Chapter 42: Second Quarter: Pressure Mounts

The scoreboard glared down from above the backboard: Shikoku 42 – Seiryō 29.

The buzzer blared BZZZZZZZT! ending the second quarter. The rookies had stretched their lead to thirteen.

Seiryō trudged to their bench. Sweat dripped off chins. Jerseys clung. Nobody spoke at first. Only the sound of the ball bouncing on the far end where Shikoku's subs were still shooting.
rippling like silk.

Up in the bleachers, Kana whispered to Ayaka, "They're really only first- and second-formers?"

Ayaka nodded slowly, eyes wide. "Monsters..."

The gym's buzz softened for a heartbeat as people shifted, getting snacks, scrolling phones. The scoreboard's numbers pulsed red in the corner of Ayaka's vision like a wound. Somewhere under the bleachers a vending machine clanged as a can dropped the small noises of halftime creeping in.

And then the double doors at the far end opened with a heavy clunk.

A tall figure stepped through, shadow spilling across the threshold. School jacket hanging off one shoulder. Head held high. Every step deliberate. The conversations in the stands slowed and then stopped, as if the air itself thickened.

A faint green aura shimmered behind him, like heat over asphalt, pulsing once... twice... steady. It wasn't literal flame but everyone felt it a pressure in the chest, hair rising on arms. The smell of floor polish and sweat faded under a new scent, sharp and metallic, like ozone before a storm.

Whispers rippled through the crowd:

"Is that him?"

"No way..."

"A King of the Court..."

Even Shikoku's players paused mid-drill to glance over. Daigo caught sight of the newcomer, eyes narrowing. For the first time all game, his expression shifted not fear, but interest. He bounced the ball once boom! then held it under one palm, shoulders squared toward the door.

Seiryō's bench turned as one. Marcus found himself standing without realizing it, eyes locked on the newcomer. Sweat cooled on his neck. So he's finally here.

Somewhere in the stands a student muttered, "This is going to get crazy..."

Ayaka's fingers dug into the railing. "Who is he really?"

Kana didn't take her eyes off the floor. "The one they call a king. And Daigo's about to meet him head-on."

Step... step... step... The sound of the newcomer's sneakers on the hardwood cut through the murmurs like a drumbeat. With each step the green shimmer brightened, the pulse of it syncing with the beat of hearts in the bleachers.

He moved past the scorer's table and stopped just inside the gym, scanning the court with eyes like searchlights. The green aura flickered once more, brighter.

Everyone, for a heartbeat, forgot the score.