THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

The morning after the match against Molde, Zachary woke up late, feeling fatigued. He opened his eyes and noticed that the golden rays of the morning sun were already streaming into his room through the drawn curtains. They lit upon his well-polished light-green bedroom wall, reflected off the surfaces of the pricy inlaid furniture, and occasionally left bright shimmering patterns on the coffered ceiling.

Zachary stared at it all, his mind replaying some of the scenes from the match against Molde the previous day, including the moment when he'd scored the winning goal. Even though hours had passed since the end of the game, his mind remained locked in those moments. He couldn't help but think his life was beautiful. Very few things could make him feel as contented as he did that very morning—after winning an important match.

A relaxed smile outlined his face as he looked around his bedroom until his gaze settled on the clock hanging on the opposite wall. When he registered that it was already 8:30 AM, he got out of bed at a leisurely pace. After washing his face, he went through his customary morning yoga routine to quicken his post-match recovery. For the following thirty minutes, he concentrated on stretching his fatigued muscles through yoga poses until he was sweating all over. He then took a shower before settling into one of the comfy sofas in his living room to pass the time. Since it was the aftermath of a game, the whole team had been given a day off from training. He could afford to laze around and think about nothing the entire day. So, he reckoned that watching an entertaining TV program would be a tolerable way to pass the time.

But just as he'd sat down and picked up the TV remote, he remembered something that had bugged him during the match the previous evening.

"System," he said, leaning back into the sofa and crossing his legs on the table before him. "Yesterday, I felt like my overall agility had already improved to another level. Yet, according to the system interface, I'm still stuck at the A-grading! Why is that?"

"The user must understand that there is quite a big divide between the A and S grades," the system AI replied in its apathetic feminine voice. "Footballers in the A-grading can have abilities that significantly differ from each other, despite being in the same grade. For instance, both players may have A-graded agility, yet one is a lot quicker than the other. So, what you are feeling right now—is your abilities slowly developing as they approach the bottleneck to the S grade."

"Oh," Zachary said, frowning. "So, how far is my agility from the S-grading if we base on my current rate of improvement?" He probed, switching on the TV with the remote.

"You'll need roughly two years to reach the S grade," the AI replied. "But that is if we're basing on your current rate of improvement."

"What!?" Zachary exclaimed, almost jumping out of his chair. "Two years to the S-grading! That is more than the time spent improving all my stats, from the lower grades to the A grading."

"The user must understand that raising any given ability to the S-grade is a tremendous task that is almost impossible to achieve," the AI intoned. "One needs talent, dedication, hard work, and more than a little luck to achieve such a feat. That is the sole reason the majority of footballers fail to develop any of their stats to the S grade throughout their entire careers."

"Is there any way to make my progress faster?" Zachary queried. He'd already begun feeling like his speed was hindering his performance on the pitch. In the Tippeligaen, he'd found it almost impossible to run through opponents the same way he'd done during his academy days. So, he yearned to improve his agility and speed to the S grade within a short time. That way, he could gain the ability to do the same deeds at the professional stage.

"The only way to quicken your improvement is by relying on the system to some extent," the AI replied. "If you can acquire and consume an agility-enhancing-elixir at the S-grading, your agility will breakthrough to the next level for sure. But you would have to achieve some incredible feat to win such an elixir from the system."

"I hope it isn't something like winning the next Europa League with Rosenborg," Zachary commented. "That is surely almost an impossibility."

"Good guess," the AI replied right away. "The system rewards great feats that can help you cement your status as the GOAT in the future. It's that simple. So, if you can win the next Europa League, there is a possibility of winning such an elixir. Or even better: you might acquire an S-graded vitality-enhancing-elixir, which can help you improve two of your stats to the S grade within a short while."

Zachary sighed. "I would need immense luck to win the next Europa League," he said, shaking his head.

Many top teams from the top leagues of Europe had already qualified to compete in the next Europa League, the most notable ones being Sevilla FC, VfB Stuttgart, Tottenham Hotspur, ACF Fiorentina, and Spartak Moscow. So, he could see almost no hope of Rosenborg beating such powerful opponents to emerge victorious at the end of the next Europa League tournament.

"A footballer aiming to be the GOAT should focus on achieving exploits thought to be impossible by the common man," the AI intoned in its apathetic voice. "Otherwise, what would be the difference between the GOAT and the greatest players in various generations or eras? The user has to start aiming for the difficult trophies. That way, the user will manage to establish himself as a great player in a short time."

Zachary sighed once again. He understood the system's logic as he was well aware of how hard it was to ascend to the GOAT status, especially in a team sport like football. During his previous life, there had been plenty of debates on the issue. The Portuguese, Manchester United, and the Real Madrid fans all thought that it was Cristiano Ronaldo without a doubt. Maybe, all South Americans thought it was Messi, others Pele or Diego Maradona, or even Ronaldinho. And there were the French who believed with all their hearts that it was Zinedine Zidane. But there had never been a complete public consensus on who the actual GOAT was—like what happened with Usain Bolt in sprinting or Serena Williams in Tennis. But had Lionel Messi won the World Cup twice, that would have been another story since he'd been the closest to cementing his GOAT status.

So, Zachary understood that if he wished to join the ranks of potential GOATs, he would have to start raking in trophies and individual accolades that seemed almost impossible to acquire. Only then would he establish himself as one of the greatest players and start thinking about competing for the GOAT status. But to achieve such a feat required incredible luck since football was a game played by eleven players. He understood that even if he performed at his best, his team would still lose if one of his teammates made a simple mistake at a crucial moment.

Bzzt Bzzzt! Bzzt Bzzzt!

His phone vibrated while his mind was still mulling over the requirements needed for a player to ascend to GOAT status. Without any dilly-dallying, he picked it up from the table beside him and glanced at the screen. A smile lit up his face as he noticed it was Emily, his agent, calling. His hopes soared since he knew that Emily usually called with good news.

"Hello Emily," he said, placing the phone next to his ear. "How is your morning?"

"It's one of my best mornings in the year," Emily replied, sounding excited. "Can you guess why?"

"Audi has raised my annual wage in the contract we just signed?" Zachary replied, deciding on humoring her. "Or maybe, your other half has proposed, and you're calling to tell me the news. Which one of the two is it?"

"I can see that you have started learning a bit of humor," Emily replied, sounding amused. "But it's none of what you've just mentioned. I've got something better. I'm meeting the Red Bull representatives this morning—and my contact in the energy drink giant has promised me that they're willing to offer a lucrative contract to you. They may also wish to take you on as a long-time partner."

"Oh, the deals are starting to come in fast!" Zachary exclaimed. "Have the Red Bull people hinted on how much they are offering?" He probed.

"Not yet," Emily replied. "But they should be making an offer when I meet them today morning. Do you want to attend? If you wish, I can organize for you to be there."

"Do they wish to meet me this early—during the inception of the negotiation process?" Zachary countered with his own question.

"To be honest, they requested to meet me alone," Emily said, her voice lowering at the other end of the line. "So, if you don't mind, I'll go ahead and see what they've got to say. I'll then inform you about the discussion afterward. Is that okay with you?"

"That's okay," Zachary replied hurriedly. "I trust you. So, go ahead and try to negotiate another good deal for me. We shall talk afterward."

"Thank you for your trust," Emily said, her voice relaxing. "And one more thing. Susanne, the Audi representative, called and informed me that they wired your money yesterday. So, it should be able to arrive in your bank account within three days."

"Oh, that's really great news," Zachary said, his voice rising. "Thank you for negotiating this deal."

"That's my job," Emily replied. "And before I forget. Twitter has replied to my appeal regarding the fake accounts using your name as their handles. They have consented to grant the handle with your full name back to you. They've also sent the verification code for the account to your email. So, please check your inbox and open that account today. I know you have a day off. So, don't give an excuse that you're busy."

"I'll open it right away," Zachary replied. "Don't worry."

"Great," Emily said. "Then talk to you later. For now, I'm off to meet the Red Bull representatives." She added before ending the call.