The Rise of the Iron Wall!-Chapter 97: Dinner After the Game

"Well... Cheers for the kids and the hard work they have done today!"

"Cheers!"

It was the evening after the semifinal game was over, and now, they were all in a nice Yakiniku restaurant that was reserved by the group of parents, enjoying the pile of meat in front of them as their consolation prize.

As for the one who paid it all... Surprisingly, Usami’s father took all the responsibility here, not even discussing with any of the other parents how much the others should share the bill. It was as if the man wanted to flex his wealth, and honestly, based on his loud demeanor, it was probably closer to the truth than anyone had ever thought.

"Come on, come on! Don’t be shy, everyone!" The man laughed boisterously, and his bloated tummy shook at every little movement. Then, he caught his son’s shy movement and added another pile of meat to the poor boy’s plate. "Here, eat more, Usami-chan! You will not be able to grow taller without good nutrition!"

"Y—Yes, Otousan!"

Honestly, the dynamic between the son and father here was quite interesting. Usami was always lowkey and didn’t talk too much, and the boy also didn’t use a lot of expensive accessories when he went to school. Before this, no one really knew that he was the son of such a wealthy man, with some even thinking that Usami was the one who they needed to take care of.

As for the father...

Well, none of the kids dared to say it, but they all thought the same here. The man looked like the villain’s rich father in the cheap anime they usually watched. He had a bloated tummy and a double chin, always sweating, and the collection of jewelry on his body was enough to put everyone in a blind here.

It was fortunate that the man was good with the kids and had a cheerful nature, always insisting on them all to eat while also cracking jokes here and there. If not, he would definitely fall into the stereotype of a villain’s father, and honestly, they would never know how to face Usami in the future if it were the reality.

So... Yeah, they both really didn’t look like a pair of father and sibling, and honestly, some would’ve thought that Usami was just a stepson here.

Of course, the adult world was more complicated than that. The moment they all knew that one of the parents here was rich as fuck, some were shamelessly trying to get closer, wanting to curry a favor or two.

"Here, Tanaka-san, let’s have the biggest drink tonight!"

"Thanks to your son, Tanaka-san, he always keeps my son away from trouble!"

"Hey, where is Hori? Brat, come here! Are you not even trying to introduce me to your best friend’s father? That’s rude!"

Fortunately, Usami’s father knew exactly what was going on here, and he frowned in disapproval. "Brothers and sisters, we are here to celebrate our kids’ hard work, what is this adult socializing bullshit?! Let’s not care about it today and have fun until our stomachs are full!"

The other adults then had this kind of understanding look, as if they realized that the man’s idea was the most correct one here.

"Hell, yeah!"

"Come on, Tanaka-san! Let’s cheer for the kids!"

Seeing this, Higo just shook his head exasperatedly. Fortunately, the mothers or any other women relatives didn’t go crazy like that, because he sure didn’t want to see how his mother fared in this kind of situation.

The other kids also watched this scene with their jaws dropped. Some of them had never seen their parents acting so... Undignified like this, and honestly, none of them knew what to say here.

Fortunately, Kumiko took over the group quickly, attracting their attention from the deep, dark adult world in front of them. The girl, still with the trace of tears on her face from crying in Higo’s arms before, coughed quite loudly, letting the boys know that she was about to talk.

"Um... Okay, first things first..." Somehow, she got nervous when some of the mothers also looked at her curiously. However, the encouraging gaze from Higo was enough to swallow all of her fear, as the girl continued, "I know I have said it before, back at the pitch, but I want you guys to know that I am so proud here. You have done so well, and only luck and probably my incompetence hinder you guys from advancing further, and for that, I am so sorry!"

Seeing the girl bowing again like this, the boys started panicking once again.

"No, no, no, Shishida-senpai, it is definitely not your fault!"

"Yes! We are just unlucky here!"

"It is also because we are not that good! I mean, even if Pep himself is here, I doubt he could do anything for us!"

Kumiko was trying so hard to hold back her tears right now. The boys in front of her... They knew she felt guilty, and to ease it, they didn’t hesitate to downplay their amazing performance so that she wouldn’t feel bad about herself.

Looking at their goofy grin, hearing them teasing each other for their ’supposed’ mistake in the game earlier, and realizing that they still did all of this while feeling the bitterness of defeat earlier...

She choked, wiping the tears on the corner of her eyes. "You... You guys really are the best!"

"Okay, we know we are the best..." Higo finally spoke, even with a little bit of helplessness in his tone. "No need to be overly emotional, though. It will ruin the mood." He added, ignoring the glare that was sent to him by some of the boys.

"Well, while it is hard for me to admit it, I have to agree with Chibi here." Makino chimed in, smirking subtly at the sight of Higo’s mother snickering at his nickname. "The mood is already at the bottom low, so let’s not try to drag it down further. Also, our job is not over yet, you know?"

"Really?" Some of them snapped their head at him, seeming to forget about something.

"Yup! We still have the game to fight for the third round, so let’s try to use that to vent out all of our grievances today!"