The first round had concluded in less than ten minutes. In five minutes, to be exact. Everyone knew. They could predict who the new highest-ranking person would be. Nevan. The one who had kept the ball in his possession for the longest.
Even Nevan himself thought that as he had done a good performance. But he didn't want to underestimate Mr. Tachibana. He had a gut feeling about that man. He was not going to let Nevan think, that he could easily ascend, right? He would certainly make the path a lot harder. He had said it himself. Luck wasn't going to help him.
Now he was laying on his bed which felt like clouds. He had practically sunken into them and was scrolling through his system.
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[Name] Nevan Ayers
[Level] 21
[Exp] 217/400
[Status] Beginner
[Career] Soccer
[Badges] Teamplayer
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He hadn't finished his mission yet. He hadn't been able to meet each of the teamplayers and get their overview. This was why his badge was still the same. He had one and a half hours left so, he would manage to complete it, somehow.
Nevan stood up from the bed and decided to go out to find a way to interact with the rest of the teamplayers. How many did he already have in the system now? Four? A quick glance confirmed it. Shoei, Kazuo, Keijiro, Akimitsu.
He was on his way out when he almost bumped into Kento. He seemed in such a good mood. "Going to eat something?"
Nevan was about to deny as this wasn't what he had wanted. An idea came to his mind. "Most of our team are there?" He asked as if to confirm his thoughts.
The blonde man nodded. "Yeah. I was about to go there too. Just gotta get fresh after training." He pointed at himself. Now, he also noticed the thin film of sweat on his skin under the light.
"Oh, sure. I will go on my own?" Nevan tilted his head slightly. He wasn't going to wait here or anything.
"Sure. See ya!" Kento went past Nevan into the room. He seemed content, probably from training. This was just like Keisuke, to an extent. He was always in a good mood too after a training session.
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[Teamplayer]
Kento Kuriwara
16 years old.
[Abilities]
Passing accuracy - 87%
1v1 play - 67%
Foresight - 79%
assertiveness - 81%
[Rank in Golden Hive]
386
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Still five to go. At least, he was making progress. This would be done in no time, in his mind. His mind was fixated on it for now. He knew, this would help him later. He had followed the hallway from earlier. Nothing had changed, considering it had only been half an hour since he had walked through this corridor.
The cafeteria was filled with people. He knew, they weren't only from his team but also other teams. Everyone was engrossed in their own conversations while getting something to eat.
"Here!" He heard a voice and strangely, he felt like it was directed towards him which it was. Nevan saw a table where four people were sitting and having lunch.
He remembered them. Although, he had only gotten a glimpse of them earlier, he recognized them. His task had gotten even easier, huh? Three new faces as the fouth one was Akimitsu. His body was also the reason that had made him instantly notice them.
"Hey." Nevan greeted them and looked at each of their faces. He looked at their tablets. He was lost for a while as he had actually wanted to get food.
One of them laughed and stood up. "Come on. You look like a lost lamb. Let me help you."
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[Teamplayer]
Ichiro Hayashi
17 years old.
[Abilities]
Passing accuracy - 63%
1v1 play - 65%
Foresight - 89%
Assertiveness - 56%
[Rank in Golden Hive]
388
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Nevan simply followed Ichiro. Everytime this display appeared, he couldn't help but be amazed by how helpful it actually was.
"So, you get your food here." He gestured to something that looked like a vending machine. He pointed at a scanner. "Hold yoir arm here and it will give you your food."
Nevan did exactly that. It recognized him and the short but broad opening shifted open. He retrieved the tablet with a swift motion, holding it steady in his hands. The soup seemed to be steaming hot as he watched it.
As if sensing Nevan's disappointment, Ichiro decided to explain while walking back to their table. "You know, this is like a reward system. The higher your rank, the better the food."
Nevan's grey eyes looked at the ramen noodles in Akimitsu's plate and then back at his lousy simple rice and miso soup. "Ugh. Seriously?" He complained.
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[Teamplayer]
Koushi Yoshida
16 years old.
[Abilities]
Passing accuracy - 41%
1v1 play - 81%
Foresight - 56%
Assertiveness - 84%
[Rank in Golden Hive]
395
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He chuckled. "I got the same." He pointed at his tablet for Nevan to see. "Gotta live with it for now."
Nevan disagreed with Koushi in his mind. He wasn't going to live with it. He wanted to get better as soon as possible to at least be able to eat ramen or udon, even. Anything but miso soup. He had never liked it. Even fried rice was better in this matter than this soup.
He put a spoonful in his mouth. It tasted like - nothing. He would try to spare his taste buds as less as possible, he thought. He remembered how his mother used to force him into drinking this soup whenever he had gotten sick in the past.
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[Teamplayer]
Noé Kimura
17 years old.
[Abilities]
Passing accuracy - 100%
1v1 play - 98%
Foresight - 71%
Assertiveness - 98%
[Rank in Golden Hive]
390
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"Are you half-Japanese?" He was asked by Noé. They had the same surname? What a coincidence. There was a hint of curiosity in his eyes as well his tone.
Nevan took another spoonful and made a grimace which made others laugh even more. "Yeah. My father is French. You?" He asked. He noticed it immediately. Noé wasn't a Japanese name nor was the tanned skin typical Japanese. He had many exotic features such as the double-lid eyelashes.
He grinned. "You noticed? Of course, I don't look typically Japanese." He admitted and leaned back, taking a bite of his boiled chicken. "My dad is Brazilian."
"So, soccer runs in your blood?" He made a joke.
"Brazil is associated with soccer, right?" Akimitsu spoke up now, looking between Nevan and Noé.
He laughed slightly and nodded. "Truly, though I don't really know, why. My father is a professional, actually."
He wasn't bragging. He was just stating a fact. It was clearly written on his face that he he was proud of his father but not spoiled enough to use this to his advantage.
"Yeah? Who? I am sure, I have heard of him. We know each other since a week, why didn't you say anything!" Koushi leaned forward. His eyes shone like stars on an especially dark night. He seemed to want to know the name of Noé's father.
"Uhm-" He did seem to get unsure under his gaze so he looked away, towards Nevan as if seeking for help. "Miguel Souza." His voice seemed thin, weak. Of course, if someone was looking at him this intently, anyone would get insecure.
Ichiro backed off and blinked twice. He looked surprised. No, he wasn't the only one. Even Akimitsu and Nevan had their eyes widened and mouths agape.
"Yeah? Miguel Souza?!" The loud voice echoed through the cafeteria, making the murmured words stop for just a moment. They got dirty glances, disapproving ones for ruining their conversations. It faded as quickly as it had occured.
"The Miguel Souza is your father?" He asked with a hushed voice now, looking at Noé as if he was a deity.
He nodded and smiled ever so slightly. His confidence demeanor had been replaced by an unsure one. As if he didn't trust Ichiro.
"Wow, I didn't even know, he had a son." Nevan spoke. He had really just never been interested in soccer. In most of the times, he had only gotten news about the sport industry from his father. He was a sport enthusiastic and loved soccer. Whenever there was FIFA World Cup, he would visit the host country and the stadiums where the games took place to watch it live.
Lucien Ayers was an important figure in this industry too as he invested a lot into the federation as well as Athlete Zone. That was why, Nevan hadn't been surprised when he had seen his father that day. Who knew, maybe the biggest investor of Golden Hive was Lucien Ayers.
When Eiran Sinclair had retired, the one who was considered an active legen was Miguel Souza. He was one of the best defenders and considered to be an iron wall in front of a goal.
Seeing Noé's stats now, he seemed more of a midfielder to Nevan. What surprised him even more was the fact that he didn't have the highest rank considering he had the best stats.
"Seems like, miso soup wasn't that bad, after all?" Akimitsu commented. His eyes fixated the empty bowl.
His eyes drifted down to the bowl and smiled ever so slightly. "I had to fill my empty stomach somehow."
He gently took the smaller bowl of rice in his hand after adjusting the chopstick in his right one. Then, he looked at Noé once more. "So, you want to become a big figure in soccer too?"
A nod was his answer. For some reason, Nevan felt like they were more similar than it could be seen on the surface. "Dad was disappointed that I didn't want to take over the business, grandpa owned." He started and sighed. "And kicked me out. Now I want to prove my dad that I can do whatever I want, even become a pro like him."
This story had a lot of parallels.
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[Career]
Task - 19
Get to know your teammates.
[Status] Active.
[Progress] 8/10
[Reward] Badge 'Teamplayer - advanced'.
[Deadline] 1 hour
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