THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

After ending the call with Emily, Zachary stood up from the sofa and stretched a bit to loosen his stiff muscles. He then moved around his apartment and locked all the windows and doors. Then, he switched off all his electronic appliances before returning to his bedroom and latching the door behind him.

The morning sunlight pouring through the big window on the opposite wall lit up his face as he settled on his bed. He blinked to adjust to the lighting in the room and summoned the system interface. And voila, the familiar crystal-like display materialized before him with a slight shimmer the next moment.

"System," he called out in his mind while glancing at the interface. "I would like to consume the S-graded mental-conditioning elixir right away."

"DING"

"Command received," the system AI replied. "Confirming... The user has a single dose of an S-graded mental-conditioning elixir stored in the system inventory. The user can select the respective cards in the inventory to summon the elixirs."

"But," the AI continued, "The user must not delay consuming the elixir by more than five seconds after its removal from the system inventory. Otherwise, its effects will disappear after it spends more time out of the inventory."

"Noted," Zachary said and glanced at the card that had just floated forward and occupied the entire crystal-like display before him. Depicted on it was an image of a small apple with the words "S-grade Vitality-Enhancing Elixir" inscribed below it. It exuded a lustrous glow as it slowly spun around in its fixed position in the middle of the glittering card.

"Let's do this," Zachary mumbled as if to himself. He acted immediately and clicked on the image of the apple on the card.

"POP!"

With a slight popping sound, the card exploded into glittering particles as a tiny apple, the size of a small lollipop, materialized from the crystal-like display. It appeared before Zachary and slowly dropped into his outstretched hand.

He didn't dare waste time as he had only a five-second window before the expiry of the elixir's effects. He wolfed it down in a single bite without bothering to savor its taste. Then, he lay back on his bed and braced himself for the immediate effects of ingesting the elixir about to assault his body.

A few seconds passed, and he slowly started to feel light-headed. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, an explosion went off in his head, causing prickling sensations to assault his brain. He tossed and turned on the bed as his eyes moistened and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. He slowly lost his core senses of hearing, taste, sight, and smell as the immense discomfort within his mind grew to unbearable levels.

Just then, as the mental torture reached its peak, his body's instinct to protect itself kicked in. He shivered and trembled before blacking out and becoming oblivious to everything around him.

****    ****

Emily worked with all the haste she could muster after ending her call with Zachary. Within the comfort of her hotel room, she quickly started drafting an official letter addressed to Rosenborg's management.

In the letter, she briefly stated that her client, Zachary, would like to exit the club and move on to greener pastures during the upcoming transfer window. She requested the club management to listen to offers from big clubs, especially Tottenham and Juventus, in as few words as possible. Then, she ended the letter by thanking management for taking good care of her client during his tenure at Rosenborg before signing her name as Zachary's agent.

Thirty minutes later, after printing three copies of the letter and sealing them in three envelopes, she boarded a taxi to Lerkendal. She arrived at around eleven and immediately headed to Coach Johansen's office. On arriving at his door, she paused in her footsteps before knocking slightly.

"Come in," a deep voice sounded from behind the door.

After hearing the voice, Emily inhaled a long breath of air and smoothed out the invisible wrinkles on her suit. Then, she pushed the office door ajar before stepping into Coach Johansen's spacious office.

"Emily!" Coach Johansen exclaimed, glancing up from his desk. "Welcome. It's a pleasure to have you here in my office." He rose from his chair and extended his hand from across the desk.

"Thank you," Emily said, taking his hand for a firm handshake. "How's your morning, coach?"

"My morning is as great as it could be," Coach Johansen replied, releasing her hand. "Please have a seat."

"Thank you," Emily said and settled on one of the chairs in front of the coach's L-shaped office desk.

"So," Coach Johansen said after sinking back into his office chair, "To what do I owe the pleasure of having you in my office today morning?"

Emily smiled and fished a sealed envelope out of her handbag. She placed it on Coach Johansen's table and said, "I'm here to submit this."

"What is this?" Coach Johansen asked. He narrowed his eyes as he picked up the envelope.

"It's an official request asking the club management to allow my client, Zachary, to transfer out of Rosenborg during the next transfer window," she said, trying her best to maintain a professional tone. "You can read the letter for details."

"Oh!" Coach Johansen's eyes widened, but only for a moment. "Is the request coming from Zachary himself?"

"Yes." Emily nodded.

Coach Johansen sighed and leaned back into his seat. "This day has finally arrived." He tore apart the seal of the envelope and started reading the letter.

Emily waited a few seconds before saying, "Coach! You have been Zachary's coach and mentor since his academy days. That's why I'm informing you first about his decision before submitting the transfer request to Rosenborg's legal office."

"Oh! I see." Coach Johansen nodded and kept on reading the letter.

"Will you support his transfer request when it is tabled before management?" Emily asked, not minding the coach's off-handed attitude.

The coach finally looked up from the letter and locked eyes with Emily. "Of course, I will," he answered matter-of-factly. "As you said, I've been Zachary's coach from his academy days. So, as his first mentor, I really wish for him to succeed. I really hope that he joins a suitable club, where he'll continue performing well both on and off the pitch."

"Then, I'm glad," Emily said as a professional smile outlined her face. "Honestly speaking, Zachary's skills are already world-class. As a result, he has already caught the eyes of the top clubs in Europe. So, it's in the best interest of Rosenborg to sell him at this point in time."

"You don't have to convince me," Coach Johansen said. "I know that moving to a new club is the right move for Zachary at this moment. He'll be able to quickly grow as a player by constantly facing off against stronger opponents in bigger leagues."