"It's like he's in our heads," Kenny McLean gasped, slumping onto the bench.
"I was about to make a pass, and their midfielder was already running to intercept it before the ball even left my foot."
"Their speed..." Jonathan Rowe shook his head, his usual swagger completely gone. "It's not normal. It's like they're playing on fast-forward and we're stuck in slow-motion."
Emre Demir, the quiet genius, just sat there, staring at the floor.
For the first time, he had faced a puzzle he couldn't solve.
His magic was useless against an opponent who knew the trick before he even performed it.
Ethan walked into the room. H
e didn't look angry. He didn't look defeated. He looked... furious. But not at them. He was furious at the game, at the system, at the smug, all-knowing voice of GridironGuru that was still echoing in his head.
