Aoi placed his pants on the bench, undressed the blazer, and placed it beside the pants and socks.
Aoi looked to his right, meeting Izumi's stare, and smiled.
His vision past them, seeing the vest hung on the bench.
There were three players too, wearing their white t-shirts, silently waiting for Nakahara to call them to play.
They seemed to feel his gaze, turning their head and meeting Aoi's indifferent gaze as the latter ignored them.
He approached the bench, grabbed the blue vest, and wore it under the bewildered gaze of the bench players.
He returned to Nakahara's bench, sitting in his previous position once again.
At the same time, Nakahara blew a whistle.
The match paused – all the players focused on Nakahara.
Nakahara stood up, shouting at the four players on the field - two on each team - and they hung their heads low as they left the field and distressingly sat on the empty bench.
The bench players got ready as Aoi entered the football field.
At the time, he was assigned as the right winger, while Oka was the left winger.
Since Oka was the captain, he played the basic formation – 4-4-2.
Two strikers, four midfielders, and four defenders.
Aoi went to greet his friend.
The only person in high school who could make him smile had always been Oka.
Oka now had a ball, curly hair with lime-green eyes and a bit slimmer compared to the future.
He appeared more enthusiastic even.
Aoi saw him jumping in delight as the latter ran towards him and leaped to hug him on all fours.
Aoi only smiled, patting his back, as he heard Oka asking, "Why are you here, Aoi?
Are you finally interested in football?"
Aoi finally managed to pull Oka away from him as he replied while meeting his gaze, "Kind of."
Aoi was a bit taller than Oka, even when the latter had a huge ball of curly hair.
Oka's eyes widened in glee, nodding his head, restraining the euphoria overflowing inside him, causing him to tremble in joy.
"That's good. That's good. And Nakahara Sensei lets you play as a winger, too. We will be the strikers. I can't wait to see you score a goal!"
"Hah! As if he can."
A voice suddenly interjected, causing Aoi to turn towards him.
As expected, he was not surprised to know it belonged to Kaga, who detested him to the core.
He did not bother giving him a reply, just a casual glance.
It was beneath him to spare a care for someone who was not even on his level.
[Ding! You have shown Egoistic Behavior! You have obtained 1 Ego Point!]
Oka, on the other hand, was furious.
His nostrils exhaled in fury as he barked.
"Kaga! You shut up! You only scored by luck!"
"Luck?!" Kaga snorted in displeasure.
He was in disbelief that someone was doubting his skills.
It was Oka, nonetheless.
"Well, we will see if even Aoi is favored by luck!"
Aoi did not even bother giving him attention, and Kaga snorted, feeling displeased for being disregarded.
Oka rolled his eyes, watching the back of Kaga as he turned towards Aoi and comforted him.
"Don't worry, Aoi. Don't mind that guy. He's just jealous now that you have Izumi."
Oka grinned, and then his eyes went past the football field and saw Izumi with her friends, chatting while Izumi had her eyes set on Aoi.
Aoi glanced at her, smiled once again, then remembered his creepy smile at the bathroom, and he froze.
"Izumi even went to see you here. Don't embarrass yourself. Kaga might steal the spotlight."
Oka mischievously smiled.
Aoi stared at him, his eyes solemn and bleak, and Oka felt a chill coursing through his body.
Aoi asked, "Oka, how many goal attempts have you made? What is the score of the two teams?"
Oka was puzzled, feeling that the chill suddenly vanished.
However, the biting, serious gaze of Aoi made him snap awake.
He replied, "To be honest, I have tried to score ten times. I only succeeded once."
His eyes swept, then landed on a bald player with a red vest, chatting with his teammates with a calm temperament.
Aoi followed his gaze, and he frowned.
He had also been observing that player earlier, too, successfully tackling Oka's attempt to pass him.
"That guy… He might be as calm as the surface of the still ocean, but there's a massive leviathan hiding underneath. It's like I'm watching the tip of an iceberg, as though I'm a fish trying to pass it."
"You're exaggerating." Aoi shook his head.
Oka was taken aback, staring at Aoi.
Surely, Aoi would not make a statement unless he had the confidence to validate it.
He had known Aoi since they were a child, and he did not doubt his judgment.
If he said he was exaggerating, even though he might have been, but that was actually a fact, then Aoi must have his own reason.
Aoi continued, "The reason you could not pass him was that… your winger was lacking. He could not even create a space where you have no choice but to rely on him.
To pass him, you must have distractions first. Lose the ball and obtain it.
To be a striker, one must be selfish… confident, even.
You can hog the ball, but you can also use your teammates."
Aoi suddenly turned his head and smiled at Oka.
"Did you not desire to have a winger like that?"
Oka was stunned, not sure what Aoi entirely meant.
However, something deep inside him was telling him to nod in agreement.
Seeing him nodding, Aoi smiled… creepily.
He said, "Sorry in advance if I have to use you, Oka. But for the sake of me scoring the goal, having the spotlight, I don't have the choice but to do so."
[Ding! You have shown your egoistic behavior! You have obtained a staggering five Ego Points!]
'It's overacting again. What's staggering? The higher the grade, the higher the cost.'
Aoi silently rolled his eyes, then forgot about the system.
Aoi studied Oka's reaction, seemingly in a daze, trying to comprehend what he wanted to convey.
To be honest, Aoi was not sure if Oka really wanted an egoistic teammate – a winger he could play side by side to score a goal.
However, he could still remember Oka mentioning that he did not mind if his teammates could score the goal and hog the spotlight as long as that winger could surpass him in any way.
… And to also bring out his fullest potential.
He had been telling Aoi that he wanted to become a shadow… if so, then be it.
Aoi smiled at Oka and then dropped the last bomb.
"I will be your light. Just continue to support me in the dark."
At that moment, Oka's eyes flickered in a luminous lime-green light.