacher, that's a bit much, even for a joke," Shari replied, offering a mock prayer for Duke’s soul. "Though... he might actually be dead."

For some reason, I felt a sudden, inexplicable urge to peg my remaining water balloon at Teacher Milk. It wasn't like me at all.

And yet, I threw it.

But—.

"Too bad."

"...U-uh, sorry. Force of habit?"

Shari looked stunned. She never expected me to pull a stunt like that.

"That was a good move," Milk said. "You kids need to enjoy yourselves more. Learn how to catch people off guard. The faculty here—myself included—has a wealth of combat experience. We're on a fundamentally different level. You don't become strong overnight. You have to taste defeat and swear to never let it happen again. You probably won't get another chance to hit Weiss with a water balloon. Do you understand what I'm getting at?"

"...Yes."

In other words: don't fight fair.

If Teacher Milk hadn't stepped in, we probably would have tried to charge him head-on with everything we had. But we never could have won that way. That was the lesson.

"Oops, looks like Weiss is hunting for us. I’m heading back to the Teachers' Dormitory. See ya!"

And just like that, Teacher Milk vanished.

Shari sighed. "She really is a good person, isn't she? Truly."

"...Yeah."

"Well then, I'm heading back to the Girls' Dormitory."

"Wait, what?! Sh-Shari!?"

So unfair! But I need to get out of here too—

"Yo. How's it going, Mr. Reckless?"

"O-oh, hey, Weiss... Long time no see. So, uh... where's Duke?"

"Isn't he dead? He's stopped breathing, at least."

"Y-you're joking, right? It was just a water balloon! Come on, it's just a bit of wa—"

"Yeah. And I'm 'just' going to kill you."

"Wait, no! That 'just' is totally different! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

That day, for the first time in my life, I died.

But I finally got it.

I needed to have more fun. I needed to be hungrier for victory. I realized that sometimes, being "right" isn't enough to win.

"Whoa, my muscles... Is this Super Recovery? Destruction and Regeneration...?"

Incidentally, by the next day, Duke's physique had become noticeably more buff.