Feather Touch - Ugly Duckling (Chapter 1)
Location: Hanging Garden
A few days later, at the hanging garden in ES. First day of practice after the live.
Oh, how impressive. 100 percent, 100 percent, 100 percent…when it comes to schoolwork, you’re undoubtedly far from an underachiever.
Yeah! Both the teachers and my classmates—everyone at Yumenosaki was shocked!
I haven’t quite grasped the significance of these tests, but I’m glad I got plenty of “correct answers”!
Though, I’ve been struggling with Japanese history in comparison to other subjects…
I was able to memorize the names of the time periods with ease, but they all seemed slightly different from the history I’ve been taught.
It’s my first time hearing about “Oda Nobunaga” or anyone like that.1 Rather, I had been under the impression that the Yamato Imperial Court was still the heart of the city.2
The Yamato Imperial Court…Does your peculiar sense of values and understanding of history stem from the slightly different version of history that you’ve been taught, I wonder?
Yeah. That’s why I wanted to ask you to teach me about the “correct history”, since you seem to be knowledgeable on it.
Of course, I want to acquire correct knowledge in other subjects besides Japanese history as well.
Oh, so that’s why you showed me your test papers like a child wanting to be praised by their father.
It’s not that you meant to brag, but rather, you wanted to show me the value of your current abilities.
? What is there to brag about? Aren’t test scores just compilations of data?
Fufu. It’s just as you say—that’s a good mindset for you to have. Comparing oneself to others is what gives birth to all sin.
However, I do wonder if it’s fair to consider that which we’re taught at school as “correct history”…
No—In your case, you will surely be able to compare and contrast both sets of history that you have learned, and the insight gained from that may allow you to perform the correct study of history.
Very well, I have experience with teaching from my time at Reimei Academy when I would help those who struggled with academics—if that’s what you wish, I will gladly act as a private tutor.
Thanks a lot, Tatsumi-senpai! Oh, by the way, Aira has been having a hard time with tests, so if it’s okay, please act as a tutor for him as well!
You see, Aira doesn’t like it when I try to teach him.
When it seemed like he was having a hard time with factorization, I asked him if he wanted me to teach him, but he just squirted a whole bottle of ketchup on me.
Fufu. For some people, being taught by others feels humiliating, as though it reduces their value as a person.
? I don’t understand that. Wouldn’t becoming more knowledgeable increase your value instead?
…There’s a lot I still don’t get about the people in the city and their feelings.
It’s complicated, much more so than any test from school.
Un, deux, trois ♪ un, deux, trois ♪
Why're you counting in French?
I can’t break my concentration~ ♪ Eins, zwei, drei ♪
Now it’s German!?
Oh my. No wonder the garden seemed so lively…Mayoi-san and Aira-san have been practicing on their own for a while.
It’s wonderful to see the two of you so motivated ♪
Fufu. Rather, because of Aira-san’s personality, I had been wondering if he was overthinking his mistake from the other day…
It was just as I had thought. When I hurried to check on him, he seemed to have left school early to practice on his own.
You shouldn’t skip class, Aira.
You may still be able to pass the year, but thinking of school as a detestable punishment to suffer through is insincere, and it’s also a waste of an opportunity for a good education.
Ugh…I get that, but I still feel like I’m the only one who’s behind everyone else, so I get the feeling that I have to work twice or even thrice as much.
I see. Hard work is valuable and ever so important, yet you should be careful not to overwork yourself, lest you destroy your own body and lose hold of the very thing that you were working towards.
Despite the fact that you had time to rest, you couldn’t allow yourself to do so in that mindset, could you?
Mhm. Aira snuck out to do muscle training in the middle of the night, so I wrote him a warning in ketchup that said “I’m watching you”.
Wait, that was you!? I thought it was a warning message written in blood by the mafia or something!
Thanks to that, I was so terrified that I couldn’t get any sleep!
I thought you liked ketchup?
Besides, it wouldn’t have been right to waste the ketchup you poured on me, so I thought I’d make use of it in some way.
Fufu. Putting aside the ketchup talk…I felt as though Aira-san wouldn’t listen even if I told him to stop.
At the very least, I’ve been ever so attentively coaching him with relatively light practice routines.
I thought it would be wrong to completely deny his desire to grow and improve…
Uuugh, I’m sorry for acting so arrogant…
No, you did the right thing. If the Bon Festival is anything to go by, we can safely leave Aira’s training in your hands.3
Mhm. Just please don’t overwork yourself, Aira. Though, I admire your resilience.
Well, unlike those who’re just born geniuses, ordinary people like me have to overdo it a little.
If I don’t work hard, I won’t be able to take flight and reach the same destination as everyone else.
…
Translation Notes
- ↑ Oda Nobunaga, a well-known historical figure from the Sengoku period.
- ↑ The Yamato period of Japanese history.
- ↑ The Bon Festival was the setting of Alkaloid's first live show, as seen in Tumultuous Times.