Cold sweat slicked Destiny’s palms as he stood outside Coach Silva’s office. His right knee throbbed with a dull, rhythmic ache that seemed to pulse in time with his racing heartbeat. Breathing deeply, he pushed the heavy oak door open. Coach Silva sat behind his desk, but he wasn't alone. Dr. Keller, the club’s chief medical officer, stood beside him, clutching a thick blue folder with an expression that made Destiny’s stomach drop. "Sit down, Destiny," Silva said softly, pointing to the empty leather chair. Anxiety flared in Destiny's chest as he slid into the seat, his joints stiffening almost immediately. "Is everything okay, Coach?" Destiny asked, trying to force a lighthearted smile that died instantly on his lips. Silence stretched between the two older men before Dr. Keller stepped forward, laying the folder flat on the desk. "We received the results of your comprehensive MRI and joint scans from yesterday," Keller began, his tone clinically dry but laced with deep concern. Destiny swallowed hard, his eyes locked on the white sheets of paper peeking out from the folder. "I just need a bit of rest, right?" Destiny asked, his voice cracking slightly. "A couple of days off, some ice, and I'll be back at one hundred percent." Keller sighed, shaking his head as he pulled out a series of black-and-white scan images. "Look at this, Destiny," Keller muttered, pointing a silver pen at a highlighted section of a knee joint. Grey shadows and jagged white lines dominated the image, looking more like a shattered landscape than healthy bone. "This is your right knee meniscus," the doctor continued. "And here are the micro-tears in your patellar tendon. Look at the thinning of the cartilage here." Destiny stared at the images, his mind struggling to comprehend what he was seeing. "I don't understand," Destiny whispered. "I'm seventeen. My knees should be fine." "That is exactly the problem," Keller said, leaning over the desk. "If I didn't know your age, and if I hadn't verified your identity myself, I would have sworn these scans belonged to a thirty-six-year-old veteran." Silva let out a low, grim breath, crossing his arms over his chest. "A veteran who has played five hundred top-flight matches in the rain, mud, and snow," Keller added. "The wear and tear on your joints, muscles, and ligaments is catastrophic for someone your age." Panic, cold and sharp, pierced Destiny’s chest. His mind raced, immediately flashing back to the glowing blue screens of the Legend System. Every time he activated a legend's skill, his body was forced to replicate movements of absolute masters. He had executed perfect overhead kicks, blinding feints, and explosive sprints that his young, undeveloped frame had no right performing. Now, the bill was coming due. His body was paying the biological price for skills he hadn't naturally built the frame to support. "How is that even possible?" Destiny stammered, gripping the armrests of his chair. "I’ve only been training in Europe for a few months." "We don't know," Keller admitted, looking genuinely baffled. "It’s as if your muscular-skeletal system has been subjected to decades of elite-level stress in a matter of weeks." "It’s the intensity of his training," Silva suggested, looking at Destiny with a mixture of admiration and anger. "The boy doesn't know when to stop. He lives on the pitch." "No, Silva, this goes far beyond overtraining," Keller argued. "This is biological acceleration of wear. His cartilage is thinning at a rate that defies medical science." Destiny felt the room spinning as the doctor's words echoed in his ears. His dream, the one he had carried all the way from the dusty pitches of Accra, felt like it was crumbling into dust. "What does this mean for my playing time?" Destiny asked, his voice barely a whisper. Keller looked at him with pity. "It means you cannot continue like this," the doctor said firmly. "If you play another full ninety minutes next weekend, you risk a complete tendon rupture. That could end your career before it even begins." "No!" Destiny bolted upright, ignoring the sharp spike of pain in his knee. "You can't bench me! We have the cup qualifiers coming up. The team needs me!" Silva stood up, placing a heavy, calming hand on Destiny's shoulder. "Sit down, son," Silva commanded gently but with absolute authority. Destiny sank back into the chair, his chest heaving as tears of sheer frustration pricked his eyes. "We have to protect you from yourself, Destiny," Silva said. "I love your passion. But I will not let you destroy your future for a single season." "I can manage the pain, Coach," Destiny pleaded, looking up at him. "I’ve played through worse. Back home, we didn't stop for a sore knee." "This isn't just a sore knee, Destiny," Keller cut in. "This is structural degradation. We are putting you on a strictly limited program. No more than fifteen minutes of high-intensity play per week, and light training only." Fifteen minutes. How could he prove himself to the world in fifteen minutes? How could he satisfy the System's relentless demands on a fraction of his playing time? "We will re-evaluate in a month," Silva said, his voice leaving no room for argument. "For now, you follow Dr. Keller’s recovery protocol to the letter. Do you understand me?" Slowly, numbly, Destiny nodded his head. --- Rain splattered against the windows of Destiny’s small apartment, mirroring the dark mood that had settled over him. He sat on the edge of his bed, staring down at his swollen right knee. An ice pack was strapped tightly to the joint, but the cold barely registered against the burning anxiety consuming his thoughts. His phone lay forgotten on the nightstand, buzzing occasionally with messages from teammates asking if he was alright. He couldn't answer them. What would he say? That his body was literally rotting from the inside out because of a magical system he couldn't explain to anyone? "Why is this happening?" Destiny whispered to the empty room. He closed his eyes, focusing his mind to summon the glowing blue interface that had changed his life. *System, open status window,* he commanded internally. Nothing happened for several long seconds. Then, a faint, flickering blue light materialized in his vision, but it wasn't the steady, reassuring glow he was used to. Lines of code jittered across the screen, warping and distorting like a broken television set. His status screen finally stabilized, but the word 'DETERIORATING' in bold red letters seemed to glow brighter than anything else. *Warning: Physical integration at critical threshold. Muscle density and bone structure mismatch detected.* Destiny stared at the warning, his breath catching in his throat. It was true. The System was indeed destroying him. By forcing legendary techniques onto a body that hadn't built up the natural resilience through years of physical progression, the System was tearing him apart at a cellular level. Every legendary dribble, every explosive sprint, had been a withdrawal from a bank account that was now severely overdrawn. "There has to be a way to fix this," he muttered desperately. He swiped his hand through the air, navigating to the Legend List, hoping to find a legend that focused on physical recovery, endurance, or structural strength. Maybe if he could acquire the physical attributes of a powerhouse defender or a tireless midfielder, his body could heal itself. He found the profile of a legendary Italian defender known for his longevity and physical resilience. He took a deep breath, focusing his remaining energy on initiating the synchronization process. *Activate Legend: Il Muro,* Destiny commanded in his mind. Suddenly, a sharp, searing pain shot straight through his temples, forcing him to clutch his head in agony. His vision blurred as the blue interface began to violently shake, the letters turning a chaotic, bloody red. Later that night, as Destiny secretly tries to activate a new legend, the System interface glitches, displaying 'ERROR: User Physical Capacity Exceeded. Further Legend Acquisition Blocked.' A chilling silence descends upon the room.

Chapter 16: The Doctor's Ominous Diagnosis