"What's wrong?" Veronica walked into the display room. "Excited? We're all over the moon—Mom, my sister, the kids. They're all so proud of you."
Zidane forced a smile. "Thank you, it's just that…"
"I don't want to become someone who doesn't live up to the name."
"I know I'm very good, but I'm still some distance away from truly deserving the title of King of Football. I—"
Ding!
Zidane's phone chimed.
He and Veronica exchanged a glance.
"It's a message from Su Hang," Veronica said softly. "That kid is really thoughtful. At this hour, normal people would already be asleep. If he'd called, he would've woken us up." She gestured for Zidane to take a look.
Zidane unlocked his phone.
"Some people, when they receive immense honor, feel uneasy. They think they're not actually that outstanding. This sense of unworthiness can haunt them for a long time afterward."
"It comes from childhood shadows, and it's also a manifestation of exceptionally strong morals."
"The best way to confront it is to give everything you have in the days ahead. If one trophy isn't enough, then win two—three."
"If one treble isn't enough, then do it twice—three times."
"If your achievements as a player aren't enough, then make up for it with honors as a coach."
"One day, when you look back, you'll realize you surpassed this honor long ago, without even noticing."
"Good night, Third Ball King Zidane."
"—From the Fourth-Generation Ball King, Su Hang."
Waaah!
Veronica burst into tears beside him.
She was completely overwhelmed with emotion.
Zidane himself was deeply moved—until he saw Su Hang's final sign-off.
"That little bastard!" Zidane pulled Veronica into his arms. "Come on, let's go get some rest. It's already so late."
Veronica said, "I just saw that you weren't asleep and felt something was off, so I came over."
Zidane said, "If we have another child, how about we make Su Hang the godfather?"
Veronica said, "But don't we already have four kids?"
Zidane said, "I didn't give it my all back then, so I feel they didn't fully inherit my footballing talent!"
Veronica said, "Th-this… then do I have to prepare for pregnancy again?"
Zidane said, "No need. Why wait for another day when today will do."
Veronica said, "You… you shameless old man!"
...
"Ding! Ronaldinho has just lived through the darkest year of his life. Even though he ranked fourth in both the Ballon d'Or and World Footballer of the Year, compared to last year's achievements, this is undeniably a decline."
"Compared to what he should have achieved, it feels more like mockery. This has served as a wake-up call to the increasingly hedonistic Ronaldinho of recent times."
"Although he conquered Barcelona, he has yet to conquer Spain—let alone all of Europe."
"A clear-headed Ronaldinho rejected his partners' silver party arranged in Paris. He completed his Legendary Path, and his strength surged to 102!"
???
Su Hang didn't know whether Zidane could fall asleep, but he himself definitely couldn't.
Ronaldinho had exploded.
This world had proven countless times that peaks beyond history are often forged through competition.
Comfort breeds degeneration.
And Su Hang had made it impossible for Ronaldinho to remain comfortable.
So Ronaldinho was destined to reach heights even greater than he originally should have!
"Ding! Congratulations on finishing second in the World Footballer of the Year. This is your first time entering the final ranking stage of this award."
"You have received: Random Moment Card ×1, White Medicine Spray ×5, Black Medicine Spray ×10."
"Random Moment Card: Has a chance to draw any Moment Card. The probability is influenced by the opposing team and players."
???
Not bad, not bad.
A random moment card—just hearing the name told you it was something good.
But judging from the description, the odds clearly weren't equal.
Moment cards tied to teams with a shared history would probably have higher chances.
So this card had to be used against a team with a bit of "history."
He couldn't pick some mild, harmless team—otherwise he might not get anything worthwhile.
...
December 23rd, Real Madrid hosted Huelva at home.
Due to Zidane's dreadful performance, Real Madrid lost 1–2 and finished the first half of the La Liga season in third place.
La Liga then entered the winter break.
After the match, Su Hang joked with Zidane, "Zizou, you're already thirty-five. Can't you show a little restraint?"
It was clearly just a normal joke.
Yet Zidane first flushed red, then flew into a rage, looking utterly embarrassed and furious.
He became the team's newest internal joke.
"Zizou, Zizou, thirty-five; no restraint, and you're bound to lose!"
They were really betting with no regard for life.
However, this winter transfer window was ignited by Real Madrid right from the start.
Because paparazzi finally exposed the negotiations between Beckham's agent and LA Galaxy!
The public exploded.
These days, even if you were just going to cash in, you'd at least head to the Turkish Super League.
"At the time, Major League Soccer was seen as a complete backwater—about as believable as Beckham saying he was going on vacation to some lawless backwater."
But absurd or not, it happened.
From every angle, this news was clearly leaked by people from MLS.
They were the biggest beneficiaries once the story broke.
"We've already lost Figo, Ronaldo, Owen, and Zidane—are we going to lose Beckham too?"
"Why not just sell Raúl, Carlos, Casillas, and Su Hang as well? Damn Calderón!"
"If Zidane and Beckham both leave, then even with Su Hang holding things together, this will be the least star-studded Real Madrid I've ever seen."
"Why couldn't Beckham stay one more year? Su needs his help!"
"Honestly, it wouldn't matter much without Beckham. He hasn't played in ages, and the team's still winning, isn't it?"
"Real Madrid needs the future, not Beckham."
"But Beckham is leaving for free! Even if he was going, he should've left the club a renewal fee!"
"You've got to be kidding—do you even know how much Real Madrid made off Beckham's image rights?"
"I heard Beckham didn't renew mainly because of image rights. He wanted a 19–1 split like Su Hang."
"Honestly, Su Hang has ruined Real Madrid's atmosphere. Unlike us at Barça, we—"
"Traitor, get lost! This is a Real Madrid internal group chat!"
For a time, rumors spread everywhere—degeneracy, greed, ambitions of crossing over into the film industry.
Beckham's public image was in terrible shape.
LA Galaxy seemed to extend a helping hand, symbolically increasing Beckham's signing bonus and other incentives.
But when it came to Beckham's most important demand—three team-building rights worth one hundred million dollars—they countered with fifty million dollars per right.
And only one right, not three!
MLS representatives stated flatly that this point was non-negotiable.
The Americans would not give way.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid repeatedly demanded that Beckham complete his contract renewal before the winter break ended.
Otherwise, they would completely bench Beckham for the rest of the season, barring him from training grounds and matchday squads altogether!
...
(35 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser