Chapter One: After the Retirement Bell

He caught the wall as his vision went black. A cold blue light unfolded in the darkness. [External interference has forcibly terminated the host’s athletic career.] [Second Career Championship System successfully bound.] [Core Rule: Develop a young athlete rejected by the professional system to earn Ember Points. Ember Points restore the host’s body and unlock competitive abilities. Growth must be genuine, voluntary, and verifiable.] [Initial Mission: Sign a club on the verge of dissolution within seventy-two hours.] [Reward: One truth scan of cardiac damage; five percent restoration of neural response.] Lu stared at the floating words. His first thought was that retirement stress had made him hallucinate.