Puits profond - Chapitre 6
Yuan Peilin's gaze remained fixed on the empty space: "I want to talk to him."
"I see..."
The cold-hearted girl said nothing more, turned and left quietly, leaving only a boy standing there silently.
The night was silent and still. Hara Pei-lin walked into the baseball practice field, accompanied by the gentle evening breeze. His face was expressionless as he surveyed the surrounding darkness, as if something might leap out at any moment. Then, his gaze settled on something; there was indeed something there…
It was a baseball, not on the ground, but suspended in the air. Then, it rose vertically upwards, and then fell freely back to its original position, repeating this process over and over, as if someone were playing with it.
"It must be so boring being all alone..." Hara Pei-rin's voice sounded somewhat out of place in the quiet night.
The baseball game came to a complete stop, and a figure gradually became clear in the darkness. He was wearing a white baseball uniform, but the uniform was covered in mud, as if he had just finished a tough practice. Hara Pei-bayashi knew that it was pitcher Miyuki Sugi…
---janeadam
Reply [18]: "Who are you?" When Yang Shan asked the question, his gaze remained on the baseball in his hand.
“Your junior, no, I should say… your junior from when you were alive.”
Jian Yangshan suddenly raised his head, staring intently at the boy in front of him, "Even if you die, so what?"
Yuan Peilin clearly felt the aura emanating from the other person, but his expression remained unchanged, and his tone remained calm: "Senior, the dead should have a place to go, right..."
"..."
The bright moonlight spilled across the fence outside the field, casting faint glimmers of light. The night wind picked up a bit, stirring up the soft, trampled soil. The few trees around rustled softly in the passing breeze.
Jian Yangshan looked around at everything, his eyes filled with intense emotion. Yes, for the past two years, this place had been almost his entire life. He had poured his heart and soul into it, shed his sweat here, run and jump here, and swung his arm countless times to throw the ball here—it all felt like it had happened just yesterday.
Silently, Yuan Peilin gazed at Jian Yangshan, a surge of overwhelming emotion welling up within him—an emotion he had never felt before. Then, he heard the unusually calm voice of his senior…
"Your name?"
"I'll accompany you, Lin." Although she didn't know the other party's intention, she still answered immediately.
Jian Yangshan slowly spread his arms out naturally, his body enveloped in an unusual light.
"Then please let me finish it."
"It?" Yuan Peilin didn't understand what her senior meant. A blinding light rushed towards her, and she quickly shielded her eyes, taking a few steps back. Her leg seemed to bump into something. Looking back, she saw it was a lounge chair. No, something's not right, why is it...?
Daytime!? To my astonishment, a deafening roar of cheers erupted around me, mingled with the deafening beat of gongs and drums. I looked up, and what I saw...
The sun shone brightly, the field was vast, and tens of thousands of spectators filled the stands, with school flags fluttering in the breeze. A huge baseball scoreboard stood tall in the stands opposite. On the field stood the players, covered in mud and their faces soaked with sweat. Although they looked exhausted, their eyes remained focused. And standing at the pitcher's mound was…
Miyazaki
The loud voices of the commentators blared from the speakers placed throughout the stadium.
—Everyone! What you are seeing is the final of the National High School Baseball Tournament. It is a match between Suminozora Academy, which has made it to the final in its first appearance in the national tournament, and Kensho High School, which has won the tournament championship for two consecutive years!
—What a fantastic match! The two sides fought fiercely for nine rounds, and the score was still 1-1. Now it's the second half of the tenth round, and the attacking side is Jian Gongshang!
"So that's how it is," Harabe Rin, sitting in the rest area, looked down at his blue baseball uniform that had inexplicably transformed into his own, then looked up at his senior in the pitcher's position on the field, and understood everything. Miyuki Sugi had used his powerful obsession to create this perfect illusion, a scene he had always dreamed of in his life—standing on the pitcher's mound in the national tournament finals, chasing the championship!
However, Yuan Peilin looked at the logo on his baseball uniform—Jian Gong Shang—and smiled bitterly, realizing that he had become Jian Yang's opponent.
—My God! Pitcher Miyuki is amazing! He just struck out two batters from Jian Gong High School in a row. The Jian Gong High School players, who maintain a top-tier batting average nationwide, couldn't even touch the ball!
At this moment, Yuan Peilin saw one of his "companions" who had been sitting next to him stand up.
—Jian Gongshang's third batter has arrived! It's right fielder Gu Yi, known as "Speedy Gu Yi." Can he seize the opportunity? Let's wait and see!
—The ball is thrown! Ah… Gu Yi gripped the middle of the bat and extended it, a tactical bunt! It bounced off, but not far. Jian Yang had already run over to pick up the ball and threw it towards first base without hesitation!
—Look over there! Gu Yi, with incredible speed, is about to touch first base, he slid off! ...Okay! Safe to base!
—Now it's finally the fourth batter's turn. Jian Gongshang's fourth batter is number 10, the center forward... Yuan Peilin!
When did I become a center-back? I only remember playing baseball a few times in elementary school. The "Jian Gong player," whose name was called, stood up from his seat, mechanically put on his batter's helmet, and pulled a metal bat from the shelf beside him. It was heavy! Slowly walking onto the field, a scorching heat made the pores on his skin open. It was strange; he actually felt himself starting to get into character.
Huh? Someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and saw several unfamiliar construction workers.
"Go for it! It's all up to you!"
When Hara heard those words, his heart rippled like a stone thrown into a still lake. This was the team spirit of baseball. Even though it was just a word of encouragement, it came from the bottom of his heart… He nodded to them and continued walking to his batting position.
Her heart was beating faster than usual; Yuan Peilin hadn't felt this way in a long time, and it felt a little strange. The shouts of the audience and the strange chants of the two cheerleading squads filled her ears.
"Invincible! Jian Gong Shang! Number one! Jian Gong Shang!..."
"Sora no Sora! Hey yo! Sora no Sora! Hey yo! Sora no Sora!..."
The catcher, who had just passed by Sora Sumi, finally stood on the batting plate. Instead of immediately looking at the pitcher Miyuki Sugi, whom he was about to face, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to calm his nerves.
"Don't suppress it, let it be released."
The voice belonged to his senior, and Yuan Peilin looked over. Standing on the pitcher's mound, he looked radiant, like a wealthy man who had everything.
"This is high school baseball! A sport that gets your heart racing. Only by pouring out your passion and burning your youth can you reap the rewards of victory. Let that feeling flow through your entire body."
“I understand…” Yuan Peilin nodded with a smile and raised the baseball bat in his hand.
---janeadam
Reply [19]: Jian Yangshan covered the ball in his right hand with the glove of his left hand, raised it above his head, leaned his body slightly to the right, raised his left leg, bent his right leg slightly, and then exerted force, turning his body forward. When his right foot touched the ground, his right arm swung out. The whole movement was as smooth as flowing water, without any forced or paused movements.
Hara heard a "thud," and the catcher, Sora Sumire, had already caught the ball firmly beside him. He could only smile wryly; he couldn't even see it clearly. This was the skill of a top-tier pitcher, he thought. The cheers around them seemed to grow even louder.
—Strike! The original player didn't react. Will he strike out?
Then, the second ball came! Hara's eyes lit up; he didn't swing, and the ball was caught again. However, he had already vaguely seen the ball's trajectory. One last chance remained…
It was hot; the sun seemed to be getting stronger. Yuan Peilin wiped his sweat and licked his chapped lips. The cheers from the cheerleaders never stopped.
"See the sun! See the sun! See the sun!..."
"Original! Original! Original!..."
—Ah! The original player raised the bat above his head, gripping the very end—was he trying to hit a long hit?!
Jian Yangshan bent down, adjusted his baseball cap, and then habitually glanced at his teammates behind him. Each teammate nodded slightly when their eyes met. Such a scene only occurs in a united team…
—Yosugi's movement was too big! The ball slipped from his grasp! ...So fast!
The ball skimmed through the air, the sparks from the friction clearly visible. Hara Peilin, watching the streak of light hurtling past, instinctively swung his bat…
A slight vibration traveled from the metal rod to my arm, a very pleasant sensation, followed by a crisp, melodious striking sound.
—The ball…the ball flew out! So high! So far! It…went over the scoreboard! That’s a super home run!!
—Listen! The cheers from the audience resounded throughout the stadium! Jian Gongshang won 3-1! They have won the championship for the third time in a row!
The winning batter threw his bat to the ground, finally able to breathe a sigh of relief; it had been a truly thrilling moment. Looking up, he noticed his senior staring intently in the direction the ball had disappeared, so he went over to him. Just as he was about to offer some words of comfort, the senior averted his gaze.
"As expected, we still lost..." Jian Yangshan's tone was very calm, and there was even a smile on his face. This surprised Yuan Peilin.
"...But it was fulfilling." The senior continued, a sense of satisfaction emanating from him. "After working so hard for so long, all I wanted was to give it my all on this field, in front of these spectators. So, whether we win or not isn't important; what matters is that we were here, and we burned our youth here..."
"Senior..."
"Thank you for allowing me to fulfill this wish. Now..." Jian Yangshan's smile became even brighter, "I can leave in peace."
"……Um."
—Everyone, look! Miyuki from Chengzhikong and Harabe from Jian Gongshang are holding hands tightly! Let's also pay tribute to the outstanding performance of these two teams!
…………
The senior student disappeared with satisfaction, and the illusion he created returned to normal. Darkness still shrouded the surroundings. It must be late at night; the wind had grown a bit chilly. As he moved towards the edge of the training field, he unexpectedly saw someone.
"Qinglin, have you been here the whole time?"
"No, I just arrived."
Yuan Peilin was in a good mood and smiled at the cold girl in front of him, saying, "Are you worried about me?"
"...Is that even possible?" Qing Lin Anxue coldly retorted.
"...I'm sorry, no."
Qing Lin Anxue ignored her and looked towards the field: "Did he ascend to heaven successfully?"
“Hmm.” Yuan Peilin looked up at the twinkling stars. “He was such a good person. If I had encountered something like that, I would have become an evil spirit by now…”
"It doesn't matter……"
"Why?"
A sharp glint flashed in Qing Lin Anxue's eyes: "When that time comes, I will do everything in my power to eliminate you!"
"..."
Yuan Peilin, who was the other person's senior, suddenly felt the wind grow even colder...
—What you are seeing now is the opening ceremony of the National High School Baseball Autumn Tournament! The participating teams from each region will now enter the stadium one by one! Look! The two-time reigning high school baseball champions, Jian Gong Shang Affiliated School, have emerged!
...
—Walking on the field right now is… Suminosora! It's Suminosora Academy! Despite the misfortune that struck and the loss of their ace pitcher, they unexpectedly didn't forfeit! Huh? The team leader at the front seems to be holding… a photo. That looks like a photo of Miyuki Sugi!
"The clear sky! The clear sky! The clear sky!..."
—The cheerleading squad from Suminozora Academy was cheering so hard! It was so touching! Anyway, I wish this team the best of luck!
Even knowing they were likely to be eliminated in the first match, they still stood here, alongside their fallen teammates, on this field...
Let your youth burn brightly!
---janeadam
Reply [20]: Episode 6 Rain
Throughout history, due to the rapid development of human civilization and the ever-spreading sense of self-aggrandizement, the product known as "city" has been uncontrollably eroding various environments. However, what ignorant humanity cannot imagine is that this erosion is not one-sided…