[Ding! Newbie Gift Pack opened. You have received: Black Gold Treasure Chest * 1!]
[Opening Black Gold Treasure Chest...]
[Ding! Opening successful. Congratulations to the Host for acquiring the skill: King of the Penalty Area!]
[King of the Penalty Area: Your first shot within the opponent's penalty area in any official match is guaranteed to result in a goal! Once this effect is triggered, the skill becomes inactive for the remainder of the match.]
As the mechanical voice faded into the recesses of his mind, Lorenzo's eyes snapped open. The dim light of the airplane cabin seemed to brighten with the surge of adrenaline coursing through him.
A guaranteed goal?
He took a deep breath, trying to process the sheer weight of that ability. If he managed to find space in the box and pull the trigger just once, the ball would inevitably find the back of the net. This wasn't just a boost to his accuracy; it was a causality-based intervention. In a sport where a single goal often decided the fate of a season, having a guaranteed "1" on the scoreboard every game was nothing short of a miracle.
The only hurdle was getting there. He had to be sharp enough to penetrate the defense and compose enough to strike within the eighteen-yard box. For a player aiming for the pinnacle of European football, that was the bare minimum requirement.
Lorenzo had spent most of his youth as a winger or an attacking midfielder, utilizing his pace and vision. However, as his height reached 184cm and his frame filled out, the coaches at La Masia had begun transitioning him into a center-forward role. This new skill was the perfect anchor for that position.
Even the legends, the peak versions of Messi or Ronaldo, can't promise a goal every single game, Lorenzo thought, his heart hammering. But with this, I can.
"System," Lorenzo queried mentally, "what is the logic behind these rewards? How do I get more?"
The answer surfaced instantly.
[Treasure Chests are random rewards triggered by the intensity of the matches the host participates in and the level of the competition!]
[There are four tiers of rewards:]
[Bronze Chest: Contains auxiliary items, such as injury prevention kits or stamina recovery tonics.]
[Silver Chest: Contains attribute enhancement serums that can directly improve the Host's physical or technical stats.]
[Gold Chest: Contains Ability Templates based on the prime skills of world-class football legends.]
[Black Gold Chest: The highest tier. These provide 'Causality' skills that maximize the Host's impact on the pitch, effectively bending the rules of the game in his favor.]
Lorenzo nodded. The "King of the Penalty Area" was a Black Gold reward, likely a one-time gift to ensure he survived the jump to professional football. To earn another, he would need to play in high-stakes matches, top-flight league games, Champions League nights, or World Cup finals. Lower-tier youth matches would likely only yield Bronze or Silver rewards.
[Ding! The Host's Attribute Panel is now accessible.]
A translucent screen shimmered in his vision, displaying his current data.
Name: Lorenzo
Age: 17
Height: 184cm | Weight: 74kg
Nationality: Argentina (Spanish Passport)
Club: FC Barcelona (U-19 / Juvenil A)
Current Position: Center-Forward
Shooting: 78
Positioning: 69
Speed: 81
Heading: 68
Jumping: 71
Shot Power: 75
Physicality: 69
Ball Control: 65
Passing: 68
Long Shot: 65
Stamina: 79
Overall Rating:70
Loaded Template: None
Activated Skill: King of the Penalty Area
Lorenzo winced slightly. A rating of 70 was respectable for a youth player, but in the world of elite European football, it was barely a passing grade. His speed and shooting were his only standout traits, while his physicality and ball control, the bread and butter of a Barcelona forward were lagging.
Then, the System issued its first major directive.
[Ding! Main Quest Issued: Dream Voyage!]
[Objective: Secure a professional contract with a club in a Top 5 European League and score twenty goals across all official competitions.]
[Reward: Black Gold Treasure Chest * 1!]
[Time Limit: 365 Days (One Season).]
Lorenzo's eyebrows shot up. Join a top-five league and score twenty goals? For a seventeen-year-old, that was an astronomical demand. To put it in perspective, twenty goals in a La Liga season would put a player in the race for the Pichichi, rubbing shoulders with the world's best. Even Neymar, who had just arrived at Barcelona as the most hyped talent in the world, would find it difficult to hit those numbers in his debut European season.
He leaned back, his mind racing through the tactical landscape of Barcelona in the summer of 2013.
The club was at a crossroads. Tito Vilanova's tragic health situation and Pep Guardiola's departure had marked the end of the "Dream Team" era. While the squad was still packed with legends like Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi, the tactical system was beginning to show cracks.
Crucially, David Villa had just left for Atletico Madrid. Neymar had arrived, but he was a creative winger, not a focal point. Barcelona currently had Messi, Neymar, Pedro, and Sanchez, a frontline of terrifying speed and skill, but they lacked a single traditional "Number 9."
For years, the club had relied on the "False 9" system. But when teams parked the bus or played physically, the lack of a physical presence in the box often cost them. Luis Suarez was still tearing it up at Liverpool and wouldn't arrive for another year.
This is it, Lorenzo realized. The gap is right there.
If he could dominate the Juvenil A matches and force his way into the B-team, the leap to the first team wasn't impossible. Barcelona's youth system was famous for its "next man up" philosophy. If the first team needed a different tactical look, a physical striker who could finish he was the only natural candidate in the academy with the necessary profile.
But standing out in a squad that included the greatest players in history was a different beast entirely. He wouldn't just be competing against defenders; he would be competing for the trust of Messi and the vision of Iniesta. To them, a striker who lost the ball or failed to link up was a liability, regardless of his scoring record.
He looked at his stats again. Passing 68. Ball Control 65. "If I go in like this, they'll never pass me the ball," he whispered.
The "King of the Penalty Area" skill would get him the goals, but he needed to improve his fundamentals to even earn the right to be on the pitch. He had one year to score twenty goals. One year to turn from a promising youth player into a European star.
Beside him, Lucia shifted in her sleep, her head resting on his shoulder. Lorenzo felt a surge of protectiveness. He wasn't just playing for himself anymore. He was playing to prove that the Argentinian board had made the biggest mistake in their history. He was playing to show the world that a king didn't need a throne given to him by a corrupt coordinator, he would build his own in the heart of Catalonia.
As the plane began its long descent toward El Prat Airport, Lorenzo closed his eyes and visualized the Camp Nou. He could almost hear the roar of a hundred thousand fans.
The mission was clear. Twenty goals. One year. The crown was waiting.