We Don't Need the Likes of You

"Alright, what pitches do you have?"

"Four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, changeup, and a slider with lateral movement."

If I say sweeper here, he'll probably look at me like I'm some attention-seeking freak.

It was a pitch that would become famous later once Ohtani started using it... Whatever. It's annoying, so I'll just call it a slider.

"Velocity?"

"When I throw it with decent control... upper 140s km/h."

"For a freshman, that's... Alright, you seem pretty talented."

Yang Uijin's eyes sparkled. With the gaze of someone staring at a truly tempting piece of fruit, he quickly stepped into the strike zone area and thrust his mitt out, signaling me to start throwing.

"Just two of each pitch type!"

"Ah, before that, hold on a second."

I drew the strike zone grid on a piece of paper and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠showed it to Yang Uijin.

"This is the strike zone from my perspective, so keep that in mind. Since I already know the signs roughly, just show me the target zone with a number first and then..."

When I held out the paper, Yang Uijin glanced at it lightly before bursting into laughter.

"Haha, kid. You really going to leak your pitching mechanics to a catcher you don't even know is on your side? If you flunk the entrance test, I could just swallow this information whole, you know?"

Yang Uijin asked with a meaningful look on his face.

"That's... Let's talk after you actually catch the ball first."

"Fine!"

Yang Uijin grinned and settled into his stance. The expression that said Let's see how good you think you are suggested that after seeing my mechanics, he'd already pegged me as some flashy but mediocre rookie.

Well, after catching for Haneul High's pitchers every day, a freshman's pitches probably felt like a joke to him.

Zone 7. Slider clipping the line.

Man, what a filthy request right from the first pitch.

Actually, this is perfect.

With this first pitch, I'll burn my image into his brain...!

"Hup!"

-Thump!

The ball I threw with that thought got sucked straight into Yang Uijin's mitt like it was on a string.

............The break must have been pretty big... Wait, he didn't even move his mitt?

It was supposed to be a sharp breaker that would dive from zone 5 into the zone 7 line. It looked like he'd decided to trust me completely and simply planted his mitt ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in zone 7.

....Zone 2. Rising high fastball.

For the second sign, having decided the breaking ball was decent, he called for heat. When I glanced over, I saw Kim Taekyung staring at me grumpily like he hadn't even noticed the breaker, while Epinel stood there with her mouth hanging open, clearly stunned by the power of my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pitch.

"Hup-!"

I wound up with everything I had, twisting my arm slightly to make the ball's tail absolutely filthy. I threw it wondering if he'd even be able to catch this one...

-Crack!

Oh, he caught it.

144 km/h

Well, I guess anything under 150 is considered average these days.

Zone 5. Dead-center fastball?

Oh, I wonder what he's thinking after catching that last one.

If I throw a fastball now, I'll get the Pitching Machine (E) buff and the power will jump too.

Let's see if you can handle this...!

"Hu...up-!"

-CRAAAAACK!!

The sound of the air being ripped apart exploded from Yang Uijin's mitt.

"Ha, this crazy bastard. A guy who throws rising fastballs like it's nothing wasn't from Haneul Middle?"

Yang Uijin's short mutter reached me.

"What the hell is that velocity...!"

149 km/h

Kim Taekyung, who had been watching from the stands, was now visibly shrinking in fear.

"He definitely only played hitter in middle school... A rising fastball? I wonder what else he's hiding... This is getting exciting!"

And Epinel, who was simply shocked by the revelation that I could pitch at all.

Looks like my hidden-ace act is over.

At this rate, I might claim the two-way title before Ohtani does.

... ... ...

"Listen carefully. Our battery isn't perfectly synced yet... but I can tell your control is insane, so can you leave the pitch calling entirely to me? If any hits get through, I'll take full responsibility!"

"Yes, if that's what you want, senior."

"Good. Your pitches are ridiculously violent but your personality is this gentle. It's quite ironic. Then, for the sake of my disciple and your classmate over there, shall we completely demolish the batter in front of us?"

"Sounds good."

"You little punk. I like you."

Grinning, Yang Uijin gave my shoulder a solid smack before returning to the catcher's box with a bright smile.

So he goes this far for people with talent.

Receiving the same attitude he only showed Lee Taehyun in the original story gave me a strange thrill. My body was flooded with the bizarre pleasure of being treated as his equal.

The condition is three straight strikeouts.

Strikeouts? I'll end this with nothing but Ks. Kim Taekyung stepped into the box and started glaring at me with murderous eyes.

Zone 5. Dead-center fastball.

"Wow, this guy's insane?"

A first-pitch four-seamer right down the middle. Perfect.

-Whoosh!

"Ugh?!"

Kim Taekyung's bat cut through empty air. It looked as comfortable as sitting in front of a high-end fan. With flustered expressions, Yang Uijin and Kim Taekyung exchanged words. They were probably talking about how nasty the tail on my fastball was.

My pitching was already at a professional level. With the help of Meister (L), it must have felt like an insurmountable wall. My fastball's spin rate had already passed 2,500. It wasn't quite at the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠level of the peak "Stone Buddha" who once terrorized the majors, but...

It's definitely not something high schoolers can hit.

This pitch would work in the pros too. Whether the results would reflect that, I wasn't sure yet.

Next came the second pitch.

Zone 9. Two-seamer dropping perfectly outside the zone.

Since Kim Taekyung was a lefty, he probably had almost no experience against two-seamers.

-Whoosh!

"Uaaaack!!"

Especially one thrown with the same speed and identical arm slot, diving hard at the end. Unable to swallow his frustration, Kim Taekyung started slamming his bat against the ground.

"Fuck! I have to quit the baseball team because I lost to a damn freshman? Don't make me laugh!"

Yang Uijin looked at the screaming Kim Taekyung with pity.

"Taekyung. There's only one catcher—me—but plenty of shortstops and second basemen. Pitchers are the most valuable. If someone's leaving, shouldn't it be you?"

After telling him to shut up and take his strikeout if he understood, Yang Uijin called for another two-seamer in the same location to the trembling Kim Taekyung.

This time, inside the zone.

"Yes, yes. Your orders are quite picky, senior."

Pitching with a catcher you had good chemistry with was this much fun. Power started flowing into my shoulders.

The third pitch was a two-seamer planted in zone 9 for a called third strike. Kim Taekyung stood there with blank eyes, called out, then immediately started throwing a tantrum about how he still had two more chances...

I don't think you're needed in this baseball club.

If he had any useful skills I might have considered it, but I had zero interest in something with a trash name like Jealousy.

Jealousy? What the hell is that?

-CRAAAAACK!

151 km/h

"Wow, nine pitches, three strikeouts... If that's a record, it's a record."

"UAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!"

-Crack!

In his rage, Kim Taekyung smashed the bat over his knee, then immediately collapsed in pain.

"Aaaaaagh...! My knee! Uaaaaah!!!"

I slowly walked up to the pathetic figure clutching his knee and screaming. Maybe he was hoping I'd say the bet never happened. His eyes brightened, thinking that as a mere freshman I might show some mercy and that he could still talk his way out of this.

"Did you pay someone to get the starting spot? I think a middle schooler would be better than you."

"...What?"

"...Pfft! Ahahaha!! You're actually hilarious!"

"If someone like you is a starter, honestly, applying to this school feels a bit..."

"Right? For our Seojun to stay here, you should hurry up and clear out your room, Taekyung~"

With Yang Uijin's mocking laughter from behind, all Kim Taekyung could do was clench his fists. There was nothing else left for him.

-Screeech.

"What is this, Yang Uijin?"

"Ah, you're here, Kangmin?"

As the starting players of Haneul High School's baseball team and the coach appeared, the whole commotion finally came to an end.

... ... ...

"So that's what happened."

"You crazy bastard!"

-Smack!

"Kwaaaaaaaaah!!"

After Yang Uijin explained the entire situation, he took a knuckle to the forehead from the coach. It was called a forehead flick, but the coach had practically flown over and punched him in the head.

"Ah, what was the name again?"

"It's Lee Seojun."

Upon hearing my name, Heo Kangmin patted my shoulder and said I'd done well.

"Yeah, good work. That guy has a few screws loose and pulls stunts like this often. Still, if he took a liking to you... you must have real talent."

Haneul High School baseball team's vice-captain, Heo Kangmin, glanced at my glove before suddenly asking what position I was aiming for.

"Ah, everything except catcher and manager..."

"Ah, so it was you! The coach has been waiting for..."

"You! The idiot who applied to every position except catcher without thinking!"

Seeing the coach running toward me as well, I had no choice but to run if I wanted to avoid the incoming punch to my face.