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墨書 Inktalez
The day after the match against the Empire.
-In a classroom of the second-year class-
Yae Shiki was sitting in the second-to-last row by the window, staring blankly at the sky outside. "..."
At that moment, someone approached him and tapped his desk with their finger.
"Yae, can we talk for a moment?"
Shiki snapped back to reality and turned to look at the source of the voice. It was a girl with wavy chestnut-red hair. In this school, there was only one person with such features: Natsumi Raimon, the only daughter of the Reimon Conglomerate's owner.
"Miss Raimon, what can I do for you?" Shiki asked.
Natsumi frowned lightly. "You know I don't like being called that."
"Well, you lost to me, second in the grade."
Natsumi wanted to say something more but let out a sigh instead. "Never mind. I came to talk to you about something else today."
"?"
"I arranged the next practice match for the soccer club. If they win, they can participate in the Tomorrow's Star Football Tournament; if they lose, the club will be disbanded."
Shiki looked puzzled. "So? I'm not part of the soccer club."
Natsumi pointed at Shiki. "I want to compete with you again. Last time it was about grades, and I lost, so this time we’ll compare the results of the Raimon Football Team."
"I'm not interested; it doesn't benefit me at all."
"You have no reason to refuse me. If I hadn't helped you with your transfer issues back then, which school would have taken you after that incident?"
Shiki looked at Natsumi with some annoyance. "Are you threatening me?"
Natsumi shook her head. "I wouldn't stoop to that level; I just want to compete with you again."
Shiki sighed helplessly. "Why are you so fixated on me…"
"You're the only one who dares to speak to me like that."
Shiki surrendered. "Fine! Fine! I get it! How do we compete?"
Natsumi asked Shiki, "It's simple: do you think the Raimon Football Team will win or lose?"
Without even thinking, Shiki replied, "Of course, Raimon will win!"
"Good, then you bet on Raimon winning while I bet on them losing."
"If you win, you can ask me to do one thing."
"And if I win, you have to admit I'm better than you and never call me 'Miss' again."
Shiki nodded. "Deal."
"Is there any other condition?"
Natsumi thought for a moment before adding, "And you can't participate in the match; otherwise, it wouldn't be fair to me."
Shiki looked puzzled. "Just like that?"
"What else?"
"Are you suggesting I would breach the agreement?!"
Shiki exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "Of course not!"
Natsumi smiled. "Then it's settled. I'm really looking forward to the performance of the Raimon Football Team in a week."
With that, Natsumi turned to leave the classroom.
As Natsumi stepped out with her right foot, Shiki called out to her, "By the way, I haven't asked—who are they up against?"
"It's Oni Gari Middle School."
Shiki's expression turned serious. "Hmm..."
"I think I agreed too quickly; can I take it back?"
Natsumi remained silent, simply looking at Shiki. "..."
As the classroom door closed, only Shiki was left feeling helpless.
Shiki chuckled in frustration. "What an annoying person."
Natsumi had made a few gestures that seemed to say, "No way? Are you really going to breach the agreement?"
"But... Oni Gari Middle School..."
Shiki placed his hands behind his head and propped his feet on the desk. "They're not an opponent that Raimon can handle at this stage... After all, if we only focus on defending against that so-called curse, we'll definitely lose; those guys aren't some super weak team."
"I remember I had a tough battle back then too."
"Maybe I should go check them out."
A day passed quickly.
Since Shiki wasn't part of any club, he was able to leave school after classes ended.
As he walked by the riverbank, he saw the Raimon team practicing.
"Wow! They're really putting in the effort."
Especially one guy with a pink buzz cut who was particularly intense.
"But..."
That person kept using brute force to kick the ball, ignoring his teammates' calls for passes and even committing fouls that nearly injured opponents.
After another powerful shot missed the goal, he collapsed onto the ground, pounding it in frustration. "This isn't going to work."
Endou ran over to Someoka to comfort him. "Someoka, are you okay?"
"Playing like this isn't going to be fun, you know?"
"Huh?"
Shiki slid down the grassy slope.
Endou said happily, "It's Yae."
"Hey! Good morning, everyone!"
MAX interjected, "Isn't it already afternoon?"
"Haha, don't sweat the small stuff!"
Shiki looked at Someoka. "Your current state isn't really suitable for playing football. How about you take a moment to calm down over there?"
Someoka replied impatiently, "I don't have time to rest right now!!!"
"And aren't you not even part of our football team? Can you not interrupt our practice?"
"..."
The atmosphere visibly worsened, but just then, a voice broke through.
"Miki senpai!!"
The girl with deep blue hair from yesterday waved and ran towards them.
"Ah? You're... that Otonashi junior from yesterday."
Miki greeted her, "Are you here to interview us again today?"
Otonashi shook her head. "No, I'm here to watch your practice."
"After watching yesterday's match, I became a fan of the Raimon Football Team!"
As she said this, Otonashi's eyes seemed to sparkle with admiration.
"However..."
Otonashi expressed her thoughts, "The atmosphere today feels a bit off?"
Miki showed a worried smile. "Someoka... he's feeling a bit anxious because of the next match."
Otonashi asked, "Who are you playing against?"
"It's Oni Gari Middle School."
Otonashi exclaimed, "Oni Gari Middle School?!?!"
Upon hearing that name, Otonashi quickly flipped open her notebook and began sharing what she had recorded about Oni Gari Middle School.
"That school has quite a few terrifying rumors."
"For instance, players who compete against them end up with high fevers three days later."
"When they're about to lose, strong winds kick up, and the match has to be called off."
"When it's time for a Shot, their legs become immobile and so on."
Hearing this, Bishan couldn't help but shiver and quickly made an excuse to escape. "Captain, I need to go to the restroom..."
After a few seconds of silence, Shaolin Temple was the first to speak up.
He whispered beside her, "It seems we still need Goenji."
Kurimatsu agreed, "Yeah!"
Someoka scolded the first years, "What’s with you all? Always talking about Goenji. Do you think we can't win without him?"
"Even without him, I can score with my own shot. There's a forward right here."
Handa replied, "Always Goenji this and Goenji that. No wonder Someoka is angry."
At that moment, Shiki suddenly understood why Someoka was upset. "So that's it? Do you want me to teach you how to use a special shot, Someoka?"
Otonashi curiously asked Shiki, "Senior Yae, aren't you a defender? You can use a special shot too?"
Shiki answered, "Basically, I can play both forward and defender positions."
With that, she turned and walked towards the soccer ball.
Shiki flicked the ball up with her foot and kicked it into the sky.
In an instant, the sky turned to night, and stars connected to form the shape of a centaur drawing a bow.
As Shiki's heel struck the ball hard, the centaur simultaneously released its bowstring, sending the soccer ball flying like a nebula.
"Centaur's Bow!"
The nebula flew into the goal and spun for several seconds before coming to a stop.
As the ball fell, the gasps of the Raimon team followed.
"That was so cool!" x11
"How about it, Someoka? Am I qualified to teach you now?"
Shiki extended her right hand towards Someoka.
But Someoka swatted Shiki's hand away without thinking. "Hypocrite, I don't need your pity."
Shiki looked at her rejected hand in confusion.
Someoka said, "You're just offering me charity, but I don't need anyone's charity."
At that moment, Shiki realized she had caused a misunderstanding and quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, Someoka. I didn't consider your feelings."
"But I really do want to help you. If you need anything, come find me!"
With that, Shiki left, leaving behind the members of the Raimon Football Team.
Five days later.
- In front of a classroom door for second-year students -
"Please teach me how to perform a special shot."
"I feel like my special shot is almost complete, but for some reason it doesn't feel right anymore; it's like something is holding me back."
Seeing Someoka bowing at a ninety-degree angle, Shiki smiled happily. "I've been waiting for you! Let's go practice by the river."
The two walked in silence along the way; to ease the awkwardness, Shiki couldn't help but speak first.
"Someoka, do you know what's stopping you from completing your ultimate move?"
Someoka asked curiously, "What is it?"
"It's the curse of Oni Gari Middle School..."
"..."
Great, now the atmosphere is even more awkward.
Shiki spoke up again, "Let me ask you a question. If you feel uncomfortable, you can choose not to answer."
"Okay."
"Why do you seem to have some aversion towards me?"
Shiki raised his question, "Right after the match against the Empire, it felt like you didn't like me much. It's one thing to dislike Goenji as a Forward, but what about me? At least back then, you didn't know I could also be a Forward, right?"
In an instant, the atmosphere became even more awkward. "..."
After a few seconds, just when Shiki thought Someoka wouldn't respond, Someoka finally spoke.
"Because I envy you."
Shiki was puzzled. "Envy me?"
Someoka slowly said, "You and Goenji are alike; once you step onto the field, the impression you leave on others is different."
"That feeling is quite extraordinary; should I say it's impressive?"
"When I saw Goenji's Shot, I thought how great it would be if that Shot were mine."
"And yet you can easily coordinate with him..."
"You could say you're on the same level as him."
"I don't want to lose to you guys; I want to be able to execute that kind of Shot too. I want to become as strong as you."
Shiki nodded. "I see... Envy, huh..."
Then Shiki smiled. "What? So that's all it is? You're really simple-minded."
"Simple-minded?!?!"
Not giving Someoka a chance to continue, they arrived at the venue. "Alright, we're here."
Shiki gestured towards the field behind him. "I've already figured out your issue. With a bit of training, you'll become a powerful Forward."
Then he chuckled. "But my training is pretty strict, so don't give up halfway!"
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