Ethereal ✦ Blue Lock

22||Kill the goal

Chapter 22: Victory Is overrated anyway, right?

Song: Industry baby

And this one is for the champions

I ain't lost since I began, yuh

Funny how you said it was the end, yuh

Then I went did it again, yuh

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Louis's POV:

I wiped my face with the back of my hand, still catching my breath from that last mess. Our shot at glory had slipped right through our fingers, and now we were just trying to pull ourselves together.

"Alright, let's just pretend we're winning, and maybe the other team will get confused?" I said, with a lazy grin that could probably convince the world I had a brilliant plan brewing.

Isagi shot me an unimpressed look, shaking his head. "That's not how this works."

I shrugged, nonchalant as ever. "Sure it is. Confusion is a powerful weapon. Didn't you ever watch spy movies?"

Isagi raised an eyebrow, his tone deadpan. "I thought you were the one who said you were bad at planning."

I gave him a wide grin, tapping the side of my head. "Exactly, which is why I'm so good at improvising."

Nagi, who had been quietly observing, sighed but didn't say anything. He was probably wondering how on earth he ended up on a team where 'winging it' was considered a strategy.

"I bet he's regretting teaming up with me right now..." I muttered to myself and added "Okay guys, If we lose, I'll totally take the blame—just don't ask me for a new strategy." I said half jokingly

Even though I tried to lighten the mood, I could feel the game shifting. Isagi and Rin were locked in a battle for control of the field, but all I wanted was to break it wide open.

Kill the goal. No mercy. No hesitation. Tear it down.

Time seemed to slow. My eyes locked on the field, cold and focused, as the world around me blurred. The only thing that mattered now was to score and end it.

Sweat dripping as we tried to catch up. But then, something clicked. It wasn't like a sudden explosion of energy like in the supernatural movies—just a realization that I could handle this. 

As the ball rolled toward me once more. "No more mistakes," I muttered under my breath, my mind clear, my body reacting before I even thought. The same hesitation that used to slow me down was gone.

Rin's mocking voice echoed in my head, a sharp reminder of his earlier dismissal. But now, it wasn't that I wanted to prove him wrong—I wanted to prove it to myself.

Ahead, I saw Isagi positioning himself for a pass. Nagi was to my left, waiting for his moment. I had options, but this time, I wasn't going to rely on them.

I want to give it my all, just like in the game against Team V. I want that same feeling to surge through me—the thrill and excitement...

Feinting left, then right, the ball danced with me, perfectly synced to my movements. Aryu stepped up again, his lanky form too slow to catch me this time. The field was shrinking, the pressure mounting, but I wasn't backing down. With a burst of speed, I sliced through the defense, leaving Aryu stumbling behind me.