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 26: Because She’s My Precious Underclassman.

“Sorry for calling so late at night. Could we talk for a bit now…?”

Takumi sent the message, and a read receipt appeared almost instantly.

——It’s fine. What’s up?

——It’s more of a consultation… or rather, I have a favor to ask.

——That’s rare, coming from you, Kisaragi. Sure, go ahead.

——Thank you. I’ll call you now.

——Got it.

Before the first ring even finished, the other person picked up.

“Hello?”

“Sorry for bothering you this late, Aizawa-senpai.”

“Don’t worry about it. I was just lazing around anyway.”

Reiko let out a soft “fufu” laugh on the other end of the line.

It was probably a joke meant to keep him from feeling too guilty.

“So, what’s this favor? Want me to play the role of your girlfriend or something?”

“That’s a very tempting offer, but unfortunately it’s something else this time. Actually, I wanted to talk to you about Shirayuki.”

“…Did something happen with Kana-chan?”

Reiko’s voice instantly grew serious.

“After practice today, there was a bit of trouble between Shirayuki and the captain. I’m sorry I can’t go into the details, but it looks like the captain will at least have his captaincy stripped and be suspended.”

“—!”

Reiko fell silent on the other end.

Kawabata had strictly forbidden him from speaking about the incident, but after confirming via LINE that he could share a vague version with Reiko, he had received proper permission.

“…That’s quite something.”

“Yes. I’m sorry I can’t tell you more…”

“It’s fine. So, the favor is that you want me to keep an eye on Takeoka so he doesn’t try anything with Kana-chan?”

“Exactly.”

“Understood. But honestly, I don’t think I can cover everything on my own. Besides, once tomorrow’s practice match and the day after’s practice are over, Kana-chan will be going back to the second string anyway.”

“I know. Just keeping a casual eye on her would be more than enough. It seems Shirayuki has really taken a liking to you, Aizawa-senpai.”

There was a brief pause before Reiko replied.

“…You really care about Kana-chan a lot, don’t you?”

Her tone was thoughtful, almost savoring the words.

Takumi’s answer was already decided.

“Because she’s my precious underclassman.”

“Is that your way of putting pressure on me to treat you even more dearly?”

Reiko let out a chuckle laced with amusement.

She was probably wearing that mischievous smile right now.

“Not at all. You already treat me more than well enough, Aizawa-senpai. Thank you as always.”

“…You really are skilled at being a good underclassman, aren’t you?”

“That’s only because your skills as a senior are so outstanding.”

“Oh? Look at you with that smooth comeback. I’ll have to give you a pat on the head next time.”

“Actually, I take back what I said.”

“Hey.”

The two of them laughed together.

“Well, I understand the request. Kana-chan is an important underclassman to me too. Even after she returns to the second string, I’ll try to keep an eye on her when I can.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Yeah. Is that all you needed?”

“Yes. Sorry again for calling so late.”

“Kisaragi. Isn’t it supposed to be ‘thank you’ instead of ‘sorry’ there?”

“…Thank you?”

“Good boy. There, there.”

“Remote head-patting is embarrassing in its own way, you know.”

“Don’t worry. I actually moved my hand while doing it.”

“I don’t see how that’s supposed to be reassuring…”

“Haha, you still have a long way to go.”

Reiko laughed lightly.

“Anyway, there’s a match tomorrow, so I’ll hang up now. I believe you’ll do great.”

“Thank you.”

“You should do some visualization training—imagine yourself performing well.”

“That’s a good idea. I’ll try it before bed.”

“Fufu, what a good boy. I like honest underclassmen. Good night, Kisaragi.”

“Yes. Good night, Aizawa-senpai.”

Takumi counted a full three seconds before ending the call.

(Come to think of it, why has Aizawa-senpai stayed in the third string all this time?)

Her ability was easily good enough for the second or even first string.

There must be some reason.

(Her parents are both working, just like Shirayuki’s, and it seems she handles most of the cooking at home. Maybe being in the first or second string would be too time-consuming for her.)

As these thoughts drifted through his mind, sleepiness suddenly washed over him.

Today had been a hard day for him too, in many different ways—even if not quite as exhausting as it had been for Kana.

Before he could doze off, he took a bath and went to bed earlier than usual.

——The next morning.

Takumi woke up earlier than usual and took his time getting ready.

Today was an away practice match against another school.

It would be his first external match since he had changed his playing style.

Their opponent was Seinan High School.

They had faced them once shortly after becoming second-years and lost.

(It’s okay. I can do this. My current style isn’t anything particularly new or groundbreaking. That’s exactly why it worked so well even in the third string… Yeah. I’ll trust in the results of all my practice so far. I even did visualization training last night. I’ve got this.)

As Takumi was mentally reinforcing himself, the doorbell rang.

It was probably Kana. They had agreed yesterday to go together.

Sure enough, the intercom screen showed a flash of red hair.

He hurried to the entrance and opened the door.

“I’m really sorry for all the trouble I caused yesterday!”

The moment the door opened, Kana bent forward at a perfect right angle in a deep bow.

“Ahaha, it’s totally fine. You were completely out cold, huh?”

“Uuu… I’m truly sorry…”

Takumi invited the visibly embarrassed Kana inside.

There was still plenty of time before they needed to catch the train.

“The movie was really interesting, but the heartwarming scenes kept going and I got sleepy…”

Kana scratched her cheek apologetically.

“That happens to everyone. I’ve fallen asleep during a movie at home before too.”

“But Senpai, that’s at your own house so it doesn’t matter…”

“Come on, it’s okay. You were tired yesterday, right? Just be careful next time.”

“Yeees… uuu…”

Since her expression carried more shame than actual repentance, Takumi resumed getting ready without making things too awkward for her.

“U-um… Senpai?”

“Hm?”

Takumi turned around and met Kana’s very anxious gaze.

“D-did my mom or I say anything weird…?”

“No, you didn’t.”

She had called him “Takumi-senpai” at one point, but that was probably the extent of it.

“Th-that’s a relief…”

Kana placed a hand over her chest, visibly relaxing.

Takumi thought there had indeed been a chance for something weird to slip out, but he kept that to himself.

Before long, Takumi finished preparing, and they left the apartment with time to spare.

“By the way, Shirayuki,”

Takumi began as they stepped into the elevator.

“Yes?”

“Something occurred to me while we were talking yesterday. Why do you only call me ‘Senpai’? You call Masaru ‘Momose-senpai’ and Daisuke ‘Kongou-senpai’, and at the beginning you used to call me ‘Kisaragi-senpai’ too, right?”

“That’s true. Ah, did it bother you?”

Kana looked anxious.

Takumi shook his head.

“No, not at all. I was just a little curious. I wondered why.”

“Eh? Kana?”

“I didn’t say anything.”

Takumi smiled wryly.

The elevator reached the first floor, so he pressed the “Open” button.

Kana gave a small bow and stepped out first.

Takumi followed, and the two began walking side by side.

“Why I call you just ‘Senpai’, huh…”

“Yeah.”