Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Tiger Energy Surges!
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We got off the bus at the zoo, but my teammates were all wearing dazed expressions. With the game tomorrow, suddenly telling them to have staring contests with tigers? Yeah, they had every right to look confused.
"Does anyone know why we're doing this?"
"I have no idea... Do you know, Geum Seong-muk?"
"Sunbae, is this really okay...? Shouldn't you say something?"
Seok Un-gang and Do Do-jin were venting their frustrations at me, oblivious that I was the one who pushed for this training. I played innocent and tried to calm everyone down.
"Of course it seems weird. But guys, can I ask you for one favor?"
"A favor...?"
"Manager Myeong Sin-u went through all kinds of backlash before coming to Munhyeok High. Sure, this might look useless on the surface, but he's still our manager. Let's trust him and give it a shot."
"………."
My teammates fell deep into thought.
I could feel Manager Myeong shooting me a glare from afar that screamed, 'You're the one who got the worst backlash, you punk!!' But I quickly looked away.
"Yes, sir! We'll give it our all...!!"
"Yeah, whatever. Let's just try it."
Ji Su-yong and Choi Adam chimed in with their agreement, and the rest nodded reluctantly. With that, I led everyone into the zoo.
[Tiger Zoo]
We followed the signs.
But everyone started sensing something off right away.
"Why are there so few people here?"
"Right? No tourists, barely any staff."
About ten minutes in, we reached the animal enclosures, divided into multiple levels. And they were pretty unusual.
"Aren't those all tigers?"
Cages split into three tiers. Each held tigers. Considering zoos usually dedicate zones to one species, this setup was bizarre.
"Wait, is this it?"
No further paths ahead—it seemed that was the end. I was dumbfounded.
'What kind of zoo is this...?'
On a plot smaller than a neighborhood park trail, just tigers plopped down, calling it a zoo. No wonder there were no visitors.
Still, they all looked plump and well-fed, so at least the feeders were doing their job.
"Well, this might actually be better for training,"
Ryu Ji was right—this could work better than dodging crowds. Staring down tigers amid tourists would've killed the vibe hard.
"Alright, everyone gather up front...!"
Manager Myeong assembled the players. He pulled out a device from his bag, about the size of a packed pouch.
Do Do-jin recognized it immediately.
"Vision Ghost...?"
The high-tech Vision Ghost for testing dynamic visual acuity. Nonexistent in the modern world, but in this setting, it measured batter's eye precisely and conveniently.
Stats windows were most accurate, but this gave solid approximations, beloved by baseball experts.
"Come up one by one for measurements. It won't take long, no need to rush."
Players tested in turn. Results clearly split by batter's eye stat:
A- Takahina, Ryu Ji, Do Do-jin
B- Seok Un-gang, Ji Su-yong, Ri Dong-hyeok
C- Geum Seong-muk, Choi Adam, Seo Kyung-su
Below- Lee Tae-kyung, Hassan
Four groups, but C and below merged into three total.
Manager Myeong cleared his throat and issued orders.
"Head to different tigers based on your scores. Group A to the top Siberian tiger, Group B to the female white tiger, Group C to the regular tigers."
Players dispersed accordingly. Approaching the enclosures, we were shocked.
"Wait, that's not fencing—it's netting...?"
No fences for beasts like tigers—just netting around the whole area. Sturdy-looking, but get too close, and you could touch them.
Around the enclosures: a thick circular line and a sign reading, 'Do not approach. No responsibility for accidents.'
My batter's eye was C+. Lumped into C, I went to the regular tigers—two inside. No full buy-in, but mission was staring contest, so players locked eyes.
They were stunned soon after.
The tigers met their gazes without flinching, staring right through them.
"Whoa...?!"
"For real?"
Matchups formed; players dueled. But one by one, the kings of beasts crushed them.
"Hngh...!!"
Seo Kyung-su held out best in C group, but...
💥 CRITICAL HIT! 💥 KRRRR!!
The tiger's snarling roar made him blink. Seo Kyung-su clutched his head and shook it.
"Ugh, Captain. This ain't easy."
"Hmm..."
True to beasts, their presence was no joke. I stepped past defeated Seo Kyung-su toward the tiger.
"………."
Grrr...
The tiger growled low, locking eyes. A fair fight? Tough. But why fight fair with a tiger?
"WAAAAAARGH...!!!"
I bellowed massively and charged. The tiger blinked in surprise.
I won the stare-down and bolted beyond the line. No desire to be tiger chow.
Might be my imagination, but the tiger seemed pissed at my trick, growling 'Grrr!' Copycats among teammates just got shredded after.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Hidden Piece discovered!] [Victory in staring contest with 'Regular Tiger'!] [Batter's Eye stat rises: C+ → B] 'Oh, nice...!'
One go, and batter's eye jumped a full grade. No wonder it's called a cheat training—effects were insane.
"Manager, lend me the Vision Ghost real quick!"
"Uh, sure!!"
Proof of results? Best motivator.
Beep-! "Whoa, Seong-muk. Your dynamic visual acuity jumped from C to B...!!"
"……!?"
Everyone stared in shock. Vision Ghost tracks eye movement—hard to fake or slack.
I showed them: massive gain from brief training.
"What the hell is this!?"
"How does that even...?"
Teammates' brains short-circuited. But some jumped into action.
"Screw it...!!"
Fired up, they challenged tigers. Soon, hidden piece notifications rolled in.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Seo Kyung-su's Batter's Eye stat...] [Lee Tae-kyung's Batter's Eye stat...] [Kim Jung-hoon's Batter's Eye stat...] Mostly low-stat guys succeeding—weakest tigers easiest, makes sense.
'Ah, should check the white tiger group.'
I headed to the B-rankers.
"………."
"………."
Serious faces. Only Ji Su-yong gawking slack-jawed; others frustrated.
"What, just standing there? No training?"
"Hyung-nim, it's like this...!"
Reason for idling: explained.
"Hm, they ignore us outside the safe line?"
"Yes. But inside's the tiger's attack range—too risky, so we waited out."
No staring contests beyond the white line, out of net reach.
Thought it was gag training; actually risky.
'Can't let these guys slack, though...'
Guaranteed +1 grade—huge for higher ranks. No choice.
'Gotta demo it myself.'
No game injuries from this. Tigers probably wouldn't attack. I approached the female white tiger boldly.
Grrr...
She eyed me warily at safe distance. Well-groomed, fur glossy, elegant.
'Current batter's eye can't win.'
Fresh B won't cut it. But cheats? Possible. Solar Divine Vein to boost stats changes everything.
"Hup...!"
Marked her as 'enemy.' Changes hit:
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ [Solar Divine Vein] [User's stats enhanced!]
>[Batter's Eye: B → B+]
>[Batter's Eye: B+ → A]
'Alright, let's duel...!'
But then:
Mewl, eek!
She yelped like a cat and backed off, face terrified—like scared of me. Notification rang:
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Victory in staring contest with 'Female White Tiger'!] [Batter's Eye proficiency greatly increased!] "Huh...?"
Geared for battle, won freebie.
Why...?
Everyone baffled; only Ji Su-yong's eyes sparkled. He rushed over.
"No way! D-Do you like furries too, hyung-nim...?!"
Big expectations. But I had no clue.
"...What's a furry?"
"Ahh..."
Ji Su-yong deflated, shoulders slumping. What the hell's a furry?!
Never got the answer.
After B group, heading down for break—glanced at A group. But turned away.
'That one's not meant to be cleared.'
Expected zero gains. Way too hard.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ As B group successes trickled in, A group—all A-rank batter's eyes—remained silent.
"No reaction at all."
"...Yeah."
Siberian tiger lounged on bush pile like a simple bed. Yells, net-close approaches—no budge.
"Sigh, are we the only ones leaving empty-handed?"
Do Do-jin was most skeptical initially. Followed since I said trust it; couldn't tell sister Do Do-yeon or she'd freak at the unscientific nonsense.
But teammates succeeding one by one? Made him wonder if 'unexplainable by science' existed.
"Lower tigers too easy."
Ryu Ji yawned hugely. Others gained from level-matched tigers; generals and white tigers too weak—no change.
In forced downtime, they chatted.
"Oh yeah, Noah met Seong-muk, ran into your sister?"
"……!"
Do Do-jin startled.
Noah: rival in linking Seong-muk and sister—serious threat. But Ryu Ji patted his shoulder, laughing.
"Hey, no need to tense up. Your sister and my lil' bro rivals? Sure. But we're teammates?"
"………."
Do Do-jin smirked.
True enough.
"Yeah."
"Hm, guy's not sleeping, though."
"Better give up?"
"No, wait."
Ryu Ji rummaged the net, found something—a hole big enough for a person.
"Oh ho! Be right back."
"Ryu Ji sunbae, what the—!?"
No time to stop; he slipped in. Now: zero safety, same space as tiger.
Grrr...!
Tiger finally interested, rose slowly. Do Do-jin paled.
'What size...!!'
Mountain-sized 'mountain lord.' Wanted to yell run, but feared provoking—stayed silent.
Unlike Do Do-jin's worry, Ryu Ji thrilled. Thrives facing strong foes; this life-death tightrope? Bliss.
KRROAR...!!!
".........!!"
Massive roar echoed. Like, 'React now?' Ryu Ji: fearless post-factory 3-vs-50. Forgot fear.
"Fun, so fun...!"
Berserk eyes gleaming via bloodlust. Minutes passed.
Grrr...
Tiger turned, back to bushes, lay down. Interest gone.
"Whoa, no joke!"
Ryu Ji slipped out. Waving off, voice still buzzing with thrill.
"Ryu Ji sunbae, not scared? How'd you even think to go in...?"
"Hm? My thinking?"
Pondered, then sincere:
"Simple. Just think: for baseball, I'd stake my life."
".......!?"
"Curious too—what if my good eyes got better? Results time!!"
Teammates rushed post-roar. Borrowed Vision Ghost, retested.
Beep, beep, beeeep...! "Gasp...!!"
New top score.
Beat Siberian tiger: Ryu Ji's A batter's eye ballooned to A+.
He pumped his fist joyfully. Soon, training officially ended.
"Training over...!"
Sunset nearing.
Most gained +1 stat—no need to drag.
From 'What kinda training...' to 'How's this training even!!' long ago. Manager Myeong beamed at the turnaround.
Felt bad for pushing amid suspicion, his stress. To cement as his achievement:
"Manager, I don't get it—mind explaining the principle?"
He nodded eagerly. Staged WWE, but teammates curious why vision improved— all ears.
"Joseon lands teemed with tigers. Tiger disasters were top terrors back then."
"Merchants fought with home defense bats. Still terrifying. Facing man-eaters with just wood? For family heads with much to protect—ultimate horror."
"........."
All swallowed, rapt. Manager's BS skills shone—sounded legit.
"Ancestors' tiger terror etched in DNA, ingrained deep. Shedding centuries, millennia of fear? No easy feat."
"Yet suppress instinct, stand firm unbowed before tiger!! Fearless against any pitch! Unscientific? Yes—but revolutionizes your mental game beyond science...!"
"............!!"
"Got it, men...!?"
"Yes, Manager...!"
Roaring response.
Manager smugly stroked nose.
One unsatisfied: Do Do-jin. No Ryu Ji-style net crawl, no gains.
"...For baseball, stake life, huh."
Fuming.
Others risked life for baseball; he'd nearly quit from baseball pain.
'Still scared...? Of what?'
Manager's words, Ryu Ji's mixed—head spun. Deep breath cleared eyes.
'...I'll win. No matter what.'
Vowed: return, challenge till victory.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Knock knock-
"Commissioner, may I enter?"
"Come in."
Secretary opened door: middle-aged man at desk, paperwork.
Suit-straining muscles, neat beard, intellectual glasses. Epitome of balanced prowess.
"Commissioner Do Hak-hoon, tomorrow's schedule as is?"
"............"
Glanced calendar: circle next day.
Pondered, shook head.
"Got a game I wanna see tomorrow. Shift evening."
"Your son? Do-jin, right...?"
"You."
"…!!"
Tap, tap.
Rare deep growl from ever-gentle man. Steady desk taps—sign of ire. Secretary tensed max.
"Recommend ignoring irrelevants. Especially what you needn't know."
"S-Sorry...!! I'll clear the schedule!"
Secretary fled.
Confirmed gone, Do Hak-hoon rose quietly. Picked up desk photo.
"Hope the kids are well..."
Pic: beaming young Do Do-yeon, Do Do-jin.
Korea's baseball pinnacle: Korean Baseball Association's 57th Commissioner. Do Hak-hoon sighed deeply again.