The envelope came in black
No stamp
No address
Just a white wax seal
Marked with an ancient chess piece
A knight
Facing backwards
Reiji found it in his locker before the morning drills
No one saw who placed it
Not even the security cameras
He opened it slowly
Inside was a card
"Cage Match Invitation
Arcadia vs Vortex
Midnight
Location: Underpass 17
No substitutions
No rules
Play to survive"
Leo leaned over his shoulder and whistled
"Bro what is this
Some villain soccer league or somethin"
Reiji's eyes stayed locked on the card
"Arcadia's real
And they're here"
---
The name Arcadia didn't exist in official football records
But those who played street tournaments
Black market leagues
Rogue exhibitions across Asia
They all feared it
Arcadia didn't scout players
They hunted them
If you impressed them
You didn't get fame
You got taken
Rumors said Arcadia had their own academy
Hidden deep in the mountains
Where geniuses were trained and twisted
Built not to win
But to dominate
---
Coach Hiroshi didn't believe the envelope at first
Until Vortex got a direct call
No ID
Just a voice
"You're invited
Your ghost will play
Or we'll come find him ourselves"
That night
Vortex's staff argued for hours
Some said it was a trap
Others thought it was a prank
But Reiji already knew
He had to go
Not just for himself
But for answers
About Osaka
About the one watching
And about the ghost he used to be
---
Underpass 17 wasn't a field
It was a steel cage built under the freeway
Floodlights buzzed from old generators
The floor wasn't grass
It was cracked concrete
Painted like a battlefield
Hundreds of people surrounded the cage
Some stood on cars
Others perched on crates and fences
No referees
No banners
Just tension
Leo and three other Vortex players followed Reiji in
They wore blank shirts
No numbers
No names
Arcadia's team waited on the other side
Five players
All wearing obsidian black
Faces masked
Each one with a different symbol
Reiji's heart skipped once
The one in the center wore a knight emblem on his chest
---
A loud buzzer blared
No whistle
No kickoff ceremony
Just war
Arcadia struck first
Their forward moved like a dancer
Feet gliding
Body twisting between defenders like wind
Before anyone could react
He chipped the keeper
1–0 Arcadia
Crowd roared
Smoke bombs exploded
Vortex looked shaken
Except Reiji
He stepped forward
Eyes glowing faint blue under the light
---
He whispered to Leo
"Stay close
Don't press
Let them reveal their pattern"
Arcadia attacked again
Faster this time
But Reiji cut the pass line
Backheel to Leo
Through ball to right wing
Goal
1–1
The masked knight turned his head
Not to the goal
But to Reiji
He tilted his chin slightly
Like acknowledging a worthy opponent
---
What followed wasn't football
It was warfare
Bodies collided
Walls were used for passes
There were no fouls
No breaks
Each minute drained stamina
Blood mixed with sweat on the floor
The score climbed slowly
2–2
3–3
Then
Chaos
Arcadia changed formation
No warning
Two players shifted into midfield
One dropped back
They moved like a machine
Every touch had purpose
Reiji countered by flipping positions
He took the left wing
Leo became center
But even then
Arcadia read them
It was like they were watching from above
Then Reiji realized
They were
Someone up on the highway
Hidden in a van
Feeding them tactical info through earpieces
Reiji smirked
"Alright then
Let's fry your circuit"
---
He started misplaying passes
Purposely
Just slightly off
Forced Arcadia to react to the wrong information
Within five minutes
Their rhythm broke
The watchers fed false patterns
Thinking Reiji was declining
That's when he struck
Midfield steal
Fake pass
One-two with Leo
Overhead flick
Volley goal
4–3
The cage erupted
Even Arcadia's sideline looked confused
But the knight didn't move
He just stared
Then raised his hand
Arcadia froze
He spoke for the first time
"Remove masks"
The other four obeyed
Faces revealed
Young
But cold
Eyes hollow
Trained
Then the knight removed his own
Reiji blinked
It was someone he hadn't seen in years
Kaito
His old teammate from Osaka
The prodigy once called the "Architect"
The only player who could out-think Reiji in their youth
---
"Kaito…
You're with Arcadia now?"
Kaito nodded slowly
"And you're still playing like a ghost
But ghosts can't lead armies"
Reiji stepped closer
"I'm not leading an army
I'm rewriting the game"
Kaito smirked
"You talk like a protagonist
But this world doesn't need heroes
It needs kings"
He tossed a black band to Reiji
"Join Arcadia
Or fight us
Again and again
Until we erase your ghost for good"
---
Reiji didn't take the band
He turned around
Walked out of the cage
As he stepped back into the cold Tokyo air
He whispered
"I'm not joining anyone
I'm going to build something from nothing
And when it's complete
Even kings will kneel to the playmaker they called a ghost"