The final whistle blew, and the stadium was filled with the deafening noise of cheering fans. The scoreboard now read 3–1. Koganei High had lost, but no one seemed to care anymore. All eyes were on Yuto Nakamura, the boy who had pulled off an unbelievable goal in the final minutes of the game.
Yuto stood there, still in shock, as his teammates rushed over to him, congratulating him as if they had won. He should have felt elated, but instead, he was still trying to figure out what had just happened. That strange message, the boost in his abilities—none of it made any sense.
Ryota, the team captain, clapped him on the back, but there was a slight edge to his voice. "Not bad, Nakamura. If you played like that from the start, we might've had a chance."
Yuto didn't know how to respond. He hadn't "played like that." It wasn't him. It was…something else.
"Yeah, man, that was unreal!" Sora added, still buzzing with excitement. "Where did that come from? You were like a completely different player out there."
Yuto opened his mouth to answer, but no words came out. How could he explain it when he didn't even understand it himself? His body felt strange, like the energy from the game was still humming through him. But his mind...his mind was clouded with confusion and exhaustion.
The coach, a tall, stern man with graying hair, walked over, his expression unreadable. He wasn't one for big celebrations, especially after a loss.
"You've got potential, Nakamura," he said, his voice low but firm. "But don't let that goal get to your head. Football is about more than one moment."
Yuto nodded, though his thoughts were elsewhere. The coach's words barely registered. All he could think about was the strange system that had appeared during the game.
Later, in the locker room, while his teammates were getting changed and discussing the game, Yuto sat silently on the bench, staring at the ground. His mind kept replaying the scene over and over again—the glowing text, the boost, the goal.
The others had long stopped asking him about it, too caught up in their own disappointment at the loss. Ryota sat at the far end of the room, talking with a few others, while Sora was still animated, chatting about how they could bounce back in the next tournament.
But Yuto's attention was on something else entirely.
A soft beep echoed in his ears again. His heart skipped a beat as the familiar text reappeared in his vision, floating in the air in front of him.
[ Congratulations! You have completed your first quest. ]
[ Quest Reward: Speed Boost (Level 1) has been permanently unlocked. ]
[ New Quest Available. ]
Yuto blinked, his breath catching in his throat. It was happening again.
[ Quest: Improve Your Stamina. ]
[ Objective: Run 5 kilometers within the next 48 hours. ]
[ Reward: Stamina Boost (Level 1). ]
His stomach churned. This wasn't a one-time thing. The system was still here, and it wanted more.
"What...what is this?" he whispered to himself, staring at the glowing words in disbelief. His hands trembled as he reached out, but his fingers passed through the text as if it were nothing more than a hologram.
He quickly glanced around the locker room. No one else seemed to notice. The other players were still talking, laughing, and packing up. This system...whatever it was, it seemed like only he could see it.
Am I going crazy?
He pressed his palms into his face, trying to shake the feeling, but it wouldn't go away. His heart pounded in his chest, louder than the noise in the room.
"Yuto, you good?"
He snapped his head up, realizing Sora had been standing in front of him, waving a hand to get his attention.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Yuto mumbled, quickly standing up and forcing a smile.
"You sure, man? You've been kinda out of it ever since that goal," Sora said, his brow furrowed with concern. "If you're not feeling well, you should get checked out."
"I'm fine, really," Yuto insisted, grabbing his bag and heading for the exit. "I just need some air."
The cool evening breeze hit Yuto as soon as he stepped outside the gym, but it didn't do much to calm the storm of thoughts swirling in his head. He couldn't shake the feeling of unease. Everything that had happened—what was that system? Was it real?
The streets were empty as he began walking home, his mind replaying the events over and over. He was no superstar. He had always been just a mediocre player, always trailing behind Ryota and the others. And then...this system had appeared out of nowhere and turned him into someone else on the field.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, snapping him out of his thoughts. He fumbled for it and saw a message from Sora.
{ Sora: Hey man, you sure you're okay? Want to grab something to eat? }
Yuto hesitated, his fingers hovering over the screen. He couldn't shake the feeling that something had fundamentally changed, and he wasn't ready to talk about it with anyone—not yet.
He typed back a quick response.
{ Yuto: Thanks, but I'm just gonna head home. See you tomorrow. }
Slipping his phone back into his pocket, Yuto continued walking in silence. The city streets were eerily quiet, and his footsteps echoed in the night.
The glowing text reappeared once more, as persistent as ever.
[ Quest: Improve Your Stamina. ]
[ Objective: Run 5 kilometers within the next 48 hours. ]
He stopped walking and stared at the text, unsure of what to do. He had no idea how or why this was happening, but one thing was clear: the system wasn't going away.
A part of him wanted to ignore it, to pretend it wasn't real. But another part—the part that had always dreamed of being a better player—was curious. This system, whatever it was, had given him a chance. The goal in the match had felt incredible, like nothing he'd ever experienced before.
Was this his way forward?
With a deep breath, Yuto made a decision.
"I'll do it," he whispered to himself, and as soon as he spoke the words, the text flickered slightly, as if acknowledging his choice.
He wasn't sure where this would lead, or what the system truly wanted, but he was determined to find out.
After all, this might be the only way for someone like him to reach his dream.