Author's Note.

Well... that's it!

The chapter following this is a Q and A! Any questions at all, from short story requests to ideas about Ascension to asking what Prince gave Y/N as a workout routine, comment it on the prompt given in the very next story part! Don't put it in this chapter, I won't see it!

If you're looking for more Bluelock male stuff, then the best reads I've found so far are:

ART, by @HikaruSenpapi - Highly focused on romance, with action parts. The style it's written in gives it a more serious vibe.

ARTISTIC, by rk_ak0 - Because a special font is used, must be searched with the creator's username. An older book, very slow updates.

Genius, by miojimu - A lighter fic, probably the best 'manager' fic in my personal opinion. References to the game Genshin Impact.

CUPID, by -cupxds - Probably the most complete Bluelock fanfic out there. Similar pacing to Ascension, incredibly well written, a mix of action and romance. The book that got me into Bluelock as a whole.

THIGHS, by asananax - Crack fiction, a textfic with small parts of prose writing. Pretty funny to read :P

Tie a Knot, by AngelsGarden09 - Emotional, full of angst, and pretty much an amazingly entirely self-written plot. A romance-centric, heavy read.

This was a long story for sure, and the longest project I've ever done so far in my short life. To clarify, the book ends here. Everything past here is just some random guy on Wattpad rambling, so goodbye to most of you readers, and I wish you happy reading on other books!

🥕🥕🥕

And to whoever is left, hi, hello, welcome!

Thank you again for reading Ascension. This book has completely dominated my life for the past ten months, maybe eleven when this chapter is published. If you've been here since the start... I actually don't know what to say. I don't think a single person has, actually.

I hope you enjoyed the very start, the lighthearted banter and gameplay. I hope you enjoyed the twists I added to the original plot, removing the third selection (cause I found it boring), and editing parts of the Neo Egoist League and the U-20 game. I hope you enjoyed seeing relationships between Y/N and everyone else, and I hope you hated Kuroi.

When I first introduced Kuroi as an OC, I didn't realise just how much of the story he would actually influence. Again and again, I'd try to write something only to realise that Kuroi would always be there, always getting involved. And then, near the end, I finally understood that the finale of the book couldn't be something to do with the NEL. It had to be between Kuroi, and Y/N.

That being said, I hope the finale was a satisfying ending! As I'm writing this, Bluelock's PXG against Bastard Munchen is midway through. I considered a few options when I realised that by the time Ascension caught up, it still wouldn't be done. I could've written it wholly by myself, but I didn't want to clash with whatever plot the original authors make. So instead, I turned the ending into Y/N finally overcoming his demon!

If you're interested, here are some stats from the book (these took way too long to gather):

Date started: Nov 18th, 2023.

Date finished (first draft): August 27th, 2024.

Total words: Around 270,000

Time spent writing and editing Ascension: 350+ hours

Time spent reading comments and procrastinating: 50+ hours

Reads (as of making these stats): 883570

Votes (as of making these stats): 52880

Comments (as of making these stats): I forgor

Top 5 commented sentences:

- "I like it when you call me that, treasure." 150 comments

- "You look perfect to ride..." 167 comments

- "I don't want other people's hands on my property." 188 comments

- "It smashed right into Kuroi Jigoku's face." 186 comments

- "No need. You're welcome in my room any night you want." 111 comments

Most liked chapters:

- 20. The Hidden Monster

- 38. Loki

- 44. My Property

- 2.12. So Obedient?

- 2.20. Lightning Bolt

- 3.1. Pretty Boy

- 3.28. Eiji

Best plot predictions (holy fuck guys you can read my mind sometimes):

- @savtokyo  predicting that Y/N would return to Kuroi to become the best striker, all the way at the start of Act 3!

- @Lznz0123 predicting the final score of the U-20 game, the exact order that the players would score in, and who would score them, six whole chapters early!

- @LowlyCrystalPlayZ predicting that the creator of Ascension would appear, a chapter early!

Top commenters:

- Ralablastl

- Wanananna123

- yoiizu

- Kiraversee

- kh_onsu

- Visrian

- B0R3DG1RL5

- BachirasHairLice

- Canisuckyourdick

- ITOSHISVAL

- wa_ta_na_be29

- sparkleuta

- potatoes-r-great

- Hi_Iamunderyourbed

- Mia_Hatsume_chan

- orxheus

- Mika_Vis

- LowlyCrystalPlayZ

- savtokyo

- I_talk_in_my_sleep

- T3UN5M1

- sia-yt

- lilyamorous

- Nikoru-Osaki

- Backlog0094

- Teletubieszzz

- Hello123436

- YourFatRat

- mr_Siamese_cat

- Ashrxses

- MONOCHROM3

- Watermelon-ie

- LifeboundGambit

- Lucysolaice123

- Waylo2016

Sorry if I didn't mention you on here! A lot of you guys have sent amazingly sweet messages, long plot predictions, compliments, everything! But unfortunately, I don't have the time to find everyone who's ever commented... just know I do appreciate you all, and I read 90% of comments on here :)

Special mentions to anyone who joined the carrot cult :P

I honestly never thought Ascension would garner this kind of attention. It became bigger than I ever thought it would, and I never thought I'd even finish the fic.

This is a little emotional, a little cringe, but I was in a rough spot when I began the book. Angsty chapters in the book all the way up to Act Three correspond to low times in real life. Throughout the book, Y/N's mental state pretty much was the same as mine. Yikes.

In fact, this is a big part of mine. Apologies for saying all this emotional stuff, and I know it likely won't be read because after all, I'm a goddamn Wattpadder. But throughout the story, as I learn things in real life, so does Y/N.

So this is to everyone out there that wishes they were happy. Everyone that wishes they could be motivated enough to get up in the morning, or who hates school, or who struggles with dark thoughts. Ask yourself if you want to be happy. There's a difference between saying that, and actually wanting it.

Bluelock changed my life. When I learnt about this idea called 'ego', and used it in my own life, I... honestly just improved.

Maybe a better word for it is 'self confidence'. Don't think about what other people think of you. Understand that no matter what happens to people around you, you are your own main priority. Understand? You are your first priority. What you enjoy is your main priority. Your own goals are the things you work towards.

And this changes your life. Instead of stopping whatever you're doing to always reply to a message on social media, how about just... leaving it for a while? Until you have free time, and by that I mean really, really free time. Time where you have literally nothing else to do. Instead of spending all of your effort trying to please someone else, how about doing what you actually enjoy?

Don't kid yourself by saying you enjoy being worn out, getting in other people's drama, or even just putting more effort into a relationship than you're getting out of it. Try taking a step back, and thinking about what you actually want.

And this self confidence manifests itself everywhere. In a group, if you try to contribute something and nobody listens, don't just shut up. Repeat it again, your words are worth something! If you're tired and your friend asks you for help, just say no. Nobody will fault you for putting yourself first - and if they do, maybe it's time to find a new friend.

Learn how to say no. And also remember that the people you talk to will change who you are. If you want to be happy, talk less to sad people, and more to happier people. Talk about less sad things, try to talk about lighthearted subjects. And remember that if you don't want to be happy, you won't be.

That's the biggest thing. I can say how much I want to be happy, but if I keep lying there at night doomscrolling. I... probably won't be. Happiness involves effort, taking care of yourself. If you can't put in that effort, maybe you just don't want it enough.

And as a final thing, I want to say. Find what you like, and do it. Throughout Ascension, Y/N struggles with what he wants. I briefly considered him quitting football completely, and ending up working in a bar, in a business, in a cafe or even just in a fast food shop. But that would've been bittersweet, so I used an ideal ending.

The point is, happiness also comes from finding what you want, and working towards it. Having goals, especially big ones, gives you motivation to go about your life in a healthier way. And to everyone who immediately thought 'I don't know what I want, and I don't know how to know' when reading that, here's some advice.

Try new things. Make it a habit to explore, or to say yes when someone offers you something.

Try learning something. Try doing something physical. Sign up for that volleyball club on a complete whim, and just try it out. Watch one too many Bluelock videos, and go kick a ball around in a park. Try playing a board game, try dancing, try just not spending every waking hour on a phone.

Bluelock, and Ascension, changed me. This strange thing called self-confidence, self-love, self-worth, changed me. Before, I was unstable at best, self-destructive and suicidal at worst. Poor grades, bad sleep, bad diet, a people pleaser, reliant on care and help from my 'friends' to feel happy in life. And now...? I've changed. Some might say for the worse. But I'm feeling happier, so to me, it's a good thing!

I sincerely hope that if you related to any of the things I said above, you change. I hope you don't listen to me. Fuck me, listen to yourself. Don't change to be happier like me, change to be happier the way you want.

Two things. You need to want to be happy.

And you need to believe it.

Wow. A bit of a tangent there, but anyways...

A lot of people at the start of the story didn't want to be short, which was funny. I held off on describing Y/N so you could imagine him as you want, but for things like height and build, I wrote him similar to myself (rip me, laugh as much as you want).

Oh, and it was also entertaining to see everyone loving the relationships between each character. The main few boys Y/N interacts with are Sae, Julian, Chigiri, and Rin. Which is your favourite? There's a few interactions with everyone, but I think the most interesting few are Barou, Isagi, and Kaiser.

From the very start, I intended to make Barou this tsundere figure. But his personality just wouldn't let it happen. Barou isn't the type to show any sappy emotions. Instead, I felt like he'd only ever show affection through brutally stomping any of Y/N's enemies. Kaiser is similar. When Kaiser first saw Y/N on that video, I thought he'd be a rival, a hateful figure. But when they play, I feel Kaiser to treat Y/N more as an equal.

But when he finally sees Y/N's vulnerability, and starts to have his own awakening a little bit earlier, I feel like Kaiser relates to Y/N in a way. He was forced to become who he was by his father, by the JFU. And Y/N goes through a similar thing.

And finally, Isagi. I tried so hard to make even a friendship work between him and Y/N, but it never happened. Isagi, especially in the NEL, became more of an antagonist than anything else. I think in real life, Isagi's obsession with the game would make it pretty difficult to hold friendships. To me, it feels like he values the game over anyone and everyone's feelings, and that just didn't click with Y/N.

Okay, I'm done!

Thank you for reading Ascension. Thank you for supporting me in this journey, and thank you for every single one of your comments (I read 90% of them). You truly have been the best supporters I've ever had in my life. For that, I wish you the very best in life, at whatever you aim for.

Be free.

This has been Carrotttan, your author.

Signing off. 🥕🥕🥕