Living Legend, Redline

Desttrroying's visit to Wichita North was a monumental event for the student body.

And then, afterward.

Following the editing and upload schedule of the channel, some time passed before a teaser finally appeared announcing that the video would be dropping soon.

"Finally!"

And at last, the day of the upload arrived.

Desttrroying was a YouTuber whose audience skewed young, so the video went live right as school let out—exactly when no one could afford to miss it.

Missing this mega-event was, of course, not an option. Eunbi and her friends—no, the entire school—was buzzing.

Even after the final bell rang, students clustered in groups in the classrooms instead of heading home, glued to their screens as the video loaded.

And at the center of it all sat Eunbi.

"Kyaaa, your oppa's on!"

"Holy crap, oh my god, oh my god."

As if to demonstrate the power of a six-million-subscriber YouTuber, the video shot up the trending charts in the blink of an eye, drawing eyes from everywhere.

View counts climbed relentlessly before anyone had even pressed play. Witnessing that overwhelming spectacle firsthand, Eunbi finally hit the button—and, blasting through Desttrroying's signature loud, hype intro music, Donald's face filled the screen.

"Yo, what's UP! Donald in the house! Today I've got some seriously insane news for you! The star of THAT video—the one that turned the whole internet upside down! I went and met the red flash discovered in Kansas himself: 'Redline 21'!"

Then a brief caption flashed across the screen.

The footage cut rapidly between sweeping shots of Wichita North High School and the roaring stands from game day against Hutchinson.

Occasionally, the Alabama scout David flickered briefly across the frame, lending the video real weight.

"Alright, alright—no more words needed, right? Let's start with this! Not a legend. A living legend!"

At Donald's shout, the screen jumped to the previous game against Derby—Jaehyuk's downright divine Punching Strip Self-Recovery Touchdown.

Slow motion, a dramatic backing track, and the raw, dumbfounded reactions of the Desttrroying crew broadcasting live that day intercut with one another, sending viewers' adrenaline soaring.

"GODDAMN!"

"That's insane. Seriously, that play makes no sense no matter how many times I watch it!"

Gasps of awe erupted all across the classroom. Eunbi, too, found her fist clenching without her noticing.

She'd seen it countless times, and still it gave her chills every single viewing.

Soon the video rolled into the Hutchinson game highlights.

A touchdown on the opening play, shrugging off tackles with raw power and charging downfield, toying with defenders with dazzling footwork—all of it streamed past to the beat of Desttrroying's feverish play-by-play.

"You saw that, right? I SAID, you saw that?! And this is a HIGH SCHOOLER! Can you believe it?! This goes beyond talent—it's a whole different dimension!"

From there, the exploits of the other Wichita North players kept rolling in. The spotlight didn't shine on Jaehyuk alone—it swept across everyone making plays.

"Who's that guy? Liam? He's absolutely terrifying!"

"Whoa, look at that strength! Is that kid seriously in high school? James, was it?"

"Wheeeew! Nice pass! Man, that quarterback looked shaky at first, but he's turning out to be fantastic!"

After the game ended, Donald approached the players as they celebrated the overwhelming victory.

First up, the team's head coach, Barry Sanders.

"Wow—Coach Barry Sanders, sir! Congratulations on the win!"

"What's there to congratulate? It's just one regular season game."

Sanders brushed off the interview with visible indifference, and Donald praised him as a true legendary player for it.

"And what are your thoughts on Redline?"

"He's a brat."

A wry chuckle, and the interview ended right there.

Next was the quarterback, Tony Garcia.

"I heard this was your first start—and you won it perfectly! How's it feel, bro? You were absolutely slinging that ball!"

"......It's all thanks to Jaehyuk. I was able to throw with peace of mind because he was out there. I trusted that even if I messed up, Jaehyuk would fix it."

"No, no. You don't have to praise Redline right now. I'm asking how YOU feel, bro."

"Huh? Ah—no, I'm not saying this for the cameras, I genuinely mean it. He's the reason I'm where I am......"

The praise for Jaehyuk kept flowing from there. Tony had been thoroughly won over by that one game.

The responses from the team's other ace players were more or less the same.

First, Liam Hughes.

"Your season stats are unreal! Twenty-three sacks! In just SEVEN games! That's more than three a game—how is that even possible?!"

"I listened to advice."

"Advice? Oh! Right, you were originally a running back, weren't you? Don't tell me it was Barry Sanders who——"

"No. It was Redline's advice. He told me I'd be better suited as an edge rusher than a running back, and pointed out the flaws I needed to fix."

"Eh...?"

"I'm always grateful to him. I'm a senior, so it's a shame that next year I won't be playing alongside him anymore."

When the strikingly handsome Liam smiled with wistful melancholy, it looked like something straight out of a movie. Donald pulled an exaggerated, dumbfounded expression for the camera.

Finally, James got his interview too.

"WAHAHA! All of this is thanks to Jaehyuk! That kid is absolutely incredible, I'm telling you! Me becoming a starter, getting college offers—it's all because of him!"

"COME ON! Is this entire team nothing but a Redline fan club? What is this, a cult?!"

"Hahaha! Donald, the more you get to know Jaehyuk, the deeper you'll fall too! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠That kid is just plain insane!"

And with James's interview, one more short caption appeared at the bottom of the screen.

The Desttrroying channel had indeed set out to make a Redline feature, but now it felt unjustly implicated in something far bigger.

"That was a comedy sketch of an interview."

"Eunbi, your ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠oppa is literally the main character."

"Liam is SO cool. He's gorgeous......"

Naturally, not a single soul believed the caption.

And then—the long-awaited main event made his entrance.

Jaehyuk appeared with a slightly dazed expression, and the students watching erupted into cheers.

"REDLINE!"

"Eunbi, it's your oppa!"

The moment Jaehyuk's face actually filled the screen, Eunbi felt her cheeks burn for no reason at all. She forced herself to ignore her friends' reactions and focused on the video.

"Redliiiine~ 21!"

"Hel. lo. Ev. ery. one."

"Kyaaa, bro! We came out here today because of what you did in the Derby game! And now that I've seen you in person, I can confirm—that video wasn't exaggerated one bit!"

"Is. That. So."

Jaehyuk answered like a stiff, clunky robot.

So unlike his usual arrogant, brimming-with-confidence self—he looked almost awkward.

'Oh no......'

Why, though?

Eunbi's face kept flushing hotter and hotter.

"Word is you haven't been playing football all that long? How on earth are you this good? Natural talent?"

"Yes. Talent."

"Uh—oh. Okay then. Didn't expect such a confident answer. You're quite the character. So how did you end up playing football in the first place?"

"They needed a substitute. So I tried out."

Creak. Creak.

Jaehyuk's gestures and answers seemed like they might actually squeak out loud.

Eunbi couldn't bring herself to keep her eyes on the screen—but the rest of the students responded with burning enthusiasm.

"AHAHA! Look at this! He's SO awkward!"

"I thought Eunbi's oppa would be a scary guy, but he's nothing like that at all?"

"He's adorable. He's on Liam's level!"

Excuse me? Adorable? THAT?

Vicarious embarrassment sent Eunbi's mind spinning into oblivion.

The interview carried on for a while longer before Donald finally threw out his last question.

"So then, Redline—what's your ultimate goal this season? The championship, obviously?"

"An undefeated championship."

"OOOOH! There it is! God, you've got the skill to back up that confidence, so I can't even argue, bro! I'll be rooting for you!"

"Thank you."

The camera lingered on Jaehyuk's creaking back until the very end. Then Donald delivered his closing lines.

"And we are NOT ending things here. Redline and his teammates have already clinched a playoff berth! We're coming back to watch the playoffs in person!"

At Donald's announcement, the students burst into another frenzy.

"KYAAAA!"

"Desttrroying is coming back!"

"This time I'm getting on camera! No—I'm landing an interview!"

A follow-up video! And with Wichita North as the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠star of it!

But there was still something even more shocking left.

Donald flashed a sly grin and dropped a bombshell message.

"If Wichita North makes it to the finals, we're going live for the first time in this channel's history! Let's all watch the championship together! Haha!"

"OOOOOOH!!"

"A Desttrroying livestream?!"

One jaw-dropping piece of news after another.

As it happened, Wichita North had just completed the feat of a perfect 10–0 season and punched a direct ticket to the semifinals. One more win stood between them and the championship game.

"Please, just win......"

"Forget Desttrroying—we HAVE to win regardless! Our school winning ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the state championship? I'm already about to cry."

"If we win the whole thing while Desttrroying is livestreaming...... hold on, I just got chills."

Listening to her friends' chatter, Eunbi stared down at her darkened phone screen.

The semifinal was right around the corner.

Honestly, she couldn't have cared less about Desttrroying or any of it. She'd already talked things over with Minhyuk.

Right now, Jaehyuk's family was drawing up a much bigger picture.

'A measly state championship? A YouTube channel? None of that matters.'

This might be the most critical moment yet.

It wouldn't matter even if they failed to win the state title. They had to plan for a far bigger stage.

As it happened, they'd just received a very promising message from David, Alabama's chief scout: news of the Nike and Under Armour elite high school prospect camp.

Ordinarily, a player with only a single year of stats like Jaehyuk could never have gotten in—but David's pull had secured the invitation.

The timing was next spring, a short while after the state championship wrapped up.

'If he stands out there......'

Next year, Jaehyuk would be a senior.

And one dream stage remained for graduating high school prospects: the High School All-Star Game!

Only players moving on to the college leagues the following year were eligible. It was typically held in December or January, right after the season ended.

As a junior, Jaehyuk couldn't participate yet.

Worse, even his numbers weren't clearly All-Star caliber at the moment. Within Kansas, there was hardly anyone left who didn't know his name—but on the national stage, his standing was still ambiguous.

Frankly, it was a wonder Alabama was this interested at all, given how low his overall recognition still was.

"Guys, I'm heading out early."

"Huh? Eunbi, already? What about viewing sessions two and three of the video?"

"I have a family thing!"

"Ahh, right—your family must be going nuts too."

Nope! Actually, she was going home to study.

Lately she'd been buried in nutrition science every day alongside her second-oldest brother, Minhyuk. Every member of Jaehyuk's family was giving their all to support him.

Desttrroying's video generated far more impact than anyone had anticipated.

One hour after upload, it had already hit 500,000 views. By the next day, it had reached a staggering 2 million.

As a result, football fans all across America who had never so much as heard of Jaehyuk began to take notice.

The comments under the video were explosive, but America's biggest online community, Lejit, had also descended into chaos.

And so Jaehyuk and the Wichita North team set the entire internet ablaze.

The regular season came to an end, and after a brief rest, the playoff semifinal was finally upon them.

"......"

"......"

A tense air wrapped around the corridor.

Outside, the marching band's music and the roar of the crowd were already spilling through the walls.

This was their first playoff appearance in five years. And thanks to finishing first in the league, they'd earned a direct ticket to the semifinals—one step from the championship game.

All they had to do was walk down this corridor, and the familiar Wichita North field—and the semifinal—would begin.

Gulp.

As everyone steeled themselves while waiting in the hallway—

"Chomp, chomp."

"?"

A sudden sound of gum chewing.

The players turned—and there at the very end of the line stood Jaehyuk, helmet already off, nonchalantly working his gum.

With every eye on him, Jaehyuk just tilted his head.

"Hm? What?"

"Haah......"

Does this guy even know what nerves are?

But maybe because of that. The moment his teammates registered Jaehyuk's composure, a weight lifted off their shoulders.

Yeah. All we have to do is trust that lunatic.

That monster will find a way to put points on the board.

"Let's go!"

"YES SIR!"

At Sanders's bark, the players marched onto the field—and a torrent of cheers and the band's blaring music came crashing down on them.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"KYAAAA!"

"WOOOAAAH!!!"

It felt as though every resident of Wichita had packed into the stadium.

Thanks to their recent internet fame, everyone already knew the story of Wichita North's dark-horse run. People who had never once watched high school football in their lives had come to the stadium just to see the protagonists with their own eyes.

That was how dramatic the tale of this Wichita North team—and the birth of its star player, Redline—truly was.

"WOOOAAAH!!"

"RED! RED! RED!"

The players charged onto the field, screaming with excitement, and the crowd's roar swelled even louder in response.

Amid it all, Jaehyuk ambled out lazily, casting a casual glance around.

The Wichita North stands that had once seemed so vast now looked cramped. Roughly a thousand people or more had shown up, he figured.

'I don't know the exact count, but a thousand is already like this......'

And in college, they say over a hundred thousand attend every single game?

Well, that's just outstanding.

"REDLINE!! Over here, look this way!"

"Redline 21!! I love you!"

"I came just to see you today! Give us a blazing hot game!"

"It's Redline! Sign something after the game!"

Thanks to the YouTuber video, the reaction was even more explosive than before.

"Alright, gather up! The game's starting!"

Sanders called them in, and at last—

Wichita North's playoffs had begun.