Chapter 4: When You Don't Know, Go With the Flow
Wait. Did the coach just say he's cutting my daily wages?
The memories hit me like a fist to the gut. Assarun's life flooded through my mind—a broken dam letting loose everything at once.
The bandits had been getting bolder. More frequent raids. More violence. My father Zefur wore the sheriff's badge like a crown of thorns, bleeding his own salary dry to help the victims. He bought weapons with money we didn't have. Fed hope to a town that was slowly starving.
His kindness was killing us.
My wages were all we had left. Five mouths to feed on what barely covered three. And now they wanted to cut even that?
Hell no.
I had to get my position back. Right here. Right now.
Even with stats that read like a death certificate. Even with football skills that would make a crippled donkey look graceful. I still had something.
Spark Arrow LV 1. Spark Dribble LV 1.
Two gifts from those twins—Levina and Truno. Game characters, sure. Pixels and code. But they felt real. More real than most people I'd known. I wouldn't let their family starve. Not on my watch.
Wait for me, I thought. Mom, Dad, Levina, Truno. Your big brother's coming home with a feast. We'll eat until our bellies burst. Make up for all those hungry nights.
I didn't know what these skills could do. But the names told a story.
"As punishment for your pathetic performance, Assarun..." Coach Yeager's voice cut through my thoughts. "Ten laps around the field before you go home. Now then, since our number one striker is clearly finished, let's find someone new. Kleber, you're up—"
Ten laps? I'd die after one.
Time to roll the dice.
I filled my lungs and roared: "SPARK DRIBBLE!"
Activating skill [Spark Dribble]
20 MP consumed
Remaining MP: 80/100
Black smoke erupted from my body like I was on fire. Lightning danced across my skin, wild and hungry.
The stares changed. Before, they'd watched me like I was a joke—a lion tripping over its own paws. Now they looked at me like that same lion was about to tear their throats out.
"Everything until now was just a test," I said, smooth as silk over steel. "I wanted to see who'd stick by me when I was weak. When I couldn't play. Turns out not a single one of you passed."
The words flowed easy. Lies always did when your back was against the wall.
"You all pitied me. Whispered behind my back. Even coach here forgot I was sick in bed all yesterday. Forgot I needed time to get my strength back."
Coach Yeager coughed like he was choking on his own guilt. "Look, kid, coach was just doing his job. Doesn't matter how long you've been number one. Bad form gets you dropped. Nobody's bigger than the team."
He paused, staring at the smoke still curling around me.
"But what's with all this? You got some kind of special move? What's it do?"
I laughed. Cold as winter rain.
"You're right. Nobody's bigger than the team. But I'm still human. Still got feelings. When someone's hurt, they need time. Understanding. A little sympathy."
I let my eyes sweep over them all.
"Guess nobody here was willing to give me that. Sad. Real sad."
Coach ground his teeth. My teammates found the ground suddenly fascinating. Kleber started juggling the ball, wouldn't meet my eyes.
"Alright, enough drama," Yeager said. "Five hundred dailiez from my own pocket. Call it compensation. Medical expenses. Whatever. Now what does that move actually do?"
"Coach," I said, feeling the electricity build in my bones. "You ever seen anyone dribble a ball at lightning speed?"
I burst forward.
The skill had 'dribble' in the name. In G.O.A.T TRICKS, the names never lied. Shooting Fire meant firing the ball like a blazing comet. Calculated Dribble meant reading your opponent's mind and dancing around them.
So Spark Dribble had to mean one thing—dribbling faster than lightning itself.
As I ran, the world turned electric. Everything painted in shades of thunder.