Chapter 86 – The Monster Wakes
The match continued.
But something had changed.
Not on the scoreboard.
Not in the formations.
Not in the crowd.
Something inside the match itself had shifted.
Something dangerous.
Yusuke felt it first.
Aka's movements were different now.
Smaller.
More efficient.
There were no unnecessary touches anymore.
No weird pauses.
No random dribbles just to humiliate someone.
The strange unpredictability that had defined him earlier was fading.
And that terrified Yusuke.
Because it meant one thing.
Aka wasn't playing anymore.
He was winning.
The clock ticked forward.
Seventy minutes.
Then seventy-one.
Then seventy-two.
Southside barely touched the ball.
Whenever they won possession, Nocturne took it back almost immediately.
Not because Southside were terrible.
Because Nocturne were suffocating.
Theo pressed.
Marc pressed.
Lucien pressed.
Even Réservoir moved more now.
Not much.
Just enough.
Like a snake tightening around its prey.
Yuma received a pass near midfield and tried driving forward.
Immediately two black jerseys appeared.
One blocked his path.
The other blocked the passing lane.
"COME ON!"
Yuma shouted.
The ball was stolen.
Again.
The crowd roared.
Yuma stood there for a second.
Breathing heavily.
"...We're getting destroyed."
Nobody disagreed.
Not anymore.
Takumi's legs were burning.
Ren looked exhausted.
Daichi had been defending almost nonstop for twenty minutes.
Even Hiroto's movements had slowed noticeably.
The match wasn't just beating them.
It was draining them.
Then Nocturne attacked again.
Réservoir received possession near the center circle.
For a moment—
everything slowed.
He looked around calmly.
Almost casually.
Like he was deciding where to place pieces on a board.
Then he spotted something.
A tiny gap.
And smiled.
"Found you."
The pass came instantly.
Perfect.
Straight through the middle.
Aka arrived.
The stadium exploded.
Yusuke moved.
Again.
His body screamed.
His lungs burned.
His legs felt like concrete.
But he moved anyway.
Aka glanced toward him.
No smile.
Nothing.
Just focus.
The ball stayed glued to his foot.
One touch.
Two touches.
Yusuke followed.
Three touches.
Four.
Still following.
The crowd began noticing.
Even Nocturne's players noticed.
Yusuke refused to stop.
Every time Aka changed direction—
Yusuke changed too.
Every time Aka accelerated—
Yusuke accelerated.
Not perfectly.
But enough.
For the first time all match—
Aka couldn't completely shake him.
The duel stretched across the entire field.
And eventually—
Aka stopped.
The ball resting under his foot.
Both players breathing heavily.
The crowd completely silent.
Then Aka finally spoke.
"...Why are you still running?"
Yusuke looked exhausted.
Broken.
Sweating.
Barely standing.
Yet somehow—
he smiled.
"...Because I hate losing."
The answer came immediately.
Aka stared at him.
Then something strange happened.
He smiled too.
Not mockingly.
Not cruelly.
Genuinely.
"...Good answer."
Then he exploded forward.
FASTER.
Much faster.
The crowd erupted.
Yusuke reacted.
Too slow.
For the first time since halftime—
Aka finally broke free.
Gone.
Past Yusuke.
Past Ren.
Past Daichi.
Everything happened instantly.
The penalty area opened.
Tsubasa rushed forward.
Again.
Always again.
The goalkeeper had become the last wall.
The final obstacle.
The final hope.
Aka entered the box.
The crowd stood.
This was it.
The fourth goal.
The kill shot.
Aka drew his leg back.
Tsubasa launched himself.
And then—
BOOM.
The shot flew.
Top corner.
Perfect.
Unstoppable.
Except—
Tsubasa touched it.
The stadium gasped.
His fingertips barely reached.
The ball changed direction.
POST.
CLANG.
The sound echoed throughout the stadium.
The rebound flew upward.
Chaos erupted.
Bodies crashed together.
Players sprinted.
The ball dropped.
Marc attacked it.
Daichi challenged.
Collision.
The ball bounced loose again.
Theo arrived.
SHOT.
BLOCK.
Ren threw himself in front of it.
The crowd screamed.
Another rebound.
Another chance.
Another shot.
Another block.
Southside defended like their lives depended on it.
Because maybe they did.
Eventually—
the ball rolled free.
Hiroto reached it first.
Without thinking—
he launched it.
As far as possible.
The clearance flew over midfield.
Over defenders.
Over everyone.
Straight toward Yusuke.
The striker looked up.
And suddenly—
for the first time all half—
there was space.
Open field.
No defenders nearby.
No pressure.
Just opportunity.
The crowd began rising.
Yusuke accelerated.
The ball bounced once.
Twice.
And he chased after it with everything he had left.
Meanwhile—
far behind him—
Aka turned.
And started running too.
To Be Continued.