Chapter 44
Chapter 44
Translator Wjin
Chapter 44
When traveling abroad, it's usually best to plan ahead and book flights and accommodation in advance for better value.
Conversely, booking late often leads to a steep decline in value. Lee Mi-yeon? She didn't just book late; she planned it on the same day, paying a price that couldn't even be considered in terms of value.
She paid over 400,000 won for a one-way ticket and a single night's stay. If ordinary people knew this, they would foam at the mouth, but…
'Tae-hyun will be so surprised!'
“I’m so excited.”
Lee Mi-yeon just sat in her airplane seat, smiling shyly. She was so excited that she even hummed a little without realizing it.
“Ah, I need to book the game tickets.”
[Infield: 19.76 USD, Outfield: 8.99 USD…]
Since it was a foreign site, the prices were in dollars. After a rough conversion, the infield tickets were a little over 20,000 won, and the outfield tickets were over 9,000 won.
“That’s so cheap!”
Excited, she snapped her fingers and clicked the booking button.
[Tickets are available for purchase from 12 PM on the day of the game.]
It wasn’t time to book yet. Disappointed, she looked at the seating chart and one seat caught her eye. The very front row, on the first base side.
'If I sit here, Tae-hyun might be able to find me.'
Of course, it was a different stadium, and he wouldn't know she was there, so the chances were slim, but she still wanted that seat. After a moment of thought, a brilliant idea came to her, and she smiled.
“I can just ask a friend to book the tickets with me!”
Isn’t this a brilliant idea? She was proud of herself, but then she remembered something and her mood soured.
'I should have made some friends…'
She was a 'motae solo' (someone who has never been in a relationship), and her singular focus on becoming a teacher had left her with only one friend.
“I’ll ask Hyun-ah first… Mom… Dad, and my cousin… that might be a bit much…?”
For the first time, she regretted being an only child and sent texts to her one friend and her parents.
‘Still, there are four of us. If we’re lucky, we might get it, right?’
With high hopes, Lee Mi-yeon closed her eyes, thinking of a certain man.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
Before the game, in the locker room, Kim Yu-bin spoke to me.
“You have a pretty unusual routine.”
“An unusual routine? The one where I tap the bat on the plate twice?”
“No, that’s not so unusual.”
“Then what is it?”
“You always look at the first base stands. Why is that?”
Because that’s where Ms. Mi-yeon sits. Of course, I couldn't say that…
“I don't know. I didn’t even know I did that until you just told me.”
This was true. I had a habit of looking for her when I was at bat, but I hadn't realized I was still doing it in Japan, where she wasn't. Had it become a habit without me realizing it?
“Well, it’s strange. Anyway, today’s game is going to be fucking intense, right?”
“Well, there’s no need to say it’ll be that intense.”
“Hey. You haven’t seen the NewTube live chat.”
“The chat?”
“Yeah. I watched the replay, and the chat was legendary. ‘Joseon-jing,’ ‘Jap extermination,’ it was a warzone. I wonder if it’ll be like that today.”
“If you’re curious, you can take a look before the game starts.”
“Ah, I should do that.”
Honestly, I was a little curious too, so I glanced at his phone.
└ Let's get it lol
└ Tae-hyun-shin is normalizing the Japs again today~
└ Guys, be careful. The legendary 'first-string' is appearing today.
└ No, if they’re first-string, they’re first-string. What’s with the ‘legendary first-string’?
└ You don’t know Inazuma Eleven? We’re fucked.
└ Isn’t Inazuma Eleven soccer?
└ So that means there’s no such thing lol
└ Ah lol
Perhaps because of their previous loss or the interview that had become a laughingstock, there was almost no anti-Korean chat.
“It’s not so intense today. Let’s go check the lineup.”
“Yeah, it’s about time.”
It had been strange that it was so noisy when we entered the dugout, but as soon as I saw the opposing team’s lineup, I understood.
[Starting Pitcher: Yamada Ryuji.]
“What… what is this? He’s really a two-way player?”
Kim Yu-bin’s eyes widened, and he looked at me as if demanding an explanation.
"I guess so. I just said that because he’s good at baseball.”
I hadn't expected it, but it seemed Yamada Ryuji had blossomed his two-way talent early. Then, what was his level? In his prime, Yamada Ryuji was considered the best pitcher in Asia.
A monster who could throw up to 164 km/h in the majors. The problem was that even with such a pitch, he had been beaten by the protagonist, Lee Ji-ho.
Anyway… even if he had blossomed his talent early, he wouldn’t be throwing pitches like that yet. He was a guy who had quickly entered the two-way player path, so he shouldn't be at that level yet.
Ah, was he not a two-way player yet? Since he was starting as a pitcher. Then I might not know.
“I’m curious. Ryuji the pitcher.”
“Really? I’m more nervous than curious… Why does he seem like he’s going to pitch well…”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
Yamada Ryuji had originally started baseball with the dream of becoming a pitcher.
He was so captivated by the sight of a pitcher standing on the mound in the center of the baseball field, dominating the game. He had talent. His velocity was also much higher than his peers.
But he eventually switched to a batter because of his uncontrollable command. He had to switch, and since he had talent as a batter as well, he lived with a mixture of regret and satisfaction.
Just as he was thinking he would succeed as a batter, he was selected for the national team for a long time due to Japan’s policy of focusing on international baseball competitions.
There, he met an old pitching coach, and that was his turning point.
Not becoming a pitcher is an insult to those who don’t have talent.
Urged by the coach, who strangely insisted on him becoming a pitcher, Ryuji started training as a pitcher again.
The pitching form he had been unhappy with, even with the advice of other coaches, was corrected, and his command naturally improved. When he offered to repay the old coach who had helped him achieve his dream, he replied,
If you become a pitcher who represents your country, that will be my reward.
Right. To repay the old coach who had helped him achieve his dream and increased his value as a player, Yamada Ryuji vowed to win his debut game today.
“Hoo…”
Ryuji closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Focus on not letting your release point waver!
Make your body remember. Your plant foot always lands here.
Create your own routine and stick to it, no matter what.
It was as if he could hear the coach’s advice beside him.
'Are you watching… Coach? Your masterpiece, Yamada Ryuji, is now throwing his first pitch!'
He planted his foot firmly, but without a single error, to the designated distance. He lowered his left shoulder and naturally led with his right shoulder. He raised his hand high and threw the ball as if he were throwing it down.
The heavy, straight ball…
Thwack!
…landed right in the center of the catcher’s mitt.
“...Strike—!”
“Waaaaah!!!!!”
He had only thrown the first pitch, but the stadium erupted in cheers. Because a player from their country had thrown a strike?
That was part of it, but even for a player from their own country, they wouldn't make such a fuss over a single strike. Their gazes were fixed not on Yamada Ryuji, but on the scoreboard.
[158 km/h]
“Haha… what, from the first pitch.”
The first batter, who had checked the scoreboard, also shook his head in disbelief. The second pitch. A fastball that jammed the inside.
Swoosh!
The batter swung his bat fiercely, but it was no use. A swing and a miss. The third pitch was a fastball straight down the middle again.
“Strike—out!”
The batter could only watch as he was struck out. It was no different for the second batter.
“Strike – out!”
Another three-pitch strikeout. The third batter, Jin Tae-hyun, managed to make contact with the first pitch, but the ball went foul. He swung and missed at the next two pitches.
“Strike—out!”
In the end, he also had to retreat with a strikeout. At the birth of a new star named Yamada Ryuji, who had erased the top of the first inning with nine pitches…
“Waaaaah!!!!”
The crowd went wild.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
Jin Tae-hyun, who had returned to the dugout, shook his head.
“It’s going to take me a while to hit that.”
“Is it that bad?”
“You saw it…”
Well, it was a pretty unbelievable pitch, even to me. His velocity was similar to Trigueros, who had been hailed as a huge prospect in the US game, but his command seemed much better.
At this point, it seemed certain. The person who had put me here was intentionally raising the difficulty. Well, I didn’t have any complaints. It wasn’t to the point of being unfair yet.
Anyway, was Senior Chang-hyun’s mentality okay? The opposing pitcher had shown a pretty shocking performance, and he must have felt that it would be difficult to get run support from our batters, so he might be a little shaken.
Since it was Senior Chang-hyun, he would probably be fine.
“Senior Chang-hyun, how many runs do you expect to give up today?”
Senior Chang-hyun chuckled and replied, “An ace always pitches with the intention of not giving up any runs.”
“Okay, a shutout, I see.”
As expected, I had worried for nothing.
“Strike—!”
Senior Chang-hyun’s first pitch was a 152 km/h fastball that jammed the inside. His command was also good, and he seemed to be in good condition today. Yamada Ryuji was a monster, but Senior Chang-hyun’s pitch was by no means an easy one.
Clack!
As soon as I had that thought, the first batter hit the ball. I first prepared to move by predicting the direction of the ball from the sound of the hit, and then I moved, following the ball more accurately with my eyes.
It looked like a ground ball, so I prepared to catch it a little farther away. It wasn’t over yet. You always had to keep in mind the possibility of a bad hop. Upsets happen in baseball.
Thud!
Right. Just like now. The ball, with a little backspin, bounced in the opposite direction from what I had expected. I calmly turned my body, stretched out my arm, and caught the ball. I made a strong throw while turning around.
“Out!”
It was close, but I succeeded in getting one out.
“That’s it, Cha Tae-hyun!”
Senior Chang-hyun, who had raised his thumb, shouted.
Clack!
The next 2nd batter also hit the 3rd pitch. I caught the ball that was heading between third and short and made the play.
Clack!
The ball was coming this way again. …For some reason, it felt like all the balls were coming this way today. It wasn’t bad for me.
Wooooow!!!!
The cheer that came when the ball was hit…
“No way.”
“Out!”
“…”
…there was nothing more satisfying than the moment it went quiet.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇;
Since the game was being held in Japan, Lee Mi-yeon had expected there to be a lot of Japanese people. But… it seemed to have far exceeded her expectations.
“Ganbare! Ryuji-san!”
“Ryuji-san! You can do it! Strikeout!”
“Ryuji-san, please stop Tae-hyun!”
Everyone around her was Japanese. She had thought there would be at least one Korean person…
So Lee Mi-yeon, who had been intimidated and shrunk back all this time, jumped up from her seat the moment Cha Tae-hyun stepped into the batter’s box and started shouting loudly, not caring about the surrounding gazes.
“Tae-hyun-ah!!!!”
Lee Mi-yeon, who had been cheering for Cha Tae-hyun, rubbed her eyes with her hands.
“Why am I crying…”
Was she a little emotional? She sniffled once and then started cheering loudly again. At that moment, her eyes widened.
“...Tae-hyun-ah?”
He shouldn't have known she was here… but, as always, as if it were natural, Cha Tae-hyun’s two eyes were looking this way. She stared blankly at his eyes for a moment and then shouted without realizing it.
“Tae-hyun-ah!! I missed you!! Really… really! I missed you so much!!!”
The words she had wanted to say but had held back because she was shy were now pouring out without hesitation.
Because he wouldn't hear her anyway. Because there were only people who didn't know her around. So, the feelings she, a teacher, shouldn't have… she wanted to let them out now.
She had thought that and shouted, but Cha Tae-hyun seemed to have heard her, as he nodded and smiled. Then, as if promising a home run, he raised his bat and pointed to the outfield while looking at her.
Cha Tae-hyun, who had gotten back into his stance, swung his bat fiercely.
Craaaaaack!!
It was the fastest pitch of the U-18 Baseball World Cup, and Yamada Ryuji’s fastest pitch of 160 km/h, but he hit the fastball all the way to the back screen.
Lee Mi-yeon, who had been following the ball, turned her gaze back to Cha Tae-hyun, and there were already two eyes looking at her. As Cha Tae-hyun’s lips slowly curved into a smile, Lee Mi-yeon’s lips also naturally followed.