Chapter 157: The Villain
"Just as predicted, Kira's Ubers have drawn first blood. This match looks like it might be over before it truly begins."
"There's zero room for error here, but the players from FC Barcha aren't backing down. They've got that look in their eyes—the refusal to die. Let's see if they can flip the script."
Tereasa's voice boomed through the livestream as viewers across the globe glued their eyes to the screen.
The game restarted.
FC Barcha kicked off and immediately made a move that defied all tactical logic. They left only three defenders in the back, while every other player surged forward like a tidal wave into the Ubers' half.
"Wait, what is this? Barcha is going all-out attack against the most disciplined defense in the league? Ubers is a counter-attacking meat grinder. One mistake and Barcha is just handing themselves a death sentence. This is absolute madness!"
Tereasa was practically falling out of his chair. On the pitch, Kira watched the sea of crimson jerseys flooding his half and instinctively dropped back to help the defense. It was the only logical play. If they were going to be outnumbered, staying up front as a passenger wouldn't win him the game.
Ignacio took the ball and immediately showed off the kind of world-class dribbling talent that defined Barcha. Sendo, playing in the midfield for the first time, felt his head spinning. He was struggling to adjust to his new reality. Usually, all he saw were the backs of defenders and the white mesh of the net. Now, his teammates were behind him, and the entire pitch was a chaotic puzzle.
Snuffy's voice echoed in his mind from their earlier sessions. 'Some midfielders exist to stop the bleeding, while others exist to carve open the path for the king. Which one are you going to be, Shuto Sendo?'
'Which one? I'm going to be the best. I'm going to reach that level of absolute dominance—the kind of master-class play Itoshi Sae puts on.'
Driven by that ambition, Sendo lunged forward, hell-bent on stripping the ball from Ignacio. 'If I can't stop Bachira, there's no way I'm letting a nobody like you past me!'
"Sendo, you idiot! Don't break the line!"
Kira shouted, but it was too late. Sendo's aggressive lunge left a gaping hole in the midfield. Ignacio didn't even flinch; he performed a sharp, effortless double-touch and left Sendo eating dust.
On the sidelines, Snuffy's brow furrowed. That one impulsive move had thrown the entire Ubers central line into disarray. Sendo realized his mistake instantly, but the damage was done. Another Ubers midfielder was forced to shift over to cover Ignacio, which opened up exactly what Barcha wanted: a clear lane to their ace.
Ignacio flicked a casual, stylish pass toward Bachira. "Take it away, ginger!"
"Not on my watch."
Niko stepped up, cutting off Bachira's immediate path to the goal. He didn't rush in like Sendo; he stayed composed, keeping his eyes locked on Bachira's shoulders, refusing to fall for any feints.
Bachira narrowed his eyes, his feet starting to dance over the ball. But Niko remained a stone wall.
'Tch. I can't bait him. He's already mapped out my patterns,' Bachira thought. He could feel the pressure rising. Ubers had clearly drilled for this specific scenario, and if he didn't make a move now, he'd be swallowed by the press. He could see Lorenzo approaching out of the corner of his eye—the gold-toothed "Ace Eater" was closing in like a hyena.
A few days ago, Bachira had stood before Lavinho, seeking a way to evolve. "Lavinho, you talk about your imagination as a butterfly. I used to have a Monster in my head... but I moved past it. I found my own strength. But if I want to reach the next level, what do I imagine now?"
Lavinho had looked at the boy with a rare moment of genuine interest. "You've got a solid foundation, kid. That's your original edge. But is that Monster really gone?"
"No... whenever I really want to win, it's there."
"Then it's simple." Lavinho slammed a fist into his palm. "Let that Monster evolve. Take it to the next stage. It shouldn't be a crutch—it should be your roadmap to becoming the best in the world!"
"The next stage..." Bachira repeated the words to himself.
"Daydreaming in the middle of a war is a good way to get killed, kid."
Lorenzo arrived, moving with that uncanny, swaying zombie gait. To him, Bachira looked like easy prey—a boy who had frozen under the pressure. He lunged for the steal, intending to put an end to the play right there.
The moment Lorenzo's foot moved, Bachira ignited. His speed hit a gear he hadn't shown yet.
"Nice press," Bachira chirped, a wild glit in his eyes. "But you aren't stopping me."
"What?"
Lorenzo's eyes widened. The ball he was supposed to swipe vanished. Bachira dragged it back with his studs, flicked it into the air with a lightning-fast motion, and then kicked it forward.
A one-footed rainbow flick!
The ball soared over the heads of both Niko and Lorenzo in a perfect, gravity-defying arc.
"He actually cleared Lorenzo?" Snuffy's expression shifted from indifference to genuine shock.
"Heh. Dance for me, ginger," Lavinho smirked from the sidelines. His face said it all: That's what you call a free soul. That's football.
The livestream chat was exploding.
"That was insane!"
"Did he really just rainbow flick a world-class defender?"
"I'm still doing homework and this kid is out here playing FIFA in real life."
"Otoya!"
Bachira screamed as the ball dropped toward the grass. Otoya Eita appeared out of the shadows, having ghosted past the defense while everyone was mesmerized by Bachira's move. He was the invisible assassin, and he'd been perfectly synced with Bachira's breakthrough the entire time.
"Don't let him shoot!" Niko roared.
Aryu lunged to block the lane, but Otoya didn't pull the trigger. Instead, he executed a clinical, no-look cut-back pass.
A perfect triangle. Bachira had already arrived at the edge of the box, meeting the pass with a first-time strike.
BOOM.
The perfect play met an immovable object. Kira had arrived, standing like a mountain in the path of the shot. He blocked the strike with his body, clearing the ball with a violent kick.
"No way..."
Bachira's momentum died instantly. The fire in his eyes flickered as he looked at Kira. Even after that perfect evolution, it wasn't enough?
Lorenzo recovered the loose ball, a jagged, villainous grin spreading across his face. He looked like the antagonist in a high-stakes thriller, his gold teeth glinting under the stadium lights.
"Time for the counter-attack, Ubers!" he shouted. "Let's show them how a real villain plays."
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