The Protagonist and His Rival Meet
"Everyone, line up... salute!"
"Thank you for your hard work!"
"Thank you for your hard work!"
Even though Busan High was one of Busan's prestigious high schools and the defending champions of last year's President's Cup Golden Lion, they clearly couldn't accept the cold game loss to Haneul High. The faces of the Busan High students were utterly devastated. Ahn Sung-ho's expression as he came out for the handshake was the perfect example.
"........I want to say it'll be different next time, but... I don't know if I can."
"Well, even pros sometimes end up with scores like 6-30. Days like that just happen."
"True. The Oceans were down 14-1 and still came back once."
"Haha, could you stop there? My dad is a huge Tigers fan."
I'd thought we were the same age earlier, but the system had shown he was a second-year. This guy.
"Anyway, if we're going to meet again, let's do it at the national tournament."
"Yes, sir."
After finishing the handshake with Ahn Sung-ho, I glanced toward the dugout and saw the Busan High coach getting absolutely torn apart over the phone.
"Ah, yes, yes. It was all for the experience... No, the shoulder gets stronger the more you use it..."
They were probably criticizing him for not pulling the freshman from the mound even after he'd given up forty runs. Just letting him keep throwing.
'Hmm... Even if the intention was to hide their real strength, they still have to accept the fact that they overworked a first-year until he gave up forty runs.'
We hadn't even thrown that many pitches during our batting barrage—maybe 120 or 140 total. Most of us had hunted the first pitch, and once we noticed the overwork, we all swung at the first pitch on purpose. Even though I usually dragged out at-bats with Yong-kyu Play, the seniors and Hyun-bin had taken some first-pitch strikes on purpose, so in the end, Jo Sung-ho had only thrown around seventy to eighty pitches. About what you'd expect from an average pitcher pushing himself a little.
"Hmm... You guys got a little too excited."
"After only seeing Seojun's fastball all the time, seeing a pitch like that just makes you want to crush it."
"If you're so jealous, why don't you hit my pitches, Jihun?"
".....Damn it, don't beat me with facts, Lee Seojun!"
The Haneul High players weren't worried about Jo Sung-ho's arm so much as they were worried about something else entirely.
Jo Sung-ho couldn't hold back his tears anymore and was crying in his parents' arms. But how did he get to the dugout so fast?
"Sung-ho... Ha, I don't know. It'll work out somehow."
"He'll endure it well. Probably...?"
"Yeah. Good luck in the Weekend League."
With those final words, Ahn Sung-ho quietly walked over to Jo Sung-ho. Then he slapped him hard on the back.
-SMACK!
"You idiot! Are you really crying over something like this?! Everyone has games where they give up forty runs in their life!"
He kept smacking his back. After that, the coach seemed to be doing some serious mental coaching—explaining that he hadn't abandoned Sung-ho but had kept putting him on the mound because he was the only pitcher he could trust. Somehow, it looked like it was ending on a decent note.
'Still, that fastball of his was definitely good enough for the second team.'
If he could just add some breaking balls, he could become a pretty threatening pitcher.
"Uh, yeah... Mom. I made the starting lineup at Haneul High... Huh? Mom, why are you crying..."
He wouldn't be able to match the best sinkerball pitcher in the country right in front of me, but still.
"Nice pitching."
"Ah, here's your glove."
After receiving my glove from Jeong Taehun, I glanced at Kim Sihu... He slowly approached with a face that clearly said 'What?'
Then he looked at Jeong Taehun and said,
"That was truly impressive pitching. Since you obviously can't play games with a catcher's glove... make some time later and take this to the GL Sports branch. The staff will pick out a glove that fits you."
"Ah, thank you."
Jeong Taehun's face lit up with a huge smile at the thought of getting a new glove for free. It was like he'd received an item called Glove Crafting Ticket.
"Alright, let's head back!"
By visiting Busan, I'd gained the experience of watching Choi Dong-il's Iron Arm (H) in person and seeing a living legend pitch right before my eyes. I'd also unintentionally discovered a player who could contribute immediately from the second team. It was a valuable harvest from Busan High.
...
...
...
"Wait, shouldn't I be on the pitchers' bus?"
"Oh, right."
"Haa... I guess there's no point hiding it anymore. You romantic bastard... AAAAAAAGH! Lee Seojun, what is this pain?! My arm hurts so bad I don't think I'll be able to train tomorrow!"
Jeong Taehun had rocketed up from the outfielders' bus and second-team status to the pitchers' bus and first-team spot. When he stood there with a lost expression, not knowing where to sit, I kindly advised him to sit next to the coach.
I'd originally planned to help him adjust since he seemed to have a hard time with that kind of thing, but...
"Ooh, Epinel~ Sitting with your boyfriend?"
"Unnie!"
-SMACK!
"Eek?!"
Because Epinel was sitting right next to my seat, I couldn't help him even if I wanted to. Kim Sihu was proudly occupying a single seat on the high-speed bus that had both two-person and single seats. Most of the second- and third-year pitchers were using the single seats. The only ones in the two-person seats were me, Epinel, the managers, and Jeong Taehun, who was sitting among the bags of the pitchers' luggage that wouldn't fit in the trunk.
'I told him to sit next to the coach...'
Did he really want to travel so quietly? Now I was the only one who felt like I'd done a full marathon through Coach Kim's life story.
"...The arrival time... is faster than I expected?"
"Yeah. Sundays are usually packed with traffic... Well, getting there early is nice!"
Since the game had ended in a cold game—and finished incredibly quickly—the expected arrival time was six o'clock. Making out with Epinel in plain view on the bus was too embarrassing, so I simply drew the curtain on the outside window and occasionally held her hand during the ride.
'Player information.'
Copy Eye (L)
Lucky Shot (R)
Professor (L)
Iron Arm (H)
Copy Eye (L)
Allows you to copy a skill from an opponent who meets certain conditions. Only up to three skills higher than Legendary rank can be copied.
(Currently 1 copied)
Lucky Shot (R)
When a bloop hit occurs, the probability of the fielder committing an error increases.
Professor (L)
The trajectory of the ball and its landing point are displayed as solid lines proportional to defensive ability.
Iron Arm (H)
Stamina consumption is greatly reduced when pitching. Additionally, every time stamina decreases, all stats except stamina increase significantly in proportion. Overall body durability increases dramatically.
'Durability... Does that mean I'm basically becoming a man of steel?'
A skill that turns you into someone who doesn't flinch at dead balls or injuries. In Strike the Show this was treated pretty well, but in real baseball this is just an insanely broken skill...
-Screeech.
"Alright, we'll stop at the rest area for about ten minutes to refuel. Anyone who wants snacks, go get some!"
"Seojun, want to get some skewered beef and rice cakes?"
Well, I already knew this skill was GOAT-tier in real baseball, so I bought some simple snacks at the rest stop, slept soundly the rest of the way, and returned from the Busan trip quite comfortably.
...
...
...
As the new semester began, I felt like a lot of things were changing. For example, with the Weekend League starting soon, the players' nerves were getting extremely sharp, and...
"Yang Uijin, what are your thoughts on the upcoming draft..."
"Kim Sihu, you were the captain of your class at Haneul Middle School. Will you not be this time..."
Reporters had started sticking to those sensitive students like glue.
"Lee Seojun, you're throwing in the high 150s as a pitcher while also hitting. How exactly..."
"Ah, can't you see we're training? If you're not one of those disqualified journalists trying to squeeze out a good article by harassing a first-year high school student who's not used to interviews... please leave quietly. And this area is off-limits to reporters in the first place."
Especially for me—ranked as the top prospect among this year's first-years in both pitching and hitting—even though the Weekend League hadn't even started yet, a ton of press crews were swarming to get stories.
'The coach definitely said he restricted access... How did they get in?'
Looking at the broadcasting logos, they weren't from any particularly famous newspapers or stations. They were bottom-tier outlets. They probably thought if they could land this scoop, they'd become famous and make a lot of money.
"Anyway, everyone please leave. If it were SBBS or MBCC, maybe I'd understand."
After wisely chasing the reporters away, I waited for the revival of Daeji High's baseball team that would soon begin.
'It should start any time now...'
If they didn't register their roster this week, they wouldn't be able to participate in this weekend's league. I wondered how Lee Taehyun would manage to gather the Daeji High players and get the team registered... The news should be coming in soon.
"Ugh, those Daeji kids keep coming to the batting center. That's been Haneul High's batting facility for a long time."
"Hmm... This time I'll go with you."
The conversation between the Haneul High second-team players and Kim Sihu in the corner.
'........! They're here!'
The moment had arrived—the beginning of the early episode where Haneul High's second team clashes with Lee Taehyun from Daeji High.
"I'll follow after class ends."
The meeting between the protagonist and his rival. I just can't miss this.