Chapter 222: The Selection Assembly (2)
"Whoa, seriously? These youth players are getting that kind of price offers? Even if those are in foreign currency, that's still insanely high."
"I heard they're not real transfer offers — the numbers are used to calculate bonus percentages."
"Oh, then that's fine."
"Fine my ass. Their bonuses are tied to the show's revenue split. Even before Stage Two began — without domestic viewers — first place already had a bonus of over 100 million. If they win the whole thing, the amount they take home might end up higher than these 'offers'!"
...
The massive numbers flashing on screen thrilled the viewers watching from home.
At the same time, everyone's attention shifted to Shinichi, who was the last mentor to make an offer.
Since they had all come out of Blue Lock together, maybe there was some special bond?
Would Shinichi offer an absurdly high number?
Or would Shidou accept a much lower offer just to join the youngest mentor?
Just as the audience's imagination was running wild, Shinichi didn't say a single word.
He casually scribbled a 0 on his tablet, then waved Shidou away with visible impatience.
....
"Man, Shinichi, that's cold," Shidou laughed instead of getting angry.
He turned to Lavinho. "Hey… you said you can teach me dribbling. How strong can you make me?"
"Definitely better than your useless self who dropped to 30 million just because no one passed to you in Stage One."
Lavinho gave him zero face, but Shidou only grinned.
"Then I'll be in your care, mentor."
The price in front of Lavinho flickered for a moment, then projected onto the giant screen behind the mentors.
This meant the offer had been officially accepted — the first successful signing of the selection.
....
The lights lit up beside Noa again.
According to the rotation based on Stage One results, it was his turn to choose.
He pointed immediately at Isagi.
"I'm very interested in your football philosophy. In Stage Two, I'll show you what the world's greatest striker truly is."
Noa wrote 300 million on his tablet without hesitation — a full 50 million above Isagi's latest 250 million valuation.
Next, the lights shifted to Chris.
He stared at Isagi with a conflicted expression.
"Honestly… I don't think your raw talent is that strong. But that bizarre trait of yours is what pushed you this far. I'm extremely curious about you."
Chris hesitated, wrote, erased, rewrote…
After a long struggle, he finally gritted his teeth and wrote:
"301 million."
"Since I can't duplicate Noa's amount and I really can't offer more… I'll go 1 million higher."
He continued earnestly:
"Your dream is what drives you. Your body is the tool to achieve it. Yet you've already surpassed the limits of your body. I want to learn something from you — and in return, I'll teach you how to strengthen your body more efficiently."
"If I'm not mistaken, your left–right dual-shot technique borrows a bit from Nagi's moves, right? I can help you refine that further."
Chris's words were unusually sincere.
Perhaps the pressure from Shinichi and Loki during previous matches had forced him to deeply re-evaluate his own career.
He realized the time to surpass Noa still hadn't come — yet the next generation of challengers was already here.
This moment might be his last window to reach world number one.
If learning from a younger player was what it took, he'd swallow his pride and do it.
Isagi nodded with emotion.
He already knew his answer, but he still wanted to hear the remaining mentors.
.....
Lavinho offered the recommended price: 250 million, clearly uninterested.
Shinichi offered 290 million, making it clear Isagi wasn't part of his original plan — but he wouldn't reject him if he chose to come.
Snuffy didn't bother competing either.
Noa's starting offer had already exceeded his limit — adding a little would be pointless, adding a lot would be a loss.
....
"Then… Coach Chris, I'll be in your care."
After everyone finished, Isagi made his choice.
He turned to Noa.
"I'm sorry. I'm grateful for your teachings… but I want to face the world's number one as an opponent."
Noa nodded without objection.
Chris, fired up, swung his arm confidently.
"Alright then! Agi, you're coming too. I'll offer 220 million — higher than your club salary. Not a bad deal, right?"
....
"…I refuse."
Everyone was shocked.
Agi, who originally came with Chris from England, rejected him outright.
He turned toward Noa, Loki, and Shinichi.
"The world's number one, and two young super talents… I want to see how the three of you operate. I only want to join one of your teams. I don't care about the price."
....
"Hey! Brat! What's that supposed to mean?!"
Lavinho exploded instantly from being ignored, but Agi didn't even look at him.
He waited quietly for the three mentors he named to respond.
Shinichi answered first.
"Your strength isn't in question. But your role is unclear. You're physically strong enough to act as a frontline pivot, and you have some ability to organize… yet none of it is polished enough to impress me."
"You also overlap with my responsibilities. So I can only offer you 160 million."
Noa nodded in agreement.
Agi could do many things — but none better than Noa himself.
For Noa and Shinichi, both extremely all-round forwards, Agi wasn't essential.
So Noa offered 170 million.
In the end, Loki secured him with 200 million.
Agi's speed combined with acting as a frontline cushion point would maximize Charles's passing strength — something Loki desperately needed.
Their combination would be like a fully upgraded version of Chigiri Hyoma and Kunigami Rensuke working together.
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