"Our futures… will be decided by our transfer values?"
Hearing Ego Jinpachi's explanation, all the players lowered their heads, silently contemplating the deeper meaning behind his words. But Ego didn't leave them hanging for long.
"To put it simply," Ego continued, "in the second phase of the New Hero Battle, each coach will receive a fixed player acquisition budget. Then, we'll hold a public draft, where each coach will take turns selecting players for their team."
"You can think of each team as its own club, and that budget as their salary cap. Naturally, any player whose transfer value exceeds a team's remaining budget cannot be signed. It's not just a test of your individual value—it's also a test of each coach's ability to build a roster. If a coach gets greedy and only picks high-value players, they might not even be able to field a full starting lineup."
At this point, Ego's tone suddenly shifted:
"But—there's a way around the budget limit. Because, ultimately, this list of transfer values is just a reference provided by the scouts. If a player is willing to lower their value, they can even be signed for free."
"What?! Then what's the point of all these rules and limits?!" Yukimiya shouted in shock.
But this time, it wasn't Ego who answered—it was Noa, standing up from the substitute bench.
"For a professional player, accepting a pay cut is a bitter pill to swallow. It's an admission that you're devaluing yourself. Future contract negotiations with clubs will reflect that, and your bargaining power will permanently drop. On top of that, a player who lowers their value can lose standing and respect within their own team."
"Exactly." Ego snapped his fingers. "In a real professional environment, these decisions aren't made lightly. In the second phase of the New Hero Battle, you'll have to seriously consider: is it worth it to hurt your future career just for one more shot at victory? Because I told you before—this New Hero Battle is designed to be the ultimate showcase, a perfect replica of the professional world."
Then, raising a single finger, Ego grinned wickedly:
"But of course, we won't be limiting you with such crude rules alone."
"The true constraint... is this!"
As Ego Jinpachi roared with excitement, countless golden coins rained down across the giant screen, casting a dazzling glow over the entire field.
Even each blade of grass seemed to have been plated in gold. The coins piled up, eventually forming a gleaming number:
100,000,000!
"Tens… hundreds… one hundred million?! What does this mean?!"
Everyone was stunned by the sudden flashy effect.
Only Ego wore a sly grin.
"This is the prize money for the second phase of the New Hero Battle. Based on the revenue generated by Blue Lock TV, a fixed percentage has been pulled to create a prize pool for the second stage. And this amount will continue to grow as the show progresses!"
"The winning team will receive this entire jackpot. The coach of the winning team will take 20% of the total, and the remaining 80% will be distributed among the players, based on the proportion of their transfer value to the team's total squad budget."
"For example: if your team's total player budget is 1 billion yen, and your transfer value at signing was 200 million yen, you'd receive 20% of the remaining 800 million—meaning 160 million yen! And by the way—this prize is after taxes. You're getting it all, clean."
!!!
The pure size of the prize sent a jolt through the stadium. Yukimiya was so excited his lips trembled.
If he could get his hands on that money, he could finally afford surgery for his eye condition and fully take control of his own destiny—without being at the mercy of any team.
Still, not everyone was swept away by the excitement.
Some, like Chigiri, stayed clear-headed.
"So if someone decides to lower their transfer value—say, even agrees to be signed for free—they wouldn't just hurt their future career prospects, but they also wouldn't be entitled to any share of the prize money, right?"
"Exactly."
Ego nodded, and then silver and bronze coins rained down on the screen, revealing two more amounts next to the grand prize: 10 million and 5 million.
"But—only the team that finishes first in the second stage will get the 100 million. The teams finishing second and third will only get the smaller prizes next to it. As for everyone else?"
Ego grinned coldly and made a circle with his fingers in front of the camera.
"They get nothing. Winner takes all—a beautiful phrase, isn't it? The runners-up will be lucky to even lick the leftovers. This... is the brutal reality of the battlefield you're about to enter!"
He spread his arms theatrically.
"That concludes the information I'm allowed to reveal for now. You're free to continue your training—but from this point on, all five league towers will be open to you. Everyone is allowed to move freely between them."
"And the draft will take place one day after the new updated transfer value rankings are finalized."
"In this free time," Ego added with a wicked smirk, "you're welcome to try out for the coach you want to impress. Remember, some coaches barely know anything about players from other teams.
Don't just sit back and expect to be picked because of your price tag—you might end up ignored altogether."
"Oh, and one last thing."
Even though the giant screen had already gone dark, it flickered back to life at Ego's shout.
With a wave of his hand, five portraits appeared at the top of the screen.
"In addition to Itoshi Sae, there will be four more top-level players joining the second phase of the New Hero Battle as free agents, competing alongside you!"
"The four players are:
Brazil's national team striker: Dada Silva;
Spain's noble prince: Leonardo Luna;
Argentina's freckled wonder: Pablo Cavazos;
England's rising star: Adam Blake."
"By the way, these guys were originally scheduled to participate in the Blue Lock second-phase exhibition matches. Now, they'll be your direct rivals."
"And so—this is the true beginning of the second phase: Hero Gathering."
"In this setup... let's see how you all choose your paths— and what unimaginable new alliances you'll create!"
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