Thwack!
A short, sharp, and loud sound rang out. The baseball, which had flown towards the batter, immediately flew back in the opposite direction at an even faster speed. The catcher unfortunately missed the catch.
Compared to the relatively inconspicuous baseball field at the previous stadium, the baseball field here was not only multiple fields but all were built to match competition standards. Half of the trainees here were official players on the baseball team.
However, two fields were specifically reserved for training members who already had a foundation and showed a certain talent. As for those with no or weak foundations, heh, they were to obediently pick up balls and observe.
But what qualifies as a talented player?
It was entirely up to the subjective judgment of the coaches and seniors. If they said you were talented, you were, even if you weren't. If they said you weren't, then you weren't, and you had to obediently do grunt work and couldn't formally train. That's why the Baseball Club was so messy, but it couldn't be helped. It was a classic Japanese tradition: if you don't have capital (status/wealth), you suffer in silence and accept the demands of your superiors and seniors.
Regardless, after learning a little about these rules within the Baseball Club, Alistair could only shake his head. It was no wonder the school baseball team's performance was getting worse every year. Although Alistair didn't understand baseball, he knew from others that the team's ranking was indeed dropping year by year.
But that was irrelevant to Alistair. He was just here to look at the girls. He didn't have the time to care whether the baseball team members lived or died.
"Everyone, you've worked hard! Come and have some water."
A girl wearing a baseball cap, with auburn hair just slightly above her shoulders, walked over with a bucket and called out. The bucket was filled with large bottles of packaged water.
She set the bucket down and wiped some sweat from her forehead with her right hand, lifting her head slightly to reveal her beautiful face. The slight curl of her lips indicated her good mood.
Alistair looked her over carefully. Her massive front entirely rivaled Kasumi Haruno's. Watching the waves generated by her movements, Alistair almost suspected she wasn't wearing anything underneath, with only the T-shirt on the outside. Judging by her upper body alone, Alistair estimated only Natsuha Shinomiyagi could compete with her.
As for her hips, they were indeed quite plump—she was a very excellent fucking frame... girl, that is. However, compared to the girls in the Track and Field Club earlier, especially Coach Akari Fujitō, this girl was a slight downgrade. Coach Fujitō's ample hips could be imagined to have superior elasticity and fullness just by looking at them.
"Shō, here you go."
The girl took a bottle of water from the bucket and handed it to a kind-looking, yasashii (gentle) boy who walked over. He had delicate features and an average build. Although he seemed popular, with several people chatting with him, their expressions were very perfunctory. This is definitely another Cuck and Heroine pair.
"Thank you, Nanao-san." The boy, named Shō Katase, thanked her, took the water bottle, opened it, and started drinking.
"You're welcome, Katase-kun." The girl, Nanao, suddenly acted as if she had just realized something, and her tone became less ambiguous and more polite. She then quickly moved away from the boy, as if eager to distance herself.
"Hey, Nanao and Katase seem to be getting close. Are they dating?" A baseball club member said to his friend next to him while drinking water, watching the interaction between the two.
"Probably. If so, there'll be some drama to watch. Hahaha~" His friend next to him looked gleeful, as if flirting and dating were capital offenses.
"Hey, two seniors, I want to know your rules on this subject. Are you interested in telling your junior here?" Alistair walked behind the two, put his arms around their shoulders, one on the left, one on the right, and asked with a grin.
"Huh? Who are you... Oh, it's Alistair-kun. I'll tell you everything, junior. Please talk nicely, and for god's sake, don't use force." The senior on the left, Ikeo, was about to speak disrespectfully to Alistair but suddenly remembered something when he saw Alistair's grinning face. He immediately backed down.
"Yeah, yeah, junior, let's talk this out." The senior on the right, Sasaki, saw his friend's quick change of face. Knowing his friend well, he knew this seemingly harmless junior must be a ruthless character, or his friend wouldn't have given in so quickly and shamelessly.
"Wow~ You seniors are so kind. I didn't mean to give you any trouble. I just wanted to ask what you meant by flirting and dating leading to drama." Alistair maintained his smiling demeanor, making it difficult for the two to determine if his intentions were as simple as they seemed.
"Um, it's like this: dating isn't allowed in the Baseball Club because it might affect the training effectiveness of those involved and the people around them. So, anyone who tries to date within the club will face severe punishment from Coach Tōgō." Sticking to the principle that following the rules is always safe, the left senior, Ikeo, obediently explained to Alistair.
"I see. So, how does your Coach Tōgō punish people? How severe is it?" Alistair asked with interest. He was quite curious. Japan was also notorious for its hierarchical system, although it was generally worse in Korea. Ultimately, the Japanese characteristic of endurance and the hierarchical system were major reasons for the countless plotlines in the hentai genres.
"I'm not sure about that. But everyone who has been punished is unwilling to talk about the process. It's the same no matter who you ask." Ikeo shook his head, indicating he didn't know. To prevent Alistair from thinking he was being evasive, he specifically explained that no one except the person involved and Coach Tōgō knew what the punishment was. The senior on the right, Sasaki, also quickly nodded, confirming his friend was telling the truth.
"I see..." Alistair fell silent, seemingly contemplating something. The two seniors didn't dare move. Since Alistair hadn't let go, they didn't dare make any rash moves.
"So, did that Coach Tōgō give you some secret method this year? Your performance is getting worse every year, you know." Alistair asked casually, as if just chatting about mundane things. He had noticed during his observation of their training that while they looked energetic, they all had slightly lazy expressions, clearly not giving it their all.
"Well... Alistair-kun, please don't tell anyone outside. Coach Tōgō developed a drug this year that can enhance our overall physical qualities. It's not very potent, and it takes a long time to see the effects, but the baseball season is still far away. With this drug and some training, our physical condition will be more than enough to beat other schools, so..." Ikeo didn't finish, as slacking off was not a glorious thing to admit.
Alistair understood his implication, nodded, and released the two seniors. He watched them look relieved and then hurry away from him as if he were a plague. Alistair said nothing, simply watching them leave.
A drug? Is this another 'drug-induced degeneracy' plot?
Alistair turned his head, looking at the two who had already separated quite far, wondering how the plot would unfold.
"Hey, Ikeo, what's the deal with that guy? Why were you so scared?" The guy who was on the right, Sasaki, asked glumly.
"That guy's name is Alistair Vance. He looks harmless, but I found out he has a super ability related to strength, and it's quite powerful. Remember that Takaaki Anjō guy? He hasn't been here for two days, right? Apparently, he took a liking to the chick with Alistair and tried his old methods, but Alistair kicked the door right off its hinges, and it smashed onto Takaaki. Then he publicly beat Takaaki's head. That's why I was so scared. He's not afraid of trouble. If we piss him off, we might be out of commission for a few days, too. Remember him, and walk around him from now on. Also, I heard the guy is some kind of multi-generational rich kid, so we can't afford to mess with him. Avoid him whenever possible." Ikeo said, pulling a long, annoyed face.
"Okay. But that's it? Also, Coach Tōgō told us to keep the drug a secret..." Sasaki was still a little conflicted.
"Who cares about that? Let Coach Tōgō deal with him if he's so brave. We can't do it. Besides, many people in the second year already know about Alistair's power. We don't even know if Coach Tōgō dares to mess with him." Ikeo grumbled, leading him toward another field.