Football: Salary System - Chapter 147: He Stays (Patreon)

For Zayn, the November international break had felt almost like a leisurely vacation.

But now that the break was over, it was time to return to the club's packed schedule.

After getting off the plane, he first went home to Phoenix Lake to drop off his luggage. He changed into his training gear, then drove to the Brackel Training Center to report in and join the afternoon session.

In four days, Dortmund would travel to face Mainz.

Favre's instructions for their first league match after the international break were simple.

Take all three points and maintain their lead at the top of the league.

The next morning, Zayn made rare use of his own kitchen.

Following the nutritional ratios Dortmund's nutrition team had specifically designed for him, he prepared two standard, classic German healthy breakfasts.

Whole-grain bread, hard-boiled eggs, cucumber and tomato, a small bowl of oatmeal, and a cup of black coffee.

To be honest, Zayn couldn't understand why the nutritionist had used the word "cooking" to describe any of this.

Considering himself a pretty good cook, he usually couldn't be bothered making something so technically undemanding in his own kitchen.

That was why he normally had breakfast at the club.

The only reason he was cooking today was because Raiola had called last night and said he was coming over this morning to discuss something.

The second breakfast was for him.

As for what Raiola wanted to discuss, Zayn still wasn't sure.

Raiola had once again tried to keep him in suspense over the phone. Zayn hadn't taken the bait or asked any questions, leaving Raiola to stew for half the conversation before deciding to save it for when they met in person.

As Zayn prepared breakfast, his thoughts drifted to Dasha in her pale pink sweater, standing with her back to him as she stirred a pot of borscht.

They had stayed in touch after going their separate ways. In fact, Zayn was still in contact with every girl, including Anya, whom he'd only met two days ago.

But as for who he would see next, or when, even he couldn't say.

A professional footballer's time was chopped into pieces by packed schedules and constant flights.

For his own... well, for the sake of the girls' careers, he wasn't going to force anyone to stay by his side.

Still, after living with the Russian siblings for a while and then spending a day at home during this international break, Zayn couldn't help feeling that the house was rather empty now that he was back living there alone.

"If I'd known, I should've brought Biscuit back with me from Birmingham."

Hamburger and Egg Tart were cuter, but they were too young, and Zayn didn't have enough time to look after them properly.

Biscuit was different. That idiot wasn't fussy about anything.

Zayn seriously began considering whether to find a reliable pet transport company and have his family fly Biscuit over.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Raiola showed up looking like the same round ball of flesh as always, briefcase in hand.

"Perfect timing. Breakfast is ready. I even made a portion especially for you."

"Thank you, my little golden lion king! Good timing too. The airplane meal didn't fill me up."

Raiola laughed heartily, but the moment he glanced at the food on the table, his smile visibly stiffened.

Zayn gave him a sideways look. "Designed by the nutritionist. Very healthy."

"Haha, right. Healthy is good." Raiola gave a dry laugh. "Although I'm suddenly not that hungry."

"Didn't you just say you weren't full?" Zayn pushed the plate toward him. "Don't waste food. Eat."

Raiola reluctantly sat down and stared at the cucumber in front of him for a long moment without touching it.

Zayn added, "Mino, you've only got one life. How are you supposed to make money if you're dead?"

Raiola muttered something indistinct, switched targets to the hard-boiled egg, picked it up, and swallowed it in a few bites.

"Oh, the great Raiola doesn't need some eighteen-year-old kid teaching him how to live!"

Seeing that, Zayn stopped trying to persuade him.

Respecting another person's fate was a virtue too.

"All right. Let's talk business."

Not wanting Zayn's effort to go completely to waste, Raiola eventually resigned himself to finishing the healthy meal. As he ate, he got straight to the point.

"Chelsea contacted me."

Zayn looked slightly surprised. "Chelsea? About the winter transfer window?"

"What else? You think they invited me to Stamford Bridge to watch a match?" Raiola's irritation at the tasteless food seemed to creep into his voice. "Besides, their 'Iron Lady' isn't exactly fond of me."

Zayn only had a vague impression of Chelsea's female executive and knew nothing about whatever history she had with Raiola, but he had no interest in wasting time on the subject.

"What are they offering?"

"Top-three wages at the club shouldn't be a problem. As for everything else, they haven't given me exact figures yet. They want to confirm whether you're interested first."

"Do you think they're serious?"

"Very serious. The fact that Marina personally called me a month before the transfer window opens means signing you in January is already their highest priority."

Zayn found himself wondering the same thing Raiola had.

"Chelsea are doing pretty well right now, aren't they? They don't seem to have any reason to spend that kind of money in January."

Zayn remembered Chelsea's season as a textbook case of starting strong and fading badly. After the calendar turned to 2019, they suffered several crushing defeats, including what was, at the time, their heaviest loss of the Abramovich era. Near the end of the season, Sarri's poor handling of relationships inside the squad also led to the infamous "Kepa incident."

But Chelsea were still in the strong-start phase right now.

Why were they already preparing to spend heavily in January?

"Under normal circumstances, you're right. There'd be no need. But..."

After privately noting how much more mature Zayn had become, Raiola laid out his reasoning point by point.

As Zayn listened, more memories from his previous life surfaced.

FIFA had indeed handed Chelsea a one-year transfer ban for violating regulations involving the signing of underage players.

And Chelsea had responded by moving early in the winter window to buy a player from Dortmund.

In that timeline, however, the player they signed was Pulisic.

"Captain America" moved to Stamford Bridge for 64 million euros, setting a new transfer-fee record for an American player.

Zayn remembered it so clearly because, to complete the deal, Chelsea had actually agreed to let Pulisic remain at Dortmund for the rest of the 2018-19 season before joining Stamford Bridge the following summer.

At the time, everyone thought Chelsea had lost their minds. They had spent a fortune on a player, only to leave him at his old club for another half-season.

It wasn't until the transfer ban was announced in February that people finally understood.

Chelsea had been planning ahead from the beginning. They hadn't signed Pulisic for the 2018-19 season at all.

Raiola's other guess, that Hazard still hadn't given up on leaving, was also correct.

At the end of that very season, the Belgian finally fulfilled his dream of joining Real Madrid and moved to Madrid, only to go from "King Hazard" to "Burger King" in remarkably little time.

"So those are probably the main reasons Chelsea want to make their move in January. What do you think? Interested?"

Objectively speaking, it wasn't a bad offer.

Returning to England and joining Stamford Bridge would further boost Zayn's commercial value, and his wages would certainly be considerably higher than they were now.

He might even unlock the [World Weekly Wage Ranking].

But if he suddenly arrived at Chelsea, they might hesitate to make him their highest-paid player out of concern for dressing-room stability.

Then there was the need to readjust to the league, handle a new dressing room, and prove himself to a new coach.

Most importantly, though, he wouldn't be able to complete his Main Quest.

Staying at Dortmund and using the winter window to secure a pay raise was still the safest way to complete it.

Even if Chelsea were willing to pay an enormous transfer fee and unlock a new [Money-Power Template] for him, Zayn currently didn't have the capacity to raise the Realization Rate of two Templates at the same time.

The reason the Vieri Template had progressed so quickly was largely because the Russia World Cup Side Quest had awarded him an additional 50% Realization Rate.

In other words, even if he completed a record-breaking transfer this winter, it wouldn't improve his immediate ability by all that much.

On the other hand, if he stayed at Dortmund and managed to win the title at the end of the season, his market value would truly reach its peak.

And only a higher transfer fee could unlock a stronger Template.

By then, the Vieri Template should be nearly complete too, making it the perfect time to start working on a new one.

"I'm not leaving this season. I've only been at Dortmund for half a season. My chemistry with my teammates and my understanding of Favre's system have only just reached the ideal level. Switching clubs halfway through the season would mean throwing away everything I've built and starting all over again."

Zayn's tone remained calm.

"Besides, we've got a solid lead in the league right now. Let's win the title first. Everything else can wait."

Raiola nodded.

"Understood. Then I'll work on getting you a raise.

Abramovich's hand has already reached all the way into Westfalen. Watzke will have to show some sincerity."

In his heart, Raiola silently made the sign of the cross for the "Iron Lady."

Oh, Marina. Poor Marina.

Looks like I'll have to use you again.

Why does it feel like I'm getting more and more comfortable doing this?