"You get it too?" Kumiko asked once he was back home.

It seemed that the email was forwarded to so many people simultaneously, and once Kumiko got one, she went to his house as quickly as possible to discuss this matter. Her face flushed red in excitement, but Higo could still see her trying to restrain herself in this moment.

’Yeah, as expected from a head coach like her. She could gain control over her emotions so quickly like that.’ Higo nodded in admiration. Then, his brain recalled the question Kumiko threw earlier before answering, "Yeah, it has just come. It seems whoever is responsible for this shit knows what he is doing, sending the message right after the exam is over."

"You haven’t opened it yet?" Kumiko raised one of her eyebrows lightly.

"Of course, no. I know you are going to receive one as well, so I decided to open it with you." Higo said as a matter of fact.

A small, genuine smile curled secretly on Kumiko’s face as he heard that. The girl was so flattered that he would think so highly of her, even remembering her in that moment of enthusiasm.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s see the invitation!"

Dear Mr. Higo,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected to join the Japan National Team U-20 for the upcoming training camp held in Chiba from April 6 to April 16. The team staff will be awaiting your arrival at the camp.

Should you have any questions regarding accommodation arrangements, please direct your inquiries to our liaison officer, Seichiro Kusakabe, at the email address provided below.

Congratulations on this opportunity, and we look forward to welcoming you to the camp.

Best regards,

Japan Football Association

The email was short and concise, straight to the point. Still, Higo read the main part over and over again, still finding everything to be unreal.

Honestly, this wasn’t the first time he thought about it, but from a no-named NPC to a national-level goalkeeper, the boy sometimes felt like everything moved so fast that his brain couldn’t process everything here.

He peeked at Kumiko’s message next to him, and the boy found a similar content there, just getting a slight change in the name. Coincidentally enough, Kumiko also did the same, and in the next second, their eyes finally met.

"So, the national team, huh?" Higo couldn’t help but mutter.

"Yeah, I don’t know how, but we’ve made it." Kumiko nodded quietly. Then, her fingers danced on the screen so quickly, going straight to the federation’s official website. "Here, they have announced the list of names there."

Higo checked it as well, and indeed, he found out the list with his name in the third spot. It meant that he was the third choice of the goalkeeper, which didn’t really bother him. After all, at the end of the day, Higo was just a newcomer, so it would be hard for the national team to prioritize him over those veterans.

He also saw some familiar names. Even Naoya Takahashi, whom he beat in the first round of the tournament, was there, which meant his defensive ability was appreciated here. Makino’s name was at the bottom of the list, the same fate as Higo.

Those two came from a no-name school and had only been emerging in the last tournament, so this treatment was quite understandable.

Meanwhile, Mamoru’s name was also highlighted on the list as the youngest one in the team. Yeah, while the average age there was around 18 to 19, the boy was currently 16, which showed how capable he was as a player.

’As expected of a genius...’ Higo couldn’t help but mutter. "Still, other than a few names I’ve met in the past, I don’t know anything about them. Hell, I don’t even know who my competitor is, you know?"

"Wait, let me see again." Kumiko leaned slightly toward his side to get a look at his phone.

"Well, the first name there is Tomoya Wakahara, around 19 years old. Last year, he got to the top 16 of the national tournament with his high school, Kyoto Tachibana High. This year, he is in the rotation for Kyoto Sanga, an upper-middle team in the J-League. In total, he has played about 7 games, including a game where his team suffered from an upset by a J3 team, Zweigen Kanazawa, 1-3. He played terribly at that game, by the way."

Higo pondered for a moment, not even questioning the source of information. "So, he is a goalkeeper who wins the internal competition with his experience?" He tried to conclude.

"You can say that, but you also cannot underestimate him." Kumiko reminded the boy. "The fact that he has several chances to play for the main team just one year after graduating from high school shows that at least his team sees potential in him. Other than him, no goalkeeper from his generation managed to get through the main team’s rotation this year, still fighting for a place in the team’s youth team."

Higo nodded once again, saving this information on the back of his head. "What about the second one?" Based on the boy’s darker skin, he could guess the boy was probably half-Japanese.

This time, Kumiko’s gaze was serious, indicating that the boy was far stronger than Tomoya Wakahara.

"His name is Zion Suzuki, born in New Jersey, USA, to a Ghanaian father and Japanese mother. He grew up in Urawa, Saitama, but unlike any other talented players there, like Hiroki Kawabe or Hiroshi-kun, he has been home-schooled so that he could put all of his focus on his footballing career, and has never been allowed to join any school tournament outside. He has been with the Urawa Red Youth Team since he was seven, and the team treated him like a diamond and a fragile flower at the same time, which shows how much potential he has."

Higo nodded secretly, a frown forming on his forehead when he heard that. Even though he was still strange with the football landscape in this country, the boy started to read more, and he knew that Urawa Red Diamonds was one of the biggest teams in Japan right now.

To have such a powerhouse treating him like this, Zion Suzuki must have something special.

’Zion Suzuki, huh?’ A smile suddenly curled on the corner of his lips. ’This is going to be interesting...’