After the opening match, Ho-young enjoyed a comfortable rest.
There was no match until the 11th, so the training load was light.
However, today he heard surprising news while eating spaghetti at home.
It was something Lucci had just told him after returning from a meeting with Nike representatives.
"A new proposal from Nike?"
"Yes."
For the past six months, several sports equipment companies had been offering contract proposals.
Among them, the most attractive were Puma and Nike. As the contract expiration approached, Nike had presented extraordinary terms.
"It's more than the amount Puma offered after the World Cup."
"Wow."
Ho-young, who had been twirling the nearly unseasoned noodles on his fork, placed it down on the table.
At such a remarkable moment, he did not want to keep eating such a tasteless health food.
Soon he approached the refrigerator with a determined expression.
Then he spoke.
"Please don't stop me."
Click.
Fizz.
It was a carbonated drink he had promised himself to drink only on special occasions, like birthdays or when the team won a trophy.
"Today is that day."
Ho-young took out a 150ml can of cola, opened it, and took a sip.
Gulp.
"Ah."
It was the kind of day when one could not resist the charm of carbonation.
Money was not the reason he played football, but it was undeniable that it was one of his life goals.
Ho-young checked the remaining amount in the can and placed it on the table.
"If it's more than Puma's offer, how much are we talking about?"
After the World Cup, Puma had offered a total of 43 million euros over eight years, about 5.37 million euros per year.
That was four times more than the one-year renewal contract Ho-young had signed with Adidas last year.
It was also not much different from Cristiano Ronaldo's three-year deal with Nike, and it far exceeded Lionel Messi's recent four-year contract with Adidas.
Puma, which was smaller than Nike and Adidas in company size, could make such offers because of its policy of heavily investing in key athletes.
It was the same context as the massive contract they had offered to Usain Bolt until 2023.
But.
"Nike has offered 21 million euros for three years."
When broken down annually, it was even more than the contract Nike had recently signed with tennis superstar Maria Sharapova.
It was truly a staggering amount.
Ho-young poured more Coca-Cola into his mouth and asked.
"...Then how many footballers earn more than me?"
"None if you look at it on a yearly basis."
"Oh."
Compared to the enormous deal Nike had signed with basketball star LeBron James, it might seem small, but among footballers, it was certainly the highest figure.
"Not only that, they will pay a signing bonus of 3.5 million euros. In addition, they guarantee at least 10 million euros for products, advertisements, and promotional activities that include image rights. There is also an option allowing negotiations with other brands six months before the contract expires."
"It's hard to believe."
"They want to position you as Nike's main football representative."
Nike's current representative models included Michael Jordan and LeBron James in basketball, Tiger Woods in golf, and Cristiano Ronaldo in football.
If the contract went through, Ho-young's name would be added among them.
"So it's loyalty to Adidas or better terms from Nike."
Of course, the offer from Adidas was also excellent, comparable to Puma's.
It was just not as aggressive as Nike's.
And then.
"Do you like tennis?"
"Of course. Living in Spain, you naturally get exposed to it. But why ask?"
"Nike has an advertisement planned for early October. They want a tennis player and you to appear together. Doesn't that sound appealing?"
"That's exciting. So who is the tennis player?"
Two people immediately came to mind.
First was the emperor of tennis, known even by people who knew nothing about tennis, Switzerland's Roger Federer.
Second was Federer's rival and Spain's sporting hero, Rafael Nadal, who had already won two Grand Slams this year.
Both were Nike's representative tennis models, so the chances were high.
Lucci's answer matched exactly what Ho-young had expected.
"He's apparently been your fan for a while."
"Haha. I want to meet him soon. What kind of advertisement is it?"
"The concept is breaking the limits of humanity."
"Oh, that's interesting."
He did not know the specific details of the shoot yet, but Ho-young felt strangely confident.
It seemed like it would become a meaningful experience beyond a simple commercial.
And he was curious.
'What kind of talent does the man known as El Toro have?'
Three days later.
Many changes came to Ho-young.
The first was the long-awaited talent of Di Stéfano.
[Coveting All-Rounder's Versatility (L). It will take 30 days to fully acquire the talent.]
But it did not end there.
[A similar talent, Half-Pitch Domination Versatility (SU), can be combined.]
Just as expected, the fusion was possible.
As the versatility-related talent evolved, several aspects of the talent system became more convenient.
For example, talents below S grade could now be covet immediately without waiting in the queue.
Salomón Rondón's heading talent he had recently acquired was one such case.
Not only that, the talent transfer process that used to be necessary had been greatly simplified.
There was no longer any need to wait.
[Half-Pitch Domination Versatility (SU) and All-Rounder's Versatility (L) have successfully fused.]
[All-Rounder's Versatility (L) → Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3)]
[Coveting Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3).]
'Oh!'
As expected of Di Stéfano's talent, it instantly fused into a W+3 grade.
In total, it would take 80 days to complete the fusion and fully acquire the talent.
'It's on the same level as Messi's talent.'
He realized once again just how incredible Lionel Messi's talent truly was.
But it was not the end.
[After 80 days, you can combine all talents closely related to Field-Dominating Versatility among your possessed talents.]
[List of talents that can integrate with Field-Dominating Versatility (W+3)]
• Available to check after 80 days
Fusion possible.
'Then can W+3 be considered on the same level as Triple S?'
As always, the system did not reveal everything clearly.
Time was needed.
'Anyway, one thing is certain. This will soon allow another breakthrough of limits.'
All that was required was time and effort.
The second change that came to Ho-young was this.
[Breaking News: 'Ho-young' close to signing a new sponsorship deal with Nike, annual value at least 10.8 million euros and potentially over 30 million euros.
Nike is known to have been pursuing Ho-young for the past six months. The contract is reportedly worth 21 million euros over three years, and attention is focused on whether this big deal will be finalized.
Nike is also reportedly actively courting Ho-young to make him their representative model. An advertisement project celebrating the partnership is currently underway...]
└He's basically sitting on a mountain of money... Once he signs a professional contract he'll probably earn more than Beckham.
└I'm jealous... Self-made at 17... I want to marry Ho-young. I'd do anything he asks.
└Huh?
└Could you lick Ho-young's feet for 24 hours after he plays a full 90 minutes? Salary 1 million euros.
└My mouth is watering already.
└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
└Wouldn't that be an honor for your family?
└If it were me, I'd never wash my tongue again.
└I could kneel and lick them sincerely.
└Two shifts possible.
└I'll do it for free.
└What did Ho-young do to deserve this?
└The comment section is holy as always ^^
└Am I the only one curious about what advertisement Ho-young will film?
Amid everyone's attention, Ho-young carried that momentum into the home match against Osasuna on September 11, scoring a brace.
The perfected Fantastical Foot Skills made his play even more brilliant, and the recently acquired Field-Dominating Versatility helped him develop into a more complete footballer.
The start was excellent.
Real Madrid opened with two straight league wins and then defeated Real Sociedad, Espanyol, and Levante in succession, becoming the dominant team of September.
Ho-young scored nine goals in that month alone, bringing his total to twelve and placing him firmly at the top of the scoring charts.
Then on October 3.
Real Madrid hosted Deportivo and scored the opening goal just one minute into the first half, hinting at a massive victory.
Once again, Ho-young's scoring instinct shone that day.
He scored the second goal in the 4th minute of the first half and the third goal in the 50th minute of the second half, completing another hat-trick.
It was his third hat-trick of the season.
Deportivo, even after Ho-young was substituted out, conceded three more goals and suffered a crushing 6-1 defeat.
[Ho-young, six consecutive league matches as Man of the Match, 15 goals in six rounds, new La Liga record]
15 goals in six rounds.
This surpassed the previous record of Esteban Echevarría, who had scored 15 goals in seven rounds. It also matched the record Lionel Messi set last year with 10 goals in four rounds.
With Barcelona's Messi and Villa struggling, some opinions suggested Ho-young might almost secure the Golden Boot before the first half of the season ended.
Meanwhile Ronaldo was second in the league with eight goals in six matches.
The brutal schedule ended there.
From the very next day, another two-week break began.
It was the international break.
South Korea had a friendly against Zambia, but since it was not an important match, major overseas players including Ho-young were not called up.
And on Tuesday, October 5.
Ho-young officially parted ways with Adidas and signed a new sponsorship contract with Nike.
He received a signing bonus of 3.5 million euros in a lump sum, and the advertisement project quickly moved forward.
The commercial shoot took place two days later.
Caja Mágica in Madrid.
It was a tennis stadium known for hosting the prestigious Mutua Madrid Open, and today it was the location for the shoot.
Ho-young arrived slightly earlier than the scheduled time. After greeting the staff, he waited for the other partner to arrive.
Seeing Ho-young looking somewhat nervous, Lucci handed him a glass of cold tea.
"Feeling nervous?"
"Of course."
Today's shooting partner was the man who had proudly won the US Open last month and achieved three Grand Slam titles this year.
How could he not feel nervous filming a Nike advertisement with someone like that?
Ho-young still could not quite believe it.
Sometimes it even felt like a dream.
"Haha. Just think of it as meeting someone and saying hello. I think the other person is just as nervous as you."
Lucci was right.
At that moment, a man entered from afar with security guards.
He clearly looked nervous.
Long hair reaching his shoulders.
Thick eyebrows, a face that carried both boyish charm and masculinity.
He was Spain's hero, Rafael Nadal.
Nadal approached Ho-young with a bright smile and extended his hand warmly.
"Nice to meet you. I've really wanted to meet you."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Ho-young."
Thus, the meeting of the century finally took place.
(To be continued.)