Oran Knight is out (1/3 chapters for today)
Attendance Number 20: Rancol Frank
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**Today’s Diary**
While casually flipping through my diary, I noticed something. Among my Team B members, I hadn’t written anything about Frank. I wonder why.
Frank certainly doesn’t stand out as much as the others. Compared to lively Heinz and Hana, good listener Rick and Rat, or the charismatic Sonia and Maria, Frank does seem a bit more ordinary. Sometimes, the instructor even forgets to call his name, but I don’t think he’s that unnoticeable. Probably.
Frank is an Engineer (Tech). He’s a vital part of our team. Today, something happened where Frank was the main focus, so I thought I’d write about it.
—
“Try leading your team to victory without sniping anyone.” (Rita)
After school, these words that Rita-san said yesterday kept replaying in my mind.
Winning without sniping. In hunting terms, I have to be the one who drives the prey, guiding them towards or away from my allies. I’ve been thinking about how to do this effectively since yesterday.
“…Lux! Lux!” (Frank)
Realizing someone was calling me, I looked up in surprise to find Frank’s face right in front of me.
“Whoa! You startled me, Frank. You’re too close.” (Lux)
When I protested, Frank looked exasperated.
“What are you talking about? I’ve been calling you for a while now, and you didn’t notice.” (Frank)
“Sorry, sorry, I was lost in thought. So, what is it?” (Lux)
“Honestly. It’s about the team name.” (Frank)
We, currently called Teams A, B, and C, needed to decide on team names before the competition. Our homeroom teacher, Fol-sensei, said we could choose anything, but since we had the chance, we wanted something cool.
“Hmm… I haven’t thought of anything yet. What about you, Frank?” (Lux)
“If I had a good idea, I wouldn’t be coming to you for advice.” (Frank)
With a troubled expression, Frank put his hands behind his head. We were given this homework three days ago. We were supposed to decide on a name by the practice match. For the time being, we had decided to bring our ideas and decide during lunch tomorrow.
“Frank, you’re so resourceful. I thought you’d come up with something right away.” (Lux)
When I said that, Frank frowned.
“Being good with my hands has nothing to do with it. Ah, if we had to make something and bring it, I could do that right away.” (Frank)
Frank’s role as an Engineer (Tech) was quite unique in the squad. He ran around the battlefield with a large toolbox strapped to his back. Inside the box, there were materials for making traps, tools for disarming traps, supplies for quick repairs on broken guns, and medicines for treating injured teammates. Having an Engineer (Tech) in the team significantly broadened strategic options, so it was fundamental for any squad, no matter how small, to include an Engineer (Tech).
Frank, our team’s Tech, loved fixing guns… so much so that he came to the academy because of it.
“I love fixing them, but disassembling them is fun too.” (Frank)
In a sense, he was a die-hard eccentric.
His hobby of maintaining guns made him the most dexterous in the class. However, beyond that, he was terrible at basic endurance required to run around with a big box or treating people. He was a boy with an unending passion for making and breaking things. Even in the classroom or during lunch, he was always assembling or disassembling something whenever he got the chance.
“I’m sure everyone else will come up with good ideas.” (Lux)
Naming things isn’t my strong suit either. Honestly, I had already given up before Frank asked me. Besides, I have more pressing things to think about than the team name right now.
“That’s pretty laid-back… Well, if nothing comes up, there’s nothing we can do. Oh, I have to get going. It’s my turn to clean the dormitory today!” (Frank)
With that, and still without any good ideas, Frank hurriedly left the classroom.
—
The next day at lunch, after talking with Frank, everyone revealed the team names they had thought of. Each person proposed a name they had come up with, but none of them felt decisive, including my own suggestion.
Just as we were feeling stuck, Heinz stretched and said, as if to change the mood,
“Aside from the team name, we also need to think about strategies for the practice match.” (Heinz)
Heinz’s casual comment prompted a shift in the conversation to our recent reconnaissance. While we had already shared the details after the reconnaissance, we had postponed discussing the strategy. I thought it was a good opportunity and decided to share something I had been debating whether to mention.
“About that, this might just be a hunch, but…” (Lux)
I prefaced my story and then shared the incident of the cat abuser Maria and I saw, as well as our encounter with the opposing Knight (Ritter). Maria was the first to react to my story.
“That! That’s definitely the culprit! I can’t forgive him! We must win at all costs!” (Maria)
Maria, usually calm, was furious.
“Yeah, it seems likely. But such a thing…” (Rick)
Rick, with a somewhat serious expression, crossed his arms.
“You should have told us during the reconnaissance…” (Hana)
Hana and Sonia protested, but when I explained my hesitation, they understood and let it go. Everyone was angered by the cat abuser, and the sentiment of “We can’t lose to someone like that” was palpable.
“Alright, let’s focus on our strategy first!” (Heinz)
Heinz said emphatically, and everyone except me agreed enthusiastically, but then, I splashed cold water on him.
“I think we should aim to completely ‘lose’ the practice match.” (Lux)
Everyone looked at me in stunned silence. Ratt-kun was the first to protest.
“Lux, what are you saying? Are you serious?” (Ratt)
“Yes, I’m serious.” (Lux)
As I was about to explain my reasoning, Rick caught on. As expected from the eldest.
“Lux, you’re saying we should hide our cards to ensure we win the actual match, right?” (Rick)
“Exactly. I believe losing the practice match won’t sting as much for them as losing the real one would.” (Lux)
Everyone seemed to agree and understand my reasoning. “I wonder how we should lose to make them underestimate us,” we started discussing eagerly.
In the midst of this, Frank muttered softly, “How about ‘Catrap’?”
“What’s that?” (Heinz)
Heinz asked.
“For the team name, ‘Catrap.’ It combines ‘cat’ and trapping the guys from 2-C. Like setting a trap.” (Frank)
“‘Catrap’… It has a nice ring to it.” (Sonia)
Sonia remarked, seeming to like it.
From there, everyone murmured “Catrap” to themselves, digesting the idea.
“I think it’s good… Yeah, it doesn’t sound bad.” (Ratt)
Ratt-kun said so, following Sonia’s lead.. With everyone nodding in agreement, it seemed settled. And so, our team name became “Catrap.”
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