Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 123

125

“Have you ever done track and field before? Or are you involved in track and field?”

Bumseok answered Agelia’s persistent question without any hesitation.

“Well, I did track and field for a while. I even participated in city-level competitions. Well, I quit due to circumstances…”

She stood up with a bright expression and stood in front of Bumseok. She was so happy to have accidentally met someone who used to be a track and field athlete.

“If you participated in city-level competitions, you must be a modified human?” [Modified humans have enhanced physical capabilities.]

“Well, yes.”

“Which city-level competition did you participate in? What were your events? What were your best records?”

Bumseok scratched his head, looking embarrassed. If he revealed the details, there was a high possibility that his identity would be revealed. He had no choice but to mumble and answer.

“Well, it’s not a competition worth bragging about, and I just participated in the 200m and 400m. I didn’t place in the 400m, but I won the 200m.”

Agelia smiled brightly, her ears perking up. Even though it was a city-level competition, winning the 200m meant he was one of the top sprinters.

“Then you must have participated in regional competitions as well.”

“I didn’t go because of circumstances.”

“Why not? Originally, the top 3 in the finals go to the regional competition.”

“I know. But people have their own reasons. How can I explain them all? Just mind your own business.”

Agelia started to speak, but then closed her mouth. Not being able to participate in the regional competition even after winning the city-level competition meant there were unavoidable circumstances. There was no need to pry into other people’s private lives. If it was due to something bad, it would be a great discourtesy so early in their acquaintance.

“Ah, I see. I understand. I won’t ask anymore. But what brings you here?”

“Well, I just came out to exercise.”

She nodded. This place was not only the path for the Red Foxes team, but also part of the Ube City sports complex. So there were various sports facilities such as soccer fields and baseball fields under the jurisdiction of the city hall, and many citizens came out to exercise like this.

“I see. Then would you like to race with me? If you are a city-level 200m winner, you must have some skill.”

Bumseok shook his head, showing his reluctance. He knew all too well that he would lose. It had been over a year since he had practiced starts, and her agility was slightly better than his now. He would surely fall behind from the start and eventually lose as the distance widened. Although sprinting wasn’t his specialty, it was a blow to his pride to lose to someone he had beaten before.

“No. I quit track and field a long time ago. And the sneakers I’m wearing now aren’t professional spikes like yours. I’m just going for a jog.”

Agelia hurriedly rummaged through the bag next to her and took out a pair of sneakers. They were versatile sneakers commonly used by athletes. She really wanted to race Bumseok, who claimed to have won the city-level competition. From her current standpoint, it was difficult to easily find a competitor like him to gauge how much she had grown. There was no one in the team who had professionally trained in track and field.

“Then I’ll run with these on too.”

Bumseok frowned at Agelia’s persistent urging. It was a little difficult to refuse when he saw the earnest look on her face.

In the end, he took a long sigh, took off his hat, and stood next to her.

“Sigh~ Okay. Then only to the entrance of the outdoor parking lot over there.”

Agelia nodded as she looked at the place Bumseok pointed to. About 100 meters in that distance. It was just right for a short race. She smiled brightly and took a starting position next to him.

“But aren’t you going to take off your sunglasses and mask?”

“Well, I have an eye disease, so I can’t take off my sunglasses. I can go blind if I face the intense sunlight head-on. And there’s no reason to take off the mask. I don’t need to breathe that much during a 100-meter sprint anyway.”

It was an obvious lie, but Agelia nodded as if she understood. She connected the eye disease to his retirement from track and field, and knew that sprinters wouldn’t mess up their posture by breathing in a 100-meter race that ended in a matter of seconds, so the mask didn’t matter.

“Yes. I understand. Then let’s start.”

Bumseok, who coughed repeatedly, took a starting position next to her.

“How do we signal the start?”

“Just count to three and start. Then I’ll follow you.”

He chuckled. Agelia’s specs were better than his, but not by much. Moreover, giving the opponent the advantage of starting first in a 100-meter race was a big penalty. Overall, he was sure to win this race.

Bumseok steeled his resolve and began to count.

“One. Two. Three. Start!”

Bumseok, who jumped forward, took the lead by taking advantage of the early momentum. Agelia, who had been relaxed, realized that this was not going to be easy only after starting. He was running through the wind at an incredible speed, and she couldn’t close the starting gap. The distance was gradually narrowing, but overtaking in the short 100-meter section was almost impossible.

‘Who, who is he? If he has this much skill, he must have been a famous sprinter. Then there’s no way I wouldn’t know.’

She was confident that her current record would be enough to reach the finals in the Central Government Competition. But he had gained a slight advantage at the start, and he was ahead to the point where she couldn’t do anything about it. If he was such a person, there was no way she, who had been paying attention to track and field news, wouldn’t recognize him.

She soon thought of one person. Only a very small number of people throughout the world’s track and field belonged to this level of skill. Moreover, he was a modified human, which was rare for track and field athletes, and he even had black hair.

‘N, no way, it’s Bumseok. Then I can’t lose!’

Agelia gritted her teeth and put strength into her legs. What was the reason why she had been focusing on her training even while being conscious of the Red Foxes officials until now? It was because of Bumseok, who had defeated her in the 200m race at the Rima City Track and Field Competition last spring. At the time, she had done her best, but in the end, she lost to him by a huge distance. So, in order to compete with him again, she willingly transferred to this Red Foxes team, a professional gladiator team. Well, after coming here, she realized that it wasn’t easy, but unexpectedly, she had another chance today. Agelia quickly shook her arms back and forth and desperately chased after him.

The distance narrowed with each step forward, but the finish line was also getting closer. And just as they were almost shoulder to shoulder, Bumseok stopped running and stood in place. The 5 seconds needed to complete the 100 meters was only a fleeting moment. He arrived at the targeted parking lot entrance first, and Agelia had to taste the humiliation of defeat again.

“How is it? I won, right?”

Bumseok smiled brightly. Victory was sweet no matter when he experienced it, especially if the opponent was stronger than him.

Agelia, who saw this, jumped up and down in place, feeling wronged. It was because she had missed this opportunity to beat the opponent she had been aiming for with an earnest heart due to a moment of arrogance.

“This is invalid. Let’s run again!”

“There’s no such thing as invalid in a race. If you lost, admit defeat.”

“Bumseok hid his identity first. If I had known before running, I would never have lost!”

Bumseok stepped back slightly, startled. He didn’t know how she knew it was him, but he couldn’t let his identity be revealed now.

“N, no. Don’t say ridiculous things like I’m Bumseok.”

“Do you think I wouldn’t know even if you wore sunglasses and a mask? You said it earlier. You won the 200m race at the city competition, didn’t place in the 400m, and didn’t participate in the regional competition. There is no one else in this track and field world who has such a record, is a modified human, has black hair, and has this level of skill except for Bumseok.”

Since she said this much, Bumseok could no longer deny it. In the end, he gently lowered his sunglasses and looked at her.

“Hahaha. How do you know so well? I made a mistake.”

“There’s no way I wouldn’t know. I’ve always been running while looking forward to the day I beat Bumseok. So hurry up and run again. I’ll definitely win this time.”

That was something Bumseok would refuse. If they competed again, he would really lose. She had grown a lot in the year and a half.

“That’s not going to happen. Now that you know my identity, I can’t stay here any longer.”

“Why not?”

“I can’t tell you that either. I’ll run with you as much as you want later, so just be quiet for a while. Don’t tell your team that you met me.”

“If I don’t tell them I met you, will you run with me as much as I want?”

Bumseok nodded readily. If this transfer negotiation went well, she would become a member of the Gods Knights team and his teammate. He could compete as much as she wanted.

“Yes. So you must never pretend to know me even if you see me again. Got it?”

Agelia hesitated for a moment and then blinked slightly. He said she could compete with him again, so there was no way she couldn’t wait that long.

“Okay. Then when can we run together?”

“Well, it could be today or it could be a few days later. It depends on the situation, but I can promise you that it will be soon.”

After saying that, Bumseok slowly stepped back. Now that he knew that he would be caught even if he disguised himself, he thought it was better to stay away from her. This place was the Red Foxes team’s front yard, so he could be spotted by officials at any time, and the trade manager was scheduled to come to work soon.

Seeing him like this, Agelia pretended to warm up for a while and then walked back towards the team’s dormitory. She was a little sad that she couldn’t do her morning exercise today, but she could be comforted by the fact that she had the opportunity to compete with Bumseok again at any time.

“Oh, ho. Amazing. To think there were two people with such high-level running skills.”

Vincent, who had been watching their race from afar, rested his chin and expressed his surprise. It was because the running of a level that would be seen in the World League was unfolding right in front of him. There were two of them, and one was Bumseok, whom he knew well.

Clark, who was watching this scene with him, stomped his feet. He realized that his position was very wrong due to this main force battle. He knew that he was fast from the data screen, but he didn’t know it would be this much.

“Why is he, who likes to command with such fast feet, only doing vanguard and mid-tier! Shouldn’t he be the leader?”

“Well, that’s true, but it’s a waste to not use that swordsmanship in the leader position.”

Indeed, the leader gladiator played a role similar to that of a general in chess. He should not recklessly wield his sword and fight against the opposing team’s gladiators. However, the ultimate goal of the leader was survival. Excellent swordsmanship that could win in a confrontation with the opponent was also a virtue that the leader gladiator had to have.

“But isn’t the problem that it’s not common to have someone with excellent swordsmanship and fast feet? Don’t you know? The leader gladiator is more important than any other position.”

“That’s right. But why are you so concerned?”

“Because that kid is going to be on the national team. There wasn’t a suitable kid to take on the role of leader in our Avond national team, but if that kid takes on the leader, the rear will be very strong.”

Vincent looked at him with squinting eyes. The kid who was the leader of the current national team was a gladiator from the Dragon Knights.

“Why? Don’t you like our kid? Then just take him back to his team.”

Clark waved his hand, startled.

“No, that’s not it. There’s a better option, so let’s use it.”

“Are you talking about Bumseok?”

“Yes. Who else would there be besides Bumseok?”

Vincent pointed to Agelia, who was entering the Red Foxes training camp, and said.

“What about that kid?”

Clark looked at her with considerable interest. To be honest, Agelia was a little ahead when looking at running speed alone. You could tell by the way she narrowed the gap that had widened sharply after the middle of the race. He didn’t know what her swordsmanship skills were like, but he had to admit that she certainly had excellent qualities as a leader gladiator.

“Ahem. If swordsmanship skills and other abilities support her, she can be said to be a pretty good leader gladiator. But you can’t be a leader just because you have fast feet, can you?”

“What if she’s young and has very high potential?”

Then nothing else was needed. Even if she was lacking now, she could gradually grow and fill it in, so she could be said to be the best leader gladiator.

“Then she can be said to be a very outstanding leader gladiator. But are you sure she has excellent potential?”

“Of course.”

“No. How do you know that?”

“It’s simple. That kid was originally from Avond. She was a sprinter from Darwin Pharmaceuticals, and we tried to recruit her to our team two years ago because we were interested in her growth potential.”

“No, but why didn’t you recruit her?”

Vincent clicked his tongue. He was still regretting it to death just thinking about it. He rated Agelia’s growth potential so highly that he put it above Oscar’s.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

SK won again today. Is it still Gongmyeong [A famous strategist] even if he dies? Or is the old saying that the rich last for three generations true? Even though Yasin left, he still does what he has to do. On the other hand, I’m worried because Kia’s momentum has been broken. Anyway, baseball is most fun during the fall playoff season. Hehehe.

Then everyone have a comfortable day. I’ll see you again tomorrow.