"Why aren't you fighting back?"
Julian looked down, a bit perplexed.
"Oh... your shirt button came undone again."
Why is Chest Unbutton +1 so relentless?
Can passive reactions be triggered?
I must not be very gifted in this area, right?
I want a talent like that for dry jokes!
Julian quickly stood up and turned around, "Ahem, it's none of my business, but you got out of it again this time..."
Sophie's face was flushed with embarrassment, and she hastily buttoned her shirt. "Julian, you're bullying me again... Ugh, I hate you!"
Julian saw her drop a small golden bean and panicked, "Don't cry, Sophie, I really don't know what to do when you cry."
Sophie began to cry even louder.
Julian said quickly, "Don't cry, don't cry. If you wake up your parents, they'll think I've done something to you."
Sophie stopped crying, but her pretty face was still wet with tears.
Julian breathed a sigh of relief, "It's all because of this note. I didn't take this note seriously at all. I'll rip it up right now."
As he spoke, Julian tore up the note with the phone number of the F cup female in front of Sophie and threw it into the trash without a second thought.
Sophie looked away, continuing to cry and fume.
Julian suddenly felt a bit dizzy.
He had only wanted to coax out Sophie's talent, but he didn't anticipate making her cry.
Julian tried to comfort her, "Why don't you skip the thirty today and just go to bed early, okay?"
Sophie shrugged and wiped her tears away, saying nothing.
What the heck?
Does this little girl have that much resentment?
Maybe a smile can cheer her up...
Julian flashed a charming smile at Sophie, "Sophie, don't be mad."
Sophie's delicate body trembled slightly, but she pursed her lips and ignored Julian's smile.
Hmm?
Julian was a bit downcast:
The heartthrob smile isn't working?
But during the day, I accidentally smiled at the F cup girl, and she looked like she'd been zapped by electricity!
Why isn't it working on Sophie?
I need to try again.
Julian flashed a charming smile at Sophie for the second time.
Sophie remained unfazed and calm.
Julian tried again, giving Sophie a charming smile for the third time.
Sophie's composure didn't waver.
Julian thought to himself, "Damn, what's with this parallel skill? Using it once is useless! Beckham, return the goods!"
"Stop smiling!" Sophie said coldly. "From now on, I'm not talking to you anymore."
With that, she stormed out of Julian's room.
Julian sighed and chuckled to himself: This is a serious situation.
It seems that in the future, he won't be able to use his charming smile to deceive Sophie so easily.
For now, it's too late. He'll have to come up with a plan to win her over after school tomorrow.
Strangely, he couldn't understand why his usual heartthrob smile wasn't working.
Outside Julian's room, Sophie pressed her hand to her racing heart and murmured:
"Why did Julian just smile at me like that? What's wrong with me?"
"Why do I find Julian's smile so mature and charming? I can't even hate him?"
"Am I being bewitched?!"
"Thank goodness I have acting skills..."
"Otherwise, I don't know what crazy thing I would've done just now!"
"I'm all sweaty. I need a shower, quick..."
Sophie leaned against the wall and slowly made her way up the stairs. Meanwhile, Julian was feeling quite pleased with himself.
Despite the unexpected turns of events, he had successfully acquired a talent point.
He added the point to his strength attribute, raising it from 59 to 60.
While 60 points might not be enough for a British professional, it's quite respectable in high school leagues and sufficient to challenge Rusty Stripe.
Great! With the school team battle coming up, his football career is set to take off from zero!
…
Monday morning.
After breakfast, Andrew dropped Julian and Sophie off at the school gate and drove away.
Julian strolled into the school brimming with energy, while Sophie trailed behind him lackadaisically, her face marked by two significant dark circles.
The two siblings didn't exchange a single word.
Julian longed to talk to Sophie, but she wore a sour expression and didn't give him any opportunity to do so.
Julian had no choice but to concede.
By afternoon, Julian hurried to the locker room, switched into fresh sports attire, slung a sports bag with Messi's special edition soccer shoes over his shoulder, and strode confidently towards the school's soccer field.
Originally, Julian's elective for the afternoon was a modern language class—French.
It's a relatively easy subject to score well in.
However, since Julian's parents funded his study abroad, when selecting electives, he had to relinquish soccer lessons unwillingly.
In their eyes, soccer is merely entertainment, not a reliable means of sustenance.
Moreover, playing soccer can lead to injuries, which may impede academic progress.
Now, Julian no longer needs to concern himself with college entrance exams.
In this life, he is eager to tell his parents that playing soccer is not only for fun; it can also be a lucrative career!
Although he is a reincarnated individual equipped with a system, becoming a real soccer superstar cannot happen overnight.
Julian's current abilities are barely sufficient to join the school team, and he knows that his other attributes need significant improvement.
Even with his previous life's football knowledge, experience, and intuition, it's not enough.
It's not that Julian hasn't considered going directly to a professional club for a tryout, but his current strength would not be enough to get signed.
He must be patient and start from the ground up.
Fortunately, youth is on his side, and it's never too late to start now!
Julian's immediate goal is to join the "Southampton Private School Bucks Steel Horns" team, and from there, advance step by step to larger soccer stages.
Of course, the selection criteria for the school team at Southampton Private School are stringent.
The team typically consists of students who have played soccer since childhood or received formal youth training.
The process of joining the school team is quite complex. First, you must submit an application, then provide a physical examination report from a licensed hospital, followed by a school-organized physical fitness test, skills assessment, and scrimmage under the coach's supervision.
If you pass these tests, you will undergo a professional athlete's physical examination.
Even after passing that, you would begin as a practice player, tasked with fetching water, collecting balls, and maintaining the locker room for at least a month.
During this time, you would likely face bullying and teasing from the regular team members.
Even when allowed to train with them, playing opportunities are scarce.
Many students who take soccer courses do so to boost their A-level results rather than for the love of the game.
But Julian had no intention of joining the school team through such a conventional path, let alone for the sake of credit.
In his previous life's memories, the school team faced a "major injury crisis" a few days before the group match.
A key player quit the team and transferred to another school when the coach finalized the roster for the tournament!
The entire team's tactical setup was thrown into disarray, and they were ultimately eliminated in the group stage.
This became the school's biggest embarrassment since its founding.
The Bucks Steel Horns then plummeted into a slump and earned the mocking name "Bucks Kardashian team."
However, Julian saw this as a golden opportunity to join the school team swiftly!
If he could pique the interest of the school team's head coach during his match against Rusty Stripes, his football career would officially begin!
With his hands in his pockets and his head held high, Julian stepped onto the training ground's natural turf.
The nostalgic scent of fresh grass filled the air.
Julian took a deep breath, feeling the blood rush through his veins.
Rusty Stripe, who was warming up with a jog, spotted Julian from afar. He sprinted over with a sneer: "Hey! Asian kid, you actually dared to show up! You've got guts!"