"Strength of will is the true measure of a man." If that line—the kind of thing a protagonist would say—were actually true.
Then those who stood there with wills far stronger than mine, only to end up as losers, must have been wrong.
Well... whatever. It’s all such a pain.
『Strike!! Batter out!! Game set!!』
The white ball I threw settled into the mitt, and the umpire's spirited voice echoed across Koshien Stadium.
The losers, as they were meant to be, crawled across the dirt in agony, weeping.
Normally, the winners—us—would be expected to embrace and celebrate.
"Tch, just lose already. Piece of shit."
"Yeah, yeah, Mr. Genius. You’re a disgusting machine."
"Do it by yourself next time... you social misfit."
But that wasn’t the case for us.
I stepped off the mound, pelted by the insults of my own teammates.
It was the usual routine.
Everyone hated me. It was only natural, considering my own parents hated me enough to throw me away.
But that was fine. I hated them all just as much.
"If you hate it so much, you should just quit... since you're so terrible at it anyway."
"Hah?"
I had muttered my thoughts aloud. What was his name again? I’d forgotten. Regardless, my senior was probably about to swing at me.
Avoiding it was going to be such a chore...
Thwack!
"Nice game, Senpai."
Suddenly, Ryu stepped between us, catching the fist in mid-air.
The intimidating senior who had tried to punch me began to tremble.
"S-Sorry. Ryu-san... I just..."
"Let's line up."
"...Right."
The senior apologized to Ryu, shivering with fear.
One did not cross Ryu.
He was the scion of a massive corporation, ranked first in the national mock exams, a model, an influencer... the ultimate popular guy.
He was my polar opposite. He was perfect.
It was obvious from the way everyone, even his seniors, used formal speech and bowed their heads to him.
Ryu placed a hand on my shoulder.
"...Sora, you were perfect, as always. Exactly what I expected."
"Yeah."
Ryu praised me.
As long as he did, I didn't care if the rest of these nobodies hated my guts.
We lined up and prepared to leave Koshien Stadium.
Someone with a camera came sprinting toward me.
"Sora-senshu! Congratulations on advancing to the Koshien Finals! Could we get a quick interview?"
"...No."
"N-No!?"
The reporter was stunned, but I had simply given an honest answer to the request.
"I’ll do it, if that works for you."
"Ryurei-senshu! Thank you so much! Yes, please!"
"Sora, go do your cooldown."
"...Okay."
I headed off for a light jog.
As I left the stadium, girls screamed my name. Some asked for autographs.
I suppose even someone like me can have fans on a superficial level.
But they were wrong.
They didn't like me; they liked the title of "Koshien Pitcher."
I ignored them and kept running.
If I didn't let anyone in from the start, I wouldn't have to get hurt anymore.
Whenever I formed a connection with someone, it inevitably shattered. I would be hated. My heart would ache.
So, I wanted everyone to stay away.
The announcer approached Ryu.
『Ryurei-senshu! Congratulations on making it to the Koshien Finals while battling a serious illness! How do you feel... eek!? Is that blood!?』
『Pardon me... I’m fine. It was just a bit hot today.』
『A-Are you sure you’re alright?』
『Yes. One more win... the next one is the last. I’ll make it hold out until then.』
Wiping the coughed-up blood from his lips, Ryu smiled despite his pale complexion.
Before I knew it, I had wandered into an unfamiliar area.
"Left my phone... left my wallet... and now I’m lost."
Finding a park, I slumped onto a bench.
I stared blankly at nothing, not that doing so would change my situation.
Across from me, a young boy was throwing a baseball against a target drawn on a wall.
He looked to be about five or six. I simply watched him.
...Perhaps an hour passed.
The boy never stopped throwing that ball against the wall, all by himself. He looked a little lonely.
Watching him stirred up foul memories.
Memories I wanted to bury—the memory of being discarded.
I was four years old. That was the year I was placed in the orphanage, the year my father and mother abandoned me.
I should have forgotten it by now, but the recollection made my chest tighten with pain.
I had spent my days throwing the baseball my father gave me against a wall.
From morning until night, all alone.
I wanted my father to praise me. I wanted him to say, "You're getting good."
But he threw me away. I was an unwanted child.
Dusk—the hour when the world begins to darken.
I despised this time of day, when the noisy park would fall silent.
It was the time I had to watch the other children walking home, smiling as they held their parents' hands.
I wanted to hold my mother's hand, too. I wanted her to smile and say, "We had so much fun today, didn't we?"
I wanted to be hugged tight. I wanted her to ask, "What should we have for dinner?"
I wanted someone to come for me.
But my mother threw me away. I was an unwanted child.
"Someday... they’ll definitely come back for me." Believing that, I waited until late every evening in the park where I used to play with them.
But no one ever came. Every night, I would walk back to the facility in tears.
Even though I knew better, I would think, Maybe tomorrow... and go back to the park again. Over and over.
『Mama, Papa... please come get me...』
Clinging to a wish that would never come true. Surely... surely... tomorrow.
『A day like that will never come. Stop expecting things from trash parents.』
It was a rainy day.
Ignoring my tearful denials, a boy had hugged me tight, his actions far warmer than his cold words.
『If you can't stand on your own, take my hand.』
I remember how he squeezed my hand firmly.
His hand was just as cold as mine.
But I also remember how, as we held them together, both our hands grew warm.
『Come with me.』
That was how I met Ryu.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
"Hey, Onii-chan. Are you good at baseball?"
"Hm?"
I snapped out of it to find the boy from the wall standing right in front of me.
When I tilted my head, he pointed at my uniform. Ah, he’d realized I was a player.
"I want to get better... but I can't hit where I'm aiming."
"...Where are your parents?"
"I don't have a dad. And Mom is always late because of work."
"I see... You mean that target?"
"Yeah!"
Surprisingly, I found myself talking to him.
Usually, I would have found the interaction tedious, but today was different.
Was it because seeing this lonely kid reminded me of my past?
Was I projecting? I didn't know. I just took the ball and threw it.
"Like this."
"Whoa!! Amazing! Right in the middle from that far away!! Do it again!!"
I threw it exactly as he asked, over and over. I didn't miss once.
Every time, his eyes sparkled with awe.
I taught him a few things. He looked so happy that, for a moment, I felt a spark of happiness too.
"Phew... I’m beat. Onii-chan, you’re a genius, but you’re kind of bad at teaching."
"...Ryu says the same thing."
"But thanks! I feel like I actually got better!"
"...I see."
"If I get better at baseball... do you think I can make friends?"
"...You don't have any?"
"No... Do you have friends, Onii-chan?"
Friends...
Abandoned by my parents, hated at the orphanage, hated by my teachers and coaches.
Hated by the teammates I bled with on the field. Hated by everyone.
But...
"Just one... I think."
"Oh... well, even one is... good. Since I don't have any... Hey! If I hit the middle of the target, will you be my friend?"
He stood up and threw the ball one more time.
He missed by a mile. The ball took a wild bounce and rolled away toward the street. The boy went running after it.
"Friend... A friend, huh."
I muttered the word as I watched him chase the ball. Then it happened.
The deafening blast of a horn shattered the silence.
The boy, completely focused on the ball, had run straight into the road. A truck was barreling toward him.
The boy froze. He was going to be hit.
—Death—
My body moved on instinct before my mind could even process the thought.
My legs, conditioned by years of training, kicked off with everything I had. My brain calculated the shortest path instantly.
I could make it. I’d be in time. My mind whirred at full capacity, concluding that I would clear the distance just at the limit.
I reached him. I shoved the boy out of the way, successfully saving him.
Now the truck was bearing down on me. The driver must have panicked and swerved; the grill was rushing toward my face.
But I had calculated for this, too.
Even with death right in front of me, I felt strangely calm. It was fine. I could dodge.
I took a sharp step back. I cleared the path.
"Mama!!!!"
"Eh?"
A woman was sprinting from the other side of the truck's new path.
She was reaching out for the child I had just saved. She was trying to protect him.
It was no good. She was in the same spot I had just occupied... she was going to take a direct hit from the truck.
My brain kicked into overdrive again. The world slowed to a crawl.
But... I wouldn't make it.
I couldn't save her in time.
Every variable told me it was an impossible feat.
That woman was going to be crushed, she was going to die... and then.
＊
『Mama, Papa... please come get me...』
＊
That kid would end up just like me. Alone.
I really didn't like the thought of that.
"Guh!!!!"
Before I realized what I was doing, I had reached out and grabbed the truck with my pitching arm. My nails tore away, and the bones in my fingers shattered. My joints were wrenched out of place.
The impact was unlike anything I had ever felt. Inertia dragged my body along, and a white-hot agony screamed through me. I felt like I was being ripped apart.
Even so, I forced my body to move, lunging directly in front of the vehicle.
I shoved the woman out of the way.
CRUNCH!!
The truck hit me instead.
I heard the screech of tires and a woman's scream.
My body wouldn't move. Blood pooled beneath me like a dark lake, and my vision began to blur.
Ah... I see. This is it. I’m dying.
Well... I guess that's okay. No one’s going to miss me anyway.
Wait... Ryu’s going to be pissed.
The finals are coming up. I should have... apologized...
The boy and his mother ran toward me, shouting. They were both safe.
He looked lonely, but he had a mother who was willing to risk her life for him.
He wasn't like me. He wasn't discarded. In that case...
"......I'm glad."
I quietly closed my eyes.
It was cold. Where was I?
I couldn't see. My body wouldn't move.
『Is he born... Is he finally here?』
...It felt warm.
Was someone holding me? My body still wouldn't obey, but...
This was so warm, so soft... such a reassuring scent.
Where was I?
『Oh... Leo... Leo... my baby. You worked so hard... You did so well.』
I heard a language I didn't recognize. My hearing was muffled, like I was underwater.
『Thank you for being born... Thank you for coming into my life...』
"Waaaah..."
Wait, was that me?
Afterword
Please read up to Chapter 5. I promise you won't regret it. I've worked hard to make the story exciting and emotional, so I hope you'll stick with me!!
Our genius protagonist enters an era of war—the world of swords and crests!