Chapter 423: Chapter 29: The Munich Pull III
Twenty-three special points left, ten to a black pack. He opened two and kept three back.
「BLACK PACK SELECTED」
「10 SP CONSUMED」
「REMAINING BALANCE: 59 TP | 13 SP | 28 MP」
「Long Shots +3 · Agility +3 · Reactions +6 · Vision +4 · Game Reader (shard) · Comeback King (shard) · Through-the-Lines Drive — EPIC · Stamina +9」
The Through-the-Lines Drive card held the technique glow, and it was the one that mattered. Receive between the lines, turn, carry at the back four — and against Bayern, breaking the first pressure line meant the whole pitch opened behind it. The Stamina +9 he was grateful for too, three matches deep and a flight still ahead.
「BLACK PACK SELECTED」
「10 SP CONSUMED」
「REMAINING BALANCE: 59 TP | 3 SP | 28 MP」
「Penalties +5 · Heading Accuracy +8 · Acceleration +2 · Curve +6 · Free-Kick Whip (shard) · Loose Ball Magnet (shard) · Driven Throw-In — RARE · First-Touch Set — RARE」
First-Touch Set was the quiet one, and the useful one. Open the body on the first touch and set the next action before the press fully arrived — exactly the half-second Bayern tried to steal. The Driven Throw-In was situational, and he filed it as that, nothing more.
The Summary
The packs stopped, and the system drew it all together.
「PULL SESSION COMPLETE」
「PACKS OPENED: 19」
「TOTAL SPENT: 600 TP | 370 SP | 1250 MP」
「LEGENDARY TECHNIQUES ACQUIRED」
「Fabio Cannavaro — Wall」
「Marcel Desailly — The Rock」
「Michael Owen — Boy Wonder」
「Toni Kroos — Metronome」
「Luka Modrić — Outside-of-Boot Laser」
「Jay-Jay Okocha — So Good Twice」
「Thierry Henry — Va-Va-Voom」
「Gareth Bale — Galáctico Surge」
「TECHNIQUES ACQUIRED」
「Curling Free-Kick — EPIC」
「Through-the-Lines Drive — EPIC」
「Driven Throw-In — RARE」
「First-Touch Set — RARE」
「ACTIVE TRAITS」
「Ball Winner」
「Long Shot Taker」
「Agent Negotiation Perk」
「Clutch Finisher」
「Press Resistant」
「OVERALL RATING UPDATED」
「87 → 93」
The full profile followed.
════════ DEMIEN WALTER ════════
Age 19 · Manchester United · CM/AM · ENG/ITA · Right foot
Form: Rising · Morale: Confident · OVR: 93
───────────────────────────────
PAC 99 SHO 88 PAS 93 DRI 98 DEF 84 PHY 92
───────────────────────────────
PAC:
Acceleration: 99
Sprint Speed: 99
SHO:
Positioning: 97
Finishing: 99
Shot Power: 89
Long Shots: 98
Volleys: 71
Penalties: 71
PAS:
Vision: 99
Crossing: 84
Free Kick Acc.: 75
Short Passing: 99
Long Passing: 99
Curve: 99
DRI:
Agility: 99
Balance: 99
Reactions: 99
Ball Control: 99
Dribbling: 95
Composure: 99
DEF:
Interceptions: 94
Heading Acc.: 99
Def. Awareness: 93
Standing Tackle: 70
Sliding Tackle: 62
PHY:
Jumping: 73
Stamina: 99
Strength: 99
Aggression: 98
「FINAL BALANCE」
「59 TP | 3 SP | 28 MP」
The Shard Panel
The last screen tracked everything still building toward a threshold, none of it active until it filled.
「SKILL SHARD PROGRESS」
「Near-Post Rocket: 1/5」
「Ball Roll Cut: 1/5」
「One-Touch Wall Pass: 1/5」
「Settle Touch: 1/5」
「Threaded Ground Pass: 1/5」
「Quick Free-Kick: 1/5」
「Tempo Drop: 1/5」
「Disguised Square Ball: 1/5」
「Slide Rescue: 1/5」
「Interception Step: 1/5」
「Tackle-and-Carry: 1/5」
「Stop-Start Burst: 1/5」
「No-Look Slide Pass: 1/8」
「Threaded Reverse Volley: 1/8」
「Drag-and-Drive: 1/8」
「Sweeping Long Diagonal: 1/8」
「Elastico Burst: 1/8」
「Trivela Switch: 1/8」
「Acrobatic Volley: 1/8」
「LEGENDARY SHARD PROGRESS」
「Gianluigi Buffon — Superman: 1/12」
「Manuel Neuer — Sweeper Keeper: 1/12」
「Nílton Santos — Encyclopedia: 1/12」
「Cesc Fàbregas — Assist Architect: 1/12」
「TRAIT SHARD PROGRESS」
「Stamina Regeneration: 2/4」
「Aerial Threat: 1/4」
「Speed Dribbler: 2/4」
「Recovery Boost: 2/4」
「Game Reader: 2/4」
「Free-Kick Whip: 2/4」
「Loose Ball Magnet: 2/4」
「Late Run Specialist: 1/4」
「Momentum Shifter: 1/4」
「Leadership Badge: 1/4」
「Pivot Discipline: 1/4」
「Weak-Foot Confidence: 1/4」
「First-Touch Master: 1/4」
「Sponsor Deal Slot: 1/4」
「Cold Blood: 1/4」
「Cool Penalty Taker: 1/4」
「Inverted Threat: 1/4」
「Big Match Temperament: 1/4」
「Confidence Anchor: 1/4」
「First-Phase Outlet: 1/4」
「Late Bloomer: 1/4」
「Playmaker: 1/4」
「Wall-Pass Partner: 1/4」
「Half-Turn Specialist: 1/4」
「Comeback King: 1/4」
Processing The Jump
The panels faded, and the room was just a room again, dark and quiet with the recovery drink going warm on the desk.
This wasn’t the boy who used to scream into a pillow after a big pull in Bergamo. He was at Manchester United now, with a flight to Munich in the morning, and ninety-three overall didn’t feel like safety. It felt like expectation.
The changes had settled the way they always did with him — not a transformation he could watch happen, just a different baseline underneath everything. More give in his hips when he turned. His eyes catching the picture a fraction earlier. His core holding firm through contact he’d have been knocked off a week ago. Passing options appearing in his mind before he’d consciously looked for them.
He ran the Bayern match through one more time, and this time he had answers for it.
Kroos gave him the rhythm to slow their press. Modrić gave him the disguise to break their lines. Desailly let him hold the contact their midfield would bring, and Cannavaro let him read the danger when United’s shape stretched. Bale turned a single won ball into a transition Bayern couldn’t ignore. First-Touch Set gave him the half-second back that their second man tried to steal, and Through-the-Lines Drive gave him a way to punish them if he ever got the ball between their lines.
He didn’t think he’d beat Bayern on his own. That would be a stupid thing to think, and he knew it. But for the first time since the clips had started running behind his eyes, he felt that if the match reached him, his tools would be sharp enough to answer it.
Ending
His phone buzzed against the desk, and it wasn’t Marco or Sophia or anything from social media. It was club operations.
Bayern Munich — Champions League Group Stage
Departure: 10:30 AM
Airport arrival: 09:15 AM
Team briefing before flight
Allianz Arena familiarisation after arrival
He looked once more at the balance before he closed it.
「59 TP | 3 SP | 28 MP」
Then the system went dark.
Tuesday, September 19, 2023
Carrington Training Centre
Morning
The air was still cool when Demien arrived with his travel bag, and the staff were already loading equipment crates into the hold of the coach while the squad drifted in. Bruno stood near the front in club tracksuit, scrolling his phone. Casemiro spoke quietly with one of the analysts. Onana walked past with headphones on and his face giving nothing away, the Brighton draw still hanging over the group like weather that hadn’t cleared.
Demien walked toward the bus.
A crate went up into the hold ahead of him, and the label was printed in black on white tape along its side.
FC BAYERN MÜNCHEN — ALLIANZ ARENA
He stopped for half a second.
Then he stepped onto the bus.
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