Otaku Translation: Blackstone Code Chapter 157

Please support the translation by reading the translation and commenting on otakutl official site.

Thank you.

Everyone from Otaku Translation

This coach was skilled in conversation, choosing to self-deprecate and downplay himself to highlight Lynch's remarkable achievements at such a young age, rather than directly praising him. It was an effective and pleasing form of flattery. Kane, standing nearby, glanced at the enthusiastic and cheerful head coach and couldn't help but think of the unofficial introduction given by the Athletes' Association's officials—this was a tyrant of a coach.

But reality proved that even tyrants would lower their heads when they had needs.

Of course, the coach's words weren't entirely flattery. Everyone knew that running a professional club was an expensive endeavor. Even though their team didn't yet have any star players and was composed of ordinary individuals, it was still very costly.

Every player's equipment and expenses amounted to a substantial sum, and adding the costs of venue maintenance and staff salaries, even without a single star player, Lynch had to face varying monthly expenses from tens of thousands to several tens of thousands.

In the head coach's eyes, Lynch's age likely meant he hadn't even attended university yet. To have achieved such accomplishments and to run a professional club at such a young age, whether due to his background or his ability to build something from scratch, was indeed worthy of respect.

"Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Mordoc, but you can call me Mo or Momo." Momo was a nickname, but it hid another title he was known by—tyrant.

Lynch nodded slightly. "Coach Mordoc..." He glanced at the people lined up by the roadside, looking at them curiously, and then asked, "How did the selection go?"

Mordoc nodded with some satisfaction. "We've picked a decent bunch of boys. As long as they don't slack off, they'll quickly adapt to this sport. As for the girls..." He glanced at Lynch and the curious Reynolds beside him, "Perhaps, boss, you can give me some advice."

It was a clever answer. Reynolds immediately looked at Lynch, clearly interested. Lynch didn't refuse and nodded in agreement. He also called Fox and his son, asking them to come over.

Fox and his son wanted to form a women's rugby team as well. This was a good opportunity for them to understand the selection and coaching process, serving as a warm-up.

Before long, everyone was seated in the office. After reviewing the selection process for the women, Lynch quickly called a halt.

Mordoc simply assumed Lynch needed an excuse to surround himself with pretty girls, underestimating Lynch's broader vision. However, professional women's rugby wasn't Lynch's playground for seeking beauties; it served another purpose.

Among the girls who came for the interview, many were indeed pretty, but they seemed too delicate to survive a season in a high-intensity, collision-heavy sport.

"Boss, do you really intend to have these girls compete on the field?" Mordoc looked at Lynch incredulously, feeling that this handsome young man had a streak of... bloodlust, or something else, within him.

It was hard to imagine a bunch of pretty girls running around in protective gear, colliding with each other. This world had no term like "flower losing its color" to describe such a shocking scene, but one could still imagine it.

Since the invention of this sport, no one had considered letting girls join in.

Even male athletes often get injured during games—rib fractured and shinbone broken were commonplace. A simple collision could break several bones; those girls definitely couldn't handle it.

"Coach Mordoc, I must remind you, this is prejudice against women." Lynch slightly criticized him from a high moral ground. "The Women's Rights Protection Association is very interested in the women's professional sports I initiated. They might frequently come here to watch matches and training closely, so you need to change your mindset."

Mordoc promptly apologized for his thoughts. His humble attitude stemmed from the club still being in a phase of adjustment. Lynch seemed a bit hard to get along with, but he usually didn't meddle in affairs.

Kane usually managed things, and he was easy to talk to. Mordoc felt he could work with Kane for a long time.

Furthermore, he had left his job at the university with his team. If he fell out with Lynch now, he and his assistant coaches would have nowhere to go in the short term.

The professional league season wasn't over; no one would switch coaches midway. The university enrollment season was about to start, and renewals had been signed, leaving no positions available for him. If he didn't want to starve for a year or more or face complaints from his assistants, the best way was to integrate into this club, which was his initial dream.

Lynch raised his hand to signal Mordoc's excessive caution and discussed the ideal candidates for the sport. "I've talked with people from the Women's Rights Protection Association about these issues. Maybe we could initiate an open selection to pick suitable girls from the city for the interview."

"Our target group is educated, cultured, healthy, beautiful, and sunny girls..." He looked at Fox Junior. "Can you draft a plan for me? I'll discuss it with the Women's Rights Protection Association. It's best to focus on female university students."

Women with higher education were more likely to embrace this concept and pursue equal rights with men. Importantly, if these women could afford university, it indicated they came from affluent families that could support women's rights movements financially if needed.

It was the first time Lynch directly instructed Fox Junior, but neither Old Fox and his son had any objections. The former even nodded in agreement. "I'll come up with a plan as soon as possible."

Fox Junior majored in management in university, and planning projects was part of his studies, making it easy for him.

After discussing some details, Lynch, Kane, and Mordoc left, leaving Reynolds and the Foxes to find common topics for conversation.

Lynch and his group went to see the selected young men, who would become the backbone of the club.

The young men were somewhat apprehensive about Mordoc, a strict interviewer who liked to "get hands-on." There was an indescribable emotion because Mordoc's method of assessing their physical attributes through direct touch seemed odd. Despite the explosion of various sports today, gender orientation issues remained a serious topic.

This actually wasn't hard to understand. Women's rights movements garnered social support partly because many religions had female gods holding important roles, such as goddesses of war.

But in faith and religion, gods, even if fetishists, wouldn't have orientation issues, leaving society with a lack of foundation in this area.

The young men were uneasy about Mordoc's touch.

These were very robust young men with bulging muscles. Mordoc was enthusiastic when talking about them, "Their physiques and muscle development are more well-rounded than those of athletes who have undergone rigid training in university."

"This means they're more malleable. Once they understand and master rugby rules, they can quickly start playing!"

Standing outside the group, Mordoc hesitated and then assured Lynch, "Barring any accidents, our club should be able to return to professional competition next year."

The Athletes' Association also hosted a semi-professional amateur league alongside various professional leagues. Finishing in the top three would qualify for the lowest level of the continental professional league. This goal didn't seem difficult for Mordoc to achieve.

Currently, there were only 22 teams in the amateur league, significantly fewer than before, likely due to the economic downturn causing many amateur clubs to close, making it easier for amateur teams to push into the professional league.

Moreover, many amateur teams had no plans to enter the professional league. Joining the professional league would mean higher expenses, even if they didn't raise the salary standards for these "professional athletes." Simply traveling for matches would become a financial burden.

After looking at these young men, Lynch had some thoughts. "We need at least three complete teams, using internal competition to vie for a spot on the official team. I trust you're the expert and understand what I mean."

Mordoc nodded, understanding the need for talent reserves. He nodded again, although he didn't fully grasp Lynch's deeper intentions.

Lynch's purpose wasn't merely talent reserves but also to restrain the potential rising wages. Once some players became irreplaceable, their pride would gradually turn into arrogance, and they'd start demanding more, such as higher salaries.

Constant competition would make them aware that their jobs and salaries were not secure, and they were replaceable. As soon as they raised demands, someone else would take their place.

Having too many athletes might seem to increase monthly payrolls, but it would effectively restrain the escalating wages of star players in the future.

Even if Mordoc didn't fully understand, it didn't matter. Knowing how to execute it was enough.

Please vote for this novel at

https://www.novelupdates.com/series/blackstone-code/

If you would like to support this translation, you may choose any one of the options below.

Tier 1: 7 Advance chapters

Access fee $3.00 Monthly