With thousands gathered, local reporters certainly wouldn't miss the uproar.
Before long, the swarm of reporters was busy clicking away, some hurriedly jotting notes.
"Any more questions?"
Harry, holding the microphone, asked.
"What if that promise isn't kept?"
"Then I'll gladly meet your demands. But if I keep my promise, don't interfere with the team again. Supporting the team is the best way to be a fan," I replied.
It was now time for them to decide whether to take my hand or continue to reject me.
Peterson seemed ready to say something, but the atmosphere was already in my favor.
"Manager, find out who that first reporter is and see who's behind him. It's probably President Taylor pulling the strings."
"Yes, Boss."
In front of the Hilton Hotel in Leeds, a massive crowd had gathered.
Due to the unlawful blockage of the road, the police had to step in, and the incident concluded like this.
As the crowd dispersed, we returned to the suite.
"Ugh… I'm dying here."
Han Gyeong-yeong groaned as he flopped onto the sofa.
"I've said everything I needed to say. Why are you the one complaining?"
I chuckled at Han Gyeong-yeong's lament and took a seat.
"It's just nerves. Hey, Mu-hyeok, you should consider a career in politics."
As soon as I sat down, Han Gyeong-yeong lifted his glass and casually tossed out,
"Politics? Not interested. Myeong-su's got that covered."
"The way you talk, you seem to be playing with people's emotions."
Han Gyeong-yeong shook his head, and clinked his glass against mine as I replied.
"It's easy enough. Not everyone in that crowd had the same goal. The initial protesters had a clear purpose, but the rest just flocked over thinking, 'This is my favorite football club,' and joined in."
"Even so, it's not easy to change the mind of people who were originally incited. Politicians know that once people are hooked, they can do whatever they want with them."
I just laughed at Han Gyeong-yeong's comment. He wasn't entirely wrong.
Honestly, the fact that a guy named Harry barged in today was a stroke of luck.
"Anyway, if we draw this much attention, they won't figure out our true purpose for coming to England, right?"
"That's true enough."
After chatting for a bit longer, I noticed the time had already passed midnight.
Han Gyeong-yeong seemed tired and finally spoke up.
"Wow, it's already this late. Get some sleep, Mu-hyeok. I'm going to drink a bit more and then crash."
"You sure? See you tomorrow, hyung."
I said my farewells and exited to my room.
The next day, my statements were plastered across the front page of the Leeds local paper.
[The new Leeds United owner mocks fans with outrageous claims?]
[A wealthy Oriental promises over one hundred million pounds in transfer funds.]
In Korea or Europe, grabbing attention with sensational headlines is the same.
Chuckling to myself, I flipped through the newspaper. There was also a piece about Han Gyeong-yeong.
He was simply introduced as a wealthy businessman from America.
It wasn't easy for local journalists to uncover Han Gyeong-yeong's real wealth in such a short time.
"Not a single friendly article in sight."
Not a line about anything favorable appeared in the newspaper provided by the hotel.
With a wry smile, I set down the newspaper and picked up my coffee.
"They say someone's backing this? As expected, it's Neil Taylor, right?"
"Yes. Neil Taylor instigated them. He seemed to suggest that if we become owners, the club might go under, stirring them up."
"As expected, he never misses a beat."
"What should we do?"
I took a sip of my coffee before answering Manager Ma.
"Looks like he sees me as some kind of fool. There are gangs in Leeds, right?"
"Yes, Boss."
"Hire the gang. Have them make sure he can't use one arm again. It's embarrassing for us to deal with him directly, so this should suffice. Just don't kill him. After the club acquisition, we can…"
I mimicked the gesture of slitting a throat with my thumb, when Han Gyeong-yeong opened the door and trudged out, still half-asleep.
"Mu-hyeok, you're already up. Ah, I'm dying…"
"How much have you been drinking?"
"Not much."
"Your face isn't lying, though."
"I still talk well. Just saying."
Wafting the smell of alcohol, Han Gyeong-yeong plopped down in front of me.
"Today, the operations team will be arriving for the club acquisition. I looked into law firms, and I think our best bet is to have one with a branch in the UK handle the contracts. The branch manager will personally draft the contract for us. As for the bank… I'm not thrilled, but we may have to go with HSBC here in the UK."
"I thought you would just be drinking until late."
I joked lightly and handed Han Gyeong-yeong a warm cup of coffee.
Taking the cup, he breathed in the aroma of the coffee and smiled.
"I have to work with the boss right next to me. But you seriously plan to invest over a hundred million?"
"Of course. If I'm going to own a football club, I can't just do it half-heartedly."
"That's true. If you're going to do it, you'll want the best."
As he spoke, Han Gyeong-yeong picked up the newspaper featuring his photo.
"Ah! I look good in this!"
I shook my head at Han Gyeong-yeong, who was admiring himself.
"Not a single positive article, though."
"Of course not. Do you think people care about us? To them, we're just rich Orientals. And on top of that, we start boasting about crazy sums of money. Why would they believe us? If they don't mock us, it's a miracle."
Han Gyeong-yeong, looking weary, took a sip of coffee and resumed speaking.
"Well, maybe the atmosphere will shift this afternoon? With how fast information spreads on the internet. Either that or major news outlets will jump on it."
Just as Han Gyeong-yeong suggested, as the afternoon progressed, the mood began to shift.
Major news outlets didn't release any positive articles, but they didn't challenge Han Gyeong-yeong's wealth either.
They criticized him along the lines of not being able to buy the Premier League trophy with just money.
Yet, the climate in Leeds was slowly changing in a friendly direction.
* * *
In a Leeds pub.
"Have you heard? The club is being taken over by an Oriental?"
The pub was filled with many laborers winding down a tough day.
"Damn it, how did our club end up this way? We made it to the Champions League semifinals this season!"
A burly man with a thick beard chugged down beer from a bottle, froth spilling over his angry words.
"Apparently, the club's finances are a complete mess. No wonder key players have been traded to other teams…"
"What's Taylor doing? How could he ruin the club's finances like this? We've qualified for the Champions League consecutively and performed well too!"
"The players were too greedy, demanding outrageous wages…"
While some genuinely worried about the team, others were more…
"A yellow monkey is taking over our club? Is that even possible? Handing over our club to some Cheng Cheng Chong?"
"Exactly. How did Leeds fall so low?"
"Let's storm the clubhouse! We can't let those guys take over the club!"
"Rumor has it the owner has made up his mind already. We have to stop it with our own bodies."
Some only saw the fact that it was an Oriental taking charge, ignoring everything else.
"Still, believing in a new owner isn't a bad idea, right? It's one hundred million pounds! He could even spend more. With that amount, we could bring in all the players we want! When has Leeds spent that much on transfers?"
"You think it's as simple as that?"
"He's been listed as the second richest person in the world by Forbes. James Han, that's the guy. So he probably will invest that much, right?"
"No way! I can't trust some bloke just because he's an Oriental."
Even fans of Leeds United who hadn't participated in yesterday's protest were discussing their thoughts on the club's sale while sipping their beers.
"But if this new owner's talk really becomes reality… winning the Champions League might not be just a dream, right?"
Many fans in Leeds prayed for their new owner to turn their club into the pride of the Big Ears.
Meanwhile, some accomplices who had been misusing the club's funds along with President Neil Taylor were gathered at Taylor's house to discuss plans.
"Taylor, are we truly going to sell the club? What about us? Won't we be caught for all the money we embezzled?"
The administrative officer in front of Taylor asked with concern, but Taylor just sipped his drink.
"Hey, Taylor, say something! You promised none of this would happen! And now we're following your orders, what happens to us?"
The head of the PR team shouted. Taylor listened silently, then suddenly hurled his drink against the wall, shattering the glass.
The glass smashed with a thud, scattering shards everywhere.
"Shut up! You've all enjoyed yourself, so why are you screaming at me now?"
Taylor's tongue seemed to be tied from the alcohol.
"Dad, what are we going to do?"
His daughter looked at him anxiously.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. Dad will handle it all. Just act like nothing happened and show up at the clubhouse as usual."
"But still…"
"I said don't worry!"
Having never raised his voice at her before, when Taylor shouted, she left in tears.
"Sigh… Taylor, do you have a plan?"
Calmness seemingly regained, the administrative officer asked Taylor quietly.
"A plan, huh…"
"If there isn't one, I'll have to figure out my own way to survive."
"Survive?"
"You'll need to apologize for everything you've done and hope for forgiveness. I'll accept my punishment, but if I claim it was all your orders…"
Taylor scoffed at his words, his eyes filled with disdain.
"Ha! You think I don't know you were skimming off the top without telling me? If I go down, you go down with me! So shut up and destroy any evidence. Understand?"
"…"
"I'll take care of those Orientals, so don't worry about them and just get rid of all the evidence. Right now!"
"Uh, got it."
Taylor's eyes gleamed with madness. The administrative officer, overwhelmed by that look, nodded without realizing.
"And keep oiling the press so they write negative articles. Got it?"
"Uh, yes."
The head of PR seemed to sense the tense atmosphere and nodded awkwardly.
Taylor lifted the whiskey bottle and drank straight from it.
The liquor dribbled down his mouth as he swallowed too quickly.
"I'll wipe them all out. How dare they covet my kingdom…"
Muttering to himself, Taylor suddenly burst out laughing madly. His laughter echoed crazily in the room.
* * *
Days passed. I rested without any issues while waiting for Chairman Peter's call.
Finally, the awaited call from Chairman Peter came.
"Charlie, I've convinced all the shareholders."
"Well done. When will you transfer the club?"
"Hmm…"
Chairman Peter hesitated to respond.
"If you have something to say, just say it."
"Are you truly considering such a large investment in the club?"
"Yes. If need be, even more."
"Ah… understood. Then let's finalize the contract tomorrow."
Is this person doubting us too? Peter's words were soaked in hesitation.
"Then see you tomorrow."
Ending the call, I set the phone down.
"What did he say? Is it a go?"
Han Gyeong-yeong, who'd been buried in piles of paperwork, looked up to ask.
"Yeah. Peter managed to convince them all."
"Oh, we're finally becoming owners of a football club. In the UK no less! This is amazing!"
Watching him excitedly, I couldn't help but smile genuinely.
The next day, we headed to the clubhouse to finalize the acquisition of Leeds United.
As we entered the main street of Leeds, I heard a panicked cry from Han Gyeong-yeong, pulling my gaze from the newspaper I was reading.
"Huh? Huh? What the hell is that lunatic doing!
As I turned my head at Han Gyeong-yeong's panic, I spotted the bus crossing the center line, speeding directly at us.
A vehicle ahead was trying to protect us, but it was no match for the approaching bus.
"Boss, hold on tight!"
The driver shouted urgently as he spun the wheel, crossing over the center line.
After a short stretch of driving against traffic, we managed to get back on the road.
I finally straightened up and turned to check the road through the back window.
It was chaos behind us. Cars were all tangled up, and flames were erupting from some.
"What kind of lunatic drives like that? Has he been drinking since this morning?"
While Han Gyeong-yeong joked to calm his racing heart, his voice trembled slightly.
I turned to Han Gyeong-yeong with a stern voice.
"Could this be just a coincidence?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"That bus came straight at us. There's no way that's a coincidence, Manager Ma."
"Yes, I understand. I'll look into it right away."
Manager Ma replied as if he already knew what I was going to say.
"There's no way this is just a coincidence."
"Damn it. Are you saying they actually tried to ram us? In broad daylight in the city?"
"It seems likely. We'll need to investigate further."
He responded coolly while glancing back at the disaster on the road.
"Boss, what should we do? Should we head back to the hotel?"
The driver asked from the front seat, shaking his head.
"No, let's head to the clubhouse as planned."
Some cars assigned for our protection were damaged, but thankfully, no one was seriously hurt.
We swiftly exited the main road where the accident had occurred and arrived at the clubhouse on the outskirts.
Aili was waiting for us in the parking lot.
"Welcome!"
She greeted us with a bright smile like usual.
"Everyone's inside waiting. The chairman is here, along with the other shareholders. And the guests have already arrived as well."
We began to walk towards the conference room under Aili's guidance.
"Have you been well?"
"Of course. How about you, James?"
As Han Gyeong-yeong chatted with Aili, I couldn't shake thoughts about the recent traffic incident.
'Who could it be? The CIA sending Murdoch after me? Or was it an intelligence agency who warned me just days ago?'
It seemed too clumsy a scheme for an intelligence agency.
But for the CIA, it was a risky move that could endanger its own citizens.
Lost in thought, we arrived at the conference room.
"Mr. Han."
I snapped back to reality at Peter's voice calling Han Gyeong-yeong.
"Did you need to speak with me?"
"Yes. Can we talk privately for a moment?"
"Is there something we need to discuss?"
"About the club's operations…"
"As I've mentioned before, I'm not interested in club management."
Han Gyeong-yeong said with a sly smile, draping an arm over my shoulder.
"This guy will handle everything related to the club."
"…Mr. Kim?"
I stopped him before he could say anything more.
"Let's sign the contract first, and later I'll have the board members join us for discussion."
I smiled while glancing at the board members standing outside, waiting to get in.
"Let's go in, brother."
"Okay."
Ignoring the other executives, Peter and I opened the conference room door.
On one side of the long table, older individuals sat, while on the other, members from the law firm handling Han Gyeong-yeong's purchase of the club faced them.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Tony, the head of the UK branch of LK Law Firm."
The man named Tony reached out to me, not Han Gyeong-yeong.
He seemed to know I was the true owner of Dream High Investment.
"Nice to meet you. I look forward to working with you."
"Don't worry. Legally, there won't be any issues at all."
I shook hands with him lightly, while Han Gyeong-yeong exchanged greetings with Chairman Peter.
"Have you been well, Chairman?"
"Of course."
After exchanging greetings, everyone settled down to face each other. The gazes of those sitting across from us were intense.
"Those present today hold shares in Leeds United, correct?"
"Yes, that's right. We all grew up in Leeds and have a deep attachment to the club."
After briefly introducing everyone, we dove straight into business.
"We've prepared the contract on our side."
Tony received the contract from another lawyer beside him and placed several pages in front of me.
"Since there are multiple shareholders, you'll need to sign several times. I thought it would be better this way than signing everything at once."
He spoke in a low voice to me before turning to address the shareholders.
"And the total price has been adjusted to $10 million in proportion to the share quantity. Please take a look."
Chairman Peter and the shareholders received their contracts and passed them to their personal lawyers for review.
"May I ask a question?"
An elderly man to the left of Chairman Peter spoke up.
"Yes, go ahead."
"I heard from Chairman Peter, but it's hard to believe. Are you really going to invest such a large sum in our club?"
They seemed curious about the amount that would be invested compared to their share prices.
I understood their feelings well, given their strong attachment to the team despite the potential losses.
"Of course. While money can't directly buy trophies for the Premier League or the Champions League, I believe we can increase our chances significantly."
"Oh!"
As I spoke firmly, joy spread across the shareholders' faces.
"We won't just be recruiting superstars. We'll completely revamp the youth system step by step. You can trust that if they receive proper training and show their talents, in five years—no, ten years—our youth talent will attract attention from clubs worldwide."
I explained my vision for the club to them.
"I plan to hire experts for club operations. We'll retain ownership but leave management to professionals—this will greatly benefit the team. I intend to give substantial authority to the manager and coach, though I won't fully trust them like Chairman Peter."
Chairman Peter's expression shifted awkwardly, likely due to having reviewed club accounting materials for days.
He must have realized the truth in my words, so it was natural he'd be shocked.
"We had no idea Mr. Taylor was involved in such wrongdoing. I felt furious hearing that someone was draining the club's finances while we were trying to rebuild after a long dark period; I can never forgive Taylor for leading the club to financial ruin."
"I won't forgive him either."
Chairman Peter nodded in agreement.
"I too initially hesitated to bring it up, thinking of the ties we had with Taylor. But this is no longer a matter we can overlook. The finances are leaking everywhere, and I'm thinking of reporting it to the police."
"That's a good decision."
The review of the contracts took a considerable amount of time.
Throughout the lengthy process, the shareholders asked me questions, and I kindly answered them.
Finally, once all the lawyers completed their reviews, they whispered to their clients, and soon everyone was signing the contracts.
"You all have worked hard to protect the club until now. It's time for us to make proper changes."
"We'll believe you."
I shook hands with each shareholder as we exited the conference room.
The acquisition would be finalized by LK Law Firm.
Now it was time to investigate this morning's accident.
"Wait a moment."
I heard Taylor's voice calling after us, but I kept walking forward without looking back, my tone cold.
"I'll be summoning everyone in a few days. Until then, don't take any action, just stay put. Make sure any documents are accessible for my agent to collect. If there's even a hint of foul play, return everything to the way it was. This is a warning."
I felt a tingling sensation in the back of my head but ignored it as I walked towards the parking lot.
"Now they must be sweating bullets."
"They've definitely exploited us for far too long."
Upon reaching the parking lot, I spotted Aili watching us from a distance.
I nudged Han Gyeong-yeong in the side while looking at her.
"Brother, you should take her out on a date."
"Huh?"
"As the chairman's secretary, she must have some awareness of the club staff. Even if she doesn't know finances, she should understand their character. You should find out more about her."
I had already delegated the investigation of the employees elsewhere.
Though it wasn't necessary for Han Gyeong-yeong to learn anything from her, it served as a brief moment of respite.
Han Gyeong-yeong seemed to get the message, and a smile bloomed on his face.
I patted him on the shoulder again and said, "I need to look into what happened this morning. I'll tell LK Law Firm and the accounting firm to dig deep into this club. For now, just enjoy yourself."
"Thank you, Boss!"
Only now he calls me boss.
I watched Han Gyeong-yeong approach Aili with a smile as I climbed into the vehicle.
The car carrying me slowly drove away from the clubhouse.
I wiped the smile off my face and turned to Manager Ma.
"Manager, have you found out anything?"
"Yes. The police seem ready to close the case as just a drunk driving incident."
"Drunk driving?"
"They said the driver was heavily intoxicated, with a blood alcohol level over 0.2%."
A blood alcohol level of 0.2% was equivalent to being extremely drunk.
"What about the driver?"
"He's currently in the hospital. He'll likely be arrested after treatment. Unlike Korea, the UK has strict penalties for drunk driving."
"Will we be able to meet him?"
"It seems unlikely. I've instructed the Black Bear branch to conduct a more thorough investigation."
I closed my eyes, lost in thought as I listened to Manager Ma's report.
If he was heavily intoxicated, it was hard to believe he could have been following orders to target us.
However, dismissing it as mere coincidence felt unsettling for some reason.
'He definitely came running straight at us…'
It was difficult to ascertain exactly in this brief moment, but it definitely seemed he rushed towards the vehicle I was in.
Could a drunk person do that? Questions began to bubble up, but there was no concrete evidence.
"For now, investigate more. There must be something there."
"Understood, Boss."
Soon we arrived at the hotel, got out of the car, and headed to the suite.
Laid out on the table was a newspaper from the afternoon detailing the traffic accident from earlier.
[Roadside Lawbreaker: A Countless Casualty Incident.]
It was indeed the work of British reporters.
The face of the perpetrator and all his detailed personal information were clearly printed.
Most of the articles focused on drunk driving.
While I read the newspaper for quite a while, Manager Ma entered the room.
"Boss."
I set the newspaper down and turned to him.
"The police have contacted us, requesting your presence as a witness regarding this morning's incident. How should I respond?"
"A witness? What's this about all of a sudden?"
When I questioned further, Manager Ma bowed his head and replied.
"It sounds like they reached out through the hotel."
"The bodyguards who were present at the accident are all in police custody as witnesses, right? And now, they want me, who suffered no harm, as a witness?"
"No, it's not just you. They've summoned both you and Boss Han."
The fact they were openly calling out Han Gyeong-yeong and me made this situation hard to comprehend.
"Let's hold off on our response for now. Let's see how this unfolds."
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