Leo wasn't counting days anymore. The only thing he counted was how many touches he could make without the ball hitting the ground. Thirty-two. He dropped it, Picked it up. Tried again, this time, forty-one.
The world had become smaller. No academy, no noise, no distractions. Just the weight of the ball, the sound of his feet on concrete, and the System's quiet hum in his head. It was always there now. Watching and rewarding.
It started on a Tuesday, two days after the mission dropped. He had slept four hours, his body still sore from the last run. But he dragged himself out of bed anyway, blinking hard at the cold light from his phone screen.
[Run 5km before sunrise. Dribble around 15 cones. Do 100 ball juggles without error. Repeat for five days.]
The system had come up with a training schedule for Leo replacing his own plan.
This was easy to read but hard to do.
He tied his laces in the dark, whispering curses under his breath. His legs felt like dead logs. But he ran. Through the estate, past the sleepy houses. Past dogs that barked and joggers that looked at him funny. He ran till the light came.
Then the cones. He had bought six colored cones and made 9 more out of old soda bottles filled with sand. Fifteen of them, lined up in the alley behind their apartment. He weaved through them, stumbling now and then. His breath came in sharp gasps.
By the time he got to the juggling, he was seeing double.
First try he made nine touches, second; twelve but on the third the ball rolled away. He nearly screamed but still, he didn't stop.
The System pinged softly.
Ding!
[Daily Habit: Self-imposed training x3]
[Bonus XP unlocked]
[New Trait Gained: Early Riser +5% Energy Regen in Morning Slots]
He snorted. "Yeah, right. Tell that to my knees."
But something weird happened. The next morning, he didn't feel as dead. It was still hell. But his feet moved faster. His focus held longer.
Every cone he passed felt like a victory.
By the third day, people started noticing. Not in a good way. While training at the Old Kitale park in the afternoon, one guy muttered, "Isn't that the boy who got dropped?" Another whispered something else, just out of.
Leo kept his head down. Skipped lunch. Instead, he sat alone in a cold bench, his earphones plugged in, watching low-quality footage of famous dribbles. He mimicked them with his fingers.
That's when the System pinged again.
[Emotional State Detected: Doubt]
[Mission: Focus under pressure for 2 hours.]
[Reward: Passive Boost +1]
Great. Even the System knew he was falling apart.
Leo gritted his teeth. Then whispered to himself, 'I'd rather fail chasing something I love than live comfortably with nothing.'
Day five came like thunder. He woke before the alarm. His feet moved before his brain fully did. His body ached, but it was a familiar ache now. The cones flew past in a blur. He did the 5km faster than ever.
Then, the juggling. Twenty, thirty-seven, then fifty-one.
He gasped. Dropped the ball. Then laughed like a maniac. Neighbors probably thought he was losing it.
System alert:
Ding!
[Milestone Achieved…
[Reward: Juggle 50x +1 Agility, +1 Ball Control
[New Skill Unlocked: Focused Touch (Lv1) – Increases control after 2 consecutive dribbles]
He clutched the ball to his chest. Sat on the pavement and just… breathed.
That evening, he came home late. The place was quiet. His mom had gone to bed. On the table was a plate of food. Beside it, a note.
It read; {Proud of you. Please don't get hurt.}
He didn't cry. But he stared at it for a long time. Then folded it and tucked it into his journal.
Whatever this was, whatever this grind was turning him into, it was real.
He still had no team, no academy, no coach and no pitch.
Just dreams, pain and the voice in his head that told him to go again tomorrow.
And he would, he had to because now… something was waking up in him. Something he hadn't felt in years. 'Belief'
…
Leo's legs felt like lead, the concrete under his feet blurred as he tried to finish one last stair hop. He landed awkwardly, stumbled, and dropped to his knees with a grunt. The world tilted, his chest burned as sweat stung his eyes.
He had pushed too far, his breath came in ragged gasps. The water bottle he left on the side of the street might as well have been miles away. His arms didn't feel like arms. More like noodles. Wobbly, useless things.
"Just one more drill," he'd told himself half an hour ago but now he was hunched near a flickering lamppost, clutching his ribs and trying not to throw up again But he failed.
Bile rose in his throat, hot and bitter. He doubled over and emptied whatever was left in his stomach. The sour taste made his eyes water.
'Why the hell did I think I could train like a robot?' he thought.
His head lolled back against the lamppost. Darkness crept in from the edges of his vision. Cars passed by, none of them stopping. The sky above was streaked with dull orange as the sun dipped behind the rooftops.
'Maybe I'm not cut out for this,' he muttered.
The words sounded heavier out loud than they did in his head.
Hi as mind reeled, 'Maybe this is where people qui...' but before I could think further. The system prompt came again.
Ding!
The system's chime was soft but clear, echoing like a bell in his mind.
[Training Efficiency Falling: Rest Required]
Status Effect Applied: [Overworked ]
[Penalty : All Physical Stats -10% for 12 Hours]
…
"Yo! Leo?" Jace's voice cut through the haze.
Leo opened one eye to find his friend jogging toward him, frown already forming.
"What the hell, man? You look like you got run over by a truck."
Leo forced a dry laugh. "Truck's name is ambition."
Jace snorted and handed him a cold bottle of water. "Drink slowly. Before you pass out like an idiot."
Leo sipped. The water felt like magic. It was cold and clean.
"You train like you're in a Rocky montage or something?" Jace sat next to him, elbows on knees.
Leo didn't answer right away. He was still mentally hitting himself for letting the system alert pop while Jace was watching. He kept his face neutral, praying his friend hadn't seen the floating text.
"You didn't… see anything weird just now, right?"
Jace gave him a sideways glance. "Like what?"
Leo grinned. "Nothing, "Just a reminder I set."
With that Leo took a deep breath, the crisis had dodged.
The two sat in silence for a bit. A couple of bikes zoomed past on the road, music blaring. A dog barked somewhere in the distance.
"You know," Jace said, tossing a pebble. "I used to think training was the answer too."
Leo glanced at him.
"Back when I was still playing. Back when I thought maybe I could be something."
"You could've," Leo said quietly.
Jace shrugged. "Yeah, maybe. But then life happened. Family needed help. School got expensive. I started playing underground football at the pit, and before I knew it, schooling felt like a dream I couldn't afford to chase."
Leo nodded. "I get it."
"But you?" Jace looked at him. "You still have time. Don't burn yourself out trying to be perfect in a week. Even rockets need cool downs."
Leo chuckled. "That's so cheesy."
"I'm a walking quote machine, bro. Deal with it."
They got fries from the corner shop afterward. Salty, crispy, greasy fries that tasted like heaven after near-death training. Jace talked about a football gang who tried to pay him with expired coupons. Leo told him about a dog that chased him mid-sprint. They talked about normal things that grounded them.
Later that night, back in his room, Leo sat cross-legged on the bed, he didn't feel like moving.
His legs were heavy and his arms were twitching randomly but his mind was buzzing.
So, he closed his eyes, and pictured it. The ball at his feet, one fake to the right, body lean, a quick chop to the left, like Ronal Vega used to do. Then the twist, the pivot, and the perfect strike curling into the top corner.
He repeated it in his head again and again, until the images burned themselves into his thoughts like muscle memory for the brain.
Ding.
[Mental Focus Training Detected: Visualization]
[Trait Gained: Mental Replay +5% Skill XP when Visualizing Before Execution]
Leo opened his eyes slowly, heart thudding, that was new.
He didn't even move a muscle, and yet he felt… sharper. Like his brain was syncing with his body. Connecting dots he didn't know existed.
He looked at his phone. 1:14 AM.
His mom's voice echoed in his mind, "Rest is part of growth too."
'Yeah, she was right.' Leo murmured.
Then as if on a queue, another voice of the system's previous prompt echoed in his mind. All a reminder that he needed to rest.
[Training Efficiency Falling: Rest Required, Status Effect Applied: Overworked Penalty: All Physical Stats -10% for 12 Hours]
He slid under the blanket and let the day fade.
His body was battered, but his fire was still burning.
##System Summary for clarity
Xp = OVERALL GROWTH TRACKER (LEVELING UP ATTRIBUTES AND SKILL UNLOCKS)
System Points = CURRENCY TO UNLOCK SYSTEM-ONLY PERKS OR TOOLS
Coins = CAN BE USED FOR SYSTEM STORE (WHEN UNLOCKED LATER)
Traits = PASSIVE BOOSTS THAT AFFECT STATS OR ACTIONS
Skills = ACTIVE/PERFORMANCE-BASED BOOSTS WITH LEVELS