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# Chapter 3. What Do You Mean, Which Country?
"Ugh—what is this?"
Along with a splitting headache, unknown memories came pouring into my mind.
Had I finally gone insane?
The person I had just chased out was definitely a stranger, yet his name, his face, and everything that had happened between us came rushing back to me.
"Ha, haa—my head."
Holding my aching head, I looked around the room more carefully.
Heaven... didn't seem like it. Was this a hospital?
The overall white atmosphere had reminded me of heaven, but looking more closely, it was definitely a hospital.
As I looked around, my eyes met those of a man.
"Whoa! Damn, you scared me!"
I went down spectacularly with a loud crash, then cautiously looked at him again and immediately realized what he was.
"A mirror...?"
When I touched my cheek, the man in the mirror touched his cheek too.
Even when I lightly tapped my own face, the man in the mirror followed along.
I spoke to the mysterious man.
"You're that guy who was on the bridge."
Why was he staring at me like that?
The moment I realized the identity of the mysterious memories that had entered my head, goosebumps spread across my entire body.
I had no choice but to stare blankly into the mirror for about ten minutes.
I couldn't accept this reality.
No, I wasn't even sure if I could call it reality.
I now had the face of the man I had met on the bridge.
My name was Juwon.
Joo was my surname, and Won was my given name.
But now I had become Kang Juwon.
"Our names overlap."
Was this something I should find amazing because we had a connection that felt almost like fate?
"Then, what happened to my body...?"
In the hazy memories, I saw my own body lying cold and motionless.
The moment when I had accepted death came back to me, making my blood run cold once again.
"First, let's sort things out."
Looking at the date, I realized that I had opened my eyes only one day after losing consciousness.
This body, which looked sturdy at first glance, had survived being swept away by the river, while my body apparently hadn't been able to endure it.
I had wanted to live, yet I died.
The guy who had wanted to die survived.
Was this because I hadn't possessed the mindset of Admiral Yi Sun-sin?
No. In the end, wasn't I the one who had survived? I'm the one talking and thinking here, after all.
Couldn't I just accept it that way?
The Admiral might be furious if he heard me say that, but I still didn't want to die.
I sat on the edge of the bed and calmly examined the information cluttering my mind.
Same age as me. He dreamed of becoming a soccer player, but he wasn't particularly good and eventually quit. But the reason....
He hadn't given up on his own.
"The chairman of Jaewon Group's illegitimate son?"
A complicated world had unfolded before me, at least as far as I could understand it.
A child born outside the marriage.
His biological mother was presumed dead.
And the chairman's wife, Choi Seohyun, hated even looking at Kang Juwon, so despite his large physique, he had been raised to grow up as quietly as possible.
The thing he liked most, at least, was soccer.
Whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, the thing his father, the chairman, liked most was also soccer.
"If you become good enough to make your K League debut, you may continue playing soccer."
Thanks to that, he received support and continued playing, but at the same time, he had to endure Choi Seohyun's contempt, jealousy, and mockery.
Thanks to his naturally strong physique and the fact that he worked himself to the bone, his body became even stronger, but because his skills were insufficient, he was pushed out of the starting lineup of the soccer team.
"You can't play soccer anymore, can you? You only started kicking a ball because you wanted to feed off attention by acting all lowly, didn't you?"
Choi Seohyun's laughing face flashed through my mind.
"Ugh, it's so annoying that I don't even want to think about it anymore."
I could understand perfectly well why he had grown up so timid in such an environment.
Kang Juwon's emotions weren't directly transferred to me, but simply remembering the way they laughed at him was enough to make me uncomfortable.
When Kang Juwon and I fell from the bridge, could his desperation have created this miracle?
For me, who had lived my entire life suffering, I could feel a longing for becoming a professional radiating from the body God had handed over to me as if recycling it.
I repeatedly clenched and unclenched the large hand that still felt foreign, then stared intently at myself in the mirror before speaking.
"Becoming a professional was my goal too, so I'll grant your wish as well. I can't promise revenge, but I'll at least cause them some trouble."
Wouldn't it be enough to show those who had persecuted him and told him that he couldn't do it that he had succeeded spectacularly?
Once I adapted to this still-unfamiliar body, I was certain I could perform even better than before.
Wait for me, K League.
Knock, knock-
I was in the middle of steeling my resolve and getting fired up when I heard a knock.
Slide-
"Juwon, are you okay?"
The person who entered with a worried expression was also in Kang Juwon's memories.
Han Sangwook.
He had been planted by Choi Seohyun under the pretense of being a bodyguard to keep watch on him, but after spending so much time together, he had often looked after Kang Juwon's needs.
"Ah, I'm fine."
"That's a relief. But Managing Director Lee Hyunseok has been going around saying you hit him. He didn't do anything to you, did he?"
Ah! That guy!
The bastard who had gotten hit by me and run away the moment I opened my eyes.
Now that my memories had returned, I realized I'd been absolutely right to hit this guy.
He was a vicious bastard who stayed glued to the chairman's wife, showing his loyalty while tormenting Kang Juwon.
And on top of that, he was Kang Juwon's biological mother's older brother. His maternal uncle.
"He started picking a fight as soon as I woke up, so I hit him."
Han Sangwook's eyes widened as though he couldn't believe I could have done such a thing.
"Huh?? You really hit him?"
"He was the one who started it."
The difference was only a matter of degree, but he really had been the one to hit me first.
"Does anything hurt? You're a little different from usual."
As expected, perhaps because he had spent so much time around me, he quickly noticed that something had changed.
"Yeah. After almost dying once, I started thinking differently."
Technically, I had become a different person.
Perhaps the excuse that I had crossed the line between life and death worked, because Han Sangwook nodded in understanding.
"Yeah. I was worried because you were too timid sometimes, so this is a good change. But are you sure it'll be okay? If Madam finds out, she'll cause a huge scene."
"Surely she won't get angry just because her lackey got beaten up a little."
"L-lackey... Uh...... You really must have gone through a lot of changes mentally."
He patted my shoulder and gave me a sympathetic look.
"Forget it. Anyway, I'm perfectly fine now, so let's go exercise."
I stretched my body by crossing my arms and loosening up, and he stared at me strangely.
"What?"
"No, you said you're going to exercise?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Did you pack all your luggage?"
"Huh? What luggage?"
When I failed to understand, Han Sangwook's expression became even more serious.
"You know you're leaving the country tomorrow... right?"
"What...?"
Which country?
I don't know what country you're talking about.
.
.
.
How could I possibly accept in one day the entire life of someone who had lived nineteen completely different years from me?
Kang Juwon's memories hadn't entered my mind all at once. Related memories surfaced one by one, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place.
"If you fail to achieve results worthy of a K League debut by the time you graduate high school, I'll send you to study in England. Go there and quietly live your life while watching the soccer you like."
I quickly remembered the chairman saying this, so I knew about it.
Since it was September, I thought I could spend the remaining few months buckling down, showing my skills, and changing his mind.
The problem was that the academic year in England began in autumn, meaning September.
And that was why I was now being dragged to the airport.
"Hyung, I'm really confident. Can't you talk to the chairman again?"
Kang Juwon had spent his entire life calling him "Bodyguard-nim," but I immediately started speaking casually to Sangwook hyung, who was seven years older than me.
"What power do I have? And if that happened, Madam wouldn't just sit still."
"So I'm really going to be dragged away without even getting the chance to pursue my dream?"
I was seriously confident!
And you crazy bastards! How could you send someone away like this immediately after he had almost died?
I stubbornly stayed in place because I didn't want to go, so Sangwook hyung approached me with a sigh.
"Juwon, let's think about it positively. You can go there, watch as much soccer as you want, and live freely."
"Isn't it just because you want to go watch soccer?"
Hyung was a huge Liverpool fan.
"Ahem, that's part of it. Anyway! What does England have? It's the birthplace of soccer! You never know. You could play soccer there and even become a professional."
"...A professional?"
The moment I heard the word professional, my eyes lit up.
Right. Why hadn't I thought of that?
England had a better-developed professional league system than Korea.
Although I wouldn't be able to start at a good club with good treatment, starting from the bottom was something I was more than familiar with.
Maybe this was worth going for.
"Let's go, hyung."
Hyung followed behind me after my attitude changed so suddenly.
"Juwon, you know you have to take your shoes off when you get on a plane, right?"
"Huh? Really?"
"......No, sorry. I was joking."
Ah, what? It was a joke.
Since there were no memories of airplanes, it seemed Kang Juwon was riding on one for the first time too.
From the outside, the plane had looked enormous, but once inside, the seats were cramped and uncomfortable.
"Wow, how many hours do we have to stay on this thing?"
"Thirteen hours to London, then we wait three hours, and then another hour to Newcastle."
"Ah, for God's sake."
"That's new... You swearing."
"How am I supposed not to swear?"
Since he was someone I'd be seeing often from now on, I decided to be straightforward.
.
.
.
[Newcastle upon Tyne, England]
After enduring what felt like hell, we finally arrived at Newcastle Airport.
The man who was supposed to be a bodyguard didn't seem tired at all because he'd slept soundly all day, but I was exhausted because I hadn't been able to sleep even for a moment.
"Ugh-"
"You're practically dying."
Perhaps I looked like a zombie even to him, because hyung massaged my shoulders.
"Let's get a taxi."
"First, Juwon, take this."
He naturally handed me a credit card.
"What's this?"
"You have to use only this card from now on."
"What? What about the one in my wallet?"
"You can't use that anymore. The one you used before was provided by the chairman's side, while this one was made by Madam's side."
"What?!"
What if they didn't put enough money into it?
Perhaps he noticed my concern, because Sangwook hyung immediately continued.
"There's no problem with using the money since it's a credit card. But unlike before, I heard they're going to monitor every expense."
"Good grief, they're really doing everything."
Should I get a part-time job and build up some secret funds?
We took a taxi and arrived at the accommodation that had been arranged in advance.
"Hello. We're Kang Juwon and Han Sangwook, the tenants moving in today."
"Oh! Nice to meet you. You're a new university student, right?"
When we entered what looked like a security office, a white middle-aged woman handed us the keys.
Fortunately, the English knowledge Kang Juwon had studied was also usable by me, so despite never having learned English in my life, the words came pouring out naturally.
"So I'm going to live here from now on."
In just two days, everything around me had changed.
---
After arriving in Newcastle, Juwon immediately fell asleep as if he had passed out, while Han Sangwook took out his phone to make a report.
"Yes, yes. Everything is fine. We arrived safely, and Kang Juwon was cooperative without resistance, as if he'd given up."
Officially, the proper title was "young master," but when communicating with Choi Seohyun's secretary team, he had to refer to him by his full name.
"Understood. Report in advance if any problems arise."
After the brief call ended, Han Sangwook let out a small sigh.
Because he had always been by his side, Han Sangwook knew better than anyone how hard Kang Juwon had trained.
The poor boy had endured all kinds of interference and contempt, stubbornly fighting through it, only to fail in the end and attempt to throw his life away.
He couldn't imagine how devastated he must have been.
He had been relieved when he saw the unexpectedly fine-looking Kang Juwon in the hospital room he had entered prepared for the worst, but his heart had ached when Juwon seemed determined to forget the very fact that he had to go to England.
In the end, he had even dragged him here by saying the absurd thing that he could make his professional debut in England.
I hope you'll forgive me.
All Han Sangwook could do was pray that he would find some peace in this country.
---
I woke up after sleeping like I'd passed out and immediately sat down with my laptop.
"Soccer team, soccer team..."
The semester would begin tomorrow, but I couldn't care less about the lecture schedule. I was completely occupied with finding the soccer team I would join.
"There's too many."
Was this really the birthplace of soccer? There were so many groups labeled "Football Club" at the school.
The problem was that I couldn't tell which one was the official club.
As I grumbled and scrolled down, Sangwook hyung helped me from beside me.
"Why don't you ask when you go to school?"
"Should I? That seems like the fastest way."
Foreigners... It was still a little awkward, but eventually I'd have to face them anyway.
I roughly threw on some clothes, and as soon as I stepped outside, I noticed buildings that I hadn't paid attention to yesterday.
I was distracted by the rows of buildings that looked like something straight out of a movie, but I soon pulled myself together and followed the map toward the soccer field.
"Wow. This is nice."
Unlike Korea, the view was wide open, making the lush natural grass look even more expansive.
As luck would have it, a group of students wearing similar uniforms were warming up on the grass.
"Good. I'll ask them."
The closer I got to them, the more my heart pounded with excitement at the thought that my challenge in England was finally beginning.