Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Scouter Awakening
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Saturday evening.
Park Young-man dragged his exhausted body home.
He was supposed to head to a company dinner after work, but the compassionate boss had let the family men with kids go early to help with childcare.
As he opened the door, he saw his wife and son.
"Didn't you say there was a dinner?"
"Yeah, but it got canceled."
Young-man hugged his wife once, then flashed a bright smile at his son, who was pulling a sulky face, and walked over.
"Chan-hyuk, Daddy's home."
His son Chan-hyuk had been different from other kids since he was little.
He was so quiet that they'd even worried he might have some illness.
'This kid's gonna go far.'
Unlike other kids who cried all the time, Chan-hyuk only sought attention when he really needed it. It was to the point where parenting didn't feel like a chore.
"Ouch!"
His son smacked his face wildly because Daddy's stubbly cheek was prickly. Young-man quickly pulled back, since the little fists packed a punch.
He opened his mouth with an embarrassed look.
"Chan-hyuk, wanna watch soccer?"
He'd been worried about his son, who spent all day doodling weird pictures on paper and playing, so he'd splurged on the latest TV.
After buying the TV, he'd put on cartoons that kids supposedly loved, but Chan-hyuk showed zero interest.
It was only when he randomly flipped to a soccer match that the boy perked up.
His son, who always looked bored with everything, was different when soccer was on. His eyes sparkled.
It was a rebroadcast he'd seen multiple times already, but the boy stared at the game while scribbling on paper, clearly hooked.
"Maybe Chan-hyuk wants to be a soccer player when he grows up?"
Leaving his son—who was now glued to the soccer—on the blanket, he quietly started chatting with his wife. Talking about their child's future was his small joy amid the grind of life.
"But I heard arts or sports cost a fortune..."
At his wife's words, Young-man smiled and said,
"I'll just work harder."
It was a time of rapid economic growth in Korea.
People believed tomorrow would be better than yesterday.
"Honey..."
"Jung-hee."
"Young-man."
Meanwhile, at that moment.
'Ugh, here they go again.'
Having witnessed his parents' lovey-dovey routine, Chan-hyuk quietly clicked his tongue and focused on the soccer match.
***
A child's daily life was monotonous.
Time flowed slowly but steadily, and before I knew it, I was six years old.
[Civilian Government Inaugurated.]
I glanced at the newspaper my dad subscribed to and lightly clicked my tongue.
It would've been nice to know the juicy stock tips from this era in detail. Oh well, too bad.
Like any ordinary kid my age, I had zero interest in real estate or stocks.
Even if I did know, convincing my parents would've been the real hurdle.
There was an unbeatable investment option anyway.
Just parking money in the bank guaranteed a whopping 8.5% interest back then.
If pre-regression me had discovered that, he probably would've flipped.
'What? 8.5% guaranteed with zero risk? No way that exists.'
I pictured my future self from that life, who'd dumped everything into U.S. stocks and turned pale as a ghost when the Geohung Motors scandal tanked his account.
'Should've listened to investment god Buffett's warning and pulled out.'
Pushing aside the bitterness, I read the paper and sorted my thoughts.
Anyway.
Even though I'd regressed, becoming a soccer manager wasn't on my radar.
'Europe maybe, but no way in Korea anymore.'
Sure, I was jotting tactics on paper because there wasn't much else to consume.
But after all the scars from my past life, I had zero desire to work in soccer in Korea.
My goal this time: use future knowledge to get rich, honor my parents, and live comfortably.
Becoming one of the richest regressors ever felt like destiny—and hey, I even daydreamed about owning a Premier League club someday.
'But not as a manager, though.'
Yet the great being that sent me back apparently couldn't accept that.
[Mission: Lift the Big Ear as a manager.]
Failure: Return to pre-regression state.
One day, it hit me with this absurd quest goal.
I couldn't hold back and let out a curse.
The timing was just a bit too perfect, though.
"Jung-hee."
"Young-man."
"What a load of bullshit."
Right as my parents started their affectionate exchange.
Silence fell instantly, and their icy stares turned to me.
"That's what Daddy said last time!"
I dodged the crisis with quick wits befitting my second life.
"I told you not to curse in front of the kid!"
"No, I never cursed..."
I sacrificed Dad to summon red-eyed Kim Jung-hee.
And coldly ignored his pleading eyes begging for help.
Whatever.
This would become a family memory in its own way.
***
After getting the mission window and panicking for a bit, I pulled myself together and started hunting for abilities.
Since it'd suddenly dumped a mission on me, I figured there had to be other special powers.
'Now's the time.'
While Mom was prepping dinner, I shouted with a serious face.
"Status Window!"
Nothing happened.
Come to think of it, the mission was to lift the Big Ear as a manager, not a player.
"Scouter...?"
That instant.
A translucent hologram popped up in my vision.
I calmed my pounding heart and looked.
'What if it turns out I have world-devouring talent?'
Sadly, no such luck.
[Name: Park Chan-hyuk.]
- Growth incomplete; accurate evaluation impossible.
- Evaluated based on previous life standards.
- One-liner: Recommend finding a career outside of playing.
The assessment was harsher than expected.
***
I started serious training.
Ball control drills like sensing the ball at your feet were best begun young.
'Never thought I'd get back into soccer.'
Even though my goal was lifting the Big Ear as a manager, I had two reasons for the grueling workouts.
First, Asia was soccer's backwater.
No matter how hard you trained here, you couldn't become a manager in Europe.
To manage in Europe, you at least needed to have played there. Otherwise, the players would walk all over you.
'Even Korean players ignored non-pros; Europe would be worse, not better.'
The easiest way to play in Europe was studying abroad for soccer. Not an option for our poor family.
Still, by the time I hit high school, the Korea Football Association would launch the Elite Youth Overseas Study Program.
If I got selected, the association would fund my overseas stint.
My plan: during the program, dominate in Europe and snag a coaching license.
'If only I had money! I wouldn't need this crap!'
Second, to make good use of my given ability, the Scouter, I needed data.
From scouting, I'd learned Korea actually had plenty of soccer talent.
Most just hadn't discovered it—stuck cramming all night or held back by outdated training that shaved off their potential.
It sucked, but I couldn't intervene.
No adult takes a kid seriously.
"Time for duck walks!"
Ignoring the real-time erosion of young prospects' potential, I headed home.
- That'll wreck your knees...
Last time I tried advising, the coach nearly slapped me just for being a kid.
'Truly the barbaric '90s...'
Since then, I'd held back on advice.
My body mattered more than others'.
"I'm home."
Anyway, the vibe was different when I walked in.
"Chan-hyuk, Santa Grandpa said you've been such a good boy listening to Mom and Dad, so he left you a present."
News of my sibling's pregnancy—something that never happened in my first life.
I absolutely did not think, 'Why is this my Christmas gift?' Like some ungrateful brat.
Predictable, really.
With how often they went at it, it'd be weirder if there wasn't a sibling.
They tried to be quiet, but in a single-room place? Good luck.
'Crazy how much younger they are than I was in my past life.'
All I'd done was act mature to give them space for love.
'Ah. That's not how you do it, though...'
From my advanced civilized-nation knowledge, I just wanted to coach Dad—but nah.
Anyway, unlike original history, their steady lovemaking led to a pregnancy announcement today, testing my reaction.
They'd probably heard somewhere that firstborns get jealous when attention shifts to a sibling.
Whatever. Second-life me just wanted their focus off me.
That way, I'd have a bit more freedom to move.
"You happy about a little sibling?"
I nodded at Mom's question.
"Yeah."
Excited for a 'tool' I could boss around with one finger.
In my past life as an only child, I'd wished for a sibling to run errands.
"Girl or boy—which do you want?"
"Boy!"
Objectively, a brother had more uses as a tool, so I picked boy.
***
Time flew, and the sibling arrived.
Disappointingly, a girl.
"Jung-ah's so composed—just like Chan-hyuk was at that age."
"Yeah."
The bundled-up sister looked oddly extraordinary.
My regressor instincts twitched.
Just in case, I whispered in her ear.
"Heil Hitler, peace of our era, make America great again, you will respect me. Siuuuuu─!"
Twitch.
'What...?'
Her reaction just now felt off.