2 The invitation(2)

I arrived home and realized that my parents were not there. It dawned on me that my dad had returned to his home country, leaving the house empty. As for my mom, she was overseas in England for an important work meeting. Being the Vice President of a company, she was always busy. I took a shower to freshen up and then had dinner. Afterward, I went to bed and soon fell asleep.

The next morning, I woke up and prepared to take a bath. As I made my way towards the kitchen to grab some leftover food, I noticed a letter lying on the floor. It had been pushed through the small message hole in the door. Curious, I picked it up and opened it.

"Blue Lock, huh? It seems fun," I said to myself as I finished reading the message. "So, it starts in a week." A smile formed on my face as I contemplated participating in this intriguing project.

(Time skip)

I arrived in front of a massive building, finding myself alone among a crowd of people. As I entered the building, I immediately noticed many familiar faces—talented football players who were renowned for their skills. However, something struck me as odd—they were all forwards. I raised an eyebrow, wondering why a program would require so many strikers.

Feeling the weight of many gazes upon me, I decided to abandon my usual carefree demeanor and search for a suitable place to stand. After a short wait, the sound of coughing caught my attention, followed by the voice of a man.

"Congratulations, you unpolished gems. According to my personal judgment, the three hundred of you are the best strikers under 18," the man, now identified as Ego Jinpachi, said.

I surveyed the surroundings and laid my eyes on a thin, malnourished-looking man who emitted an unusual aura. Ego continued, "My name is Ego Jinpachi, and I was hired to bring Japan a World Cup victory."

Murmurs spread through the crowd, but I remained curious, intrigued by this enigmatic man. "I will be blunt. Japan needs an exceptional player, and I plan to conduct an experiment using all of you to create the best striker this country needs," Ego declared, his gaze fixed on us.

"This is Blue Lock, and only one of you will succeed while the other 299 will be used to make him the best," Ego explained, concluding his statement.

A white-haired individual started talking about teamwork and loyalty, expressing his commitment not to abandon his teammates. Meanwhile, I observed from the sidelines, waiting to see how Ego would respond.

"If you want to leave, then piss off, as Blue Lock doesn't need weaklings like you," Ego retorted, motioning dismissively with his hands.

He proceeded to berate us, expressing disappointment that he would have to teach us since we had chosen to stay in a supposedly inferior soccer nation like Japan. I agreed that Japanese soccer was not on par with the best in the world.

Ego went on a tirade, stating that soccer was a game where the team with the most points wins. In that aspect, he was not wrong—if you scored more goals than the opposing team, you would emerge victorious. The white-haired individual disagreed, defending the importance of teamwork, and I appreciated his ability to speak his mind.

Ego dismissed his argument, claiming that none of the players he mentioned had won a World Cup and that they were all weak. He emphasized the necessity of being an egotist to succeed in the world of soccer. Madness seemed to flicker in his eyes as he passionately proclaimed that even the greatest players were insane egoists.

In my mind, I couldn't help but think

that Brazil could have won two World Cups without Pele. I didn't mean to discredit his talent, but rather that Brazil had an incredibly strong team at the time.

"They were all insane egoists, and it proved that unless you are an egotist, you will not go far in the world of soccer," Ego declared, his expression filled with crazed intensity.