04 - Copy Conditions

[The player Kenji Nakamaru has demonstrated the skill <Advanced First-Touch Kick>. Do you want to check the copying conditions?] 

This message flashed in front of Lucas's eyes, and even though he had become accustomed to these idiosyncrasies, he was still startled by the possibility of being able to copy the skill of one of his teammates. It was an unexpected stroke of luck.

Still, Lucas remained sane and rational. With a conscious effort, he pushed aside the initial excitement and concentrated on the message as everyone returned to their positions after Kenji's goal.

Yes, I want to check the copying conditions. He agreed thoughtfully, his heart racing with anticipation.

Almost immediately, a new message appeared.

[Skill Copy Conditions <Advanced First-Touch Kick>: Execute a first shot on goal in front of player Kenji Nakamaru].

'In other words, you want me to take revenge for him scoring in front of me.' Lucas took a deep breath and understood the purpose.

The task seemed simple in theory, but, in practice, it was a different story.

Kenji was a clever midfielder who positioned himself very well, was solid defensively and also shot well from outside the box. It would have been a bit tricky to put him in one place on the pitch and just have him watch me kick a first touch into the goal. However, the opportunity and curiosity of learning a new skill without having to practice it for months was too tempting to ignore.

When the ball returned to the center of the field and play returned, Lucas looked at Kenji. He had to keep an eye on the movement of the opposing team and the formation of his own team. The right opportunity would come. He just had to be ready to take it.

The fast pace of the game didn't slow down when the match resumed. There was no room for distractions, and Lucas remained focused.

The ball circulated between the reserve players, and Lucas kept moving so the defense wouldn't think he was a threat.

Every touch, every pass, was a potential opportunity. He had to be in the right place at the right time.

And then the opportunity came.

The ball was passed to him, and he took it and turned his body to move up the field. The opposition tried to surround him, and Kenji seemed to stop him.

Lucas played the ball to a teammate on his right who was passing.

The ball slid quickly along the ground, and this time the pass was accurate, but Lucas' teammate had no room to advance and dropped the ball back into midfield.

Still, Lucas' forward pass alone was enough to draw the first team defense back a bit. They moved forward a bit when the ball came back to them, but Lucas didn't retreat to his side of the pitch. He pushed forward. In doing so, he forced his team's attackers to stay back, as well as his first team's defenders.

This was a dangerous thing to do because it was essential to get back to score, but it also created a huge gap between the first team defense and the midfield.

When the reserve team kicked a ball to the right point, Kenji would look back and see more reserve team players in their backfield than his own team. This was absurd.

With a quick glance at Kenji, who was the only one in the starting midfield who had stayed back, Lucas ran forward with the forwards.

The reserve team's right winger made a quick pass to the holding midfielder, who was advancing alongside the right winger.

The holding midfielder was basically responsible for coordinating the team's possession. In the first team, this was Kenji Nakamaru, while Lucas Tanaka was more of a No. 8, but in the reserve team, the holding midfielder was Masamitsu, a smaller kid and not as skilled as Kenji.

Masamitsu received the ball but couldn't hold it for long, so he passed it back to the speedy right winger, completing a triangle.

The right winger ran to the sideline, giving the reserves time to fill the entire penalty area.

The scenario was almost identical to Kenji's goal, with one exception. However, this was also a classic crossing move, so the first team players had no idea that the scenario of Kenji's goal was about to be repeated. What made this different from Kenji's goal was the confidence of the player on the edge of the box to cross the ball exactly into the crescent.

Lucas didn't know all the players in the school's soccer club, let alone have friendships with all of them, but he knew that he had the confidence of most of them because he had given goal passes to most of them.

"Here!" Lucas ordered.

This was something he never did, literally never, because Lucas wasn't someone who focused on scoring goals. He wasn't a selfish striker. But apparently the system wanted to change his nature.

I need to score this goal! I have to turn this game around!

The player on the edge heard the call, raised his head, and looked at his options. In the penalty area, the players were piled up, and a little behind them, they weren't. On the halfway line, almost outside the penalty area, there was only Lucas and a few other players spread out a bit more. So he crossed for Lucas without thinking twice.

"Take that, Tanaka!"

The ball arced perfectly, and Lucas, his eyes fixed on the ball, swallowed dryly as he watched it head his way. He knew this was the moment he had been waiting for, the moment that could change the course of the game and, who knows, his own path to becoming a professional soccer player.

As the ball flew through the air, Lucas noticed Kenji Nakamaru running towards him with his eyes fixed on him. Kenji was a good player, with a natural ability to position himself defensively, break down opponents, and shoot from outside the box. A classic No. 5. If we were to compare him to anyone, it would be Casemiro.

But that didn't matter to Lucas, who took a few steps back, adjusted his position and prepared to shoot. This was his chance, and he wasn't going to waste it. In one fluid motion, Lucas swung his right leg back and then quickly stepped forward, kicking the ball with the instep of his right foot.

The sound of the kick echoed across the pitch, a solid beat that sounded like a drum.

The ball flew, cutting through the air at an impressive speed.

[Copy Conditions Achieved].

[Skill of <Advanced First-Touch Kick> obtained].

[<Advanced First-Touch Kick> unlocked].

The system's confirmation was the icing on the cake at this point. However, the goal was yet to come.

The trajectory of the ball suddenly made a curve and an effect as if it had been kicked with the last three toes, and went straight into the top corner of the goal, replicating Kenji's feat.

The sound of the ball hitting the net was like a key turning, as Lucas clenched his fist and shouted in front of Kenji:

"THAT'S IT! THAT'S IT! WHAT A GOAL!"

All the adrenaline and satisfaction of scoring a goal was released all at once by Lucas after so many years of not playing soccer. He couldn't contain the joy in his heart.