The system notification appeared again.
The system was generous this time since it was here to support its host.
[Ding! Condition Met: First Victory Achieved.]
[Access Granted: Void Stadium and Pitch Unveiled.]
Her vision blurred. A wave of dizziness washed over her, and for a heartbeat she was pulled into a mysterious stadium entirely.
She stood in a place that wasn't of earth, sky, or sea. Darkness stretched in every direction, but it was not empty. Veins of glowing silver pulsed like arteries of a living cosmos. Suspended in the middle was a stadium—colossal, endless, radiant and surrounded by heavenly clouds. Its pitch shimmered with a faint starlight glow, and goalposts carved from fragments of collapsed stars stood proud.
Above the stadium, phantom constellations formed into formations—4-4-2, 3-5-2, 4-3-3—then shifted seamlessly, as though rehearsing celestial dances.
Joan's breath caught in her throat. "This... this is our home."
The system's voice resonated like a referee's whistle echoing through eternity:
[Void Pitch Activated. Accessible only to Host and Authorized Members. Secrecy Enforced. Invitation Required.]
[This stadium exists in the fold between realms, beyond the eyes of gods, scouts, or enemies. Here, you may train, grow, and prepare.]
Joan's knees nearly buckled. A secret stadium, hidden in the void, unseen by the Divine Football Organisation. It was a sanctuary—and a weapon.
"Then this will be our fortress," Joan whispered, her voice trembling with awe. "This... will be the cradle of our destiny."
[Ding! New Function Unlocked: Club Naming.]
[Requirement: Name your club. A name is more than identity; it is soul, destiny, and banner. Choose wisely.]
Joan returned to reality and looked out at her ragtag players, celebrating the Golden Talons' defeat in disbelief. Misfits. Rejects. Gems hidden in dirt. A stadium hidden in the void.
Her lips curved upward. "We are the Eclipse Shadows."
The system pulsed in approval.
[Club Name Confirmed: Eclipse Shadows.]
[Identity Established: 'Hidden in obscurity, destined to blot out the sun of giants.']
[Fan Base Synced: +512 new supporters drawn by the legend of the name. Total Supporters: 639.]
Yes, as she named her club. The entire Divine Realm received a soul notification of an established club. Joan's heart swelled. From nothing to something. From the slums to a myth. Eclipse Shadows—her Eclipse Shadows—were born.
The following days in Aevallure were nothing short of chaotic. News of the Eclipse Shadows' victory over the Golden Talons spread like wildfire.
"A team of slum brats beat the Talons? Impossible!"
"They say their coach is the girl with the broken X-grade talent. What trickery is this?"
"No trick. I saw it myself—those kids moved like they'd been reborn."
The Divine Football Organisation issued a statement the very next morning:
"The so-called 'Eclipse Shadows' club is unregistered and illegitimate. Their participation in further matches requires formal recognition. However, due to archaic bylaws, if they secure three victories against sanctioned teams, their legitimacy cannot be denied."
The people laughed, sneered, debated. To the Organisation, it was a bureaucratic delay. To Joan, it was an opportunity.
"Three matches," she murmured to her staff. "We've won one. Two more, and they can't erase us."
Varin, her grizzled assistant coach, grunted. "They'll throw bigger monsters at us. You embarrassed the elites; they won't forgive you."
"Good," Joan replied sharply. "The harder the enemy, the greater our legend when we win."
That night, she summoned her team into the Void Pitch. The players blinked in awe as the infinite stadium materialized around them.
Kai fell to his knees, clutching his ball. "This... this isn't real."
"It's real enough," Joan said. "This is ours. A place no one else can touch."
The players trained harder than ever. Here, the system manifested visual overlays during practice. Kai's dribbles left behind glowing traces showing efficiency loss. Mila's shots hung midair, with golden lines projecting alternate arcs she could have aimed. Rook's runs left spectral afterimages marking blind spots he could exploit.
"Coach," Rook muttered after a session, sweat dripping from his brow, "this place... it's like the pitch itself is teaching us."
Joan smirked. "That's because it is."
Every night, they sharpened themselves in the void, far away from prying eyes. Every morning, they returned to the slums, acting like nothing had changed.
And yet, change was coming.
Their next challenge was announced – the Obsidian Fangs. A mid-tier club notorious for its brutal, defensive style. Their players were known not for beauty, but for breaking bones.
"They'll target your kids," warned Grimm, the shadowy manager. "They don't want to win fair—they want to cripple."
Joan folded her arms. "Then we'll make their fangs shatter when they bite steel."
…
The stadium brimmed with anticipation. It was home advantage for the fangs. The Fangs jeered openly, sneering at Eclipse Shadows' ragtag uniforms.
The whistle blew.
The match was chaos. Every time Kai touched the ball, he was shoved, tripped, or elbowed. Mila's first shot attempt ended with her sprawled in the dirt. Zara absorbed body slams like a living wall, but even he staggered from the Fangs' merciless aggression.
By halftime, it was 0–0, but Eclipse Shadows looked battered.
In the locker room, frustration boiled over. Taro slammed his fist against the wall. "They're not playing football! They're just trying to hurt us!"
Joan's gaze was steel. "And you're letting them. You're playing by their rules. Stop. We play our game, not theirs."
Kai snarled. "But if they foul us every time—"
"Then turn their fouls into weapons," Joan cut in. Her broken talent flared, a fragment of divine clarity searing her mind. She saw formations shifting like stars in orbit, trajectories dancing like comets.
Her eyes blazed. "They commit. Overcommit. One touch too heavy, one swing too late. That's when you strike. Play faster. Flow like shadows. They can't foul what they can't touch."
The second half began.
Suddenly, the Shadows were untouchable. Rook blurred across the flank, his phantom runs turning the defenders dizzy. Kai danced with impossible speed, slipping past lunges like water weaving through fingers. The twins unleashed lightning-fast one-two passes that shredded the Fangs' rigid lines.
And then—Mila.
He caught a cross on his chest, spun, and fired a strike so pure it seemed the ball became light itself. The net rippled.
GOAL!
1–0.
The commentators were shocked. The crowd filled with disbelieves.
The Fangs doubled their aggression, but Zara planted himself as the Iron Wall, blocking every attempt. Bruises bloomed across his skin, but he never fell.
Final whistle.
Obsidian Fangs 0 – 1 Eclipse Shadows.
The crowd erupted. Half jeered, half screamed in support. The legend of the slum club grew.
The system chimed as Joan left the pitch.
[Ding! Second Victory Achieved.]
[Progress: 2/3 Matches Won.]
[Fan Base Expanded: +3,000. Total Supporters: 3,639.]
Her players celebrated, but Joan noticed something chilling. High above the stands, in the private divine box, sat robed figures of the Divine Football Organisation. Their eyes were cold, calculating.
"They're watching now," Joan muttered.
Varin spat. "Good. Let them choke on it."
But Joan knew better. The Organisation would not stay idle. They had controlled the sport for millennia, feeding divine talents into sanctioned clubs while crushing any anomaly. Her Shadows were an anomaly that could not be ignored especially when they made mistakes to discredit her talent without verifying the talent.
Back in the Void Pitch, Joan stood alone after training, staring at the constellations swirling above.
[Ding! Warning: Surveillance Increase Detected.]
[System Suggestion: Prepare countermeasures. Host's rise threatens established powers.]
She closed her eyes. So they want to crush me before the third victory?
She clenched her fists. "Then let them come."
Her broken X-grade talent pulsed faintly. For the first time, it did not feel broken—it felt alive. Each victory against the strong, each cheer of their growing fans, stitched fragments of divine energy back into her soul.
Repair Progress: 1.2%.
A small number, but it was progress. Proof that her destiny was not sealed in pity and mockery.
She whispered to herself, voice steady as iron:
"Eclipse Shadows will not just win three matches. We will eclipse the entire world."
The Organisation did not waste time. Within days, rumors swirled - the third required match would be against none other than Celestials United—a powerhouse club ranked among the top youth academies in the entire Gods Realm.
The world laughed. "It's over. A slum team can't touch the Celestials."
But among the slums, hope burned. "Maybe... just maybe... Eclipse Shadows can."
Joan gathered her players in the Void Pitch. She looked at each of them—Kai's burning eyes, Mila's determined stare, Zara's bruised but unbroken frame, the twins' mischievous grins, Rook's silent loyalty...
"You've come from nothing," Joan said quietly. "And they'll never forgive you for daring to rise. This next match—they want it to be our funeral."
She paused. Then her lips curved into a razor-sharp smile.
"Then we'll make it their eclipse."
The Void Pitch pulsed, constellations aligning like a cosmic omen. The third match—their trial by fire—loomed ahead.
And the world was about to learn what it meant to fear the shadows.