Golden Age 32: ‘Audaciousness?! Tenaciousness?! YES! It’s Revolution in Progress!! And, Quetta's Spurring Call!!’ (Part 1)

As the night grew darker and the stadium emptied, the once roaring crowd dwindled. The victors left with smiles, while the defeated walked away in quiet reflection.

Karachi's middle and high schoolers sat in separate coaches, heading back to their lodgings in near silence.

Seles glanced behind him, noticing some of the middle schoolers already fast asleep, while others sat lost in thought, brows furrowed and faces tense. He turned forward and sighed, looking over at Yusuf.

"Give them some time. They'll be fine," Yusuf assured.

"Hm, I hope so," Seles replied, still concerned.

In the other coach, the atmosphere mirrored the same. High schoolers also sat, lost in thought. The atmosphere rigid. Rauf, eyes closed, leaned back, while Alan quietly observed Kazuna beside him, who stared out the window. No words felt fitting enough to break the heavy silence. 

When the coaches finally halted in front of the lodgings, the boys disembarked, some inaudibly, others yawning, heading straight towards their dorm floor. Nidou watched them, his expression nonchalant.

"Worried?" Musa asked, his tone light.

"Worried? About those freaks? Don't joke," Nidou scoffed grinning, "This heartbreak and those long faces are momentary. Just watch them tomorrow."

Taking his sports drink from Seles, he started inside. "There's no need to dwell on something so trivial, Musa. We have to pick the representatives for the next match and finalize the lineup. As for the rest…" Nidou glanced back at Yusuf and Seles, "I'll leave those little freaks to you."

"Yes, Head Coach Nidou," Seles and Yusuf responded promptly.

"Just to remind you, Nidou, Middle schoolers aren't the only ones to worry about," Mir chimed in, causing Nidou to stop, "If you're so sure the middle schoolers will bounce back tomorrow, what about the high schoolers? Their behavior tonight is far from normal, didn't that strike you odd?" 

Nidou sighed, scratching his head. "Of course they're surprised. Isa's streak of bad luck hasn't ended, and they've lost another important match. But…" he glanced at the high schoolers, who were trailing the middle schoolers inside, their movements cautious, aiding and soothing them. He smiled, "Rather than worrying about themselves, I think they're more concerned for their juniors. That's what's lifting their morale."

"And Isa's sponsor…" Nidou raised an eyebrow teasingly, "Maybe start thinking of ways to turn his luck around."

Mir twitched his brow.

"You take those high schoolers way too lightly. What would you do if they lost this match on purpose hun?" Nidou asked, his eyes narrowing with a sharp glint. The corner of his mouth curled slightly.

Mir, momentarily stunned, fell into deep thought before letting out a frustrated sigh and striding ahead, leaving Nidou behind.

Musa sighed, while Seles exchanged amused glances with Yusuf and Pedro.

"Losing on purpose, huh? If it's them then it does sounds plausible," Seles remarked, recalling just how unpredictable the high schoolers could be.

...

As the middle schoolers made their way back to their rooms, Senri gently placed Adam on his bed, carefully removing his shoes and jersey before draping a sheet over him and ruffling his hairs with a soft smile.

Meanwhile, Azazel, Ezekiel, and Feng, caught in a haze between sleep and wakefulness, were aided by Elias, Ren, Haruf, and Aaron.

The Thrird-year middle schoolers, freshening up one by one. Alan, Senri, Elias, and Noah observed them from the lounge.

"This silence feels unreal, doesn't it?" Ren whispered from behind.

"Creepy, to be honest," Orion yawned, heading toward the couch.

Alan watched the middle schoolers, noticing how quietly they washed up and went to bed without saying a word. A wave of indescribable concern welled up inside him. "Please, God..." he whispered softly. "Don't let them lose hope," he thought, clenching his fists. 

As the side lamps dimmed one by one, Seraph returned from the restroom last, drying his hair with a towel and glancing at the other middle schoolers inside the room, most of them already asleep. His attention shifted to Helios, who appeared restless, tossing and turning in bed, alongside Kenzo, Poseidon, and Ryan. "I wonder if we'll even be able to sleep tonight…" he mused, a twinge of disappointment creeping in.

Turning to the high schoolers settled in the lounge, Seraph said, "We're all done. You can use the restroom now."

"Hm," Haruf nodded with a warm smile.

Seraph then noticed Isa standing at the stove in the compact kitchen, staring intently at the green tea boiling before him, seemingly lost in thought. His gaze soon swept over to Rauf, Evan, Noah, Aaron, Kazuna, Elias, Nagi, Orion, and Alan, all of whom wore contemplative expressions and fixed gazes. Aigou yawned, seated on the floor while Zachariah gently brushed his hair, coaxing him into slumber. 

The entire scene feeling surreal to Seraph, stirred a wave of empathy within him. "You all… make sure to sleep early, too," he simply said, "I know I'm not in a position to say this, but even if we think twice our normal capacity right now, nothing will come from it if we don't sleep," he added.

"Thanks for that, Seraph. We'll definitely do that. You should rest now," Elias replied with a reassuring smile.

Nodding, Seraph stepped into the room and sat down on his bed, reaching for the switch to turn off his bedside lamp. "Strange... I never imagined seeing the high schoolers like this," he mused. "Maybe it's because, for once, we all worked together to win, despite our differences. In this match... we were one." He flicked off the light and laid down, a quiet, disbelieving laugh escaping him as he rested his arm on his forehead, eyes fixed on the ceiling. "What a ridiculous thought…" he muttered to himself, "But still… it wasn't half bad." he mused, his eyelashes drooping.

______

After some time, when the high schoolers had all gathered in the lounge, the silence was suffocating.

Senri, arms folded, tapped his fingers rhythmically on his elbow, glancing at each one, Rauf, Isa, Orion, Alan, Evan, Aaron until quietness felt like it was swallowing him whole. Suddenly, he stood and strode towards the room. Peeking in to see the middle schoolers fast asleep, he gently closed the door and turned back to the high schoolers. "Alright," he began, catching their attention. "So, how long are we gonna sit here brooding or act as if we are brooding? This isn't us." Leaning against the door, Senri eyed them.

Noah raised a finger to speak, but Senri cut him off with a flat, "We, definitely aren't thinking, so spare me the weak excuses." Defeated, Noah lowered his hand and sighed.

"I want everyone's focus now. That calls for you too, Rauf and Isa. So, first of all, how many of us expected we'd lose today besides Elias?" Senri asked.

Alan and the others hesitated, maintaining a tense silence until Nagi broke it. "I knew," he admitted, followed by Aaron, Ren, and Noah. Isa bit his lip, while Alan's expression darkened as he stayed silent.

"What about you, Vice-Captain Evan and Haruf?" Senri pressed.

"I believed in what I saw. We were on the verge of victory, but things just didn't go our way. No need for assumptions," Evandor responded, calm as ever.

"I agree," Haruf added, "We don't get to decide the outcome; the game does."

Senri nodded continuing, "And, how many of us lost this match, knowing full well we could've won?" his tone grew sharper, prompting immediate silence.

"Isa doesn't have bad luck," Senri added, "We pushed it onto him, didn't we?" he looked directly at them, who said nothing.

"Staying quiet won't help," Senri pressed, "We all know deep down what we did and didn't do in the match today, so let's not dodge it."

Suddenly, Rauf broke the silence, his eyes closed and arms crossed, "Isa, you didn't bowl when pacers and spinners struggled in the field. Aaron, you gave the over to Poseidon when you could've handled it yourself. Azazel was sent in without a plan, when Isa or Kazuna could've stepped up to control the run rate. On the batting side, Aaron, you could've changed the order and taken Helios's spot, but you didn't. Kazuna could've used his Realm, even if he was trapped, but chose not to. In short, you all deliberately held back, didn't you?" he opened his eyes with a sharp glint that fixed on Isa, Aaron, and Kazuna, who remained firm.

Elias raised an eyebrow, silently observing.