Kicked Out of the Bottom Soccer Team, I Found My Strength Thanks to My Beautiful Junior Manager. What Began as a Simple Act of Kindness Turned into Her Coming Over Every Day. - Chapter 18: The Beautiful Junior Manager’s Rejection — The Third-String Captain Loses Control.

Chapter 18: The Beautiful Junior Manager’s Rejection — The Third-String Captain Loses Control.

“What?! Hah?! W-What the hell do you mean, Kana!”

“It’s exactly what I said. No matter what happens from now on, I will never fall for you. Do you seriously think I could feel even a single millimeter of affection for the person who tried to force Senpai to quit the club?”

Kana let out a scornful laugh through her nose.

The sense of security from having Takumi protecting her had dulled her fear, allowing the anger she had built up toward Takeoka to burst forth like a broken dam.

“You seem desperate to look down on Senpai, but finding any area where you’re superior to him would be harder than searching for a dropped contact lens on the ground on a rainy day.”

“Wha—… Th-That’s impossible! There’s no way I’m inferior to Kisaragi! In manliness, in how to handle women, in soccer technique—everything! I’m better at all of it!”

“I don’t know about the rest, but when it comes to how you treat me, you don’t even come close to Senpai’s level.”

“That’s bullshit! Women all like it when a guy gets a little forceful, right?! There’s no way anyone would fall for a spineless loser like Kisaragi!”

“Haah… It’s true that many women like being pursued aggressively, but that only applies when it’s someone they already have feelings for. The people you’ve managed to get so far were either originally interested in you to begin with, or they were the kind of trashy bitches who’d sleep with any man—”

“Shirayuki.”

Takumi’s sharp voice cut through Kana’s rising heat.

“You shouldn’t say anything more than that.”

“…Yes.”

Kana obediently closed her mouth. She was aware she had gone too far.

—Takumi gave her a gentle smile before turning back to Takeoka with a stern expression.

“As you just heard. I don’t know which of us is superior between me and the captain, but resorting to force just because you can’t win her over is wrong. Please give up on Shirayuki.”

“G-Give up?! Don’t fuck with me! There’s no way Kana would choose you over me!”

“Are you saying Shirayuki’s attitude right now is just an act—a bluff because she actually wants you to be more forceful? In that case, I’d recommend she transfer to the drama club. She’d become the ace in no time—long before she ever experiences being captain of the third string.”

“You bastard…!”

Takeoka’s face flushed bright red in an instant. Veins bulged on his forehead. His fury was unmistakable.

(Oh no… I went too far…!)

Takumi regretted his words. He had let his irritation get the better of him and ended up provoking Takeoka in response to the man’s selfish insults—not just toward him, but toward Kana as well.

But it was too late for regrets.

“Don’t get cocky, Kisaragi!”

—Takeoka’s frustration had reached its absolute limit.

During practice he had been toyed with by Takumi, forced to watch him flirt with Kana right in front of him. Now Kana had been taken from him, clearly rejected him to his face, and even been provoked by Takumi.

He simply didn’t possess the emotional capacity to handle all that stress.

Clenching his fists, Takeoka lunged at Takumi.

“Senpai!”

Kana let out a scream-like cry.

However, what she feared did not happen.

“—What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

A sharp voice cut through the air, instantly tensing the atmosphere. Takeoka’s fist froze mid-swing.

He slowly turned around, his face twisting in displeasure, and spat out the name of the newcomer with clear annoyance.

“…Miwa.”

The third-string vice-captain, Miwa, came running over with a mix of panic and anger written across his face.

“Takeoka, what are you doing?!”

“…Shut up. I wasn’t doing anything.”

“There’s no way you can talk your way out of this! Oi, Takeoka!”

Ignoring Miwa’s calls, Takeoka slowly walked away from the scene.

Miwa hesitated for a moment—should he chase after him or not?—then turned his attention to Takumi and Kana.

“Are you two okay?”

“Yes, thank you. How about you, Shirayuki? Are your wrists alright?”

“…Ah, yes.”

Kana nodded a beat late. She still seemed to be processing everything.

“Let me see.”

Takumi gently took her arm and pulled it closer. There was no bruising yet, but Takeoka’s handprints were clearly visible.

“We should ice it just in case. Does it hurt?”

“N-No. I’m fine.”

“Alright. Let’s go get the first-aid kit then.”

The first-aid kit was stored in the equipment shed, so they first stopped by the staff room to get the key.

“Um… thank you both so much!”

Kana stepped out of the staff room first, then turned around and bowed deeply to both Takumi and Miwa.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Protecting juniors is what seniors are supposed to do. And thank you, Miwa-senpai, for preventing my face from turning into a perfect square.”

Takumi waved his hand lightly at Kana before bowing to Miwa.

“Yeah, looks like you’ve properly absorbed my teachings, Takumi.”

“Of course. Roughly seventy percent of my body is made up of Miwa-senpai, after all.”

“Don’t say creepy things. I’m not your bodily fluid.”

“Pfft—”

Kana burst out laughing. The three of them began walking with Takumi and Miwa flanking her.

“As expected of Miwa-senpai. You really know how to hit Shirayuki’s funny bone.”

“I only said what came to mind.”

“No, it’s just… when I imagined your face circulating through Senpai’s body like a pool float… it was so funny…!”

“…Heh.”

Takumi barely managed to hold back his own laughter, though a chuckle still escaped.

The mental image of Miwa’s deadpan, bespectacled face drifting along like an inflatable ring in a lazy river… it was slowly creeping up on him.

“Takumi. You’re laughing too, aren’t you?”

“No, not at all.”

“Look at me.”

“I’m sorry.”

Having no confidence that he could keep a straight face while looking at Miwa, Takumi honestly admitted his guilt. Kana burst out laughing again.

Apparently, his straightforward apology was quite popular with the manager.

“Well, as long as you two can laugh about it, that’s fine… But if you don’t mind, could you tell me what happened?”

Kana’s laughter faded instantly, her expression growing serious.

“I only saw the latter half, so… Shirayuki, can you talk about it? You don’t have to force yourself.”

“Ah, yes. I’m okay.”

Though her voice was understandably tense, Kana managed to recount the entire incident without stumbling.

“I see… I’m sorry about Takeoka.”

Miwa bowed his head with genuine regret. As vice-captain, he saw himself as the one responsible for keeping Takeoka in check. The guilt was clear on his face.

“You don’t have to apologize, Miwa-senpai!”

Kana waved her hands frantically.

“If anything, I’m just grateful you helped us.”

“And thanks to you, my left cheek didn’t end up looking like a bulldog’s,” Takumi added.

This incident was in no way Miwa’s fault.

“Swelling worse than a square is one thing… but thank you, both of you.”

“Thank you as well,” Takumi and Kana replied in unison.

Miwa’s cheeks softened into a faint smile.

“Still, you really didn’t back down from Takeoka at all, Takumi. You looked pretty cool.”

“You think so? I was seriously about to wet myself back there.”

“Really? You looked completely calm to me.”

Miwa looked genuinely surprised.

“I just wanted to look good in front of my junior. If Shirayuki hadn’t been there, I would’ve been shaking like a leaf. So thank you, Shirayuki. I managed to avoid showing an embarrassing side thanks to you.”

“I don’t really understand how that’s supposed to be thanks, and even if you had been trembling like a chihuahua stared down by a lion, I wouldn’t have thought it was lame at all! You protected me. That alone made you incredibly cool!”

“Really? Thanks.”

Takumi brushed it off lightly. He assumed Kana was simply expressing her gratitude.

(I need to be careful not to become the “deluded nice-guy” the captain was talking about.)

With that silent reminder to himself, he unlocked the door to the equipment shed. This naturally caused him to turn his back to Kana.

Because of that, he didn’t notice.

He didn’t notice the way Kana puffed her cheeks in clear dissatisfaction while staring at his back.