Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 12

First Mission (1)

“The content is acceptable to this extent. But, you know…”

Kim Min-hwan, who had been reading the report, leaned back in his chair and straightened his posture.

“From now on, make sure the text is justified [aligned to both the left and right margins]. It’ll be easier on the reader’s eyes.”

“Justified? How do I do that?”

“Ha… You don’t know how to justify text?”

Kim Min-hwan slowly looked up at me, shook his head, and sighed deeply.

“I’ll give it a shot if it’s not too complicated.”

“Forget it, just leave it as it is.”

“Thank you.”

“That’s all. Now go get back to work.”

Kim Min-hwan gestured for me to leave, then turned to his computer and started working on something else.

Instead of leaving, I remained standing there.

Kim Min-hwan glanced at me.

“What are you doing? Still standing there? Don’t you have anything to do?”

“Well, I need Team Leader’s help.”

“You need my help?”

Kim Min-hwan stared at me in disbelief, then a slight smirk crept onto his face.

“Oh, come on. Tell me. Let’s hear what it is.”

“I have two things.”

“That’s a lot. Tell me one at a time.”

“First, please make a PPT [PowerPoint presentation] for me.”

“What? A PPT?”

Kim Min-hwan’s expression soured, and he asked, dumbfounded.

“Yes. I think I’ll have to give a presentation soon, but I’ve never made anything like that before. So, I’d like to ask you for that first.”

“Listen, Kang Hyun-woo. I’m your team leader. Why would a team leader make a PPT for a subordinate?”

Kim Min-hwan’s face turned red.

Regardless, I continued with what I needed to say.

“The CEO told me that all the work I do represents the CEO and the company.”

“What?”

“The work I’m asking for now isn’t as a subordinate. I’m asking for work that benefits the CEO and the company.”

“Haa…”

“And what if I, who doesn’t even know how to do it properly, make a sloppy presentation? Not only me, but our entire company will look foolish. From the team leader’s point of view, wouldn’t that be like spitting in the sky [doing something that ultimately harms oneself]?”

Kim Min-hwan repeatedly sighed, as if he wanted to argue but couldn’t find the right words.

“Hoo… What’s the other thing?”

“Please set up a meeting with the Buffaloes’ second-team manager.”

“Buffaloes’ second-team manager… You mean Lee Jin-won?”

“Yes.”

“Why with him?”

Kim Min-hwan tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand.

“I’m going to make a direct offer.”

“It’s not difficult to arrange a meeting. What are you going to talk about?”

“I’m going to convince him to trust Oh Seok-hoon.”

“Come on. Do you think the manager will trust him just because you go and have a few words with him?”

Kim Min-hwan looked at me and smirked.

“Or I’m going to ask him to trade him.”

“What! Trade?”

Kim Min-hwan’s eyes widened as if he had never expected that.

“Yes. If the team doesn’t give the player a chance to play, they should push for a trade.”

At my words, Kim Min-hwan looked dazed, as if he had been hit in the back of the head.

“I really can’t deal with you. If you go this time and say something like that without reporting to the CEO, you’re really in big trouble.”

“I know that much. It’s just that if it’s the worst-case scenario where communication is impossible, that could happen. I’m not saying I’m going to do it right away.”

As I answered nonchalantly, Kim Min-hwan pressed his temples and frowned.

“So, is the presentation you mentioned earlier for Lee Jin-won?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Hoo… That won’t be easy.”

“Please take care of it.”

As I bowed, Kim Min-hwan asked again with a dumbfounded expression.

“What should I make it about?”

“It’s simple. Just show that Oh Seok-hoon has the best stats when he plays as a right fielder, and that he is competitive enough compared to other players. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“You’ve collected all the necessary data, right?”

“Of course. I brought it all.”

I took the data out of my bag and put it on Kim Min-hwan’s desk.

Kim Min-hwan, who was flipping through the data, asked with a sullen expression.

“What is this?”

“What do you mean? It’s the data I’ll use for the presentation. It took me a long time to organize it. But I did it meticulously, so it should be enough.”

“But, don’t you have an Excel file of this, besides the printed one?”

“What’s Excel?”

Kim Min-hwan opened his mouth wide and froze.

“Don’t tell me… Do I have to enter all this manually?”

“Do I have to enter it separately? I don’t know how to do that.”

“Haa…”

Kim Min-hwan sighed as if the ground was sinking.

It was as if he wanted to ignore the reality in front of him.

“Can I get it by tomorrow morning?”

“Hey, Kang Hyun-woo!”

* * *

“Ugh- It’s so hot.”

Hot summer, 1 p.m.

Even sitting in the stands, sweat was dripping from my face and back, so how much more would the players who had to play under the scorching sun sweat?

According to the regulations, the second team can also move the game time to the night, but it was difficult to realize.

This is because there were many second-team stadiums that did not have lighting facilities at all.

The Buffaloes’ home stadium had lighting facilities installed, but the game was still scheduled to start at 1 p.m. to match the game times of other stadiums.

I sat in the corner of the stands and opened my laptop.

But today, I couldn’t find Oh Seok-hoon’s name in the starting lineup at all.

It seemed to be because of the run he gave up due to a throwing error in the last game.

I could once again feel the cold-hearted style of manager Lee Jin-won, who does not give opportunities to players who make mistakes.

Oh Seok-hoon, who was out of the lineup, and other teammates were warming up by playing catch.

After a while, the game between the Buffaloes and the Vikings began.

They were two teams that were doing well in the Futures League (second league) recently.

It was expected to be a tight game because the skills of the starting pitchers of both teams were not very different.

Walk.

Walk.

However, the Buffaloes’ starting pitcher was shaky from the beginning due to poor condition.

He looked uneasy and allowed the opposing runners to get on base with walks, and then allowed occasional long hits, and the score gradually increased.

Thud!

“Go, go!”

“Waaa-”

Tans [exclamations of excitement] erupted from the Vikings’ dugout.

Eventually, a player who is considered a promising prospect for the Vikings hit a grand slam in the top of the third inning.

The Buffaloes’ starting pitcher stared blankly at the ball flying out of the stadium and eventually sat down.

The gap, which had been gradually widening, widened significantly with one grand slam.

Then, manager Lee Jin-won jumped up from his seat and went inside the dugout and did not come out for a long time.

By the end of the third inning, the score had already widened to an 8-point difference.

You never know until the end of baseball, but in a situation where the score difference is large, the strategy has to change.

Pitchers who had not received many opportunities until now appeared one by one.

Unexpectedly, the pitchers blocked the runs well, and the hitters started to catch up little by little, and the gap gradually narrowed.

Now that the possibility of a comeback was faintly visible, manager Lee Jin-won called the coaching staff and instructed them on something.

“Is he perhaps trying to give him a chance?”

I was hoping, but as expected, Oh Seok-hoon was not included in manager Lee Jin-won’s choices.

When the Buffaloes’ player was the last out, manager Lee Jin-won slammed the desk and got up from his seat and went into the locker room.

In the end, Oh Seok-hoon did not play until the end, and the Buffaloes, who failed to come back, also lost.

* * *

“Shoulders up, you idiot.”

“Haa… Why isn’t it working out?”

Oh Seok-hoon’s face, whom I met after the game, was full of worries.

“The opportunity will come soon. Don’t worry and just focus on training.”

“Will the opportunity really come? I don’t think the manager is even looking at me.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything.”

“Hoo… Thank you. I’ll work hard too.”

Oh Seok-hoon sighed deeply as if the ground was sinking.

“How’s the team atmosphere these days?”

“Team atmosphere?”

“What do the players talk about often, or what does the manager or coaching staff often emphasize to the players?”

“What do they talk about often? I don’t know.”

Oh Seok-hoon tilted his head and pondered for a moment.

“They have to do their best until the last day of the season. I think that’s the most common thing they say.”

“Is that all?”

“Yes. The team is doing well these days. But every time we have to narrow the gap with the first place, we can’t win by a narrow margin.”

What does this mean?

“Are they aiming for first place?”

“They won last year, so I guess they want to win for the second year in a row?”

Even in the Futures League (second league), rankings are counted according to wins and losses, but it was common not to be too concerned about the results.

This is because the Futures League itself focuses on nurturing players who will play on the first-team stage rather than the results that are immediately visible.

But they’re aiming for first place?

“Is it meaningful to win in the second team?”

As you know, the second team often gives up the victory in front of them to achieve the goal of nurturing players.

Some leaders even set a goal of losing 100 games to focus on player development.

“I don’t know what they’re thinking either.”

Indeed, there were many experts who questioned manager Lee Jin-won’s game management on a regular basis.

Weeing-

“Just a moment.”

I checked my phone and saw a text message from Kim Min-hwan.

-I made an appointment. Go to the manager’s office by 10 a.m. tomorrow.

Right tomorrow?

I don’t know whether to say he’s impatient or has a strong drive.

Anyway, it’s irreversible now.

The die has already been cast [a point of no return has been reached].

* * *

“Hoo- Hoo-”

Today, I felt more nervous than the day of my first-team debut or the agency interview.

‘I have to not only meet manager Lee Jin-won but also persuade him…’

Last night, I looked at the data Kim Min-hwan sent me dozens of times and practiced until late at night.

However, I kept getting nervous because I didn’t know if my persuasion would work or not.

I looked at the clock while thinking about what to say to be most effective, and it was 9:57.

Three minutes before the appointment time.

I wasn’t trying to go in exactly on time, but I took a moment to clear my head to relieve some of the tension.

How should I greet him?

Should I naturally offer a handshake first?

No.

Even though I came as an agent of a player, Lee Jin-won is a much older senior than me, so it might be rude.

Hello.

Good morning.

Long time no see.

Pleased to meet you.

I imagined what would be good as the first greeting and said it out loud, but everything felt a little awkward.

‘Let’s just greet him according to the atmosphere.’

Thinking that, I looked at the clock and it was exactly 10 a.m.

I couldn’t hesitate any longer.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I took a deep breath and knocked on the manager’s office door.

-Come in.

A dry voice was heard from inside.

Hearing that sound, I carefully opened the door and saw manager Lee Jin-won, who was getting up from his seat and walking towards me.

“Oh? Who is this.”

“Manager. Long time no see.”

Without any reward for practicing, my greeting got mixed up with manager Lee Jin-won’s greeting.

“What brings you here?”

“Yes?”

Moreover, I was embarrassed by manager Lee Jin-won’s reaction.

This is because I had not expected his completely unexpected expression and tone.