Chapter 96
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: The God Returns to Essen
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Park Si-hyun has arrived.
Barcelona's director's office.
Joan Gaspart stared out the window and slowly pulled out a cigarette.
He had now cleverly leveraged the "Catalan independence remarks incident" to turn public opinion around, but originally, infamy had preceded his name.
He'd sent Luis Figo to Real Madrid, released Rivaldo, and blown through money until the club was in financial ruin.
The worst president in Barcelona's history.
That was Joan Gaspart.
He'd figured he'd leave office draped in that notoriety until his term ended.
But the World Cup changed everything.
As the man who'd first ignited the Catalan independence controversy, he'd stood up to Spain head-on and rekindled fan loyalty.
But how long would that adulation last?
If the 02/03 season tanked, the revived goodwill would surely turn back into a knife's edge.
So Gaspart thought.
If he could just bring in Park Si-hyun, the next hero of Catalonia after Puyol. Even if he botched this season and left, maybe he'd exit amid applause and cheers instead of boos?
But the plan had creaked from the start.
"So you're saying it's impossible?"
Gaspart asked lowly, and the executive flipped through documents before replying.
"Yes. Park Si-hyun has already made it clear. He won't transfer until he promotes Rot-Weiss Essen from the 2. Bundesliga to the 1. Bundesliga."
"Promises like that don't mean much in football, do they? I think we can persuade him sufficiently."
The executive shook his head.
"That'd be true for most players. But when it's Park Si-hyun saying it, it's different."
He continued firmly.
"He doesn't waver for money. Not for a club's prestige either. He's the type who believes the club's prestige rises because of him. And even when Essen was in the 3. Liga, he didn't even glance at offers from Munich or Dortmund."
To the club, Park Si-hyun was the trickiest type.
Money wouldn't work.
Prestige wouldn't.
Not even history.
"No way around it?"
Desperation laced Gaspart's voice.
Barcelona needed a new symbol right now.
With Ronaldinho's signing off the table, the name "Park Si-hyun" carried more weight than any other player.
At that moment, the executive said quietly.
"...What if we try this."
Gaspart looked up.
"Instead of demanding an immediate transfer, we get a 'promise' that he'll come to Barcelona after promoting Essen to the top flight."
"A promise?"
"Yes. A promise. Promote Essen to the 1. Bundesliga, and even if he wins titles there and chooses another league over La Liga, when he does come to La Liga, Barcelona gets first priority."
Confidence gleamed in the executive's eyes.
"Park Si-hyun keeps his word."
And he added the clincher.
"Essen's successful rebuild owes a lot to investments from Catalan companies. And Essen knows those companies are close to Barcelona. They owe us a favor. If we say we want to talk directly to Park Si-hyun, they won't refuse. They figure he won't leave right away anyway."
Gaspart drew in a silent breath.
"A promise, not paperwork..."
It was a method no one would try with other players.
In football, contracts trump words, and promises break easily.
How many players preached loyalty only to crumble before money?
But Park Si-hyun seemed different.
'Even if I take heat... If he ever joins Barcelona and mentions my name just once in an interview...'
Being acknowledged by a player like Park Si-hyun.
That might be the final honor for a president closing out an era.
"Fine. Let's do it that way. Not now, but when he comes to La Liga, he chooses Barcelona."
Gaspart let out a short breath.
"He can't go to Real Madrid anyway."
As a hero in Barcelona, Park Si-hyun was a "traitor" in Madrid.
The executive nodded.
"Then we'll send someone to make contact and convey our intentions with gifts."
"No."
Gaspart cut him off decisively.
"I'll go myself. And the gifts come from my own pocket, not club funds."
The executive looked flustered.
But Gaspart's mind was already filled with gift ideas for Park Si-hyun.
'A mansion in Catalonia? Too blatant... Supercars suit his age. Or both for maximum impact...'
While Park Si-hyun was away at the World Cup, Rot-Weiss Essen underwent changes so massive they were hard to believe.
Everything, from the smallest details to the big picture.
Scouting system, training facilities, roster composition, club operations.
The press called it.
[The most perfect rebuild in German 2. Bundesliga history.]
Even fans were stunned at how smart and precise Essen's signings were.
The atmosphere was already ripe.
Direct promotion to the top flight.
No one dismissed it as a dream anymore. It was no longer a "goal"—it was a scheduled future.
And atop that anticipation, their god returned.
Golden Ball winner.
World Cup champion.
The first Asian player in history to do it.
He hadn't just shaken up the World Cup—he'd toppled the world and come back.
Beat Germany?
Essen fans didn't care.
"Germany's won plenty of titles."
"And no Essen players were on the German national team."
To them, one thing mattered.
Park Si-hyun.
Plus, how badly their god wanted to see them—he skipped Korea entirely after the World Cup and flew straight back to Essen.
To greet that moment, thousands of fans had already flooded Essen Airport.
Banners unfurled in unison.
WELCOME BACK, THE GOD OF ESSEN
WHO CRUSHED THE WORLD
(Welcoming Park Si-hyun, the God of Essen Who Toppled Even the World)
Spotlights flashed, camera flashes exploded.
Security held the line, but the fans' breaths grew hotter.
And—
The automatic doors at the airport gate slid open slowly, revealing a silhouette.
Just like that, the god of Essen, Park Si-hyun, the one they'd been waiting for, appeared.
"Waaaaaaaaah!!!!!!"
"The god is back!!!"
"I love you, Si-hyun!!!"
"So dazzling, ugh!"
Some cried, some trembled, and a few overzealous fans actually fainted.
Later, when asked why they passed out, they said:
"That moment... I saw a halo behind Si-hyun..."
"There was... light."
"You crazy bastard, you actually won the World Cup and came back. I'm pledging my full loyalty to our player Park Si-hyun from now on. Loyalty! Loyalty!"
Jang Do-yoon couldn't close his gaping mouth and yelled. I chuckled.
His over-the-top reaction was only natural.
The agent gig he'd handled solo for me was no longer just a personal hustle.
He'd set up a full company in Germany, grandly naming it "Kingmaker Agency"—the place that births kings.
'Birthing kings, huh... I was already complete, but others see it differently.'
I'd been just a Korean high schooler, and Jang Do-yoon was the one who'd scouted and brought me to Germany.
Some German scouts called him "the man with the eyes of god."
'Pre-regression nickname was Hunter, now eyes of god... Fancy titles.'
But it didn't feel exaggerated.
He'd already hired elite staff and started signing promising talents.
And the contracts? Top level.
Players whose names I recognized were joining his roster one by one.
The biggest shock was Luka Modrić.
Long before he'd be called a playmaker.
Back when his skinny frame and weak physique kept him overlooked.
At Dinamo Zagreb but unable to crack the first team, bouncing on loans—right now.
No one even called him a prospect, but Jang Do-yoon flew to Croatia himself and signed him.
Objectively, yeah, eyes of god.
'Is everyone in the Park Si-hyun faction a genius...'
"But... loyalty? Bro, I ain't enlisting."
"Right, exempt. Damn, jealous. Why'd you come back so soon anyway? Swing by Korea, wave to the fans. Heard the bigwigs were miffed."
"If they're miffed, what're they gonna do about it."
That's why I skipped Korea.
I was grateful for the exemption. Wanted to repay the fans who'd cheered me on. But if it meant bowing to self-important elites?
No thanks.
I'm grateful to the nation, not to people who think they're nobility.
I'd already proven it.
'If it bugs them, tell me themselves.'