VS Haneul High (Second Team)

"Hmm, does Sihu know I'm here?"

"No idea. I only just found out myself. More importantly, how the hell did you get all the way over here..."

"Come on, how could I just sit there when everyone suddenly sprinted out? I had to follow and see what was going on."

I casually chatted with one of the second-team players while standing in the batter's box. Since this second-stringer had recognized me from my voice, if I just kept quiet like this... I might be able to avoid getting caught by Kim Sihu.

"Anyway, since I came in secret, don't tell Kim Sihu—"

"Sihu! The Daeji High catcher right now is Lee Seojun!"

"You son of a bitch."

Why the hell would you blurt that out?

Ha, things aren't following the original story at all.

Getting hit like this in the first inning... In the original plot, the Daeji High catcher should've gotten injured from a hit-by-pitch. Instead, he couldn't handle Lee Taehyun's fastball and got hurt anyway. And here I was, trying to hide my identity, only for that benchwarmer to completely blow my cover.

Well, since it's come to this...

I raised my mitt upward, signaling for a four-seam fastball.

Lee Taehyun, whose stats mostly exceeded 80, already possessed abilities that would make him a perfectly serviceable active roster player in the KBL right now, even if he was still a bit short of the very top. His velocity was ridiculously high, and with well-rounded 80s across the board, he was a true all-rounder who could be utilized in almost any situation.

His batting stats didn't show up, but those are probably all 80s too.

Does it even make sense for a first-year to have stats like that? But then again, he was the original protagonist who would go on to sweep every championship ring in the major leagues later, so I guess it checked out.

Lee Taehyun wound up exactly like Seon Dong-yeol and unleashed a blazing fastball.

-BOOM!

Whoa, that's got some serious weight to it. Is this how Yang Uijin felt when he caught my pitches?

It was heavy. Incredibly so. Even though it had been a long time since I'd last crouched behind the plate, it didn't feel unfamiliar at all. It was far too natural.

Come to think of it, by putting on the catcher's mask this time, I'd now played every single position.

Wow. Never thought the day would come when I'd play every position in baseball.

In my previous life, I'd only ever played catcher and center field. Here, I'd played the infield, pitched, patrolled the outfield, and now caught too.

I waited for Lee Taehyun's next pitch with a big grin on my face when a system window suddenly popped up.

Huh?

What the—? Out of nowhere?

Are you kidding me?

What kind of ridiculous acquisition conditions were these? Iron Arm (H) wasn't nearly this strict!

Finishing top 3 in international tournaments four times basically meant getting called up for the national team every single time and placing in the top three. For the national high school tournaments, counting the Weekend League, Blue Dragon Flag, Phoenix Flag, and Presidential Cup, that meant winning at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠least ten out of fifteen possible titles.

Well, to be honest, I basically got Iron Arm thanks to Choi Dong-il anyway...

Since the bar for Iron Arm had been set so low, it really drove home just how brutally difficult it was to obtain a normal History-grade skill. That was probably why the Guaranteed History-Grade Skill Random Draw Ticket I currently held felt even more precious.

I definitely need to use this at the International Baseball Museum or the Hall of Fame in America.

Of course, skills like Son of the Wind (H) and Bomber (H) were plenty overpowered, but if I could get American History skills like the ones Kim Sihu had—Big Unit (H), Control Magician (H), Born to K (H)—or even Japanese ones like Tornado (H) or Swordsman (H), I'd want those too.

For now, the maximum number of Legendary-grade or higher skills I could hold through Copy All (L) was three. With Iron Arm and this brand-new, still-locked God of Baseball (H), I had already filled two of those three slots.

That meant the skill I got from the draw ticket would essentially be my final History-grade skill.

Unless Copy All evolves or something.

But I'd never seen a skill increase in rank before. Three was probably the limit.

Hmm... Honestly, it had appeared so suddenly. Maybe once I finished my third year of high school, I'd get a rough idea of what would happen.

Second pitch, a forkball dropping down low.

I sent the sign to Lee Taehyun and lowered my mitt.

-WHOOSH!

The second pitch resulted in an immediate swing and miss. After throwing batting-practice-level fastballs earlier, mixing in such a tricky breaking ball must have been shocking.

"What the? Was he holding back his power?"

"No, I didn't exactly mean to hide it. The catcher just couldn't handle it... but yeah, I guess you're right."

One of a catcher's virtues: talking nonstop to completely mess with the batter's head.

Of course, there's always the chance of getting hit with the same tactic.

For example, Park Donghwan. Or Park Donghwan. Or Park Donghwan...

Ahem.

If I kept going, Park Donghwan might show up at Seoul High swinging a bat.

"Anyway, I'll think about that later."

The Haneul High bench looked visibly upset as they trudged back after striking out. I took off the catcher's mask and looked toward their dugout. Sure enough, Kim Sihu was storming over with pure rage on his face.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down. I wasn't planning to do anything at the plate. I'm just filling in at catcher for them. Don't you want to win fair and square? Those guys over there said they'd count it as a win for us if Daeji only scores one run."

"...Tsk. Fine. I'll give you a walk, so just get your ass to first base."

"Got it."

Since I'd made a deal with Kim Sihu, I had to prove myself at the plate.

There's no benefit for me if I carry the team and let Lee Taehyun win.

This was a match where the protagonist, Lee Taehyun, needed to grow. What good would it do if I scored a run?

-WHOOSH!

"Damn it...!"

Just as expected. Even though Lee Taehyun and I both reached base, the Daeji batters kept hitting into double plays, so every opportunity vanished beautifully. The score remained stuck at 18-0 on this knife-edge of a game. After the massive first-inning meltdown, things had been relatively smooth sailing.

Hurry up and get here already...!

How long was this going to take? Daeji High's starting catcher, Choi Younghoon.

Time had flown by, and we were just about to enter the top of the sixth. After Daeji's batter was blown away by a string of strikeouts and trudged back to the dugout, Lee Taehyun patted his shoulder, trying to look like everything was fine.

...He's not coming?

If this kept up, Daeji wouldn't have a single catcher who could handle Lee Taehyun's pitches. Without a proper catcher to receive him, his velocity would ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be restricted. His once terrifying fastball that struck fear into batters like missiles from a bomber would turn into nothing more than easy batting practice balls.

He wouldn't even be able to win the national team selection... no, not even the Weekend League.

I mean, if he really doesn't show, it's not exactly my problem, but still... this feels wrong.

I was even considering offering him a spot on our Haneul High team if it came to that, but...

-CLACK!

"...Taehyun."

"Younghoon-hyung!"

Thank god, you bastard.

If he'd been any later, I would've had to pitch through the sixth inning myself.

With no time to spare for a proper reunion, I quickly took off the catcher's mask and handed it to Choi Younghoon.

"Here. It's your spot."

"...You came in during the latter half of the first inning? Thanks for holding down the fort all this time."

"Don't mention it."

After watching the birth of what seemed like a truly touching battery, Choi Younghoon and Lee Taehyun cleanly shut down the sixth inning before heading to the plate on offense.

And then...

"That guy's slider still isn't fully under control. He's only aiming it inside to left-handed batters."

"...Is that so? Thanks."

Choi Younghoon picked up his bat and slowly walked to the plate. Through a filthy ten-pitch Yong-kyu Play, he managed to draw a walk...

In a situation like this, I couldn't allow any more trolling from the extras.

"You, just close your eyes and stand there. Don't try anything."

The following extra player closed his eyes and successfully reached base after a full-count battle.

"Just strike out nicely. Don't swing like you think you can do something. Die quietly and set the table for Taehyun."

The next two batters struck out, leading to a very protagonist-like scenario in the bottom of the sixth: two outs, runners on first and second, and Lee Taehyun coming to the plate.

-CRACK!

"Foul!"

On the first pitch, Lee Taehyun barely managed to foul off Kim Sihu's slider.

I had returned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the stands with Epinel. Rather than worrying about whether Lee Taehyun would strike out, I was calculating something else.

How many runs will Taehyun drive in with this hit?

Well, he's gone two-for-two with a homer-like fly ball so far.

Thanks to the miraculously continued batting order, this became the third showdown between Lee Taehyun and Kim Sihu.

On the second pitch, Lee Taehyun softly tapped a four-seam fastball right down the middle, turning it into a foul home run.

He's getting excited.

Where did all that advice about Randy Johnson's pitching style I gave him go?

The third pitch flew off weakly... until—

-CRAAAAAAAAACK!

It became a massive blast that slammed straight into the fence. Choi Younghoon, surprisingly fast for a catcher, rounded third and slid home just in time.

"Yes! We got one run!!"

Daeji High : Haneul High (Second Team) 1 - 18

Thanks to the Haneul High bench's declaration that they'd count it as a win if Daeji scored even a single run...

The winner was—

"Nice!!"

The Daeji High baseball team.