Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Golden Sun = PTSD
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"Switch."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Solar Divine Meridian (EX) stat changes have been reset! Power stat strengthened: B+ → A Power stat strengthened: A → A+ Contact stat strengthened: C+ → B Contact stat strengthened: B → B+ Geum Seong-muk flipped his ability conversion from pitcher to batter.
A batter's aura began to emanate from him in earnest.
'...This guy's dangerous!'
The catcher instinctively sensed a threat from Geum Seong-muk.
Just as pitchers have a gut feeling of "if I throw this, it'll get hit," catchers have an instinct that screams, "This guy's gonna crush it?"
The vibe coming off Seong-muk right now was no joke.
Geum Seong-muk before and after bulking up felt like completely different people.
And in reality, hadn't he already shown unprecedented skill as a pitcher?
'Tae-yul, let's tease him gently with some breaking balls first.'
"...Tch."
He didn't like it, but Im Tae-yul, who had benefited greatly from his sharp-calling catcher, decided to follow along quietly.
However, Geum Seong-muk didn't bite easily.
"Ball!"
No swing on his signature splitter.
Even after several more attempts to lure the bat, Geum Seong-muk didn't budge an inch.
'Next, let's grab a count with a slow curve.'
Still reluctant, but Im Tae-yul gripped the ball and fired his third pitch.
Pang!
"Strike!"
He'd placed a decent count-taking slow curve right in the heart of the zone.
Yet Geum Seong-muk stood there as if he had no intention of swinging at all.
Pfft-
He flashed a sly grin at Im Tae-yul.
As if to say, "What's there to be scared of? Why throw such pathetic garbage?"
"............!!"
A surge of frustration boiled up inside Im Tae-yul.
Of course, as the ace pitcher, he could normally keep emotions like this in check,
Thud-!
But Geum Seong-muk's overwhelming presence stole his gaze whether he liked it or not. Im Tae-yul ended up recalling a memory he'd rather forget.
'Did it feel good? Yeah..., I felt good too.'
'No! I like you just the way you are, oppa!'
'They say too big is actually painful!'
'It's really fine! Have some confidence, oppa.'
"Kuaaaak......!!"
A bitter past that made him want to vomit blood.
The memory of that day when his inferiority complex about his "small package" took root.
'How could I forget that...!'
He absolutely couldn't forgive it.
With that resolve, Im Tae-yul latched onto one thought.
'With fastballs, I'm still better than you...!'
He'd judge this guy personally with his own specialty: the straight fastball.
Sure, he was a bit(?) smaller in size, but in baseball, he'd win no matter what.
He didn't know what trick this guy pulled, but no way his national-level fastball lost to some thug's.
With that in mind, Im Tae-yul vigorously shook off the catcher's sign.
"............!"
The catcher's eyes wavered in confusion.
He'd suggested safely dropping a splitter low, but Im Tae-yul wouldn't budge.
After shaking his head three or four times, the catcher sighed deeply and crouched into receiving stance. Fine, do what you want.
'Yeah, Im Tae-yul's mentality sucks, but his fastball is the real deal.'
Most batters knew better but still got fooled by it.
Today too, no one had touched his dialed-in heat.
The moment Im Tae-yul unleashed his fourth pitch.
Smirk-
A smile spread across Geum Seong-muk's face.
The catcher watching it felt alarms blaring in his head.
'Oh no...!'
Too late to stop him.
The ball was already leaving Im Tae-yul's hand.
'Cocky bastard...! My fastball and yours are on different levels...!'
The fastball rocketed straight for the heart of the zone.
It was the pitch Geum Seong-muk had been counting on.
"Knew you'd go there, you simple fuck."
Crack!!
A crisp hit echoed through the stadium.
Geum Seong-muk tossed his bat like he didn't need to watch it fly.
The ball soared high, higher, straight up.
Thwack-!
It cleared the fence with room to spare—a massive homer.
The game-flipping, go-ahead two-run shot.
"Woooaaah......!!"
"Geum Seong-muk, you madman!!"
Munhyeok High's dugout erupted in frenzy.
Cheonghyeon High's side turned into a funeral home by contrast.
"No... no way......"
Im Tae-yul's hands trembled.
Not because of the homer.
He'd seen it.
Clunk-!
The moment Geum Seong-muk flipped his bat and thrust his hips, that massive bulge in his pants swung in a huge arc.
Bat flip followed by JOAT flip—heavy double impact.
Im Tae-yul felt like his optic nerves had been violated.
And from the depths of his memories, he'd dragged up her final words too.
'Sorry, I can't be satisfied with you anymore.'
'What? Slut? I was tired of pretending to like it too!'
'Only his can fill me up completely.'
'I'm happier than ever now..♥'
In that instant, Im Tae-yul's world crumbled.
"Uwaaaak......!!"
The start of a lifelong erectile dysfunction that would plague his playing days.
"Kya, that's the taste!"
Oblivious to having mentally destroyed the pitcher, Geum Seong-muk grinned ear to ear as he circled the bases.
"Geum Seong-muk, sir, excellent hitting."
He shared a fierce high-five with Seok Un-gang, waiting in the on-deck circle. Then he headed to the dugout for team cheers.
"……………."
"………………."
But the dugout was colder than ever.
Manager Myeong, Do Do-jin, Choi Adam, Seo Kyung-su.
Not one spared him a glance, all eyes fixed on the field whether he returned or not.
'Oh ho, what's this...?'
Seong-muk's eyes sparkled with intrigue at this rare occurrence.
Everyone gritted their teeth, avoiding his gaze.
"………."
"……Ahem."
But amid it all, two guys looked like they were dying to say something.
"Hassan, Ri Dong-hyeok. Got something to say?"
"………!"
Pinpointed, they exchanged glances before steeling themselves to speak.
"I don't know when South Joseon—er, our country—turned into such a cold place where we can't even celebrate our teammates."
"You guys are too much! Sure, Seong-muk hyung's a bit weird, but we can at least congratulate him!"
The team's sudden seriousness left everyone speechless.
A few players realized the 'indifference ceremony' had failed and let out sighs.
"Ah shit, it's all ruined."
Choi Adam scratched his head.
Then he bellowed.
"Fuck it, let's just wreck him!"
"Uwoooah......!!"
Teammates swarmed Geum Seong-muk at once.
And pounded on his helmet.
"You crazy fuck, you bring two bats up there or what?!"
"Eating it all yourself......!!"
"Hey hey, that hurts, you bastards!"
They hit hard, being athletes and all.
Even as voices rose and fists flew, a smile lingered on Seong-muk's lips.
Meanwhile, Cheonghyeon High's dugout evoked a mourning house.
Their trusted ace had surrendered the game-changing homer.
Manager Kim Dae-seop, well aware of Im Tae-yul's shaky mentality, sent a runner-slash-player to the mound.
The player ascending saw Im Tae-yul muttering to himself.
"Illegal bat, illegal bat, that's gotta be an illegal bat...."
'Is this guy okay?'
Anyone could see he was out of it.
The messenger asked out of worry.
"Hey, Im Tae-yul. You okay..."
"What the fuck are you?! Get out, get lost!"
Im Tae-yul spat curses right off the bat.
Stung after trying to help, the fielder stormed back to the dugout fuming.
"He says he'll definitely shut this inning down, so don't worry."
"Mm, got it."
The player even embellished on the fly.
Now it was Munhyeok High's cleanup hitter and sole national-level bat, Seok Un-gang's turn.
Im Tae-yul ground his teeth and fired the first pitch.
Thwack!
The splitter tipped high into the air.
A pop fly dropping awkwardly between left and center.
"Mine!"
The center fielder spotted it and held position.
But he couldn't catch it.
"Guhk…!"
Crash!
He tumbled across the ground from a hard impact.
Left fielder Ji Su-yong had chased the ball blindly, ignoring the center fielder's call, causing a massive collision and dropped ball. While the outfielders tangled, Seok Un-gang strode confidently to third.
Unable to close the inning when he could have, Im Tae-yul exploded.
"Uwaaa, fuck!!"
Pang!
He slammed his glove into the dirt.
Manager Kim Dae-seop, deciding it was hopeless, hurriedly signaled the hook.
Im Tae-yul stomped off in a huff.
Still seething, he kicked a trash can outside the dugout—the bang echoed loud enough for Munhyeok's side to hear.
"Tch, over one little error. With mentality that weak, what good is he?"
Seong-muk clucked his tongue, calling it nothing compared to his own bad breaks today. A few fielders flinched and looked away. Never dreaming their ace's meltdown stemmed from the thing dangling between Seong-muk's legs, he just snorted dismissively.