What Kind of Nerve Does He Have?

Just what kind of nerve did this kid have?

Eunbi scowled as she watched Jaehyuk gather all the scouts together in one place.

Every one of them was a college football scout. None of them were from prestigious powerhouses, but they were all schools whose names she'd at least heard somewhere before. And here was her brother, summoning them all at once for a little chat…

In the end, on her way over, Eunbi had secretly ratted him out to Barry Sanders.

"College football teams, you say?"

"Yeah. Wait—Coach, what are you doing here?"

"What do you mean, what am I doing here? Managing my players is a coach's job. Of course I belong at a gathering like this!"

Barry Sanders arrived right on cue, and the scouts from each university began greeting him in a flurry.

"Coach Sanders, it's an honor!"

"Rachel Parker, Utah State University…"

"University of Tulsa…"

The expressions of the bewildered parents relaxed a little at his arrival.

"Good afternoon. I'm Barry Sanders, head coach of the Wichita North High School football team."

Sanders swept off his cap and bowed his head toward Jaehyuk's parents, and Kim Kyungtae hurriedly bowed in return.

"Oh—hello. I'm Kim Kyungtae, Jaehyuk's father. This is my wife, Park Heewon."

"A pleasure to meet you both. Jaehyuk put on quite a show out there today. You must be terribly proud."

"Ah, well, you see…"

Kim Kyungtae looked distinctly awkward. Sanders tilted his head at the sight. Shouldn't a parent normally be overjoyed that their son had performed this spectacularly? Why the ambivalent reaction?

Could they not be familiar with football?

It was entirely possible. Jaehyuk himself hadn't known a thing about the sport, after all. Sanders privately suspected the parents' influence was behind that too—

"To be honest, we're a little taken aback. We only just found out that Jaehyuk was playing football."

"…I'm sorry, what?"

Sanders wasn't the only one stunned by Kim Kyungtae's words. The scouts sitting in on the meeting all wore expressions that said, what on earth did he just say?

"What in the world does that even mean…"

"Jaehyuk, don't you think it's time you explained yourself?"

At his father's prompting, Jaehyuk answered with perfect composure.

"I've decided to play football. I'll compete in track only when there are meets."

"…"

"And that's it?"

"I'll prove it with results. Please trust me and support me."

No, seriously—did he just call that an explanation?

Even Sanders, sitting right beside him, was flabbergasted. He'd been playing football this whole time without ever telling his own family?

"Good grief."

Everyone was left speechless.

Oblivious or indifferent, Jaehyuk's gaze had already turned to the scouts.

"Now, I'm sure each of you had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a reason for insisting on meeting me in person. Let's hear it—one at a time."

At Jaehyuk's words, the scouts' eyes gleamed with a look that said, now that's more like it. It could have come across as downright arrogant at first glance—but that arrogance carried the unmistakable aura of a star.

Every school gathered here today was second-tier. Of course, "second-tier" only meant compared to the blue-blood programs—these were all famous universities anyone would recognize by name alone. For a rookie who'd just played his first game ever, they were schools far beyond what he had any right to expect.

"Ahaha! Confident as ever—just like a star should be! Very well then, allow me to go first."

John Howard of Texas State, who had made contact earliest, spoke up with a smile.

"With your athletic ability, Kim Jaehyuk, there's a very strong chance you'd start right away as our running back at Texas State. What's more, our school has recently committed to a major facility expansion and full-scale program support. You'd be able to receive pro-level management and training in a stable environment."

Immediately, the female scout from Utah State, Rachel Parker, cut in.

"John, we're offering similar conditions. But shouldn't what matters to Jaehyuk right now be a guaranteed starting job, not facilities? Utah State promises him a starting position from his very first season."

John Howard snorted at that.

"Is Utah State really in a position to overextend itself like that? Making blanket promises about something you can't be sure of—that's just irresponsible."

"Oh ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my. If watching Jaehyuk's performance today still hasn't convinced you, then Texas State probably isn't the right fit anyway. Hehe."

Rachel's confident pitch made John Howard's brow furrow.

Then it was Sarah Collins, the University of Wyoming scout, who spoke up carefully.

"You may think of Wyoming as a somewhat smaller program, but that's precisely why we can offer Kim Jaehyuk more focused care and support. What's more—not only a starting position from year one, but we've just received internal approval ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to provide additional stipends on top of it."

"I'm sorry—internal approval, already?"

Max Bennett of the University of Tulsa muttered in disbelief. The other scouts, Jaehyuk's family, and Barry Sanders alike all showed their astonishment at her offer.

"I watched the live broadcast from the athletic director's office myself. If you'd like, I can connect you by phone right now and you can confirm the approval directly."

"Wait, wait! Please hear us out as well. University isn't just a place to play football, after all. At Tulsa, we guarantee a balance of athletics and academics—whatever path Kim Jaehyuk chooses in life, we'll provide the very best environment to build it!"

Max Bennett of Tulsa pushed his case with obvious urgency.

Having now heard all four offers, Jaehyuk's parents could only stare at each other, dumbfounded.

There had been interest in Jaehyuk during his track days too, but nothing this passionate. And these had been modest, middle-of-the-road schools whose names he'd barely heard. The four gathered here today, however, were no pushovers.

To put it in Korean terms, Texas State would rank around the Yonsei–Korea–SNU line, with the rest sitting at the lower tier of Seoul's top universities. And given that the scale of American college sports dwarfed anything in Korea, the public perception of these programs was even higher than that.

Our Jaehyuk is worth this much?

They loved watching football, sure—but it had never once crossed their minds that their own son might become a football player. Naturally.

Who would ever imagine that an Asian kid could become an American football player?

A gathering place for the absolute pinnacle of physical specimens from around the globe. That place was the NFL.

Unless you'd been blessed with extraordinary genetics, it was a sport beyond even an Asian player's wildest dreams.

And unfortunately—

Kim Kyungtae and Park Heewon knew their own unremarkable bodies very well. Which meant their children were highly unlikely to inherit any genetic blessings.

"S-so which one should we pick?"

"Texas State seems like the safest bet, doesn't it?"

"But going purely by the offers, the others are plenty attractive too…"

"That's right! Here at Tulsa, for Jaehyuk's future, we'll provide first-year scholarships and a customized curriculum…!"

"The University of Wyoming will cover a full ride! Please, give our offer serious consideration…!"

This whole situation was utterly foreign to Jaehyuk's parents. And yet, at the same time—

Heh.

They couldn't stop the corners of their mouths from creeping upward.

To think our Jaehyuk was being treated like this.

When he used to go around singing 'I'm a genius, a genius,' I thought he was a little odd…

Could it be that our son… was actually a genius?

He'd stolen the hearts of professional scouts in a single game, so it wasn't just empty talk.

"Ah—hold on a moment."

"Hm?"

"I'm not committing to anything yet."

Jaehyuk's parents and family, who had been basking in a parade of wonderful options, went wide-eyed.

You're turning down offers this good?!

But Jaehyuk, ignoring his family's stares entirely, kept right on talking.

"I'll come back once I've raised my price a little. For now, I'll just take your business cards."

"Uh…"

Insufferable arrogance, plain and simple.

Beside him, Eunbi grabbed her brother's arm, her eyes bulging as wide as they could go.

"O-oppa?"

"What."

"O-opportunities like this don't exactly grow on trees! Wyoming's offering you a starting spot from your first season—schools like that are incredibly rare!"

"Starting spot?"

Jaehyuk let out a small laugh as he listened, then swept his gaze over the scouts once more.

"You earn a starting job with your play. You think I'd go all the way to college and somehow fail to win one?"

"…"

Confidence, or hubris?

Faced with Jaehyuk's utterly overinflated ego, John Howard of Texas State finally frowned.

"Today's offers may be the ceiling, Jaehyuk."

"Maybe. I guess we'll find out."

"Don't come regretting this."

Regret?

Jaehyuk smiled and saw the man off.

"Safe travels, everyone."

"…Hmph."

And so John Howard departed with nothing but a stiff nod, and the other scouts rose from their seats as well, leaving their business cards behind.

Once everyone was gone, Jaehyuk's parents stared blankly at the scouts' retreating backs.

"Goodness."

They looked vaguely disappointed. But they soon clicked their tongues and patted Jaehyuk on the shoulder.

"Well—maybe it's for the best. Come to think of it, we were selling ourselves short."

At his father's words, Jaehyuk simply shrugged.

"If you'd like, I'll go to whichever school you or Mom picks. Honestly, I'm confident I can win wherever I end up."

"Heheh."

One win and his nose is in the air already?

Jaehyuk's parents were starting to worry in earnest.

"PUHAHAHA!"

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing. I just like the look of you. Father, Mother—don't you worry. I'll take responsibility and send this boy to an even better school."

At Sanders's words, Jaehyuk's parents finally began to relax. Which only made Jaehyuk tilt his head in confusion.

"Why do you react differently to you than to me?"

"You brat, do your words and mine carry the same weight? Either way—you've played exactly one game. Don't get cocky."

"Understood. I'm not getting cocky."

Excuse me? You're not getting cocky, after all that?

Everyone stared at him, dumbfounded, and Jaehyuk shamelessly carried on.

"I always give my absolute best. I never take an opponent lightly just because they're supposed to be weak. Though honestly, I couldn't tell you which teams are strong and which are weak in the first place."

"…Insufferable brat."

The opening games of the KSHSAA Football season had drawn to a close. And the one that dominated every conversation was, of course, Derby versus Wichita North.

Those banner-sized headlines filled the local online papers, and the news spread across the entire state of Kansas, setting countless football fans ablaze.

Even the broadcasters' pitch-perfect reactions during the live game had been clipped into memes that were circulating all over the internet.

Eunbi grinned as she scrolled through the articles and comments. When she checked the social media account she'd secretly set up for Jaehyuk, she found his follower count had grown by five hundred.

"Heh heh heh."

A wicked little smile crept across her face as she devoured every reaction. She even rewatched the broadcasters' stunned commentary for the hundred-somethingth time. The announcers leaping out of their seats, spraying disbelief into their microphones—thanks to that clip, they'd built quite a name for themselves too.

"So this is why people become fangirls? Hehe."

The only problem ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was that the object of her fangirling happened to be her own brother, which she could have done without. But for this kind of dopamine? She was more than willing to endure it.

"Huh?"

As she giggled her way through the thread, Eunbi stumbled across a rather curious comment.

"Uncle Minhyeok?"

Kim Minhyeok, the second son of the family, and his English name. His identity was on full display, and Eunbi read on in mortified fascination.

Still reeling from that, Eunbi soon spotted yet more family fingerprints further down the thread.

"Oh, Mom…"

Anyone could see it was Mrs. Park Heewon.

Pressing a hand to her forehead, Eunbi scrolled down through the rest of the comments.

The whole family, arrested one by one at the scene of the crime.

That one was Dad, without a doubt.

"What is everyone doing…"

An account she'd created with Jaehyuk's blessing. She had no room to lecture her family—Kim Eunbi was every bit as guilty as the rest of them.