'Is that another mission?' Ken thought with excitement.
Since there were too many people around, he didn't want to bring up the system right now. But the problem was, it was only around 4:30pm which meant he wouldn't get to his room till later.
"You guys can hang out for a while, the buffet opens in 30 minutes."
Chris called out to the team before closing the meeting room door. It seemed that the coaching staff still had some things to discuss.
The team spread out amongst the lobby, waiting for 5pm to arrive.
'Do I say I need to take a dump?' Ken fidgeted, feeling a burning curiosity towards the new notification which threatened to overcome him.
"Looks like you're nervous brother." Daichi said with a grin.
"Eh?" Ken turned to him with confusion.
"See, your leg keeps bouncing. You only do that when you're excited or nervous."
Hiroki let out a chuckle, "Who would have thought that all 3 of us would have made it into the starting line up? There was a time when thought we wouldn't even make the team."
Faced with this sudden self-reflection, Ken looked at the two teens with exasperation.
'I just wanna see my damn mission!' He shouted inwardly.
"This is a big opportunity for us, we need to make the most of it." Daichi commented, gripping his fist.
The trio each had stern expressions, not something usually seen on the face of teenagers. Ken especially seemed to be a little anxious, with sweat pouring down his usually calm features.
Soon after, Chris came out of the meeting room with the rest of the coaching staff. He saw his two boys in the lobby and frowned upon seeing Ken.
'Is he worried about playing in the outfield for the first time?' He thought.
Like a true concerned father, he made his way over and checked on his son.
'J-Just a peek… Surely no one will notice right?' Ken thought inwardly as he scanned the surroundings.
He quickly accessed the system window and saw the flashing icon.
"Kenny, are you okay? You're sweating a lot."
Ken jumped up from his chair in fright, almost colliding into his father. He quickly waved his hands, dismissing the system window that he'd just opened.
His heart was beating out of his chest as he stood up straight and faced his dad.
"I-I'm okay… Thanks for asking ha ha ha" Ken stammered.
But his words did not fool his own father.
Chris wrapped his long arm around his son's shoulder and dragged him away after his fatherly instincts screamed at him. After all, he felt some responsibility for the decision to move him to right outfield.
Ken blinked a few times in confusion.
'Damn it, now Dad thinks I'm anxious about playing in the outfield tomorrow.'
Ken could only cry inwardly. His burning curiosity to see what the system notification was about had brought him to this misunderstanding.
Once they were away from everyone, Chris leaned closer to him and spoke in a hushed tone.
"I know it's a little intimidating to be playing in a position that you're not comfortable with. But I saw you in the outfield drills, you have a killer arm and great technique which fits us perfectly."
"Yeah… I guess it's just a lot to take on at the moment." Ken said. He needed to steer into the narrative, otherwise he could tell that his father would not relent.
Chris let out a small sigh and gave his son a pat on the back.
"We wouldn't have made the decision if we didn't think you could handle it."
Despite not really being all that nervous about his debut in the outfield, Ken felt a sudden warmth at his father's concern.
"Thanks Dad, that means a lot." Ken said with a smile. His words were genuine, as he truly felt gratitude.
Seeing his son's face light up, Chris smiled in kind. He had been a little worried that Ken might be harboring some sort of grudge for not being named as the starting pitcher, especially since he'd won at Koshien.
Many people were hailing him as the next Yu Tanaka after his legendary performance at Koshien. While Chris advocated for this comparison and even believed it himself, he did not want his son to get conceited.
Conceit and arrogance was not something that fit in with the Japanese National Team's ethos.
"Alright good. Go have some dinner and get plenty of rest tonight." Chris stated with a grin.
Ken nodded before heading back to Daichi and Hiroki who had been watching the whole interaction. It felt a little embarrassing to be coddled like so in front of his friend and brother, but they didn't give him any flack for it.
Daichi smiled widely, happy that his brother had calmed down.
Thankfully, the trio didn't have to wait much longer for the restaurant to open. The whole team practically stormed the line as soon as the doors opened, leading to the staff freaking out a little.
"Ah, sorry about them. They're a little hungry after practice today." Chris said politely to the waiter.
Soon enough, everyone had their fill and headed back up to their hotel rooms.
Ken patiently waited as Daichi yapped at him for a while, his words filled with excitement as he talked about tomorrow's game.
After his verbal diarrhea, Ken thought that Daichi had finally fell asleep, yet he was wrong.
"I didn't get a chance to talk to Miho today since the Head Coach was always nearby."
"Ah… I see." Ken rolled his eyes.
Out of everything he wanted to do right now, talking about Miho was at the bottom of the list. However, it wasn't like he could blow off his brother in his time of need.
"I think you'll have plenty of time to chat to her while we're batting tomorrow."
"Oh yeah! How could I have forgotten?"
At this new revelation, Daichi began to chatter away without a care in the world.
'My mission…' Ken cried inwardly.