69 Battle Preparations - Howards Side (1/2)
”Lol, you serious?” Roi asked. Howard just called him and Dan to explain the crazy bet he made with Yuel.
”Wait,” Dan said. ”You really gonna step down from being the captain if you lose?”
”Not sure what I'll do about being the club captain,” Howard answered. ”But, I will surrender him the Support role as promised. So, yes, this is no joke. It's a serious match if that's what you're asking.”
”Huh...” Dan was speechless.
”You really think you can win, bro?” Roi asked. ”It'll be me and Dan on Yuel's team, ya know. You don't think Tai and GG can balance us out, do you?”
”Of course not. But, where's the fun if it's not challenging, right?”
”Lol, somebody likes to live dangerously.”
”Anyway, that's the gist of it,” Howard said. ”Until the match on Friday, consider Yuel your captain. Cooperate with him on whatever he asks and prepare for a tough match. I don't want to see you put on an embarrassing performance just because my position is at stake.” It wasn't a request; it was an order. They weren't allowed to even entertain the thought of slacking off. It was a serious match through and through.
”Heh,” Dan chuckled. ”Bet you also gonna say you'll kick us off the first string if we don't play well, amirite?”
[Hmm.] Howard paused for a moment. Normally yes, he'd threaten them with something along these lines. That'd to ensure they're 100% concentrated on the task at hand and will be able to draw out their full potential.
However, right now, these two were his ”enemies”. Howard wanted a fair match with Yuel, but there's no reason to go out of his way to ignite the enemy's fighting spirit. That's the job of the enemy captain, not Howard's.
”Nah,” Howard said. ”We all know you're better than Tai and GG in your main roles. No matter who wins the match, I'm sure you'll keep your positions regardless. That is, as long as you don't embarrass yourselves with a shabby performance and play worse than Tai and GG.”
”Lol, it takes a special kind of skill to play worse than these kids”
”Yeah,” Dan added. ”They don't even main these roles. We can play better than them even with our eyes closed”
”Good.” Howard nodded. From their tones, they were going to put on a decent fight. However, they won't be fighting with their positions on the line, so they'll be tough opponents but not overwhelming. Unless Yuel ignites a flame in them, there's nothing to worry about... right?
Next, Howard informed Gilbert. However, here he assumed a different tone. Gilbert was on Howard's team, so he had to treat this match as a matter of life and death. Therefore, maximum motivation!
”Also,” Howard added after explaining the basics. ”This match will double as a selection test for the first string, which includes you too. It's a good chance to test how much July has improved over the year.”
”Hm,” Gilbert was silent for a long moment. ”You mean it? You really consider picking her for the first string over me?”
”Elly trained with her and said she improved a lot. So, who knows how good she is by now.”
”I see. I'll play with that in mind.” Gilbert said. There was strong determination hidden underneath his tone. Even though he didn't seem to believe Julia had any chance to steal his spot, he wasn't going to take any risks. After all, it's Gilbert, he hated risks no matter how small they were.
[Alright, nothing to worry about here.] Howard nodded to himself. Gilbert's motivation should now be at its peak, so he'll put on a good show on Friday. Julia will no doubt also be motivated for this match, so Gilbert will have to squeeze every last bit of fighting spirit to overwhelm her.
Next, there's Taison and Gregory. These two will be a little harder to handle because Howard didn't know them that well. He has known Gilbert since grade school, but he only spent one year in the club with Taison and Gregory. They didn't really have that many meaningful interactions.
Nevertheless, Howard had a rough idea of how to press their buttons. These two will have to do their absolute best this to get obliterated by Roi and Dan, so their motivation will have to be beyond its maximum. The problem was: they were a rather selfish bunch and they didn't have anything particular at stake this match.
As the captain, that's up to Howard to solve. He had to make sure all his soldiers were psyched for the upcoming match and it didn't matter what he had to do to that end. For starters, Howard invited the problem kids to his house and explained the situation face-to-face.
”Man,” Taison was the first to complain. ”Why we gonna do this shit?”
”I second that sentiment,” Gregory added. ”It feels like we're just being used for your little game. We're also players, you know. What about our chances of getting into the first string, huh?”
”They exist,” Howard answered right away, he was already prepared for this. ”Even though I only made a promise with Yuel, I think of this match as a general 'first string selection test'. In a way, you could say I'm using [him] to test other players like [you].”
”Kek, smartass.”
”Khaha, I'm lovin' it!”
Alright, they were amused by this little wordplay. Things started off on the right foot-
”Except, there's a problem,” Gregory was quick to catch on. ”We also wanna play Carry and Support. How does that fit into your test?”
”Hey, the man is right!” Taison flailed his arms and added noise.
[Sharp little...] Howard frowned. Well, this sucked. Then again, he knew this was going to be the main issue with these two troublemakers. They'll be playing Top and Jungler in the upcoming match, but that's not their main roles. Same as Yuel and Lars, these two aimed for Support and Carry. In a sense, they were rivals too.
It's a tough spot. How should Howard wing this? He had multiple ideas prepared, but couldn't tell which of them will lead to success.
”Too bad,” Howard said, his tone turning colder. ”Support and Carry are taken.”
”Yeah,” Gregory retorted. ”Except, you're giving Yuel and Lars a chance to grab the roles.”
”Not really because there's no chance I'll lose. This is just a way to drop Yuel off my case. Gotta crush him thoroughly, so he doesn't dare to speak about being Support while I'm here.”
”Kek, savage.” Gregory's attitude started changing, it was easy to tell by his tone. Howard got one step closer to converting these two.
”I'll give you two a chance as well if you really insist,” Howard said. ”But, you really think you can take on me and Ellen? You don't wanna embarrass yourselves, do you?”
”Heh, well...” Gregory averted his eyes.
”I totally should be a starter, yo!” Taison insisted.
”My,” Ellen interjected. ”You want to steal my spot? Taitai you're so cruel~ Sob, sob.”
”Gah, well...” Taison scratched his head. ”Guess I can wait for next year...” Good job, Ellen.
”That's why I said,” Howard steered the conversation back on track. ”Think of this match as also a test for [you]. Not for Support and Carry as you'd ideally like, but for Top and Jungle. I want to see how you fare compared to Dan and Roi. These are your secondary roles and I know you can handle them well. Who knows, maybe you'll show enough potential to become a starter.”
”So,” Gregory adjusted his glasses. ”You're saying this is our chance to debut with our secondary roles. Hmm.”
”Hell yeah!” Taison exclaimed. ”I'm totally in, man! Gonna blow Roi out of the water, khaha!”
”I believe your opponent would be Dan, though.” Gregory corrected.
”Oh, true dat. No matter! I'mma wreck them both! Because I'm da best!”
”Dumbass,” Gregory chuckled. He contemplated for a moment, then spoke up again. ”You're really saying we got a chance?”
”Perhaps,” Howard shrugged. ”Anything is possible. You were greenhorns when you first joined, but you've already spent a year in the club by now. The first year is the most important for growing, so only now we can really test how good you are. I'm sure you improved a lot, so let's see if you're good enough to earn yourselves any starter positions.”
”Hell yeah!” Taison nodded exaggeratedly. ”Nationals, baby! Here comes yo boi DaBestBro!!!”
”Somebody's here already in La-La Land.” Gregory smiled wryly. Judging by his tone, he wasn't entirely convinced yet. Howard had to give him one more push. But, what else was there to offer as a reward?
”My,” Ellen tilted her head. ”You really don't know how to dream big, GG. Maybe that's why you're not a starter yet. Ever thought about that?”
”Who the fuck are you calling GG.” Gregory frowned at her, but she dodged it.
”Anyway, [GG]. You better think about what's important here.”
”And what's important, exactly?”
”That Yuyu is trying to become the team's Support. If you don't cooperate with us, we may actually possibly kinda lose, you know. You really wanna see Yuyu become a starter before you?”
”No way,” Gregory replied instantly, his eyes sharp like a blade.