Chapter 633: Reporting to the People Back Home

It took a while with so many formalities having to be held, from a short interview to the coach’s speech, but in the end, Higo and the players were finally allowed to go back home. He dragged his tired body immediately, not even caring about the guys’ invitation for dinner and beer.

Honestly, Higo didn’t understand Germans’ obsession with beer. While yes, it was good, it definitely wasn’t worth getting drunk every night, especially not when they themselves were athletes in the first place. Well, he just saved this opinion for himself, as people would go berserk on him.

No, instead of doing that, he still had something more important to do. The moment the boy entered his flat, he opened his phone, connecting it to the three other people whom he had promised to give a call after the game was over.

"Ryukkun!" His mother was the first one to appear.

"Hey, Mom, how are you doing?" Higo smiled while adjusting the camera on his phone. "It should be around midnight, right? Aren’t you sleepy?"

"Oh, pish-posh! I have spent more than 10 years working in a night shift; this is nothing for me!" The woman waved off his concern casually. "Anyway, how is the game going? I wanted to ask Kumiko-chan earlier, but you beat me first here!"

Before Higo could answer the question, his sister entered the call as well. "So, how is the result today? Also, have you sent the photo to me?"

"No, not yet. The PR team still holds them and told me to ask again tomorrow." Higo sighed helplessly. "As for the result, let me tell you after Kumiko-chan is here as well. That way, I don’t need to tell it again later."

"Where is Kumiko-chan, by the way? Usually, she is the earliest one to come, right?" Minami asked.

Coincidentally enough, right after that, the girl’s face popped up on the screen straight away. "Hey, everyone! Sorry for my lateness, and congratulations, Ryukkun!" She smiled at Higo immediately.

"Thank you, thank you." The smile also spread on Higo’s face. "Just like Kumiko-chan said, the game ended up in a win, and I got a clean sheet today." He said proudly.

"Not only that, but I also found this." Kumiko suddenly pulled up a video in this call. It was footage of the first goal, where Higo rushed forward to intercept the opponent’s pass and control the ball well enough with his chest to send a long pass after that. "It seems you have improved a lot during your time there. You are even brave enough to pull up something like this!"

Minami and Ayaka also watched the video intently, and while they didn’t understand the implication behind this, those two could hear a hint of pride in Kumiko’s voice, so the former one asked, "Is it something good?"

"It is, Obaasan." Kumiko nodded in confirmation. "He has never done this in all of his time in Hakodate Nishi, and the first time he played abroad, he did something like this! It is definitely an improvement, and he will have more capital to use in the future!"

Those two older women still couldn’t understand the big picture here, but at least they knew that Higo had just taken a big leap in his ability, so they also felt happy about it.

They chatted for quite a while, with those three inquiring more about the game there. Higo also didn’t hold back, telling everything from the big crowd around and the presence of the Yabu family in the stadium. Once Higo noticed that his sister was holding back a yawn, though, he decided to end the call immediately.

"Don’t worry, I will send messages every day. Just treat everything casually, no need to stress yourself over everything." Higo smiled reassuringly.

"No mother in the world would not be worried if her son was alone abroad like you, Silly." Minami smiled weakly. "Still, you are right. You have already been there for more than a month, so you should be alright. Just... Don’t force yourself too much, okay? Stay healthy and don’t forget to have fun!"

"Sure, Mom! I will never forget that!"

Once the call was closed, Higo didn’t get up immediately, but stared at the blank screen in front of him for a while. His mind went back to the game earlier, finding everything to be surreal. It wasn’t until his stomach grumbled that the boy chuckled at himself, breaking the silence in the room.

"Yeah, no matter what happened, I cannot forget to have dinner first."

The boy didn’t go overboard with his dinner, just whipping out whatever vegetable he found in his fridge before adding shredded chicken to it. There was no need for a fancy dinner when all he would do after that was just sleeping like a log.

Even though the game didn’t consume him that much in terms of physicality, mentally, he was so drained. The moment Higo hit the pillow, he lost his consciousness instantly, not even realizing that he still wore his jersey.

Fortunately, the day after the game was always a sabbath day, so Higo didn’t need to wake up too early. When the boy regained consciousness, he narrowed his eyes slightly, finding the sunlight peeking from the curtain.

"Urgh... What time is it? I stink as well, damn..." He frowned a little at his own smell. Instead of taking a quick shower, though, he checked his own phone first, wanting to see the latest news there.

This proved to be the right decision, though, because his sister sent so much news from the local platforms; all of those were reporting about his performance yesterday.

A Win and a Clean Sheet! A Perfect Debut for Hakodate’s Iron Wall!

Koki Morita & Ryusuke Higo Shine in Schalke 04 II’s Win!

Who Are Koki Morita and Ryusuke Higo, Two Youngsters Who Have Just Debuted in Schalke II Team?

Higo blinked as he scrolled through his phone quickly. While this wasn’t the first time he was in the news, this time, almost all the big platforms in Hokkaido shared the story about his debut yesterday. Seeing this, he couldn’t help but mutter in bewilderment, ’What the hell is going on here?’