NOVEL NEXT Chapter 2011: Park Date ⑤
Even though a new visitor came to the park, this park is quite spacious, so it doesn't matter much. Illness-san and I just happened to be in a position where we could see the entrance gate, so we just happened to notice the arrival. If we were further inside, we probably wouldn't have noticed.
The noble-looking people riding on a flying carpet glanced at us and gave a light nod, so we just returned the gesture. It was really nothing more than that.
I remember being concerned about what people in the city might think when I was on a date with Kuro, who was petite enough to be called a young girl. Illness-san is even more petite than Kuro, but somehow, I don't care about such things at all now.
In fact, the height difference between Illness-san and I is quite normal in this world. In fact, it's common to see couples with over a meter difference in height in the city.
There are quite a few large species, like Acht and Tiamat-san, and if we're talking about actual height, there could be differences of several dozen meters. However, most Demons with a body size over 5 meters use Humanization Magic to blend in with townsfolk, so such height differences actually didn't turn out that significant.
Well, even that Megiddo-san would use Humanization Magic in the city, so there seems to be an unspoken understanding around…… No, I do sometimes see Megiddo-san wandering around with his large form. In that case, the form she takes might just depend on her mood.
[By the waaaaay, in Kaito-sama's world, how do people spend in paaaaaarks?]
[Fumu, how people spend time in parks huh……]
That seems like a casual question asked as small talk. Since we're spending time in the park, Illness-san was curious if things were similar here to my world. Unnn, it's not a surprising question…… but unfortunately…… this question is quite difficult for me.
As of late…… or rather, since arriving in this world, I have made friends and acquaintances, and I have lovers, so I'm proud to say I have a wide social circle. Before coming to this world though, I was a fairly elite loner, and I don’t even remember having someone I could call a friend.……No, I did have quite a few friends back in elementary, but after my parents died in an accident and I was taken in by relatives, I moved, which reset my friendships when I started middle school.
After middle school, I avoided people and became quite apathetic, so I didn't make any new friends. The same was true in high school, where the only person who often talked to me was Akira…… though that was mostly to scold me for sleeping in class.
Well, because of that, if we're talking about experiences like playing with someone at the park, I'd have to go all the way back to elementary school.
[……L- Let's see. Well, we played games like playing catch……]
Yes, the only thing that came to my mind after thinking hard was playing catch with my father, which we did only once.
[Playing caaaaatch…… Was it the same as that sport called baseball I heard about?]
[Ah, yes. It's actually more of a practice for that sport. Speaking of which, I don't remember this world having baseball. Even though basketball exists here……]
Hearing the words Illness-san murmured as if searching their memory, I realized that I've never seen baseball in this world.
I had played basketball before at an event I participated in with Tre-san and the others, and terminologies like "free throws" as well, so it does exist…… Arehh?
[No, but there was that target game at the Six Kings Festival……]
[The sport baseball does exist heeeeere, but it's quite a minor spooooort. Similar to basketbaaaaall, such sports are significantly affected by racial differenceeeees, so you mostly see them in eveeeeents.]
[……Ahh, I see, that makes sense…… Different species have different heights and physiques, so even if the game was limited to just Humans, there are species with a small build like Dwarves. It might be difficult to hold such sports on a large scale.]
Now that she pointed that out, that certainly makes sense. Even without considering magic, there are already massive species and incredibly strong ones, making it difficult to ensure fair competition. Without strictly enforcing rules and handicaps, it would be tough to keep things balanced.
Ah, maybe that's why sports like RINGTOSS which felt more like a magic battle, focusing more on individual skills, are more popular.
[While we're heeeeere, I'd love to try playing catch with Kaito-samaaaaa…… though I suppose it might be hard without equipmeeeeeent?]
[Ah, you're right. We can make it work if we at least have a ball…… No, it would still be best if we have a glove…… Unn?]
[Oyaaaa?]
Illness-san requested that we play catch, but we didn’t have gloves or a ball, so I was wondering what to do. Then, right in front of us, two gloves and a ball appeared with a note saying "From the thoughtful Transcendental Beauty". It seemed like Alice had prepared these for us.
<Afterword>
Serious-senpai : [So that's the reason why Super-Exciting Battle Sports are so popular……]
? ? ? : [Well, in a world where multiple species coexist, team sports are naturally more challenging. That's why individual or small-team competitions tend to become more popular.]