All the forwards want me all to themselves - Chapter 8

Nagi Seishiro slowly opened his eyes.

He was currently lying in his dorm. There was still a faint, lingering ache at the back of his neck. He reached out to touch it, but the skin was as smooth as ever no wounds, no marks. It was as if everything that had happened last night was merely a hallucination.

It wasn’t a hallucination.

Nagi was absolutely certain.

Even if that youth had appeared out of nowhere, taken a bite out of him for no reason, and then vanished just as suddenly, Nagi knew for a fact that the boy was real, not some ghost or monster.

Could he be a vampire?

It wasn’t that vampires didn’t exist in this society. However, those ancient, hereditary families were often haughty and aloof, rarely participating in the social lives of ordinary people. Usually, one could only catch a glimpse of so-called “vampire traces” during certain high-level government events or world-class sporting competitions.

Vampires were generally few in number, and combined with their reclusive nature, Nagi hadn’t even considered the possibility when the person first bit him.

I feel like I’ve attracted a real nuisance.

Nagi rolled over, closed his eyes, and drifted back into a deep sleep.

On the other side, Icarus now full and satisfied, was still sleeping.

His complexion was rosy, his breathing steady. Buried in the blankets, the corner of his mouth was slightly curled upward, and he occasionally smacked his lips as if reminiscing about something.

Ewan sat by Icarus’s bed, reached out to check the temperature of his forehead, and let out a sigh of relief.

It was exactly as he had suspected. Lord Icarus’s fever over the past few days had been his body preparing for his first feeding.

Because he was a half-blood and unlike Lord Nolan, who was born a vampire with fangs. Lord Icarus had lived the first eighteen years of his life essentially as an ordinary human.

Starting today, Lord Icarus would have to transition to a new way of life.

Ewan stepped aside and began sending a text to the eldest son of the Cecil family. He had learned his lesson; he wouldn’t dare leave Icarus’s side for a second. Even when contacting Nolan, he stayed inside the room.

Upon hearing the news, Nolan was ecstatic. He wanted to come over immediately, but he was tied down by family affairs and could only instruct Ewan to take good care of his younger brother.

Ewan naturally agreed. Following the call, he received a fifty-page “Brother Care Manual” from Nolan. Next to the title was a note in parentheses: [Vampire Edition].

Ewan: “…”

Although he had known for a long time, Lord Nolan’s lack of a lower limit when it came to doting on his brother still left the vampire world in awe.

After being repeatedly warned not to let Icarus find out, Nolan happily went offline, leaving a complicated-feeling Ewan behind. Since Icarus hadn’t woken up yet, Ewan sat by the bed and carefully read through Nolan’s manual, page by page.

Icarus had a dream.

In the dream, there was a person whose face was blurred and indistinguishable.

He seemed to be at a beach with that person. The other stood against the light of the setting sun, looking at him and saying something.

“***”

What did you say?

Icarus felt instinctively that it was something important and strained his ears to listen.

“***”

He still couldn’t hear it. Icarus struggled desperately to get closer, only to find he couldn’t take a single step forward.

Damn it!

The more he wanted to cross over, the more he couldn’t. Icarus held his breath in frustration until he actually fumed himself awake.

He snapped his eyes open to the sight of the familiar ceiling.

Ah, I’m awake.

Instantly forgetting the dream, Icarus let out a long, satisfying stretch. Even without checking his temperature, the sense of clarity throughout his body told him he was perfectly healthy.

His movements startled the person leaning against the bedside. Ewan rubbed his eyes. “Good morning, Lord Icarus.”

“Good morning. Ewan, why didn’t you go back to rest?”

Because I was so engrossed in reading the fifty-page “Brother Care Manual” sent by Lord Nolan that I accidentally fell asleep.

Of course, he couldn’t say that.

Ewan chose to sidestep the question. “It’s nothing. Does Lord Icarus feel better?”

Icarus nodded.

“Then, do you remember what happened last night?”

“Last night? Was there something?”

Icarus tried hard to remember, but among the flickering fragments, there was only a flash of white hair and a lingering taste of lemon tea in his mouth.

Did I drink lemon tea last night?

Regarding the lucky person Icarus had chosen, Ewan mentioned it only in passing. He briefly explained that Icarus had triggered his vampire genes last night and that his diet would need to be slightly adjusted from now on.

“Vampire genes,” Icarus murmured.

Unlike his brother, who was born with fangs, Icarus had been born as a human. The entire vampire clan thought he had inherited more of his mother’s side. He hadn’t expected to awaken that part of his genes at eighteen.

Vampires were already rare, and families with two offspring were even rarer. With Nolan already serving as the orthodox heir, the Vampire Consulate had been satisfied and mostly left Icarus alone. Now that he had awakened so late, was he going to be dragged off to work for the Consulate?

Recalling the tragic scenes of Nolan traveling all over the world for business when they were young, Icarus shuddered.

No, no, no. He just wanted to do what he liked and research medicine. He’d leave the Cecil family responsibilities to his reliable big brother.

“From now on, I will add blood from reliable and stable sources to your meals, all from long-term partner suppliers of the clan. If you have a flavor you like, you can tell me, and we can request a long-term supply,” Ewan whispered.

Icarus nodded, threw back the covers, and headed for the infirmary. He hadn’t checked on Chigiri Hyoma’s leg in a while; he needed to see the progress. With the next selection approaching, he had to make sure the boy recovered in time.

When Icarus arrived at the infirmary, he saw Chigiri Hyoma staring blankly while leaning against the bed.

“Yo. You look like you’re in good spirits,” Icarus greeted him cheerfully.

Chigiri looked toward the door, and his gaze instantly froze.

This was the first time he had seen the doctor without a mask. The youth before him had messy black hair, slightly long at the back, with a small braid tied loosely on the left that swayed gently as Icarus spoke.

No wonder there were such rumors. The doctor really is good-looking.

Seeing Chigiri staring at him dazed, Icarus frowned and quickly walked over to check his knee. Did something go wrong? It shouldn’t have.

After tapping and testing Chigiri’s knee, Icarus finally relaxed.

“You’re recovering well. We might even be able to start rehabilitation early.”

Icarus looked up, meeting Chigiri’s unwavering stare. What? Is there something on my face? He tilted his head in confusion.

Chigiri seemed to suddenly snap out of it and quickly looked down, his tone a bit awkward. “Oh, right. Okay. Thank you, Doctor.”

“You’re welcome~ Work hard on your rehab!”

And become the world’s number one forward!

“Doctor, what is your name?” Chigiri asked in a low voice, still looking down.

“Just call me Icarus.” Icarus’s hands moved quickly as he scribbled notes in a medical file and handed them to the red-haired boy. “This is your rehab menu. Of course, it’s just my personal suggestion.”

Taking the training sheet, Chigiri’s expression was unreadable. This person had disappeared for two days without a word; Chigiri had thought Icarus had forgotten about him.

Scanning the list, Chigiri having experience with such things, quickly judged that the menu was scientific and logical.

“Icarus,” Chigiri said softly, his face hidden behind the paper. “Are you this attentive to all your patients?”

Icarus tilted his head. “Saving the sick and injured is a doctor’s duty.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Chigiri smiled. “Forget it, never mind. Thank you.”

“If you want to thank me, then become the world’s number one forward.” Icarus’s words were sincere. Help me crush RE.AL!

Chigiri’s eyes widened. “You actually have such high expectations for me?”

Now, when my leg is injured again? Now, when I don’t know if I can regain my former speed? When everyone is doubting me including myself for a split second in the middle of the night?

You actually believe I can become the world’s number one forward?

The blood in his body seemed to boil. Chigiri felt his desire to play soccer reach a peak. He wanted to prove it to him. He wanted to prove it to everyone who had ever doubted him.

He was still Chigiri Hyoma the one who could sprint across the pitch and leave everyone far behind!

“Alright then.” The red-haired boy laughed slowly, a strange light emanating from his matching eyes. “I’ll prove it to you. On an even bigger stage.”

After checking Chigiri’s knee, Icarus returned to his room to review the surveillance footage from the past few days.

Speaking of which, why did he run into Nagi Seishiro practicing alone that night? If it had been Itoshi Rin or Shidou Ryusei, Icarus would have found it normal.

But it was Nagi Seishiro. It was like a salted fish, already grilled golden-brown on both sides, suddenly standing up, shaking off the salt, and jumping back into the water to live again.

Icarus decided to figure out who had made this salted fish move.

He fast-forwarded through the footage, keeping a close eye on the Nagi Seishiro in the video who was lazily yawning. This was Team V’s final match. Icarus had seen the videos before this game and hadn’t noticed any change in Nagi.

So, is the reason in this match?

In the first half, Nagi was his usual self, blatantly slacking off on the pitch. Yet, even while slacking, he could use his superior natural talent to crush many people. Even moves he had seen only once could be executed perfectly.

Everything changed when Mikage Reo was cornered.

Just because the young master of the Mikage family showed a helpless expression, you’re going to act as the knight protecting the princess, Nagi?

However, once he started moving, Nagi was exactly as Icarus expected a total genius. Countless ideas for traps and goals were used without a second thought, as if his inspiration were an inexhaustible well.

But

Icarus felt that what truly made this genius feel frustrated was the final goal scored by Isagi Yoichi. Even after Nagi got serious, Isagi still snatched a point from the genius’s hands. Nagi probably never had the experience of wanting something and not getting it; this was a good lesson.

Looking at the way Nagi watched Isagi in the video, Icarus smiled.

There it is. The catalyst that made Nagi Seishiro move.