Chapter 7
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: Park Si-hyun is the Future
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Park Si-hyun is the future.
Of course, signing with an agent didn't mean he could head straight to Germany. And there was one major hurdle.
Park Si-hyun was still in his first year of high school, just shy of sixteen.
"Being a minor is the issue. To sign an agent contract, you need consent from your legal guardian—your parents. Especially for something as big as going overseas."
So Jang Do-yoon's suggestion was to convince his parents together.
"Honestly, parents trust experts in the field more than their own kids. It's unavoidable. They're worried about their child's future and want that certainty—it's just parental instinct."
With that, Jang Do-yoon laid out a rough persuasion strategy for Park Si-hyun.
FIFA regulation exceptions, visa solutions thanks to his father's residence in Germany, the soccer scene around Essen, Germany's youth development system.
He compiled every card they could play to win over his parents.
But the persuasion turned out to be far easier than expected—no need for all the documents Jang Do-yoon had prepared.
"You'll pick up German just by living there. I wanted to see how badly you want this. We're not exactly struggling, so go for whatever you set your heart on."
Park Si-hyun's mother, Jo Mi-young, already knew how desperately her son wanted to go to Germany.
She'd watched him night after night wrestling with German textbooks—strange sentences and all—heading out alone every evening to kick the ball around, and rising at dawn for fitness training.
"Mom..."
"But promise me this: you'll give it your all. And remember, you can always come home if it gets too tough. Oh, and Agent Jang, we entrust our Si-hyun to you."
Jo Mi-young bowed her head toward Jang Do-yoon.
"Don't worry. In my eyes, Si-hyun will become Korea's greatest player."
"The world's greatest, you mean."
With that, preparations for Park Si-hyun's trip to Germany kicked into high gear.
Jang Do-yoon quickly scheduled the filming and started putting together a profile to send to German clubs.
Park Si-hyun dove into a grueling routine: school by day, German academy in the evening, fitness training at night.
"This is where it really starts."
Jang Do-yoon said over the phone.
"Starting tomorrow, we'll film proper training footage, so manage your condition. Gotta blow the Germans' minds."
"Any team that can't spot my talent from the video doesn't deserve me."
Jang Do-yoon chuckled at Park Si-hyun's confident tone.
"Fair enough. But we still need footage so irresistible even the blind can't look away. That's my job."
"Got a plan?"
"Germany loves target men—the strikers you're about to replace. They prioritize physicality and positioning over skill and creativity."
"That'll change soon enough."
"I know. Euro 2000 was a disaster for them, and the signs are there. But it won't flip overnight. Old guard clings on everywhere. For now, most still shout 'German soccer is physicality.'"
Jang Do-yoon paused, then spoke with pointed intent.
"But imagine this: a player who can do their beloved target man role and has the speed, press resistance, and creative movement that crushed them."
He tapped the table with his finger.
"From a coach's view, no downside to signing you. Use you as a target man, or switch tactics and deploy a new style. Your 193cm frame? German coaches will drool."
"Catching two rabbits with one stone."
"Exactly. So we'll make two versions of the video. One highlighting your physicality, headers, post play. The other showcasing your speed and creativity."
Park Si-hyun nodded.
"Showing them I can be whatever kind of player they need."
"Right. Germans love efficiency. One player filling multiple roles? Irresistible offer."
"What time tomorrow?"
"I'll come to your place at 10 a.m. Cameraman's booked, and I've got players to help out. We'll stage real training scenarios, so bring your A-game."
"I'm always at peak. That's the Park Si-hyun style."
"Yeah, Park Si-hyun style. Can't wait to see it."
After hanging up, Park Si-hyun sat at his desk and opened his notebook.
The first page read 'Park Si-hyun's Words of Wisdom (For Future Interviews).' The open page was already filled with lines.
-I'm Park Si-hyun. I don't wait for opportunities—I choose them.
-I'm number one, end of story.
-Passes are for the weak. But Park Si-hyun's passes? Mercy from the strong.
-How dare a mere human harm the flesh of a god? I am the god of soccer.
Park Si-hyun picked up his pen and added a line at the bottom.
-Decades of doing it that way? So what? Blindly memorizing a wrong answer as gospel? Time to memorize again. Park Si-hyun is the answer.
He set the pen down, murmuring thoughtfully.
"'Memorize again' or 'memorize it again'—which sounds cooler?"
After a moment, he picked up the pen and revised it.
-Decades of doing it that way? So what? Blindly memorizing a wrong answer as gospel? Time to memorize it again. Park Si-hyun is the answer.
"Hmm... yeah, that's got more punch."
Satisfied, he nodded and added another line.
-Tradition? History? Before Park Si-hyun, it's just the past.
Han River Citizens' Park Athletic Field
The unusual bustle felt off somehow.
"They filming something here?"
"Not TV... some personal project, I heard."
At the center of the shoot was Park Si-hyun.
The professional cameraman Jang Do-yoon had hired was setting up a high-end camcorder on a tripod, while two assistants prepped lights, mics, and reflectors.
"Whoa... this gear for a soccer video?"
And today's 'partners' for Park Si-hyun: three players.
All members of Hallelujah FC from the Korea Industrial Soccer League.
"This is ridiculous."
Yoon Jae-hyeok, a 173cm right winger known for his nimble speed, flicked the ball with his toe and spat it out.
"Dragging us to the Han River to face off against a high schooler?"
Kim Hyung-jun, a 178cm central midfielder pulling up his socks, shook his head in disbelief.
With his solid muscles and diligent personality, he was the team's anchor—but right now, he was fuming.
"Heard he's going to Germany? Got an agent or something. Probably rich parents throwing him an event. Kids these days—with the right folks—hop overseas like it's nothing."
The burliest at 185cm, center back Lee Sung-min muttered low while rolling his shoulders.
"We're getting this treatment 'cause we're not pros, huh."
In 2001, Korean soccer's only official pro league was the K League first division.
Second and third tiers were a mix of industrial league semi-pro teams and amateurs, leaving Hallelujah FC players in limbo.
Not quite pros, but not full amateurs either.
They scraped by in that gray area every day.
Deep down, they harbored resentment toward the pro stage.
Early twenties, hailed as local prospects joining semi-pro teams—but now pushing mid-to-late twenties.
Grinding daily, dreaming of K League glory, but reality was brutal.
Age piling up, no scout calls.
Instead: corporate events, local festival matches, and nonsense gigs like helping film a high schooler's video today.
The assignment came last night.
Post-training showers, the coach suddenly rounded up the three.
"You three—head to the Han River tomorrow for a shoot."
"What kind?"
Kim Hyung-jun's question got a curt reply.
"Some high school kid filming training footage for Germany. Be his opponents. Easy stuff."
Their faces twisted.
Germany?
They couldn't even crack K League at home, and a high schooler was Europe-bound?
It stung somewhere deep.
They'd dreamed it once too: K League, national team, Europe. Glorious words that were their future.
But now?
Twenty-seven-year-old Yoon Jae-hyeok scraped by on 1.2 million won a month in the semi-pros. Twenty-six-year-old Kim Hyung-jun worked weekend gigs.
Twenty-eight-year-old Lee Sung-min had long given up on marriage.
"Coach, we've got match prep training tomorrow..."
Kim Hyung-jun's voice held his last shred of pride.
"Day rate. 100,000 won each."
Silence fell.
100,000 won.
Lunch money to some—two days' survival to them.
No more protests.
This was semi-pro life. Dreams were a luxury; survival was reality.
But reality didn't spare their pride.
"We gotta school him proper."
"Money doesn't buy Europe. Time for a reality check."
"Europe? He couldn't even make a semi-pro team."
Waiting for high schooler Park Si-hyun, they burned with resolve to show him the real world.
They had no idea yet.
The boy about to face them—what kind of being Park Si-hyun was.
That he wasn't just some rich kid.
And how monstrously special that high schooler truly was.