Wings on My Shoulder: VS Seoul High [End]
'This time I came out wearing them, huh? The wings.'
I glanced at the 'wings' firmly attached to my left shoulder, then slowly picked up my bat and jogged toward the coach waiting at first base.
"Huh? Why are you bringing the bat all the way over here..."
I handed it off like a relay baton and accelerated again, heading home.
By the time I rounded third, I saw Park Donghwan slumped on the ground, completely frozen, while Lee Sanghwi stared at him with a look of pity.
…He must have called the pitches alone. Not once did Lee Sanghwi shake him off during those five innings on the mound.
They were still just high school kids. A little provocation had probably gotten under Park Donghwan’s skin, and he’d demanded the two-seamer. Lee Sanghwi, not wanting to burden his battery mate, had reluctantly gone along with the call.
Honestly, no matter what pitch had come, I was confident I would have taken it deep. The only thing that felt off was the idea that Park Donghwan had “given up” this home run because of his own stubbornness.
Still, I’m not crazy enough to walk over there and say, “It would’ve been a homer no matter what you called, so stop beating yourself up.”
A little self-reflection would help him grow. By the time we met again, he’d be a much better catcher—the kind these cheap provocations wouldn’t work on anymore.
Seoul High is a powerhouse that ranks inside the national top 16. Prove your worth!
✅ Multi-Hit (1/1)
✅ Record 1+ Home Run (1/1)
✅ Showcase Spectacular Defense (1/1)
🎁 Reward: Epic-Grade Skill Copy Ticket
Let’s use it now.
Target: Lee Sanghwi. Skill to copy: Fireball (E).
Successfully copied Fireball!
Name:Lee Seojun
Age:17
Position:Starting Pitcher (SP), Center Fielder (CF)(RHP / Switch Hitter)
BATTER ABILITIES
Power: 84 Speed: 86 Stamina: 76
Accuracy: 84 Defense: 93
PITCHER ABILITIES
Control: 95 Velocity: 155 km/h
Stamina: 76 Stuff: 94 Mentality: 99
SKILLS
Copy All (L), Lucky Shot (R), Meister (L), Decisive Pitch (R), Pitching Machine (E), Professor (L), Fireball (E)(NEW!)
Perfect. That brings me to seven skills now.
I returned to the dugout feeling satisfied, only to be greeted by—
-THWACK! THWACK!
“Whoa, the freshman actually delivered!”
“Zero manners, but we believed in you, Lee Seo-joon!”
“Damn it, I like you, Lee Seojun!”
Who the hell was that last one?
Obviously Yang Uijin. I endured the ritual first-home-run beating, then walked straight up to Coach Kim.
“Coach, for Seoul High’s next offensive inning…”
“Sure. If you want to pitch, go ahead. Do what you feel is right.”
“I… I hadn’t even said I wanted to pitch yet…”
“How could I miss that look on your face that says you’re dying to throw?”
As expected, talking with Coach was easy.
“Uijin, put the mask on and let’s go.”
Hoping the next batters would take their time and eat up as many outs as possible, I dragged Yang Uijin to the practice mound right beside the dugout.
“You already know the pitch mix… I’ll just loosen up a little—”
He thought it would be a simple shoulder warm-up and casually put on the catcher’s mask, but…
“No. The version of Lee Seojun that existed inside your head yesterday is dead.”
“?”
I informed him that a curveball had been added to the arsenal.
“Whatever, it’s just one extra curve. Throw it.”
Yang Uijin didn’t seem particularly bothered and simply told me to pitch, but—
-BOOM!
156 km/h
“……Holy shit.”
Yang Uijin couldn’t even glove my first pitch and let it sail right past him.
“Hey! What kind of catcher does that?!”
“Just take the mask off already.”
It was a delivery without a leg kick, so his timing had been off, but when the second-years—including Heo Kangmin—started loudly roasting him from the dugout, Yang Uijin’s temper flared.
-SMACK!
“Fine, it’s just a practice game anyway. (Roughly paraphrasing Heo Kangmin’s cheap shot) Hey, Heo Kangmin! You try catching it then, you son of a—”
From the second pitch onward, he handled my stuff without any trouble. As expected of the nation’s top high school catcher.
“Man, that’s insane. How is a monster like that only a freshman?”
“I’m not sure either… but at least for the rest of this year, the only time I’ll have to face him is during the intra-squad game. That’s a relief.”
“Wow, that is genuinely comforting to hear.”
The dugout was buzzing with comments about my new delivery.
Honestly, the real monster is Yang Uijin—he’s catching mid-150s fastballs and 144 km/h sliders without breaking a sweat while still in high school…
I had the system skills to thank for my growth, but Yang Uijin was just a natural freak.
“Seojun, seriously, if the pro team I end up with doesn’t draft you, just go straight to the majors. You’re going to destroy the KBO.”
“That sounds like tampering…”
“Strike three, change!”
I still hadn’t finished my bullpen session with Yang Uijin when Haneul High’s offense was already retired.
Lee Sanghwi really is something else.
I’d thought the earned runs would rattle him, but my grand slam seemed to light a fire under him instead. His pitching had only grown sharper and cleaner.
Now it was our turn to take the field.
“All right, shall we head out? Our little ‘monster’?”
“Monster? The ‘wings’ thing is already cringy enough.”
“Well, it does sound like something Kangmin would come up with.”
“Did you purposely avoid getting the wings? At this rate…”
“Haha, no. Kangmin hit four homers in four at-bats during the tryouts. I only had three homers and a walk.”
So you were a monster too…!
… … …
“Sanghwi, I’m sorry. I got caught up in the provocation and called for the two-seamer…”
“It’s fine. It would’ve gone out no matter what pitch I threw.”
Meanwhile, in Seoul High’s dugout.
After giving up a grand slam to Lee Seojun, the score had gone from 5-4 to 5-8. Still, they had managed to score four runs off Kim Sihu—Haneul High’s ace. As long as nothing went terribly wrong, Seoul High’s players believed they could still mount a comeback.
Haneul High’s pitching had always been rumored to be far weaker than their hitting. Even though Kim Sihu and Lee Seojun had joined the staff, they had already figured out Kim Sihu, and Lee Seojun’s primary position was center field, not DH. Unless Lee Surin moved from DH to center, there shouldn’t be any major—
Lee Surin (DH) → (CF)
Lee Seojun (CF) → (DH/P)
“……Ah.”
A collective groan slipped from Seoul High’s bench.
Just as the ‘wings’ on his left shoulder suggested, the figure now wore a pitch-black glove instead of the white one he used in the outfield.
“It’s fine. He must be exhausted by now. If they’re sending out a tired player, their bullpen must be in trouble too—”
-CRACK!
152 km/h
“Just watch the ball all the way and foul it off—”
-CRACK!
154 km/h
“Stay alive as long as possible—”
-CRACK!
157 km/h
“Strike! Batter out!”
“What the hell is that pitch…”
The coaching staff who had been talking about ways to come back by attacking a supposedly fatigued Lee Seojun fell silent the moment their confident cleanup hitter returned to the dugout without even getting a swing off.
That pitch might be untouchable even if they brought in pros.
“…The freshmen are going to be pitied.”
“Anyway, once that guy turns pro, we’ll have to compete against him too.”
“With that kind of talent… he’s a lock for the national team.”
Some felt fear. Others felt anticipation at the thought of sharing a roster with him one day. Either way, every single player on Seoul High shut their mouths as the next batter stepped in.
“Strike. Batter out!”
“……I’ll be back.”
“Don’t go down on three pitches, Lee Byungkyun.”
“Yeah, two strikeouts incoming.”
“Hey, you little—!”
Seoul High’s Lee Byungkyun grabbed his bat and walked to the plate.
… … …
“Good. One batter left.”
After sending the fifth batter down on three straight strikes without him leaving the box, Yang Uijin gave me a quick rundown on the final hitter and the team’s core player, Lee Byungkyun.
“Byungkyun swings at almost everything. He even turns pitches outside the zone into hits. The guy just makes contact.”
“Hmm… If he’s going to swing at everything anyway… how about we do this?”
“……Got it. You’re tougher than you look, huh?”
Yang Uijin seemed to like my idea and headed to the mound. Lee Byungkyun stood in the box radiating intense fighting spirit. His fierce determination to make contact and get on base washed over me.
-CRACK!
144 km/h
My first pitch was deliberately taken off a bit of velocity. Lee Byungkyun swung hard and fouled it off loudly.
-CRACK!
140 km/h
He fouled off the second pitch too. The count was 0-2.
Shall we end this?
Third pitch. Time to use the skill I copied from Lee Sanghwi.
Fireball (E). It dramatically boosted fastball velocity while also increasing whiff rate.
It won’t be easy.
I threw the ball with everything I had toward Yang Uijin’s mitt.
-BOOM!!
“……Damn it.”
“Whoa, that ball is nasty.”
Lee Byungkyun couldn’t even get his bat around and went down swinging for a strikeout.
158 km/h
Nine pitches, three strikeouts. I closed out the game.
Seoul High vs Haneul High practice game, final score 5:8.
Haneul High victory.