THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME
The Second System Improvement
Zachary's heart surged in excitement as he perused through the mission completion notice. He had managed to obtain a total of 2,400 Juju-points in one go. He could eventually upgrade the system. He wasted no time navigating back to the home tab.
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GOAT FOOTBALL SYSTEM
SYSTEM LEVEL: 2 (2457/1000 Juju-points to level up)
USER: Zachary Bemba
AGE: 17 years
TALENT ASSESSMENT: Grade-A
JUJU POINTS: 2457
(Evaluation: A beginner soccer player)
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USER MENU
*USER STATUS
*GOat MISSION
*SHOP SYSTEM (1 msg)
*SYSTEMS LOTTERY
*PEEKING TOOLS
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NB: Please upgrade the system to open more functions.
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Zachary couldn't help his anticipation. With the opening of the X-Factor status, his talent assessment finally broke through to A rank. He eventually caught up with his peers like Stephen Mangala, who went to France.
Inevitably he recalled the moment he realized that he had traveled back in time about two years earlier. His life had no hope for the future. But, with the help of the system, he managed to improve his skills quickly and give himself a fresh start.
Over the previous year, he had gained a deep understanding of how the system works. It seems that the ultimate goal is an increase in the fitness of the user, thus enabling the mastery of complex skills at a much faster rate than is humanly possible. Zachary came to that conclusion after consuming the elixir system. They had helped him improve the ranking of most of his attributes to A-grade during a rare period—just two years.
With the facilities of the system, Zachary is confident he can become one of the greatest soccer players ever with enough work. But first thing first, he had to upgrade the system.
He ended up accumulating a sizable supply of Juju points. So, he did not linger— and quickly clicked on the upgrade button, which is displayed in the upper left corner of the transparent blue interface.
"DING"
The notification sounded immediately as he lifted his right index finger from the screen. A new message has appeared.
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SYSTEM WARNING
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-> Users have chosen to upgrade the system.
->1000 Juju-points will be reduced to upgrade.
-> System will be turned off for eight hours during the upgrade process. Users will not be able to use any of the system functions until eight hours have passed.
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START UPGRADING?
*Receive reject
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Zachary didn't waste time. He has long wanted to improve the system. However, Juju's constant lack of points has held him back. He decided to prioritize improvement over other things.
"Hopefully, some new functionality will be added after the upgrade," he murmured before clicking the confirmation button.
"DING"
New system notifications are heard immediately.
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SYSTEM WARNING
-> Users have confirmed the direct upgrade of the system.
->1000 Juju Points will be deducted from the current user's Juju points stock for an upgrade.
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SYSTEM WARNING
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INITIALIZATION OF SYSTEM UPGRADES
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SYNCHRONIZE USER DATA
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CREATING A NEW PACKAGE
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When the countdown reaches zero, the screen goes dark. Zachary tried to call him— to determine if it was still somewhere inside his body. However, he could no longer sense his existence. It has disappeared, leaving no trace of—as if it never existed.
Zachary did not panic as he was already well aware that it took a total of eight hours to complete the upgrade. So, she quickly took a shower and dove into her bed for the night. He had decided to check his progress the next day and save himself from the anxiety that came from waiting.
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The next morning, the entire army woke up before 6:00 a.m. They must prepare for the journey back to Trondheim.
Zachary checked the system but saw it was still inaccessible. It looks like the upgrade process is not finished yet. So, he focused his attention elsewhere.
He followed his team-mates to the hotel restaurant and enjoyed a sumptuous breakfast. Less than an hour later, they took a bus to Riga Airport.
At 8:00 a.m., Zachary and his teammates had finished taking their seats in the economy class section of the Scandinavian Airlines passenger plane returning to Trondheim.
Zachary slept throughout most of the trip and did not bother to join the conversation between his teammates. He woke up three hours later when the plane landed on the runway of Vearnes Airport in Trondheim.
He groggyly followed his comrades out of the arrivals section, and, without fanfare, he returned to the frigid February air of Trondheim— town a few minutes later.
"It feels like we've been away from Trondheim for over a year" Paul commented, following in his footsteps as they moved towards the bus. "But, in the truest sense, it's just a little over a week." He sighed.
"And now, we have to go back to our old boring lives" sidelines Kasongo, also sighing. "It's good that the coach allowed us to join the party last night. Otherwise, I'll run to one of the underground parties in Moholt this weekend."
"But guys," Kendrick said from behind Zachary. "Where are the home fans who should have welcomed us? Why doesn't anyone care that we bring a trophy of that size?" He asked, patting the cup in his hand.
Kendrick has volunteered for the role of hauling the trophy back to the academy alongside Magnus, the assistant captain. Zachary has turned down the task because he wants to get back to his apartment— immediately to check out the newly upgraded system. It's been eight hours.
"Have you forgotten we're still nobody here in Trondheim?" Paul Otterson interrupted, pulling his scarf tighter around his neck because the temperature in Trondheim seemed to be much lower than in Riga. "People in Riga probably recognize some of us. However, we will never get any recognition here at Trondheim unless we join Rosenborg and win the game. Only then will we often find paparazzi and host fans waiting for us at the airport."
"Good," a voice cut through. Zachary turned around and realized that Coach Johansen at one point had arrived behind them.
"The Riga Cup is just a small tournament" continued the coach, combing his red beard with his hands. "You can only become a star in Trondheim after you join Rosenborg and participate in a very competitive match." She smiles. "I hope Riga's victory won't make you complacent."
"Yes, coach," replied the players around Zachary, more or less in unison.
"Zachary, Kendrick, Kasongo and Paul" the coach said as he continued on to the bus. “Over the past year, the four of you have made incredible progress. Whatever you do, just keep it. Make sure you don't relax. Remember, a football career is more like a marathon, not a sprint. If you don't keep working hard, you will stumble and fall very quickly. Are we clear?"
"Yes, coach."
"I hope you understand," Coach Johansen added as he nodded. "I have a good plan for the four of you. Don't let me down." His tone turned grim.
Zachary nodded with his friends to show that he understood his point. He had already planned to use the remaining ten months, before turning eighteen, to increase all of his attributes to A+ rank. Only then will he be confident of performing well in Rosenborg's senior team the following season.
He understands that success at the pro level requires far better skills than he currently has. He cannot lie to himself that he will be able to get past a professional defender using his slightly— attributes like he did in the Riga Cup. He should use the rest of his time adequately so that he does not embarrass himself against the professionals.
"Hurry up and get on the bus" cried Coach Johansen, ripping him off his reverie. "You're all back there" he added, pointing to team-mate Zachary at the back. "Quick and move. I want to go home as soon as possible. Don't waste my time."
The NF Academy players immediately accelerated their pace. They load their luggage and get on the bus at their fastest speed. And they left, leaving the airport behind them.
Forty-five minutes later, Zachary and his three friends made it back to their flat in Moholt. The bus dropped them off near their door. They did not need to pull their luggage over a long distance.
When they returned to the flat, Zachary immediately resigned and locked himself in his room. He was quite excited to check the system upgrade and use the rest of his Juju points, plus the B level agility-enhancing potion he had obtained.
Without unpacking her luggage, she sat on her bed and called out the familiar translucent blue screen.
"DING"
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SYSTEM WARNING
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-> System successfully upgraded.
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CREATING A NEW PACKAGE
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NEW VERSION INTERFACE GOAT FOOTBALL USER SUCCESSFULLY INTIALIZED
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SYNCHRONIZE USER DATA
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Zachary continued to stare at the screen, anxiously awaiting the termination of the system alert. In fact, he did not have to wait long. Just about a minute later, a familiar system interface appeared before him once again.
Zachary was surprised when he realized that there was not much change in the aesthetics of the interface. Familiar users appeared before him with the User-Stats, GOAT-Missions, System-Shop, System-Lottery, and Snooping-Tool drop-down menus (all unlocked). He felt a little disappointed as he was expecting some big changes.
But then—
"Good morning, user," a voice rang out right in his head. "This is your system AI speaking. Hope you enjoy the system!"
[AI System! Maybe, a voice interface?] Zachary's face was beaming.
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**LATE VOLUME TWO: FOOTBALL ACADEMY STUDENTS**