(Phew… My heart rate’s getting high again. I can keep going, right?)

Kafka, do you have a moment?

…What? Why are you here?

Renga asked me to help. He’s out today for an early morning shoot, so he wanted me to take his place.

…Are you kidding me, Renga? Ugh…

…You have something you wanted to talk about, right? Before you say anything, I’m not going to stop working out.

I…didn’t come here to say that. Chief told me that I should believe in you…

The chief said that?

Fine, let’s talk. I’m the one who wanted the main host and subhost of the Feature Tours to get closer. I’ll hear you out.

……

I don’t mind if you want to work out, but…I don’t understand why you’re pushing yourself this hard. You can still see Taisho Pond, even if you can’t walk all the way there.

Maybe you won’t pass out like before, but I’m still worried that you might be hospitalized. Do you…not feel that way?

…This body scares me more than it does anyone else.

……

Isn’t that obvious? …Every time I think that I’m feeling better, my health takes a nosedive. I constantly have to start back from square one.

I can’t improve my stamina overnight, it’s more like I take two steps back for every three steps forward. And that sucks… It makes me angry at myself.

In that case…

Isn’t it the same with skating?

…!

I’m sure you didn’t come out of the womb being able to make those jumps. You have to fail over and over before learning to land one, but just getting one right doesn’t mean that you’ve perfected them, so you have to keep trying.

Am I wrong?

No… You’re very right.

If you had something that you really wanted to do, but everyone around you said that you couldn’t do it, would you just accept that and give up?

(Something I really want to do… That makes me think about my skating. I selfishly told Dad that I wanted to skate in my own style, even if it didn’t directly lead me to any wins.)

…When I was in the hospital, I kept hearing stories about our chief’s travels. So it was always on my mind…

I wanted us to travel together. After I got better, I’d walk on my own two feet and see the same sights Chief did.

…If I didn’t have those thoughts, I wouldn’t be working this hard. I don’t think I would’ve even gone through with the surgery.

…Kafka…

I want to walk to Taisho Pond and look out at the scenery with Chief. If I can’t even do that, it almost feels like I don’t know what I should be living for.

People tell me that I’ll have more chances even after I give up, but I don’t believe them. Being in the hospital made me realize that…second chances are rare. So I can’t afford to give up.

You feel the same way, right? There’s something you want to see with somebody, and you want to get there on your own.

…Something I want to see…

(…Dad… The first time I landed a single axel, he smiled wider than I’d ever seen before. Since then, he always told me over and over that I could land any jump I wanted to.)

…When I was a kid, I wanted to see the view from the top of the podium.

Oh, really?

(But it wasn’t because I wanted gold… I just wanted to see Dad smile.)

(He believed in me… I wanted to show him I could do it…)

(If I think about it, life is just like skating competitions. If you waste your time thinking there will always be another chance, you’ll never win any medals…)

…Okay, I got it!

Huh, what do you get?

Give me some time. I’ll come up with a training regimen. I know your height, weight, and muscle mass from Sakujiro…

What? Ew, ew, ew. What’s with that big data table? Huh? What are you doing?

I’m done. It’s a workout routine made just for you. I’ll also be in charge of your meals from now on.

…Uh… I didn’t ask you. And the routine’s so long that it’s kind of scaring me.

I’ll work hard so you can see the sights you want to see. I’ve decided to put my faith in those feelings of yours.

……

*sigh* Fine. I guess I have to listen to what the main host says.

Uuuuwahhh, what a picture-perfect Japanese meal…!! Is this charity for the poor…?

That’s a lotta dishes. Crazy amount of ingredients too. Veggies, fish, and…beans. It’s all healthy stuff.

Yuki-nii handled a lot of the cooking for today. Everything’s really good, so enjoy.

Kafka’s meals need to have a good macronutrient ratio. He especially needs to take in high-quality protein.

But instead of building muscle mass, it’s important that he focuses on staying in good health. That’s why I cooked all of this.

Meals should be balanced first and foremost. It’s the best way to go about them.

Kafka, you should be taking in 2000 calories a day for now. Do your best to eat all of the share that I put aside for you.

Okayyy…

You’ve got a great coach now! Good for you, Kafka!

I just need to eat everything here, right? It’s not all that heavily seasoned, so that shouldn’t be too hard…

Hold on. This isn’t enough if you want to build your stamina in such a short amount of time. But it’s also not good to eat too much. That’s why I made this…

Ugh, th-that looks disgusting…

It’s my Yukikaze-style strength-building shake. I included all of the nutrients that you’ll need along with lots of protein. Give it a try.

The color is crazy… I try not to leave food on my plate when I eat, but I dunno about this…

Don’t worry, I also took the flavor into account!

Huhhh? It doesn’t look like you did…

Kafka… G-Good luck.

Mmm, if you say so, Chief… *gulp*

…Huh? W-What?

Ka-Kafka, are you okay?

I guess, but… Wait, why does it kind of taste like a teriyaki burger…?

I made it taste that way so you’d like it. Does that make it easier to drink?

Uh, well, I like the taste, but… It’s kind of gross to drink a teriyaki burger…

Ugh, but fine. I’m going to chug it!

*gulp, gulp* Pwah. There, all done!

Woah, nice one, Prez.

Kafka, you’re amazing…!

Hey, guys, let’s all start working out with him! We’re all going to Kamikochi anyway!

Huh…?

I don’t need to.

What are you talking about, Liguang?! Just come to the gym with us! We gotta get that morning workout in!

……

…Ten… You’re gonna come with us too, right?

Uhhh… Lemme think…

Oh, I got it. Maybe Yachiyo-san could bring over anyone who doesn’t show up in the morning.

Ack!

I-I-I-If that will help… Huh? Wait, does this mean I can legally admire everyone’s beautiful sleeping faces…?

You hear that, Liguang-san?

Murakumo, you…

*sigh* Fine. I just need to show up, right?

Awesome! Kafka, we’re gonna make this the best hike ever!

(Now that Yuki-nii’s handling Kafka’s training, everything’s turning around… I’m excited for this trip!)