Coach Marco Feltner
Once we stepped inside and took our seats at the table we'd been shown to, Feltner brought out three cups of herbal tea.
"I'm sorry. I'm afraid herbal tea is all I have to offer."
"That's perfectly fine. I'm the one who showed up unannounced. Herbal tea is more than enough."
And it wasn't just polite talk — the tea was genuinely excellent. Germany was a powerhouse when it came to herbal teas, after all. I figured I might as well pick some up on the way back to Korea.
Sip.
A mouthful of herbal tea sent a pleasant warmth through my body. Sure, it was summer and already hot out, but there was that old saying about fighting fire with fire. Not that it particularly applied here.
"By the way, Ms. Han Do-a, your German is quite good. Where did you learn it?"
"I picked up a little as part of a well-rounded education."
Living in the Hanul family meant learning all sorts of subjects whether you wanted to or not. I'd studied German as a cultural refinement, never imagining it would come in this handy. Should I be thanking Dad for that?
Enough idle thoughts. Time to get down to business.
"...First, let me ask you this. Why didn't you reply? You could have at least sent a rejection."
At my words, Feltner immediately offered an apology.
"I'm sorry. To be honest, I thought it was a prank email."
"Even with the Hanul name on it?"
"Pranks don't tend to take those things into account. If I'd been Korean, I probably would have reported it."
Pretty good with the jokes for a German. I liked that.
"Then allow me to ask properly, here and now. Mr. Marco Feltner — would you become the head coach of our Seongjin Hanul FC? The compensation will be exactly as stated in the proposal."
Feltner took a sip of his herbal tea as he listened, then looked me straight in the eye.
"Ms. Han Do-a, I honestly don't understand. This kind of money is what reasonably well-regarded coaches in the Bundesliga earn. In a Korean league, it'd be top-tier salary. Why on earth are you valuing me this highly?"
Overvaluing me. Overvaluing...
Well, yes — it was an overvaluation. From my perspective, knowing the man he'd become, even this amount felt like a bargain. But for the man sitting in front of me right now, a three-year contract at five hundred million won a year was absolutely high praise.
Now I had to properly explain why I rated him so highly. If I couldn't, he would almost certainly refuse.
In the past... no, "past life" was the right way to put it. In my previous life, he had been a thoroughly meticulous man in every respect.
A man who believed absolutely in data. A man who believed absolutely in his own tactics. Someone who trusted only what he had seen with his own eyes, and who saw through to the end whatever he believed in.
With a man like that, half-baked words wouldn't get me anywhere.
Remember this, Han Do-a. Sitting in front of you right now is the most undervalued coaching prospect in the entire world — the raw gem who will one day revive German soccer. Don't let your guard down for even a second.
"...Mr. Marco Feltner, you led your previous team to fifth place in the 2. Bundesliga. Is that correct?"
"Yes, that's right."
"It was a remarkable team. A side that had just been promoted from the third division climbing all the way to fifth in the second tier without any major roster changes. And this in the Bundesliga system, no less — one of the most formidable leagues in the world."
People often dismissed the Bundesliga as a league Bayern Munich simply farmed for points, but it was still one of the top four leagues in the world.
And even the second division of a league like that was nothing to take lightly. For a newly promoted third-division side, simply finishing mid-table would have been considered a massive success.
And yet that third-division team had climbed to fifth in the second tier without any changes to the squad or the coaching staff. What's more, this was a team that had only ever hovered in the upper-mid table of the third division. So how had they reached the upper ranks of the second?
The only difference between hovering in the upper-mid third division and rising to the top of the second.
Whether or not this slightly disheveled German with the sharp, living eyes sitting across from me had been there. That was the only difference.
The team that had climbed to fifth with Marco Feltner's arrival had, absurdly enough, decided they could do without him — and coldly dismissed the man when he asked for additional player acquisitions. Their failure to recognize this diamond in the rough was almost painfully stupid.
"That team reached fifth because of you. And then they turned around and kicked you out."
"How did you... no, with a conglomerate's intelligence network, finding that out would be nothing."
"Something like that."
I was grateful he'd filled in the blanks himself. Saved me the trouble of explaining.
"I do feel bad about calling you to K League 2 — a truly remote league compared to the Bundesliga. But if you come, I promise you every benefit, every salary figure, and every ounce of full support I put down in writing."
"...You're really promising me all of that?"
"Yes. Of course, it may fall short of the soccer you want to play. K League has its own level, after all."
At that, Feltner shook his head with absolute firmness.
"As long as they're players, every one of them has their own strengths. There will certainly be a ceiling to how far they can climb — but I am confident we can push all the way to that ceiling."
"You're that confident in your own ability, Feltner?"
"Of course. Isn't that why a scion of the Hanul family came all the way out here — because you believe in me?"
Being treated so openly like a princess was a little annoying, but it did feel good.
"Well, that's true enough. So? Has that settled your curiosity?"
Had it settled his curiosity? Moderately, yes. Moderately.
"There's something I'd like to ask you, Han Do-a."
"What is it?"
"Can you trust me until that three-year contract is over?"
Trust him until the end...
"Yes, of course. As long as you deliver what I want, that is."
"What you want... and what is that?"
"I know these are generally unreasonable demands, but will you hear me out?"
Feltner looked slightly puzzled but nodded, and I began laying out conditions I could never have asked of an ordinary coach.
First: with the season already roughly halfway done, finish this season by climbing to K League 1.
Second: the following season, reach at least the upper ranks. Securing a ticket to the AFC Champions League would be even better.
Third: in the final season, take home the league championship trophy.
Naturally, I wasn't asking for an AFC Champions League title. Even I wasn't that shameless.
But then Feltner left me with a question — perhaps the very question I had been waiting for all along.
"You said you'd give me full authority."
"Yes. You'll have every authority that comes with being head coach. If it comes to it, I'll even let you trade on my name."
"In that case... do I also have the authority to rebuild the team?"
Rebuild authority.
There was only one reason he'd ask that. He wanted to handle the rebuild himself.
From my side, I wanted to welcome that with open arms. Saying he'd rebuild before he left meant he intended to completely overhaul the team's constitution.
If he succeeded at a full rebuild, the overall level of the K League could genuinely rise. No — it absolutely would.
And that was exactly what I truly wanted.
Even so, hide it. Hide it to the very end. Don't let your true intentions show.
Don't say something empty like "I was going to give you that from the start." Manage your expression and test him.
"Why?"
"A team sitting mid-table in the second division is almost certainly in an awkward state. There will be players draining the wage bill, players who aren't getting fair evaluations. The structure itself may be unstable."
Spot on. In the aftermath of Seongjin Maseong FC, our current Seongjin Hanul FC had salary thieves, an ace who couldn't climb out of a slump, and players who weren't receiving fair evaluations.
"If you give me full authority over the rebuild, I will completely tear this team down and rebuild it. In the process I may sign more players than strictly necessary, or promote more prospects — but even so, I promise you this."
"I will absolutely achieve the goals you laid out. Provided you trust me, Madam Owner."
The form of address had changed.
From "Han Do-a" to Chefin — Madam Owner. It was Feltner's own way of saying he wanted to join our team.
Then I no longer needed to test him. My choice had been made from the very beginning.
"...Do you have any family?"
"Family... I don't have any. At least, none living with me."
"Your parents?"
"My parents live in central Munich. Though we don't live together."
"I see."
I nodded and rose from my seat as I spoke.
"I'll handle all the paperwork. So please get ready quickly and come to Korea, Coach. We're still in the World Cup break, but the second division resumes early."
I took the documents I'd prepared in advance from Yu-gyeong, who had been standing expressionlessly beside me, and held them out to Feltner. He carefully read through the German-language proposal and left his signature.
Once the signing was done, I extended my hand to Feltner. His large, calloused, hard hand closed around mine.
"I will make absolutely certain you never regret coming all this way to recruit me, Chefin."
"I'll hold you to that, Feltner."
And just like that, I succeeded in bringing one of the future's most celebrated coaches in the world onto our team.
Now Feltner would prove himself as head coach at Seongjin Hanul FC, and through him I would prove my own talent as a person of soccer. We'd be using each other.
I could only hope that at the end of this journey together, we would both be smiling.
That at the end of this journey, Korean soccer would be reborn.
That was all I earnestly wished for.