Since Julian wasn't called up to the starting squad, while HSV II traveled to face VfB Oldenburg away, he remained behind — alone on the HSV campus.
No roar of the crowd.
No teammates shouting drills.
Just the low hum of fluorescent lights and the steady rhythm of a lone machine.
The air carried a faint chill — the kind that clung to early summer mornings in northern Germany, when the rain hadn't quite decided if it should fall or fade.
Through the high glass windows of the performance center, the grey sky pressed down over the training fields, their empty goals glistening faintly under mist.
He could've been frustrated. But he wasn't.
Julian understood why.
He knew what the system could do — how easily it could let him dominate any pitch if he unleashed its full force. But power without foundation was empty.
If he relied on it too much, he'd become nothing more than a performer wearing borrowed strength.
