Coughing due to the resulting explosion of rock and water, Seiryuu blinked the tears out of his eyes to see the two women glaring at each other readily while struggling to push the ball between their feet towards the other.

Behind the unknown turquoise-haired woman, stood a figure with a womanly silhouette, pure white garments adorning her body, peacock-green wings and a pair of eye-catching magenta and sapphire blue guns. Opposing her, stood a majestic Asian dragon, with an array of snow-white scales that shined on the serpentine figure, its ice-blue eyes contained a regal aura that reflected the demeanour of its summoner.

"I'm not sure what this idiot here did, but he belongs to us now so if you have a problem with him, I'm afraid you're going to have to go through me first!" Magalie challenged tersely. Then releasing the force from the ball, the two women were blown back to their original positions with a bang.

Tch...

Eyes flashing a dangerous violet hue, the unidentified woman seemed to stop to think for a minute before tapping the ball once, making it disappear before their very eyes. Putting a pleasant smile on her face as if she hadn't just tried to kill the two of them moments earlier, she then clapped her hands against her cheek and winked mischievously.

"Jeez, it was just a joke! Sorry, did I scare you? It's okay if you wet yourself...I promise I won't laugh." the woman giggled coyly.

Seiryuu saw Magalie look behind and lower her eyes and his face flushed angrily, snapping back readily.

"I didn't!"

"Of course you didn't, you're not a baby" soothed Magalie, but Seiryuu's eyebrow twitched sensing a hint of condescension in her words. Before he could shout at her again however, the giggling woman interrupted the two, throwing a pitch black square into Seiryuu's palm with perfect accuracy. Seeing that he had received her gift, the woman began to wave as her body disappeared into small particles of light.

"I'll see you around then Seiryuu-kun~And next time, leave the babysitter at home, okay?"

Flipping her middle finger up at the disappearing woman, Magalie scowled and shook her hand at the now empty air.

"Like hell you are!"

Then turning around to face Seiryuu, Magalie put her hands on his shoulders to scold him lightly,

"If you see her again, just run away. There are some crazy bitches out there, but don't worry. Now that you're part of the team, guppy, I've got your back!"

Stretching her arms behind her after receiving Seiryuu's acknowledgement, Magalie yawned and began to lead the way back to the restaurant steadily.

"Anyway, it's time we head back to Campus so hurry it up. Or should I grab you another pair of pants first?"

"I already told you I didn't pee my..."

Feeling ridiculous however, Seiryuu stopped and groaned into his palm realising that Magalie was just teasing him. Upon sensing a cold sensation against his nose however, Seiryuu stopped in place to look at the small black square that was now resting in his palm. With no time to examine it with Magalie beckoning him to follow her, Seiryuu stuffed back it into his pocket and set his mind to take a look at it later when he returned to his dorm room.

Unsure of what to do with the suspicious, metallic square, Seiryuu decided to smash it with his fist and as soon as he had touched it, the square began to float and then expanded forming a slightly larger rectangular, blue hologram that read,

[Tomorrow. Parc Maurice-Berteaux. 21:00.]

Typing the location in his phone, Seiryuu supposed he could walk over, though whether that was worth it or not was still up for debate.

Recalling the winged Keshin and her precise but powerful movements, Seiryuu had to begrudgingly admit that the woman was at least on par if not stronger than Magalie who was considered by many to be the current leader of the Five Disasters...

Seiryuu tapped his fingers on his desk, musing it over for a few moments but came to a decision rather quickly.

There was no reason to hesitate.

He had made a resolution to crush everyone in his path so it wouldn't hurt to knock that Oba-san down a few pegs while he was here.

Content with his decision, Seiryuu climbed into his bed with a light heart and a minatory grin as he anticipated his easy victory tomorrow...

Perhaps if he were lucky, the woman would shed some tears while she was at it.

It was always the ones with the biggest egos who took the biggest falls.

Hahahaha! Is that all you got? Weren't you going to 'crush' me if I recall correctly?"

Standing over Seiryuu as he caught his breath, the woman let out an exultant laugh that rang throughout the empty park.

Having materialised a miniature sized field for the two to play on with the strange, futuristic ball she had brought with her, the woman had challenged him to a one on one as Seiryuu had correctly predicted.

Seiryuu however, was not Talia, and thus had failed to correctly predict his own thrashing. Thus, while he had yet to secure even a single point off of the turquoise-haired woman, she was already on her twentieth point of the night.

"Again."

Scanning Seiryuu up and down, the woman raised an eyebrow seeing him get up unsteadily and shook her head slowly while calling back her keshin into her body.

"I don't think you should even bother trying anymore but since I'm such a nice Oba-san I'll be sure to crush you tomorrow as you wish."

And the day after Seiryuu found himself saying the same, singular word to the smug woman.

"Again."

And the day after the next.

"Again."

And the days quickly became weeks.

"Again."

With the weeks becoming months.

"Again..."

"I'll compliment you for your tenacity but there is something called useless obstinacy you know?"

Seiryuu clenched his molars tightly as the woman, who he had now been challenging for almost two months now. Looking upwards he could see her twirling her hair casually while he was panting, straining to maintain his Keshin.

Though at first it had been difficult for Seiryuu to even maintain his Keshin for just a singular shoot, he was determined to catch up to the woman who seemed to be able to summon the 'Goddess of the Vacant Skies, Athena' with ease. Pushing his body to his limit, Seiryuu was now able to maintain his keshin for over twenty minutes but...

It was still useless.

Even with his Keshin, she was still completely out of his league in dribbling, ball control and shoot power...

He needed more power...

"If you just listened to me then–"

"Shut up"

Seiryuu refused to take a glance at the miniature, blue dragon that was now floating around his head. Agitatedly yelling into his ear, the dragon continued to try and bite Seiryuu's face while simultaneously trying to avoid Seiryuu's palm which threatened to swat it out of the sky.

Perhaps due to fatigue he reasoned, Seiryuu had begun to hallucinate what appeared to be a chibified version of his Keshin, and to his great irritation, once it realised Seiryuu could hear him, he had begun to prattle like a child that had finally found someone who would listen to them. It was particularly vexing when he had been spotted by Magalie arguing with the dragon which led to an unfortunately long conversation about mental health and a recommendation to see the club therapist.

"How dare you attack the Great Tiamat! Do you know how many humans have bowed to my magnificent presence?! With one roar, civilisations would cower—!"

Finally snatching the dragon while it was busy acclaiming its own laurels, Seiryuu tightened his grip on its maw before throwing it as far as he could into the dark river and was satisfied to hear a splash in the distance.

"Are you done dancing like an idiot or should I just go?" asked the woman with a bored expression on her face, beginning to dribble the ball disinterestedly.

"Again." Seiryuu responded tersely, preparing himself for the lightning quick movements that his eyes were barely beginning to adjust to.

"Hold on! Hold on!"

Completely humiliated but desperate, the chibi dragon blinked its eyes sorrowfully at Seiryuu who was holding it by the throat, preparing for yet another throw out of the park.

He knew he had made a mistake choosing such an uncouth boy as his contractor...but there was no point in regretting now.

Didn't this human know how many warriors had come to his abode, begging for even a drop of his power?

And yet now he was reduced to acting as cute as possible, doing his best to mimic a newborn puppy but it seemed to have the opposite effect. Feeling his body hit the cold river water yet another night in a row, the dragon cursed Seiryuu with every ancient expletive he knew.

Seiryuu's azure blue eyes locked onto the lithe woman's body, determinedly scanning for any exploitable openings but any possibilities were quickly denied to the difference in their physical stats.

But, though he knew it would be impossible for him to score a single point off the yet-to-be named woman, he had no intention of backing down until he had wiped that smug smirk off her face at least once.

If he were to compare the difference between their energy reservoirs, Seiryuu estimated that it would be similar to the difference between an expansive sea and a small lake. Obviously as they were, there was no way he could catch up the gap in such a short amount of time but...

That didn't mean he couldn't win.

He just needed to be a bit more...creative.

Looking at the useless chibi dragon that was floating listlessly due to a month of non-stop abuse until it had finally shut up, Seiryuu picked it up and began to shake it roughly. Realising that Seiryuu was finally looking at it, the dragon began to fly around in circles around his head.

"So you finally realised you need me? Ha! I'm not surprised. Fortunately for you, I'm magnanimous enough to overlook your previous impudence–"

"Is the only thing you know how to do gab, or can you actually do something?" Seiryuu asked with such blatant condescension, the dragon felt all of its scales turn upwards in clear affront.

"I can–" began the dragon, but it paused thinking about what it actually could do with this body.

While it would've been easy to destroy the entire continent with one breath in its true body...the same could not be said in his current state as Seiryuu's Keshin...

It was already a stretch to share its energy through the avatar that resulted from their bond, and it was even more of a miracle that he was able to send a trickle of his consciousness to this universe...Though he wasn't sure if dragons could even sweat, the chibi dragon began to feel beads of water collect on his head.

Surely there had to be something he could do besides fly around and act as Seiryuu's personal cheerleader!

Seiryuu sighed at the pathetic sight of the dragon like it was what he exactly what he had expected from it. Then, ignoring its obvious distress he asked tyrannically while holding the dragon by its horns so he could look it in the eyes.

"Can't you increase the output on this thing?" pointing to the azure dragon avatar behind him.

"The output?" repeated the dragon.

"For someone who was extolling themself as some sort of god or whatever, this can't be the best you can do right?"

"Ha! Of course not!"

"Good, then give me everything you got."

Now it was the dragon's turn to scoff, hearing the ridiculous words coming out of Seiryuu's mouth.

"It's good to be bold but if you think a mere human could handle the full power of a Keshin, much less a keshin of my level, then you might as well give my greetings to Ereshkigal."

"Did it sound like I was asking for your permission?"

It was a simple solution and a fitting solution considering his philosophy towards soccer.

If his energy reservoir wasn't enough, then rather than releasing it at a steady state over an extended period of time, all he needed to do was adjust the outflow and use it all up in one go.,,

Licking its lips in trepidation, the dragon saw the psychotic look in Seiryuu's eyes and let out a puff of smoke through its nostrils. Floating downwards to put its claws on Seiryuu's shoulder, Tiamat whispered into his contractor's ears.

"Three seconds. Or else you'll really die. Okay?"

The woman paused for a moment seeing the look in Seiryuu's eyes change, and for the briefest moment she felt a similar sense of dread as she had back then...

Flinching unknowingly, she backed up with the ball before looking up at the dark sky that began to crack under flashes of white lightning and roaring thunder that shook the stars with its wrathful cries.

In between the roars of thunder, she observed that Seiryuu had fallen eerily quiet and feeling an ominous cold sensation run down her back, she quickly called forth her Keshin.

"Come out!"

Goddess of the Vacant Skies, Athena!

Then, launching herself forward with the winged goddess behind her, the woman dribbled the ball with furious acceleration until she observed lightning flash and under the illumination she could see Seiryuu mouthing something undecipherable to her.

Tensing her body up, it was as if the air itself were becoming electrified and with each clap of thunder, Seiryuu began to shine more intensely with an overwhelming electric blue light, and then...

Darkness.

"Hmph. So you finally got a point off me. I guess this is what you would call a 'passing grade' then?"

Propping Seiryuu's fallen body up against a tree, the woman looked at the field that had become overturned in the wake of the boy's last shoot with the faintest hint of admiration. She had been starting to doubt whether he had it in him or not but it looked like she could rest easy now.

Maybe he wasn't quite as talented as she was, but she could recognise talent when she saw it.

He was the real deal.

The woman stopped motionlessly, looking at the unconscious striker, and crouched down, gazing at him with sharp eyes. Moving her head closer to Seiryuu's, his face overlapped with the stubborn face of the striker with violet hair and grey eyes that she hated so much. Subconsciously moving closer, she found herself resting her hand gently on his cheek.

Remaining silent, the woman's violet eyes carried a heavy look until she finally stood up once and dusted herself off smoothly. Holding her palm outwards, the strange ball they had used for practice the past two months materialised and she whispered solemnly beside it.

"El Dorado Administrator ■■■■■■■ ■■■■■■■■■, authorises transfer of ownership of Sphere Device 3.X2Z to Tatsunori Kitagawa. Immediate order execution requested."

Left in the empty park as the ball slowly disappeared after acknowledging the owner transfership, the woman began to walk away when she felt a hand grab her wrist. Smirking knowingly, she didn't turn around and instead threw Seiryuu's weak hand off of her with ease.

"Wait!" Seiryuu called out desperately.

Rather than stop however, the woman continued to walk away without hesitation and instead replied with a simple yell over her shoulder.

"Everything you need to know is in the Sphere Device Seiryuu...good luck."

No words were needed to be shared between the two strikers...but Seiryuu knew that this would be the last time they would be meeting. There was no way he could let her go without acknowledging her as his teacher however and so he called out once more to the retreating woman.

"Your name!"

"..."

Ha...

How long had it been since someone had last asked her that question?

No.

She didn't need to pretend, she knew it had to have been him.

And he would remain the only person she would share her name with.

Though Seiryuu was unable to see it, the corners of the woman's mouth raised ever so slightly as her body began to fade in the darkness.

"You can just call me...Beta."

Struggling to stand up, Seiryuu bowed with his head low and shouted with a resonant yell.

"Thank you...Beta-sensei."

Hmph

Hearing Seiryuu's final call to her before she disappeared, Beta let out a pure laugh in the night that no one would hear.

As she thought...

The word 'sensei' really didn't suit her.

■■■■■ ■■■■■■, 2XXX, Grand Celesta Galaxy

"So you decided to intervene after all..."

Turning around to face the man who had appeared in the alleyway behind her, Beta rolled her eyes seeing the familiar long-white hair and egotistical violet eyes that made her want to smash his face in.

Scoffing in disbelief that he had actually dared to contact her after their last conversation, if one could call it a conversation, Beta opened her mouth to speak with venomous disdain dripping from her every word.

"Don't lecture me Saryu. At least unlike someone, I took responsibility and stayed until the end...Besides, I know you're the one who sent me this." she finished, pointing to a holographic screen similar to the one she had given Seiryuu.

Instead of responding however, Saryuu simply lifted his eyebrow, confusion appearing to seep out from every bone in his body.

"Oh shut up. Besides him, we're the only ones left and you're the only one sick enough to hold on to something like this." Beta explained, feeling the hairs on her neck beginning to rise as Saryu showed no signs of recognition in his eyes.

"What is it?" Saryu asked innocently, reaching his hand out to examine the device but Beta moved her hand back defensively before he could touch it.

"Nothing...just mind your own business." Beta muttered under her breath before quickly making her escape from the alleyway back into her dark apartment.

Hurrying to shut the door and turn off the lights, Beta spun the black square on her finger for a few moments before tapping it twice, and laying the expanded, flat rectangle on her eyes...

Keshin : Ruler of the Skies, Houou!

A sky lit with flames and black ashes covered an expansive stadium.

Shoot Command K01 : Houou Conflagration!

A well-built man with pointed ears and violet hair can be seen shouting commands to the three forwards following closely behind him.

"Gamma, Einam, Leiser! Make it a shoot chain!"

Keshin : Swift Wolf Lycaon!

Shoot Command 24 : Omega Attack!

A rainbow infused ball races towards the goal but an all consuming darkness stops the recording...

Beta flinches and begins to count the seconds until they will reappear. She has already memorised the recording by heart after obsessively watching it until her eyes could no longer see anything due to fatigue.

One. Two. Three...

Crackle

Flames encroach upon the stadium and a black smog now blocks out the sun.

The violet haired man can be seen on the field, reaching outwards towards something Beta cannot see but his body eventually disappears into tiny specks of light.

Beta throws the holographic generator across the room, tightening her hands around her ears to block out the screams from the stadium.

How could he do this to her?

He promised...

She had been there only moments before the match had started...

"What the fuck Alpha? Why is Gamma playing but I'm not! There's too much at stake, I'm the best striker we got and you know that!" Beta screams, but it is to no avail.

"No. That's exactly why you can't. How can we let them face the final boss without defeating the sub-bosses first? Or do you not have any faith in us?" Alpha asks, reaching out for Beta's hand but she slaps it away.

"Don't do that Alpha...I'm not playing you lose...you saw what would happen..."

Sighing, Alpha pulls Beta in close, ignoring her resistance and he runs his hand down her turquoise hair with tender strokes.

"I'm sorry Beta."

"You're a bastard, you know that?"

"If we lose..." Alpha attempts to continue but Beta interrupts him once more, not wanting to hear anything more.

"If you lose, I'll murder you Alpha."

Alpha smiles softly, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes.

"If we lose, go to this location. Saryu will be waiting for you...okay?"

And that day, Beta became El Dorado's Sole Survivor.