My Ultimate Gacha System-Chapter 304 - 292: The Road to Rome

Friday, May 12, 2023

Centro Bortolotti Training Complex, Zingonia

Recovery Room

9:14 AM

Recovery session is light and starters from yesterday move directly toward the ice baths where cold water waits in four stations along the wall, while substitutes who didn’t feature heavily head toward the bikes for controlled cardiovascular work.

Musso lowers himself into the first bath with the controlled exhale that’s become routine, and Scalvini follows in the adjacent station while Tolói takes the third without hesitation.

Demien heads toward the bikes and Ederson sits beside him during the stretching phase that follows, and they work through hamstring stretches and hip flexibility routines side by side without conversation beyond brief exchanges about how legs feel this morning.

Screens mounted on the gym walls now show Coppa Italia final graphics instead of Serie A standings, and the broadcast cycles between tactical breakdowns of both teams and historical footage from previous finals.

COPPA ITALIA FINAL

ATALANTA vs AC MILAN

WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2023

STADIO OLIMPICO, ROME

21:00 KICKOFF

The ticker runs across the bottom in red text while studio analysts discuss the narrative weight carried by both clubs — Milan seeking their first Coppa Italia triumph since 2003 when they defeated Roma in the final, while Atalanta haven’t won a major trophy since 1963, sixty years of waiting that makes Wednesday’s opportunity historic rather than routine.

The atmosphere in the facility carries different weight now because cup finals represent opportunities that don’t arrive every season, and facing Milan in Rome adds layers of regional rivalry and prestige that elevate the stakes beyond simple silverware.

Physio staff move through the recovery room with increased attention and their clipboards track every reported tightness or soreness, because the margin for injury is gone and any physical issue discovered now could determine availability for Wednesday night.

Centro Bortolotti — Video Room

2:17 PM

Tactical preparation begins in the afternoon and the video room is filled when Gasperini takes his position at the front, and the screen behind him loads footage from Milan’s recent matches showing their defensive structure and pressing patterns.

Gasperini speaks more than usual during this session and his commentary over the footage is detailed rather than minimal, because cup finals require different preparation than league matches and the tactical margins are tighter when both teams have two weeks to prepare specifically for each other.

"Their defensive block sits compact," he says while pausing footage that shows Milan’s 4-2-3-1 shape condensed into a narrow space when out of possession. "Bennacer and Tonali form the double pivot — they don’t give space between the lines easily. We need to drag them out of position with wide movement before playing central."

He resumes the clip and shows how Milan’s press is triggered when specific passing patterns develop — particularly when the ball goes to fullbacks in wide areas — and the session continues for fifty minutes with detailed breakdowns of where vulnerabilities exist and how Atalanta can exploit them through quick circulation and overloads on the flanks.

Centro Bortolotti — Main Training Pitch

3:42 PM

The session on the pitch is controlled and passing sequences dominate the work while positional drills happen at reduced tempo, because the priority is preserving energy and fitness rather than building match sharpness two days before a final.

No heavy contact occurs and challenges for fifty-fifty balls are pulled at the last moment, while tactical movements are walked through at half-speed before being executed properly once to reinforce muscle memory.

Demien works through his positioning relative to Ederson and Koopmeiners during the possession phases, and the triangles they form allow circulation without stagnation while creating passing options that break defensive lines when executed cleanly.

After ninety minutes Gasperini signals the end by raising one hand, and players jog toward the sideline before heading inside.

The system activates as Demien reaches the tunnel entrance.

「TRAINING SESSION COMPLETE」

「Quality: Controlled Possession」

「+10 TP」

「Current Balance: 760 TP | 4 SP | 513 MP」

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Centro Bortolotti — Main Training Pitch

10:08 AM

Matchday minus one arrives with a brief morning session that consists entirely of walk-throughs without opposition or intensity, and players move through their assignments at controlled pace while reinforcing spacing and timing.

The starting eleven has been decided but Gasperini doesn’t announce it publicly to avoid giving the opponent information through media coverage, though Demien knows from the tactical preparation throughout the week that he’s starting because the rhythm in training makes it clear.

Ederson beside him in the double pivot.

Koopmeiners ahead in the attacking role.

The shape is set.

After thirty minutes the session ends and players head inside for lunch, and the dining hall is quieter than usual while pasta and grilled chicken and water are consumed efficiently without extended conversation.

The system notification appears as Demien finishes his meal.

「TRAINING SESSION COMPLETE」

「Quality: Tactical Walk-Through」

「+10 TP」

「Current Balance: 770 TP | 4 SP | 513 MP」

The final hangs unspoken over every table.

Centro Bortolotti — Parking Lot

2:04 PM

At two the squad boards the bus for the drive to Rome and the journey will take nearly six hours on the autostrada heading south, while players settle into their seats with headphones on and bags stored in the overhead compartments.

Some sleep within the first hour and others stare out windows as the landscape passes — industrial outskirts of Bergamo giving way to agricultural plains, then hills as the route climbs through Emilia-Romagna before descending toward Tuscany.

The sun sets somewhere near Orvieto and the sky goes orange then purple then black while the bus continues south, and conversations are minimal throughout because everyone processes the approaching final in their own way.

By the time the bus enters Rome it’s past eight PM and streetlights reflect off the Tiber’s surface as the route crosses one of the bridges, and in the distance the Colosseum appears briefly — lit against the night sky before disappearing behind buildings as the bus turns toward the city center.

The hotel is modern and positioned near Piazza del Popolo, and security waits outside the entrance while the squad files off the bus quickly and moves through the lobby where rooms have already been assigned.

Bags are dropped in rooms within ten minutes and players gather in a private dining room on the ground floor for dinner at eight, and the meal is quiet and professional while food is consumed efficiently without lingering or extended conversation.

Gasperini addresses the group briefly after the meal finishes.

"Tomorrow we walk the pitch at five," he says while standing at the head of the table. "Dinner at seven. Lights out by ten. Get your rest."

Players nod and begin standing to head toward their rooms, and the dining room empties gradually while staff begins clearing plates.

Team Hotel, Rome

Demien’s Room

9:37 PM

Demien enters his room and places his bag on the chair before walking to the window where the curtains are open, and the city spreads below with lights everywhere — apartments and restaurants and cars moving through streets that never fully sleep.

His phone vibrates on the bed where he left it and the screen shows a message from Sophia.

Sophia: Saw the result. CL basically secured now. Proud of you.

Sophia: Good luck Wednesday. Milan’s tough but you’ve beaten them before.

He types back quickly.

Demien: Thanks. Long week ahead.

Sophia: I’ll be watching. Win it.

He sets the phone down and moves back to the window where somewhere out there the Stadio Olimpico waits in the darkness.

Wednesday night. AC Milan. Coppa Italia final.

Atalanta’s first major trophy since 1963 if they can take it.

Milan seeking their first Coppa Italia since 2003.

He closes the curtains and sits on the edge of the bed while the translucent panel appears briefly in his peripheral vision showing current stats and balance, but he dismisses it without reading the numbers because currency doesn’t matter right now.

What matters is Wednesday.

He lies back on the bed and stares at the ceiling while his mind runs through tactical sequences and positioning relative to teammates, and his breathing stays controlled as exhaustion from the travel pulls at him.

Tomorrow decides everything.