Ryzel began to assign his members to each sport. "Today, I will be on archery, Seven will be on target shooting, and Jameson will be our representative for swimming. We still have ten more members so we can afford two major games. We will play what we do best; basketball and volleyball. I will be a reserve on volleyball while Seven and Jameson will be on basketball. It would be good to win first place for team games, but even if we don't, we stick to second place. As for individual sports, let us make sure to excel at all of them. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Captain!" They chorused and began to prepare their stuff for the afternoon. "Ross," Ryzel called the black-haired man who was wearing eyeglasses.

"Yes, Captain?" Ross nodded to his teammates and went to Ryzel. Ross may not reach six feet but he's an impressive libero. He's also a playmaker that got Team Ryzel the first place for volleyball last year.

"How's the practice this past week?"

"We're doing well, Captain. We are in our top form and we are confident that we can defend our title."

"Good job. I want you to use your connections and keep track of the newbie captain's team. I have a feeling that they will be our greatest competitor. We can't let them win, Ross." Ross nodded, aware of what is at stake for this year's sports festival.

Ross and the others had a feeling that their captain will not bring them to the huge mission next week so they had a meeting that the reward they will ask for would be to join their captain in his suicide mission. Seven and Jameson had the same idea and they found a loophole in the rules of the game: yes, Ryzel's the captain, but the unanimous wish of the team holds more weight than the wish of the captain. The Madam told them. She is worried about Ryzel's safety too, but knowing how stubborn Ryzel is, she had to pull some strings.

"Got it, Captain. You can count on me. I'll tell the guys. We won't let you down." Ross was surprised when Ryzel smiled at him softly.

"I know, Ross. I appreciate everyone's loyalty and trust towards me, that's why..." Ryzel drawled but shook his head, leaving Ross hanging. "Never mind. Keep safe." Ross nodded but he already know what Ryzel was about to say next. He can't risk us so he's going alone. We can't let you do that, Captain. You're too important for us.

Meanwhile,
Pool Area

Blue stretched his limbs and took a deep breath. Coming first place in swimming is a good start: it's a thousand points after all.

"Oh, you're competing for your team, Captain Blue?" A familiar man with dark hair and blue eyes approached Blue. The man was sucking on a lollipop with a happy expression.

"Jameson. You're the representative?"

Jameson nodded and cracked his neck. "Hmm. Captain will be on archery while Seven handles target shooting. By the way, I want to apologize for talking behind your back last time. That was unwarranted."

Blue was surprised at Jameson's humility and nodded. "Um, thank you. I appreciate that. It's rare for someone to apologize for something like that."

Jameson chuckled and his playful aura turned dark and dangerous. He stepped closer to Blue and leaned. "Now that we're even, my next words will be a warning. I don't know what you're planning but I won't let you get close to Captain Ryzel. We will win this sports week and we won't let anyone hold us back. Am I understood?" Jameson grinned and his outgoing aura went back. Jameson giggled and patted Blue's shoulder as if nothing happened. Jameson walked to his position and greeted his other competitors.

Ken, who saw the entire exchange, ran towards Blue. "Cap, are you alright? What did he say?"

Blue gritted his teeth and his eyes went dark and scary. "Nothing. Tell me something about him. How good is he?" Blue never removed his gaze from Jameson who was laughing with the other competitors.

Ken gulped at the dark aura surrounding Blue. "The best. Before he joined The Phantom, he holds the record for the fastest time in a hundred-meter freestyle swimming. Each year, he breaks world records like no one ever did."

Blue took a deep breath and nodded. "Got it. I'm not sure if I can win first place, but I'll get us second place. Every point counts."

"Don't put so much pressure on yourself, Cap. We'll make sure to do well in other events. We're here to share this burden with you," Ken added and tapped Blue's shoulder encouragingly.

"Thanks, Ken. Wish me luck."

"Good luck, Cap. We support you in your pursuit of Captain Ryzel," Ken added with a wink and ran outside before Blue could recover.

"Fuck. This is not because of Ryzel," Blue denied and went to his position. The referee blew his whistle and Blue dove into the cold water.

****
Blue resurfaced from the water and glanced at the scoring board. He gripped the edge of the pool, catching his breaths. As expected, Jameson holds first place with a 0:39:02-second record. He was next with 0:1:08 seconds. I didn't have a chance, Blue thought with a small shake of the head. Jameson removed his goggles and smiled at his supporters. They got a thousand points in the bag. Jameson's smart band beeped and revealed 1,000 points on the tracker.

On the other side of the field, Seven was shooting at the target like a fine marksman. After three rounds, Seven emerged as the winner and Ken got second place. Seven felt his band vibrate and smirked when their tallied points totaled 2,800 points, which means, Ryzel won the archery competition.

Ken check his smart band and the screen flashed, revealing their total points: 1,900. "We need to work harder on major sports if we want to win," Ken mumbled and left the building. Seven's expression went blank as he stared at Ken's retreating back.

"We won't let you. Our captain's life is at stake here," Seven gritted out and went back to their base. Seven saw Ryzel in his white hakama leaving the dojo. "Captain!"

Ryzel saw Seven and waved. "Hey. Good job, Seven. Looks like Jameson succeeded too. It's amazing to have reliable members. I sometimes forget that all of you have specialized skill sets," Ryzel added with a proud smile and patted Seven's back. Seven couldn't contain his grin after seeing the pride in Ryzel's lavender eyes.

"Well, we were raised to be winners, Cap. We will win this," Seven promised. I can't let you go alone, Captain. You have done so much for us. It's time for us to return the favor.

"We need to prepare for the team games for this afternoon. We need to get into the top five for both volleyball and basketball so we can compete in the semifinals. For tomorrow morning, I will represent us for fencing. For taekwondo, I will leave it to you, Seven. The day after tomorrow, Jameson will play golf while Eris will play billiards."

Seven nodded in agreement. For Jameson, golf is a child's play. That man has been accompanying his father and uncles to golf since he was five years old. As for Seven, taekwondo is one of his special skills. Seven is a world champion. Eris, on the other hand, is also a prodigy in billiards. No wonder Ryzel's team is formidable because Ryzel attracts talents.

"We need to up our ante," Blue decided after having a short meeting with his squad and reviewing the profiles of Ryzel's squad. "Because of their small number, they will target minor sports. We will proceed as we had planned: get first place in team games and we will close the lead with the current first place overall: Team Ryzel. They are serious about winning this sports week and we are too. Let's do our best, team!"

"Yes, Captain!" The members left the group to warm up.

Blue glanced at his smart band and sighed. This is only the first day. We have enough time to make a comeback. "I promise you, Ryzel. I will win, and I never break my promises."