American Football: King of the Bay Area

He looked down at the burly man in front of him, who had dropped into a full split. The man was flashing a peace sign with his tongue stuck out, his completely uninhibited expression catching everyone off guard.

The crazy part was, he wasn’t the least bit embarrassed. Instead, he yelled, ”Shutter! Hurry up, shutter!”

A chorus of ”Shutter!” rose from the crowd. CLICK. Lu Ke pressed the shutter, capturing the absurdly hilarious scene. Everyone erupted in cheers, ”WHOOOOA!” Then, they scattered like startled birds. The burly guy in front of him curled into a ball, did a forward roll, and rumbled away—just like that, he rolled away… Then, he brought his legs together and used the momentum to pop back onto his feet. The entire routine was perfectly smooth, leaving Lu Ke staring, dumbfounded.

In the blink of an eye, everyone had scattered, going about their business and laughing as they greeted others. Soon, only Julio and three other men remained before Lu Ke. He held up his phone, gesturing with it. ”Afternoon, guys. I’m Lu Ke, a quarterback. Who all squeezed into my selfie just now? Care to share your names? I can send you the photo later so you can admire everyone’s goofy faces.”

It was an easygoing and confident self-introduction, tinged with a bit of humor and banter. As a Chinese-American football player, Lu Ke had learned long ago that in this uncharted territory where few from Asia had ever tread, confidence and self-reliance were the most crucial first steps to making friends. Only after that came skill—the most persuasive tool of all.

Sure enough, none of the three men looked surprised. Instead, they began introducing themselves.

”Jonas Morton, linebacker.”

”Bruce Carter, linebacker.”

”Jabara Williams, linebacker.”

After the introductions were done, Lu Ke and Julio exchanged a knowing look. ”Whoa, looks like we’ve fallen into a linebacker trap.” Lu Ke’s eyes widened, a playful look plastered on his face.

Julio, however, stood to the side, shaking his head with a supremely confident look. ”Now *this* is a challenge! Who knows, we might be facing off on the field before long.”

Generally speaking, the linebacker is the most important player on the Defense Team—often the defensive captain or the one calling the signals. A linebacker must have exceptional tackling skills to stop the running back from breaking through the line. During passing plays, they also have to help their teammates cover potential receivers, either by breaking up or intercepting the pass.

Linebackers match up against wide receivers more often than they do against quarterbacks, which was why Julio had responded the way he did.

The three linebackers all laughed cheerfully. They clenched their fists and brandished them at Julio in a mock ”ready to fight” stance. Paradoxically, the gesture created an instant, easy camaraderie among the strangers who had just met.

”You’re that one Asian player in this year’s Rookie Training Camp?” Aldon didn’t hide the fact that he was sizing Lu Ke up, but his gaze held no malice, only curiosity.

In truth, this wasn’t the first time an Asian player had shown up at the Rookie Training Camp. Every few years, a handful of them would appear. Unfortunately, the skill gap was always immense, and ultimately, none of them managed to make it into the Alliance as professional players.

However, an Asian quarterback—that was absolutely unprecedented.

Lu Ke spread his hands. ”Unless something’s gone horribly wrong with the face I saw in the mirror this morning, then yup, you’re looking at him.” His witty remark made everyone chuckle. ”But how did you guys know? I thought I was a complete unknown.”

”It’s all over the major news outlets,” Bruce chimed in, true to his fast-talking nature. ”The media never lets a bombshell story like this go. So, have you checked in yet? Once you do, I bet the whole camp will know in no time. Then everyone’s going to be curious about who this Asian guy is and what he’s got.”

Lu Ke’s mouth fell open slightly. He tucked in his chin, an expression of dawning realization on his face. ”So, like a circus act.” Once again, everyone burst out laughing.

’Now I finally get where the system’s special mission came from,’ Lu Ke thought. ’Maybe my status as a Chinese-American quarterback attracted all this media attention. Or maybe running into so many potential future superstars here at camp is what triggered it. It seems like special missions are triggered by real-life situations and specific circumstances. But what I don’t know is, will every future special mission be this much of a pain in the ass?’

The group of four walked toward the check-in area, joking and laughing. Only now did Lu Ke finally have a chance to sort out his thoughts.

”Qi, I have another question. How am I supposed to know who the potential future superstars are?” Lu Ke had no way of predicting the future, and the system offered no hints. How was he supposed to figure it out? There were nearly three hundred people at the training camp; they couldn’t all be future superstars. ”Also, what are the criteria for a ’superstar’? Making the Pro Bowl? First-Team All-Pro? Second-Team? Or Season MVP?”

”Luck.” Qi’s answer made Lu Ke choke. ’But on second thought,’ he mused, ’I can’t really argue with that. It seems like playing the odds is my only option. A goal of thirty future superstars is definitely not going to be easy. Then again, if the mission were that simple, the rewards wouldn’t be so generous.’

After checking in, Lu Ke didn’t rush up to his room. Instead, he found a seat off to the side and began to think about how to complete the mission. Before getting started, he downloaded Instagram to his phone. After creating an account, he uploaded the group photo he had just taken.

Once the upload was finished, he opened his mission list again and noticed the progress had updated: ”4/30”.

’Does this mean I just met four potential future superstars? Who are they?’ Lu Ke examined the photo carefully. There were eleven people in it... wait, twelve. At the very edge of the frame was another guy, eyes wide and mouth agape, laughing as he flashed a peace sign.

’Four out of twelve people are potential future superstars? That’s incredible!’

Although the Rookie Training Camp brings together all the outstanding players of the new generation every year, establishing oneself in the Professional Alliance is no easy feat. Even a first-overall pick can end up being a bust, to say nothing of the other rookies. In a weak draft year, it’s considered a huge success if even ten or fifteen future superstars emerge.

’And now, in one group photo with twelve people, I’ve managed to snag four potential superstars? Does that mean this is a strong draft year? Come to think of it, the system mission requires thirty superstars. That pretty much confirms my suspicion: there must be a ton of players with superstar potential among this year’s rookies.’

’At the same time, this also means… it will be that much harder for me to stand out.’

That made completing the special mission all the more critical. Whether for the extra stat points or the unknown Skill Packages, they were all vital chips for Lu Ke to improve his abilities. For the first time, Lu Ke started to seriously consider how he was going to complete this special mission.

’Twelve players, four potential superstars—that’s a one-in-three ratio. So, to get thirty potential superstars, I’ll need to take a photo with at least ninety players!’

’Ninety people. That’s no small number; it’s almost a third of the entire Rookie Training Camp. And in reality, I’ll probably need even more.’ Lu Ke couldn’t help but facepalm again. ’I’m not sure if I’ll come out of this being Mr. Popular, but one thing’s for sure: after today, everyone at the camp will know there’s a total fanboy in their midst.’

He let out a long breath. ’For the points, for the Skill Packages... screw it. I’m going all in!’

Standing up, Lu Ke began to seriously brainstorm how to actually accomplish this mission.

’Should I act like a total fanboy, run up to them with stars in my eyes and say, ”So-and-so, I admire you so much! You’re my sun, my moon, my guiding star! You’re my idol! Can I please get a picture with you?”’

’Or should I be like a ghost, stealthily tailing some player like a specter, then pop out, snap a sneaky photo, and complete the mission without a soul noticing, a creepy smile plastered on my face?’

’Or maybe I should take the party approach? Actively call guys over, get them all together for a massive group shot, just like that first picture. I could try to rope in thirty or forty players at once and get it over with in one fell swoop, like a general mustering his troops. But without a selfie stick, I don’t think my arm is long enough for that many people. Maybe set up a tripod? Would that even work?’

’Or what about the town-hall-meeting approach? Get everyone to form a circle like we’re at a bonfire party, then I stand in the middle, do a 360-degree spin, and capture everyone in a panorama. All in one shot. But the problem is, what excuse could I possibly use to get everyone to do that without them thinking I’m a complete psycho?’

’Ha. I’m definitely overthinking this. It’s the first day of Rookie Training Camp, and I’m already planning to run around like a schoolgirl, taking cutesy photos with every player I see. No extra words needed—that’s the definition of a psycho. Maybe I should just completely let loose? Go full-psycho mode, run around yelling ”Cheese!” at the top of my lungs, and snap a picture with everyone I bump into. Like a tornado, sweeping in and then sweeping right back out.’

’If this were a party—a party with alcohol—this mission would be a whole lot easier. But this is the Rookie Training Camp, which makes things difficult.’ The scenarios just kept playing in his head. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a figure in the distance.

In the hotel lobby, almost everyone was gathered in twos and threes, laughing and talking amongst themselves. They were all huddled up in their own groups. Abruptly trying to barge in would be incredibly rude and far too difficult. However, off to the side, there was a tall, powerfully built black man standing all by himself, staring out the window, lost in thought. This was the perfect opening!

He had already run through the entire mission of photographing three hundred players in his head, but now it was time to start for real. So, without any hesitation, Lu Ke walked straight toward him.