The Dazzling Goddess of the Field

The school’s objective had been met; the atmosphere was indeed lively.

Xi Yao idly browsed the campus forum, where posts about the day’s ball game had already monopolized the homepage.

[Sophomores vs. Juniors: Goddess Xi Ruo confirmed to play!]

[Juniors showing no sportsmanship? Sophomores directly deploying a nuclear weapon!]

[Do not overly deify one person. Though the Goddess is strong, she is not invincible. An analysis of the juniors’ chances of winning from three angles.]

[Confessing my love to Goddess Xi Ruo!]

[With the new semester after summer break, university division student council elections are about to begin, while the high school division will follow in a month. Who is your ideal candidate?]

The forum’s homepage was entirely dominated by posts concerning the ball game and Xi Ruo, even pushing the official announcement about the student council elections to the very bottom.

“How incredibly popular she is.”

Xi Yao couldn’t help but exclaim.

She had never realized at home just how dazzling her older sister, Xi Ruo, was at school.

What a pity, though, that all her talent points seemed to have been allocated solely to personal abilities, leaving her romantic life in a complete mess – she didn’t even realize her fiancée was seeing someone else.

Setting down her phone, she casually asked Jiang Li, her deskmate who was engrossed in a book, “Jiang Li, are you going to watch the ball game this afternoon?”

“Yes,” Jiang Li replied, gently closing her book. “I wasn’t planning on it, but I heard that senior from the university division is playing, which is quite rare, so I’ll go take a look.”

Xi Yao tilted her head. “Rare?”

“Indeed. With her strength, even leading the sophomores against the juniors would be effortless,” Jiang Li explained. “She rarely participated in similar matches before, perhaps finding it uninteresting to bully the weaker side.”

Most of the posts on the forum suggested that even with Xi Ruo’s addition, the game between the juniors and sophomores would still be competitive, given the skill gap among the other players.

After all, there were twenty-two people on the field; one couldn’t possibly expect a single person to dominate completely.

However, Jiang Li, a genius in her own right, held a completely different view.

“She definitely has some objective; it’s not merely a whim,” Jiang Li stated with certainty.

Xi Yao blinked, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

She didn’t understand either.

“In any case, let’s go have lunch first. We’ll find out after watching the game this afternoon,” the young girl suggested.

She was always particularly enthusiastic when it came to mealtime.

“Alright.”

The canteen was as bustling as ever that day.

Xi Yao and Jiang Li hadn’t arrived particularly early, managing to find a corner spot with their trays only after some effort.

Only after they had settled down did Jiang Li notice that her well-endowed roommate had heaped a full bowl of rice.

“Your… your appetite is always this good?”

“It is,” Xi Yao replied, shoveling rice into her mouth with her chopsticks. “The canteen food tastes quite good.”

‘After all, I only grow here (TL Note: “团团” is a playful term referring to breasts), and not anywhere else, so I just eat my fill (TL Note: “嗯造就完事儿了” is a casual slang phrase meaning “just eat it all and be done with it,” implying no worries about gaining weight).’

Today, all the students in the canteen were engrossed in discussing the afternoon’s ball game, so no one noticed the “Canteen’s Fastest Eater Legend” (TL Note: “食堂最速の吃饭传说” is a humorous phrase, combining Chinese and Japanese, meaning the fastest eater in the canteen) over here; only Jiang Li watched wide-eyed as Xi Yao ravenously devoured her meal.

Honestly, she ate with such gusto that it even gave Jiang Li the illusion the food was incredibly delicious.

She seemed to understand why her roommate had developed so splendidly.

****

After a short afternoon nap, they woke up and descended the stairs to find all their dorm mates heading towards the stadium.

The two girls joined the stream of people.

Wenlu Academy’s stadium was considered one of the best in the entire province, its surrounding stands capable of accommodating tens of thousands of spectators, and it had even hosted the city-wide middle school sports meet in the past.

Even the turf met EU standards.

“Come on, let’s sit here.”

Xi Yao led Jiang Li to the south stands, found the most comfortable spot, and settled down to await the start of the match.

The match garnered immense attention today; in no time, the stadium was packed to the brim with people, and the university division had even specially arranged for two hosts to add a professional touch to the event.

“Good afternoon, dear students, esteemed teachers, and our younger friends from the high school division.”

“Welcome everyone to Wenlu Academy Stadium for the ball game presented by the female students of the university division’s sophomore and junior years.”

The two hosts harmonized their introductions for the audience.

“First to take the field are the juniors, who have accepted the challenge. They are a team of well-trained warriors, possessing considerable strength and excellent tactical prowess.”

“Precisely! And emerging from the other side are the sophomores, the challengers. To be precise, they have only just entered their sophomore year today, making them an undeniable new force. Yet, the 銳氣 (TL Note: ‘Ruìqì’ refers to the sharp, unstoppable spirit or vigor of a new force) of a new force is indomitable, especially since they possess a secret weapon: the one about to make an appearance…”

Before the hosts could even announce her name, the entire stadium erupted in thunderous applause and cheers, like a surging tide.

Even the students behind Xi Yao stood up, howling with excitement.

Xi Ruo, clad in a sports vest and shorts, stepped onto the field with a graceful, upright posture.

Her long, straight black hair was tied into a high ponytail.

Her exceptionally striking appearance made her stand out among the team of girls, like a crane among chickens.

Her immense popularity was evident from the stadium’s cheers, which were loud enough to drown out all other sounds.

Xi Yao even noticed a tifo (TL Note: A large banner or flag displayed by fans at sporting events, often featuring a portrait or message) being held up by several people in the adjacent stands, bearing Xi Ruo’s photograph.

‘How impressive.’

The young girl was unaware that the moment Xi Ruo stepped onto the field, she immediately glanced towards the south stands, accurately pinpointing her silhouette.

Despite the great distance and the throng of people in the stands, that petite figure shone as conspicuously as a bright moon in Xi Ruo’s eyes.

‘Ahem, on one hand, it was due to affection, but primarily, it was because of her excellent eyesight…’

“Both teams are in position! The juniors have secured the kick-off, and with the referee’s whistle, the match begins!”

The two hosts seamlessly transitioned into commentators, and amidst their voices, the match officially commenced.

Just as most people on the forum had anticipated, the junior team, having trained for an additional year, was superior in all aspects.

After gaining control of the ball, they steadily advanced, quickly crossing midfield.

“Look, everyone! The juniors immediately adopted a 4-3-3 attacking formation, but the sophomores’ 4-2-3-1 single-striker formation is rather conservative, so their defense shouldn’t face too many issues… Oh! The ball has been intercepted and passed directly to Xi Ruo!”

As the ball reached Xi Ruo’s feet, the entire stadium erupted in a cheer, then collectively held its breath, watching the beautiful figure on the field begin to accelerate.

Xi Ruo was not part of the school’s official team and hadn’t specialized in this sport; her technical movements were no better than anyone else’s.

However, her core strength, speed, and balance were simply too formidable.

Moving forward with the most unadorned actions, she proved unstoppable!

“She’s dribbled past them! Nearing midfield, she’s about to face four defenders from the junior team. Can she do it? What?! One, two, three, four — all of them bypassed! The goalkeeper has retreated near the goal line. Can she… shoot!”

Like a flash of lightning streaking across the sky, in the very next second, the net rippled.

“Goal!”

The stadium’s roar of cheers almost lifted the floorboards; sitting in the stands, one could feel even the chairs trembling.

Xi Ruo stood tall in the opposing penalty area, not celebrating, but instead raising her head to gaze towards the south stands.