Chapter 73
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Korean Derby -1
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Young-beom, whom I hadn't seen in a while, brimmed with confidence and swagger.
"Jesus! Take good care of me!"
"Brother Young-beom, let's put on a great show."
Confidence teetering right on the edge of arrogance.
I vowed to steer him down the straight and narrow, making sure Young-beom wouldn't get stuffed full of that arrogance—the deadliest foe any promising talent could face.
Young-beom. I will be your trial and tribulation.
From this day forward, people would call me the shepherd, Jesus.
Tweet!
The moment the referee's whistle blew, I nudged the ball toward Luka. Receiving it, Luka started gently peeling apart Mallorca, who were hunkered down in their own half like a turtle tucked into its shell.
"Come on, Luka!"
The moment a slight gap opened in their defense, I signaled to Luka. His pass landed perfectly at my feet.
I touched it into position for a clean shot.
Thwack—!
I unleashed a mid-range screamer right off the bat. The ball rocketed toward the top left corner of the goalpost.
It just barely grazed past Young-beom's fingertips.
Clang—!
But it smacked off the post and dropped to the turf, where a Mallorca defender quickly cleared it away.
The referee signaled a corner kick for Real Madrid.
Young-beom, who had nearly conceded right from kickoff, stared at me with a face drained white as a sheet.
Can't be crumbling after just a casual hello...
Another shot from Real Madrid! Yoo Young-beom in goal barely manages to keep it out.
Young-beom's already racked up five saves. Real Madrid lives up to their name—it's one-sided out there.
And just like that, Mallorca lose possession. Antonio cuts it off and lofts it long upfield. Jesus Joo races in at speed, fakes out center back Felix with a simple feint, curls it with his left... but blocked by another huge save from keeper Young-beom!
Young-beom's face doesn't look good after that save.
...Actually, it's Jesus Joo—the one who failed to score—who's grinning ear to ear.
Whoa... he's a real demon.
Didn't this guy say World Cup semis was his goal? Why's he trying to break Brother Young-beom?
Prospect Breaker Season 2...
He claims he's nurturing talented players lol
One or two more "talents" and he's legit getting stabbed...
But... it kinda works. Last season's victim, Paulo Nesta, is killing it this year.
Real Madrid with another corner kick. Luka Savić swings it in. Jesus Joo's header!! Woooaah! Yoo Young-beom saves it! Super save! Super save!!
Whoa... he actually saved that lololol
Defense, wtf?! Aren't you marking Jesus hyung?!
He's getting tons of XP lololol
Gonna force an awakening soon lololol
Young-beom Hallelujah vibes lololol He's got that penalty shootout survivor face lololol
(Young-beom before/after kickoff.jpg) lolololololololololol He aged like 10 years alone lolololol
Mallorca lololol Just taking a beating? That's their level? lololol
Can't wrap my head around how this team's 4th in the table lololol
Mallorca's main scoring route has been long balls straight from keeper Yoo Young-beom the moment he catches it. But today? He can't even get his hands on the ball!
Yeah, everything's flying fast and precise into the corners, so punching it clear like that is his best bet. And now he fists away a shot from Roberto Fabianski. He's hanging on by a thread.
Roberto Fabianski gives Yoo Young-beom a thumbs-up. Real Madrid looks comfy out there.
They could score anytime. You can feel that confidence radiating from the Real Madrid players.
I'd love to see Yoo Young-beom stick it to Real Madrid!
Huh? You mean you want Jesus Joo to fail to score...?
What? N-no! That's not what I meant!
Oh-ho?
The caster clamped his mouth shut and turned to the broadcast feed, shrinking under the commentator's death glare.
On screen, Jesus Joo had the ball and was casually shaking off Mallorca's pressure.
Ahem... Jesus Joo shakes off Mallorca's defenders like twisting a kid's wrist.
Spots Iker Bravo slicing into the half-space while shaking the press. A little chip pass right to Bravo's feet!
Great read from keeper Yoo Young-beom! He rushes out, narrows the angle, and shuts down Bravo's shot!
And Jesus Joo's clapping and smiling again.
The one who truly enjoys the game is the true powerhouse. That's what Jesus Joo's showing us today.
#
Young-beom stared blankly at the net.
He'd blocked shots pouring down like a monsoon, over and over and over.
Just ten minutes ago, he'd thought they might snag some points off Real Madrid today.
If we get points this match, how much praise will the press heap on me?
But the instant Young-beom started spinning his happy little fantasy...
Jesus Joo's movement changed.
He grabbed the ball and charged forward with reckless dribbles.
Mallorca's defense welcomed him into the box like VIP concierges escorting a guest home.
"Fuck! Young-beom! Block it!"
Felix—who'd started swearing more in Korean than puta lately—called out desperately to Young-beom.
From the moment Jesus Joo got the ball, Young-beom had assumed their defense was toast. Before Felix even got shrugged off, he bolted out of the goal to cut down the angle.
Got it! Blocked!
The instant he closed right up on Jesus Joo's nose.
Young-beom celebrated inwardly—he'd stopped Madrid's attack again.
But Jesus Joo shattered every expectation. Using his heel, he chipped it right over Young-beom's head. The ball arced lazily through the air, dropping beyond the line.
In that moment, a hollow emptiness welled up from deep in Young-beom's chest.
Ha... fuck...
Everyone knew Jesus Joo was a hell of a player—even the stray cats digging through trash behind the neighborhood dumpsters.
But wasn't this a bit much?
Ha... halftime's gotta be soon, right? Hoo... Pull it together, Young-beom. Hang on till the end, and the team'll bag one eventually.
Staring vacantly at the goal, Young-beom glanced up at the scoreboard for the time. He rubbed his eyes in disbelief.
Time: 30 minutes into the first half.
His body felt like he'd played a full ninety already.
But there were still over fifteen minutes left in the half? His legs buckled on the spot.
Thud—
Hngh... hngh...
As despair crept up from his soles, Jesus Joo's laughter rang in his ears.
Young-beom glared at him dancing his celebration in front of the stands and thought without meaning to:
Whoa... that laugh is scary as shit. Wait, what? Blasphemy! Begone, demon!
As Young-beom reaffirmed his faith...
Jesus Joo wrapped up his celebration, laughing with the team as they jogged back to the center circle.
The whistle blew for Mallorca's Diego Silva to restart with the kickoff. Not long after, the net rippled again.
About 35 meters out, Jesus Joo intercepted a pass with a tackle and rifled it instantly—straight into the top far corner of the post.
Young-beom couldn't even twitch as he watched it happen.
What the hell? Why's Lord Jesus going so hard? Did a Mallorca fan drop the N-word or something?
Stunned by Jesus Joo's rare defensive involvement—which he saw maybe once a season—Young-beom stared at the bizarre victory dance.
"Fuck! Jesus hyung, why you gotta do me like this?!"
His crumbling faith and resentment piled on top.
#
The moment Jesus Joo's second goal went in...
The commentator and caster let out sighs more than cheers.
Ah... Mallorca concede again, not long after the first.
They held firm until the 30-minute mark, but that opener from Real Madrid visibly broke their focus.
Jesus Joo again. Perfectly reads the passing lane, pokes it away with his foot, then hammers a vicious right-footed mid-ranger. Keeper Yoo Young-beom had no chance.
Tough break for Mallorca. They were brilliant early on.
Young-beom's saves were the highlight. Game's tilting, but it's not over.
Right, too early to quit. Mallorca can do this!
What the hell with these guys? Did Jesus collab with Japan or China? Biased commentary in the Korean Derby lololol
Be real—you're rooting for Mallorca too!
...Yeah, guilty. Jesus is too much of a villain
Evil Empire Real Madrid... too damn strong ffs...