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Chapter 2 - MIKE'S DEATH AND THE SYSTEM

London, January 2039.

The city was a hyper-kinetic blur, completely trapped in its usual chaotic afternoon frenzy.

Mike Wager, thirty-two years old, stepped out of his towering glass-and-steel office building.

The crisp winter air bit sharply at his face, but he barely registered the cold.

In the cutthroat world of London real estate, Mike was a polarizing force—adored by his allies, loathed by his rivals, and deeply envied by every single soul who knew his name.

As a second-generation tycoon, he had been drowning in old money since the day he was born.

He had played the rich playboy card to its absolute limit in his youth, but he was far from just a lazy trust-fund brat.

Over the years, he had built a massive property empire from scratch, a feat that finally allowed him to step out from his father's gargantuan shadow.

He signaled his private driver, and his limited-edition Lamborghini Sian FKP 37 pulled up to the curb, its powerful hybrid engine purring like a predatory cat.

Mike slid into the hand-stitched luxury leather interior.

"Take me home," he muttered, his eyes already glued to his phone screen as he checked the latest market updates.

Then, his entire world shattered.

BOOM!

One second he was dismissing a business notification; the next, the deafening screech of shredded rubber and twisting metal violently replaced the silence.

Time seemed to dilate into slow motion.

The heavy sports car skidded uncontrollably, gravity lost its grip, and a massive wall of steel hurtled toward him with terrifying speed.

A head-on collision? You have got to be kidding me...

Absolute darkness followed.

Mike's eyes snapped open.

He braced himself for the sterile stench of an ICU and the blinding glare of surgical lights, but the air filling his lungs felt entirely different.

It smelled faintly of expensive cologne and... home?

He was not in a hospital bed.

He was lying in a bedroom.

His bedroom.

However, it looked like a ghost of his distant past—a literal shrine to an arrogant, wealthy child.

The shelves around the room groaned under the heavy weight of die-cast supercars and expensive designer labels.

With his heart hammering violently against his ribs, he snatched a phone resting on the nightstand.

It was an outdated iPhone 11.

He stared blankly at the lock screen for two straight minutes, his breath hitching in his throat.

06/01/2020.

Nineteen years.

He had regressed nineteen years into the past.

He bolted straight to the bathroom and stared into the mirror, completely paralyzed.

The weary, hardened thirty-two-year-old mogul was gone.

In his place stood a thirteen-year-old boy with a refined, noble profile.

He stood at 5'7"—exceptionally tall for his age group—boasting a lean, athletic frame.

His eyes and hair were a piercing, obsidian black that seemed to catch the vanity lights like polished gemstones.

"What the hell... it actually happened!"

He was not some fictional protagonist in a Chinese cultivation novel; he was a Londoner through and through.

This supernatural nonsense was not supposed to be his reality.

It took ten full minutes of splashing freezing cold water on his face just to stop his hands from trembling.

Calming his racing thoughts, he headed downstairs where his parents were already waiting for him.

Jane Brown possessed the kind of timeless, elegant beauty that belonged on a high-fashion runway, while Tom Wager was a man whose otherwise average looks were entirely masked by an aura of absolute, crushing authority.

"Eat up, kid. Holidays are officially over—school starts today," Tom said, his voice a familiar mix of fatherly warmth and stern expectation.

"Morning, Dad. Mum."

Mike sat down, forcing his expressions into a flawless mask of calm.

He ate his breakfast quickly, donned his prestigious Wetherby Senior uniform, and climbed into the family SUV.

The drive to the elite Chelsea institution took roughly fifteen minutes.

As he walked through those familiar, hallowed school halls, a cold realization settled deep in his gut.

In his first life, he had been an absolute disaster in the classroom—a barely passing student who only cared about his elite social circle and the football pitch.

The pitch... Mike thought, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

I am currently thirteen years old.

That means in less than a year, I will hit the exact injury that ends my entire sports career.

Lunchtime arrived, turning into a high-society ritual at long, polished wooden tables.

"Yo, Mike! Where have you been hiding all break?" Gim, his best friend, called out from across the table.

"Training," Mike replied, his tone short and clipped.

"Mate, drop it," Gim groaned, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"Football is a commoner's game. You should be out on the rugby pitch with the rest of us."

"Don't start, Gim. You already know it is my true passion."

Mike forced a casual laugh, nodding politely to Anna and Mary as they joined their group.

"Hey, Gim, still trying to kill his dreams?" a deep, mature voice boomed from behind them.

It was Cruz Beckham.

At fifteen years old, he acted as the group's reliable big brother and was the only one who did not look down on Mike's football ambitions.

"Forget it, Cruz," Gim smirked playing along.

"I will just wait until you move to Millfield School tomorrow to try convincing him again."

By 5:30 PM, the casual school atmosphere vanished completely.

Mike stood at the official Chelsea Academy training ground, feeling a massive spike of adrenaline coursing through his veins.

He had not touched a football since the tragic day his knee completely gave out in his previous life.

He tightly laced up his studs and stepped onto the pristine, emerald turf.

The exact moment his feet touched the grass, a translucent, glowing digital screen flickered into existence, hovering directly within his field of vision.

/ THE FOOTBALL GOD SYSTEM /

Loading: 10%... 60%... 100%

/ INSTALLATION SUCCESSFUL /

Welcome, Guest.

I am the Football God System.

Would you like an explanation of the core functions?

[YES] [NO]

Mike froze in place, his heart slamming wildly against his chest.

He waited a single heartbeat, then mentally pressed [YES].

Access the system interface via direct thought.

Core Categories:

PLAYER STATS

SHOP

OBJECTIVES

Earn SP (Soccer Points) by completing specific objectives to spend on rewards in the Shop.

That is all.

Mike looked at the digital display floating in the air, then glanced down at the football resting at his feet.

The arrogant playboy was dead.

The real estate mogul was history.

This time, that upcoming injury would not be the end of his path.

This time, he had the System on his side.

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