The School Festival Date (3)
……
…
Well, I lost.
“Yay, I win~ Don’t forget—you’re treating me to juice next time~”
“I… Impossible… Me, lose?”
I am Shuhei Oda, the undefeated hero who saved the other world, Orphermaus.
Undefeated means I’ve never been beaten, not even once!
Yet, somehow, I lost to a complete beginner—a girl who’d never even touched a Mini 4WD before today.
This doesn’t make sense. What’s going on here?
“J-Just one more race… Please, just one more! I’m begging you!”
Tossing aside all pride, I bowed deeply, pleading for another chance.
“Alright, but if I win again, you owe me another juice.”
“Of course! Two, three—whatever you want!”
……
…
Well, uh… I lost again.
Another quick and crushing defeat.
What’s happening to me…?
“O-One last race. Just one more! Please! I swear this will be the last one! Hasumin, let me race one more time—just one last time!”
“Fine, but if I win this time, you’re treating me to a cake set at that café near the station.”
“Deal! Anything you want!”
“Yay~!”
Hasumin already seemed certain of her victory.
(But I’m sorry, Hasumin—this time, victory will be mine!)
My two losses weren’t without purpose.
I had carefully analyzed the reasons behind my defeats.
Here’s what I concluded:
In the first two races, I’d unnecessarily restricted my car’s top speed.
I’d been too focused on navigating the overly technical course designed specifically for the festival.
As a result, while my car managed to complete the course, it lacked the speed needed to win.
Meanwhile, Hasumin’s car—tuned with no strategy, just random motor and tire swaps—somehow perfectly matched the course by sheer luck.
I fell into the classic trap of overthinking and was defeated by pure coincidence.
However, Hasumin’s setup, lacking proper roller adjustments, was far from stable or consistently fast.
On the wavy sections, her car’s rear wheels bounced nearly 90 degrees into the air.
On tight corners, her tires scraped the walls, tilting her car dangerously.
She lost precious seconds in several areas.
Yet, thanks to her car’s miraculous compatibility with the course, she managed to finish with decent times.
(The key is the sharp hairpin turn in the middle of the course. If I tune my car to handle that section precisely, I can crush Hasumin’s lucky setup!)
With my plan set,
I prepared for the final, decisive race.
Armed with flawless analysis and the ultimate tuning, my unbeatable hero machine surged ahead from the start, taking a commanding lead.
(Yes, this is it! There’s no way I can lose now.)
Watching my car widen its lead, I was certain of victory.
—But then, tragedy struck.
At the critical hairpin turn, my car hit something and bounced slightly.
That tiny misstep threw off its balance, and in an instant, it flew off the track.
“What?! A course-out?! That’s impossible!”
My unbeatable hero machine lay upside down off the track, its wheels spinning helplessly in the air.
Meanwhile, Hasumin’s car calmly raced past.
“And once again, I win~ Don’t forget—you owe me a cake set now~”
“Yes… I know…”
Accepting reality was painful.
I had lost.
Not just lost—this was total, undeniable defeat.
Sure, I could make excuses.
If my car hadn’t hit something on that turn—probably a tiny scrap of cardboard—
I’m sure I would’ve won.
But a loss is a loss. The result wouldn’t change.
My unbeatable hero machine had flown off the track, while Hasumin’s car had completed its third flawless run.
“At this point, I can only assume Hasumin is blessed by the goddess of Mini 4WD… It’s the only explanation that makes sense.”
And thus, the undefeated legend I had built over five years as a hero quietly came to an end on this day.
In the end,
The strongest hero who saved Orphermaus never tasted victory even once.
Instead, he suffered three consecutive defeats, ending his festival in the depths of despair…