Chapter 66 - The Undead (3)

Someone once said that sports are unscripted drama. The more clearly a sport divides winners from losers, the truer that becomes. A drama where an apparent loss turns into victory, and an apparent victory turns into defeat.

That is why fans cheer themselves hoarse even when the gap between the teams is obvious. Their team might beat a stronger opponent, and even if they lose, there is still hope for the future.

Even with a 0.1 percent chance, we will never give up.

The moment you give up, the game is over.

Why do we love sports? Because we never know who will win.

As those sayings suggest, sports are a form of entertainment whose results can never be taken for granted. With entertainment already scarce in this world, it was only natural for people to fall head over heels for sports. Even nobles with the most exalted bloodlines were no exception.

"Is it going in? Is it going in?! He shoooots! GOOOOAL! Chaemes United! They've taken the lead in the dying moments of the match!"

"Th-that, that was a truly incredible team effort! The Leor players hang their heads!"

In a private training hall reserved exclusively for Mephisto's royal family, a crystal orb in the center was transmitting a match through broadcast magic.

Chaemes United and Leor were rivals who lived to destroy each other. Normally, Chaemes United—Chae U for short—would have been at a disadvantage, but they had turned the match around. Even the commentators were so excited they were stammering.

"..."

One person had witnessed every moment of it: Kayrin, princess of Mephisto, who used the registered forum handle Slutty Princess. Barely managing to steady her trembling lips, she composed a post. Only after she finally pressed the "Post" button and uploaded it did she unleash every emotion she had been holding inside.

"KYAAAAAAARGHAAAH!!!"

Kayrin raced around the entire training hall like a lunatic, cheering at the top of her lungs. No, it was more a beast's roar than a cheer. All the dignity, grace, and decorum expected of a princess went out the window, leaving nothing but raw emotion!

She was so ecstatic that she released mana without realizing it, inflicting damage large and small all over the training hall. Anyone who saw her expression without knowing her would have thought that not even someone high out of their mind could make a face like that.

"Is this real? Is this real?! It's real, right?!"

After racing every which way around the hall like a rabid dog, Kayrin returned to her seat. She was so worked up that she was not merely breathless—her blue skin had flushed red.

"That was a superb attacking buildup. Even the defenders joined in."

"Exactly. Practically abandoning their defense actually..."

Linking the broadcast crystal orb to orichalcum had improved its picture, sound, and finally even its connection. Now, its projected hologram was showing Kayrin the scene she had yearned for.

"The Leor players! There's very little time le—oh?"

"Marta intercepts! Straight onto the attack!"

"To Kone on the left. Kone breaks through. The Leor players need to stop him!"

"Kone passes insi—ah! A defender clears it."

"Aah!"

Kayrin cried out in disappointment. There went their chance to sink Leor for good. But they still had a chance to attack. The match was such a nail-biting classic that she was even holding her breath.

"And that's the final whistle! They've pulled off a nail-biting comeback victory!"

"The Chae U players are sinking to the ground in delight. They've handled the pressure admirably."

CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP!

The instant the match ended, Kayrin applauded with all her heart. The fans in the stadium likewise gave a standing ovation to the players who had delivered that thrilling comeback.

"Oh, seriously. How on earth did they win?"

A wave of exhaustion washed over Kayrin, and she all but collapsed into her seat. She rubbed her face in disbelief, then looked back at the broadcast. The camera showed the players' faces one by one. Every last one of them looked elated.

"That's right. Isn't it nice to smile? You always looked so miserable from losing."

That loss to a weak team on a hot streak last time? All forgotten. They had beaten the rivals whose very faces annoyed her! It felt as if a decade-old weight had been lifted from her chest. In its place came an enormous rush of positive energy—dopamine. There was a reason people called sports a pastime more dangerous than drugs.

'It happened exactly as Grylls said.'

Kayrin quietly opened the forum. The truly extraordinary sight of their team conceding three goals only to score four, just as Grylls had said, had everyone going wild. One thing in particular caught her attention.

└Wild Grylls If our defense concedes three goals, our attack just has to score four.

└That sounds kinda f*cking stupid, but he's got a point...!

└An excellent answer lmaoooo

└Sounds like something a man who's discovered the truth would say lol

└Making a pilgrimage to this holy post. Please let Chae U make the Champions League.

└Making a pilgrimage to this holy post. Please let me get together with the girl I like.

└Please make the stocks I bought go up!

└Please let me ace my exams!

└I'm a commoner, but becoming a noble...

The so-called "pilgrimages" had begun. It was a kind of folk belief: making wishes on a post that seemed to have predicted the future. But the pilgrimage to Grylls's comment was on another level. After all, no one had thought his words would actually come true. That was the impact of reality defying the most astronomical odds.

'I'll have to give him more jerseys.'

Thanks to the orichalcum, she had witnessed that thrilling comeback with her own eyes. Normally, the broadcast would start cutting out intermittently from the eightieth minute onward, but this one had been crystal clear.

Kayrin hummed as she watched, happy for the first time in a while. The match might be over, but the manager's interview—a highlight in its own right—was still to come.

"How does it feel to have finally beaten Leor?"

"Wonderful, of course. The victory feels all the more precious because our players earned it by refusing to give up."

Chae U's manager did not have a single hair on his head. In other words, he was bald. Well, bald managers were a dime a dozen in the league, so that alone hardly stirred any feelings. It was simply such a memorable feature that people called him Baldy.

Regardless of race, baldness—and hair loss in particular—was a shared source of pain. Of course, mocking someone's pain in real life was something no decent person should do. But the forum was different. If you wanted to mock someone, you could do it to your heart's content. As a result, bald people were often the butt of jokes there.

"What do you think was the secret to victory?"

"Above all, I think our players' fighting spirit was outstanding. And..."

After the standard interview came the interview with the MVP. Naturally, the honor went to the player who had scored three goals to complete a hat trick. In soccer, where every goal was precious, scoring three all by yourself was no easy feat. Having pulled that off, he was the obvious choice for Most Valuable Player.

"You seemed particularly light on your feet today. And the comeback speaks for itself. What happened in the locker room?"

"The manager told us that if we conceded two goals, we should score three, and if we conceded three, we should score four."

"Huh?"

Kayrin's eyes widened at the interview. Those words sounded awfully familiar. She quietly began recording it.

"At first, I thought it was crazy. But the moment I scored the equalizer, that thought came to me."

"What thought was that?"

"If we concede three goals, we just have to score four. That's the answer."

'... Does the manager use the forum too?'

The interview was far too coincidental not to raise suspicions. Still, that was not entirely a bad thing. It meant they would play more aggressively from now on. Until now, Chae U had focused solely on defense and ended up losing even games they had all but won. Forcing themselves into a style that did not fit was bound to keep them from showing their abilities.

"Hmm-hmm-hmm~"

Humming with a happiness she had not felt in a very long time, Kayrin began tidying up. The thrill of the comeback still seemed to course through her entire body.

'They say baseball starts in the bottom of the ninth. This must be something like that, right?'

Thinking of it that way, she could understand why people watched baseball. Until the third out, you never knew who would win.

With that new insight, Kayrin left the training hall. Before stepping outside, she made sure to change out of her Chae U jersey and into a dress.

"Well done today, Your Highness."

An elderly butler was waiting as soon as she emerged. Kayrin acknowledged his greeting with a nod, accompanied by a faint smile. Perhaps noticing something in that smile, the butler spoke cautiously.

"You seem to have made progress in your training."

"Yes. Quite a major breakthrough, for once."

As she spoke, Kayrin suddenly thought of her father, Asmode. He had begun his training at roughly the same time she had. Perhaps the butler knew how his training had gone.

"What about Father?"

"Well..."

The butler struggled to answer her question, hemming and hawing as though reluctant to speak. Just as Kayrin raised an eyebrow at his reaction, he continued.

"His Majesty... made little progress in his training. On the contrary, he appeared to have lost control."

"Hm?"

Kayrin's eyes widened. Asmode had lost control? Demons had a tendency to release mana when their emotions ran high. Had she not done the same while racing around like a rabid dog?

Fortunately, what she had felt then was extreme joy. Had it been anger instead, she would have caused tremendous destruction. Judging by how carefully the butler chose his words, she could infer that Asmode had erupted in fury.

"I thought he had been calm for the past ten years. Has something happened?"

"I am not certain myself. But something unpleasant has certainly occurred."

"Hmm. Understood. I'll be careful."

Kayrin nodded and moved on. The butler bowed deeply and took his leave as well. On her way back to her private room, she thought about Asmode's anger.

'I thought he'd mellowed considerably. Was I wrong?'

Asmode was an object of fear, possessed of overwhelming might and an unmistakable charisma. Kayrin could feel his warmth because she was family, but to everyone else, he was the very embodiment of the Demon King.

'Well, I suppose even he has his moments.'

Kayrin did not dwell on it. At least Asmode did not hurt people. He might smash every object around him, but he had never once raised a hand to her in her entire life. Upon reaching her room, she threw herself onto her soft bed.

"Hehehe."

Once again, a lecherous laugh escaped her. The dopey grin on her face made a mockery of her cold, haughty appearance.

'When was the last time I felt like this?'

It was a thrill so rare that even her memory of it had grown hazy. Demons craved pleasure, and even drugs struggled to satisfy them. Yet Kayrin was experiencing a pleasure unlike anything before.

'This is no time to lie around. I need to get on the forum.'

She intended to spend the rest of her free time posting away. Chae U fans, risen from the ranks of the undead, had already taken over the forum.

From now on, this is the Chaemes United forum.

A post like that had made it into the top posts with an enormous number of upvotes. Of course, given how many people frequented the forum, the ratio of upvotes to downvotes was not overwhelming. About two to one. Even that was tremendous.

???: You suck ass.

Slutty Princess

(Photo of an emblem featuring a hawk)

You suck ass lmaoooo

└Straight to the teabagging lol

└Lmao you can't resist after a comeback

└How could anyone resist this lol

└King Leor All this over a single win lol

└Slutty Princess Yep~ Came back from three down~ You suuuuck hehe

└King Leor Trying awfully hard over just one match, tsk tsk

└Slutty Princess So what was the score? Four to three!

└King Leor lol And are you making the Champions League?

└Slutty Princess Beating your shit-tier team is good enough~

└Lmaooo she really knows how to get under his skin

└???: Do you know why you lost? Because you faced our Slutty!

└These Slutty bastards acting all cocky is pissing me off lol

└Mad? Try winning~

"Heeheeheeheehee."

For once, Kayrin could experience "happiness."

* * *

While every Chae U fan was reaching the peak of happiness...

└Allfather I have good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first?

└Wild Grylls Um... the bad news first?

└Allfather The heart burst.

└Wild Grylls Professor?

Grylls was receiving all sorts of news from Allfather.