The Rise of the Iron Wall!-Chapter 20: Gossip

"Hey, have you heard the news from the football team?"

"What? What is it? What is it?"

"Some said that they have a new talented goalkeeper! Someone called Higa... Higo... Something like that?"

"Tch! What is so special about that?"

"You don’t know half of it! I heard that he challenged three retired senpai and even Makino-kun in a duel, and he humiliated them all!"

"Really?! Even Makino-kun?!"

"Yeah! I heard one of the senpai there, Ojiro-senpai, even wanted to punch him, and they had to be separated by the others!"

"Wow! I know that senpai! He is the bald one with the bad temper, right?"

"Psst! Don’t say it too loud!"

As Higo walked through the corridor the next day, a smug smile curled unconsciously on his face. This was probably the first time he was at the center of the storm, and after staying as an NPC for the rest of his life, it would be a lie if he said he didn’t enjoy being the one who people talked about.

Still, some of the rumors there were enough to make him twitch the corner of his lips.

’What the hell?! No one knows my name?! Also, that baldie wants to punch me? As if he dares to do that! He just all barks but no bites! And, how in the hell did the story spread? There should only be six people at that place, right? Kumiko-chan is not one who will do that, and there is no way that those four would spread the story that humiliated them. So, the only suspect is... Me?!’

While this was not the first time a rumor spread throughout the school, this was the first time Higo was involved in one, and he couldn’t help but take notice of that. That was when he realized that the speed at which it spread was so fast. In just one day, all the residents of the school knew about it.

However, there was one thing that infuriated Higo here. The moment he entered the classroom, everyone was talking about the football team, even inquiring about the truth from Makino. Yet, no one really paid attention to him. It was as if his presence was transparent, and those who noticed his presence just gave a subtle nod, never thinking that the person everyone mentioned was him.

Then, to sprinkle the salt on the wound, Makino noticed his presence, yet he just smirked smugly, showing off his popularity.

’Goddamnit! What a man whore!’ Higo couldn’t help but curse.

"What? Envious?" The familiar melodious voice that could melt his heart suddenly registered through his brain, and as Higo put his schoolbag and turned around, he could see Kumiko had already been reading on her chair. "Let me tell you, Ryukkun, that popularity is a double-edged sword. It could be a motivation, but it could as well be a burden." She said sagely.

"...Tch, it is easy for you to say that, Kumiko-chan, you have the experience to be famous. As for me? Hearing someone talking about me alone is enough to make me excited. What a sad life I have..." Higo shook his head, wallowing in pity.

Kumiko giggled a little, then, as she tied her loose hair into a ponytail, the girl added, "Don’t worry, with your ability, it will not be long before your name resounds throughout the entire country, and I am sure that you will not be able to find peace after that."

It wasn’t just a flattery or a pity word for her best friend, because Kumiko genuinely believed that Higo had the ability to do that. She could still remember their mini soccer game yesterday, with no one being able to score a single goal against him in a one-on-one battle during the one hour they rented the pitch.

It didn’t matter what the three senpai and Makino tried to do, from a power shot, a curling shot, a knuckle attempt, a precise shot straight to the top bins, or even an attempt to get through Higo’s defense with dribble, the boy would still be able to react accordingly. In fact, his reaction was always fast and precise, making some of them believe that Higo could see the future.

Honestly, if he could hear their doubt, Higo would start panicking, and then, he would have to be forced to spill all of his secrets. Fortunately, seeing the future was something coming out of a manga, so no one was willing to voice that stupid suspicion.

Also, it wasn’t like they couldn’t score, but they had to rely on teamwork to do so. Once there were two attackers or more, no matter how fast Higo’s reaction was, his defense was overwhelmed by the number, resulting in him not being able to stop even a single attack from that scenario.

However, Kumiko wasn’t really worried about that. For a low-block team like Hakodate Nishi, the scenario where two of the opponent’s players managed to slip through their defense and faced the goalkeeper directly was quite rare, and in the real game, Makino would never let his goalkeeper suffer having to fight alone in that kind of battle. Also, in that scenario, even the best goalkeeper in the country wouldn’t be able to stop the attack, so it was normal for Higo not to be able to do that.

Now, with that top-level goalkeeping that Higo showed, Kumiko was even more determined to make him stay in the club no matter how much it cost. However, as Higo saw how the girl suddenly clenched her fist tightly, he just rolled his eyes in exasperation, knowing exactly what she wanted to say.

"Don’t bother, Kumiko-chan, yesterday, I just wanted to amuse and beat them in their own game, but I don’t want to get involved in this business." He stated frankly.

"...Really? Even for me?" She started to weaponize her cute look, giving the boy her best puppy-dog eyes.

"..."

This was indeed enough to waver his will. Higo shut his eyes tightly, yet the image of her cute expression was engraved inside his head. In the end, he could only let out a deep sigh, saying, "Let’s just see about it later..."