"Of course."
"Can you leave for half a season to play for AC Milan?"
"What are you saying all of a sudden?"
Calderón got straight to the point.
"You're the star of our club. I'm truly sorry to bring this up, but the club hasn't been in the best financial state lately. You probably already know that. Just think about what kind of position the club is in."
"So you're asking me to leave the team temporarily?"
"I wouldn't call it that directly. But there's something beneficial in it for you. Just listen to the terms first."
It was a proposal for him to become the face of a top-tier sponsor—one even bigger than Adidas—unlike the lower-tier brands that constantly came and went.
The value alone amounted to tens of billions of won.
On top of that, if one of his parents moved to Italy due to the FIFA transfer clause, the sponsor would provide full support for any career they wanted to pursue—for instance, fashion.
"Whatever you envision, they promised to support it fully during your loan period. Plus, you'd be paid five times your current weekly wage."
"Did Ronaldo get offered the same terms?"
"No, he didn't. Let's be honest, your value is on another level. This kind of offer is unprecedented in football history."
"I see."
However—
"No."
Ho-young's answer came like a blade.
"I don't want to be AC Milan's political scapegoat."
AC Milan was a hotbed of controversy, both now and in the future.
Serie A no longer held the prestige it once did, and AC Milan in particular had long fallen from its former glory.
It was only going to get worse.
And Ho-young knew that better than anyone.
'Too many clubs with problems.'
Shevchenko, Ronaldinho, Inzaghi, Kaká, Beckham, Maldini, Nesta, Gattuso, Pirlo...
Each of them was a brilliant player, but even they couldn't escape the chaos.
The biggest problem?
Former owner Silvio Berlusconi.
For him, AC Milan was a political tool, nothing more.
Yes, he led Milan's golden era—but he also orchestrated its downfall.
Whenever his political career was in danger, he'd splash the transfer market with cash to sign star players.
There was no knowing when or how it would happen again.
On top of that, there were racial controversies tied to the club.
So Ho-young gave Calderón a firm response.
He had to, because the president seemed to be leaving room for negotiation.
"I have no intention of going there. There's no club better than Real Madrid. I love this team more than any other in the world."
"I understand. But a footballer can't always play where everything is ideal."
"I think if you have the talent, you can choose where you play. Isn't that the whole reason footballers work so hard—to join the clubs they want?"
"But we simply can't afford to match your worth right now. Your salary will have to be frozen until next year—are you okay with that? Meanwhile, Milan has offered you four times your current pay. Vice President Galliani is in direct talks over this."
"I said no. I'm not going."
Adriano Galliani.
Just hearing the name sent a chill down Ho-young's spine.
The world might not fully recognize his business tactics yet, but Ho-young knew all too well.
Galliani was a pure businessman.
With masterful negotiation skills, polished speech, and a keen sense of timing for media manipulation and persuasion.
In the European football world, there was no one better at cutting deals.
Which is why future Korean fans would give him a notorious nickname:
'Maneman.'
A blend of Galliani and scam artist (sagiman)—a nickname born from his shady yet brilliant negotiation style, bordering on fraud.
A six-month buy-back clause?
'No way. He's planning to do something sneaky to keep me from returning to Real.'
It was likely this had been in the works since last year.
A strong ally on paper—but someone who must never be trusted blindly.
Ho-young cut in sharply.
"And one more thing—I haven't even left the team yet. I love it here. The fans, my teammates, Madrid… everything. Why would I leave?"
Right now, everything was perfect.
Wearing the white kit.
They had already won a major Champions League trophy—but there was still more to achieve at Real Madrid.
Even so, Calderón wouldn't back down.
"It's just for half a season. Until January. Give me six months, and I'll bring you right back."
"And if I don't? Is there no other way? I can't understand why our club is trying to sell its core players over debt."
That was fair.
Real Madrid was not the kind of club to be afraid of debt.
But their current financial state was absurd.
Calderón needed to stabilize the books quickly to present a proper budget plan next year and secure a reasonable amount for operations.
For that, the club had to generate profits fast—and that meant finding quick returns.
"I have no intention of transferring you permanently either. Who in their right mind would sell you?"
Of course, if an astronomical offer came in, that might change—but no offer had been large enough yet.
Ho-young was simply too valuable.
He had the talent of both Pelé and Maradona, carried the symbolic weight of being Raúl González's successor, and had star power that surpassed even David Beckham's.
That's why the buy-back clause was essential.
It was the only way everything would work out.
"So in the end, you're just selling me off. For your approval ratings."
"You're making me feel awful. Everything I'm doing is for the club. If our financial situation had been stable, we would've already progressed with the Middle East business deals."
"That's not your fault. But why are you asking me to make the sacrifice?"
"That's an internal matter."
"Don't you have this year's budget? Can't you just get help from the bank?"
"Let's stop there. This isn't something players need to worry about. It's the management's job to solve it."
"It's like watching a captain turn the ship around just before hitting the reef."
"You think I'm that reckless?"
At that moment, Calderón's expression hardened.
But Ho-young couldn't help but let out a bitter smile.
He never imagined he'd have such a heated debate with the club president this season.
This entire conversation felt like a betrayal.
Six years.
What had he even been doing at Real Madrid?
Truth be told, this financial problem wasn't impossible to fix.
Wasn't this the same Real Madrid that generated over 800 billion won in annual revenue?
Yet Calderón was about to sacrifice Ho-young just to save face over minor issues.
That's right.
The sports world runs on capital.
This kind of thing happened frequently in modern football, where marketing wars were escalating out of control.
All this—just because of money.
Because the money hadn't been managed well.
'They're just trying to squeeze me dry.'
At that moment, Ho-young found himself missing Florentino Pérez.
Calderón might have the backing and funding, but he couldn't handle issues like this properly.
That didn't mean Calderón was incompetent.
He was good enough to be elected president.
But still...
"I'll say it again. If you don't like AC Milan, there are plenty of other clubs. It would also resolve the FIFA transfer clause issue. And let me promise you this—Real Madrid and I will always be with you. If you don't like the terms, then I won't force it."
But Ho-young had lost trust in him.
It was a matter of faith now.
Ho-young rose from his seat and said just one thing:
"Please show some respect to the players. If Raúl had heard this conversation, who knows what would've happened? He'd have probably called the press right then and there. I mean it."
Calderón's pride was wounded, but he had no immediate rebuttal.
A player can't hurl accusations at a club president—but the president of a socios-run club is really just a salaried figure voted in by fans.
And because Ho-young wielded immense influence within the club, they couldn't treat him recklessly.
At that moment, the air between them grew tense and heavy.
That evening—
Ho-young spoke to Lucie about everything.
"I don't understand. If I leave for even a few months, my influence will definitely drop."
"If you don't generate revenue, you risk losing your support ratings. He probably wants to frame the situation as inevitable using media manipulation. He thinks that if he brings you back in January, everything will go back to normal. He's using his head. All he had to do was take out a loan, but he didn't want to reveal the club's mounting debt to the Middle East."
"He's being cautious."
"Right. And maybe he's also hit the borrowing limit. Because of the UEFA Financial Fair Play rule that was introduced last year. Plus, his business ventures have all flopped."
UEFA's FFP rule (Financial Fair Play).
In short, it prevents clubs from spending more than they earn.
Recently, they even added limits on total club debt. If clubs failed to meet the debt-reduction ratio demanded by UEFA, they could face heavy sanctions.
Real Madrid had paid off some debt using their revenue this season, but their remaining debt still exceeded 1.2 trillion won—worse than Manchester United.
In fact, this was the worst financial state in Real's history, with interest alone reaching 80 billion won this year.
Worse still, they had nearly 397 billion won due for repayment this year.
For Calderón, the timing couldn't have been worse.
Everything was going downhill at once.
"His attempt to move away from Galáctico marketing and jump into stock ventures ended up hurting team profits. If we hadn't won two trophies this season, we wouldn't have even had a chance to recover."
"There's bad news on all fronts. I don't want to get dragged into this political mess."
"Sadly, there's no helping it. Honestly, they'd sell Ronaldo too if it meant saving themselves right now."
"Seriously?"
"But Real Madrid isn't going to crumble. Debts must be repaid—whether in five or eight years. Remember how Valencia went bankrupt last year from failed real estate and stock investments? Real is different. Their assets and profitability are high. Calderón's just in a tight spot right now."
"His head is on the chopping block."
"Exactly. It's almost like what's happening with the Glazers at Manchester United."
United fans, furious over the club's debt, had thrown smoke bombs in protest against management.
Real Madrid couldn't afford to get to that point.
"If the full extent of the club's financial crisis were revealed, Calderón would be at serious risk of losing his presidency. He's not an owner—he's a president."
Ho-young knew it well.
Real Madrid was more a political club than a football one.
"Don't worry. I'll start preparing now."
Lucie took a moment to gather her thoughts before asking:
"So what are you thinking now?"
"I think England or Germany would be better. Munich or United. Maybe Chelsea."
"What about Manchester City?"
"They can't even qualify for the Champions League yet."
Honestly, anywhere else might be better than staying at Real Madrid.
They were just trying to exploit his talent.
Only Alfredo Di Stéfano's record remained.
'Once I reach 100 official appearances, that'll be done at the Supercopa in August. After the World Cup, I'll have completed that legacy.'
Leaving Real Madrid now didn't seem like a bad idea.
But returning?
Not while Calderón remained in charge.
"I'll think about it after the World Cup."
Yeah.
For now, he had to forget everything else and focus on that.
"Our first match is Japan, then Belarus?"
"Yup."
"Phew!"
Ho-young decided to shake off the stress from today with the upcoming friendly.
And the next day—
The plane carrying the team landed in Saitama Prefecture, Japan.
The match was just two days away.
The same stadium where Park Ji-sung once made history.
Saitama Stadium—the sacred ground of Japanese football.