Paris, the World, and the Rules

Sixteen hours later, the plane slowly landed at Paris airport.

The coach woke everyone from their sleep, and they all got off the plane together.

What comes to mind when you think of Paris?

Blonde woman, fiery red lips, on the banks of the Seine, a temple of artistic achievement?

In this city, which has not yet been overtaken by another color and carries a touch of romance, it can indeed fulfill many people's fantasies about Europe.

But for Muneyoshi and others of this age, none of this holds much appeal.

"Is this romantic Paris?"

The senior students were fine, after all, they had already gone out to compete many times, but the freshmen, even Muneyoshi, seemed a little too excited.

This was his first time participating in such a grand competition. He never expected that he wouldn't be able to participate in the domestic competition in Japan, but would be able to compete against top players from major countries around the world. Naturally, he couldn't hide his excitement.

And this is France, after all; as a tennis player, no one is unfamiliar with this place.

Tennis has four Grand Slam tournaments, which are the highest level of tennis competitions.

These include the Australia Open, Wimbledon, the France Open, and the US Open.

It is one of the world's largest tennis tournaments.

Although the U-17 World Cup cannot compare to a professional Grand Slam event, it is held in the same location as professional events.

Their U-17 World Cup this year was held at the Roland Garros Stadium in Paris, France.

This is the most famous clay court; the clay courts that Muneyoshi encountered in Spain before are simply not comparable.

Just as Muneyoshi was excitedly lost in thought, Mifune Nyudo spoke up:

"Kids, get your act together! Don't embarrass our team."

Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged glances. Muneyoshi and Irie looked at each other and understood the meaning in each other's eyes.

With that slovenly attire and that drunken state, who's really making a fool of themselves?

"Hey, look at that group over there, they're participating in the U-17 World Cup too, right?"

Just then, Muneyoshi saw a group of people who looked similar to them walking out of another platform and asked curiously.

The people opposite him were all carrying tennis bags, clearly World Cup participants, but Muneyoshi didn't recognize their national flags.

"That's the Republic of Summer Pipes, which we encountered during our previous expedition, isn't it?"

At this moment, Oni Taiyo, who was walking to Muneyoshi's left, looked over and immediately recognized the country.

It was one of the opponents from the previous expedition.

"Oh, so they are the Republic of Summer Pipes."

Muneyoshi understood; this was the country ranked last in the original work—weak and vulnerable to attack from anyone.

"Alright, stop talking about it, let's get to the hotel quickly."

Urged on by their staff, the group boarded a chartered car and headed towards the hotel.

"I think Tanegashima -kun will come to pick us up today."

After getting on the bus, Irie Kanata walked next to Oni Jūjirō and asked in a low voice.

"Hmm... Shuji should have arrived here three days ago, but I just asked the staff who arrived earlier, and it seems his condition is not good."

The demon's expression was a little off, but he still explained to Irie in a low voice.

"It seems that Shuji caught a very bad cold while he was adrift at sea..."

"What!!"

Upon hearing this news, Irie's smile vanished.

Muneyoshi, who was sitting across the aisle from them, also heard the news. His lips twitched slightly, and his expression was strange.

Even after overcoming his fear of airplanes, Tanegashima Shūji couldn't escape the clutches of illness...

At this moment, Mifune Nyudo and Byōdōin Hōō also learned of the news, and their faces immediately darkened.

Receiving such bad news right after getting off the plane cast a shadow over the Japan Team's journey in the World Tournament from the very beginning.

The biennial U-17 World Cup is one of the most prestigious tournaments in terms of both prestige and popularity.

Since it's a competition, commercial activities and sponsorships are naturally indispensable.

Because it attracts a large number of sponsors, the World Tennis Association and the organizers can make a fortune each time.

With such funding secured, the organizing committee provided excellent hospitality to the participating countries.

Each country's team has its own floor, and there are also spare rooms that can be used as meeting rooms for the athletes.

However, Muneyoshi and his group did not pay much attention to the luxurious living environment.

Instead, as soon as they arrived at the hotel and put down their luggage, after asking for Tanegashima Shūji's room number, Muneyoshi and Irie immediately came to visit them.

As soon as I opened the door, I saw a dark-skinned boy with white curly hair leaning against the bed, with an IV drip in his hand.

At this moment, Tanegashima Shūji was completely devoid of his previous high spirits; he was utterly listless, and cold sweat was constantly dripping from his forehead.

The sound of the door opening startled Tanegashima from his bed. Seeing the familiar figures he hadn't seen for over a week, a forced, awkward smile crept onto his lips as he said with some difficulty:

"You... you've finally arrived! I've been waiting for so long."

Tanegashima, how are you feeling?

The demon noticed that Tanegashima Shūji sounded strained and asked directly.

Tanegashima Shūji pointed to the needle and thread in his hand, looking weak and listless. Without saying a word, he clearly told them that his condition was very bad.

This situation caused the three of them to frown. Muneyoshi had not expected that Tanegashima Shūji's illness was so serious.

He was an indispensable fighting force for the Japan Team, but now it seems we can't count on him anymore?

The three of them didn't stay in Tanegashima's room for long. After closing the door, they all looked rather unwell.

They came to this stage full of enthusiasm, but the incident involving Tanegashima dealt them a heavy blow.

"Demon-senpai, Irie- senpai, you've had a long day. Let's rest. Tanegashima -senpai will get better soon."

Seeing the two with furrowed brows, the youngest, Muneyoshi, acted as a mediator to ease their tension.

The two nodded. There was nothing they could do about the illness; all they could do now was pray that Tanegashima would recover quickly.

Japan conference room.

After a short rest, everyone except Tanegashima Shūji was summoned to this temporary conference room.

Once everyone who was supposed to be there had arrived, Kurobe Yukio pushed open the door and walked in with Mifune Nyudo.

"Quiet down, all of you!"

Seeing the chaotic state of the meeting room, Mifune Nyudo, who was already in a bad mood, roared, and everyone immediately fell silent.

Even the first-year high school students who didn't know him well were intimidated by Mifune's ferocity.

The new rules for this World Cup have been released.

"This World Cup tournament adopts the most brutal knockout system ever."

"Based on past points, the eight teams with the highest scores will be divided into eight groups, and the remaining teams will be drawn into their respective groups. After everything is determined, the group elimination matches will begin."

"The team with the lowest score in each group will challenge the other teams in the group. The winning team will then challenge the remaining teams until a final winner is determined, at which point a second round of the quarterfinals will be held!"

Mifune Nyudo a deep voice.

"A challenge elimination round? Do the eliminated teams still have a chance to participate in the revival round?"

Muneyoshi asked aloud.

"No!"

Kurobe shook his head. "Apart from the host team, France, all the other teams that are eliminated are completely out of the game!"

Don't harbor that kind of weak mentality!

Mifune glanced at Muneyoshi.

"Remember this, everyone: this is the world! And the world can be very cruel!"

Muneyoshi's gaze narrowed slightly. He hadn't expected that the rules of this World Cup would be completely different from those of two years later. Compared to the points system, this format was even more brutal.

P. S.: Please vote with monthly tickets. Also, the chapter numbers in the first two chapters were wrong.