Ethan flew directly from the United States to Buenos Aires. He first visited several clubs in the Argentine capital, including Boca Juniors and River Plate, to have a look around. He did see a number of famous players, but given New Manchester United's current position, attracting any of them was obviously impossible.
After spending one night in Buenos Aires, Ethan and Eva caught an early domestic flight to Bahía Blanca, more than nine hundred kilometers south of the capital. Commonly known as Blanca Port, it was one of Argentina's best-known port cities and mainly exported wheat.
After arriving in the city, Ethan hailed a taxi and headed for the hotel. Along the way, he asked the driver about Bella Vista, only to discover that the man had never heard of the club. However, the driver suggested asking the hotel staff for help.
Sure enough, once they checked in, the hotel staff proved extremely helpful. After making several inquiries, they finally located the semi-professional club, which competed in the southern regional league.
As soon as he had the address, Ethan set off for the club.
"You didn't even know where the club was, so how did you know the player you wanted would be here?" Eva looked at Ethan curiously.
Although they had shared the same bed for more than half a year, she still found him deeply mysterious.
Sometimes, Eva genuinely wanted to open Ethan's head and see exactly what was going on inside it.
"Have you ever heard of an ancient form of fortune-telling called divination?" Ethan asked with a mysterious smile.
Eva immediately shook her head. She had grown up in England and knew little about such traditions. However, after spending so much time with Ethan, she had gradually developed an interest in unfamiliar cultures and beliefs.
"It's a mystical art used to predict the future, and I happen to know how to do it," Ethan said with the most sincere expression he could manage.
Eva burst out laughing.
She had learned that the more serious Ethan sounded, the less trustworthy his words usually were. Whenever he put on that solemn expression, he was almost certainly making something up.
"Really? And how did you learn such a mystical art?" Although she did not believe him, Eva still enjoyed playing along.
"My master taught me."
"Your master? Who is he?"
"Tony Twain. Have you heard of him?" (God Father of Champions reference xD)
"Never. Does such a person even exist?" Eva knew Ethan was talking nonsense, but she could not stop smiling.
Ethan clicked his tongue and looked at her as though she were terribly uninformed.
"Of course he does. They say Nottingham Forest's rise to prominence was only possible because this master advised them. During the European Cup final, he even rearranged their dressing room to change the flow of fortune around the team. That was how they managed to defend the trophy."
Eva had heard the stories surrounding Nottingham Forest, but she had never heard of Tony Twain. Still, Ethan spoke with such conviction that she almost began to wonder whether there really was some hidden story behind the club's success.
Looking back on the more than two years since she had met and fallen in love with Ethan, almost everything about him seemed mysterious.
He had led New Manchester United to consecutive promotions and league titles in each of the club's first two seasons. He had also encouraged her to audition for several films, and she had now become one of Hollywood's rising actresses.
Later, Ethan suggested that she start a business with Victoria. Those ventures were now performing extremely well. Their clothing, perfume, and cosmetics were all selling strongly, while several properties they had invested in had risen sharply in value.
All of this had made Eva trust Ethan's judgment completely.
Sometimes, she could not help wondering how he knew so much.
Could it really be nothing more than unusually good instincts?
Having studied science from an early age, Eva naturally did not believe in superstition. She understood very clearly that Ethan had secrets he did not want her to know.
Everyone had secrets, and a clever woman knew better than to pry into the ones a man was determined to keep.
Ethan had expected club management in Argentina to be somewhat disorganized, but when he arrived at Bella Vista, he was still shocked by how poor the conditions were.
The club consisted of two run-down bungalows joined together. Inside were pieces of training equipment, footballs, and several sleeping mats. Someone was clearly staying there overnight, probably more than one person.
Near the entrance stood a low table. A shirtless man sat beside it with one foot resting on top, smoking casually.
It was difficult to believe that this place was a football club.
Behind the buildings stretched a large area of grass. It was certainly natural turf. In fact, with parts of it already badly overgrown, it could hardly have looked more natural.
There were no fences or barriers around the pitch, allowing anyone to walk up and watch. Two groups of players were training in separate areas. One appeared to be the first team, while the other was probably the youth side.
This was Bella Vista's training ground.
Ethan walked toward the first-team pitch and looked over the dozen or so players training there. Almost immediately, he spotted a slim young man with close-cropped hair and handsome features.
"What do you think of that player? He's quite good-looking, isn't he?" Ethan pointed toward the teenager with a smile.
At that exact moment, the young player deftly nutmegged the teammate marking him before unleashing a powerful right-footed shot into the goal. The move drew applause and cheers from the nearby players and spectators.
He was clearly very popular at the club.
"His technique is excellent. As for his looks..." Eva tightened her grip on Ethan's hand, leaned closer, and whispered, "I still think you're much more handsome."
She then laughed mischievously.
Warmth spread through Ethan's heart. This woman truly knew how to charm him. He sometimes wondered whether spending too much time with her might shorten his life by several years.
Ethan cleared his throat, pretended to remain calm, and continued toward the office.
Someone suddenly shouted behind him and came running after them.
Ethan stopped and turned around. Several more people were approaching from different directions, including some of the players who had just been training with the first team.
Their expressions were far from friendly.
"Oh, no, this is a misunderstanding. I'm from England, and I represent a football club!" Ethan explained with a polite smile.
However, none of them appeared to understand him. They surrounded Ethan and Eva with fierce expressions, pointing at them while speaking rapidly.
"Does anyone here speak English?" Ethan asked helplessly.
It was hardly surprising that no one responded. Most of the people living in the area were poorly paid laborers. Even their Spanish was heavily influenced by the local dialect, let alone their English.
Ethan immediately regretted not hiring an interpreter beforehand.
"They think you're here to steal something!" Eva glanced at Ethan, finally discovering something she could do better than him.
"You understand them?" Ethan looked at her in surprise.
"A little, but their dialect is very strong. I'm not sure how well this will work," Eva replied with a helpless smile.
Even so, she explained the purpose of their visit in standard Spanish.
This time, it was the locals who struggled to understand. They could tell that Eva was speaking Spanish, but her accent and vocabulary were unfamiliar enough that they still failed to grasp everything.
Eventually, one of them ran back toward the training pitch and returned with help.
The person he brought over was the close-cropped young player Ethan had noticed earlier.
"Hello, sir," the teenager said in slightly awkward English.
"You speak English? Excellent!" Ethan immediately relaxed.
"A little. I'm not very fluent, but you can speak Spanish to me."
Ethan froze and turned toward Eva.
She smiled triumphantly and nodded, indicating that she could translate.
"All right. Tell them I would like to meet the owner of the club," Ethan said.
Eva translated his words into Spanish. The teenager then repeated them to the others in the local dialect.
"I'm from Manchester, England. I represent a football club, and I would like to speak with your club's owner. We want to sign one of your players."
The moment those words were translated, everyone around them reacted with shock.
They stared at Ethan in disbelief. No one had expected a club from England to come all the way to a place like this.
In Argentina, people often heard that playing football abroad could bring great wealth. Countless young players desperately tried to leave the country in the hope of earning enough money to give their families a better life.
Some were even willing to falsify documents to make it happen.
Earlier that year, Arsenal had attempted to sign the Brazilian midfielder Edu, only for British customs officials to discover that his passport was forged. He had been deported immediately.
There were said to be many similar cases. Most had simply never been investigated thoroughly.
Not long afterward, a heavyset middle-aged man arrived in a battered old car and parked outside the training ground. He hurried into the office, immediately spotted Ethan and Eva, and broke into a broad smile.
"Hello. My name is Diego, the same as the great Maradona!" The man grinned and extended his hand.
Ethan quickly shook it and exchanged a few polite words with him.
"I heard you came from England. Which club do you represent? Are you from the Premier League?" Diego asked excitedly.
For a tiny club struggling in Argentina's southern regional league, establishing a connection with a Premier League side would be an enormous honor.
Even if the visiting club wanted Bella Vista's most promising youngster, Diego would have no objection. Selling one player could provide enough money to recruit and develop several more.
In poorer parts of Argentina and Brazil, countless youngsters dreamed of becoming professional footballers, and there was never any shortage of talent.
What these places lacked was not gifted players.
It was money.
"No, we're not a Premier League club," Ethan replied. "But sooner or later, we will be. I came here today because I want to sign one of your players."
"Who?" Diego asked, still smiling eagerly.
Ethan pointed toward the close-cropped teenager who had been translating for them.
"Him."
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)