20.

Gu Ran was puzzled for a moment. He looked down—oh… the clasp had come undone again.

Wait, again?

His skill in unhooking bras had somehow leveled up? Had he unknowingly mastered this art? And worse, was it triggering automatically?

No, no, what the hell kind of talent was this?!

Panicked, Gu Ran quickly moved away and turned his back. "Ahem… this has nothing to do with me. That… that was all you."

Sophie's face was burning red as she fumbled to fasten it back. "Gu Ran, you bullied me again… I hate you!"

Seeing her tear up, Gu Ran started to panic. "Don't cry, Sophie, I really don't know what to do if you start crying."

Sophie only sobbed louder.

Gu Ran quickly added, "Hey, hey, stop crying! If your parents wake up, they'll think I—"

That made her instantly fall silent, though her face was still streaked with tears.

Gu Ran let out a small sigh of relief. "It's just a stupid piece of paper, right? I didn't take it seriously at all! Look, I'll rip it up right now."

With that, he casually tore the slip of paper with the well-endowed salesgirl's number into tiny shreds and tossed them into the trash, completely unfazed.

Sophie turned her head away, still sulking.

Gu Ran felt his head throbbing.

All he wanted was to farm some talent points off Sophie, but somehow, he had made her cry.

He tried to comfort her. "How about we skip the push-ups tonight? You should just go get some rest."

Sophie sniffled and wiped her tears without saying a word.

Damn… this girl was really holding a grudge.

Maybe his Heartthrob Smile could calm her down?

Without hesitation, Gu Ran flashed her his most charming, mature smile. "Sophie, don't be mad."

Her body trembled slightly, and she pursed her lips—but she acted like she hadn't even seen it.

Huh?

Gu Ran was baffled.

The Heartthrob Smile didn't work?

How could that be?! Just earlier, when he smiled at that salesgirl, she practically melted on the spot!

Why was it suddenly ineffective against Sophie?

Maybe another attempt?

He smiled at her again.

No reaction.

One more time.

Still nothing.

What the hell kind of defective skill was this?! Had Beckham scammed him? He wanted a refund!

"Stop smiling!" Sophie's voice was cold. "From now on, I'm not talking to you anymore."

She stormed out of his room.

Gu Ran let out a helpless laugh. Well, that backfired.

It seemed he had to be careful about over-farming Sophie's emotions.

He would have to think of a way to make it up to her after school tomorrow.

But still… why didn't the Heartthrob Smile work on her?

Outside the room, Sophie leaned against the wall, clutching her wildly beating heart.

"Why… why does Gu Ran's smile make me feel so weird?"

"Why does it look so mature, so attractive? I was so mad at him, but I couldn't even stay angry…"

"Ugh! Am I poisoned?!"

"Thank god I have acting skills… If I didn't, who knows what crazy thing I might have done just now?!"

"No, no, I need a cold shower. Right now."

She staggered upstairs, still dazed.

Meanwhile, Gu Ran was in a great mood as he checked his system.

The process had been chaotic, but at least he had successfully gotten a talent point.

Without hesitation, he allocated it to Strength.

His Strength stat rose from 59 to 60.

For a professional footballer, 60 was nothing. But for a high school player, it was already passable. At least, it was enough to go head-to-head with Rust.

His football journey was about to officially begin.

The next morning, after breakfast, Andrew drove Gu Ran and Sophie to school.

Gu Ran walked in feeling refreshed, but Sophie dragged herself in like a zombie, sporting two huge dark circles under her eyes.

The entire way, she didn't say a single word to him.

Gu Ran tried a couple of times to strike up a conversation, but Sophie simply ignored him, her face still stormy from last night.

Fine, if she didn't want to talk, he wouldn't push it.

That afternoon, Gu Ran went straight to the locker room, changed into a brand-new sports outfit, and grabbed his bag containing his Messi edition football boots.

His original schedule had him attending an elective—Modern Languages, specifically French.

It was one of the easier subjects, one that practically guaranteed high marks.

Gu Ran had always loved football, but his parents were the ones paying for his education abroad. When picking electives, he had to set aside his passion and go for the more "practical" choice.

To them, football was just a game, not a career. It was too risky—one injury could ruin everything.

But things were different now.

He didn't care about getting into university anymore.

This time, he would prove to his parents that football wasn't just a hobby—it could be a career, a legacy.

Even with the advantages of his rebirth and the system, he knew that becoming a football superstar wouldn't happen overnight.

His current attributes were far from enough. Only Strength was barely at an acceptable level—everything else needed serious improvement.

Even with his past-life experience, football IQ, and game sense, he was still far from professional-level play.

He had briefly considered trying out for a pro club, but with his current abilities, there was no way he would pass.

He needed to take things step by step.

The good thing was, he was still young.

He wasn't late—his journey was just beginning.

His first goal was to join the Southampton Private School's Bucks Iron Horns.

From there, he would carve out a path to the professional stage.

Of course, making the school team wasn't easy.

The players were either trained since childhood or had undergone proper youth academy coaching.

The normal process for joining was complicated: first, submit an application. Then, a full medical checkup. After that, fitness tests, technical tests, and one-on-one duels.

If you passed all that, you still had to undergo another professional-level medical exam.

And even if you made it, you would only be a benchwarmer.

New recruits weren't allowed to play right away—they had to earn their spot, spending months cleaning, picking up balls, and taking orders from senior players.

Even those who eventually joined regular training still rarely got game time.

Most students taking football as an elective weren't aiming to go pro—they just wanted some extra A-Level credits.

But Gu Ran had no intention of following that process.

He wasn't here for grades. He was here to make it big.

In his past life, this very team had suffered a major setback right around this time.

One of their key players had suddenly transferred just days before the match lineup was finalized.

It completely wrecked their tactics and morale.

As a result, the once-ambitious Bucks Iron Horns didn't even make it out of the group stage.

They lost all four games, finishing dead last out of 32 teams with zero points.

It was the most humiliating moment in the school's football history.

After that, the team's reputation was in shambles. People even started calling them the Bucks Nutless Horns.

For Gu Ran, though, this was an opportunity.

If he could put on a strong enough performance against Rust today, he might just catch the coach's eye.

This was his chance to skip all the formalities and jump straight into the team.

Hands in his pockets, he strode onto the field, his cleats sinking into the well-maintained grass.

The scent of fresh turf filled his lungs, making his blood boil with excitement.

It had been too long.

From across the field, Rust spotted him mid-warm-up and immediately jogged over with a smirk.

"Well, well, well, look who actually showed up. Not bad, China boy. You got guts."