The First Victory and the Locker Room Victory Lap
After I scored that one goal, the second half kicked off once more.
Was Inaho shaken by the shock of his keeper conceding? Unlike the polished performance in the first half, his play dropped sharply, and before I knew it the possession had flipped—Poongwol High at 64 percent, Inaho at 36.
Of course it was still one-zero, but the momentum had already turned.
[Ah… unfortunate! Mid-range shot from Lee Tae-yang, just wide!]
“Ah, sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. Let’s just keep going like this.”
Even among Inaho’s players, someone was having a banner second half.
Especially Yoo Hee-sung kept testing our defense.
His razor-sharp dribbles left our defenders frozen like scarecrows, and every time he dismantled our line and created a clear chance.
But every single time…
“Mad! He saved it again!”
“I love you, Tae-woo!”
I stood there as Inaho’s wall and would not allow even one goal past me.
Whether it was a rocket shot from Yoo Hee-sung or a cunning chipped shot, every single one was stopped cold by the tips of my fingers.
Actually, a goalkeeper…
can’t win the match by himself, but if he doesn’t let a single goal in, he doesn’t lose.
But the keeper doesn’t just not concede—he actually scores too?
“Then… we win, right.”
* * *
“Ah…”
I couldn’t help the sigh that escaped me.
In that one-zero tie, I’d gone for the left corner with absolute confidence and smashed it hard, but Jung Tae-woo reacted exactly like he’d read my mind and tipped it over the bar.
“Different from middle school, huh?”
Jung Tae-woo’s growth had been unbelievable, but I wasn’t about to sit back.
‘Still, I can’t give up—there’s definitely a chance coming.’
Not long after, the chance arrived.
A teammate picked off the opponent’s midfield ball and fed me a perfectly timed pass.
I scanned the area instantly.
“One defender ahead, two more behind.”
I sprinted full tilt toward the first one.
I gathered my breath and unleashed the rainbow flick. As the ball arced behind me, my heart slammed against my ribs.
It was perfect. The ball flew over the defender’s head. The shocked expression on his face flashed by.
The second defender lunged. I stepped the ball left with my right foot, then yanked it back to the right in the same instant. The sound of his ankles tangling was music.
I sprinted straight for goal.
My lungs were burning, but I kept my eyes on the net.
“Ha… ha…”
Right then my third-year senior Kim Jun-ho appeared on my flank, so I made the call in a heartbeat.
I pulled my leg back as if shooting, spotted Jung Tae-woo shifting his stance, and immediately tried a no-look pass.
The ball flew straight into Jun-ho’s waiting foot. My senior didn’t hesitate—he blasted it.
“It’s in!”
I roared and clenched my fist. Watching the trajectory, my heart felt like it was going to explode.
But Jung Tae-woo’s reflexes were lightning.
He saw it was a pass, spun instantly, and leapt.
“Zing—”
The ball brushed his fingertips and changed direction.
“No way…”
“Beep beep—”
* * *
“Hey, you adorable little—”
From far away I saw Senior Min-woo sprinting at full speed.
‘Eh? Why isn’t he stopping?’
“Kugh!”
Senior Min-woo slammed into me. His arm locked around my neck and I couldn’t breathe.
“You defended like trash today, but thanks to you I’m still alive.”
“Kyaaah… okay, so first—”
“Kyaaah I love you, Tae-woo!”
“Aaaah—okay okay, just come down first!”
“HAHAHAHA!”
Amid the laughter of our Poongwol High students, someone walked over.
“Congratulations on the win, Jung Tae-woo.”
It was Yoo Hee-sung. His expression was complicated.
I finally escaped Min-woo’s arm, took a breath, and looked at him.
During the match we’d been rivals, but now it was over.
‘Given Jung Tae-woo’s personality, he’d have mocked me for claiming to be his eternal rival with that smug look…’
“Yeah, you played well too.”
‘Do I really have to play along?’
Yoo Hee-sung hesitated a moment.
“Why the small talk?”
‘He’s going to ask when I started practicing that move, isn’t he? Ever since middle school we’ve been rivals—curious, right?’
“You and I should go to Manchester United together.”
I stared blankly, then snorted a laugh.
Oh, right. This guy really was a Manchester United fan.
“Hey, Yoo Hee-sung, are you teasing me right now?”
“No, I’m serious!”
“So what? You want me to run around Old Trafford in a Man United jersey screaming ‘Glory glory Man United’?”
“That’d be cool! Let’s do it together!”
Yoo Hee-sung’s eyes sparkled.
I remembered the YouTube videos he used to send his promising juniors about the greatest ten reasons Manchester United had become great, and it cracked me up even more.
“You don’t happen to have those Man United history videos—the ‘Why Manchester United Is Great’ ones?”
“Eh? How’d you know? Those are all my videos!”
“So you’re a Man United fan too. After seeing them… how are they? Do they look good?”
“But I’m a Man City fan?”
“Huh? What?”
“I’m a Man City fan.”
“Ha, but you know those videos…”
“Well, I just like blue better. The six-one Man City win in the Manchester Derby was legendary.”
Yoo Hee-sung’s face twisted.
“Right now Man United is the stronger one.”
He was right. The novel’s title was , after all.
Starting in 2030 Man United had exploded in power and, after snatching Yoo Hee-sung, they were back to the golden-ages-of-Ferguson level.
Meanwhile Man City had tanked hard from financial woes, key players’ injuries, and a few bad managerial calls, and now they were barely holding mid-table. The sky-blue glory had been a distant dream for years.
“Jee-sung, what are you doing over there? Hurry up!”
“Okay, coming!”
“See you later. When we meet again I’ll tell you exactly how great Man United are.”
I watched his retreating back and shook my head.
“Again the villain Jung Tae-woo, huh?”
As a lifelong Man City supporter who’d shared the spotlight with him back in the Kim Chan-ki days, I couldn’t accept Man United being superior in another world.
In my heart Man City would always be the best.
“Tae-woo, enough. Let’s head to the locker room.”
“Yeah, coming.”
* * *
We stepped into the locker room and the coach walked straight over with a complicated look.
‘He’s probably going to scold me for walking off mid-match.’
“Well done, Tae-woo.”
“Eh?”
This was weird. The reaction was completely different from what I’d expected.
“I said well done! Did you think I’d let you off easy?”
“Uh… well, I walked off without your permission.”
The coach chuckled and lightly ruffled my hair.
“Idiot.”
“Even the sweeper position was hated at first, but one player completely changed the image.”
“You, prove to everyone that your style of play can be accepted too.”
Even European club coaches would have been furious at being told to ignore their authority, but…
Knowing the outcome, I’d already accepted this was the only way.
Still, the coach’s reaction was completely unexpected.
Honestly, I was moved. Here was a manager who actually understood his own player.
“I’m sorry. Next time I’ll talk to you first.”
“You’re not allowed to say you won’t.”
“Hahaha.”
“Yeah, you can’t just waste your personal flair like that. But then why not switch to a pure striker—”
“Absolutely not!”
I didn’t know what “delete” meant, but I wasn’t about to find out. I shut it down firmly.
Right then a voice came from outside the door, as if guided by an invisible hand.
“Coach, the awards ceremony is ready!”
“Fine, if you don’t want to… but I hate wasting that save. Let’s go. We need the trophy.”
As we stepped onto the pitch, a stage and trophy waited.
We climbed the steps and waited. The noise around us died down. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the result.
“Congratulations to this season’s champion…”
The tension was unbearable.
“Poongwol High!”
“WAAAAAAA!”
Explosive cheers erupted from the stands.
The captain lifted the trophy high and roared, and the other students hugged one another, screaming.
Honestly, I hadn’t expected to feel this happy.
I’d won countless Premier League trophies and individual awards; what was there about a high-school trophy to excite me?
I was ready to put on a formal smile.
But maybe it was because it was my first victory as a goalkeeper.
Against all expectations, warmth bloomed in my chest.
“Hey, hey Jung Tae-woo, why are you standing there like you’re in a drama?”
“Eh?”
Before I could answer, a cold stream of water slammed into my face.
“Ah, cold!”
“What the—water spray? You look even hotter.”
“FUHAHAHAHA.”
Well, no more thinking for now. I had to ruin this first.
“Tae-yang, you’re dead.”
“Eheheh, you can’t catch me~”
Lee Tae-yang grinned and bolted. I immediately gave chase.
“Hey! Today I’m really going to—”
I finally grabbed his shoulder.
“Tae-woo, calm down. Your face is really weird right now.”
“Huhuhu, you’re the one who’s dead.”
“Tae-woo, I brought a surprise with thoughtfulness~”
Senior Min-woo winked and handed me a huge water bottle.
“Hey, Min-woo hyung, don’t—wait—”
I grabbed the bottle without hesitation and dumped the entire contents over Tae-yang’s head.
In an instant Lee Tae-yang was drenched.
“FUHAHAHA! Tae-woo looks even better when he’s wet, but our Tae-yang is—”
Tae-yang, shaking off the water, shouted in frustration.
“What about me, hyung? I’m super popular with girls too!”
“Right, Tae-yang is really handsome.”
“Totally real, right?”
“Okay, you’re handsome. Happy now?”
The surrounding seniors burst out laughing.
While we all stood there grinning at one another, the announcer’s voice echoed across the field.
“Now, the Most Valuable Player award for this tournament is about to be announced.”