THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

As planned, Zachary and Emily met up with the Tottenham representatives at midday in one of the conference rooms of the Hilton London Angel Hotel.

The representatives were a team of three, including Mick Brown, a club scout, Vicky Sanders, an attorney, and Ledley King, a former Tottenham player, serving as the club's official spokesperson. They were very polite and enthusiastic as they welcomed Zachary to the meeting before slowly easing into the negotiations.

Ledley King, the club's official representative, immediately took center stage and presented what Tottenham could offer Zachary if he signed with them. In a few words, he conveyed that his club was willing to offer Zachary a lucrative weekly salary of 101,000 British Pounds, equating to roughly 123,000 Euros per week. The club would also reward him with a signing bonus of 5 million British pounds immediately after he signed his name on the contract. Finally, Ledley King talked about the terms concerning player welfare, like playing bonuses and handling of player agency fees, before handing the floor to Vicky Sanders, the attorney.

Vicky Sanders was more professional than Ledley King while representing her party during the negotiations. She utilized roughly fifteen minutes to explain the breakdown of all the contract terms Tottenham was willing to offer Zachary to acquire his signature. Then, she fished two documents from a file folder placed before her and handed them to Zachary and Emily.

"Those are copies of the contract draft summarizing all the terms we've already mentioned," Vicky said, adjusting her glasses on the bridge of her nose. "We really hope that you can sign a four-year contract with Tottenham. You won't regret it. I can assure you that." She smiled amiably at Zachary.

Zachary flashed her a smile in response and picked up the document. He then exchanged a glance with Emily before starting to peruse through the terms of the contract draft.

His recently-enhanced intelligence worked like a charm, and he finished reading the nineteen-page document in about ten minutes. And surprisingly, he could remember everything, including the small details like the player's health insurance benefits. But that was not all. He had also digested the contents to some extent, even though he didn't have the required background knowledge in sports and contract law. His mind was that impressive after gaining a boost from the effects of the S-grade mental conditioning elixir.

"As Emily predicted," Zachary thought, "the buy-out clause is really a problem within the contract."

Tottenham wanted him to sign a four-year contract, tying him to the London-based club with a buy-out clause of 110 million British Pounds. In other words, any club wishing to sign him before his contract period ended would have to pay that hefty amount to Tottenham to kick-start the transfer negotiations. Or he would have to pay the amount himself -- to buy himself out of a contract with Tottenham and become a free agent without having a just cause to do so. As far as he was concerned, the clause was like a strong chain fastening him to Tottenham for four years.

"Zachary!" Emily said from beside him after a few more minutes. She leaned over and pointed at the buy-out clause on her copy of the contract document. "What did I say? The buy-out clause is indeed unreasonable." She spoke in an audible voice, clearly not wishing to hide her words from the people at the other end of the table.

"Indeed, 120 million Pounds is unreasonable," Zachary took her cue and agreed, without bothering to lower his voice. "What is our way forward?"

Emily sighed in response. She shook her head before glancing at the Tottenham representatives seated at the other end of the table.

"Miss Vicky and the gentlemen," she said, adjusting her posture to sit upright. "Thank you for preparing this contract. Most of the terms in the document are almost to our liking. We only need to make a few amendments to those terms, and we'll be good to go. But there is also one clause we find totally unreasonable. That is the buy-out clause. Imposing a buy-out clause amounting to 110 million British Pounds on my client is unfair and absurd simply because it will leave him at the mercy of the club."

"Let me present a scenario to clarify," Emily continued. "For instance, if you are unfair to him while he is still under contract, he won't be in a position to negotiate for better treatment. The 110 million-shackle will always chain him to the club no matter how unfairly you treat him. For that reason, we will halt all talks until your side makes considerable amendments to this buy-out clause."

Vicky Sanders, the attorney, exchanged glances with Ledley King after hearing that. They seemed to reach some tacit understanding, and she said, "Miss Emily! Mr. Zachary! We included the 110 million buy-out clause in the contract terms to look out for ourselves as a club. We only wish to discourage other clubs from trying to poach him while he's under contract. That's our only intent."

"I understand your position," Emily said, leaning back in her chair. "But still, 110 million pounds is unreasonable."

"Let's do this," Mick Brown, the scout who had remained silent the entire time, chimed in. "We'll take a step back and lower the buy-out clause fee to 98 million British Pounds. How's that, Miss Emily?"

Emily shook her head. "Still too high."

"95 million," the scout said, narrowing his eyes. "This is the least we can do. Otherwise, we would have to discuss the clause with our board members before getting back to you."

"Then, go ahead and forward the issue to your board," Emily said calmly. "The highest figure we can consider is 60 million British Pounds. Otherwise, further negotiations are off."

Mick Brown sighed, his eyes flickering with a sense of helplessness. But the next moment, he smiled and said, "Give us a day. We'll get back to you after discussing this with our board. Okay?"

"Okay," Emily readily agreed. "We can wait for a day."

Suddenly, Ledley King, the former Tottenham player, turned towards Zachary and said, "I don't understand this. If you're willing to join a club like Tottenham, why is it hard for you to show commitment to the team by agreeing to the buy-out clause? Buy-out clauses and whatnot are just some lawyer jibber-jabber. They won't affect your performance on the pitch. As long as your coach, teammates, and fans admire you, you'll be comfortable in the club. So, why are you hesitating when I'm sure you'll do great at Tottenham? Why aren't you accepting the offer when I'm sure that our coach and fans will treasure you like the rarest of gems on the team?"

Zachary was at a loss for words. He smiled awkwardly before turning to Emily for help.

"Mr. King," Emily said, taking the cue from Zachary. "Contracts are there to provide clarity in business relationships between two parties. They serve as a record of commitments for both parties. So, we can't just take them lightly or dismiss them as lawyer jibber-jabber. Otherwise, we'll find ourselves in the middle of conflicts in the future."

Ledley King shook his head in response and said nothing else.

"So, I guess that marks the end of our meeting today," Emily said, her tone conclusive. "We'll continue discussions after you finish discussing the buy-out clause issue with your board."

"That's right," Vicky said, nodding. "Give us one day. We'll get back to you."

"Okay, then," Emily intoned, smiling and standing up. "It was a pleasure meeting you all, although we didn't agree on some issues. Let's hope that we'll have more productive negotiations tomorrow."

"I'm sure we will," Vicky Sanders said, mirroring Emily and standing up. "After discussing with our board, negotiations will move forward quickly."

With that said, the two parties shook hands before exchanging some small talk and ending the meeting. They then went their own ways after exchanging contacts.

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Zachary followed Emily out of the hotel and onto the wide streets of London after the meeting. He immediately donned his shades to protect his eyes from the rays of the blazing afternoon sun.

"So," he said, matching Emily's step on the sidewalk. "Do you think they'll agree to lower the buy-out clause fee to sixty million?"

"I think they will," Emily said confidently. "They shouldn't be that dumb to let a player of your caliber slip through their fingers just for a single unreasonable clause. That's the source of my confidence during these negotiations for personal terms."

"I see," Zachary said, slowing down his steps as they approached a junction. "But aside from the buy-out clause, all the other terms were favorable. They are even willing to make me their second highest player on their roster."

"But we have got to push for more," Emily said as they halted before a junction. "We can't allow them--"

She stopped midsentence as a man appeared like a specter and stood before them. His smile was warm, and he looked like the perfect gentleman in his sleek blue suit. Zachary immediately judged that he shouldn't be a petty thief or criminal.

"Miss Emily! What a very nice coincidence!" The stranger exclaimed, his words colored by a heavy accent.

"Mr. Stefano Morganti!" Emily exclaimed back. "What are you doing here? And don't give me the 'it's a coincidence' bullshit."

"Honestly, I chased after you guys when you left the hotel," the man admitted, a polite smile never leaving his face. He then turned to Zachary. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Zachary. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing okay," Zachary replied, smiling back. He was finding the whole situation before him a bit funny. He turned to Emily and asked, "Is he your boyfriend?"

"Hahaha!" Emily let out a sarcastic laugh. "How can this dork be my boyfriend? He's a professional football agent working for Juventus."

"An agent working for Juventus!" Zachary's eyes widened. "Was he following us the entire time?"

"Most probably," Emily answered.

"Guys," the stranger said, still smiling. "Don't talk about me as if I'm not here. I'm only here to request fifteen minutes of your time. Just give us fifteen minutes of your time. If we fail to convince you to choose Juventus over Tottenham, we'll never bother you again."

"We?" Emily narrowed her eyes. "Who's we? Are there others from Turin with you here?"

"Yes, they are waiting in a private booth of a nearby cafe," the man replied. "To show our sincerity, the director even came himself."

"The football director of Juventus is also here!" Emily's expression turned strange. "How crazy are you guys? Was he also stalking us?"

The man grinned. "We need only fifteen minutes. Give us a chance, and we'll offer you a deal you can't refuse in those fifteen minutes."

"Fifteen minutes?" Emily glanced questioningly at Zachary.

Zachary nodded in response.

"Okay, fifteen minutes it is," Emily said.

The man's grin widened even further. "Excellent! Just follow me. I'll take you to meet my colleagues."

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