Reset Life with Infinite Talents - Chapter 18
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Infinite Talent Reset Life Episode 18
”Argh.”
“Are you okay?!”
Johann rushes over, startled by Flash clutching his hand.
“I-I’m fine!”
Touching the back of his hand, it wasn’t broken. Since it was a fielder’s glove rather than a catcher’s mitt, the impact seemed to have been transmitted more severely.
“More importantly, what was that! What was that just now?!”
70 miles per hour, no, it seemed like it would easily exceed that velocity.
Of course, if you searched through Little League thoroughly, there would be kids who could throw at this speed.
However, the problem was that Johann had played catch for the first time today. And with a sidearm delivery at that.
It was hard to believe that this was the first time he had thrown a ball today.
“What do you mean? I just threw it following my body’s natural motion.”
Times like this called for playing dumb.
“Good heavens.”
A genius. No, a monster.
A monster that occasionally appears in this world.
Flash was dazed, and Johann looked at the middle-aged man who seemed to have a lot to say.
“What’s wrong?”
“Is your arm okay?”
The kid who had clearly been a novice to baseball itself during their earlier catch, despite having good athletic reflexes.
Yet the awkward posture from just moments ago had perfectly reproduced Dennis Eckersley’s form in an instant.
He had so many questions he wanted to ask – whether he had really never played baseball before, whether he had been hiding his skills, whether he really didn’t know about Dennis Eckersley, and so on.
However, the middle-aged man ultimately swallowed his pondered doubts and offered words of concern.
“Is your arm okay?”
“Yes, it’s perfectly fine.”
“…May I feel it?”
Instead of answering, Johann extended his arm, and the middle-aged man was shocked.
‘The ligaments and muscles…’
They far exceeded the growth limits that could be shown at this age.
The middle-aged man continued touching his arm as if entranced, and Johann looked at Flash.
“Can you keep catching?”
“…I can catch them.”
“Oh, child. Stop it. This time your bones will break.”
“B-but!”
As Flash’s face crumpled, Johann also became troubled.
‘I didn’t know it would be thrown this hard.’
He thought it would be fine since a body that hadn’t even properly started its growth period wouldn’t be able to perfectly reproduce ‘Rack, Dennis Eckersley’s’ pitching, but he was wrong.
It was then, as Johann briefly reflected that he had underestimated his own physical abilities too much.
“Could this old man catch your ball once?”
“Pardon?”
Johann looked at the middle-aged man in surprise at the unexpected proposal.
“I think it would be better to show you directly rather than explain with words.”
‘And…’
Dennis Eckersley, who during his active days had suddenly started performing as a closer one day and eventually won a Cy Young Award.
A legendary player who played in the same league but was too distant an existence.
A child who reminded him of that Dennis Eckersley’s pitching had appeared before his eyes.
Of course, the level was nowhere near comparable to him, but perhaps he could feel a little of the sensation of catching Dennis Eckersley’s ball.
Greed also arose.
The greed to leave his own mark.
The selfish greed that someone would remember and imitate him.
Reading that yearning, Johann looked at Flash.
Flash, who was moved to tears but still watching for his reaction.
“Will you be alright?”
“No matter how broken my body is, I’m not so far gone that I can’t catch a kid’s ball.”
The middle-aged man looked at Flash.
“Boy, will you help me?”
“Of course!”
“You take position next to me too.”
Johann turned away from the two and headed back to his original spot.
And as he took his stance, the middle-aged man, whose legs and body were trembling as if he might collapse at any moment, held out his glove.
However, his eyes were burning with passion.
Flash also tried to imitate him while watching.
“Throw with full power!”
“…Huuu.”
Since there was no sign, it would be a four-seam fastball again.
‘Even though I grazed it just now, it was inadequate, wasn’t it?’
There were parts that went awry due to the different physique.
Johann thought to adjust and lifted his leg high.
And…
Whoooosh!
Flash, the middle-aged man, and all the regional managers watching Johann widened their eyes.
‘The velocity increased?!’
A thrilling sensation ran through their bodies.
The middle-aged man sobbed as he realized he was alive from the pain that felt like his hand would burst, and the regional managers stepped forward without watching each other’s reactions.
Inspiration exploded from that dynamic movement just now.
Inspiration for next season’s concept.
Would models who give businessmen such inspiration be common?
‘Absolutely not!’
That alone was reason enough to secure him, but he also seemed to have tremendous talent for baseball.
An incredible opportunity.
It didn’t matter if his build got bigger due to baseball.
Because H&M and ZARA weren’t high fashion brands.
Rather…
‘What if that child was wearing our company’s clothes every time he showed something special?’
He could guarantee it.
Johann was cheapest right now, at this very moment.
Whoooosh!
‘Hmm. The adjustment isn’t going well…’
It was strange. As if some will was interfering, he couldn’t adjust Dennis Eckersley’s pitching form to fit his current physique.
He just needed to tighten one screw, but it wouldn’t tighten.
An experience he was having for the first time in his life.
‘What is this? Is it because of Ines de Fressange’s fragment?’
He felt familiarity in his stretching toes, in his swinging arms.
Dynamic rather than turbulent, wild grace rather than wildness.
“Hmm… Huh?”
As the regional managers approached, Johann blinked his eyes.
‘That person is?’
Johann quickly closed his eyes and opened them again.
Now was the moment when ‘The One Who Became a Star’ was needed.
“Hello? Nice to meet you. I’m….”
“I know. You’re Ben Wood, right?”
The H&M US West Coast Branch Manager is startled.
“I should know who the president of the company I work for is.”
“Oh! Hahahaha!”
The ZARA US West Coast Branch Manager’s face contorts at his arrogant gaze that seems to say ‘See that?’
“But what brings you here? Do you have business with me?”
Flinch!
“…I came to say thank you.”
At those round eyes, the H&M US West Coast Branch Manager’s heated head cools down.
‘What on earth was I about to say? We’ll pay you a lot of money so sign an exclusive contract with our company? Oh, crazy. Damn it.’
That’s something to discuss with adults, not something to say to a child.
The ZARA US West Coast Branch Manager also calms his excitement.
Johann tilts his head pretending not to understand the situation, having grasped their change.
“To me?”
“Thanks to you, our company’s sales have increased quite a bit. So I wanted to meet you and express my gratitude.”
“Really? That’s great!”
“Haha. Come to think of it, you’re wearing our company’s clothes. Do you like them?”
“Yes. They’re comfortable yet stylish, and I like the business motto too.”
“Bu, business motto? Haha! Thank you for thinking well of H&M.”
“You’re a company that makes clothes with good meaning!”
“Oh….”
Words that make one think deeply.
They touch the heart in a way that can’t be dismissed as a child’s words.
“…I’ll work hard to continue being that way. I want to say thank you once more. Well then, have fun playing.”
‘What a shame.’
How great it would have been if he could have captured that moment on video.
The H&M US West Coast Branch Manager who patted Johann’s head turned around.
This wasn’t the time. He needed to quickly instruct his secretary to push for an exclusive contract.
The ZARA US West Coast Branch Manager, who had been watching him leave, looks at Johann staring blankly and smiles awkwardly.
“ZARA is also a company that makes good clothes. Once you try them on, you’ll feel they’re on a different level from H&M.”
“Huh? Oh, yes.”
“If you ever have any difficulties, contact me anytime.”
After he also leaves his seat, having pressed a business card into Johann’s hand, Johann grins.
‘They were going to propose exclusive contracts, weren’t they?’
The more they compete, the higher the modeling fees will go.
He can decide after looking at the contract conditions then.
“Jo, Johann….”
“Oh, sorry. I’m sorry.”
“Hehe. It’s fine.”
“Can you continue?”
“There’s still a lot to teach your friend, isn’t there?”
As his mind awakens, as he realizes he’s still alive, vitality returns to his body that had been drooping like waterlogged cotton.
The Middle-aged Man straightened his posture, and Johann looked at Flash.
‘Watch carefully. And learn as much as you can.’
There were barely 30 minutes left until the scheduled lunch time ended.
‘Yes!’
Flash nods his head firmly.
Johann glanced at one spot and headed back to the mound.
“Well, I’ll be going.”
“See you tomorrow, Andy! Johann, is your arm really okay?”
“It’s fine.”
“…Hehe.”
Children who approach like a storm and disappear like a storm.
The Middle-aged Man in the wheelchair looks at the blue sky.
Strength drains from his body again.
But it’s a pleasant feeling of exhaustion, different from just an hour ago.
Click! Hiss!
“Phew. Even the cigarette tastes good.”
It feels like even the senses that had died, pickled in alcohol, have come back to life.
The Middle-aged Man looks at the spot Johann had glanced at earlier.
“Would you like to smoke too?”
Flinch!
There’s a rustling sound from behind the barrier that blocks external vehicles from entering, then a Young Man holding a camera stands up.
A Young Reporter who had been hiding, hoping the H&M and ZARA US West Coast Branch Managers might come to this back clearing, thinking it would be good even just to capture them smoking.
But he had witnessed something better, more amazing, and more moving than that.
“Ahem. I’m….”
“I’m in a mood where I want to share the emotions I’m feeling right now with anyone. Do you have time?”
“Here’s some water!”
The Young Reporter also took out a voice recorder.
* * *
The next day, in front of Fairmont School’s high school campus.
“You’re really saying they ignored your instructions in the afternoon too and acted on their own?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“Ha! They came to receive punishment and still did that….”
“They’re disrespecting our club. One of them will definitely be a jerk, and the other will become a loner like other Asian Students.”
Loner, a term referring to students who have almost no friends and only study. Mainly Korean Students or Japanese Students become such loners.
“What idiots.”
Fairmont School is basically a private school that advances in an escalade format. A format where you have to see friends you met from K-5 until high school.
“This is really pissing me off.”
It seems like they need to help those cute underclassmen come to their senses.
“What method would be good….”
The 11th Grade Male Student inwardly laughs at his friend’s menacing muttering and turns around.
‘How dare they disrespect our club?’
An 11th Grader who is active not only in the volunteer club but also in the club that produces the school newspaper.
No matter how young and ignorant they are, this is unacceptable. They need to be taught a lesson.
“Huh?”
Murmur murmur.
Those who had been gathered here and there look this way.
‘What’s going on?’
“Hey.”
A Woman approaches him.
“What, what?”
“Those kids you were in charge of yesterday. Did they really not listen and act on their own? Were their eyes strange too?”
“That’s what I’ve been saying several times….”
“Isn’t it your mistake?”
“Huh?”
“Look at this.”
Small heroes who helped the fallen veteran back to his feet.
Does everyone remember the name Andy Clark?
The name of the catcher who thrilled countless Dodgers fans with his incredible plays in 1988.
Witnessing that scene, I secretly shed tears.
Seeing the veteran, whose body was completely broken and could no longer dream, catch the ball thrown by a young child attending Fairmont School and rise to his feet.
Seeing the former hero take his stance as if he had returned to the past.
What kind of impact did the ball thrown by those children have on the veteran?
That story will continue in Part 2.
“Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”
The 11th Grade Male Student’s face turned pale looking at the prominently featured photo.
* * *
“Hmm.”
Johann and Larry’s heads tilt to the left.
“Hmm.”
Ada, Emily, and Johnny’s heads tilt to the right.
What they’re all looking at are two contract proposals placed side by side.
Exclusive model contract proposals from H&M and ZARA.
‘H-how many hamburgers could I buy with this money?’
It was such a large amount that even ‘The One Who Became a Star’ couldn’t calculate it immediately.
The Two Branch Managers had offered more money than Johann had imagined.
“Which one do you think would be good, Larry?”
“Well…”
If one side had better conditions, there wouldn’t be a reason to worry like this, but both companies had sent similar conditions as if they had conspired together.
H&M offered a 2-year exclusive contract with a $100,000 signing bonus and $80,000 annually.
ZARA offered a 2-year exclusive contract with a $90,000 signing bonus and $85,000 annually.
They even said they wouldn’t interfere with contracts for any products except clothing.
‘Why?’
Even though Johann was highly talked about, he was still a rookie model in the industry. This amount was too excessive.
“You said you met the two branch managers yesterday?”
“Yeah. We just exchanged greetings and parted ways.”
“Why is everyone thinking so complicated!”
Upon investigation, H&M’s US West Coast sales had risen significantly.
All the clothes Johann wore were SOLD OUT.
“Surely these companies must have planted at least one spy in each other’s company?”
This could be considered a natural result.
“Is that so?”
‘Has competition started?’
That’s why they sent such ridiculous contract proposals.
‘Then I can just pick either one here?’
Thinking that way, other desires arose too.
“If that’s really the case, couldn’t we… negotiate the contract a bit more favorably?”
“From here?”
“Even raising the pay by 50,000 would only be 10,000 dollars.”
“That’s true. Hmm.”
As Larry, Ada, and Johnny fell into thought, Johann looked at Emily. For some reason, she was pouting.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m disappointed. Rather than H&M or ZARA, Tommy Hilfiger would be…”
Tommy Hilfiger, a clothing brand at a similar level to H&M and ZARA. Though it had a slightly old-fashioned feel, she preferred Tommy Hilfiger’s designs.
And she envied Johann. Johann who was already being recognized as a model like this.
‘So I need to learn quickly too!’
Emily made a resolution, and Johann tilted his head sideways looking at her.
That’s when it happened.
Slam!
“He really won’t answer his phone!”
Johnny frowned at the Employee who burst through the door and immediately started getting angry.
“What’s going on that you come in without even knocking?”
“What’s going on! Larry’s son has caused another incident!”
All eyes turned to Johann.
Johann was also flustered.
“An incident? Me? …I don’t think so?”
‘Could it be that my sending the mail was discovered? That shouldn’t be possible?’
The Forged Ledger that got Beck Kurtz, the CEO of Star Model Agency, arrested. He had cleanly wiped away all fingerprints and DNA, and avoided CCTV too.
There was no reason to be caught.
“Of course it’s an incident! A very big one! Johann, did you throw a ball to a retired Dodgers catcher while volunteering yesterday?”
“Did you?”
“Uh… yes. But how do you…”
‘How does this person know? Could it be because of that person?’
The persistent gaze from behind the barrier that had only watched the Regional Managers. When the Regional Managers disappeared, the intensity of the gaze also lessened, so he had stopped paying attention.
But apparently he shouldn’t have.
“So why is that an incident!”
“Listen carefully! Thanks to the ball Johann threw, the washed-up catcher who was confined to a wheelchair regained the will to live!”
That heartwarming story was turned into an article and spreading like wildfire on SNS.
“So various companies are contacting us saying they want to use Johann as a model!”
People wanting to sponsor were making sponsorship offers, and companies that realized Johann was a model were making modeling offers.
Even a Local Radio Station in LA had contacted them.
If this wasn’t an incident, what would be?
“…Wow.”
That was the only word that came to mind for Johann and everyone else.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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