Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Golden Sun Hides His Power
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Munhyeok High School was buzzing with excitement ahead of the baseball team's first game. And there was a good reason for it.
'Attendance granted for watching the baseball games!'
An unprecedented policy at Munhyeok High!
Of course, Seong-muk had pulled some strings to make it happen.
"A school holiday is too much—anything but that!"
"Hmm..."
The first proposal for a school-wide holiday was shot down flat.
In truth, a group outing after suspending classes was the best way to boost high school baseball attendance. But that only worked for powerhouse teams advancing to the Sejong Tournament, and it was a nightmare for schools worried about falling behind on curriculum.
The chairman had opposed it too, but Seong-muk hadn't really expected that much anyway.
"So a holiday's off the table, right?"
"Y-yeah, that's right, but..."
"You've been so supportive so far, so I'll make a big concession this time. Just count it as attendance for students who come to the games."
Seong-muk presented the alternative like he was doing them a huge favor.
The chairman might have resisted if that had been the first ask, but after reeling from the extreme school holiday idea, this compromise didn't seem so bad.
'Most kids skipping class just to watch baseball during this period are probably no-shows anyway...?'
He figured the smart kids at Munhyeok High wouldn't ditch lessons en masse. The chairman approved readily. But he would soon regret that decision.
"Whoa, Munhyeok High's baseball team is really in the spring tournament."
"They said it'll count for attendance—wanna go?"
"Still gotta keep up with class."
Korean high schoolers had a strong aversion to missing lessons. Attendance was always a struggle, but PR reps Takahina Noah and her friends cleverly spread the word.
"Munhyeok High's a first-timer, so they're probably getting knocked out early. If you miss this, you'll have to wait a whole year for another shot...?"
"………!!"
For most high schoolers, cheering on their school team in tournaments was prime youth content. Now that Munhyeok finally had a shot at it, getting bounced in the first round meant no more games this year?
'Just one game won't hurt, right...?'
The temptation crept in—surely skipping just a day wouldn't matter much. In the end, it drew a decent crowd from Munhyeok High.
"I'm going—I'm a senior, so this might be my last chance as a student..."
"Damn, if you go, I'm going too."
Ticket sales snowballed among Munhyeok students. The baseball team secured a respectable number of fans. ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ On game day,
Takahina Noah and her friends arrived at the stadium.
"This is the National Seonggyungwan Field...!!"
Cherry blossoms in full bloom announced the spring tournament's start, with crowds lining up to enter. A few were baseball fans, but fewer had been to Seonggyungwan Field.
"It's mostly people cheering for their own schools here..."
"Yeah, no student discount? Why bother?"
Your own school's games came with an 80% ticket discount. Few shelled out full price for rivals. Unless you reached Sejong, anyway.
"Whoa, it's huge!"
The Seonggyungwan Field looked grand and intricate, unbelievable as a 600-year-old structure. First-timers naturally wondered.
"Whoa, so everything inside is from 600 years ago too...!?"
"Nah, just the exterior. Inside's all state-of-the-art."
Protests had raged about messing with a world heritage site, but it passed and now served amateur baseball well.
Japan's Cultural Agency had famously modeled Osaka Castle after it, mixing in "good Korean culture" vibes.
"Ah! Jang Yeong-sil statue. That way!"
"He got chewed out endlessly by King Sejong for designing the stadium—poor guy..."
Jang Yeong-sil, who designed and oversaw construction, nailed the first one so well he spent years building more fields.
After scanning tickets, Noah and her friends headed to the cheering section to meet someone. There was Takahina Noah, doing final checks before the game.
"Everyone, you came...!!"
Noah bounced over to greet her classmates. She wore a blue cheer uniform—surprisingly revealing.
"Eek! Noah, you look so cute...!!"
"Right? The guys in the stands won't focus on the game because of you."
"Hehe, thanks!!"
Blushing under the praise barrage, Noah's friends glanced at the field and asked.
"Your brother's playing today too, right? That Ryu Ji senior?"
"Oh, yeah! He's at third base."
They nodded impressed at Ryu Ji's lineup spot. Brother of a friend, after all.
"Starter's gotta be that guy, right? The blond tanned one."
"Oh yeah! The one from opening ceremony."
Seong-muk's impact lingered; they remembered him and assumed he'd start.
⚙ Stadium Announcement ⚙ The game will begin shortly. Top of the 1st, Hanbit High attacks first. "Ah, it's starting soon...!!"
Noah focused on the field, heart pounding. Her long-awaited page of youth was about to unfold.
But something felt off?
"Hoo, huu..."
The pitcher's skin was dark, but his hair was brown, not gold.
And he was shaking so hard from nerves it was visible from the stands.
"...Hassan!?"
Noah cried out in shock.
To her disbelief, the spring tournament opener's starter wasn't Geum Seong-muk—but Hassan Iqbal.
Noah stared at the scoreboard in astonishment.
And then she was even more shocked.
⚔ Munhyeok High Lineup ⚔ 1. Choi Adam SS 2. Do Do-jin 2B 3. Ri Dong-hyeok RF 4. Seok Un-gang C 5. Seo Kyung-su LF 6. Ji Su-yong CF 7. Hassan Iqbal P 8. Takahina Ryu Ji 3B 9. Geum Seong-muk 1B "Eeeeeh...!!?"
A lineup that screamed "we're not even trying to win." Noah let out a childish shriek. ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ There was a perfectly valid reason for the dumpster-fire lineup.
"Seong-muk, let's hide our full strength."
Manager Myeong's conclusion after much deliberation.
Don't go all-out in the first round.
"Care to elaborate?"
Manager Myeong flipped through Do Do-yeon's report. He began unveiling his grand plan.
"First off, our win rate with you starting? A whopping 99%."
"Overwhelming."
"With Hassan? 85%."
"Still solid."
"Exactly. Using you against a weakling like this is like slaughtering a chicken with an ox cleaver."
Hanbit High was the kind of team that belonged out in the first or second round. Better to save me and win anyway.
"Second reason: we can't ignore the second round. Hassan's got potential, but..."
"He's still green."
"Yeah. No way he holds off Geumgang High's heavy hitters. He needs to rack up experience against easier high school teams first."
Bottom line: Burning me in round one leaves us screwed for round two.
I nodded at Manager Myeong's thinking, which mirrored my own. I'd faced Geumgang High multiple times in the game—they weren't pushovers.
'Their lineup's scary, but that ace's waterfall curve from his giraffe-like height? Nightmare fuel.'
Powerhouses lived up to the name.
Do-yeon's report pegged our win rate against Geumgang at a measly 33%.
But that assumed a blind matchup. With our data ghost playing the odds, we never fought fair.
Manager Myeong shoved one line from the Geumgang report in my face.
"Seong-muk, check this out."
"Lemme see... Win rate if we 'hide our strength' in round one...?"
Do-yeon's reports had always offered scenario-based odds, but now they covered even more cases.
The biggest game-changer? "Hiding power." Properly concealing our strength sows chaos in Geumgang's ranks, boosting our win rate to 50%.
'Right, they get cocky and overlook scrubs.'
Geumgang ignored nobodies, hyper-focusing on stars—which bit them when dark horses emerged.
If we hid well, they'd only key on Seok Un-gang. Do-yeon's analysis was top-tier, no contest.
"Solid plan. Let's do it."
So Manager Myeong benched me, Ryu Ji, and Ri Dong-hyeok against the weaklings. Not sidelining us entirely, though.
"You and Dong-hyeok bat only—no big swings. I'll tell Ryu Ji the same."
"Got it."
No need to tip our one-punch power early.
Time to bunt and poke some hits.
"One concern, though."
"Shoot."
"Opening day starter's a huge spotlight for a first-year. The pressure of your debut in the season's first game..."
"Seong-muk, you ever start opener at Bujeon High?"
"...Ahem, just heard stories."
I'd slipped into pre-possession memories. My quick excuse landed; he nodded.
"Sure, it'll be nerve-wracking. But pitchers are like that—grab one out, and..."
"Tension eases up."
"Yep. Hassan's strikeout stuff is elite. Let's trust him."
Hassan: fastball-only slaughterer of normies!
Should handle Hanbit High easy. But...
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "...Huh?"
⚠️ Scoreboard ⚠️ Hanbit High : Munhyeok High 3 : 0
Not even done with the first inning, and the score's already like this? I glanced at the mound.
"Huu, huu...!"
Culprit: Hassan, as expected.
He was wilding fastballs everywhere, gifting runs to Hanbit.
'Bases loaded, no outs...?'
Zero outs somehow. And with me and Ri Dong-hyeok in the field, no warmup pitcher available.
'...Can we salvage this?'
Munhyeok High teetered toward the cliff.
Shit, did we hide our power too well...?