Chapter 39
Chapter 39
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Parent Club? (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Bolton officially announced the signing of Censorius Ruff through the club's website.
Fans reacted with confusion.
- : This guy..., who is he?
- : Never heard of this player before. Thought he might be from League Two, so I searched...? Nothing.
- : From another league? He's British though?
Most of them had no idea who Censorius Ruff was.
And they had good reason.
He was nothing more than a striker who'd bounced around the eighth tier.
A few minutes later, when his detailed profile went up on the site, some fans finally erupted in anger.
- : What...? Eighth tier? And they signed an unemployed player from there?
- : Not even fifth tier, but eighth tier?
One fan couldn't hide his rage upon learning Ruff had come from local rivals Wigan's youth setup.
- : This bastard's a filthy Latics (Wigan supporters) from youth! Regardless of anything else, just for being a Latics fan, this guy deserves all the shit!
* * *
[[17th] Bolton Wanderers: 42 matches, 12W 4D 26L, 40 pts]
[[18th] Crewe: 42 matches, 12W 3D 27L, 39 pts]
[[19th] Accrington: 42 matches, 11W 5D 26L, 38 pts]
[[20th] MK Dons: 42 matches, 10W 6D 26L, 36 pts]
[[21st] Shrewsbury Town: 42 matches, 10W 5D 27L, 35 pts]
[[22nd] Rochdale: 42 matches, 9W 6D 27L, 33 pts]
[[23rd] Swindon: 42 matches, 9W 6D 27L, 33 pts]
[[24th] Tranmere Rovers: 42 matches, 8W 7D 27L, 31 pts]
One of Ma Jeong-woo's daily routines was checking the standings board.
"Heh."
Thanks to the last win, Bolton had climbed to 17th place.
The points gap to the relegation zone at 21st was 5 points.
Just 4 matches left.
"This season..., no team has had relegation confirmed yet. Fuck!"
From the corner of the office, Richard Geers muttered lowly from his seat on the sofa, ending with a curse.
Without a flicker of expression.
Jeong-woo, used to Geers like this, nodded from his slouched position on the opposite sofa.
"Exactly."
It was a bit of bad news, if anything.
By now, at least one team should have been relegated.
The gap between 24th-placed Tranmere Rovers and the survival cutoff MK Dons was a mere 5 points.
In the end, it was obvious they'd battle fiercely until the final matches.
'With even a sliver of hope left..., they'll fight tooth and nail. Of course.'
Still..., Jeong-woo fought to keep his lips from curling up as he spoke.
"It's down to 3 matches now."
For certain survival, Bolton needed two wins and a draw from their remaining three.
Even if the teams from 21st down won all four of theirs, Bolton wouldn't drop into relegation.
Moreover, Jeong-woo was certain.
"There's no way Shrewsbury or the rest will win all four."
Of course, it wouldn't be an easy fight.
Upsets always existed.
And with four matches left.
Bolton also faced some tough opponents.
But Jeong-woo didn't take it too seriously.
"Even if we lose two or three of those four, the odds of us getting relegated are pretty low."
"You're right, Owner. Still, you'll go into the remaining matches at full strength, won't you?"
Richard Geers replied with a gentle smile.
Jeong-woo chuckled.
"You know me well."
"I'm still learning."
Jeong-woo shrugged.
Geers stared at his owner, feeling like the weight on his shoulders had visibly lightened compared to before.
On one hand, he truly admired him.
'To pull Bolton out of the swamp like this...'
Richard Geers was a veteran who'd seen it all.
Yet witnessing Jeong-woo's tactical prowess with his own eyes left him stunned.
Right after he took the helm, Bolton racked up 8 wins, 1 draw, and 3 losses in 12 matches.
A world apart from Derek Scott, the man responsible for relegating them from the Championship to League One.
'No.'
Geers watched Jeong-woo sneak a cigarette into his mouth and became convinced.
'He wouldn't lose out even compared to Steve Bruce, who's well-known in League One.'
The results proved it.
'And..., the current Bolton squad isn't shallow in depth.'
Meaning it wasn't a perfect team.
Perhaps that's why.
He felt anticipation building inside.
If they secured survival this season, how far could the team go next?
Plus, every one of his plans was groundbreaking.
The club's atmosphere had completely transformed.
Some staff were now proactively suggesting new initiatives without needing prompts.
Overall, the club was buzzing with energy.
Like a flower wilting in defeatism slowly regaining its vibrancy.
All thanks to the man right in front of him.
'What are you thinking about?'
Even now, the Jeong-woo Geers watched seemed to be plotting the club's future.
Meeting his gaze, Jeong-woo was lost in thought with that sharp glint in his eyes that always emerged when pondering deeply.
A warm smile naturally crept onto Geers' lips.
Just as Geers thought, Jeong-woo was sketching out the club's future in his mind.
'With events drawing crowds and revenue up nicely, if we stay up, I can sell the club for a bit more than planned. Heh heh heh.'
* * *
After passing his medical and finalizing the transfer, Censorius Ruff jumped straight into training.
And he was shocked.
On the sunlit first-team training pitch.
Jeong-woo, with his front hair swept up by a spring headband, kept shouting.
"This training is called Bosco's Platform Test—mainly squat jumps, counter movement jumps, drop jumps, and 15-second continuous jumps!"
As he said, the entire first-team squad surrounded Jeong-woo in a wide circle, jumping in sync with the whistle from Manager Park Hee-won.
Their bodies were already drenched in sweat.
Ruff panted heavily as he trained.
These weren't ordinary jumps.
And they were already past 20 reps per set.
He'd figured third-tier training would be tougher than eighth-tier..., but the intensity was beyond imagination.
He'd already been warned.
'Our training's way harsher than other teams.'
Dignity, his agent, had told him that.
And now, Ruff was feeling it firsthand.
Not just harsh—it felt like his body might explode.
"The squat jumps we just did boost lower-body explosiveness. That directly helps with burst speed!"
Jeong-woo bellowed explanations of the benefits from each movement.
Veins bulged on his neck.
He scanned every player with a hawk-like gaze.
"Censoriussss! You bastard, aren't you landing with both feet fully planted? Knees at 90 degrees! Spine straight like a plank! Jump without impact! Pure lower-body power only! You shit, wanna die?!"
"Y-Yes...!"
"What, 'yes'?"
"N-No, sir!"
"Then jump faster, more powerfullyyy!"
Ruff was flustered.
When they'd first met, he seemed rough but with a touch of gentlemanliness.
But right after signing the contract, all trace of that vanished from Jeong-woo.
His current demeanor was...,
"Huff huff! We call him the training ground raptor among ourselves."
"Raptor?"
"Hup! The dinosaur. He's the fiercest in training."
The bald guy doing squats beside him said.
'Name was Floyd... or something?'
Just like that, Jeong-woo exuded ferocity during training.
His eyebrows had been arched high for ages.
One slip-up, and it felt like he'd lunge with a roar.
"On counter movement jumps, straighten the knees! Know what that brings? Huh?"
The coach in front of him also seemed incredibly knowledgeable about training.
"It relates to deceleration and direction changes after bursting forward! So straighten those knees to 180 degrees!"
On top of that, Jeong-woo relentlessly pointed out flawed forMad Dog rattled off the risks.
Then Jeong-woo ripped off his top.
His bronze, rippling arm muscles stood out sharply.
If a stranger saw this, they'd mistake him for a first-team player.
Gulp!
Ruff swallowed unwittingly.
Objectively, his build was more solid than some players.
At first, he thought this young coach was just putting on a tough act.
But no.
The aura was real.
He was always like this.
Ruff's eyes widened further.
Because Jeong-woo had joined the players in the Bosco Platform Test.
It was a bizarre sight.
Maybe that's why.
Not a single player quit midway.
With the coach sweating alongside them.
Moreover, Jeong-woo kept stimulating their psyches nonstop.
"Edison said it: The diligent reap greater rewards! Just like you now!"
"Heard of patience being the highest virtue? That virtue turns into your stellar performances!"
His words fueled Ruff.
"Hey, Censorius! Want to start next match? Prove to me you're the best at this training! I promise—I'll put you in the lineup!"
* * *
Bolton Wanderers didn't take to Censorius Ruff.
Less because of his eighth-tier or unemployed status, more because he was from Wigan youth.
The issue was some coaches felt the same.
Fortunately, most of the first-team welcomed him warmly.
And today,
"Does this make sense...?"
Censorius Ruff's pupils trembled faintly.
It had only been 4 days since joining the team.
He hadn't dreamed of starting his first match.
He'd dismissed Jeong-woo's training words as mere motivation.
Plus, his position rival Ace was back, Aaron Lepid was solid.
There was the tall striker Slow Bulky too.
All objectively better than him.
At least in career terms, undeniable.
They'd spent years at League One or Two levels.
"..."
Yet staring at the lineup on the board, Ruff blinked in disbelief.
From eighth tier, he figured bench at best if he played.
But no.
For whatever reason...,
[LF: Ace Park]
[ST: Censorius Ruff]
[RF: Aaron Lepid]
He was proudly in the starting XI.
Against Wigan Athletic, no less.
────────────────────────────────────