I Just Wanted to Play Soccer, But I Became a Hollywood Heartthrob

Ding~

"You have acquired a skill from a full energy bubble: Heartthrob Smile +1. Daily pickup progress: 3/10."

…Huh?!

Gu Ran was stunned.

"What the hell is this?!"

"Where's my Bend It Like Beckham free kick?"

"Where's my Golden Right Foot?"

"Where's my iconic long-range lob?"

"Why the hell did I get some pickup artist skill instead? Am I supposed to charm my opponents into letting me score?!"

Ding~

"Skill Effect: When you smile, women will experience an uncontrollable feeling of infatuation. Effect doubles on Victoria Beckham."

…Victoria Beckham?!

Oh f* no.**

"Did I just unlock a skill that lets me seduce Beckham's wife?!"

"This… this doesn't feel right…"

Gu Ran sat there, clutching his head. This was the worst scam of the century!

Two skill bubbles, both absolutely useless for football.

Just as he was brooding over his bad luck, the director—James Dolores—finally regained his composure and squinted at Gu Ran suspiciously.

"Wait a second… who the hell are you?! I don't remember hiring any extra photographers!"

Gu Ran's heart skipped a beat.

Sh*t.

Time to turn up the acting skills.

With a calm expression, he casually replied—

"James Dolores, you seriously don't remember? We met last night! I told you the higher-ups sent me as an extra photographer—Edward Stark. You told me to just show up here."

"Edward Stark?" The director squinted, trying to search his memory.

The name sounded familiar, and Gu Ran had confidently addressed him by his full name… The director himself started getting confused.

Gu Ran leaned in and whispered—

"After our chat, you left with that handsome footballer and went back to the trailer for… a 'discussion'."

Dolores suddenly threw an arm around Gu Ran's shoulder.

"AH! I remember now! Edward! Of course! The higher-ups keep talking about how talented you are! Alright, today I don't need an extra photographer, so just… stand by and assist if needed."

Perfect.

Gu Ran flashed a confident smile.

"No problem, Director."

Disaster on Set

The director then nervously turned to Beckham—

"Mr. Beckham, sir, are you feeling better? Should we continue?"

Beckham, looking pale as a ghost, weakly waved a hand.

The director immediately took that as a 'yes' and shouted—

"Beckham is ready! Everyone, give a round of applause for his professionalism! Get the five football actors into position!"

Beckham: …

The shoot resumed, with Gu Ran standing beside the close-up cameraman, pretending to be an assistant.

After watching a test run, Gu Ran finally understood the concept of the ad—

It had no dialogue and was meant to be visually stunning:

Beckham relaxes on the beach, drinking a Pepsi. Suddenly, a group of muscled footballers challenge him to a game. Beckham takes a sip of Pepsi and then humiliates them all with ridiculous dribbles and flashy moves.

A classic "drink Pepsi, become a god" commercial.

But there was one big problem.

Beckham's dribbling sucked.

Beckham's Nightmare

Filming started, and as expected—Beckham failed every take.

The five muscular footballers weren't just extras—they were real English Championship (second-tier) players.

They were fast, aggressive, and in peak physical condition.

And Beckham?

Well… let's just say he wasn't exactly a dribble king.

For 30 minutes, take after take—

Beckham tried to dribble → ball stolen. Beckham tried to flick the ball over a defender → ball intercepted. Beckham tried a fake shot → ran straight into a defender's chest and bounced off.

A couple of times, Beckham almost got body-checked into the sand.

The director was losing his mind.

Beckham grew more and more frustrated.

And then—he snapped.

"I CAN'T DO THIS!" Beckham stormed off, throwing his hands in the air before collapsing onto his lounge chair.

The five footballers awkwardly stood in place, exchanging glances.

The director crouched down, holding his head.

The entire shoot was now at a standstill.

Gu Ran was just about to step in and suggest an alternative, when—

Ding~

"You have received 76 points of Negative Emotion Value from David Beckham. Skill Bubble generated…"

Oh?

Gu Ran blinked.

"Wait, I didn't even do anything this time!"

This was Beckham's own frustration, not something Gu Ran intentionally caused.

"Does that mean… any negative emotions within my range will generate skill bubbles?!"

He glanced down and—

Sure enough!

At Beckham's feet, a blue skill bubble had appeared!

Oh, hell yes!

If his pickup range increased in the future, he could just sit back and farm skills while doing nothing!

"But wait… my daily pickup limit is still 10 skills. I need to find a way to break past that."

As Gu Ran approached Beckham's bubble, suddenly—

Ding~

"You have received 35 points of Negative Emotion Value from Nelson Mart. Skill Bubble generated…"

Ding~

"You have received 38 points of Negative Emotion Value from Maurice Jeremy. Skill Bubble generated…"

Ding~

"You have received 40 points of Negative Emotion Value from Rhodes Emmanuel. Skill Bubble generated…"

Ding~

"You have received 43 points of Negative Emotion Value from Rory Cavolf. Skill Bubble generated…"

Ding~

"You have received 45 points of Negative Emotion Value from Boyle Borg. Skill Bubble generated…"

All five Championship-level footballers had negative emotion bubbles appear around them.

Gu Ran grinned.

"These guys were obviously pissed off at Beckham too!"

One by one, he casually walked past them, tapping each bubble with his foot—

Ding~

"You have acquired Leg Strength Training +10 hours. Daily pickup progress: 4/10."

Ding~

"You have acquired Aerobic Endurance Training +10 hours. Daily pickup progress: 5/10."

Ding~

"You have acquired Anaerobic Sprint Training +10 hours. Daily pickup progress: 6/10."

Ding~

"You have acquired Dribbling Through Cones Training +10 hours. Daily pickup progress: 7/10."

Ding~

"You have acquired Comprehensive Strength Training +10 hours. Daily pickup progress: 8/10."

Jackpot.

Gu Ran instantly felt his body getting stronger.

These bubbles were top-tier!

In just a few seconds, he had completed 50 hours of elite training.

And since he already had 40 hours saved up, he only needed 10 more to earn another Talent Point!

This was insane efficiency.

Professional athletes had to grind through sweat and pain for weeks to gain one Talent Point.

But Gu Ran?

He just farmed them.

And now—one last prize remained.

Beckham's 76-point Negative Emotion Bubble.

"This time, I better get a real football skill!"

(End of Chapter)