Chapter 26

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 26

Chapter Title: Perhaps There Was a Better Choice...?

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Morning came, and we washed up first thing.

Our bodies were a total mess from all the sex—sweat and fluids everywhere.

After showering, we had some kimchi stew.

It was the one dish Na-young had insisted on.

"Coach, this kimchi stew is seriously amazing!"

With both of us on vacation today, we didn't have much on our plates.

That let us spend some cozy time together in my room.

We were happily watching anime side by side when Na-young suddenly looked curious and asked,

"Coach, don't you teach any other athletes? You're officially a mental coach, after all."

"Hmm~ For now, I'm focusing on you, Na-young. I'll think it over slowly." 

"Hehe! Got it♥"

Na-young's question came from pure, innocent curiosity.

But it pierced right through the conflict I'd been wrestling with lately.

Solve one problem, and the next one lines up waiting.

Soon enough, I found myself deep in thought.

The question was what to do next.

I'd successfully turned Na-young into an outstanding taekwondo athlete.

At this rate, national team selection was a given, and even gold medals were within reach.

Naturally, my name as her coach would rise with hers.

At the very least, I wouldn't have to worry about getting fired.

We could settle into a stable life together, smooth sailing.

'The problem is, what now?'

At first, my only thought was to rack up achievements to survive.

But now, options had opened up for me.

I'd sworn to coach multiple athletes and create stars...

'But do I really need to, when I have Na-young?'

Now I had Na-young, who loved me so deeply.

Did I really need to go messing with other athletes?

The fact that it involved sex was a big part of it.

In the end, it'd mean putting my hands on other women while I had Na-young.

"...Yeah, better to put it on hold for now."

With that resolve, I pushed thoughts of the system out of my mind.

Delaying the dilemma actually lightened my heart.

As more time passed, the idea of focusing solely on Na-young grew stronger.

I saw it as the proper respect for an athlete who loved me with all her heart.

Na-young and I kept up the 'coaching' sessions, steadily building her skills.

Before long, she'd become a taekwondo athlete no one could touch.

And so, even after leaving the Korean Sports Academy, we kept soaring to new heights.

Na-young won every competition she entered.

Korea goes wild for number one—especially the overwhelming kind.

Sports had already cracked the nation's pride.

The public, media, and even politicians rallied behind Na-young's feats.

-"Athlete Han Na-young, any thoughts on doing ads?"

-"We're reaching out about sponsorship and promo. It's just a logo on your uniform, no pressure..."

-"The boss loves you—says you're Korea's pride. She told us to talk to you, but your coach first..."

Na-young wasn't just an exceptional athlete anymore.

She'd become a star symbolizing the entire nation.

Her celebrity-level beauty was more than enough to win hearts.

Plenty of fans fell for her looks alone.

"Na-young unnie! Please step on me with those feet, just once...!"

"Watching your match made my heart race for the first time in 20 years! I love you for real!"

"This isn't taekwondo—it's art. The Michelangelo of sports."

"You need sunglasses against Han Na-young. Her beauty's so blinding, you can't look straight."

Na-young blushed amid the fans' cheers.

Honestly, some of her fans were a bit much.

"Th-that one's kinda weird, right? My face is burning up."

"It just means your fans love you that much."

"Thanks, but they could love me a little more normally..."

"Still feels good, doesn't it?"

"Of course. No fans, no athlete. You've drilled that into me since my student days." 

"That's why I rate you so highly, Na-young. No matter how big a star you get, you're always humble and fan-first."

"Well, if I stray, my beloved Coach will give me a stern lesson with that massive cock...♥"

Na-young playfully poked my side.

I stroked her hair in return.

'She's a full-on national star now. Everyone's obsessed.'

Korea's sports scene was in utter shambles right now.

Na-young, emerging in that mess, had won love from young and old alike.

"...My fans would be devastated if they knew I have sex with you every day, Coach."

"They'd probably bawl their eyes out and crown me Korea's Joan of Arc."

"Isn't Joan of Arc that super-great saint?"

"Yeah, but she got burned at the stake."

"Whoa."

Burning at the stake was a joke, but I might get rocks thrown at me on the street.

"Still, having an athlete like this feels great, right?"

"Yeah. Feels amazing."

"Ahng♥ Coach's touch is so naughty...♥"

I chuckled and kneaded Na-young's ass.

...Truth be told, as a guy, the superiority from a star like this sucking my dick—and doing cosplay too—was pretty huge.

"Once that ad drops, your fans'll explode. The photoshoot pics rival any model's."

"Aaah~ You mean when I secretly sucked your cock?"

"Ahem! Ahem! You tempted me first, Na-young."

"And in the end, you couldn't hold back and we fucked♥"

Once her beauty hit the spotlight, offers poured in.

Sports ads, cosmetics, fashion modeling were basics.

Even variety shows ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like 'You Sense' and 'Omniscient Viewpoint' reached out.

The spiciest was landing the ramen ad spot reserved for top stars only.

'Her popularity's a problem now. Even A-listers want her autograph.'

I had to vet and turn down most of them myself.

Boosting fame and cash is great, sure...

But I didn't want athlete Na-young overdoing it.

"I still get surprised seeing myself on TV every time."

"Honestly, me too. Can't believe the nation's fairy is my athlete."

"Hehe! All thanks to your coaching, Coach. Love you. Muah♥"

Life with Na-young looked brighter than ever.

She was a world-recognized star athlete, and I was her one and only coach.

But not everyone grabbed that bright future.

The Korean Sports Academy took the exact opposite path.

'Word is, it's gone past despair into total collapse.'

Excluding Na-young, they hadn't produced any standout athletes.

A few talents, sure, but not enough.

People are cold and ruthless by nature.

When hope turns to disappointment, they turn aggressive.

Sports, with its clear wins and losses, amplified that.

The Korean Sports Academy, built and run amid crowds and opposition.

It couldn't escape Korea's chronic sports issues.

Years passed with zero results.

The expectant public and media turned away.

All that remained were attackers gunning for the Academy.

News mentions brought a barrage of criticism.

Some coaches' scandals even surfaced.

It rapidly lost meaning and support.

As its image tanked, politicians and companies pulled back bit by bit.

The Korean Sports Academy began crumbling hard.

And it wasn't sturdy enough to weather it.

A sandcastle on the rotten foundation of Korean sports.

That was the reality of the place I'd so desperately wanted in.

"Long time no see."

"Yeah, it's been ages, Coach So-hee Yoo." 

"Look at you, coaching a star athlete now~"

Then one day, we reconnected by chance and met up with Coach So-hee Yoo.

She looked worn out, like life had piled on her.

"How's work these days? Pretty chaotic?"

"Yeah... Things are rough. Bad stuff keeps piling up."

A few shots of soju in, as the buzz hit,

Coach So-hee Yoo said with a bitter face,

"I actually got divorced."

"What? Things were bad between you?"

"Our views clashed too much... Felt like it couldn't go on."

No wonder she'd looked so down.

Work chaos was one thing, but a crumbling marriage? Brutal.

"At least it's nice seeing a colleague thrive like this."

"...Thanks."

I didn't know what to say for comfort, so I just listened to her vent.

Watching someone with low tolerance chug soju didn't sit right.

Seeing that great Coach So-hee Yoo like this drove it home.

The Korean Sports Academy was done.

I told Na-young about it too.

"The Korean Sports Academy's officially closing."

"What? For real?"

"Yeah. Straight from a coach I know, so it's solid."

In the end, the government shut down the Korean Sports Academy.

The reason? Results nowhere near the funding.

The public didn't oppose much.

The organization and its structure had long faced heavy criticism.

"No solid track record, and you're their only star alum. Can't expect the country to wait forever."

"I see..."

Na-young, in the U.S. to speak at a kids' taekwondo association, looked a bit conflicted.

"Not many good memories, and I graduated early... But it was my alma mater. Kinda sad seeing it get beat down like this before vanishing."

Na-young hadn't made close friends at the Academy.

Her taekwondo peers still found her intimidating.

Her personality made bonding with other majors tough too.

And taekwondo alone kept her swamped.

"Don't sweat it. It's got nothing to do with us now. Focus on our roles."

"...Okay."

I said that, but I couldn't fully tune it out.

I'd dreamed my coaching dreams there too.

'Thought it'd hold out longer. Guess anything rushed together crumbles fast.'

The Korean Sports Academy fully disbanded in the end.

Innocent athletes and coaches scattered, dreams lost.

"Hah! Haah! Hah! Hah!"

Na-young felt the ripple effects too.

More like a sense of responsibility and pressure.

No other star like her in Korean sports.

That massive public attention weighed heavy on her shoulders.

'If there were a few more stars, it wouldn't hit this hard.'

The burden messed with her mentally, no small thing.

People's hearts work that way.

You know it's not your business, but it nags anyway.

Old bad habits resurfaced—overtraining.

And excess like that inevitably brings injury.

"Ow!"

A mistake and injury she'd never make normally.

Na-young ended up in the hospital with her ankle in a cast.

That snapped me out of my daze.

If I waver, she wavers too.

I had to pull myself together sharp.

"Na-young, let's take a full year off this time."

"Huh? B-but..."

"I've handled all the talks. What you need now is rest."

"Fans are expecting so much..."

"Then do signings and meets, then go on hiatus. You've burned too hot nonstop. Fans don't want you suffering."

Career-wise, a bummer, but necessary.

Injured, she still wouldn't rest.

'It's not her body—Na-young needs stability first.'

Luckily, she got it and agreed.

Better than short-term greed leading to lifelong regret.

'...How'd things end up like this?'

Na-young's injury wasn't 100% the Academy's fault.

Over-scheduling and training just boiled over.

But denying any impact was hard.

Her face alone screamed her thoughts.

'Tough words and attitude, but she's got a soft spot deep down.'

I felt a lingering unease too.

Plenty had treated me like grunt work.

But I'd met good athletes and coaches amid it all.

Watching them lose dreams and scatter felt like ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠seeing pre-system me.

"Hoo...!"

With that odd unease, I headed to the hospital lobby.

The TV there was running news.

"...What?"