The Gates Opened on the First Day of Debut - Chapter 63

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Gate Burst Open on My Debut Day (63)
A brief rest period after the top of the fourth inning.
The game stood at 2-0, with our team holding a two-point lead.
‘I’m grateful to be on the same team as Kang Hae-soo.’
Just as everyone expected, Kang Hae-soo hit home runs in both of his at-bats, single-handedly accounting for both points.
Even at an amateur level, how could anyone hit a home run in every single at-bat?
This isn’t some superhero baseball manga protagonist.
“Chowol.”
As I sat on the bench resting, a fellow trainee suddenly approached and spoke to me.
“Be honest with me.”
“Yes?”
“You’ve played baseball before, haven’t you?”
It was a fair suspicion.
I’d been throwing well-executed breaking balls with impressive consistency, even if they lacked velocity.
But I was innocent.
I’d never formally trained in baseball.
“No way.”
I shrugged as I answered.
But the trainee who’d asked me narrowed his eyes, unconvinced by my response.
“That doesn’t make sense. How can someone playing baseball for the first time today not allow a single runner to reach base?”
“Is that really such a big deal?”
Another trainee who’d been listening to our conversation tilted his head and asked.
He seemed to be someone unfamiliar with baseball.
“You, you… are you serious? Of course it’s a big deal! Plus, there are people on the other team who played baseball until middle school….”
“I was just lucky, I guess.”
I brushed off the conversation, sensing it would drag on.
“Lucky? A complete beginner is pitching a shutout in his second game because of luck? Then what about our team’s pitchers? They’re professionals earning hundreds of millions, yet they pitch worse than amateurs….”
But the trainee who’d first asked me about my baseball experience continued muttering with slumped shoulders.
He was clearly a passionate baseball fan.
“Anyway, there’s not much time left now. Let’s give it our all and win for sure. Fighting!”
“Fighting!”
Thanks to how well the game was going, the team’s morale was excellent.
The bottom of the third inning—my turn to bat first.
“Huh? They switched pitchers over there.”
As I was preparing to step into the batter’s box, another trainee pointed at the mound and said so.
“They switched pitchers? Who?”
“Uh… uh? Did I see that wrong?”
“Why, who is it? Let me see too… huh?”
The trainees began murmuring among themselves.
With my helmet on and bat in hand, I confirmed the face of the new pitcher I’d be facing.
“He’s not pitching, right?”
I furrowed my brow as I confirmed the pitcher’s identity.
The new pitcher was none other than Jo Min-jae.
‘…So I said we shouldn’t have pitchers take the mound for fairness.’
And now he’s coming out as a pitcher anyway?
I twisted one corner of my mouth upward in thought.
‘Does that bastard have no pride?’
Honestly, whether Jo Min-jae pitched or not made no difference.
The only person on Our Team who could hit properly was Kang Hae-soo.
We were already ahead by two points.
As long as I didn’t make a fatal mistake, the game would end in our victory.
“What do we do now?”
But that was just my assessment.
My teammates were taking the current situation far more seriously than I expected.
“Should we change our pitcher too?”
The trainees glanced sideways at Kang Hae-soo.
Kang Hae-soo checked his catcher’s gear with an expression that revealed nothing of his thoughts.
“The one who broke the promise first is them, after all.”
“No. Chowol’s doing well right now. There’s no need to change.”
One trainee spoke with conviction.
I also opposed bringing Kang Hae-soo out as a pitcher at this point.
For Kang Hae-soo’s sake?
‘No, for the broadcast.’
Thanks to Jo Min-jae breaking the promise first, we’d been given absolution.
As a result, we could avoid some public backlash even if we brought Kang Hae-soo out as a pitcher.
But at the same time, Jo Min-jae would also gain a kind of immunity.
‘Kang Hae-soo’s skill is just too overwhelming….’
Hitting home runs at every at-bat was already absurd—and now pitching too?
I roughly predicted how the public would react.
“Wait, the game isn’t working? I’m the only one lagging lol”
‘You played baseball until high school? ‘What is a professional doing among amateurs?’
‘Time to slaughter some civilians~~~’
If Jang Hyuk-soo edited it to my liking, it would end there.
But if he didn’t….
‘I asked my cousin who plays baseball and apparently if you don’t know Kang Hae-soo from Haemun High School, you’re a spy?’
‘Shouldn’t the staff have stepped in first? Why are they dumping responsibility on a single trainee?’
‘I feel sorry for Jo Min-jae… It looks like he ended up falling all over himself after holding his gun alone ㅠㅠ But why did Kang Hae-soo quit baseball? ‘He throws it so well’
Whether Kang Hae-soo pitched or not, we had a high probability of winning this game.
But if Kang Hae-soo did pitch, our victory would be tainted by all manner of controversy.
“That can’t happen.”
“Huh? What did you just say?”
“No, that’s not it. May I share my opinion instead?”
The teammates who had been glancing at Kang Hae-soo turned their attention to me.
“I’ll continue as the pitcher. There’s no need to change.”
“But if they score….”
“We’re ahead by two points, so there’s no reason to panic. Of course, we could give up runs. In sports, there’s no such thing as ‘absolute’ or ‘guaranteed.'”
I am not invincible.
I’ve made countless mistakes, and I will make more.
But….
“I believe in Hae-soo.”
“Huh?”
I continued speaking while watching Kang Hae-soo, who had been lost in thought this whole time.
“He’s going to hit a home run off Jo Min-jae.”
Our eyes met.
Kang Hae-soo was still staring at me with an unreadable expression.
“Right, Hae-soo?”
After a brief pause, Kang Hae-soo gave a shallow nod and answered.
“Yes.”
* * *
Bottom of the 4th inning, Baseball B Team’s turn at bat.
Baseball D Team replaced their pitcher with Jo Min-jae.
Kim Chowol reached base on a walk as the lead batter, but the following batters struck out and grounded out in succession, ending the inning.
Top of the 5th inning, Baseball B Team’s defense.
Baseball B Team kept Kim Chowol as the pitcher.
Kim Chowol pitched well, but consecutive defensive errors allowed an extra-base hit.
The score quickly became 2-2, tied in an instant.
Bottom of the 5th inning, Baseball B Team’s turn at bat again.
Another chance to take the lead, but Jo Min-jae’s wall was formidable with his baseball experience.
Ultimately, the inning ended without a run.
The score remained 2-2, still tied.
The game went into extra innings to determine the winner.
Top of the 6th inning, Kim Chowol remained as Baseball B Team’s pitcher.
Kim Chowol, who had wavered briefly after giving up 2 points in the top of the 5th, regained his composure and struck out three batters in a row.
And finally, bottom of the 6th inning—Kang Hae-soo’s turn at bat.
‘Unlucky bastard.’
Jo Min-jae watched Kang Hae-soo swing the bat expressionlessly and thought.
‘That guy will never know in his lifetime why I quit baseball because of him.’
Jo Min-jae had started playing baseball in elementary school.
He had talent, and he worked hard at it.
Jo Min-jae was certain.
‘I can make it to the pros. No—I will make it to the pros!’
But in his third year of middle school.
Meeting Kang Hae-soo at the Presidential Cup Tournament shattered Jo Min-jae’s dreams and future into pieces.
In that game, Jo Min-jae stepped up to the plate three times.
And all three times, his bat couldn’t even graze Kang Hae-soo’s pitches.
‘Strike, you’re out!’
Jo Min-jae awakened to a cruel and merciless reality.
His talent was commonplace, scattered everywhere like dust, while Kang Hae-soo’s talent was the ‘real talent’ that worked in the pros.
‘But you quit baseball.’
Kang Hae-soo’s extraordinary talent ultimately never bloomed and withered away.
A talent that never flourished is worse than having none at all.
Jo Min-jae with his mediocre talent, and Kang Hae-soo who never fully blossomed… they’ve both come full circle to stand in the same place.
‘First pitch.’
Jo Min-jae exchanged a glance with the catcher.
No matter how much inferiority Jo Min-jae felt toward Kang Hae-soo, he’d always been good at ‘reading the room.’
“Ball!”
Jo Min-jae’s pitch sailed wide, called a ball.
Kang Hae-soo’s eyebrows twitched at the plate.
And the second pitch.
“Ball!”
The second pitch also went wide, called a ball.
Despite the reduced velocity, Jo Min-jae displayed perfect control.
The Baseball B Team side would soon catch on to Jo Min-jae’s strategy.
‘A direct confrontation? Why would I do something so stupid.’
Kang Hae-soo had hit a home run from every at-bat so far.
Already fooled by the same tactic several times, and he’d still go for a direct confrontation?
‘Even if I lose the game, I can’t lose to Kang Hae-soo.’
Jo Min-jae threw the third pitch.
This one too would sail wide and be called a ball, but….
―Crack!
Gasp!
Everyone held their breath.
The ball struck the underside of Kang Hae-soo’s bat with a sharp sound, flying toward the right of first base.
“Foul, foul…!”
You crazy bastard!
Jo Min-jae barely swallowed the curses threatening to spill from his lips.
‘Stay calm, stay calm…. I still have the advantage.’
The two batters before him had struck out, leaving two outs with no runners on base.
If I just walk Kang Hae-soo and strike out the next batter, the game will end in a tie.
‘Throw it where he absolutely can’t hit it!’
The third pitch sailed completely past the catcher.
Kang Hae-soo didn’t move.
Instead, he tilted his head slightly to the side, his eyes alternating between the rolling ball and Jo Min-jae.
It seemed like he was thinking, ‘Is that all you’ve got?’
‘That bastard….’
Jo Min-jae swallowed the fury boiling up inside him.
This was already the third ball.
If he threw just one more ball and walked Kang Hae-soo, the victory would be Jo Min-jae’s.
But the game wasn’t unfolding according to Jo Min-jae’s plan.
―Crack! Crack! Crack!
Foul, foul, another foul.
Kang Hae-soo, whose momentum had suddenly shifted, began cutting every pitch Jo Min-jae threw.
Even if he threw the ball into thin air, he somehow managed to make contact with the bat.
‘Is that bastard seriously trying to hit a home run against someone intentionally throwing balls?’
How little did he think of me….
My breathing grew increasingly ragged, and muscles strained from overuse after so long began to twitch and spasm.
“Haa….”
The image of Kang Hae-soo from the Presidential Cup Tournament flashed through my mind.
Kang Hae-soo throwing threatening pitches with an expressionless face.
Me desperately trying to hit something, anything, only to strike out in the end.
“Please… just take it easy!”
Jo Min-jae threw another pitch—he’d lost count.
A ball that looked to be nearly 130 kilometers per hour flew straight toward the center of the catcher’s glove.
And Kang Hae-soo….
―Crack!
He sent the ball flying far.
Beyond the reach of the outfielder’s glove.
Kang Hae-soo casually tossed his bat aside and began jogging slowly around the bases.
“Wow! Amazing, amazing, Kang Hae-soo!”
“We won, we won!”
The trainees sitting on the Baseball B Team’s bench jumped to their feet and embraced each other in celebration.
After touching all the bases and returning to the bench, Kang Hae-soo pushed through the crowd of trainees and scanned the area.
Upon spotting the person he was looking for, Kang Hae-soo strode directly toward him.
“Kim Chowol, hyung.”
Kang Hae-soo stopped in front of Kim Chowol and extended his fist as he spoke.
“I hit the home run as promised.”
Kim Chowol looked at Kang Hae-soo with a bewildered expression.
Then, as if he had no choice, he chuckled softly and bumped his fist against Kang Hae-soo’s.
“Yeah.”
Final game result: 3:2.
It was a victory earned by Kang Hae-soo’s walk-off home run.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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