Chapter 14: Top Agent (2)

I spent nearly the entire night wide awake, dealing with the gang's harassment, but there was still no contact from Harry.

Why hasn't he reached out yet after bringing this much evidence?

My mind was a mess, but I had tasks to accomplish today. I grabbed a meal and headed to the hotel, where I had lunch with Sebastian before going to the training ground.

Today's training was a post-match session. Players who played over 60 minutes yesterday would undergo light recovery exercises followed by massages or pool training, while substitute players and those like Sebastian who weren't on the list would have to endure tougher training.

With the trio of nuclear waste at the pool, I had less to worry about, so I blankly watched Sebastian's training and shook my head.

"Get a grip."

I slapped my cheeks to refocus.

Harry might not have reported to the director yet, and if it truly got ignored, I needed to prepare to report it to the media and the police.

I should gather as much information as I could.

I turned to Sebastian, who was sipping a drink before circuit training, and said, "Seb, I'm going to the restroom for a bit."

On my way to the restroom, I took a different path to head to the head coach's office. I had gathered information from the other coaching staff and players, but the information about the head coach wasn't available elsewhere, so I needed to go get it myself.

When I arrived at the usually closed door, my phone vibrated.

"Got it."

I muttered quietly to myself and was about to head back to Sebastian when suddenly, the head coach's door swung open.

"Oh? You're Seb's interpreter, right?"

"Yes."

Crap.

The head coach was looking at me with a puzzled expression, wondering why I was here.

"What brings you all the way here…?"

He was a man of few words and consistent actions. I couldn't think of what to say, so I looked around the head coach's office and spotted something familiar.

"Isn't that a Barcelona-style 3-3-1-3? Are you planning to apply it to Brighton?"

"You know about it?"

Thank goodness. The head coach's attention was redirected.

"Of course."

"To be precise, I'm not trying to implement it exactly as is; I'm trying to combine that passing route with a 4-4-2 system."

"Wow, the players will be working hard."

I expressed my honest thoughts.

The head coach's eyes sparkled.

"Do you know how I came up with this system?"

I recalled the player profiles I'd received as a helper and shared my thoughts.

"If you're going to combine it with a 4-4-2 system… you'd maintain a 4-4 block when defending, and during attacks, the positional changes of the right midfielder, right fullback, and the two central midfielders would be crucial. The players would have to run their hearts out."

It seemed like the head coach's eyes were shining with excitement. Thanks to the helper, I could clearly see the characteristics of the players and the positional changes I could discuss.

"If it's the right midfielder, Seb can definitely take on that role, but the right fullback, Norton, lacks football intelligence, so we might need another player…"

"Exactly! Can we talk a bit more?"

Huh?

The head coach entered the room and began explaining his plans for the next season.

He quickly cleared the mess of reports strewn across his desk and showed me a report he was holding.

Before I flipped to the first page of the report, I naturally raised a question.

"Is it okay to show this to me?"

"Yes, it's fine. I won't show you anything about player acquisitions or sales because you're with the agency. Let's just talk tactics."

He winked.

"I got stuck thinking alone, and having ideas in advance for next season's tactics will help Sebastian too. What do you think, a win-win?"

Sebastian had said he would return to Spain after this season. Did this guy not know that?

For now, I decided to go along with the head coach's rhythm.

Based on the information I'd obtained as a helper, I shared my thoughts on whether the players could adapt to the tactics. My insights were far below those of the head coach, but he listened to me earnestly, allowing me to speak passionately.

"So… even if Sebastian plays on the right side of a front three, he'll still need to form a block when defending."

The head coach was keenly aware of Sebastian's abilities. A player who could start for top Premier League teams; thus, Sebastian was the key to the head coach's plans for the next season.

It felt good to have a coach who valued the player highly, but as an agency employee, I was conflicted about whether I should inform him that Sebastian would be transferring next season. Ultimately, I couldn't bring myself to say anything.

The head coach extended his hand for a handshake, looking genuinely pleased.

"Can we talk again sometime? Your player analysis is excellent. I'd want to hire you as a coach right away."

"Haha, sure."

I wasn't sure if I would get another chance to talk, but I was relieved that I could easily gather information from the head coach for a while.

As I stood up, I took a look around the room that I hadn't paid attention to until now. On the left side were various formations pinned up, and reports and books were scattered chaotically. Indecipherable scribbles were just an added bonus. On the right side, it was spotless, as if it had just been cleaned.

And there,

"Whoa! Isn't that a Dennis Cameron jersey?! Is that really his autograph?"

Famous players' signatures, replicas, and signed balls were displayed like a museum.

"It's my treasure. Hehe."

Wow, what's this ball?

"Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker! Ian Wright and Bobby Charlton too. Wow…"

There were signatures from players like Ryan Giggs and Steven Gerrard, who were active just a few years ago, covering one ball entirely.

"You have a good eye. Look at this too. There's a jersey marked with Arsène Wenger's name that has signatures from all the players from Arsenal's unbeaten season."

This guy is the real deal. I spent quite some time enthusiastically discussing football with the head coach.

"It was enjoyable."

My eyes were delighted, and my mouth was filled with excitement. Talking about football after so long lifted my spirits significantly.

"I never would have guessed that an interpreter would be this interesting. What was your name again?"

"It's Hyunseok. My last name is Tae."

"Can I call you Hyunseok?"

"Of course."

We shook hands once more.

The head coach asked, "So, are you heading to the training ground?"

"Yes, and you, head coach…?"

"Just call me Roy. I have to see the manager. I need to report this."

The head coach, Roy, showed me the report. I read through it and asked the question that had been on my mind.

"By the way, are you in charge of all this?"

"Yes, that's right. The tactics are all my responsibility."

"I saw player acquisitions in the report too…"

"Yes, that's part of my job as well."

"The meal plans were also listed."

"Exactly. If the nutritionist requests an inspection from the manager, I receive it and check it."

Huh?

"Personal training for players too?"

"I plan that."

"...Then what does the manager do?"

"Player management?"

Is that really all?

"Yeah. Hehe, basically, I'm the manager."

So, he knows. Looking at his expression, it seems he's not just being used.

Roy said cheerfully.

"Being thirty years old and a newbie with a coaching license, it's rare to have this level of experience in a place like this. With the manager as a mere figurehead, I get to experiment with my tactics and club management as I please. If it fails, I just get scolded by the manager once, and it's an easy job."

The term that heated up our country last fall came to mind. The so-called "de facto power."

It didn't seem like he was particularly close to the manager, so I lightly teased him.

"Then the manager could get fired at any moment?"

"Ah, that won't happen. The manager and the sporting director were teammates at Brighton in their youth."

"Really?"

After parting with the head coach, I comforted Sébastien, who looked like he was about to cry over my late arrival, as we finished our routine without anything unusual.

Harry hadn't contacted me until nightfall and hadn't made any calls either.

Feeling unnecessarily gloomy, I attempted to sleep early, realizing today the gang hadn't come. I called Sébastien to check if everything was alright, and he said nothing happened, which made me think that the gang must have a day off, so I went to bed.

For the first time in a while, it seemed I could sleep peacefully.

If they cause trouble late at night, I could wake up then, right?

If there's no contact by tomorrow, I'll head straight to the police station to present the evidence. I can't delay any longer.

"Eek."

"Surprised? Time?"

As I opened my eyes, Sébastien's dark, dark eyes were staring at me intently.

I looked around to confirm I was in my room and then looked back up at Sébastien.

"Did I oversleep? Sorry, I'll get up quickly."

"No, it's fine."

"Huh? What time is it?"

Now that I think about it, why is he here when he should be in the hotel?

Sébastien turned on his phone to show me the time.

Five thirty in the morning.

"Why so early…?"

"Because of this."

Sébastien seemed oddly excited. What he showed me was the homepage of a famous English news outlet.

[Current 2nd Division Player Arrested for Minor Prostitution Scandal]

"Huh?"

I jumped out of bed.

Sébastien was still grinning.

"This is Liam Grant, right? It's all over TV."

"TV?"

Sébastien led the way to the living room. I followed him, still in my pajamas.

When Sébastien turned on the TV, a reporter was urgently covering familiar content as breaking news.

Reporter: "Brighton striker Liam Grant has been arrested by police on charges of minor prostitution. It has been revealed that Liam Grant was engaging in prostitution with another minor at the time of his arrest…"

Then the screen showed Liam Grant being dragged out. It looked like he had been pulled out in the middle of the night, wearing nothing but underwear.

The reporters and cameras shoved microphones in Liam Grant's face.

Reporter: "Do you admit to the charges?"

Liam Grant: "Get that away from me!"

After Liam Grant's explosive reaction, the screen returned to the reporter.

What's going on?

The reporter continued discussing additional crimes committed by Liam Grant. Those were things I hadn't even been able to find out.

Sébastien exclaimed with excitement.

"They've been showing that video non-stop since earlier. He was arrested at dawn. He should be undergoing questioning right now. And there's more good news."

Sébastien handed me his phone again. The screen displayed news about Liam Grant and two other players being terminated from their contracts at Brighton. The club issued an urgent announcement early in the morning.

"Isn't this something?"

Sébastien looked at me with bright eyes. It was a look full of trust, like a dog that would obediently sit or stay on command.

Of course, I couldn't say anything as I had no clue how the situation had developed.

After breakfast at my house, I headed to the training ground.

It seemed like something Harry or the agency had done, so I tried calling, but no one answered. When I got out of the car and looked at the entrance to the training ground, an unusual sight unfolded.

A few middle-aged men in suits, whom I had never seen before, greeted Sébastien. Following them was the manager, who was nervously following behind with his hands clasped.

"Oh, Rodríguez!"

"...Mr. Chairman? The owner?"

Ah, it was the owner and the sporting director. Now that I looked closely, they were wearing what appeared to be quite expensive watches.

"I'm sorry. I had no idea this was happening."

Their extreme apologies didn't match their appearances. Despite Western culture being known for not bowing deeply, these men were bowing their heads deeply.

What's this? What's going on? The situation was so fast-paced that I struggled to keep up.

Even the manager shouted at them, asking why the owner was standing by silently and then apologized to Sébastien, saying, "I didn't realize until now."

I glared at the manager before following Sébastien into the training ground. The manager seemed unable to follow us, standing frozen in place, his eyes darting around.

Inside the training ground lounge, I encountered a familiar face and a gentleman I had never seen before.

"Hyun-seok! You made it?"

"Harry, what happened…?"

"Let me introduce you."

Harry interrupted me and introduced the gentleman beside him. It was a stylish man with slicked-back blonde hair, dressed sharply in what looked like a designer suit. He appeared to be in his mid-30s to late-40s.

I felt like I'd seen this face somewhere.

"This is William Boyle, the representative of EW Agency."

"Oh, um, nice to meet you! I'm Tae Hyun-seok."

He was the representative!

I shook his hand.

Ziiing.

The representative flashed me a charming smile and patted Sébastien on the shoulder. He then turned back to me and said,

"If it hadn't been for the evidence Mr. Tae provided, our response would have been delayed."

"I figured as much."

Sébastien, having heard what the representative said from Harry, finally smiled brightly.

The representative glanced over at the owner and the sporting director, who were following closely behind us.

In a tone only we could hear, he said,

"They think an 'anonymous tipster' reported the police and contacted me. Only I and the higher-ups know about the evidence Mr. Tae provided; no one else has seen it. You won't have any issues regarding your safety. I've already spoken with the gang."

"With the gang too?"

The representative nodded with a grin, ruffling Sébastien's hair.

"You've worked hard, Séb."

The representative immediately went over to the owner and the sporting director. Harry was beside him, translating what Sébastien said to the representative and telling him that he was glad.

Even though we were only a step apart, it felt like an incredibly long distance.

Out of habit, I turned on my phone to check William Boyle's information.

[William Boyle]

Active in the Spanish and Italian transfer market during the summer transfer window of 2017-18.

Languages spoken: English, Chinese, German, Dutch, French.

Holds a broker license.

As I blankly stared at the information, my phone rang with a zinging sound.

Suddenly, a new piece of information appeared in blue next to William Boyle's information.

「Suitable as mentor for owner Tae Hyun-seok.」