Hero Olmunt
“Is everyone here?”
Nam Suhyeon glanced around the meeting room, mechanically reciting the words as he eyed each of the assembled coaches.
“Alright, let's start the strategy meeting. Oh, first I'll turn up the boiler. Korea's still pretty chilly in February, even after it's technically passed.”
With the opener against Seoul Dongdaemun FC right around the corner, they definitely needed to tweak whatever could be tweaked.
Big clubs like Seoul bolstered their squads week by week in real time. Who knew what kind of monstrous player they'd snag in the meantime?
The assistant coach listed off the new signings one by one.
“Seoul brought in Hurvosa, who was starring at Seongnam.”
“Aigoo, that guy's a beast.”
“Jeonbuk Blue UTD's winger Gong Sangmin, the Spanish midfielder Eric, and they've added defender Valves too.”
Nam Suhyeon rubbed his throbbing temples as he listened. Gimpo was grateful just to have snagged Joo Yonghyeon, who'd shone in the second division last year.
A tier-1 winger like Gong Sangmin? A La Liga alum like Spanish midfielder Eric? And who the hell was Valves? Was Korean soccer even allowed to import foreigners like that?
As thoughts of the big clubs' unfair capital swirled in his head, Nam Suhyeon forced himself to stay calm.
“Won't the ACL drain their squad pretty bad? They still made the round of 16, though.”
“They'll probably come at us full strength anyway.”
“Why? Don't they have Kobe in the round of 16 just four days after our game?”
“Well...”
The analyst scratched his head, mumbling through his explanation.
Seoul hadn't won a single ACL match since '26. They had an opener jinx too. And their round-of-16 opponent was Kobe—the team that went winless in the group stage.
In other words, they planned to steamroll the freshly promoted Gimpo to flip their momentum. And they meant it.
The meeting dragged on until the windows outside darkened, but it ended without any clear solutions.
Alone in the empty meeting room, Nam Suhyeon left just one light on and dove into tactics.
Facing off against a top-tier domestic coach was burdensome, yet it stirred a strange fighting spirit in him.
Still, victory seemed possible. Sure, out of ten matches, Gimpo might lose seven. But it was the coach's job to make this one count as part of the three wins.
Especially for the underdog coach.
“Lure the ball into the mid-block...”
“Can Olmunt hold it?”
“Long ball to the flanks...”
The meeting room filled with Nam Suhyeon's mutterings and the squeaks of the whiteboard marker all through the night.
* * *
An opener against Seoul Dongdaemun FC, of all teams. It felt totally different from facing Cheonan Skies.
Seemed like he kept drawing opener matches against teams tied to his past.
Sure, Seoul had shipped him out quick. But it wasn't like he had a choice. He'd spent over half his contract sidelined with injuries.
“If the captain's already spooked, what're we gonna do?”
“Hey, come on...”
Yoo Dojin mistook my pensive look for nerves and clapped me on the back.
“Seoul ain't shit. The cheers from Suwon fans—when you carried Kim Donghan on your back in the second division—those were louder, right?”
Sure, if you say so, Dojin sunbae. I wouldn't know. Dropping a bombshell like that out of nowhere.
“What? A Suwon spy here? Seoul Stadium's cheers are the loudest by law! Right, Hyun-sik?”
“Hahaha. Gotta say yeah.”
This insane Seoul duo. Donghan sunbae was even more fired up with Hyun-sik sunbae around. Driving me nuts.
Technically, since I was Seoul-born before I died, does that make us the Seoul Trio?
My philosophical musings on my own existence didn't last long. Unfortunately.
Because I had to heed instructions from the director, who looked twice as drained as usual.
True to form as a coach strong against gimmicks, he laid out various anti-Seoul directives.
“Alright. Let me explain Operation: Hero Olmunt.”
???
Ignoring my baffled stare, the director rasped open the whiteboard lid with a weary voice and began.
“Seoul's old weakness was space behind them. But not this time. They've shored up midfield. Edin Roth re-signed. Valves is the new signing. Meaning, lobbing into the box is gonna be tough.”
He slapped the magnet with my name on it up top with a loud thwack!
Thwak!
“So. We gotta drag their defenders out for 1v1s somehow.”
We jumped at the sound, zeroing in on his explanation.
“Keep creating 1v1s for Olmunt against their defenders. The rest of us become the hero's party. Questions?”
Intriguing. I got roped into being the hero by accident, but it made sense.
“Hero Olmunt for the win!”
If not for these idiots. Hell, that's not even the right context for that chant.
And so Operation: Hero Olmunt kicked off.
“Yonghyeon, give Hyun-sik more length. Exploit the space behind their left flank.”
“Jaeyoon, you gotta muscle 'em. You gonna let a kid push you around with all your experience?”
The wingers would play thieves, diverting attention to the flanks.
So who was the tank? Paulo, obviously.
To keep their midfield off me, he had to stay glued to the central battle.
Joo Yonghyeon, Paulo, and Jinho sunbae on tank duty.
Then I score, and we slay the demon king—no, conquer Seoul.
Land two or three of those strikes, and we're golden.
“But director, no holy sword?”
“Uh... your left foot, right foot, head?”
Of course, the tactic had flaws. I had to break Valves or Edin Roth.
Edin Roth, the Jordan-Jin Minjae, and the new foreigner Valves...
Blasphemous thoughts crept in—like, just let Olmunt do his thing!—but I swallowed them and focused on training.
No one but our Nam director was gonna give me the runway to rampage.
If I didn't go wild with this much backing, it'd be downright rude.
After that, everyone embraced their 'hero party' roles and threw themselves into training.
“Press more to one side!”
“Paulo, drop deeper! Goals can wait for the next round. That all you got?”
“Yonghyeon, spray those passes wider.”
“Jaeyoon, keep the ball speed up on that dribble this time!”
While everyone was at it, I was locked in a strength battle with Lucas Morais—the strongest guy on the team after me.
“What do you eat to pack on that muscle?”
“Swedish sterilized milk?”
“Makes sense.”
Lucas silently helped with my training until sweat beaded on his shiny bald head.
Problem was, the guys I'd face were 10cm taller and 10kg heavier monsters than him.
“Dong dong dong dong! Seoul!”
“Dong dong dong dong! Seoul!”
“Dong dong dong dong! Seoul!”
“The capital's on another level. So many people.”
Minsu jumped at the packed stands.
“It's the opener, and they went big on signings. But that's not all.”
Donghan sunbae twisted Minsu's intimidated gaze toward the bulging away section.
“Seoul means big away crowds too.”
“But you're from Seoul, sunbae.”
“Hey now, I'm Gimpo-paid these days.”
Totally fair point. But why drag it out?
“Hey, you two pack mules, go set up training.”
“Why am I a pack mule? Where's my cool role?”
The mules (Minsu, Heemun) protested,
but
“Mad? Earn a start then.”
Who argues with the hero? These punks.
“Hyun-sik, Gimpo treating you right?”
“Eh, decent? We'll show you today.”
“Dude, this is our Seoul. Seoul.”
“Whatever. We got asymmetric warfare.”
Hyun-sik sunbae bantered with his ex-Seoul teammates from last season. Same with Donghan sunbae.
In the lively pre-match chatter, I eyed the guys I'd have to break.
Edin Roth and Valves. Both as tall as me. Same build.
Valves was unknown, but Edin Roth was proven. Nearly moved to Serie A this winter—says it all.
Hero status back in Jordan, apparently.
Less nerves, more thrill. How would my physicality stack up against a national-team-caliber guy eyed by Europe?
“Hm?”
Crap. Stared too hard. I whipped my head away and warmed up with Paulo.
“Don't choke. Stick to practice, and we've got a shot. Grab those points from Sangam!”
Fired up by the director's pep talk, we roared and headed out.
Tweeeet!
The whistle blew, and Seoul Dongdaemun FC hammered Gimpo relentlessly from kickoff.
Had they shored up their midfield weakness? Joo Yonghyeon and Jinho sunbae, with Paulo pitching in, couldn't stem the tide.
“Yonghyeon, there!”
Jinho and Yonghyeon fought hard, but the ball sailed to the right flank.
Sin Taehoon's cross came higher than expected. Everyone thought it was a miscue.
Gong Sangmin, lurking outside the box, headed it down perfectly to the onrushing Eric.
Sin Taehoon, out to block the cross, wasn't back on goal.
Splash!
BOOM!
The net rippled amid exploding fireworks. Under ten minutes in, and they scored.
Healer and archer down first? Disaster.
Lucky for Gimpo as the underdogs—they didn't park the bus after one goal, or it'd be dire.
Seoul kept probing, unsatisfied.
Creating space.
Jinho sunbae clawed the ball free to Yonghyeon sunbae.
As planned, Paulo dropped, drawing Valves, while the wingers bolted.
Hyun-sik sunbae sprinted into the gaping flank. Yonghyeon sunbae's pass dropped right into his run.
“Olmunt!”
Hyun-sik sunbae threaded it through to me without hesitation.
Just like the director said. A true 1v1.
Even at full tilt, Edin Roth didn't budge, shoulder-barging me.
His 190cm frame was no joke. We tussled step for step.
The keeper rushed out. Time to settle it.
I slammed the brakes, powering my right shoulder to shove Edin Roth aside.
He staggered but lunged back.
That split-second gap was enough.
Thwup!
I chipped it over the keeper's dive. He sprang up late, like a coil.
“Wooooooooah!”
Too late.
“Olmunt! Olmunt! Olmunt!”
The hero's dagger struck true—an equalizer against the demon king.
But how many more to claim the slaying?