Diamond No Ace: The Monster

Chapter 4: Seidou

In West Tokyo, Seidou High School stands out as a prestigious private institution.

Its admission standards are the highest among its peers, and the grandeur of its campus and facilities is unmatched, even by Tokyo's standards. Seidou's infrastructure is among the best in the city.

The most impressive part of Seidou's facilities is undoubtedly its baseball department. Even within elite schools, Seidou's baseball team is top-notch.

"Our school has three official baseball fields—two outdoor fields, designated A and B, and one indoor field…"

As the slightly plump Oota, Seidou's baseball department director, enthusiastically describes the facilities, his eyes sparkle with pride.

He has every reason to boast, being the director of such a prestigious program.

Following Oota is Furuya, who arrived a day early to the school. As a special recruit, Furuya enjoys certain perks, such as early admission and accommodation arrangements, avoiding the queues most students face.

When Furuya arrived, Oota eagerly took on the role of guide, showing him around the school. Despite Furuya's reluctance, he couldn't refuse Oota's enthusiasm.

Furuya was surprised to find that Oota was quite the talker, especially when it came to discussing the baseball team. Oota's explanations flowed like an unstoppable river.

"This amazing team must have frequently reached Koshien in recent years, right?" Furuya muttered quietly.

"What did you say?" Oota perked up, leaning in to listen.

"I was asking if such a great baseball team has many players," Furuya said with a smile.

"Of course, we have many players. Including this year's new recruits, we have over 80, though not quite 100," Oota assured confidently.

As a renowned elite team, Seidou's appeal has somewhat diminished in recent years due to less favorable results. However, this drop in attractiveness affects only a small number of top-tier players. For the majority of ordinary players, Seidou High School's baseball team remains a dream destination.

In this situation, the issue isn't a shortage of players. What they truly lack is a top-notch ace.

"I believe that you, Furuya, are different. With you joining us, we can definitely break the curse this year. We definitely can!"

Director Oota spoke with firm conviction.

For several years, the Seidou High School baseball team has failed to advance to Koshien. The outside world is full of speculation and rumors. Amidst this, everyone in the Seidou baseball team is determined to prove themselves.

Manager Oota is no exception. Seeing Furuya in person and recalling his impressive performance from the footage, he feels a surge of excitement. With Furuya on their side, their team's rise to prominence seems imminent.

Currently, aside from their ace pitcher, the Seidou High School baseball team is equipped with either high-end or top-tier players. In other words, they already possess the potential to dominate the nation. What they need now is just a small opportunity to make it happen.

And now, not only has that opportunity arrived, but their biggest shortcoming has also been addressed.

"I'm sorry, Tanba..." Oota silently apologized in his mind as he led Furuya to his dorm.

"Your dorm mates are both first-string players on our team. You should get along well with them..."

As he spoke, Oota's eyes were filled with anticipation. Clearly, Furuya's dorm arrangements had been meticulously planned. Special treatment like this is usually reserved for players with high expectations.

"Thank you, Mr. Oota!" Furuya said with a smile.

"No need to be so formal!" Director Oota patted Furuya's shoulder and offered a few encouraging words before leaving on his own.

Director Oota clearly intended to let Furuya face his roommates on his own, giving the young players space to interact.

The dormitory area of the Seidou High School baseball team was filled with the scent of daily life—socks, shirts, and cleaned shoes hanging everywhere. It was clear that the baseball team's players had arrived early, not waiting for the official start of school.

For the goal of Koshien, the Seidou High School baseball players had truly put in a lot of effort. To put it bluntly, they had bet almost their entire three years of high school on baseball.

Furuya couldn't help but feel admiration.

He took a deep breath and knocked on his dorm room door.

The first-team players of the Seidou High School baseball team were likely to be familiar to him.

"Is the new junior here?"

A cheerful voice came from inside, and the door was pulled open, revealing a head that looked like it had stepped out of a manga.

"Kusunoki-senpai!"

Furuya didn't know all the first-string players of Seidou High School, but he recognized a few. This particular senior was among them.

It wasn't because this senior was especially skilled or renowned among third-year players. It was mainly because this senior was, in Furuya's opinion, the pinnacle of attractiveness at Seidou High School.

It's worth noting that Seidou wasn't like Yakushi, where everyone had an awkward look. The overall appearance of Seidou's baseball team was very high, with many handsome players.

Even so, Furuya was convinced that this senior was the most handsome of all.

Unfortunately, this senior wasn't a significant character from a manga.

The fact that a minor character like Kusunoki had looks far surpassing those of the protagonist was a bit of a shock. His attractiveness was likely several hundred times greater than that of the readers' ideal.

"You know me?"

Kusunoki looked curious, surprised that his fame within the baseball team had reached such heights. Could it be because he was a first string player?

"I've heard of you…"

Furuya answered awkwardly. He wasn't quite sure how to explain this situation.

Just then, a loud scream echoed through the dormitory area.

"Ghost! There's a ghost!!!"

The shrill scream was so intense that it was heart-wrenching to hear and made listeners want to cry.

Furuya turned in surprise, while Kusunoki's face showed an expression of resigned amusement.

"Those idiots in Room 5 do this every year…"