I’m Back in the First Grade of Elementary School, so I’m Going to Live Well

Playtime Activities

Translated by Green Cake
Edited by Green Cake

The event I was most looking forward to, or rather hoping for, on this field trip.

――Tag game.

There are many kinds of tag games, such as freeze tag, shadow tag, banana tag, etc., so it’s hard to say what they are all about.

This time we are going to play a relatively simple game of tag called “Increase tag”.

First, there are four existing demons, and if a person running away is touched by that demon, that person becomes a demon. Incidentally, the demon wears the red side of the red and white cap, and the one running away wears the white side.

As the name suggests, this is a game of tag where the number of demons increases.

Unlike other tag games, there is no revival system, and the more time passes, the more disadvantageous the fleeing side becomes.

There is no time limit, but areas with thick trees where you can hide are off-limits during tag, so it won’t take long for everyone to be caught by the demons if you only play tag on level ground.

“You can’t be too far away. ――Then, let’s start playing tag!”

With a signal from Misato-sensei, the 20 or so people on the fleeing side and the four demons about 50 meters behind them all start running at once.

The ratio of demons to runners was about 1:5. I was hopeful that I wouldn’t be targeted right from the start.

If I get caught early on, my hopes will be dashed.

That’s right, the reason why I was most excited about the recreational activity of tag on this excursion.

It’s because it’s the only place where I can be active!

If dodgeball is the sole domain of people who are good at throwing, tag is the sole domain of fast people.

Through constant effort, I am even with Imai-kun, the fastest student in the class, and I am still making progress at the rate of high economic growth.

But that’s all I am.

Being fast is an excellent ability that is useful in any sport, but if you only excel in that one area, there are only a limited number of sports in which you can expect to excel.

Whether you play soccer or baseball, you have to kick, hit, and do other movements in addition to running.

I can’t think of any other sport other than track and field that requires only running, except for the shot put.

This is true not only in competition but also in play.

It is the same with a dodgeball.

Not only do you need to be able to throw the ball, but you also need to be able to catch it and avoid it.

There are very few games or games in which a player can excel in only one area and be unrivaled in that area alone.

――But just because there aren’t many doesn’t mean there aren’t any.

“Heh! I’ll get you, Itosaki!”

One of the demons came towards me.

I’m known for being fast.

It’s not surprising that some of them want to catch me and show off to the people around them.

But!

“What?”

I run faster than my demon classmates and distance myself from them.

――Tag. And if the field is a place with an unobstructed view, there’s only one thing you’ll need.

Speed. This is all you need.

If you include physical strength and the ability to judge the situation, there is more than one, but there is only one action required.

First of all, my physical strength and situational judgment are based on the fact that I work out every day and I’m an adult. There is no reason why I should be inferior to a first grader in these abilities.

The game of tag this time is the sole domain of people with fast legs――or rather, it can be said that it is my sole domain!

It was the perfect recreational activity for me to be active in.

That’s why I was already expecting it when I saw the bookmarks for the field trip.

I was hoping that I might be able to get the same kind of attention here as I did during the 50 meter run in PE.

I had such faint hopes.

Come on! To live up to my expectations, come at me with all your might, demons!

And pay attention to me!

With a sincere wish, I ran around the plains.

“I’ll get the fast-footed Itosaki first!”

“Oh!”

Three people who had already been caught by the demon and had changed their red and white hats from white to red were colluding to secure me, but they couldn’t keep up with my speed and missed me.

The formation alpha was broken without difficulty.

If they can surround me with teamwork, they have a good chance of winning, but my classmates, who are first graders, are so preoccupied with chasing the person in front of them that they don’t even have the word “cooperation” in their brains.

To put it badly, they are single-celled elementary school children.

The situation is more like a game of chase than a game of tag.

But I don’t care about those details.

What I need to do now is to focus on getting more of my classmates to pay attention to me.

To do that, I need to run.

I need to run, run, run, and run to get the attention of my classmates!

“Itosaki’s running away at a very high speed!”

“All right! Seize him!”

The increasing number of demons chase me one after another, and eventually, a composition like a feudal lord’s procession is formed.

Hahahahaha! That’s good! More, more, more!

Pay more attention to me, my classmates!

Even though my thoughts are almost like those of an evil emperor, I’m running away faster than the demons chasing me, increasing the distance between us.

At the rate I’m going, the MVP of this recreation will be me! (There is no such system)

Highest level of activity! Exactly what I expected, and more!

Everyone is scrambling to get a hold of me!

Now I’m the center of attention! I’m the center of attention!

Soaking in the joy of it all, I run around the plains.

――Two minutes later.

“Itosaki-kun, you’re too fast.”

“I can’t catch him at all!”

“Let’s stop chasing him.”

“That’s right.”

My classmates got fed up with me because I showed no signs of being caught.

“Ehh, wai, ehhh?”

I couldn’t help but shout in surprise at my classmate’s back as he walked past.

W-Weird. If you’re fast, you’ll get noticed…… 

I didn’t know this at the time.

I had never played tag with my friends before, so there was no way I could have known that.

Tag is a game where individuals enjoy chasing and escaping from each other, and no one particular person plays an active role.

It’s not a team game where each individual plays an active role.

――But I had no way of knowing that, so I just wondered and wondered about my classmates who were leaving.

Anyway, I’ll go to the center of the field for a bit and wait for them to come after me again.

While I was running away from them, I had reached the forbidden area near the forest.

I hadn’t set foot in the forbidden area, but if I went too far into the field, I would be warned by Misato-sensei, who was monitoring the children.

That’s when I started to walk away from the forest.

“Uwaaa!”

Suddenly, a hand leaps out of the child’s-height grass right behind me grabs me and pulls me into the off-limits area on the other side of the grass.

The impact of being pulled backward made me fall on my buttocks, but thanks to the soft grass, it didn’t hurt.

For a moment, I almost panicked, thinking that I had been kidnapped by a suspicious person, but when I saw the face of the person who pulled me in, I realized that I had been mistaken.

“I got you, Sho-kun♪”

There is Mizui-san wearing a red and white hat with red on the front.