Chapter 78
Chapter 78
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: New Experience -3
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“···Hey.”
“Yeah?”
“What's··· your dream?”
“···My dream? All of a sudden?”
At my question, Ji-woo widens her eyes and looks at me.
Hmm.
I admit, it was a pretty random question, even to me.
But I suddenly got curious.
What is Ji-woo's dream?
“Well, for me, it’s obviously to succeed as a chef.”
Even with the sudden question, Ji-woo answers without hesitation.
“Succeeding as a chef··· what does that mean, exactly?”
“Well, if you think about it generally, it could be becoming a chef at a hotel or a famous restaurant. Or maybe opening your own place. But the standard for success is different for everyone, so I can’t really pin it down to one thing.”
“Hmm. What’s your standard for success?”
“Me? I’m sure. I’m going to open my own restaurant. The reason I decided to study cooking was because I wanted my own place.”
Ji-woo says this with a determined face, and she looks really cool.
Being able to answer a question like this without any hesitation must mean she knows herself very well.
“···You’re cool.”
“All of a sudden?”
“No, just. It’s cool to have a dream.”
“What, so you’re just figuring out now that your big sis is cool?”
Ji-woo shrugged her shoulders, and when I gave a small laugh, she started giggling too.
I asked.
“The restaurant··· in Korea?”
“Hmm, well?”
Ji-woo shrugged.
“I’d rather open it in Europe than in Korea.”
“···Why?”
“Why? Because my major is Western cuisine. It’s cooler to succeed at the source, right? Hmm. First, I’ll have a main branch in Italy. Then, I’ll open a second branch in the UK. What do you think? Cool, right?”
“Cool.”
“Ha, it’s weird how you’re just agreeing with me today. Lee Ji-an.”
She grumbles, but the corners of her mouth are turned up. Seeing that, I can’t help but smile too.
Just like anyone else, Ji-woo must be weak to praise.
“But why the UK for the second branch? I heard the food there is really bad.”
“Exactly. Because those kids are always eating bad food, they’ll go crazy for my food, won’t they? Think of it as charity work.”
“···That sounds a lot like something my dad and I would say.”
“You catch on quick. You have good sense.”
Ji-woo laughs.
“Well, actually, there are a lot of famous restaurants in the UK. Restaurants that are considered among the best in the world. And a lot of chefs. I want to stand side-by-side with people like that.”
“I see···.”
Seeing Ji-woo get serious about her main job is quite a different sight. She gets serious when talking about this kind of stuff too.
Because we’ve been friends for so long, we’ve never really had a serious conversation like this.
So that was Ji-woo's dream.
“Then what about you?”
“···Me?”
“What’s your dream? Well, I guess it’s to become the world’s best soccer player, right?”
This time, Ji-woo asked me, and I fell into thought for a moment.
Hmm. My dream.
I don’t know.
There are a few things that come to mind right away.
Well, continuing to win games from now on··· not getting injured··· helping the seniors and achieving a high rank.
Those are the kinds of goals I have.
But those aren’t my dream.
They’re just goals right in front of me.
I believe a dream isn’t something in front of you, but something behind you.
A force that pushes your back toward the goal in front of you.
Isn’t that what a dream is?
In that sense, I couldn't call those things my dream.
So then, what is my dream?
My dream is···
It’s difficult, but I think it might be to be able to be proud of myself.
To be able to tell Ji-woo that I’m a soccer genius without feeling guilty.
Thinking about it, that has been my driving force.
The reason I could work hard at tough training, the reason I wanted to win every game—it was all to keep my lie from being exposed.
So, in the end, isn’t my dream that?
To be able to say I’m a soccer genius without feeling guilty inside.
To be able to stand proudly in front of Ji-woo.
“What kind of amazing dream is it that you have to think so hard about it?”
“···Ah. Well, yeah. To become the best player.”
I nod as I answer.
Becoming the best player isn’t exactly my dream, but to achieve my dream, I have to become the best player, so it isn’t wrong.
“Then you’ve already achieved it, haven’t you?”
“···Huh?”
“Haven’t you? Everyone says so. That our Ji-an is the best. You’ve already achieved your dream.”
At Ji-woo’s words, I give a small smile and shake my head.
“I’m still far from it. Well, I mean. I haven’t yet.”
“You’re still far? What kind of standard is that?”
Is the standard high?
It’s not that the standard is high, it’s just that there are so many geniuses in the world.
I’m still far from it.
“Geniuses are naturally strict with themselves.”
“···What are you talking about.”
See?
The fact that I still feel guilty in a corner of my heart means I’m still far away.
Well, whatever.
As we walked and chatted, we arrived at the center of the mall before I knew it.
I looked around··· and finally found the reason I brought Ji-woo here.
A Puma store came into view.
“Oh?”
“What?”
“That···”
As I pointed forward, Ji-woo’s gaze followed.
I pretended I had no idea.
“It’s me.”
“···Yeah, it is.”
Hanging large on the store’s glass wall was a picture of me.
I really am something.
The fact that I brought Ji-woo all the way here just to show her this means I’m far from being an adult.
“Hey. You brought me here just to show me that, didn’t you?”
“No··· I didn’t know.”
“You didn’t know, my ass. I thought you just wanted to hang out with me. Wow, really. So you had an ulterior motive all along. Now I see why my dad told me not to follow people who promise to buy you something delicious.”
“···”
But now that I’ve done it, I feel a bit of self-loathing.
What am I doing right now?
I really had no idea my picture would be that big.
I thought it would just be a small one in a corner··· but the whole side of the glass wall was my picture.
It was a photo I took on the photographer's request, putting on a supremely arrogant expression, but facing my giant self, I felt nothing but shame.
“Let's go··· eat.”
“Where are you going? Take out your phone.”
“···Why?”
“We have to take a proof shot.”
Feeling a reality check, I tried to leave quickly, but Ji-woo ran over and posed in front of my picture.
Then she made the exact same expression as my photo.
“Take it, quick!”
“···Alright.”
I captured her in the photo.
···Cute.
“Did it come out well?”
“Well···”
“Hmm. It came out decent. I’m so proud of our Ji-an. Your photography skills are getting better and better.”
“Thanks to someone.”
“That’s right. Thanks to your big sis. Having your picture hung up in the middle of Florence is all thanks to me, too. Right?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“I’m so proud of you. So proud.”
She’s probably joking, but Ji-woo’s face really does look proud.
Seeing that, I felt proud too, for some reason.
“···Let’s go eat something expensive.”
Suddenly, I felt like spending money.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“I’m going to beat you today.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s not going to happen.”
I answered Ricardo’s nonsense with nonsense of my own, and he made a weird face.
His eyes were burning with intensity.
“Even if you say it won’t happen, it doesn’t matter! Today will be the day I surpass you!”
At his words, the seniors who were preparing for the match burst out laughing.
···He’s such an embarrassing friend.
How can he say such cringeworthy lines you’d only see in a manga so nonchalantly?
But he has his cute points too.
When I told him my secret was my Puma soccer cleats, he actually showed up to training the next day wearing Puma cleats.
Though after the news broke that I’d signed a sponsorship deal with Puma, he complained about being betrayed.
“Why aren’t you answering! Are you actually scared? Of my growth rate? Are you afraid you’ll be caught up to at any moment?”
I ignored his ramblings and tightened my shoelaces.
Then, the captain sitting to my left whispered to me.
“Play along a little. If you praise him, he’ll fly.”
“···”
“I’m asking you a favor. He’s the type who doesn’t listen to a word anyone else says, but he’d change his cleats just from a single word from you. So just indulge him a little.”
I didn’t really want to, but since the captain was asking, I had no choice.
“···Yeah. I’m scared. I’m scared you’ll catch up.”
“Hahaha! I knew it! But what are you going to do about it? Even if you’re scared, I’m going to catch up to you anyway!”
When I pretended to be a little scared, Ricardo’s ego inflated to the max.
If a single word from me makes him this happy, I can pretend to be scared as much as he wants···
I still don’t get why he’s so obsessed with me.
“Alright, alright. Let’s go warm up soon.”
“Let’s go, let’s go!”
I’ll figure him out later, and I finish getting ready to leave the locker room.
Today is the Round of 16 for a cup competition called the Coppa Italia, and the opponent is Bologna.
It’s an away game at their home stadium.
That’s why, the moment we stepped out of the tunnel, we were greeted by the home fans’ blatant jeers.
“Booooooo-!!”
“You won’t get past us!”
“Because you won’t be able to overcome us!!”
“You won’t be able to go home in one piece!!”
It’s like they’re a local rival or something.
Cheers I’ve never heard at any other away stadium poured down on us.
They were quite blatant.
But despite the jeers, the seniors just stretched with small smiles on their faces.
Maybe because they’ve heard it more than once or twice?
Hmm···
Even though it’s my first time playing here, I don’t really feel anything either.
Of course, since today’s match is a knockout game with no draws, I feel the tension that we absolutely have to win···
But I don’t feel intimidated by the jeers of tens of thousands of people.
It’s not that I’m scared, but··· how should I put it.
I don’t know, but anyway, that’s how it is.
There is one thing I’m worried about, though.
And that is, Ji-woo and my dad are at this stadium.
Since it’s only a 40-minute train ride from Florence to Bologna, they came to see the game in person.
I’m more worried that Ji-woo and my dad might be worried about me for no reason.
To show them that I’m fine, I stretched more energetically than ever.
“Alright, alright. Let’s go in after this!”
After finishing the warm-up, we head back to the locker room. The jeers pour down again, but the captain shows his boldness by raising his middle finger to the home fans.
As expected.
I realized that being the captain of Fiorentina isn’t just anyone’s job.
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The game, which started with the opponent’s kick-off, became quite intense from the beginning.
“Press! Fill the spots!”
“Push up! Push up!”
The coach said that since we have the objective advantage, the opponent would play defensively, dropping their line back.
And that’s exactly what happened.
The opponent came out in a 5-4-1 formation with three central defenders, lowering their overall line and building a solid defensive wall.
We, in turn, pressured them high up the pitch, cornering them.
Naturally, the game became a bit more intense.
It’s a single-elimination game against a rival, and on top of that, our tactics were colliding head-on.
“Peeeeep-!”
Because of that, the referee’s whistle was busy today.
Ricardo, who had pressed and caught the opponent’s ankle, was called for a foul.
“What! How is that! a foul!”
Ricardo complained it was unfair, but even I thought it was a foul.
The other seniors seemed to agree, and as they returned to their positions, he grumbled.
Anyway, even though only about 10 minutes had passed, a lot of fouls were piling up.
It’s natural, since neither side had any intention of backing down.
Both we and the opponent were similar, but if I had to say who committed more fouls, it would be the opponent.
It’s inevitable since we’re clashing in their territory.
“···”
Thinking about that, my mind, which was spinning tightly, told me something.
It would be better to be a bit more cunning today.
“Beep-!”
As the game restarted with the referee’s whistle, our press began again.
I also joined the press, maintaining a certain distance from my teammates.
To press well, everyone has to move as one.
It’s no good to greedily try to run one step more than others.
“Ricardo! The line!”
I shouted at Ricardo, who kept trying to break away on his own, and he looked around and adjusted his position.
He’s usually a pain, but in moments like this, he’s a big help.
Unlike the other seniors, I can give him orders freely.
Tatatat-!
We press the opponent relentlessly.
As we closed in quickly while maintaining a steady gap, I could feel the opponent’s movements becoming more and more frantic.
When we press like this, there are moments when I get a sudden feeling that it’ll work.
A feeling that the opponent will make a mistake.
Right now was one of those moments.
Phaaang-!
The opponent’s pass was cut off.
Finally, Ricardo did his job.
He had cut off the opponent’s pass with a sliding tackle,
Phaaang-!
and passed it straight to me.
I···
Phaaang-!
sent the ball long and ran after it.
I had already memorized the opponent’s positions while pressing, so I didn’t need any preparation.
I just had to follow the path I’d already seen.
Tatatat-!
I drove the ball toward the front of the box.
Then, I saw the opponent’s central defenders closing the gap.
Because of that, the space on the left and right flanks opened up. It would have been great if my teammates had infiltrated that space quickly···
But they’re late.
But it doesn’t matter much.
I’ve already reached the vicinity of the box, so I just need to be more daring.
The opponent commits a lot of fouls today.
I planned to use that.
Tatatat-!
The defensive gap looked too narrow to pass through, but I didn’t hesitate and moved forward.
The opponent must be dumbfounded too.
What kind of nerve do I have to charge in like this?
I could see it.
They were flustered.
Tuk-!
I nudged the ball and slipped it between the defender’s legs. Then I twisted my body and squeezed into the tight space.
I was planning to send the ball first and then get through···
Purrrrgh-!
I was blocked by an impact I felt immediately.
I went down in a heap.
Even though I was the one charging in, I was the one who fell.
As expected, I can’t win a physical battle.
But it didn’t matter.
“Peeeeeeeeep-!”
A bolt-of-a-whistle blew, and I saw the referee pointing to the penalty spot.
He called a foul on me for going down.
“Nice! Rookie!”
“Good, good! You drew a foul, rookie!”
I got up using the seniors' hands.
I thought it was a bit reckless myself, but it worked, so that’s all that matters.
I drew a foul.
As I nodded and brushed off my butt,
“Here.”
“···?”
a ball was thrown at me, and I caught it in a hurry.
It was a ball thrown by Bonaventura.
The senior gestured with his head toward the goal.
“You take it.”
Wait a minute.
The designated taker is Bonaventura.
But he wants me to take it?
“Since you drew it, it’s fine even if you miss. Give it a try.”
Without my consent, I was pushed to the penalty spot.
A penalty kick.
It’s one of the things I hate the most···
“Boooooooo-!!”
On top of that, all sorts of jeers are pouring down on me.
I have to take a penalty kick in front of all these people··· I’m scared··· or am I?
“···”
As I placed the ball on the spot, something strange happened.
Normally, you’d feel immense pressure and fear, but I didn’t feel it at all.
Instead, I just felt a momentary sense of···
I put the ball down, took a few steps back, and looked at the home fans pouring out harsh jeers at me···
It was almost laughable.
Yeah. The feeling I had before the game was the same.
They’re trying to scare me, but it’s not scary.
Why is that?
Suddenly, the faces of my dad and Ji-woo, cheering for me from somewhere in the stands, came to mind.
That must be it.
What’s more meaningful to me than the jeers of tens of thousands is the support of those two.
That must be why I’m not scared.
“Peeeeep-!”
I nodded and ran toward the ball.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
End of New Experience -3