ASAKU® X Dragon Life
Part.1
All 13 chapters in this book.
Original author:Mingkun Liu
Translator: Claudia Liu @ fanyi4life
Preface: Outline of ASAKU X Dragon Life
In year 36722 on Epic Calendar...
On the surface in the Epic World, green Mirror Cores started to appear on Humans Continent, Fairies Continent, and Phantom Continent. The location differed every time it happened. Meanwhile, the center was pouring out little guarding monsters. In 24 hours, the green core would turn red and release energy of Reversal Impact in radius of one kilometer, to turn back the time. The energy released would bring even more powerful monsters, together with the supreme core monster. One Mirror Core would cause one Reversal Impact which would turn animals or monsters around berserk as well.
The Mirror Cores emerged one after another, with the intervals of three to seven days. Currently, there was no way to destroy it. Once a Reversal Impact took places, the time within the range would be turned back, as well as the lives and scenery would be restored to the previous condition. In other words, people might become younger, but those who haven’t outlived the time reversed would disappear. Things would be restored to normal once they leave the range.
When Reversal Impact happened, not only time was turned back, but plenty of monsters would pour in to protect the core. People that once lived in the time that was reversed would be brought back as well, but appeared like a reanimated corpse without a soul. Yet for others who still remembered them, it would be a moment to look forward to.
Since the time reversed could not be estimated, no one dared to risk inside the range and fight against the monsters. When the Reversal Impact took place, whoever was inside the range could do nothing but evacuate as soon as possible.
On the surface of the Epic World, the Fairies were the only ones that were invulnerable to Reversal Impact, which also explained why the Mirror Core would not be found on the Fairies Continent. The Fairies were shielded from the danger of the Reversal Impact. We were not entirely sure of the reason why the Fairies were protected, but they did not hold the power to destroy the core. The only solution the Fairies could propose was to seal the core, to stop the monsters from flooding in our world.
Delegated by Oudelos, the Fairies King, Asaku, as the Seal Priest from the Light race, led his partners to explore the world. With the Compass of No Return, which could locate the Mirror Core and calculate the time turned back, Asaku would seal the core to stop Reversal Impact and the inundation of monsters.
Chapter One: Asaku the Seal Priest
At three o’clock in the afternoon on Monday, August 12th, year 36722 on the Epic Calendar...
In the Village of Eden, part of the Kingdom of Phil and located on the south-west of Humans Continent, a Mirror Core appeared and villagers started to evacuate. Troops dispatched by the Kingdom of Phil were engaged in a hard fight against monsters to ensure a safe evacuation of villagers. In the last thirty minutes when the core started to turn red, the military retreated and set up a line of defense in a safe zone outside village. Once the Reversal Impact started, the monsters would no longer be limited. All of a sudden, in front of the troops popped up a Folding Corridor from which a young magic knight walked out. The magic knight was dressed in blue with a white cloak, equipped with the Seal Knife and followed by a clown puppet and a winged lion. There was also an adorable little girl, walking with the trio toward the village. Some soldiers saw them and tried to stop them. The magic knight turned around and said, “Per order of Oudelos, the Fairies King, I am the delegate to seal the Mirror Core. My name is Asaku, the Seal Priest from the Light race. You are all useless here, so just run.”
Soldiers said, “How insolent!”
Hearing this, the little girl standing by Asaku punched him on the shoulder and said, “Asaku, that is just rude!”
Then she turned around and saluted the soldiers, saying, “My name is Ellia, and I am the animal trainer from the Soil race. Asaku is my brother, and I apologize for his attitude. May I ask: who is the general leading the troops?”
The human general stepped ahead, replying respectfully, “We appreciate assistance from the Fairies. This is General Stalul. Please kindly seal the core to prevent even more damage.
Ellia asked, “Have all villagers evacuated?”
General Stalul replied, “Yes, we have sent everyone to a safe place.”
Upon hearing this, Asaku said, “Great! So now I can do anything I want freely!” Then he rushed into the village with the clown puppet and the illusion lion, in the direction where the core was with all the monsters.
Ellia saluted General Stalul again and explained, “I am here to investigate the reason why monsters have gone berserk. Even the generally gentle monsters are turned violent by the core. Please proceed with caution.” Then Ellia ran into the village and caught up with Asaku.
Facing assault of countless monsters, Asaku fought back with the Seal Knife. Those monster who were injured by the Seal Knife were sealed and frozen. Meanwhile, this knife absorbed and stored power of monsters. What’s more, it could also soak up power of attributes from the Nature. For example, if the knife came in touch with stone, it took in the power of soil.
When Asaku cast magic, he had the three-star matrix magic on his left hand, the reversed matrix magic on his right hand, so all he had to do was to take in the power, based on its nature, and use it on the matrix magic to initiate an attack. When swamped by monsters, Asaku could use the reversed three-star matrix magic to amplify the magic power; to focus fire, Asaku could zero in on the three-star matrix magic for a fatal blow. The more power the rituals absorb, the more potent the magic will be.
Ellia used the Love Racket to purge the monsters. Ordinary monsters would be pacified and become passive. Some of them would even help Ellia in combat.
The closer they were to the core, the more powerful the monsters were. Determined to dash into the core, Asaku put away the Seal Knife and yelled at the clown puppet, “Come, Ghost Card Uda, transform into the Sun Sword!" Uda then transformed from a clown puppet into a sword as shining as the sun. Asaku chopped his way toward the core with the Sun Sword. However, where the sun didn’t shine, the sword lost its glow and power as well. Uda said, “Asaku, seriously, I don’t have power without the sun. And the sun is setting soon. So chop chop, wrap it up now!”
Asaku replied, “Yea, roger that. I’ll finish the fight as soon as possible!” Then he hopped on the illusion lion, and dashed toward the core.
Soon Asaku and his partners arrived at the core that was about to turn red, but a baby’s crying caught everyone’s attention. Looking for where the crying was from, Asaku found a young mother holding a baby, hiding in a corner nearby. Asaku shouted but there wasn’t time. Without second thought, Asaku flew to the woman and grabbed her. Ellia held the baby tightly and hoped to take the mother and her baby to safety. At that moment, Reversal Impact happened!!
A strong wave of ripple dispersed and things around started to change. The young mother turned into ashes and disappeared, yet the baby in Ellia’s arms survived unharmed like a miracle. Shocked, Ellia held the baby and screamed, “You said everyone was evacuated, everyone!”
Checking on the Compass of No Return, Asaku learned that the time was turned back eighty years. Ghost Card Uda reminded Asaku to seal the core and prevent more loss.
Asaku asked Ellia to take the baby to safety, but once the baby left Asaku’s arms, he started to cry. No one but Asaku could calm the baby down. The baby clutched Asaku. In the end, Asaku carried the baby on his back and returned to combat to seal the core. Ellia even teased Asaku about the baby.
Irritated, Asaku yelled, “Shut up!!”
The yelling woke up the baby and he started to cry. At the same time, both Asaku and Ellia put a finger in front of the mouth and said, “hssssss” to hush the baby.
Asaku said, “The supreme demon has showed up. Let’s go knock it down, get it done and go home!”
The supreme demon for this core was a giant cannibal flower, spitting poison at Asaku and lashing him with its vines. Dodging with Flying-n-Leaping, Asaku chopped all vines he could but failed to get close to the demon for a direct strike.
Strange to say, but the baby Asaku carried stayed composed through the fight. He was so quiet, unusually quiet.
Ellia rode on a mountain pig she just calmed, trying to assist Asaku in combat. Yet the demon was too powerful, so all she could do was flee.
By then, the sun set completely. Ghost Card Uda shouted, “Oh no! The sun…” then it turned back into the clown puppet.
Without the Sun Sword, Asaku could only fight with the Seal Knife.
Asaku thought, “Seriously, the Seal Knife can’t do the monster much harm because the power it absorbs is not enough. I need a blaze to burn it!”
Then Asaku turned around and shouted at Samoyed, the illusion lion, “Cast three fire bolts at me!”
With one turn over, Samoyed jumped into distance and spat three enormous fire bolts to Asaku.
Asaku lifted his left hand, fingers spread out, and a three-star matrix magic appeared on his palm and took in the fire bolts. Jumping high, Asaku dashed back into the cannibal flower’s mouth with his left fist clutching and the fire bolts amplifying.
Asaku stepped forward, letting go of his left fist, “Three-star matrix magic, Fire Tornado!"
The wave of fire burned the cannibal flower into ashes. Asaku hurried to the Mirror Core with a transparent cube of crystal in his hand, the Holy Crystal Cell with inscription on it. Before Asaku successfully cast the ward and sealed the core, numerous monsters still fought on. Thanks to Samoyed, the illusion lion protected everyone.
With one flash, the ward was complete and the core was sealed. All monsters were gone right away, but the surroundings remained the same. Everything was the way they had been eighty years ago.
When it was safe, Asaku approached the villagers and wanted to hand over the baby to them. Unexpectedly, all villagers panicked. They were convinced that the baby was the son of Demon. Asaku learned that the mother gave birth to the baby without a known father, so no villager was willing to adopt the baby. Besides, the baby wouldn’t let go of Asaku. Without an option, Asaku carried the baby on his back and returned to the Fairies Continent with Ellia, who said goodbye to her new mountain pig friend, through Folding Corridor.
Chapter Two: A Trojan Horse
At eleven o’clock in the morning on Tuesday, August 13th, year 36722 on the Epic Calendar, a meeting was held in the Fairies Empire Meeting room with the presence of Fairies King Oudelos, General Alga, Priest Harp, Fairies Princess Jiefulo, Asaku, Ellia, and the human baby.
Asaku got down on one knee and updated the Fairies King Oudelos the current situation in the Village of Eden, while the human baby slept peacefully in the cradle tended by Ellia.
Asaku ended the report, “My King, this is the update of the event in the Village of Eden.”
The Fairies King Oudelos dismissed Asaku and turned to General Alga, saying, “My General, may I have your thoughts on this?” General Alga was red in the face, and the King yelled at him, “Seriously, you two got drunk this early in the day?”
General Alga explained, “Well, we are not to blame. Priest Harp brews the best wine ever, which is perfect to wake me up in the morning.”
Priest Harp argued, “Alga, I thought we were friends! And I even saved the goodies for you.”
“Ahem…” the King coughed to stop the fight, and then everyone fell silent. The King reached out his hand, and Priest Harp presented the King the wine. Bottom up and the King yelled, “Woot! Great wine indeed!” Then he turned around to Asaku and said, “All right, now we can continue.”
Seeing this, Princess Jiefulo said to the King angrily, “Father, really? You have business to attend to. How could you drink with them so early?”
King Oudelos said, “Awww it’s nothing, my honey. It’s quite peaceful on the Fairies Continent.”
Hands on her hips, Princess Jiefulo said, “Oh my… Some sense of danger, please?”
Scratching his head, Asaku said in a hopeless tone, “Do you old things really care about this Mirror Core?”
General Alga said, “We fairies do not interfere whatever happens outside the Fairies Continent. It was the Holy Dragon King who brought us an order from the Gods, stating that only the fairies can fight against the Reversal Impact, so the King is commanding you to handle the core in the Village of Eden.”
Asaku said, “The Holy Dragon King, you mean the conspirator? Why do we have to listen to him?”
Fairies King Oudelos replied, “Because this is an order from Gods, we have to comply.”
Asaku snorted.
Priest Harp walked toward the human baby and said, “This is a remarkable baby. He completely waves off the influence of Reversal Impact.”
Ellia pulled the baby’s blanket, and found on the blanket it said “Adam.” Surprised, Ellia even saw a birth mark of emblem of rainbow on the baby’s back.
The birth mark seemed to be quite weighty. Both the King and General Alga went to the baby to take a closer look at the baby.
Slowly, the Fairies King spat out, one word after the other, “Rainbow… Savior..."
General Alga said, “So the kid is the new successor of Rainbow Savior. His name is Adam."
Priest Harp said, “I suppose it was part of their plan to send Asaku off to the Village of Eden. We are set up!”
Asaku said, “So what now? This baby is so needy and wouldn’t let go of me. If he wakes up and I’m not around, he’s going to cry like there’s no tomorrow. Nuh-uh, I’m not babysitting anyone.”
General Alga asked, “Wait a second, Asaku, you know where the two cores were previously?”
Asaku replied, “Yes, they were in the Time Library on the Elves Continent and Hugilus Desert, south-east of Kingdom of Phil on the Humans Continent. But when I got there, Reversal Impact had been completed on the cores. When I went to the Eden Village, per the King’s order, I should’ve been able to seal the core and stop everything, but the kid was in the way.”
Priest Harp asked, “Both cores happened near Kingdom of Phil on the Humans Continent? Something doesn’t add up here.”
Abruptly, the Fairies King Oudelos stood up and yelled, “General Alga, rally the guards and prepare for war!” Immediately, General Alga dashed out of the meeting room and alarmed the guards!
Asaku asked, “What’s going on?”
Princess Jiefulo said, “Protect the baby with all you can.”
Hearing this, Ellia grabbed Adam who was sound asleep in her arms tightly.
Priest Harp yelled, “This is a scheme plotted against us! The core in the Time Library was to fabricate the history, while that in the Hugilus Desert was to restore the mirror in the lake. The baby was left there on purpose because they knew he wouldn’t be influenced by the Reversal Impact. In the end, you returned to the Fairies Continent through the Folding Corridor with the baby. Your tracks left behind granted access to those who cannot enter the Fairies Continent through the reflection of mirror.
At that moment, a tremendous crash was heard, which shook the whole Fairies Empire. Priest Harp said, “I will put the baby into deep sleep, so his crying wouldn’t attract the mobs. Ellia, please take care of Adam. Asaku, go defend us!”
Ellia replied, “Yes, Priest Harp, I will protect the baby with all my might.”
Asaku yelled, “The situation is dire. I’m right on it! Ghost Card Uda! Samoyed!”
Asaku summoned two escorts and the three rushed to where the loud noise was from.
Right above the Fairies Empire Hall appeared a crack of time and space, from which poured in lots of monsters! General Alga led the Royal Guards to fight!
Seeing this, Asaku yelled with surprise, “What is this all about!”
The next second, Asaku transformed the Ghost Card Uda into the Sun Sword and joined the fight.
Soon, the King and Princess Jiefulo came to the Fairies Empire Hall, heavily protected by the Royal Guards.
Out of the crack, a phantom fox with nine tails appeared in the middle of the hall.
The phantom fox said in an exciting tone, “Woot! You guys are here to welcome me, the gorgeous and graceful me, right? Show me your love~”
Asaku yelled, “You high or what? What did you just smoke!?”
Then a fairy soldier who was responsible for space defense reported to the King, “My King, a Mirror Core just popped up on the Fairies Holy Land!”
Hearing this, the king instantly ordered that General Alga guard the holy land, Asaku take care of the monsters to stop them from approaching, and commanded some royal guards to stay and assist Asaku.
Witnessing the depressing situation, Princess Jiefulo said, “I’ll stay and defend the empire with Asaku.”
The King replied in a serious tone, “No! You have to go to the Holy Land with General Alga.”
Through the corridor behind the hall, the King led General Alga, Princess Jiefulo, Ellia and others to the Fairies Holy Land.
All the monsters in the hall were decimated by Asaku and the royal guards while the phantom nine-tailed fox remained still, as if it had been watching a show, until everyone was killed but the fox.
Bursting in laughter, the fox yelled hysterically, “Now the spotlight is on me and only me~ I’m the center of everything like a superstar!”
When the fox was done talking, it waved its paw, creating an enormous shocking wave. In order to protect the royal guards, Asaku dashed to the front, dressed in Shadow Lion Armor and glowing, and blocked the attack of the phantom nine-tailed fox.
Equipped with the Sun Sword, transformed by Ghost Card Uda, and Shadow Lion Armor, transformed by the illusion lion Samoyed, Asaku was ready for combat.
Once ready, Asaku said to the remaining guards, “Go protect the holy land, and leave the monsters here to me.”
“Thank you, sir!” the royal guards replied and then retreated to the holy land.
The phantom nine-tailed fox said, "I am the Darkmirror General VI from the Mirror Continent. My name is Phantom Nine-Tailed Fox. Awww you can also call me Fox Nine-Nine, you know, cuter~”
The fox continued, “So you are Asaku, the one that has gained the power of Gods, the combination of Gods and Fairies, and that makes you a real… goof, you know, god plus fairy, so goof.”
Asaku shouted back, “You goof! What is this with your stupid nickname, Fox Nine-Nine? I don’t have time for this. I’m going to knock you out now!”
Fox Nine-Nine said, “Awww you think you can beat me? Muahaha~” He blinked to Asaku at once and initiated an attack!
The Fox was rather fierce, so Asaku was having a hard time fighting even with the Sun Sword and the Shadow Lion Armor. Meanwhile, Asaku cast matrix magic to absorb the Fox’s magic. Thanks to the Shadow Lion armor, most of the damage was mitigated.
Moving and attacking, the Fox laughed hysterically, “Hahahaha oh my my~ becoming one with god at the price of fairy power? So you can never cast any elemental magic and… now you can only attack by taking in power first? Awww that is hilarious… hahahaha!”
Asaku said, “Why do you look into my history?”
The Fox replied, “Awwww that’s because I love you, silly~ Muah!”
Asaku yelled, “OH MY GOD that is soooo disgusting!!”
Next, the Fox’s nine tails all spread out, looking all appealing and alluring. The Fox said, “Asaku~ this is going to be my mightiest blow, as powerful as my love for you~”
Even with bare eyes, Asaku could see tremendous power compile on the Fox. He knew, this assault would decide the ending of the fight.
On his mind, Asaku was talking to Uda and Samoyed, “We have to use that skill.”
Ghost Card Uda said, “Are you sure, Asaku? You haven’t mastered the power of God, and this strike will exhaust you. We don’t know when you’d recover.”
Samoyed argued, “But this is the only way out now. I cannot take any more attack from the Fox. We have to knock him out first. We will guard you, Asaku.”
By then, the Fox took in enough energy. He shouted, “Multiple Foxes Explosion!”
Turning over, a pair of angel’s wings and a pair of fairy’s wings grew out on Asaku’s back. The Keys of Seven Attributes flew around Asaku. Glowing, the light around Asaku turned into seven huge swords. Asaku shouted, “Take that, God’s power is with me. Seven Keys Comet Impact!”
The fatal strikes from both parties collided. The Fox was too late to dodge the attack and was gravely injured, so he fled into the crack back to the Mirror Continent. What’s more, Asaku’s potent attack almost wiped the Fairies Empire clean.
Ghost card Uda and the Illusion Lion Samoyed broke away from Asaku, while the latter collapsed on the ground. He was still conscious, but couldn’t move even one finger.
Samoyed carried Asaku on his back and took Uda to the Fairies’ Holy Land. By then, the Fairies Continent that had remained intact for thousands of years was officially intruded.
Arriving at the Holy Land, Asaku saw the Mirror Core on the altar in the center of the holy land. The King was leading fairies to fight against the monsters. Feeling hopeless, Asaku tried to put himself together and asked, “How come Priest Harp hasn’t sealed the Mirror Core?”
Chapter Three: Freeze Froze Frozen
At two o’clock in the afternoon on Tuesday, August 13th, year 36722 on the Epic Calendar.
A Mirror Core was placed in the most important holy land on the Fairies Continent, while Priest Harp didn’t even bother sealing the core; instead, he was only fighting against monsters.
Brought to Priest Harp by Samoyed, Asaku asked Priest Harp why he hadn’t sealed the core in the Fairies Holy Land. After all, it was Priest Harp that gave him the Holy Crystal Cell.
“Holy Crystal Cell was brought back from the God’s Continent by Holy Dragon King. Only you could use the crystal, which is why you were assigned this job.” Priest Harp explained to Asaku.
Upon hearing this, Asaku turned depressed and said, “But I’m too weak to activate the Holy Crystal Cell. So there is nothing we can do but to witness our holy land being destroyed by the Reversal Impact?”
Priest Harp said, “Rest, Asaku, and restore as much health as possible.”
At that moment, Ellia ran toward Asaku, crying, “A guy in a black cloak took Adam away… I was no rival to him… it was my fault…”
Asaku comforted her, “No, it wasn’t your fault. Don’t cry, Ellia…”
Priest Harp said, “I suppose kidnapping Adam was part of the plan.”
General Alga led the Royal Guards to set up a formation of attack, fighting against the monsters around the core. The Fairies King stood right above the core, trying to smash the core with magic of thunder but in vain.
A strong dark light emitted from the high tower of the holy land, creating a gap of time and space. From the gap, a knight riding on a dark dragon flew out. In a voice as loud as thunder, the knight said, “I am General Philips, the Darkmirror General II. Now, authorized by the Mirror Continent, I officially declared war against the Fairies Continent.”
The knight on the dark dragon emitted a unique magic power, which froze all monsters.
Sensing the power, both Asaku and General Alga blurted out, “It’s the power of Salu, the missing fairy of the wind race! Why would fairies’ power pour out from him?”
General Alga added, “Not exactly. This is something more potent, combining fairies’ power of wind attribute and dark power.”
“I can’t think of anyone on the Fairies Continent that can compete with him.”
The Fairies King fell silent.
General Philips waved, and the dark dragon spat out a super tornado that blew away the fairies troops. Some fairies cast defense for protection. Then everyone noticed that the wind did no harm to Princess Jiefulo.
The King commanded, “Take shelter behind Princess Jiefulo.”
The entire troops all hid behind Princess Jiefulo and they followed her wherever she went.
Princess Jiefulo asked, “Why are you guys staying behind me? I’m gonna teach that General Philips a lesson.”
Once she said these words, she moved to General Philip’s direction. The troops were begging her not to move, so they could stay where they were.
General Philips noticed this as well and he showed strong emotion. The next second, he darted to Jiefulo.
While everyone was trying to protect Jiefulo, General Philips grabbed Jiefulo and kissed her. Everyone stopped and so did the furious tornado.
Turning red, Princess Jiefulo pushed Philips away angrily and slapped him hard. “You crazy psycho! How dare you kiss me like this? Who do you think you are?” she shouted at him.
Soothing his cheeks, General Philips seemed disappointed and said, “You’ve forgotten all about…”
Then the dark dragon came take Philips away.
Seeing Philips leave, Jiefulo felt her heart beating fast. She touched her lips that Philips just kissed and burst into tears. She wondered, “What is wrong with me that I feel so sad and sorrowful?”
General Philips rode the dark dragon to the front of the fairies troops and taunted, “Send your best to challenge me.”
General Alga jumped into air, summoned his mount, the griffon, and accepted Philips’ challenge. “This is General Alga,” Alga said, “I am the strongest guardian on the Fairies Continent.”
General Philips said, “I have been waiting for this moment, to finally challenge you to a duel.”
General Alga asked, “Can you answer me one question?”
General Philips interrupted him and said, “I can tell you directly what you want to know. First of all, I am Salu, the missing fairy of the wind race. Secondly… the Salu you know are actually two people. One is on the Fairies Continent and the other is on the Mirror Continent. My real name is Philips.”
General Philips looked at Asaku who was still trying to restore his strength, saying, “Just like Asaku, we both have double masks.”
General Alga gasped, “Double what?!”
Still powerless, Asaku thought, “What does it mean exactly, double masks?”
Then Uda saw Philips’ weapon and said to Asaku, “He has the Moon Sword!”
Asaku replied, “No way. That's not possible.”
Uda explained, “I know I’m right. Moon Sword and I are two ghost cards, and we are connected. How did he get it?”
General Philips said, “Well, time for diplomatic courtesy is over, so I’m going launch an attack~ To begin with….”
Once General Philips snapped his finger, the core was turning red and Reversal Impact was imminent, which shocked Asaku and all the other fairies.
Asaku said, “I can’t believe that he could’ve sped up the time for Reversal Impact. I’m going to seal the core!”
Pity that Asaku was still too weak to even get up. All he could do was lie on Samoyed.
Asaku said to Samoyed, “Get closer, so I can touch the core.”
Samoyed moved closer to the core, and Uda helped Asaku put his right hand on the core. Suddenly, the turning slowed down, leaving Asaku in excruciating pain.
Priest Harp said, “Asaku, you can’t seal the core like this. You are only delaying the inevitable. If you continue like this, you will die from exhaustion.”
Asaku said, “Even this is to buy a bit more time… this is the only thing I can do now.”
Hearing this, Ellia put her hands on Asaku’s, and said,
“I want to guard the Fairies Continent as well.”
Asaku lowered down his head and nodded.
Riding on the griffon, General Alga initiated an attack at Philips. The crash of the two most potent powers in the whole world created a ripple that froze the fairies troops and monsters completely.
As time went by, the combat was heating up, and Asaku couldn’t hold it any more.
All of a sudden, Philips turned to the Fairies King and said, “My King, allow me to tell you: the time set on the core is 1000 fairies’ years, roughly 41 human years. That would be the time of the Eight Races for the fairies!”
Upon hearing this, all fairies appeared shocked and scared.
General Alga said, “I will never ever allow you to turn back the time to 1000 fairies’ years ago. That was a chaotic time, which will cause devastation in the Epic World at this moment!”
Just when General Alga was preparing to launch his most powerful attack, Compressed Air Cannon, General Philips unexpectedly attacked with the same strike!
General Alga said, “You are my student that I’m proud of, and you are Salu from the Fairies Continent!”
Smiling, General Philips remained quiet...
While the two were about to crash, the core glowed in red, the Reversal Impact was triggered and Asaku couldn’t hold it anymore!
At that moment, the Fairies King Oudelos shouted, “As your King, I will not allow the fairies to perish here. Race of Air, assembly to initiate the teleportation ritual!”
Just as the Race of Air was casting the spell, the King said to General Alga and Priest Harp, “Guard the Fairies.”
Quickly, General Alga retreated to the King, together with Priest Harp who yelled at Asaku, “Go! Run as fast as you can!”
The Fairies King then drew a special magic sigil on his hand, which turned into an eagle that dived into the ground.
The King nodded at General Alga and Priest Harp, and the trio shouted, “The supreme sealing magic of the Fairies, Frozen Seal!”
That was the time the Reversal Impact starting to affect the surroundings and the Race of Air launching the teleportation ritual.
General Philips said, “Dang! You even thought of freeze the whole Fairies Continent. Nuh-uh, I’m not going to be trapped here.” Then he opened the gap of time and space but didn’t leave without taking a second look at Jiefulo.
The Reversal Impact was stopped by Frozen Seal, so was the teleportation ritual which wasn’t fast enough to save all fairies. Asaku was lucky, as he was sent away. Right before he was teleported, he heard Priest Harp, saying, “Find the Fairies Queen Aranda… only she can save the Fairies. You are our only hope, Asaku.”
Tears in his eyes, Asaku was sent into the teleportation tunnel and he lost consciousness.
The time on the Fairies Continent stopped. No one could enter, nor anyone could exit.
Chapter Four: Tear of the Mermaid
At ten o’clock in the morning on Monday, August 19th, year 36722 on the Epic Calendar...
Waking up but still dizzy, Asaku heard familiar voices and they were Uda, Samoyed and Ellia. The three were excited to see Asaku. “Woot! Finally, you’ve come to yourself!” said Uda.
Ellia leaned over to Asaku and said, “I was so so worried about you, Asaku… Thought I’d lost you.”
Asaku said, “I’m good. So where are we now?”
Uda replied, “We were sent to the Mermaid Kingdom on the Phantom Continent. The Mermaid Queen arranged accommodation for us here. You slept for almost a week!”
Asaku looked around, and found himself in a small, warm room showered in sunshine reflected by water. “It seems to be a girl’s room,” said Asaku.
Uda said, "Because there are only girls in the Mermaid Kingdom.”
Asaku was surprised, and he saw the room was filled with flowers, so he asked,
"What are these flowers about?”
Shrugging, Uda grinned, “The flowers are from your fans. The whole kingdom knows about you, and all girls are crazy for you. They’ve been sending flowers here, together with their greetings. The Mermaid Queen even promulgated to address you as the Sleeping Prince Charming of the Fairies…”
Samoyed turned around and giggled...
Footsteps were heard outside the door, so Uda told Asaku to fake sleep. If people knew he was awake, the fans would inundate the house immediately.
So Asaku lay down to fake sleep, and then about ten mermaids entered the room with flowers and gifts. Samoyed turned invisible, and Uda transformed into a clown puppet. Nothing could stop these girls --- they all kissed Asaku on the cheeks and wished him the best. It took them quite a while to have all the fun and leave.
Asaku got out of bed, with his hands on the cheeks that were just kissed. All smiling, Asaku blushed.
Ellia looked away, pouting unhappily.
Uda knocked on Asaku’s head and said, “Wake up!”
Asaku said, “I don’t want to stay here like a caged animal. I’m going to sneak out and look for some intel.”
“But Asaku,” Ellia said, “you can’t just go out like this. As the Sleeping Prince Charming of the Fairies, you will create a chaos. Let me dress you up.”
The Mermaid Kingdom is located under water, protected by a ward deep in the ocean. In the kingdom, one can breathe as freely as they can on the land.
On the street, there was a mermaid dressed in a maid’s outfit with a weird hairstyle and makeup, and a clown puppet on “her” shoulder. That was Asaku. Ellia dressed up as a mermaid as well, following Asaku. Samoyed turned invisible and stayed at their side.
Asaku asked, “Why do I have to go out in a maid’s costume? This is so silly! The skirt… it’s so cool down there and that feels so… weird!”
Laughing, Ellia replied, “Told you to wear some panties.”
“Nuh-uh,” Asaku said, “no girls’ panties for me!!”
Uda said, “But people would recognize you without the costume! That’d be trouble if they knew who you are. Thousands of mermaid girls would surround you to show you their love.”
Samoyed turned invisible so only his voice was heard, “Don’t count on me. I can’t stop all of them~”
Asaku said, “What is wrong with this place? The air is so stuffy. It just feels wrong, and the wind is not blowing at all.”
Uda replied, “The Mermaid Kingdom is quite exclusive. They are particularly hostile against the Beast Kingdom on the Phantom Continent. Both Samoyed and I are citizens of the Beast Kingdom, so we can never ever be found here. People say the Mermaid Kingdom enjoys a pleasant relationship with the Fairies Continent, so maybe this is why you are sent here.”
Ellia loved pets and she was talking to the angel fish roaming on the road. Asaku asked her, “Why are you talking to a fish?”
“I can talk to all living creatures~” Ellia replied, “and I want to befriend with all the cute ones.”
Asaku shrugged and said, “I can only understand Uda and Samoyed.”
At the time, a dowager walked by with a group of maids. The dowager gazed at Asaku, which made both Asaku and Ellia nervous.
Completely ignoring Ellia, the dowager said to Asaku, “Huh~ aren’t you a pretty one~ a little bit too flat-chested but no matter. What is your name? Who do you work for?”
Asaku tried to reply with a higher pitch, “Bonjour, Madam! My name… is Eklia, and I am the maid for Mrs. Mel.”
Upon hearing this, the dowager flipped and yelled, “What a waste!! You are adorable and you work for that crazy hag, Mel!?”
Then she took ten pearls from the bag and handed them over to Asaku, telling him, “This is the down payment. You go back and dissolve the contract with that hag, and report to Duke Vitalis Castle tomorrow.”
Once she was done talking, she led the maids and took leave. Asaku and the rest were left behind, startled.
Asaku complained, “Who is she and how can she call me flat-chested…”
Ellia laughed and said, “Eklia… my dear brother… that is awesome! You were hit on dressed up as a girl!! And that Lady Mel is real, too!”
Samoyed laughed so much it almost rolled on the floor.
“That is not funny!” Asaku said, “We still have business here. We’ve lost track of the core for one week, and Priest Harp said I have to find the Fairies Queen to save the Fairies Continent. How can I waste even one more minute here to be someone’s maid?”
Just then Asaku’s stomach rumbled, so he looked at the restaurant on the road and decided to dine in there.
By the entrance, Ellia said goodbye to the angel fish and entered the restaurant with Asaku. They chose a table in the corner to avoid attention.
“What!” Asaku screamed when he read the menu, “One set costs one pearl!”
Uda stopped Asaku immediately, “Quiet, Asaku, if you don’t want to pay, we can go back to the accommodations the Queen arranges for us.”
“Nuh-uh,” Asaku refused, “No way!”
Blushing, Asaku said, “I do enjoy being so popular though…”
Ellia punched Asaku on his shoulder, “Asaku, you are terrible!”
Then the waitress dropped by, asking, “What can I get for you today?”
Asaku gave a gesture of four fingers and said, “Four set meals, please.”
“Are you sure,” the waitress asked, “that you can eat so much?”
Asaku replied, “Sure, no problem at all.”
The waitress replied, “All right, four pearls then. The food will be served right away.”
When the food came, Asaku devoured everything in front of him, while Uda and Samoyed hid in the corner and ate quietly.
Asaku said, “I think we should leave the Mermaid Kingdom as soon as possible for the Beast Kingdom where I can ask help from an old friend, King Brad.
Samoyed said, “But it is forbidden to use the Folding Corridor in the Mermaid Kingdom, so we have to go through the connected tunnel to the Beast Kingdom above water.”
“But the tunnel is guarded," Samoyed continued, “no one is allowed to pass without the permission from the Mermaid Queen.”
“Besides,” Ellia said, “it is rude to leave without saying goodbye. We should at least thank the Queen for her kindness to take us in.”
Uda said, “It is true that the Mermaid Kingdom does maintain a good relationship with the Fairies Continent, but the Mermaid Queen made it official that Asaku is the Sleeping Prince Charming of the Fairies… that just doesn’t sound right.”
Asaku, “But if we don’t go back, we need to make money.”
“Asaku," Ellia said while she laughed, “ you have to support us all by working as a maid then!”
Both Uda and Samoyed nodded.
Holding his head, Asaku grumbled, “Why am I always the one that does all the work?”
While Asaku and his friends were talking, they had no idea that they had been surrounded by mermaid soldiers.
Politely, a girl mermaid soldier said to Asaku, “Friend from the Fairies Continent, our Queen would like to speak to you in Her Majesty’s Castle.”
Asaku said, “Ah… you’ve caught me…”
The mermaid soldiers took Asaku and his friends to the Castle where the Mermaid Queen resided. On the way, the road was full of fans who were crazy for Asaku. They screamed his name and more, “Asaku, my Sleeping Prince Charming of the Fairies… I love you~~”
At night in the castle , Asaku was taken to the Throne Hall where the Mermaid Queen sat on her throne. Both Asaku and Ellia took a bow, and Asaku addressed to the Queen, “Your Majesty, my name is Asaku, and I am from the Fairies Continent. We do not mean to intrude, as our presence here is nothing but an accident. We sincerely beg for your kindness and forgiveness.”
The Mermaid Queen replied, “I am the Mermaid Queen Kamina. You can tell your two escorts to show themselves.”
Hearing this, Uda and Samoyed turned visible and got down on one knee, asking for forgiveness.
Queen Kamina said, “I am fully aware of the situation. The rest of you can leave now.”
The Queen’s entourage took leave and only the Queen and Asaku and his friends remained.
“Follow me.” The Queen said once they were left alone.
The Queen led Asaku and his friends to the Royal Garden, hid them in a concealed corner. She then told them to stay quiet and asked Asaku to play along no matter what happened. Though confused, Asaku concurred.
Shortly, a young woman walked into the garden, with a fairy man, whose hair is white and elegant, flying in the air. The couple looked at each other deeply in the eyes, and the man took out a flower made of seashells and crystal.
The white-haired man said, “Mermaid Princess Yulia, I want to hold your hands in mine forever. Will you marry me?” The young woman shook her head and replied, “No, Fluffy… It has to be my Mother who can make the decision.”
Fluffy held the woman by her hands and said, “Then let’s elope!”
Yulia refused and said, “As much as I love you, such behavior is not allowed.” Then the man tried to leave with the woman, while the Mermaid Queen walked out between them and Asaku and his friends still hid in the dark.
The Queen reprimanded, “How insolent! Release my daughter and leave now!”
The white-haired man talked back, “I have no fear to whatever queen, including you, Your Majesty. If I snap, no one in your kingdom is capable of taking me down.”
The Queen said, “You are indeed contemptuous, but we do need a powerful man to be our King and to protect our people.”
The white-haired man laughed, saying, “So~ Your Majesty has agreed to our marriage then?”
The Queen continued, “But only the most powerful and the most beautiful man can be our King.”
Fluffy replied, “Awww thank you, Your Majesty, for all the kind words.”
The Queen interrupted Fluffy, “No, you are not the only one that is qualified here. Recently, the Sleeping Prince of the Fairies has visited us. He is even more beautiful than you and well-loved by the whole kingdom.”
The Queen then pointed at Asaku who had no choice but to show up, and the latter played along, “I am the Fairy Prince that is truly qualified to be the King. Leave now, before it turns even more humiliating.”
Fluffy yelled, “I will challenge you to a duel! Don’t be so sure you’ll win, Asaku from the Fairies Continent.”
Asaku was surprised, asking, “How do you know who I am? Have we met?”
Fluffy just looked at Asaku without saying one more word.
The Queen clapped and said, “Quiet down, both of you. As the Queen, I shall be fair and just. I will hold a Joust for a Spouse and the winner can marry Princess Yulia and become the future King of the Mermaid Kingdom!”
Asaku yelled in surprise, “What?!”
Fluffy said, “Deal! When will that be?”
“Three days from now," the Queen replied, "and it will be held in the arena.”
“Mother, how could you make such a decision…” Yulia cried while she ran away.
Fluffy was full of confidence and he said, “I’ll show you what I’ve got!” before disappearing in the night.
At the same time, Asaku, Uda, and Samoyed said, “It’s a set up…”
The Queen looked back at Asaku, nodding and smiling…
Back to the Throne Hall, Asaku sat on the corridor, pouting.
The Queen explained, “I understand it was really rude to set you up like this, but the situation called for it as we do not have enough arms to deal with this phantom.”
“Phantom?” Asaku asked, “Fluffy is a phantom?”
The Queen nodded and replied, “Yes, he is a fox from the Illusion Tribe of the Beast Kingdom on the Phantom Continent. We mermaids will never ever marry a beast.”
Samoyed concurred, “The three kingdoms on the Phantom Continent are quite hostile against each other. It is a great mercy that Uda and I can remain free here.”
“But are the arms here so weak?” Asaku asked, "Besides, if they truly love each other, why would Your Majesty have to stand by the rule and separate them?”
The Queen stood up, pointing her scepter at the ceiling right above the throne. The ceiling broke and there was a…
“Mirror Core!” Asaku yelled, “And it is red, so the Reversal Impact occurred already!”
Then Asaku took out the Compass of No Return to confirm the time reversed, but only figured out there was no difference in time. The Mermaid Kingdom wasn’t sent back in the past during the Reversal Impact. What was this all about?
Before Asaku could have a better understanding of what was going on, lots of monsters flooded from the core. Asaku and his friends prepared for combat. One monster dashed toward the Queen, and Ellia screamed, “Watch out, Your Majesty!”
To everyone’s surprise, the monster went right through the Queen.
The Queen said, “Don’t worry about me. Asaku, could you please seal this Mirror Core, first?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Asaku replied.
Covered by his friends, Asaku reached the core and sealed it by performing Holy Cell. With the core sealed, the Mermaid Kingdom was freed, and the air refreshed and flew again.
The Queen sat on her throne, and started to explain from the beginning, “About six months ago, the core occurred here. Even with all the arms we could afford, we could not resist it, and then the Reversal Impact took place.”
Surprised, Asaku asked, “But the time remains the same?”
The Queen replied, “The Reversal Impact turned back the time to 130 years ago, when the Mermaid Kingdom was an island above water, instead of deep in the ocean. Our Kingdom didn’t sink into the water until thirty years ago.”
“So the Reversal Impact brought back the Mermaid Kingdom 130 years ago!” Uda said.
The Queen said, “That is correct.”
Asaku asked further, “But what about the Mermaid Kingdom that was influenced by the impact…?”
The Queen replied softly, “Disappeared. We have all disappeared. Everything you see now is a reflection of our thought. We keep on living like this.”
Then the Queen took off an earring in the shape of a drop of water from her left ear, and she gently continued, “This is our beloved treasure, the Mermaid Tears. When the Reversal Impact struck us, the grave fear and sorrow from all our people triggered the Mermaid Tears.”
Trying to hold back tears, Asaku said, “So Your Majesty, and all the people I have seen in the kingdom are reflection of thoughts, protected by the Mermaid Tears.”
Ellia couldn’t hold it anymore, and she just cried out loud.
The Queen continued, “Asaku, you understand this, don’t you… Yulia cannot marry Fluffy, even with my blessing. Once Yulia is married to Fluffy, she, together with the whole kingdom, will realize that we are gone, no more. Could you keep this secret between you and me, please?”
The tears wouldn’t stop from falling, and both Asaku and Ellia nodded.
“Even it’s just an act,” the Queen said, “please do beat Fluffy, marry the princess, become our new King. Please, Asaku… give my people new hope. By then, we will no longer need the Mermaid Tears, and we can disappear with happiness. Could you please do us one last favor?”
Without saying a word, Asaku nodded. Ellia cried so much even the angel fish could swim in her tears.
Three days later, people started to swarm into the arena. The whole kingdom was there to witness the Joust for a Spouse held by the Queen.
Ready and set, Asaku slowly walked into the arena, to keep his promise.
Chapter Five: A Happy Smile
At ten o’clock in the morning on Thursday, August 22nd, year 36722 on the Epic Calendar...
Almost all the citizens of the Mermaid Kingdom gathered at the arena, the cheers were deafening as today would be the day, a new king would be elected. The champion could also win the hand of Princess Yulia, and the game started!
Both Asaku and Fluffy entered the arena, gazing at the other. The atmosphere totally changed.
Fluffy would like to charge in and attack Asaku immediately, while the latter looked at the Queen with so much sadness in his eyes. The Queen nodded at Asaku, with the crying Princess Yulia on her left side, and Ellia on her right side.
The horn was blown, which could be heard miles away. The game officially started!
On his hand, Fluffy attacked with a spear bursting of energy, and Asaku fought back with Uda and Samoyed, both transformed into his most trustworthy gear. Asaku’s Sun Sword clashed with Fluffy’s Shine Spear. Sparkle could be seen everywhere. As the fight intensified, Fluffy cast Magic Light Sword to attack Asaku, which shocked Asaku who tried to block it with the shield on his left hand.
Surprised, Asaku yelled, “Did I see it right? That was my Magic Light Sword?”
Samoyed replied, “You are right. That is your magic.”
Fluffy asked, “Hey Asaku, aren’t you a master of magic attack? Since when you have switched to a sword? Where is your magic?”
Asaku kept quiet, “Tsk…”
Uda said, “Asaku, this seems like a deja vu. I’m sure we know this Fluffy from somewhere.”
Fluffy yelled, “Woot! This is fun! I’m holding nothing back!”
Casting Light Sword Magic, Fluffy charged in to Asaku and attack!
Reaching out with his left hand, Asaku absorbed in the power with the three-star matrix magic. The matrix magic could take in power of three attacks only, so Asaku was still harmed. On his right hand, Asaku blocked the attack of Shine Spear with his Sun Sword.
Rolling over, Asaku released Aurora Impact! The three-star matrix magic seemed to take Fluffy by surprise. While Fluffy tried to dodge the attack, Asaku pushed further with the Sunshine Impact. Both impacts hit Fluffy hard and Asaku was winning.
“I never knew you could attack like this,” Fluffy shouted, “but your light magic doesn’t hurt me much as I also master light magic. You can’t beat me by absorbing my magic power!”
All of a sudden, the white-haired fairy turned into an enormous white fox, together with a bunch of small white foxes.
Asaku yelled, "... I... I hate foxes…”
The crowd started to scream and tried to run away. Princess Yulia was so scared that she wept, and the Queen explained to her this is who Fluffy really was. Princess Yulia cried even louder for being lied to.
Then Fluffy attacked with its enormous body and tail, while casting Meteor Shower at Asaku. The bunch of small white foxes were attacking with their super adorable paws, which made it even harder for Asaku to defend.
to be continued~
Google play book search 『ASAKU X Dragon life』
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going away gifts for best friend 在 Kelena 杰寧 Facebook 的最佳貼文
利迷之間瘋傳嘅超長文,感謝呢位師兄譯得咁傳神!睇到好激動!睇完更加覺得利迷可以有高普帶領球隊係全世界最幸福嘅球迷。
記得因為古仔單嘢,有好多對球會批評嘅聲音同不利嘅傳聞,令到球會上下都好大壓力。報導入面有句咁講:「高普其中一樣天賦就係對人嘅信任」,作為球迷,我會學習高普,選擇相信,無論係邊一個崗位,大家都要團結一致,支持利物浦再創新高峰。
https://www.facebook.com/groups/OLSCHKSAR/permalink/10156466140299828/
最近有篇超長文講高普,唔想睇英文又唔想Google Translate?冇問題,今次有母語翻譯!每句英粵對照,唔想睇英文嘅就Skip嚟睇啦
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[母語翻譯]
From Hong Kong to Kiev:
At the end of the storm,
there's a golden sky...
由香港到基輔:
暴雨過後 總有晴天
The inside story of how Jurgen Klopp
weathered the worst to lead Liverpool
into the Champions League final
究竟高普點樣帶住利物浦捱過風浪殺入歐聯決賽
By Melissa Reddy
"And now, we will go to Kiev. It sounds crazy, but it's true."
“我哋嚟緊就去基輔。聽起嚟痴撚線,但係真㗎。“
The downpours, pelting over Kowloon as though they were bullets from above, had finally subsided. For Liverpool, however, this was the inception of the storm.
嚟香港踢波先落狗屎,唔同連個天都唔鍾意我。但原來對利物浦嚟講,果日只係惡夢嘅開始。
Before the sun could fully crack through the scattered clouds that Friday morning in Hong Kong last July 21st, Jurgen Klopp’s phone screen was crowded with notifications from sporting director, Michael Edwards, and Fenway Sports Group president, Mike Gordon.
舊年7月21號,打鑼咁早,身在香港嘅高普部電話已經畀體育總監Michael Edwards同FSG總裁Mike Gordon嘅message震爆咗。
The news being broken to the manager - the club had instantly rejected a £72 million bid from Barcelona for Philippe Coutinho - was yesterday’s back-page buffet in the United Kingdom courtesy of the seven-hour time difference.
喺高普同隊波仲瞓緊覺果時,球會已經拒絕咗巴塞羅拿對古天奴7200萬鎊嘅開價。
Klopp’s designs for the pre-season tour had already been scaled back due to monsoon conditions that prompted cancelled training sessions and improvised workouts.
高普嘅季前熱身計劃本身已經畀香港嘅天氣打亂咗,原有嘅訓練只可以改為體能訓練。
It was this development, though, which had the potential to cyclone through their preparations for 2017-18.
但呢鑊就真係堅,隨時將成季嘅部署打亂晒。
Liverpool could not have been more unambiguous in their response to the offer: there would be no summer sale, regardless of how much the fee shot up.
利物浦嘅官方回應好堅定:無論幾多錢,今個夏天都唔會賣。
Undisguised, too, was the fact La Liga’s giants would return armed with a traditional media offensive that would pack more of a punch than their improved proposals.
而另一方面,更加肯定嘅係,呢支西甲班霸唔會就咁放棄,佢哋媒體喉舌嘅攻勢比起佢哋嘅叫價更加凌厲。
The only variable surrounded the focal point. What was Coutinho, who had signed a new five-year deal without a release clause that January, thinking?
唯一唔肯定嘅係,究竟啱啱喺1月簽咗5年約嘅古天奴點諗呢?
As Klopp entered the private assembly room for breakfast at the palatial Ritz-Carlton, the answer immediately presented itself. The 25-year-old, inner turmoil tinting his facial features, was on edge with “an instant difference in his body language,” according to observers.
當高普行入香港Ritz-Carlton酒店準備畀球隊食早餐果間房嘅時候,即刻明晒。古天奴嘅面部表情同身體語言都話畀大家知,佢心入面十五十六。
So this was a problem. Klopp walked over to Coutinho to schedule a talk for that evening, when they had an honest and respectful exchange.
呢個係一個問題。高普同古天奴講,約定傍晚攤牌講清楚。
Liverpool could not simply delete their plans for the season on account of Barcelona being unprepared for the loss of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain, the Reds boss explained.
高普話,巴塞羅拿戇鳩鳩畀尼馬走咗去巴黎聖日耳門,唔代表利物浦就要跟住一齊柒㗎嘛。
It was a point he circled back to, while also emphasising that the timing was wrong, as was the message it would send about the club.
高普不停重複呢一點,佢仲提到, 呢刻賣人時機錯晒,而且外界會點樣睇利物浦呢?
Coutinho understood that, but highlighted the sacrifices his wife, Aine, and parents had made for his career. The future revolved around them as much as it did his own ambitions.
古天奴好明白,但佢提到佢老婆Aine同埋佢父母已經為佢嘅職業犧牲好多。諗將來嘅時候佢除咗考慮自己嘅目標,亦都要考慮屋企人。
He was happy at Liverpool, he loved the club, he was full of gratitude… But this was Barcelona. And beyond that, it represented a lifestyle change for his family, who could function within a culture so much closer to their own.
佢喺利物浦好開心。佢好鍾意隊波,亦都心存感激。但係,果隊係巴塞喎。除此之外,轉會仲代表生活上重大嘅轉變,搬去果邊嘅文化會更加適合佢屋企。
Klopp acknowledged Coutinho’s thought process, but repeated that it was about Liverpool and this was not the right thing for the club, for his teammates, or for their season ambitions.
高普好明白古天奴嘅思路,但佢再次強調,呢個係利物浦嘅問題,呢個對隊波唔係好事,對班波同對佢哋今季嘅大計都唔係好事。
The message was reinforced privately by Edwards and the ownership before a public declaration.
喺發出官方聲明之前,Edwards同老闆都分別私底下向古天奴重申呢幾點。
/“We wish to offer clarity as regards our position on a possible transfer of Philippe Coutinho,” read a statement on the club’s official website on August 11 2017, which highlighted their “definitive stance is that no offers for Philippe will be considered and he will remain a member of Liverpool FC when the summer window closes.”
“我們特此重申有關古天奴轉會一事之立場” 球會於2017年8月11日發出官方聲明“任何對古天奴的開價均不會被考慮,他於夏季轉會窗關閉時將繼續是利物浦的一員”/
Through the clinking glasses and guffaws, there is thick blend of relief and defiance daubing the atmosphere in the Freshfield area of Formby.
利物浦附近嘅一個小鎮 Formby 充斥住杯碟聲同埋歡笑聲。
It is Saturday, January 6 2018, where a long-scheduled New Year’s celebration for Liverpool’s staff at the Klopp residence has coincided with the £142m sale of Coutinho to Barcelona.
今年1月6號星期六,成班利物浦嘅職球員喺高普屋企開緊Party。無獨有偶,球會啱啱公佈古天奴將會以1億4200萬鎊身價加盟巴塞。
The news had been released shortly before the flow of Monkey 47 gin and a catalogue of German lager at the gathering, with the message following the announcement on the club’s official website entirely scripted by the manager.
呢個消息都係喺佢地呢個不醉無歸嘅聚會之前無耐公佈,而呢篇球會嘅官方聲明其實係出自高普手筆。
/“Players will come and players will go, that is football, but as a club we are big enough and strong enough to continue with our aggressive progression on the pitch, even when we lose an important player. We have never been in a better position in recent times, as a club, to react in the right way. We will use our size and strength to absorb moments like this and still move forward.”
“有出先有入,足球係咁㗎啦。但我哋作為一間球會,即使無咗一個重要嘅球員,都應該夠堅強喺球場上繼續拼搏。我哋而家處於近年嚟最好嘅時間去應對呢個轉變,我哋應該夠強大去適應然後繼續向前。”/
That night, as the spine of the football staff and their partners made his home their own, Klopp may as well have had the words inked on his appearance.
果晚,當球員帶埋佢地嘅另一半去到高普屋企嘅時候,大家都睇得出高普嘅心情寫晒喺塊面度。
The party, defined as “symbolic” and “powerful” had an element of toasting to Coutinho’s contribution at Liverpool, but at the same time, there was a sense of middle fingers flying in the direction of the doom decorating his departure.
有人事後形容果晚嘅派對好有象徵意義同力量。個Party其實亦都係為咗感謝古天奴對球隊嘅貢獻,但同時似乎大家都對佢嘅離開暗地裡媽聲四起。
Whatever followed, those present felt they were in this together. They believed in each other, in the roster, that the addition of Virgil van Dijk would make Liverpool stronger, that there was more than enough snarl as a collective to continue on an upward trajectory.
無論如何,出席嘅球員都感覺到大家喺同一條船。佢哋相信大家,而且相信雲迪克加盟之後隊波會更加強大,越踢越好。
That Klopp, above all, subscribed so religiously to this thinking translated into others sharing his conviction.
而高普就不斷將呢個信念向成班波洗腦。
Liverpool would not just be fine, Liverpool would be fucking flying.
利物浦唔只會掂,仲要係好撚掂。
Klopp was a portrait of confidence and composure, but the previous five months had been stressful for the former Borussia Dortmund trainer.
高普一直係自信同冷靜嘅化身。但過去5個月,呢位前多蒙特嘅領隊承受住好大壓力。
It went against his entire nature, heavily built around empathy, to see a player so sewn in distress. He treasured Coutinho professionally as well as personally and agonised over what the saga was doing to the Brazil international.
呢個同佢嘅天性相反。佢對古天奴受嘅巨大壓力充滿住同情,而且佢喺個人同足球層面都好欣賞古天奴,對於佢喺呢場轉會風波入面所受嘅折磨亦感同身受。
Klopp imagined what it was like for him at home. He was torn by the impact it was potentially having on his wife and young daughter.
高普曾經想像如果係佢自己,佢老婆同咁細個嘅女所受嘅影響,佢感到更加痛苦。
The manager knew how he'd feel if one of his own kids were going through that situation, or if his partner was being affected by it.
佢好明白如果係佢嘅仔女面對咁嘅情況,或者係佢老婆受到嘅影響會係幾咁大。
Part of Klopp’s weaponry is sagacity, drilling deep to appreciate what drives those that line up under him or work alongside him.
高普其中一個強項就係佢嘅睿智。佢識得深入了解幫佢做嘢嘅人,佢哋嘅動力來源係乜嘢。
That he knew Coutinho, who is quite sensitive and counts his family as his axis, was cheerless made him so too.
而佢知道,古天奴係一個多愁善感嘅人。佢嘅屋企人就係佢嘅世界,而呢點亦係點解佢咁唔開心。
The 50-year-old is often cast as the centrepiece, revelling in attention. He is charismatic, and so is more than comfortable getting on the dance floor or grabbing the mic to create a rhapsodic environment.
呢位50歲嘅教頭經常都成為大家嘅焦點。佢好有魅力,而且好擅長製造開心熱鬧嘅環境氣氛。
But those who know him best insist Klopp is happiest sitting off and shining the spotlight on the ones he cares about having a good time.
但熟悉佢嘅人會知道,其實佢最鍾意嘅係坐埋一邊,睇住佢珍重嘅人做返主角接受群眾嘅目光。
He loves witnessing the initiation tradition of a player singing a song in front of all his teammates.
佢好鍾意一個傳統,就係叫一個球員喺隊友面前唱歌。
He adores the environment the squad have carved between themselves and the way they have married the serious (a strict fine system) with the humorous - Dejan Lovren’s ‘gaffer’ social media undressing stands out after he revealed his Champions League half-time rallying call at Manchester City.
佢好喜歡球隊嘅氣氛,可以將嚴肅(嚴格嘅罰款制度)同幽默結合,例如路夫蘭就喺社交媒體同球迷分享佢喺對曼城果場波半場休息嘅時候做更衣室大佬嘅事。
Klopp can also spend hours on YouTube watching videos of joyous supporters and has noted multiple times this season that watching the crowd develop and truly connect with the team has been special.
高普亦都好鍾意上YouTube睇球迷嘅片。佢多次提到睇住球迷真正同球隊連結埋一齊嘅感覺好特別。
So to view the opposite - to see sadness plague Coutinho - was piercing.
相反,睇住古天奴所受嘅折磨,亦令高普無比痛苦。
As such, if the decision was solely Klopp’s to make, the No.10’s switch to Spain would have been sanctioned before the start of 2017-18.
正因為咁,如果畀高普話晒事,佢開季前就會將古天奴賣去西班牙。
Never thinking he is always right, and knowing what he personally felt was trivial when juxtaposed with the full picture, the German supported the reasoning of Edwards, Gordon and the ownership in general.
高普唔係一個覺得自覺永遠啱嘅人。佢知道自己嘅感覺都係好表面嘅,當佢將成個大局擺喺眼前,佢都同意Edwards,Gordon同老闆嘅諗法。
It did not make sense then, that when the only route available for Coutinho to secure an exit was to go antagonist, his camp targeted the manager in their press onslaught, which only hardened FSG’s stance.
離奇嘅係,當時古天奴一方要離隊嘅唯一可能性就只能夠擺爛個款,而佢哋嘅陣營竟然以高普作為攻擊對象,咁樣結果只係加強咗FSG唔賣嘅決心。
Klopp hid it well, but the falsehoods over his relationship with Liverpool’s “genius,” plus the player’s manufactured unhappiness at the club did hurt - especially as he continued to publicly fight his corner.
雖然高普無表現出嚟,但果啲關於佢同古天奴關係惡劣嘅流言同埋古天奴為球隊帶嚟嘅唔開心,的確係傷害咗高普,特別係高普仲要出嚟喺公眾面前辯護。
Coutinho’s performances post the saga, especially on the continent, may have been seen as a fait accompli, but to get him to feature in the Champions League at all was an achievement.
古天奴喺呢次事件後嘅表現,尤其喺歐聯賽場,有目共睹。但派佢喺歐聯出場呢件事本身就已經唔簡單。
When it became apparent there was absolutely no twisting of Liverpool’s arm, the threat of not representing the club in Europe was still strongly being advocated by his advisors.
當知道利物浦嘅立場非常堅定之後,古天奴嘅軍師就極力主張古天奴拒絕喺歐聯上陣。
Gordon and Edwards toiled to surgically remove that and Klopp began reintegrating Coutinho, a process made simpler by his protection of the wantaway star.
Gordon同Edwards好辛苦咁解決咗呢個問題,高普亦重新將古天奴擺返入球隊嘅戰術體制入面,而高普千方百計咁喺公眾面前保護古天奴亦都令呢件事更加容易。
Despite the heckling and suspicious inverted commas each time the ‘back injury’ that sidelined the midfielder in August was mentioned, Klopp never deviated from his line - even when the issue was “only emotional” according to Brazil’s doctor during an international break.
雖然8月嘅時候,古天奴因“背傷”的確惹嚟唔少懷疑,即使巴西軍醫都話佢嘅背傷只係情緒問題,但高普始終如一支持球員。
Squad harmony and ensuring there were no further hiccups to the start of the season was paramount for Klopp - he did not mind being the subject of ridicule, which drew mass respect from the dressing room.
球隊嘅和諧對高普嚟講最為重要。佢唔介意成為事情嘅主角,咁就可以令傳媒嘅焦點離開更衣室。
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…
Happy New Year!
新年快樂!
2018 had only just ticked in, but it entered with the same complexity and concern Liverpool had enjoyed a temporary break from.
2018年啱啱開始,同時標誌住呢個困擾住利物浦嘅問題喺短暫嘅休息之後又再出現。
Barcelona were not so much knocking on the door as they were smashing through it. Coutinho’s desire to leave had not diminished despite his excellence behind a supreme frontline and the club preparing for their first Champions League knockout fixture since 2009.
巴塞羅拿今次唔只係敲門,可以講係撞門。雖然古天奴上半季留喺利物浦表現出色,而球隊亦自2009年以嚟第一次打入歐聯淘汰賽,但佢離隊嘅慾望並無消失。
Liverpool did not want a repeat of the upheaval of the summer, but conversely, neither did they want to cede the Brazilian during such a positive juncture.
利物浦唔想重演上個夏天嘅劇情,但另一方面亦唔想喺呢個重要關頭失去古天奴。
Against the tide, they attempted to persuade him to stay until the end of the season on very lucrative terms - a deal now effective later. However, there was no budging from Barca’s end nor his: Coutinho had been on Merseyside for five years and he was adamant: it was time to say goodbye.
利物浦嘗試挽留古天奴,以先簽約後離隊嘅方式留到季尾。但無論巴塞定係古天奴都寸步不讓:佢已經喺度踢咗5年,佢非常堅決係時候離隊。
As the days ticked on and the eventuality of a sale became more pronounced, Gordon was hugely concerned that the uplifting tone around the club would morph into one of unrest. He was insistent that any abuse should be funnelled towards him and the ownership, shielding Klopp and the squad from toxicity.
當轉會勢在必行,Gordon非常擔心咁樣會為一切都穩步上揚嘅球隊帶嚟負面影響。佢堅持所有外界嘅責難都應該由佢同董事會承擔,高普同球員唔應該受到牽連。
Through this period, though, there was no calmer person at Melwood than the manager and there was no way he wouldn’t front up.
喺呢段期間,成個Melwood無人比高普更加冷靜,亦都無人可以阻止佢對住傳媒頂硬上。
Klopp demanded that everyone relax, that this was just a football transfer, and so they should treat it as such and nothing more.
高普要求所有球員保持放鬆,呢單只係普通嘅足球轉會,大家唔需要諗太多,
If Liverpool did not want any drama around it, then it was imperative that they did not create a spectacle themselves.
如果利物浦唔想事情繼續發酵,佢哋首先就要唔好自己製造新嘅話題。
It was a transaction, not a tombstone for the Reds’ season.
呢單只係一單普通嘅交易,隊波嘅球季仲未完嘅。
The most significant factor was how the squad would react to the development. The Magician was loved by his peers, but additionally, there had been an episode that played on Klopp’s mind.
最重要嘅係隊波點樣面對呢個轉變。隊友都好鍾意古天奴,而有件事喺高普心入面揮之不去。
One August afternoon, a desperate Coutinho approached the senior players’ committee and pencilled in a talk in one of the meeting rooms on Melwood’s ground tier.
早喺8月嘅時候,有一日古天奴喺Melwood一間會議室入面同球隊嘅“一隊球員委員會”開會。
He appealed to them to change the club’s mind, and while he knew the squad wanted him to stay, he also figured fellow professionals would recognise why he felt this was a ‘dream step’ that was critical to take.
佢希望球會可以改變決定。佢知道球隊希望佢留低,但佢亦深信隊友會明白佢為夢想而行嘅呢一步。
For all the chicanery that occurred during the summer window, it was the folding of his teammates into the fuss that most annoyed Klopp.
而最令高普擔憂嘅係其他隊友焦急嘅心情。
So when the deal was done and Coutinho was off, the manager rounded up the full group in the dressing room at the training complex and delivered an incisive address.
當轉會已成定局,高普召集所有球員,喺訓練場嘅更衣室向佢哋訓話。
The message was that they'd lost a great player and a friend, but it was no more than that. He told them to not give anyone on the outside a chance to say that Phil going has affected their season.
高普最主要嘅訊息係,佢哋係喪失咗一個好球員,但亦只係少咗一個好球員咁大把。最重要嘅係唔好畀外面嘅人有任何機會話古天奴嘅離開影響咗我哋嘅球季。
Klopp mentioned that the scrutiny would increase, but he didn't believe it would hamper Liverpool in a negative way. It was important for the team to believe the same, because if they allowed his exit to be an excuse, Liverpool were weak.
高普話佢相信出面嘅批評會越嚟越多,但佢唔覺得球隊會受到任何負面影響。隊波一定要有呢個信念,呢樣係好重要,否則如果球隊畀呢樣嘢成為藉口,咁利物浦就太軟弱。
He reminded his players they could decide whether people said their collective genius had walked out the door with Coutinho.
高普提醒球員,佢哋有能力話畀全世界知道,佢哋加埋嘅力量係咪都畀古天奴一個拎走晒。
/"This is us. On we go."
丟那媽 頂硬上/
Liverpool had anticipated a thunderstorm, and when the whistle for the interval went at the Etihad, they were relieved for the respite from Manchester City’s electric onslaught.
利物浦預咗場波會好難踢,而當半場嘅哨子聲響起嘅時候,佢哋即刻鬆一口氣,可以暫時忘記曼城喺主場瘋狂嘅攻勢。
The scoreline was only 1-0 to Pep Guardiola’s men on the night, and still 3-1 to the visitors on aggregate in the Champions League quarter-finals, but those first 45 minutes were punishing.
比數只係1-0,對於作客嘅利物浦嚟講兩回合計仲係領先緊3-1。但呢45分鐘嘅歐聯八強可以話係一種折磨。
Klopp’s half-time routine is consistent home and away. He speeds from the touchline to the dressing room, takes off his jacket and convenes with assistant coach Peter Krawietz, who has selected crucial in-match clips along with analysts Harrison Kingston and Mark Leyland.
高普每次嘅半場休息都係一樣,主場同作客都係。佢會由球場跑入更衣室,除咗件外套,集合埋已經剪好咗上半場精華嘅助教Peter Krawietz,同埋兩位分析員,Harrison Kingston 同 Mark Leyland。
The footage they slice is never usually of a goal being conceded or scored, but examples of how to avoid the former or ensure the latter by highlighting the positioning of the defensive line or where the best offensive spaces are.
佢哋揀嘅片通常都唔係重溫失波或者入波,而係講解防線嘅企位點樣防止失波,同埋點樣利用進攻嘅空位爭取入波。
At City, there was a deviation. Lovren had been shouting, telling the team to ‘wake up,’ that they weren’t showing enough belief and were allowing Kevin De Bruyne and co to do as they please.
而今次嚟到曼城,情況有啲唔同。路夫蘭大聲喝醒班隊友,話佢哋信心唔夠同埋畀迪布尼太多空位。
Klopp pounced on this as the perfect opening for his own message and so he broke away from his normal process, allowing the centre-back to speak for just under a minute before then commanding the room.
高普覺得呢個會係一個好好嘅開場白,所以佢畀咗大概1分鐘路夫蘭講佢要講嘅嘢。
He started by agreeing with the Croatian, before pointing at Lovren and Van Dijk, saying they were killing the team by being too deep.
之後輪到高普,佢首先同意路夫蘭嘅講法,然後就話路夫蘭同雲迪克逗得太深,令場波好難踢。
He then calmly got his crucial information over: get higher, condense the pitch and stop City playing the passes that feed their strengths.
然後佢好冷靜咁指示球員:逗前啲,企密啲,唔好畀曼城咁多空位做波。
In possession, relax, orientate yourselves better and speed it up. He pointed out spaces available to break City’s press, helping Liverpool retain the ball and thwart the hosts’ constant flow of attacks.
控球果時保持冷靜,轉身然後加速。善用進攻空位突破曼城嘅迫搶,亦都可以減慢曼城嘅進攻。
Klopp then highlighted Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s chance at the end of the first half as the memory that would be playing on loop in the home dressing room.
佢特別提到張伯倫臨完半場前嘅一次機會。
He stressed that City had just seen what Liverpool were capable of and it would be terrifying them as all it would've taken was one successful attack to scorch Guardiola's charges.
佢話呢球畀曼城睇到利物浦嘅實力,而佢哋先應該係驚果一隊,因為我哋一次成功嘅進攻佢哋就玩完。
There was an element of 'so what the fuck are we doing still sitting here?' as he ordered them to go out and get back on the front foot.
“咁仲坐喺度做乜鳩吖”高普就趕咗隊波出球場準備。
While City were engulfed by the emotion of the occasion with Guardiola getting sent off at half-time, Liverpool used the break to reorganise.
當曼城仍然因為哥迪奧拿半場被趕離場而激動,利物浦就借呢個時候重整旗鼓。
Klopp’s ability to cut through everything and communicate concisely was visible through the first passage of play in which his side strung five to six consecutive passes together.
高普講解戰術嘅能力可以由利物浦下半場第一個攻勢連續五六下靚傳就睇到。
It culminated in Mohamed Salah’s opener on 56 minutes that effectively ended the tie, after Gini Wijnaldum fed Oxlade-Chamberlain.
利物浦好快就得到回報。56分鐘,韋拿度姆傳畀張伯倫,最後由沙拿射入,賽事就基本上大局已定。
The England international dissected City to supply the Egyptian, who along with Sadio Mane had worked to isolate and unsettle Aymeric Laporte, Fernandinho and Nicolas Otamendi as per instruction.
張伯倫劏穿咗曼城嘅防線,畀沙拿配合文尼,根據高普嘅指示搞掂咗拿撲迪,費蘭甸奴同奧達文迪。
Klopp is forever examined through his magnetism, but not his methods. People see the cool as fuck figure with his unkept stubble in a hoody and trainers, but not the tactical nerd obsessed with preparation and details.
高普最吸引人嘅係佢嘅魅力而唔係佢嘅教波或者戰術。大家睇到嘅高普都係著住運動衫同埋有一頭混亂嘅短髮,同果啲執著於準備戰術部署嘅大師風格完全唔同。
The storyline is dictated by the hugs, fist pumps and rantings, but should be about the composed leader, who is able to read the room and never ducks a big call.
完場嘅一刻充滿住擁抱,碰拳同埋咆哮。但係唔能夠遺忘嘅係呢位永不退縮嘅領袖。
Liverpool need only a point to secure Champions League football heading into the final top-flight game of the season against Brighton? Ok then, he'll just pick four attackers.
利物浦只需要喺白禮頓身上拎到1分就足夠確保下季歐聯參賽資格?無問題,出四個前鋒囉。
There is a misconception too that Klopp’s management is punctuated by Hollywood moments, that ‘Any Given Sunday’ type zingers are delivered on a daily.
大家都有個誤會,就係喺高普嘅領導之下,呢啲本應喺荷李活先出現嘅誇張劇情好似每日都會上演。
To this point, Andy Robertson and Oxlade-Chamberlain are often asked “what did Klopp say to you when things weren’t going well at the start of your Liverpool career?”
就住呢點,羅拔臣同張伯倫都曾經分別被問到“高普喺你哋啱啱加盟,表現唔係咁好嘅時候,同你哋講過啲咩?”
There is no cinematographic answer as there were no elaborate meetings or ground-shifting discussions.
無任何驚喜嘅答案,因為根本就無任何特別嘅對話或者照肺。
He told them to continue as they were, put in the work, and the time would come, things would align.
高普只係叫佢哋繼續努力,時機會嚟到,所有嘢就會好順利。
Klopp believes there is no point ballooning something beyond what it actually is, and that often, the best decision to take is none at all.
高普覺得,有時一動不如一靜。
He figures having ‘the talk’ can be self-indulgent and self-serving at times. If there is no certain benefit to a player, what exactly is the point?
佢覺得有時呢啲所謂對話,即係照肺,根本幫唔到球員,晒氣。
And if there is no massive issue, with the criticism existing externally, why should Klopp feed the notion that there is a problem by formally addressing it?
如果根本就無乜問題,只係外界係度亂咁批評,咁何必太認真看待?
Take Mane for example, who was slightly off colour for a period, snatching a little too much and overthinking every action.
以文尼為例,佢有段時間的確係失色咗啲,獨食咗啲,有啲決定慢咗啲。
In general, though, the speedster was still a threat, still being decisive and still ensuring that the front three functioned exceptionally while adding to his defensive duties.
但整體嚟講,佢仍然係前場一個威脅,仍然係決定性嘅,加上佢喺防守嘅貢獻,確保三把尖刀可以各自發揮作用。
There was never a big sit down with the Senegal international, simply a brief sort of ‘What’s up? Stop beating yourself up about any mistakes, I am very happy with you.’
高普從來都無坐低同文尼傾過啲咩問題,最多都只係“喂,唔使咁躁,你踢得好吖我好滿意。”
Mane found his own way through his stifled spell, aided by a sprinkling of encouragement rather than a lengthy tactical dissection.
文尼最後都走出低潮,靠嘅只係少少嘅鼓勵,而唔需要長篇大論嘅戰術分析。
Klopp doesn’t hesitate to assume control when a situation demands it - see Mamadou Sakho as a reference - but he dictates when necessary, not out of ego nor as an act.
當然,如果有需要,高普會毫不猶豫手起刀落介入問題,沙高就係一個例子。但佢只會喺客觀情況有必要嘅時候先會咁,而絕對唔係自我中心。
October 8, 2015
2015年10月8號
At Hope Street Hotel in Liverpool’s city centre, those who would now work closely with the club’s new manager were offered insight into the character behind the established caricature.
喺利物浦市中心嘅希望街設計酒店(Hope Street Hotel),一班而家同高普緊密合作嘅伙記當時就第一次見識到呢位領隊。
After Klopp signed a three-year deal worth an estimated £7m per season in the Sixth Boardroom, where Rafa Benitez had also ratified a contract with the club in 2004, he gathered the football staff for dinner.
高普同球會簽咗3年,每年值7百萬鎊嘅合約。佢簽約嘅地方同2004年賓尼迪斯同利物浦簽約嘅地方一樣。簽約之後,高普就約咗成班職員食晚飯。
Some expected a rousing speech from the German, others assumed it would be the introduction to Jurgen’s Law.
大家都預期高普會發表激勵嘅演說,或者先小人後君子講下自己帶波嘅規矩。
Instead, Klopp spoke very little, inviting everyone to tell him about themselves, their roles and how things worked at Liverpool - from training schedules to the matchday routine. He wanted to absorb as much information as possible.
但結果,高普無乜點講嘢。佢邀請所有人分別介紹自己,佢啲嘅崗位同職責,由訓練日程到比賽日嘅運作,佢都想知道多啲。
When it was time to talk through the media plan for his unveiling, Klopp was asked about his preferences when dealing with press. “No, no,” he responded, underlining that this was the communication team's field and they were the experts.
當講到應對媒體方面,高普話呢個係公關團隊嘅範疇同專業。
They had to tell him how it should be. They had to teach him.
佢會等佢哋指導佢點做。
One of the Stuttgart native’s gifts is trusting and turning to the people he works with, previously stating “I’m not a one-man show. I was never that in my life, and I never want to be that. The best lesson you can get in a day - to speak to smart people about things they know about much more about than you do.”
高普其中一樣天賦就係對人嘅信任。“我唔係單打獨鬥嘅人,我從來都唔係。每日最好嘅事就係同聰明嘅人傾計,聽佢哋講一啲佢哋比你叻好多嘅嘢。”
It is why when recruitment continuously pushed Salah to the forefront of the agenda for Liverpool’s incomings, Klopp co-signed their expertise.
咁就解釋咗點解當球探極力推薦沙拿嘅時候,高普毫不猶豫就投下信任一票。
He is across everything, but respects staff who take responsibility for their spheres of influence and are bold enough to settle on important decisions without informing him of each small detail.
高普好尊重所有同事喺佢哋自己嘅範疇工作,而且可以勇敢啲做決定,唔使事無大小都問准佢。
Klopp surrounds himself with strong personalities, and as such, perhaps that partly explains why his long-time assistant and friend, Zeljko Buvac, is expected to leave the club at the end of the season.
高普身邊有好多叻人一齊做嘢。或者正因為咁,佢嘅長期拍檔,Zeljko Buvac 預計將會係季尾離隊。
The Bosnian-Serb has been missing from the first-team fold since the end of April due to ‘personal reasons,’ and while no clarity has been offered on the situation, there is thought to be an element of discontent for Buvac over his standing in football.
呢位助教自從4月尾就因為私人理由缺席一隊嘅活動。外界盛傳其中一個原因係佢唔滿意自己喺對足球方面嘅意見唔夠被重視,而呢個傳聞亦一直無被正式澄清。
That his absence has not affected Liverpool behind the scenes is a nod to the strength of the individuals in the backroom team.
佢嘅缺席對利物浦影響似乎唔大正好證明球隊背後支援嘅團隊實力洪厚。
It is a strand that runs through the playing personnel as well, with proof in the non-upheaval following Coutinho’s winter departure.
呢點同球員喺古天奴離隊後嘅穩定表現有異曲同工之妙。
Just as the footballers have happily assumed more responsibility, so too have the coaching and support staff.
正如其他球員樂於承擔更多責任,職員亦都一樣。
“Incredibly healthy” has been a label used to describe the overall set-up at Melwood and when you consider the seamless adjustment of Van Dijk and Salah, it seems an accurate assessment.
有人形容Melwood 嘅分工安排係“非常健康”。當你睇到雲迪克同沙拿都可以咁快適應球隊,呢個講法似乎千真萬確。
Meanwhile, players that took a while to find their stride, like Robertson and Oxlade-Chamberlain, never felt walled off.
同時,一啲需要多啲時間適應嘅球員,例如羅拔臣同張伯倫,都無感到被遺忘。
Klopp empowered Henderson to cultivate the dressing room culture and the captain has promoted a togetherness many within the West Derby facility say they haven’t encountered before.
高普吩咐軒達臣負責更衣室裡面嘅氣氛同文化,而大家都認同呢位隊長為球隊帶嚟前所未有嘅團結。
The bond extends beyond the team to the non-football staff, who are part of the fabric of the place too. This is so much so, that even when players leave the fondness lingers.
呢股團結力量亦擴展至其他職員,甚至乎有啲球員離隊後仍然維持住對球隊嘅感情。
When Liverpool travelled to Rome for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final, Lucas Leiva sent back a surprise for popular canteen pairing Carol Farrell and Caroline Guest - signed Lazio shirts with a personal message for both.
當利物浦作客羅馬嘅時候,盧卡斯利華就準備咗拉素簽名波衫作為驚喜禮物送畀一對飯堂孖寶,Carol Farrel 同 Caroline Guest。
Meanwhile, it is in their domain - the dinning room - where Klopp and Edwards often strategise over breakfast or lunch beyond the more in-depth presentations on players. The duo, who both employ an open-door policy, enjoy an effortless relationship underpinned by mutual respect.
高普同Edwards經常都去到飯堂踩場,趁住食早餐或者午餐嘅時間,向球員做戰術指導。呢對飯堂孖寶都表示門常開,非常之歡迎大家。
And while the sporting director keeps a low profile as he prefers to do his job rather than talk about it, allowing him to make moves under the radar at times, Klopp appreciates that he is distinguished in his field and very decisive.
我哋嘅體育總監比較鍾意低調,不受注目,而高普就非常欣賞佢,喺佢嘅範疇十分之出色,亦好果斷。
The Reds boss is never shy to talk up the brilliance of the recruitment group, who are backed by a stellar research team run by Ian Graham.
高普亦毫不吝惜對由Ian Graham帶領嘅球探團隊嘅讚美。
And while Edwards is not the type to seek credit, Liverpool’s forward line - the most devastating in Europe this season - is largely his sketch.
雖然Edwards並唔鍾意領功,但其實利物浦而家嘅前場三叉戟,好大程度係佢嘅功勞。
Gordon assesses the dovetailing between the pair as a core canon for the club’s success. Klopp appreciates Edwards’ intelligence in assembling a team to effectively implement his aggressive blueprint, while the transfer chief is aware that signing a top player is purposeless without a top manager to extract every inch of their talent.
Gordon覺得兩人之間嘅合作係球會成功嘅重要武器。高普欣賞Edwards可以砌到隊波啱佢用,而呢位轉會話事人亦明白,幾好嘅球員都需要一個優秀嘅領隊先可以發揮所長。
The way the Reds have vaporised teams on the continent this season with their attacking venom has seen a spike in agents calling up to ascertain if there’d be any interest in their exciting clients.
利物浦今季令人聞風喪膽嘅表現令唔少經理人都蠢蠢欲動,想睇下利物浦對佢哋嘅球員有無興趣。
Liverpool are now the running train.
利物浦而家可以話係如日方中。
/'I could see myself here for the rest of my career'
我覺得自己淨低嘅職業生涯都會喺呢度。/
FSG were convinced, but how could they not have been? For nearly five years, he was the one: the ownership’s ideal manager, who remained just out of reach.
FSG都好有信心。等咗將近5年,佢就係管理層心儀嘅領隊人選。
In October 2015, however, he had finally become their one - Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp.
2015年10月,高普終於成為利物浦領隊。
But it was only on a three-year deal. He had never lived outside of Germany, let alone managed in a different country, and while there were no doubts over his status as The Perfect Fit on the club’s end, Klopp was mindful of the adaptation both he and his family would have to undertake.
但當時佢只係簽咗一份3年嘅合約。佢從來未試過喺德國以外居住,更加唔好講帶一隊德國以外嘅球隊。雖然球會對高普充滿信心,但佢就難免顧慮佢同屋企人適應嘅問題。
The contract represented a realistic scenario rather than a romantic one. During a relaxed conversation in June 2016, however, he remarked that he could imagine being at Liverpool for the rest of his managerial career to Gordon.
合約終歸係現實嘅。之後喺2016年,佢提到自己可能可以將淨低嘅執教生涯都放係利物浦。
That put in motion an instant process to lock Klopp in after a quick discussion with principle owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner.
球隊即刻事不宜遲,同老闆John Henry同主席Tom Werner簡單討論之後,就立即著手準備留住高普。
Within a matter of hours, fresh terms had been thrashed out with the manager’s agent, Marc Kosicke, and a new six-year deal was agreed.
話咁快,新合約就預備好,喺高普經理人Marc Kosicke嘅協助下,高普簽咗一份6年嘅合約。
Klopp had been on holiday in Ibiza before ferrying over to Formentera, the smallest of Spain’s Balearic islands in the Mediterranean Sea.
當時,高普正喺西班牙伊維薩島(Ibiza)放緊大假,佢之後再飛到地中海嘅福門特拉島(Formentera)繼續行程。
And on June 16, as he celebrated his 49th birthday, he also toasted signing on until 2022, with the news only being announced at the start of pre-season the following month.
喺6月16號,當佢慶祝緊49歲生日嘅同時,佢亦正式簽約擔任利物浦領隊直至2022年,而呢個好消息一直等到臨開季先向外公佈。
/"When you have an individual of Jurgen's quality in the building it makes perfect sense to secure that person for the long term. To not do so would be irresponsible."
“當你有一個好似高普咁有能力嘅人帶領球隊,無理由唔同佢簽份長約,否則係對球隊不負責任”/
Long before Henry, Werner and Gordon had first met with Klopp on October 1 2015 at the New York law offices of Shearman & Sterling, they had done extensive homework on his credentials.
遠喺Henry,Werner同Gordon第一次同高普喺2015年10月1號喺紐約一間律師樓見面之前,佢哋已經對高普做咗好多功課。
It was obvious that he was charming and a unifying figure, but they sharply realised there was endless substance beyond the soundbites and mad-scientist smile.
好明顯高普係一個有魅力而有凝聚力嘅人物,但佢哋好快就發現高普嘅功力唔只咁簡單。
Liverpool had craved a recognisable identity and here was a bonafide architect; a man worshipped in Mainz and Dortmund for his remarkable design work.
利物浦有令人景仰嘅歷史同身分,而高普正正就係一個優秀嘅建築師,佢喺緬因斯同多蒙特嘅出色表現已經係好好嘅證明。
They spoke for hours at the high-rise building on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan, chewing over everything from playing style to reawakening the fan base and reconvened the following day for further talks.
佢哋果日傾咗好耐。由球隊踢法到球迷覺醒,佢哋甚至好傾到要約定第二日繼續傾。
Klopp had made one particular point with regularity: Liverpool should be a force in Europe. And they could be. He would work to get them back amongst Europe’s elite, and moreover, as being the kind of team no-one wanted to face in the Champions League.
高普提出咗一點:利物浦應該,而且可以喺歐洲有一席位。佢會令球隊重返歐洲前列,而且會令利物浦成為喺歐聯無人想對碰嘅隊伍。
In a matter of months after arriving in Liverpool, he had guided the club to the Europa League final eliminating Manchester United, Dortmund and Villarreal en route before falling short against Sevilla at the showpiece in Basel.
嚟到利物浦未夠1年,高普就帶領球隊先後淘汰曼聯,多蒙特同維拉利爾,殺入歐霸盃決賽,可惜喺巴塞爾輸咗畀西維爾。
In his first full season at the helm, Klopp’s side secured a fourth-place finish and a crack at Champions League football for only the second time in eight seasons.
喺佢嘅第一季英超,佢就成功殺入前四,拎到來季歐聯參賽資格。呢個只係利物浦近8年嚟第2次。
And having navigated a tricky qualifier against Hoffenheim last August to enter the group phase of the tournament, Liverpool are in now in its final and will be at the continent’s top table again next season.
而今季,先喺外圍賽淘汰賀芬咸,再經過分組賽,利物浦而家已經嚟到歐聯決賽,而且已經穩奪下年嘅歐聯參賽資格。
Whatever happens against Real Madrid in Kiev, Liverpool’s advancement is unarguable.
無論喺基輔對皇家馬德里嘅決賽結果係點,利物浦嘅進步都係有目共睹。
Rewinding to Hong Kong, that they have made it here - one objective boxed off, one well surpassed - through the disruption, the injuries and the sale of Coutinho mid-season, is masterful.
回帶重溫由香港開始嘅球季,經歷風風雨雨,古天奴離隊同埋傷兵滿營,最終前四目標達到,歐聯之路令人驚喜。
Liverpool have the opportunity to be the ultimate conquerers of Europe this season having already dispatched Porto, Manchester City and Roma, smashing scoring records en route to the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium.
利物浦先後闖過波圖,曼城同羅馬,向住奧林匹克國家綜合體育場進發,有機會成為歐洲嘅盟主。
Most significantly though, there is a wealth of confidence within the club that this will not be a rarity, that spellbinding nights under Anfield’s lights will become a divine right again.
而最重要嘅係,球會上下充滿信心,今季嘅成績唔係偶然,以後仍然陸續有嚟。
They believe Liverpool will not just be fine, Liverpool will be fucking flying.
佢哋相信,利物浦唔單止會掂,仲會係好撚掂。
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