Evidently, it wasn’t locked.
Because at this moment, Chigiri Hyoma had pushed the door open, unable to restrain himself any longer.
“Icarus…”
Seeing the scene before him clearly, Chigiri Hyoma froze in place for a second, then quickly turned around to close the door, and even made sure to lock it.
Icarus felt a momentary panic at Chigiri Hyoma’s smooth, practiced movements, but then he remembered that Chigiri Hyoma already knew he was a vampire.
That shouldn’t be a problem, then. Icarus relaxed.
Nagi Seishiro reacted quickly. The instant Chigiri Hyoma saw the two of them, the hand that had originally been holding Icarus’s small braid shifted positions, pressing the black-haired youth into his own embrace to cover the bloodstains on Icarus’s lips. At the same time, he said in an impatient tone:
“You are disturbing us.”
Chigiri Hyoma was practically so angry he could laugh.
“I’m disturbing you? I know just as much as you do.”
So there’s no need to go to such lengths to cover up Icarus’s identity. Both my eyes saw him sucking your blood.
Icarus tried to struggle out of the oversized Miffy rabbit’s embrace, “Yes, Chigiri knows.”
“…” Nagi Seishiro’s mouth puckered into a Miffy rabbit pout.
Staring at the bloodstains on Icarus’s lips that hadn’t been wiped clean in the hurry, Chigiri Hyoma only felt they were an eyesore.
“So what is your relationship now?”
This question was a bit too excessive, and Chigiri Hyoma knew this clearly, but having said it in a moment of impulse, he couldn’t take it back.
“Um, a purely pedagogical one,” Icarus licked the remaining meal from the corners of his lips, “This is the reward Nagi paid.”
He had been too rushed just now and hadn’t finished cleaning up for Nagi Seishiro. Icarus looked toward Nagi Seishiro’s neck; sure enough, two small blood holes were still oozing blood.
“I’ll finish up first; you two do as you please.”
Icarus smacked his lips and, before either of them could react, leaned down right in front of them and licked the wound he had just bitten out.
Chigiri Hyoma’s breathing hitched.
Under the bright lights, every small movement had nowhere to hide. This included the intoxicated expression on Icarus’s face, the tiny fangs of a newborn vampire, and the tongue-tip that had softly licked the wound.
And the blinding, entranced expression on Nagi Seishiro’s face.
Chigiri Hyoma took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. Watching Icarus finish his cleanup work and smack his lips as if reminiscing, he tried hard to keep his voice steady.
“Speaking of which, Icarus, you healed my leg; I’ve never known how to thank you.”
“I don’t need your money,” Icarus tilted his head, “I remember you asked this before.”
“Yes,” Chigiri Hyoma’s pink pupils flashed with strange light, “But I have always felt indebted.”
“I feel like I have received too much, but the reward paid is far from enough.”
As he spoke, Chigiri Hyoma stepped forward step by step. When he was within a palm’s distance of Icarus, he leaned down slightly, pulled down the training shirt on one side of his neck with one hand, and lowered his voice as if coaxing, “I think I have found a way to repay you.”
“How does my blood taste? It should be quite excellent, right?”
In an instant, Icarus was reminded of the memory by Chigiri Hyoma’s deliberately lowered voice. A familiar, sweet taste of blood seemed to appear in his mouth again. Just now, in order to take care of Nagi Seishiro’s body, Icarus hadn’t dared to drink much. His stomach, still unsatisfied, growled, frantically manifesting its presence.
At this moment, the Chigiri Hyoma who had offered himself up was no different from a small cake delivered to Icarus’s door. Smelling the faint, lingering scent of blood in the air, Icarus swallowed his saliva.
Watching Icarus’s red pupils shrink slightly under the stimulation of the blood, and the needle-like gaze he felt on the skin of his neck, Chigiri Hyoma was not only unafraid but conversely felt his breathing quicken and his whole body grow hot.
He was excited.
The enticed Icarus couldn’t help but take a step forward. The angle at which Chigiri Hyoma leaned was just right; he only needed one more step to drink
“How cunning.”
A sense of restriction suddenly came from his waist; Icarus looked down. Nagi Seishiro’s two long arms were wrapped around his waist.
“Truly cunning,” Nagi Seishiro elongated his voice, saying lazily.
“Pot calling the kettle black.”
Chigiri Hyoma, having been interrupted, frowned and glanced at Nagi Seishiro behind Icarus, “Don’t you hate training the most? Training until so late every day I see your motives aren’t simple either. Are you deliberately waiting for someone?”
Pink pupils and grey pupils locked gazes, and it was as if crackling lightning sparked in the air.
Icarus, still out of the loop, was completely baffled.
Why did these two suddenly start chatting? Why does this atmosphere feel so weird?
Icarus lowered his head, attempting to reason with the giant mascot around his waist, “Nagi, it’s already very late, and I have already received your reward. How about you go back and rest?”
“No,” Nagi Seishiro chose to bury his head in Icarus’s waist, “Can’t hear you… unless you chase Chigiri away too.”
Watching Nagi Seishiro’s refusal to communicate, Icarus sighed deeply.
Seeing that it wasn’t early anymore, Icarus could only say, “Whether it’s you or Chigiri, it’s time to rest and time to go back. What will happen to tomorrow’s training otherwise?”
“I won’t chase you away. Whether Chigiri wants to come for a knee re-check or you want to find me for soccer practice, I am happy to accompany you whenever I have free time.”
After all, they were both seeds for the world’s number one striker that he had his eye on.
Seeing the atmosphere broken, Chigiri Hyoma understood that he likely wouldn’t be able to achieve his goal today. He took the initiative to yield and said goodbye to Icarus. “Then I’ll go rest first. See you tomorrow.”
Icarus nodded and lowered his head again to look at the most troublesome Miffy rabbit.
Watching Chigiri Hyoma’s figure disappear outside the door, Nagi Seishiro let go reluctantly.
“Accompany me.”
Icarus took a deep breath, then raised his fist.
“Nagi Seishiro, you better stop while you’re ahead. If you act up again, you won’t need to sleep tonight.”
Nagi Seishiro pouted aggrievedly, slowly climbing down from the sofa. His curled-up body stretched out rapidly, his 1.9-meter height bringing a substantial sense of oppression.
“See you tomorrow, then.”
Nagi Seishiro’s grey pupils stared earnestly at the black-haired youth before him.
“See you tomorrow, see you tomorrow; hurry and go rest.”
Watching Nagi Seishiro’s dragging figure disappear outside the door, Icarus sighed in exhaustion.
…
On the day the World Striker Team left, Icarus saw them off. At the moment of parting, Luna sighed regretfully.
“It will be a while before I see you again.”
Icarus: Too sticky, truly too sticky. Is this what a passionate Spaniard is like?
“If you are interested in the Blue Lock project, I welcome you to come as a guest at any time,” the black-haired youth raised his brows.
Luna smiled slightly, “It was not easy to wait until the summer break for me to be able to come and play here; if I were to be absent from the subsequent La Liga matches, your brother wouldn’t agree.”
Icarus, who instantly remembered that Luna was the noble son of RE.AL: …
Damn it! How come not a single striker he cultivated this time can beat this Spaniard! When will his dream of cultivating strikers to blast RE.AL into pieces be realized!
…
Soon, the third selection kicked off.
Icarus sat before the screen, watching as Ego Jinpachi read out the names of the six people standing at the very front.
“The above are the six people I have selected,” Ego Jinpachi’s eyes, hidden behind his lenses, swept over the crowd from on high, “They will be divided into groups ABC; you can freely choose which group to team up with.”
The list of the six people appeared synchronously on the screen. Icarus looked at it carefully.
First place, Itoshi Rin.
As expected.
Second place, Shidou Ryusei.
…Why is that pink-haired weirdo ranked so high.
Third place, Karasu Tabito.
Ah, it’s the kind person I saw in the cafeteria that day.
Fourth place, Otoya Eita.
Never seen him before. The green dye on top of his head is very distinctive.
Fifth place, Yukimiya Kenyu.
First time seeing a soccer player who wears glasses… is it really okay during a match?
Thinking of this, Icarus quickly pulled up Yukimiya Kenyu’s match records in Blue Lock. Watching Yukimiya wearing orange sports glasses in the video, Icarus was lost in thought.
At the same time, the belated sixth place also appeared on the screen. Nagi Seishiro’s avatar appeared at the very end.
“From now on, you will have 24 hours to consider,” a countdown appeared on the screen.
The pitch-black screen reflected the solemn expressions of everyone. After all, unlike before, this round of selection only gave one opportunity to showcase oneself; the competition would be even more intense. And Icarus, as the doctor, finally chose to watch in person this time, rather than through a camera.
The members of the first match walked slowly into the stadium. At the same time, Icarus had already appeared on the field; his unfamiliar face attracted many who were not yet familiar with him.
Chigiri Hyoma spotted the black-haired youth sitting languidly by the spectator stands, yawning. At this moment, there was a first-aid kit at his side, likely for handling any emergencies that might occur on the field.
He left his temporary teammates and walked over quickly, stopping in front of Icarus.
“You came to watch my match today. I won’t let you down,” Chigiri Hyoma’s pink pupils were filled with determination, “I will become the world’s number one striker.”
The light before him was suddenly blocked; Icarus had just subconsciously raised his head when he heard a familiar voice. He smiled, “Alright, I’m looking forward to it.”
Also, not just today. I have always been paying attention to you all.
“Oh my, what did I find?” Shidou Ryusei forcefully pushed Chigiri Hyoma aside, “Someone who vanished after running away that night has appeared again~”
That night?
Chigiri Hyoma, catching the keyword, frowned.
“Hey, tell me, what is your name?” Shidou Ryusei opened his eyes, which were lined with full black eyeliner, and his body suddenly moved in close.
Icarus dodged to the side quickly, “I said it before: people who are bad at soccer aren’t worthy of knowing my name.”
“Is that so?” Shidou Ryusei rubbed his hair in frustration, then suddenly said in a high-pitched voice, “Then how about the other way around?”
“Hey!” Chigiri Hyoma finally couldn’t listen anymore, and frowned as he interrupted.
“What are you guys chatting idly about over there?” Ego Jinpachi’s cold voice came from the speakers overhead, “If you don’t want to play soccer, you can take the initiative to forfeit.”
Shidou Ryusei shrugged and took a step back. The moment before he turned to leave, he looked down from on high at Icarus, who was sitting in the chair.
“In this match, I will let you cheer for my name alone.”