Rudra watched the final from the shade.
Not from the stands.
From the boundary line, just beyond the rope, where substitutes and eliminated teams were allowed to linger without being seen too clearly.
FTS Sports School vs St. Merry's High School.
The match everyone had predicted.
The match everyone feared.
Two Different Hungers
St. Merry's arrived first.
Sharp warm-ups.
Loud calls.
Energy pushed outward.
Joshua D'Souza paced, clapping hands, rallying his team like the noise itself might add runs.
FTS arrived later.
Quiet.
Bats already taped.
Shoes already laced.
Sameer Malik jogged once across the square and stopped.
Varun Khanna stretched alone, eyes on the pitch, not the opposition.
Rudra noticed immediately.
One team was preparing to fight.
The other was preparing to operate.
Competitive Awareness
Lv 01 (23 / 100 EXP) → (31 / 100 EXP)
FTS Batting — Setting the Trap
FTS batted first.
Sameer didn't rush.
He let St. Merry's bowl to him.
Short balls pulled cleanly—but along the ground.
Full balls driven—but flat.
Boundaries came without chase.
Irfan rotated strike like a metronome.
By the time Varun walked in, the bowlers were already searching for answers.
Varun didn't provide them.
He denied them.
Dots mattered more than fours.
Pressure flowed backward.
Batting Pattern Recognition — Advanced Logged
St. Merry's Response
Joshua tried to attack early.
It worked—for two overs.
Then FTS tightened.
Fielders crept in silently.
Gaps vanished.
The chase slowed, not suddenly, but surely.
The noise from St. Merry's dugout returned.
Instructions.
Corrections.
Urgency.
FTS never answered.
They didn't need to.
Rudra watched Varun closely.
The man never chased a wicket.
He waited for it.
Focus (Observational Learning)
Lv 06 (92 / 100 EXP) → (95 / 100 EXP)
The Deciding Moment
St. Merry's needed momentum.
Joshua went for it.
The shot was strong.
The fielding was stronger.
Caught.
The same way Rudra had caught him.
High. Clean. Terminal.
The match tilted permanently.
Final Result
FTS Sports School won the Final
By a margin that looked comfortable on paper
And felt inevitable on the field.
Sameer took the trophy.
Varun didn't smile.
He simply shook hands and walked away.
After the Applause
As the crowd dispersed, Varun walked past Rudra.
He stopped.
"Now you've seen it," he said quietly.
Rudra met his eyes.
"Yes."
Varun nodded once.
"Good. Next time, don't watch."
Then he left.
Rudra stayed behind for a moment longer.
The ground was emptying.
The noise fading.
The future sharpening.
He opened the panel once more.
Not to look at numbers.
But to remember what they demanded.
Because finals weren't won by hunger alone.
They were won by those who could stay calm
after everyone else had started wanting too much.
And now, Rudra knew exactly
who he would have to become to stand there.