I stood in line at the cafeteria, tray in hand, staring blankly at the slow-moving queue in front of me. The smell of overcooked pasta, fried chicken, and something that vaguely resembled soup floated through the air.
Students chatted loudly around me, trays clattering, chairs scraping across the tiled floor.
And yet… somehow it all felt distant.
I found myself thinking about that day again—the moment Tsebo had walked up to me after the match and asked to join my team.
It had sounded so confident at the time. So decisive.
But now?
Now it felt strange.
Had he just been joking? Testing me? Maybe he had said it in the heat of the moment, then gone home and realized it wasn't worth it. After all, he used to be a Shadow King. A legend on the field.
And me?
Just a random first-year with decent dribbling and no team.
Maybe he had reconsidered.
Maybe joining me had been a mistake.
I shifted my tray slightly as the line moved forward another step.
A spoon clinked against my plate. The noise snapped me out of my thoughts.
Either way… nothing really felt different.
Classes were still classes.
The hallways still buzzed with gossip about the Shadow Kings.
The soccer field still belonged to them.
And I was still… alone.
When I finally grabbed my food, I scanned the cafeteria.
Tables packed with groups. Laughter. Loud debates about last weekend's matches.
But none of those seats were mine.
I slid into a corner at an empty table, alone. No friends. No noise. Just me and my tray.
For a while I simply ate quietly, pushing rice around my plate while my mind drifted.
Maybe I had imagined it.
Maybe Tsebo never really intended to—
Then suddenly a chair screeched across the floor.
I looked up.
Tsebo appeared beside the table so abruptly that I nearly dropped my fork.
He wasn't calm like usual.
He looked… animated.
His eyes were wide, his glasses slightly crooked, and his hair looked like he had run his hands through it a hundred times already.
He dropped into the seat across from me.
Then he spoke with absolute urgency.
"Our teammates are trash," he blurted out. "We have to rely on duo plays if we want any chance against six giants, let alone the Shadow Kings. I've been working on a new tactics chart—memorize these!"
For a moment I just blinked at him.
A tactics chart?
From Tsebo
He whipped out a folded piece of paper from his pocket and slapped it onto the table dramatically.
I stared at it.
A chart?
Tsebo, the quiet, nerdy guy, had a tactics chart?
My brain was still processing the idea when he unfolded the page.
Tactics Chart Glossary
9 Back Jane Corner Kick (9 BJK)
Offside Trap (OT)
Flying Dutchman Corner Kick (FDK)
Wall Pass (WP)
Pendula Pass (PP)
6.Counter Pressing (CP)
7.Block (B)
I leaned closer.
The names alone sounded complicated enough to give me a headache.
"You must memorize all these tactics and their shortcuts," he said, eyes gleaming behind his glasses.
The way he said it made it sound like he was revealing the secrets of the universe.
I swallowed.
"Uh… okay…" Not that hard, right? I thought to myself.
Then he flipped the paper open fully.
And I nearly fell off my chair.
The page was completely covered.
Lines. Arrows. Circles. Player positions. Numbers. Angles. Movements.
And that was just the front.
He flipped it over.
The back was even worse.
It looked like someone had tried to map out a military operation.
"You start now," Tsebo commanded.
My brain froze.
Start now?
Right here?
In the cafeteria?
I stared at the maze of arrows again.
I made a mental note:
So this is what being teammates with a Shadow King is like…
I stood up slowly, my chair scraping the floor.
"I… uh… need to wash my hands.
Tsebo nodded seriously, like a general approving a soldier's brief break before battle.
I walked toward the sink area, trying to prepare myself mentally for what was about to happen.
An afternoon of tactical memorization.
Fantastic.
I turned the faucet on and splashed some water onto my hands.
Then…
something jumped at me.
"Bapala Modiri!"
I yelped and stumbled backward so hard I almost slipped on the tile.
Standing right in front of me was a boy I had never seen before.
He was grinning widely.
Too widely.
Like a goblin who had just discovered treasure.
His laptop hovered in front of him like some kind of holy artifact.
He had unusual smooth green hair and beautiful emerald green eyes with a ever cheeky grin that ruined what could have been an elegant appearance.
He pointed dramatically at the screen.
"Stats," he announced.
Overall Grade: C-
Shooting: C
Pace: C
Passing: C
Dribbling: B
Defending: E
Physical: D
I stared at the screen.
Then at him.
Then back at the screen.
My defending was an E?
Ouch.
"Nice to meet you! Name's Mercy. Football Commentator, Analyst Enthusiast."
I blinked again
Nice to meet you, Mercy. Names—
"Oh, no, you don't have to tell me your life story," Mercy interrupted, wagging a finger.
"Every first year should know the name Bapala Modiri. I mean… you completely annihilated Ofenste! Never seen anyone disrespect a Shadow King like that!"
I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly.
"Ah… yeah… about that…"
He leaned closer, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
Then the questions started.
Rapid-fire.
Where do you come from? How old are you? Are you part of a kids' team?
We started walking back toward my table while he continued interrogating me like an overexcited reporter.
I barely had time to answer one question before the next one arrived.
Then Mercy suddenly froze.
His entire body stiffened
He grabbed my shoulder and pulled me behind the corner of a wall.
I peeked around it.
Tsebo was sitting at the table, calmly studying the tactics chart like a professor waiting for his student.
Mercy whispered urgently.
"He's a Shadow King… dangerous,"
I raised an eyebrow.
Scared of him?
Tsebo looked up.
Our eyes met across the cafeteria.
Then he spoke calmly.
"Come. Memorize. Now."
I sighed.
There was no escaping this.
I grabbed Mercy's sleeve and tried to pull him toward the table.
He resisted like a cat being dragged to a bath.
But halfway there—
he tripped.
Completely.
Spectacularly.
He crashed directly onto the floor right in front of Tsebo's chair.
"Oh forgive me! Oh shadowsome one, I never meant to disturb your awesomeness!"
Before I could stop him, Mercy grabbed Tsebo's shoe and began polishing it with the sleeve of his uniform like a frantic monk.
Tsebo blinked slowly.
"It's… it's not a big deal. You don't have to kneel and…"
His voice suddenly softened.
"…besides, I'm no longer a Shadow King."
Mercy froze.
Then he gasped dramatically.
The next moment he wrapped his arms around Tsebo in a tight hug.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Tsebo flailed like a trapped fish.
His glasses tilted sideways as he tried to push Mercy away.
Mercy leaned closer, whispering conspiratorially.
"But promise… don't tell King Treasure, okay?
Tsebo finally kicked him gently away.
"Too close."
Mercy rolled across the floor and popped back up like nothing had happened.
Suddenly, a voice shouted from across the cafeteria.
"Bapala!"
I turned around.
A guy I had never seen before was waving at me.
Uh… who are you?
"NPC Design Template 1," he replied with a dramatic bow. "No need to remember my name. Only here for one scene."
Then he gave a thumbs-up to absolutely nobody.
Tsebo squinted.
"Who is he looking at?"
Before I could answer—
Mercy suddenly hugged both of us from the side
"From now on… we're the Platinum Crew!"
Tsebo reacted instantly.
He shoved Mercy off with enough force to send him flying hitting the wall.
Mercy slid down dramatically like a defeated cartoon villain.
For a moment everything went quiet.
Students nearby stared.
Some were laughing.
Some looked confused.
Just then I felt a weird feeling I just couldnt help it—I laughed.
The laugh burst out of me before I could stop it.
It started small.
Then grew louder.
Soon Mercy was laughing too.
Even Tsebo looked like he was trying not to smile.
And just like that, lunch was chaos. But somehow… it was fun.
Verse of the Chapter
Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. -- Ecclesiastes 4:9-10